A Dying Light

by Nobrains

Chapter Two

Chapter Two

Starswirl picked himself from the rubble, sliding out between two solid stone plates. The stands that had held the stones were gone or knocked over, the stones no longer present within them. He had no possible hope of defeating Polaris on his own with the power of the starstones at his command and he was beginning to lose all hope that he could prevent what was likely to come.

His mind dug back into the conversation they had had prior to Polaris' departure through the portal. He had said he was going to acquire a champion to assist in his scheme, since Starswirl refused to side with him.

“The Beacon...” His mind mulled over the possibility that he could enlist Equestria's only human under his cause. From what he had seen and heard, the Beacon was of honorable sorts, but was always on the move these days with a unicorn companion.

It was going to take some tracking down. He would need to find a suitable guise to fall under when asking locals of the areas the Beacon had been previously. The human was quite the novelty these days and he was sure that the Beacon's actions would be well talked about by most.

He was also aware of the 'icebringer' incident that had occurred months ago, unlike many. Without any sense of reluctance, the human had risked himself for a world he didn't belong too. Of course that statement may have been fallacious now. Although he wasn't part of a naturally occurring race in this world, he could very well be considered a citizen of it with his level of acceptance.

It was going to take some work after being so secluded as he had been, but he couldn't find any better solution than to find the Beacon and gain his assistance in this matter. Perhaps he would be familiar with whomever Polaris decides to use? It was his best bet when he was so unfamiliar with whatever other world that the Beacon was from.

His horn lit up, and he hummed to himself as he flashed away to begin his search for the human that had done so much for Equestria.

****************

The lights from the windows in Hoofington were still on even though it was very well into the night. The light pollution was regardless, at a minimum and the stars above could still be seen twinkling and shining as they were blotched and dotted all over the night sky.

A lost or ended soul, in between each light.. A bearded human thought about the concept and how he had been involved in it at one point in time. He laid back on the grass, a pleasant array of musical notes filling the air. It amalgamated with the night air and created a pleasant environment for one's thoughts to really aggrandize.

Titus. That was his name. Both there... back in Azeroth and here, in Equestria. He sometimes felt like his name didn't hold any meaning anymore. He was called a plethora of names, usually regarding his race or his title that had been bestowed upon him from his nature of arrival in this world.

There was really only one that called him Titus here. She was sitting by his side, playing her lyre. She plucked each string carefully with the end of her hoof, making sure not to miss a note to the melody she was playing. It was enthralling to say the least, and Titus would've been humming the little tune along with her if he hadn't already been lost in his musing.

She eventually ceased playing and laid back next to him, continuing the notes softly with her mouth instead of the instrument she had been playing. Anything to keep that simple melody going at a time like this. To her, it was everything.

“So.. what did you think?” She asked, shifting to her side to look at him, who was still staring intently at the sky.

“It was... enrapturing.” He gave a light laugh, “I still don't know how you found the interest to play that again after you said you had been bored with it for such a long time.”

“I..” She blushed a little, glad he wasn't looking. “I guess all I needed was a little inspiration.”

“Heh.” he finally broke his gaze turning to her with a half smile.

“It's true tho-”

“I know. I know..” He cut her off. He never really wanted too much when they were both like this. It was too.. out of element for him. He understood what he was to her and vice versa. It was just so hard to be intimate; it wasn't like he was familiar with this sort of thing. He always guessed that he would simply be alone due to his reclusion and dedication to the Silver Hand.

The Silver Hand was now just a memory of a different time and place: his life before the fall. That was a year ago now, and he had accepted his place here. It was a quite a pleasant place to live in the end, even taking his two past adventures into consideration.

Lyra suddenly moved closer and rested her head on his chest, her gaze going from him to the stars he had been looking at previously. She had never been happier, all that time searching, scrapping for anything regarding humans after that dream... It all paid off in the end. Not only had she found a human from a completely different world, but something to love.

Still, just thinking about it made her stomach knot up. But that did nothing to keep her thoughts from going back to that realization over and over again. The feeling was just too intoxicating to not revisit again and again and again. What else could she say? She was in love and it was impossible to ignore.

She knew he felt the same, he just wasn't ready to admit it yet. He was quite stubborn but with a bit of her assertive charm, she was sure he would crack eventually and come spilling out with all sorts of repressed feelings, then it would be perfect. But for now, she was content to watch him struggle with his conflicted thoughts; it was cute to watch him fall over himself now again since he had realized he had feelings for her. It was just a waiting game, and she had all the time in the world.

They would both be returning to Ponyville after this night, they always found time to visit Hoofington and its lake, where so much had happened. Where their little secret took place, and Titus risked himself for ponies everywhere. For her. There was also one thing that had happened, and thinking about it still made her jittery. But it was always the first time that held such sentimental value.

