The Fallen Kingdom Chronicles.

by Dawnforge

Chapter 4: Time for a Walk

Chapter 4: Time for a Walk

The sun finally shone on the group of four ponies leaving the plagued lands of former Equestria, or Northern Equestria. The area was mountainous and hilly, as well as infamous for its frequent blizzards and snow flurries. The entire land was coated in snow, the only exception was the infrequent patches of coddled roadway that stood above the snow; the last visages of a neglected roadway.

The four ponies walked in two groups, well one group of three. Faith, was wearing a combination of leather and mail armor that reflected the sunlight off its silver and gold trimmed surface as much as snow around them. Two male pegasi stood to her right and left, talking to her and each other. One had a cyan blue coat with a white mane named Thunderstrike, the other was the opposite, a white coat with a royal blue mane, called Cloudchaser. Both wore the black and silver trimmed leather armor of the Argentum’s scouts. Thunderstrike one bore a shield and small one-hoofed hammer, while the other carried two one-hoofed battle axes.

The last of the four was trudging quite ahead of the other three ponies. His red-mane and gleam of his silver armor sometimes being the only thing that the other three could see as they continually rushed to catch up. Even as the sun went down in the east and the land began to freeze, becoming cold enough to kill, Zeal wanted to continue on. Eventually, with much coaxing and yelling about how futile and suicidal it was to continue, the Captain relented and they set up camp in a small glade off the road. After camp was set, the three who had stayed together were gathered around the fire, huddling for warmth. The loner of the group, was off in the woods, ‘gathering’ firewood, as night fell on the camp.

“Is he always so…” Thunderstrike struggled to find the right words.

“Distant? Cold? Unyielding?” Cloudchaser offered as a suggestion.

“Aye, one of those, Cloudchaser.” Thunderstrike nodded his head in thanks, holding his bare hoofs over the flames.

“No problem, Thunderstrike.” He responded with a friendly smile, drawing the blanket tighter around his body.

Faith frowned and sighed, staring into the fire sadly. “Yes… At times, anyways, especially during travel. He… just gets lost in his thoughts. Once we get passed the ruins of Ponyville, I am sure he will return to himself.” Even at her own words, she looked in the direction their leader had disappeared to with a frown.

Cloudchaser glanced to his fellow pegasus with a frown, before speaking, “I… guess I can understand that. Ponyville’s ruins put a lot of ponies off. Especially the older ponies.”

Thunderstrike frowned, and bonked Cloudchaser on the noggin. “Hey, you know the ruins give me the creeps. And I’m only twenty-four, ya’ saying I’m old?”

The white pegasus grinned, a gleam of joy twinkling in his eyes. “I guess so, you have been getting soft in your fighting lately. I think I saw you hesitate in the last battle.”

Thunder balked, he glared at Cloudchaser, “I do not hesitate.”

Cloud smirked, amused. “You want to prove it? Come on, I could use something to tire me out enough to sleep and warm me up. How about a duel?”

Thunderstrike grinned wickedly, he moved to grab his shield and mace. “As you wish, Cloud. But, don’t cry when I leave you bruised.”

Cloudchaser chuckled and leaped to his axes before turning to launch at his fellow Argent as they began their duel. The first strike from Cloudchaser landed on Thunderstrike’s shield, glancing off. A wide swing from the Thunderstrike’s mace sent Cloud dodging back, his wings flapping to give him a speed boost. The two took to flying a few feet in the air to continue their duel, trading blows, dodging, and wincing as they dueled. Though, to an observer that was not use to the intensity of the Argentum’s duels, they would take it as an actual fight, but each blow was the light tap of a mace or the flat of an axe.

As her fellow Argents dueled to relieve stress, Faith it was to keep their minds off the strange behavior of their Captain lately. She stood with a sigh. Knowing they wouldn’t hear, she called out to them anyways. “I am going for a walk, you two try to keep the camp safe from more than each other.” They didn’t even acknowledge her words, though they were slowing down in their fighting.

She trotted towards the direction Zeal had. The snow made this all the easier as fresh hoof prints led the unicorn mare through the glade. As Faith stepped into the darkness of the trees, she closed her eyes as her horn shone brightly, a basic light spell to help guide her. Long minutes passed as she followed the trail of hoof prints before finding a small clearing with a hill. Upon it, sat the pony she was looking for. His armor shone in the moonlight dully, his shield and longsword sat at the foot of the hill; a soft blue glow emanated from the runes of magic etched into the blade.

She slowly walked towards Zeal, cautiously, like she was sneaking up on a timid rabbit. His voice caused her to freeze for a moment.

