The Trials of Shmarity: an Ogres and Oubliettes Story

by TheMessenger

42. Old Enemies Arise

42. Old Enemies Arise

Selune started to scowl as she stared the chamber’s entrance with her eyes aglow. “I might not have noticed their presence had it not been for the horrible disturbance they are now making.“

Rarity tried to come up with who these others could be. Athkatla perhaps, she knew of the temple’s location after all, but from Rarity’s short time with her, the adventuring archeologist seemed too careful and prepared to be a cause of a sudden disturbance. If she had to be honest, that sounded a bit more characteristic of the school of necromancy, but Rarity was under the impression that the barrier blocking their undead servants left them largely unenthused, hence having to send her here in the first place in their stead. Maybe studying the spell Rarity retrieved had generated enough interest for the school to move past this obstacle, but the timing of this potential expedition was peculiar, her meeting with Dean von Zarovich having been only a couple of hours ago at most.

“Who are they?” Rarity asked, her own list of potential suspects exhausted.

“Their identities elude me, and I do not recognize their affiliation, but I sense a great malevolence, a corruption that is deeply rooted in their hearts. I can see that theirs is a lot of ill intentions.” The look the alicorn had on was a grim one. “They darken the halls with whatever vile purpose they have for being here, and they draw ever nearer.”

At this, Rarity’s hoof instinctively went to the hilt of her dagger, but she stopped short of drawing and readying the blade. “Are they hostile?” she asked, hoping that there would be no need for it.

“Most certainly so,” answered the alicorn above her with a conviction that dashed any hope of there being a perfectly peaceful encounter. “But do not be afraid for as long as you are here with me, you shall be safe.”

Slowly, Rarity loosened her grip on her weapon as she took comfort in Selune’s declaration. The alicorn hadn’t exactly done anything to inspire confidence in her promise of protection, and if anything the last few minutes the two of them had shared was an embarrassing display of her incompetency as a goddess, but there was something about the her presence that had a soothing effect on Rarity. It might have had to do with how similar her appearance was to Princess Luna’s, or perhaps it was because of the immense size of the deity’s form, but whatever the reason, being within her vicinity had caused Rarity to calm down despite the unsavory characters prowling about right outside.

As time passed, however, Rarity grew restless from the waiting. The constant hum coming from the alicorn’s projection lost its subtlety and had crept onto Rarity’s nerves while her eyes eventually tired of the color black. Her patience was quickly thinning, and she started to wonder if this passive waiting for the problematic individuals to finish whatever they were doing and leave was truly the best plan available to her.

“Are they still here?” It was a question Rarity had since lost count of how many times she had asked.

“Yes,” the alicorn answered, the same answer she had given every other time. Then, after a brief pause, she added, “They are now on the other side of this portal,” and pointed to the lavender curtains in front of them.

“Oh.” Rarity again reached for her dagger and looked to the alicorn for additional guidance. Selune remained silent, and her expression was blank and unreadable as she continued to stare at the curtains ahead. Was that a good sign, this lack of emotion? Rarity’s dagger left its sheath, just to be prepared, and with her breath bated, she turned to watch the entrance as well.

The next few minutes went by without anything happening. The room stayed quiet and still, the curtains they were so fixated on didn’t even stir. Another minute passed, and Rarity lowered her guard to the point where she could resume her normal breathing. Then, just as she was opening her mouth to request another update, Rarity heard a soft crackle. The purple drapes started to sway, and as they did so, they revealed the cracks forming in the wall behind them. Bright light streamed through the growing fissures, and the entire chamber seemed to shake. Something suddenly grabbed hold of Rarity and pulled her to the back of the room, and through the alicorn’s outstretched wings she watched the fracturing wall burst open with a deafening boom and make way for a great ball of fire.

