The Castle

by Discombobulated Soul

The Princess Herself

I was not ready for this.

The hall that led to the throne room was dark as could be, with my glowing horn being the only source of light whatsoever. I had expected the armor I was wearing to clatter and bang like pots and pans, but I'd been pleasantly surprised to find it silent as the grave. In fact, I think it muted my noise somehow, enabling me to make next to no sound as I stealthily slinked across the marble.

The Alicorn's Bane armor was unexpectedly the right size as well, and even seemed tailored to fit me. It came with straps to evenly distribute the weight across my body, which had the dual purpose of also supporting me while I walked. The shortsword I'd found was polished to a sheen, but its blade was nonetheless sharp enough to cut straight through stone. I had found that out by accident after I dropped the thing, blinking in surprise when it buried itself in the floor up to the hilt.

The sword was safely kept in its sheath for now, with me using my loyal knife so far to deter the creatures coming my way. Aside from those objects, I had also come across an ornate helmet, which even had a hole to put my horn through.

I was stumbling across the floor, only scarcely able to move thanks to the armor's support. My body was covered in wounds at this point and the knife I levitated was singing in pleasure from all the action it'd seen. My thoughts were getting muddy and my locomotion delayed due in large part to blood loss, but the remaining effects from crossing the Doorway contributed also.

I had seen IT. IT had messed with my mind. The knowledge I'd previously repressed had come rushing back, and the experience had been every bit as horrible as I knew it would be.

Still, with my new equipment and an achievable goal, I knew what to do. I knew how to end the horrors of The Castle, once and for all.

That didn't change one simple fact, though: I was not ready for this.

Finally, I reached the throne room's open set of golden doors, and I immediately cut to the left in efforts to avoid being seen. The room was as dark as the hallway had been and I was forced to grip the knife in my mouth to prevent my glowing aura from attracting attention.

Several tense minutes passed uneventfully as I crouched in the deepest shadows I could find. The only thought that was able to penetrate the fog surrounding my mind was of gratitude for the armor's noiselessness. My brain was usually in overdrive, occupied either with internalizing the words that I loved to read or calculating just how much danger I was in or what have you. The current situation was no exception, but it was busy instead with actively trying to repress the memories of what was behind the Doorway.

I was glad for this, but also quite annoyed at the same time. Given the choice, I'd have elected to devote some brainpower to planning my next move, but I seemingly didn't have much control in the matter.

Abruptly, what little attention I still possessed was drawn to the opposite end of the throne room, which blazed to life with a ferocious roaring sound. Well, more specifically, a sconce on the wall lit up, emitting an ominous green flame, but several more followed as a pair of nearby doors blasted open.

My nearly-glazed eyes widened with horror as I reflexively backed into the wall, feeling immensely exposed as hordes of creatures spilled from the doors. One being in particular caught my notice, and I shrunk into myself even more upon sighting her.

It was Princess Celestia. It had to be. She walked with a refined grace that immediately separated her from her minions, but that was only the first of many differences between them.

Celestia's coat was pure white, for one, and her blazing green mane imitated a fire with its vicious-yet-entrancing movements. Her eyes scorched with the latent embers of scornful fury, and every monster she gazed at cowered in what closely resembled terror. Her horn jetted out from her head at an impossible length, altogether much more polished and better-maintained than my own. Still, I could detect hairline fractures covering it, even at this distance, as though it had been shattered previously but carefully rebuilt.

And her wings. They were beautiful, yes, but only in the way that a swan's last song or a pony's dying wish was beautiful. There was a tragic glory to them, a sorrowful serenity found in their near-barren expanses. Celestia's wings were gorgeous purely by nature of their foulness, and I felt awe at how dilapidated they were compared to the rest of her.

No, wait, that wasn't quite right. The princess in general looked like the walking dead, but what fooled me at first was that she walked so well. She still carried herself with inequine grace and still held a power that laid far beyond my understanding.

I knew Celestia was as much a monster as the rest of them. The blood splattered all across her coat and flesh staining her teeth proved that beyond any doubt. Even aside from that, though, there was the fact that it'd been her that was keeping me here, all this time.

She was so sadistic that she'd hidden my only means of escape behind a horrific Doorway. She had thought, presumably, that I'd never get past it. That I'd never get to the equipment I needed to get out of here.

Celestia had hoped that I would stay, slowly killing myself to avoid death from her hooves.

No more. It was time to end the torment. After observing her from the relative safety of the shadows, I knew one thing with utter certainty:

I was ready for this.

Comments

[Venerable Ro]

'ere we go! Time to see just what the shape of the world is.

[ABSOL_ute]

This is Celestia? Oh, things got suddenly more interesting!