To Redeem The Sacred Beasts

by Dash Attack

Afraid to die twice

No Please, I don’t want to die! I don’t want to be like them! I have prepared for everything! But no matter how many traps and walls I build I can’t stop my fear of death! How much longer do need to prepare!!! Captain!!!

BANG!!!

Towering Fortress screamed as awoke from his nap. He was in the break area of the construction yard of which he worked. His body shook as he recalled that horrid nightmare.

Since the day he was born Towering Fortress had the same nightmare. It didn’t occur every time he slept, but when it did it would unnerve him for pretty much the rest of his day. Who wouldn’t get goosebumps dreaming about their own murder? You would think even as an infant unicorn, such a thing should have been inconceivable for sompony so young to imagine. At least… it would have been had Fortress’s nightmare not been a memory.

It was a memory of his past life, of his former world, and of his demise at the hands of his squad captain. Nopony else knew of this recurring nightmare, or of his memories that of other life. Since foulhood he deliberately kept it all a secret, taking on the pony name his earthpony mother had given him. Yet deep inside he kept his other name, though he could never utter it allowed.

Theodore Sherman, the cowardly human boy from Rougehill. The one who foolishly joined the Northern Patria Union military and became a super soldier know as an Incarnate! Together, he and his squad mates brought the civil war to an end, but at the cost of their human forms. For a time they were regarded as war heroes, until their inner humanity also began to erode. After that they were nothing more than beasts and monsters to the people and were put down.

“Fortress get your flank back to work right now!” shouted his boss from somewhere. “I need you back on that scaffold asap!”

Shit!

Theo shook his head and ran out of the breakroom as fast as he could. As Theo ran past his boss he lifted up his hand and saluted the grumpy earthpony.

“I’m right on it boss!”

Turning a corner he approached the scold and ignited his unicorn powers to secure the cement he needed to lay down the next brick.

He was always good at building things, even in his old life. His Cutie Mark – a depiction of a stone castle – was proof of his building prowess both in this reality and the one before.

He worked for several hours until pretty much everypony had gone home for the night. After having that dream again, building would kept him at ease. Something from the past just never change. However, it was getting late so as the sun began to set he got off the scaffold. What he didn’t expected was the group of hooded ponies that had entered the construction site.

Theo blinked, not confused as to who these strange ponies might be? All seven of them had their faces blocked by their purple robes, yet he could tell most of them were unicorns like himself because of the horns, but there were at least two that didn’t have them.

“Sorry guys but the Nightmare Night is next week, and their certainly no parties happening at this dump.”

The figures stood silent, not even a half chuckle came from their mouths. It was that same silence that told him that these ponies meant him harm, but eventually one of them did speak.

“Towering Fortress! We believe you to be a being of great power, and humbly ask that you come with us… by force if necessary.”

Fuck, what could they could they possibly want? Do these bastards actually know I’m from another world?

Once again, the fear of death returned… but he knew he couldn’t give into it even as the hooded figures drew pistols and pointed them at him.

“What do you mean!” he shouted. “I’m just an average unicorn with standard practice in magic. I have no ‘power’!

Their leader chuckled.

“We know you’re an Incarnate,” He said boastfully as if he were exposing a criminal. He pressed his gun to Theo’s temple. “You can no longer hide that truth. We of The Dark Church of Sombra have peered through the fabric of space and time and have tracked you down! You can hide from us no longer, Incarnate Minotaur.”

They are going to kill me! I need to transform! I need to unleash my power!

Thoughts of massacring these creeps with nothing but brute muscle and that steel beam lying a few feet away from him flooded his mind. The only thing stopping him being the memory of his battle with Captain Hank. He had always know he still had the power, but once he transformed he knew he’d be stuck as a minotaur forever.

I will die if I don’t transform! I need to crush them, just as a crushed those human’s during the war! I cannot die again!

No! He shouted internally. If I turn I won’t be able to turn back. I’ll just become a beast again and cause problems, then someone (or pony) like Hank will have to put me down again! Plus I might not get another life after this one!

“Come forward!” The leader demanded. “Come or we will take you unconscious. And if you transformed we are trained and prepared to counter you! It would be better if you cooperated!”

Theo sighed. There was absolutely no way out of this.

Then a miracle happened. Something caught his eye. He looked up and dangling above the cultists was a crane holding cement blocks. Without thinking he shot at it with magic and sent the blocks troubling towards the attackers. Some of them got hit and fell to the ground while others were able to catch the blocks in time with their magic. Either way it gave him the diversion he need to run past the cultists and out into the street!

As he sprinted he thought about where he could possibly go to hide. The obviously choice was to go to the police station, but his attackers would probably just disappear and try again if he did that. He needed to get out of town and find out who these ponies were and how they knew about his old life. As his mind and body raced saw a train pull up a station ahead of him. This was his chance! He ran, toss some bits to the station clerk, grabbed a ticket, and boarded without even looking where the train was headed. He thought he could see one of the ponies that chased him staring at his car, but at least he had gotten away for now.

“Next stop Crystal Empire!” One of the attendants announced as he took a seat, letting out a huge sigh of relief.

That is prefect, that place is super far north. It will be a great place to hide until I can figure out a solution.

That’s what he told himself at least, but in the pit of his stomach he knew he was only delaying the inevitable. Whatever The Church of Sombra was they found out things he had never told a soul his entire life as a pony. They will find him eventually no matter how far he traveled.

The old fear he thought he had under control was slowly coming back. He soon would become “Theo the coward” all over again. As a minataur after a child had pointed a toy gun at him, he had built a great fortress and just kept expanding and building it into the town of Rougehill. Many people lost their homes, and anyone who tried to reach him would die from numerous the death traps he had set. All this to calm fear that would never leave him. Fear that enemies were out to get him. That is, until Captain Hank the Werewolf Incarnate came and killed him.

No matter how this all ends, I’m going to die again!

-------

“My Prince, a body was discovered in the park.”

A white coated stallion wearing light purple armor turned to face the guard Captain.

“Who was the victim? “Asked the Prince.

“It was one the Sombra cultists, his eyes were clawed from his skull. Witnesses say a demon like creature with skin of stone was seen last night leaving the park.”

“Very peculiar,” Shining said quizzically as his mind went deep in thought. “Keep an eye out for any more cult members and if you see the creature your orders are to shoot on site.”

Author's Note:

Thank you all for reading. Please DM me any grammar and spelling mistakes you find. I'll correct them on my time.

I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. This series is based of the manga/anime To the Abandoned Sacred Beasts. Its got this great American Civil War aesthetic mixed with mythical monsters. To top it off its sad... I mean REALLY sad. The anime and manga have tons of discrepancies but the anime is more accessible. I however highly recommend the manga.

Our protagonist is one of the Incarnates the protagonists fights in the series. Incarnates were humans who turned into dragons, vampires, werewolves ect, at the cost of their human forms and sanity. Those slain in the show have been reborn in Equestria and history seems destined to repeat itself and thus a chance at redemption. Lets see how far I can take this idea given my track record with stories.

Also here is the opening because it is awesome.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8D1aBA7L2bQ