There was neither time nor room to dodge the explosion. Desperately, Rarity threw herself to the floor and flung her forelegs over her head. Some small bits of debris bounced harmlessly against her body, and a fine blanket of dust covered over her, tickling the very tip of her nose and inciting a sneeze, but the incoming flames and the accompanying painful burning she had been bracing for were absent. Rarity opened her eyes and slowly raised her head to see Selune standing over her.

“Careful!” she heard some creature exclaim in a gruff, scratchy voice. “Master wants pony princess alive!”

“Yeah, yeah. You’re welcome, by the way,” answered a second voice, one that was far more pronounced and feminine and with a youthful carelessness. The smoke soon settled, and through the massive hole step in a mare in dark hooded robes and a silver mask over her mouth and nose that was in the shape of a snarling dragon’s snout. Beside her stood a hulking diamond dog in a shirt of chain mail covered in scorch marks and an old metal helmet on his head that looked as though it had been partially melted. More joined them, including a couple of additional diamond dogs in low quality armor, a smaller diamond dog wearing a light protective vest and a thick skullcap, an axe wielding skeleton that still had a full mane and tail of light lavender hair and a bright pink bandanna around its neck bone, its eye holes lit by pins of green glow, and finally a stallion built to be a workhorse, with toned muscles on his back, shoulders, and neck that were visible even through his tunic and protective barding. His eyes, which were sunken and ringed with shadows, fell onto Rarity after some searching and narrowed.

“There she is,” the stallion growled, jabbing a hoof at her prone position. Two of the armored diamond dogs started forward at the stallion’s statement, but down from on high came beams of light that shone upon the two large canines, and they froze in place.

”Foolish, unworthy mortals!” The voice of an angered Selune filled the area. The blend of languages became unbalanced as the Celestial echo swelled, giving the spoken words a frightening effect. The alicorn’s form grew to the full height of the room, and she suddenly ignited in brilliant blue flames. To Rarity’s side, a similar aura could be seen coming from mummy in the golden seat, and the eyes on that platinum replica of Selune’s face were emitting a bright blue glow. ”Thou dareth trespass on these holy grounds? Thou dareth stand in the glory of the Moonmaiden so blazenly and with an anathema to life itself in thy company?” Her glare fell upon the animated skeleton. ”Turn back now, while thy breaths are still thine to take!”

One of the dogs caught in the light managed to shake himself free and scrambled back to the exit only to find the way blocked by his comrades. The last diamond dog in chain mail left pointed a spear at his cowardly fellow. “Master said to get pony princess,” he growled, pointing the point of his spear at Rarity. “You disobeying master?”

The diamond dog sputtered for a
moment before he spun right around and charged right back toward Rarity who at this time had picked up both herself and her blade. She readied her stance, her heart thundering against her chest as the rest of the intruders started toward her, but before they even got halfway through the chamber, pillars of blazing white radiance swirled down on the first encroaching line. A series of screams and howls were let out and quickly cut short, and when the inferno faded, two of the larger diamond dogs along with the smaller one had vanished, and in their place were piles of ash and a few distorted metal rings.

The others, while all still in one piece, did not escape the conflagration completely unscathed. With hot steam hissing off their burns, the last of the creatures stumbled back, Rarity all but forgotten as their attention was now solely on the massive fiery alicorn towering over them. ”Do not try my patience further,” Selune commanded, her words causing the walls and floors to shake. ”This is thine final chance, leave this place at once, or face the same fate as thine companions.”

The group looked to each with a mix of anger, frustration, and worry. The mare with the dragon mask sighed, and holding her hooves up in surrender, she took a step back. Ignoring the glares coming from her allies, the mare made it to the entrance safely where she stuck a hoof into her cloak and produced a wand. “Dracoingnis!” she shouted with a wave of the wand, and from its tip came forth a streak of light that rocketed toward the throne.