“You know… They say that every star in the sky was put there by Princess Luna, and that when she was asked by a curious pony in the ages before the reign of the nightmare in her soul… That each one represented a significant event for a pony that she witnessed. I think it was her way to try and remember each and every pony she knew. Immortality can be lonely, I’m sure.” Zeal let his head drop from looking to the heavens to staring at the snow covered ground he sat on, falling silent.

Faith smiled lightly as she resumed her approach, sitting down beside him, but leaving a hoof or two of distance. “Always the romantic historian and philosopher, aren’t we?”

Zeal looked up at her with an ever so faint smirk. “It seems that I still have something besides a soldier in me, ‘eh?”

Faith frowned and reached over gently and slowly placing a hoof on his shoulder. “You are more than an old soldier, Zeal.”

The other unicorn leaned into the touch, sighing. “I know…” He looked to her opening his mouth to speak, but instead closed it and moved away from her.

Faith drew her hoof back quickly, wincing slightly as if a needle had poked her hoof. “Zeal…”

The red-maned unicorn shook his head. “No, Faith. Do not do this, it will lead to heartbreak for you and guilt for me. My heart is buried in the ground. And my soul roams the memories of a kingdom that is whole and ruled by Celestia and Luna.”

The chestnut mare frowned and opened her mouth to speak, but a glance from her companion stopped the words in her throat. She hung her head, partly in defeat, and partly to allow her mane to conceal the tears of a bitter rejection of friendship and possibly more.

Zeal frowned and sighed softly, looking to the night sky. “I will explain to you what is in my head and this husk of a pony, so that you understand.” His horn glowed soft with a silver aura. From under the chest plate he pulled the silver locket that always hung around his head. He opened it and allowed it to float near Faith so that she could see the picture. “I failed them. I promised to always be there and always be the defender, the shield against all their woes. But, when they needed me to be a sword, instead of a shield… I failed. But, that is not all. I allowed my despair grab my heart and mind. It drug me into the ground, into depression….”

He closed his eyes and released a shaky sigh, this was as much him venting as explaining why even true friendship was not going to work. “I failed my Princess, my fellow ponies and my kingdom. I should have been at Canterlot when it fell, when Celestia disappeared. I should have been at Ponyville when the Changelings took the opportunity of Canterlot’s destruction to raid and destroy the home of the six greatest ponies in Equestria…”

Faith bit her lip and shook her head as she heard his words, she also saw the underlying truth that was spoken there. “You blame yourself, Zeal. For all the bad that is in this world. I would say you are one pony and it would not have changed anything, but my time in the Solarium has taught me otherwise. But, we will never know if your presence would have changed anything or not. I do not believe your soul roams or that your heart is buried. For I have seen a pony inside that most do not. And this is an example of that.”

The mare looked to the sky, wiping the few tears from her face before they froze. She moved towards him and placed a soft kiss on his cheek. “You can try to turn the friendship offered away, and many ponies would give up on you. I will not. My cutie mark is a book behind a cross. Symbols for knowledge and faith. And I have faith that you will become who you are, rather than this ‘husk of a pony’ you see yourself as now. You have many friends back in Barrier and many care for you as their Captain, friend and companion. One day, I hope you see it as I do.” She nuzzled his neck softly, before turning to walk, and adding with some finality and a firm tone, “You will have first watch.”

And with that, Faith walked back to the warmth and light of the fire, while Zeal was left in the cold snow, with his guilt.

---

As the morning sun rose, the group of ponies continued on their path. As they traveled down the road, the fields of snow slowly transformed to chilly, but grassy fields as they left the mountains. As the sun reached the peak of its path across the sky, the group decided to rest. The brief respite was silent for the most part, the entire group either wrapped up in their own thoughts or unhappy with what the next change of scenery would be. The ruins of Ponyville, the home of the fabled six heroes of the Great Wars against the Changelings and the Chaos Legion of Discord. The journey continued after the rest without any words being exchanged, until Cloudchaser finally spoke up.

“So… I heard Ponyville is haunted…” Cloudchaser spoke quietly, not sure if his words would be acknowledged.

“I would hope not, we must go through it.” A firm voice responded, it was, to the surprise of the others, Zeal’s.

“T-through it?” Cloudchaser responded, a tinge of fear entering his tone. “I thought the road goes around it?”

The leading unicorn shook his head. “Nay, The old road does not, and the new road adds another day to our journey. We need to reach Stormmane in three days. And the longer we are away from camp, the longer they are four people short. Besides, we’ll have a few of the buildings still standing to camp in.”

Cloudchaser snorted and muttered something lowly, though Zeal either ignored or didn’t hear what it was, the grumbling was rewarded with a smack on the head by Thunderstrike.

Faith frowned and trotted to catch up to Zeal, she glanced his way and inwardly sighed at the lack of emotion she saw on his face. “I know you want to get back quickly… But, the ruins are dangerous. Those hauntings have some solidity to them, and it is said that Changeling patrols pass through them as well.”

