In Reflection, The Same

by Faedelaide

Speaking With Your Past

Cadance rushed out the door along with her ragtag group of defenders. Had she the option, Cadance would have taken an entire platoon of her finest soldiers along with her to the cabin. Unfortunately, Gillian's description of current events made the accruing of any large amount of soldiers nearly impossible. Twilight was in danger, held in the iron grip of an unkown danger. As such, this was a matter that needed to be dealt with as quickly as possible. Spending time trying to gather an army together might have been a safer option for her and the griffons, but Cadance didn't know what she'd do if some hulking beast ran off with Twilight in tow.

The group looked all around for the source of the noise. It wasn't difficult to deduce, however, as a rather large tree lay crushed on the edge of the protective bubble. She had felt it when it had made impact, but it still shocked her to see such a large tree tossed towards their cabin like a javelin. The creature was nowhere to be found though, which was both reassuring and terrifying.

"Gaine, Gaine! Where are ya?" Gelgen shouted into the sky, to no response.

Cadance turned to Gerret. Were it not for the tinge of red in his feathers, he would have blended in perfectly with the off-white sky. "Gerret, did you see Gaine go anywhere?"

"Can't say I have, ma'am. I thought he was with you."

"He was, but he ran off. Now we've got a missing griffon and an unconscious princess to worry about."

"Princess, there!" Applejack pointed towards the forest.

From somewhere deep within the woods, Cadance could hear a quiet crashing. It was almost imperceptible at first, but as Applejack pointed it out, she noticed the canopy sway and shift as trees were pushed out of the way of some unseen entity. Flocks of birds ascended from their perches and into the sky. The quiet crashing began to escalate in volume. What once sounded like a quiet shore now sounded like a rolling storm as Cadance watched a titanic shadow slice through the canopy.

The ghastly echoes of momentous hooves clattered into the sky like the applause of death. Distant, grisly snarls followed in tandem, tearing apart any semblance of silence with rancid, jagged jaws. Coal black flowers of smoke danced through the sky in stark contrast to the dull grey of the clouds above. Cadance prepared herself for battle, assuming a low stance. Her comrades followed suit, with Rainbow and Gerret soaring into the air to get a bird's eye view, though they were careful not to leave the border of Cadance's spell.

Moments passed, though they felt like hours. The symphony of flesh and wood stopped just short of the clearing that the cabin called home. Cadance watched as the shadow slowed its approach, until it stood frozen at the forest's edge. Moments turned into minutes as the group waited for something to happen. The only noise now was the disquieted wind flowing softly through the feathers and manes of the cabin members.

After a while, Fluttershy spoke up. "...Do you think he's come to talk?"

"I ain't going nowhere near that thing, no sir," Applejack shook her head.

Cadance eyed the dark figure. "I... I can try and talk to him."

The crystal princess cautiously approached the edge of her barrier. "Hello. Sam, is it? I am Princess Mi Amore Cadenza of the Crysta-"

"I know... who you are..." A voice slithered upon the wind like an eel. It was smooth, but held a hint of wetness to it, as if the speaker had drunk a bottle of honey. Above all, it slithered and writhed, and every fiber of the creature's voice was stuffed with an incomparably dense malice. "You're... the crystal princess... from that woebegone hive you call a...kingdom."

Cadance stood strong, trying her best not to be affected by the creature's tone. She blinked slowly, and when she opened her eyes, the shadow was gone.

However, the hissing voice stayed. "Sam, what a degenerate name. To think that Twilice was a better alternative, HA!" A splatter of something viscous sounded behind Cadance. she quickly flew up to the roof, and the voice caught up with her instantly. "Do you know who I really am, Princess? Who I really was back then?"

"I can't say I do. Would you care to teach me?" Cadance scanned the treeline, looking for any clue as to where it went.

The voice wriggled out from the forest, louder this time. "Gladly, your repulsiveness.

The wind picked up hastily, bringing tendrils of snow into the air along with it. From the shivering cold wind, the voice hissed. "I was once a lord, a king among kings. I was once the powerful leader of a race of incredible beasts...

Another tree flew into the air from Cadance's left. It descended from the sky and slammed into the dome with a powerful THUMM! All the while, the voice continued its speech. "But then, one rotten little pony princess decided her kingdom wasn't enough for her. She wanted Lue... Equestria... all to herself. So do you know what she did?"

THUMM! Another tree exploded against the bubble's smooth pink surface. Cadance winced at the strain of holding back the assault.

"N-no, I don't," she responded, sweat beginning to line her brow.

"SHE SLAUGHTERED MY KIN!

THUMM!

"SHE TORE MY KINGDOM ASUNDER!

THUMM!

"AND THEN,

THUMM!

"SHE FROZE ME IN A BLOCK OF ICE FOR FIF-

THUMM!

"TEEN-

THUMM!

"THOU-

THUMM!

"SAND-

THUMM!

"YEARS!

The assault stopped, and Cadance hadn't noticed her eyes were squeezed shut until she heard the voice again.

"Open your eyes, Princess. Open them, and see what has come from your ancestor's failure."

Every fiber of Cadance's being told her not to, that what she would see would make her regret listening to the voice. But, fearing the livelihood of the other cabin members, and hoping not to make the creature any angrier than it already was, she slowly opened her eyes.

She took one quick glance at the creature, then her eyes grew as big as dinner plates. She was so focused on what stood before her, she didn't even hear her own scream.

Comments

[dark_samus3]

Okay, now you're just torturing us with these murderously short chapters :P