A second explosion rocked the room and sent Rarity flying. She crashed into the wall and fell to the floor, and for a second her body was left almost entirely numb. The second that immediately followed however was complete and utter agony as the pain from the impact and the fire seized her, causing her to cry out and roll herself into a tight ball. Something slid along the floor and knocked against Rarity’s foreleg, which forced her into opening her eyes.

It was the platinum mask, its features now warped and beyond recognition, covered in the dust that the body it had been attached to had just been reduced to. Through tears and with her breath labored and a painful struggle, Rarity watched as the projection of Selune started to shrink. Her light flashed and dimmed, and slowly, as the alicorn shot Rarity one last, regretful glance, her form faded away, and all Rarity could do was reach out weakly and cough.

“No! What I tell you? Master—“

“Yeah, yeah, the Squizard needs Princess Shmarity alive,” Rarity heard the mare in the dark cloak say all nonchalantly, the mask covering her mouth giving her words an unsettling echo. “Look, see? She’s still breathing.”

A shadow fell over her. “Barely,” someone, it sounded like the sullen stallion if Rarity had to guess, said with an almost disappointed sniff. She heard movement and could now feel the creature’s hot breath against her blistering burns as they squatted over her. “Serves you right,” he whispered, his voice quivering with an unexpected hatred. “Making us come all the way here, getting me involved. I hope you’re really happy with yourself.”

“Help princess up,” the gruff voice belonging to the diamond dog commanded. “We leave now.”

“Hold on now.” There was the tapping of hooves, and the hem of the dark cloak came into Rarity’s view. The mare bent over, picked up the mask, and wiped it against the edge of her sleeve to remove the last trances of the its former owner. “Why the rush when there’s still so many goodies left to take? Be a waste not to chisel out some of that gold and platinum. And besides.” Rarity could hear the mare smirk even if her face wasn’t visible. “I don’t think Her Highness is going to be leaving us anytime soon.”

“No! No time for shinies. Just princess. Leave now!”

“Oh come now, don’t act like you aren’t tempted. I saw how you and your pals eyed those statues back there. Your master can wait a little longer.”

The two continued to bicker back and forth as Rarity felt something grab hold of her shoulders and none to gently. “Get up,” she heard the large stallion growl, and when she took too long to rise, his grip tightened and he forcefully pulled her up onto her feet. That’s when Rarity’s dagger, still clutched within her hoof’s hold, flashed forward and slashed across the stallion’s gaunt face. His screams interrupted his companions’s ongoing argument as he let Rarity go and held his face.

“You!” The stallion grabbed wildly at Rarity with a hoof as with the other he continued to grasp at his wound. Thinking quickly, Rarity pushed him back and stumbled out of his reach. The stallion swiped at her again, but Rarity ducked around the now empty chair of opulence and pulled out a red vial from her cloak. With a bit of effort, she snapped off the stopper and gulped down the red liquid, and as the pain faded and strength returned to her limbs, Rarity readjusted her grip around her weapon.

“I’ll get you for this!” the stallion hollered. There was now a red line running vertically across one of his eyes and down along his cheek. He struggled with his own weapon for a moment before throwing the scabbard off his short sword in frustration, sending it clattering loudly on the ground. He swung but only succeeded in striking gold as Rarity again hid behind the partially melted throne.

“Dang it,” he grunted, fighting to free the blade from the semi-molten metal. “Dang it all! This is all your fault!” Seeing that the task was futile, the stallion gave up on the sword and left it stuck in place. He pulled a dagger of his own and stalked around Rarity’s cover while Rarity in turn circled around to keep the throne between herself and him. “If you hadn’t shown up and gotten the village involved,” he snarled, his hurt eye swelling and turning red, “if they had all just listened to me, we should’ve just captured you and given you up when we had the chance!”

“Village?” A look of recognition flashed over Rarity’s face as she stared at her enraged assailant’s own, his tired, thin features a poor match to his burly body and impressive build. “Wait, you’re—“

Muscular, fuzzy, pungent arms suddenly wrapped around her, and before Rarity could react, she was lifted high off the ground. Her dagger slipped out of her grasp and out of her reach, and as she kicked and screamed and wiggled with all her light, the snare tightened its hold on her. Rarity gasped as what belligerence she still had was painfully squeezed out of her.

