The Many Lives of Stygian

by _Moonshot

To Die

Stygian squinted against the harsh rays of the sun. It was bright, maybe too bright, but it was a beautiful day nonetheless. As Philomena perched on his shoulder, he idly hummed to himself, stepping outside and locking the door behind himself.

He squinted in the distance, making out the farmer’s market where ponies bustled around, shoppers chatting with vendors as they bought their week’s groceries. Stygian headed toward them.

Along the way, he felt the eyes of passersby. He shrugged it off, reaching up to give Philomena a quick pat. “Don’t worry,” he said. “Ponies around here are used to this by now. In fact, this is probably a welcome sight, given all the chaos that happened while Princess Twilight was around.” That was more than true—ponies knew about Stygian’s past, but they also knew that he helped when he could, volunteering to help those in town in need.

Philomena chirped in response, shifting her weight. A moment later, her eyes narrowed and she began looking around.

At the same time, Stygian felt something twinge inside his gut, like an uncomfortable weight. He turned his head to the left and felt a sudden need to travel down the pathway that stretched out.

So, he did. As Philomena continued to turn her head back and forth, he altered his route, walking slowly, then quickly down the well-trodden road as the weight in his gut increased. It pulled harder and harder, until he began to sweat and his breath became short.

He smelled smoke and looked up. There, in the distance, a building was burning.

Stygian broke into a trot, then a gallop, charging toward the raging flame. Somewhere along the way, Philomena flew off his shoulder with an indignant squawk, but he paid it no mind. As the building came into focus, Stygian coughed at the acrid fumes, gazing with wide eyes as the fire flickered and roared in the wind, an enraged monster relentlessly assaulting the wooden structure.

Heart pounding, he stopped at the front, approaching the panicked mare standing there. “Miss, has the fire department been called? Is—”

“Y-yes!” she cried. “Th-there’s ponies in that building! Two of ‘em: my sister and—”

Before he even realized it, Stygian pounded through the door, avoiding the searing flames that ravaged inside. In the smoke, he made out a shape and charged relentlessly toward it. “Quick, I’ll guide you out of here,” he wheezed. “The path to the entrance is safe; I’ll cover you. Stay low to the ground so you don’t inhale the smoke.”

The mare nodded with worried eyes, wordlessly following after him. Gritting his teeth, Stygian shuffled as fast as he could while crouching, ignoring the roaring and the heat and the crashing of wooden beams collapsing above him.

They reached the door and both ponies lept out, gasping for air. The mare outside quickly ran to her sister, then turned again to Stygian. “Th-th-there’s my son still on the second floor! My baby!”

Stygian nodded quickly and charged back inside. He located the stairs and began to climb, before howling in pain. He clutched at his hoof that had been burned from the scorching ground.

He grit his teeth and yelled at the top of his lungs, sprinting up the stairs, burning be damned. At the end of the hallway was a foal’s bedroom, presumably the son’s. He crossed the hallway, threw the door open, and gasped.

The colt was standing at the corner of his bed, mouth open and paralyzed in shock. Around him, the unremitting fire burned, spitting angry flames in every direction.

Tears formed and evaporated in Stygian’s eyes as he ran as close as he could. “You gotta jump, kid!” he called, enduring the pain. “It’s the only way. I’ll catch you, I promise.”

The colt shook his head no, but another burst of fire changed his mind. He leapt into Stygian’s waiting hooves. Together, they ran for the hallway, keeping low, Stygian leading the way.

From the ceiling, there was a crack. Stygian looked up too late to see the collapsing rafters. As they landed on him, he wheezed, all air escaping his lungs.

Beside him, the colt stood paralyzed again. “Get out of here, now!” screamed Stygian. “I’ll… I’ll catch up to you, okay?” As the colt turned away and ran, Stygian struggled against the heavy wood to no avail. Slowly, painfully, the fire began to creep toward him.

And as he pleaded for somepony to come to his aid, the fire reached him. He screamed in agony as it spread to his tail, then his withers, then his entire body. As it consumed him, he looked up at the newly exposed ceiling, reaching for the light. The sounds began to fade into a dull throb as his vision became blurred, and he fell with an echoing thud to the ground.