Zeal kept his gaze straight ahead, lacking the courage to look at the female unicorn next to him. “I know. But, it cuts our travel time by a day and a half, and a few changelings or tormented spirits will not stop us, Four Argents are more than a match for things that would take an entire squad of fifteen normal ponies.”

“I.. I know, Zeal. It is just…” She frowned and sighed, shaking her head and dropping back, falling into her own thoughts.

Zeal frowned, glancing back at her. He turned around and continued on with a sigh.

‘She is a persistent one, isn’t she?’ He smirked at the thought, ‘Enough so to get me to talk to myself, huh?’

‘Well, if you would socialize…’

‘No. I will not. I swore an oath to duty and faith.’

‘And did that oath say that a relationship or even friendship is out of the question?’

‘They have no place in my life, you know this. They will lead to pain and that pain will blind me to my duty again.’

‘No, it is because you feel incomplete and hollow, and you have felt that hole for so long you do not want it to go, because you are afraid you will forget her, forget them.’

‘Be silent!’ He growled, and snorted angrily, tossing his mane. He continued trudging on, not noticing the landscape changes as he fell into a pattern of fighting with himself and quiet contemplation.Also, he didn’t notice where he was until he walked right into a sign that marked a fork in the road, his snout smacking into the pole and causing the unicorn to fall back onto his plot with a crash of armor and a groan. He rubbed his nose angrily, mumbling to himself, and soon an embarrassed blush stole across his features as he heard the laughing behind him.

“Wow, Captain. I didn’t know that was part of the path.” Cloudchaser snickered, trying to hold back a torrent of laughter.

Thunderstrike was next to Cloudchaser snickering lightly, but, he was a tad bit nicer. “You alright there, Captain? I think that pole got the drop on you.”

Faith, though, was at his side helping him up, even though she was giggling. “Are you alright, Zeal?”

The unicorn who was stupid enough to not look where he was walking finally responded, “Aye… Aye, I’m fine.” He pulled his armored hoof from his snout, a large dab of blood was on the silver metal, as well as a few drops that fell to the ground. “Bloody… By Celestia and the Light…”

He muttered, though, it sounded off with his lack of a proper nose, electing another round of laughter from the two pegasus warriors behind them.

Faith, however, had stopped laughing and simply sighed. “Oh, Zeal… I think you broke it.”

“You fhink? I fan barfely talk. Wiff out sounding fupid.”

That gained a cracked smile from the female before she placed a gentle hoof on his nose and closed her eyes, muttering a prayer of mending; and channeling the magic granted from her horn, enveloping her hoof in its soft blue glow and into the bleeding nose. As the magic did its work, a yelp of pain was emitted from the red-maned pony, followed by a large snap as the magic forcefully set his nose and lightly mended it. After the job was done, Faith removed her hoof and wiped the blood on some nearby grass, frowning as she saw the state it was in. “Zeal… what happened here?” She glanced back down the road. Only a few meters away the ground seemed to be divided as if by a line, dead and decaying land on one side and living, vibrant on the other.

As all four turned to survey their surroundings more closely, it was obvious the boundary of dead and decaying ground was in a circle around the ruined buildings they could now make out in the distance.

“I… do not like this, it… does not smell of death and decay, and even the death and decay lessens the close you get to the ruins..” Thunderstrike pointed out.

It was true, the death and decay around them had no smell. In fact, the smell of even living plant life and animal life was faint, and wafting behind them.

“This land… it isn’t merely dead, Zeal… It is what remains of a land drained of life and the will to live….” Faith spoke softly, her voice shaking, more so at the unexplained lack of smells and life.

“This isn’t like what we have in the Plaguelands… it… is worse. That is like an infected wound… This… this is… a void…” Thunderstrike spoke solemnly, glancing around nervously, like something would appear out of thin air and devour him into nothingness.

Cloudchaser had been silent for awhile, but finally found words to speak, “We… we should continue, the sun is going down and I.. don’t want to be out here at night.” He looked to his Captain. “Which path are we taking, Zeal?”

Zeal was staring at the fork in the road and glancing between each path calmly, after what seemed like an hour to the others, Zeal took a step forward and then another, down the path to Ponyville’s remains. “We do not have the time to waste… And I will admit, I am curious as to what has done this to the land, it wasn’t like this when the last land caravan came up to Barrier it is, recent.”

The three shared worried and fearful glances before swallowing the fear. They were Argents, survivors in a land infected with unholy and decaying and infectious ‘life,’ a lack of it was nothing. So, Zeal, with the reluctant Argents in tow, proceeded to enter the ruins of Ponyville, the once beautiful and peaceful home of the Six Heroes of Harmony.

Author's Note:

I thought about making this chapter title funny. Then I realized my comedy is Off-set.