“No more,” the diamond dog huffed into her ear, causing her to nearly gag from his foul breath, before he turned to the approaching stallion who still had his dagger out and pointed at her. “Put that away,” he ordered. “Get chains. Tie princess up. Then, no more fight.”

The stallion grumbled and muttered curses through gnashed teeth, but he stuffed his dagger back into his shirt and walked over to the side to rummage through his pack. “And you!” the diamond dog growled, turning both himself and Rarity to the hooded mare. “Master put Duke in charge. Then Duke bought it, so Max in charge. Max gone too, so now me in charge. Me!” To emphasizes, he stomped his foot hard on the last word, a motion which jostled Rarity and sent her shaking in her captor’s meaty arms. “Me in charge, so ponies listen to me, and me say leave now! So magic pony be quiet and hurry and get teleport scroll ready or else!”

There was no retort from the mare in the silver mask, but neither did she move to obey. The dog in charge growled, and with Rarity still tightly bound in his arms he took a clumsy step toward her. “Me said—“

The mare shuddered, and as she pitched forward, her hood slipped off, revealing a head of short, spiked saffron hair and a pair of Xs over her eyes. An axe head was buried deep in the back of her head, and standing over the latest lifeless body was the axe’s owner, the hollow holes that served as their eyes now emitting a bright blue light instead of the previous sickly green.

“What the, hey!” The stallion jumped up and looked to the diamond dog. “What the heck going on here?” His eyes narrowed as he tossed away his pack and brandish his knife. “Did you make that, thing do that?” he demanded.

“What? No! Me no control bones. Bones is under master’s control. Master must have, hey!”

The canine’s grip had loosened from the shock of the skeleton’s apparent betrayal, and Rarity seized the chance to slip out of his arms and dropped to the ground. She quickly found her dagger and swung it at the diamond dog’s unarmored shin. It wasn’t much of a strike, and the curved blade didn’t get very far, but it gave Rarity time to stand up and create some space between her and the diamond dog as the thug yelled out, more out of surprise than of pain really, and reach down to where Rarity had cut him.

She dashed over to the exit, but the stallion was faster and caught her by the end of her cloak as she was passing by. “End of the line, you royal pain in the rear,” he said lowly, pulling her close. He grabbed Rarity’s foreleg and twisted it painfully until she cried out and released the weapon she had just retrieved. “Now you’re going to be a good little prisoner, you’re going to stay in whatever cell or tower they have in store for you, and you’re going to let the rest of us. Live. In. Peace.”

“You, you’re from Elder Woods’s village, aren’t you,” Rarity gasped, blinking back tears. “It’s, Rowdy, isn’t it?”

“Oh, so the great Princess Shmarity remembers my name.” Rowdy let out a bark of mirthless laughter. “Guess I should be flattered, huh?”

“Why are you doing this? Is this what you really want, to be working under that vile tentacled tyrant?”

Rowdy scoffed. “It’s the best I can get. They showed up to our village a few days after you came and went, and now there’s nothing left of it.“

Rarity froze as her blood turned to ice, and for a split second, she was back in Farm Right’s cottage, sitting at the kitchenette table with a bowl of Hearth Stead’s stew in front of her and young Harvest at her side chatting away. “The village, is gone?”

“Yeah, because of you. Now I’ve got nothing else to lose.” There was another round of forced chuckles that were lacking in any humor.

“I’m sorry, Rowdy, truly,” Rarity said, her voice soft and tone gentle, “but this isn’t the right way, and you know it just as well as I do. You don’t have to do this. Please, let me go. I can save the heroes, bring them back, and with them we can put an end to the Squid Wizard’s reign of terror. Isn’t that all you want, to live in peace and without fear?”

The stallion’s whole body tensed as he hesitated, and Rarity caught the glint of regret that flickered across his face. It seemed as though her words were starting to reach Rowdy, but he shook his head furiously, and when he turned back to face her, any hint of doubt Rarity might have spotted was replaced with anger. “I know what you’re trying to do,” he hissed right into her face. “Well you can’t trick me. You couldn’t the night you first arrived and you won’t now. So make it easier on yourself and on me and shut up. Got it?”

Rarity sighed and lowered her head. She drew in a deep breath to steel herself then smash the top of her forehead right into the stallion’s soft, vulnerable nose. Not the most elegant maneuver, perhaps, but the situation called for a less than ladylike approach, and with Rowdy relinquishing his hold over her foreleg, Rarity couldn’t argue with the results, even if it did leave her forehead slightly sore. She extended out her hooves into one last shove and sent the stallion staggering back into a great geyser of flames that suddenly erupted, and Rarity could only watch in wide-eyed horror as Rowdy’s silhouette writhed and twisted within the inferno along with a second contorting shadow. Their screams filled the air for a good couple of seconds before tapering off and becoming silent.

The flames vanished, and out stumbled the charred, barely recognizable bodies of Rowdy and the large diamond dog before both collapsed and crumpled before Rarity’s eyes. The skeleton stood directly behind them with a bony foreleg held up menacingly, its lavender mane flowing almost fluidly in some nonexistent breeze. It turned its glowing eye holes toward Rarity as it lowered its bleached white hoof and took a step forward, to which Rarity answered by taking a nervous step back. Its skull tilted slightly to one side, and it tried taking another step only to freeze mid motion as its entire body started to shake and rattle violently then fall apart. The walking equine anatomy lesson dropped like a puppet whose strings had just been snipped, and various sorts of bones were strewn throughout the room with a noisy crash.

The head rolled over to Rarity, the lights of its eyes continuing to stare up at her as she jumped back to avoid it. The lights followed her every step, her every motion, but the rest of the skeleton remained inert. Still, it took several seconds to pass in peace before Rarity could allow herself to drop her guard and retrieve her dagger. She could still feel the skull’s gaze upon her as she slid the blade into its sheath and put it back in her cloak’s inner pocket, but by now her curiosity was beginning to rival her uneasiness. Astonishing though it was to say and more difficult yet to even believe, the skeleton had saved her from its former allies, though why it did so and how it had produced those flames were a mystery that Rarity had no clue how to approach. And then there was that odd effect on its hair, the way the mane moved that was strangely familiar.

Rarity wasn’t completely sure why she brought her hoof to the skull, maybe her curiosity had simply driven her to get a closer look, maybe she was planning on bringing it to the school of necromancy so that they could better explain the whys and the hows, maybe there was just something compelling her to do so, but the moment she brushed against bone, the mane waved wildly like flickering flames caught by a powerful wind. It started to glow with the same light streaming from its eye sockets, and Rarity watched as it grew and began to form shapes, simple and poorly defined ones at first like messy globes and the like, but eventually, the outline of a mare became discernible. Details and even differing shades of color were gradually added in until at last the form of a familiar alicorn had returned to the secret sanctum, her eyes shining with the same light that had been coming from the skull’s.

“Selune?” Rarity said, pulling her hoof back. “Is that, you?”

The Moonmaiden glanced around the messy room before turning back to Rarity and nodding. “That it is, Princess Shmarity of Spiketopia.” Her voice, though it continued to reverberate with the mix of two languages being spoken in parallel, was no longer loud enough to shake the chamber walls, though Rarity suppose it made sense considering how much smaller her current form was compared to her last one. Right now, the alicorn wasn’t much larger than the average mare such as herself.

“So, um, ah.” Rarity cleared her throat. “I’m sorry, do you mind if I had some water?”

“Do what you must.”

“Thank you.” Rarity brought out her canteen. All that excitement really did leave her throat parched, but if she had to be honest, she really just needed something else to focus on other than the silly sight of the diminished alicorn sprouting out of a skull like some sort of decorative shrubbery being grown in a seasonal Nightmare Night novelty pot. After taking a few sips, she had restored her composure and could look to Selune with the same respect her previous form had unquestionably commanded.

“So,” Rarity began with one last quick appraisal of the alicorn before her, “I’m glad to see that you’re, as far as I can tell, no worse for wear, though it would be nice to know what exactly happened and how we ended up, well, here.” She motioned first to Selune then to the skull her form was attached to then finally, with a wide sweeping wave, to the rest of the chamber with its newest additions.

“Your confusion is understandable. I myself was uncertain as to how I was able to remain on the material plane, for it was by keeping the piece of my spirit Valmeyjar had been gifted with tethered to her body that her followers were able to maintain this direct channel to me.” Selune turned her gaze to the disfigured mask of platinum that laid beside the unmoving mare with the axe stuck in her head. “When the remains of Valmeyjar were destroyed, my ties to this world should have been severed, and this spirit should have returned to its whole. That is, unless, under the right circumstances, there was another nearby to whom I could attach myself, another being of the same blood and inheritance of Valmeyjar and with the potential to house my essence.”

The ailcorn stared down at the skull right below her, and it didn’t Rarity long to catch the implication. “Then that would mean that this skeleton, once belonged to a descendant of yours,” she said, quickly connecting the dots.

“Indeed.” The image of Selune shimmered, and for a brief second she lost her form, but it shortly returned before Rarity could begin to feel concern. “It is extraordinarily puzzling that I am able bind myself to an undead being such as this even if we were to consider the connection we may have shared, but that connection would explain how it managed to get past the protective wards that guard the catacomb’s entrance.” Her tone turned sour with contempt. “This Squid Wizard, the one who sent these fools after you, I know not if he knew of this mare’s significance and had her reanimated intentionally for this very purpose or if this was simply happenstance, but the fact that one of mine has been forced to become his abhorrent servant of darkness is a most troubling matter. My only solace is that this mare’s soul had departed for a better place long before her body was desecrated in this fashion.”

Her words shook from the storm of anger, sorrow, and a hint of disappointment that was in her speech, and for the next few moments, Rarity stayed respectfully silent as she looked down at the skull and let her gaze wander to the room’s newly opened exit. After some time, Selune sighed. “I see that you wish to ask me of something,” she said to Rarity.

“Ah. Well, yes, but I didn’t want to interrupt you while you were still processing this new development and not before apologizing.” Rarity bowed her head. “I can’t help but feel partially responsible for all this destruction. If it weren’t for my being here, none of this would have happened.”

“I cannot disagree with your assessment,” the ailcorn began, the irritation in her intonation speaking far greater volumes volumes than the words themselves, “but I do not hold you at all responsible for what has happened here. I am the one who offered you sanctuary, it would not be very becoming of me to put you in the same camp as those you seek sanctuary from. But it was not forgiveness you desired to ask of me, was it?”

“Well no, not quite. Earlier, before we were attacked, I believe you mentioned something suggesting that your powers were largely limited to this room, no?”

“That is correct.”

“And you also said that you were bound to the body of your, granddaughter was it?” Rarity let the alicorn nod in answer before continuing. “But now that you’re bound to, um, her,” she said with a gesturing to the skull, “what would happen to you if I were to remove her from this room?”

The blue lights winked out for a short bit as the form of Selune slowly blinked. The silence stretch on for a few seconds too long, leaving Rarity worried and wondering whether if something wrong had just occurred to the goddess. “I suppose that,” she finally declared before Rarity’s panic had gotten too severe, “as my spirit is now attached to her, I would be forced to come with.”

“And what of your magic? Would you still be able to use your power once you are outside like you had here?”

Again, Selune hesitated. “I, believe I should be able to, to a degree. Because the connection between myself and this mare is far weaker than the ties I had shared with Valmeyjar, my capacity for magic will be greatly reduced, hence this body’s loss of function following that final strike of radiance I had called down.” There was a pause before Selune turned and looked directly to Rarity who had to squint as the lights shined directly into her eyes. “I see now,” she said, her voice calm, steady, and betraying of nothing. “You wish to bring me along so that I may assist you in this quest of yours.”

“Only if you would allow me to, of course,” Rarity hurriedly assured. “I’m not so presumptuous that I‘d take you away from here against your will in order to impose more of my own problems onto you. But yes, I would be most grateful if it were you there personally to revive my friends and maybe even help us see that the vile villain who did all this is properly punished. Um, that is something you can still do, yes? Bringing a creature back to life?”

“As I am now, not on my own. Attempting such a feat while I am like this would undoubtedly fail and destroy what is left of this body along with any last ties I would have to the material plane. The activation of the spell scroll I provided you, however,” she added just as Rarity’s disappointment started to settle in, “would be no issue.”

“And, is that something you’d be inclined to do?”

Once more, the silence that ruled the room tested just how far Rarity’s nerves could be bent before snapping, and her inability to read the features of Selune’s new form and get even the smallest hint to the alicorn’s thoughts fueled her frustration and stress. “I have reached my decision,” Selune announced, but though the silence was finally broken, Rarity only grew more anxious with anticipation. “While I may now have a vested interest in your success, we gods do not directly intervene in the business of mortals unless under extraordinary circumstances. Considering all that has transpired here, I believe such circumstances have been met.”

Rarity would have let out a huge breath of relief at this had Selune given her the chance to do so. “Princess Shmarity of Spiketopia,” the alicorn immediately continued, “I find your arrangement agreeable and will personally see to it that your companions are brought back to life so that this blasphemous Squid Wizard is thoroughly and utterly vanquished from this world. This I swear to you, so long as you remain true to this goal and will not try to abuse the power I am lending you for any other purpose.”

Rarity nodded then bowed. “Thank you, Lady Selune. I truly can’t thank you enough for this, and I promise, I have no other intentions for you other than getting my friends back.”

“What I have already seen in your heart drives me to believe you. I only hope that your intentions do not change.” The form of Selune vanished, and the light returned to the eyes of the skull. “As for thanking me,” the alicorn’s voice continued, “see to it that evil is banished from your lands and that good flourishes, and I will be satisfied.”

As the last word finished ringing out, the blue light dimmed but did not go out completely, and Rarity noticed that the skull itself was emitting a faint glow and was very warm to the touch when she, after getting over her reluctance in touching the morbid thing, went to pick it up and carefully put the deity into her pack.

The irony was not lost upon her as she took the time to search the remains of her fallen hunters and displayed far less squeamishness in the act. The flames that had left the bodies of the diamond dog and Rowdy scorched didn’t spare much of worth outside a few still usable coins of copper, silver, and a single gold piece between the both of them. Rarity had significantly more luck rummaging through the cloak of the mare, where she found a much fuller, heavier wallet, her magic wand, a small sack of various gemstones, and a book, possibly a personal journal based on how small it was, that had three rolls of parchment sticking out from between the pages. She briefly thought of removing the mask of silver, but as a show of respect that the mare probably would not have bothered extending to her, Rarity ultimately decided to leave it be.

That was as much respect as Rarity could afford at the moment, and the corpses that were intact were dragged out of the sanctum and pushed unceremoniously against the wall between the jars and urns. Then, once she finished placing the platinum depiction of Selune’s features back on the gold throne and confirming the alicorn’s presence after crossing the inner chamber’s threshold, Rarity started her way back though the temple catacombs, past the swath of destruction and vandalism the intruders had left in their wake.