She had been so carried away with internal infatuation caused by her reminiscing that she had not noticed that her human had dozed off. He was always doing that, the lazy thing. Oh well, it was late after all.. She huffed a sigh and rested her eyes, feeling fingers brush her mane gingerly, reminding her just how perfect her life was now.

***************

“It's going to be good to remembered for once. What say you, my little companion?”

“.....”

“Not one for idle chatter, eh? That is fine; that is not why I brought you here.”

“Whatever it is you want from me, I won't be having any part with it, you beast.”

“For the last time, I am a unicorn, and much more keen being than yourself. Your kind must not be known for their intellect.”

“You are crossing over a whole new threshold, beast.”

“So be it. If that's what invokes your potential, then I'll just have to cope, won't I?”

Finem was still suspended and everything around him had been a messy blur since he had passed through that strange portal. He had no idea where this animal was taking him, but it was obviously for some dark intent. The second this 'unicorn' let his guard down, his blood would sate the taste of his rune blade, he was going to make sure of that.

“Ah yes, here's a nice place to keep an individual such as yourself.”

The gnome was suddenly thrown through the air and collided against a stone wall in what was a small stone cell. What was this? A prison? He had done nothing wrong, and if the unicorn thought that this would contain him, then the beast was about to pay dearly.

He quickly pushed himself up and reached for where he thought his blade would be. He was only grabbing at air, and looked around impulsively for his lost weapon. Unfortunately it was nowhere to be found and the robed unicorn was simply laughing by the doorway.

“Like I said: much more keen.” The unicorn took a step forward into the cell with him, the clang of blade on stone could be heard outside of the small room. “I have plans for you, and perhaps you'd see-oof!”

Finem suddenly tackled the unicorn, bringing him to the ground. “You thought my power was simply behind the weapon I wielded? You choke on your own words now.”

“I will not be insulted by such a puny being! Get off of me this instant before I end you and look for another champion!” The unicorn thrashed about, trying to throw the gnome off, but was unable to do so with the plate mail weighing his aggressor down.

As long as whatever magic this unicorn was using didn't become a factor once again, Finem could end this right here and right now. A dark tendril extended from his grip, wrapping around the unicorn's neck, crushing down on his larynx.

In predictable fashion, the unicorn's horn began to glow, but Finem wrapped his hand around it, intent on breaking it right off. Unfortunately, upon contact he could feel a unpleasant feeling forming in his palm. He quickly pulled it off and saw that the grip of the glove had simply disintegrated. Good to know before something more serious happened.

Before he was suddenly thrown off of the unicorn, he managed to get a hit in across captor's face. This time he was prepared for a collision against the stone wall and brought his feet out behind him, taking the gruff of the impact against the wall and straining himself to push free of the magical force.

“This is ridiculous! You are completely unreasonable beyond the point of toleration!” The unicorn was hopping mad at this point, probably distressed that his scheme or whatever wasn't going to see fruition.

“You can't manipulate me, or anyone at this point. I'll be making sure of that.” The Death Knight took another hop at the unicorn before finding himself blinded by a red flash.

His vision was soon restored and he found himself alone in the cell. He knew that thing was a coward! The door was shut, but the gnome scoffed at the mediocre attempt at containing him. This wasn't even competent at containing a mortal.

Throwing subtlety to the wind, the gnome simply rushed the door, throwing his shoulder into it and sending it flying right of its hinges. It smashed and splintered against the wall opposite of the cell and the gnome quickly ran out into the hallway.

He breathed a figurative sigh as he looked at the ground and found his runeblade, picking it up and seeing if anything had been damaged. Finding it to be in sufficient order, he placed it back behind his back and looked around.

Now that everything was not a blur, his surroundings indicated he was in some ancient and abandoned stone tunnels or something of the like. Why that unicorn would want to bring him to such a downtrodden place was beyond him at the moment. The only thing he was sure of was that the beast would pay with its life.

The halls were well lit enough and the gnome began to search through the many passages and halls that these ruins contained. The more he switched footing to go down another path or around a corner, the more he felt like this place was huge; almost like Naxxramas in scope. But still, there was almost nothing here to discern any sort of direction from, and he soon felt like he was falling further and further into a sense that he was running adrift.

Where could that beast have gone? The coward using the complexity of the tunnels and passages around him to his advantage to ensure his safety was as dishonorable as throwing sand in one's eyes or running them through unwittingly.

This was going to take some time. But justice was worth it; of that, the gnome was definitely sure. He could search for as long as he needed, there was no rush to an undead such as himself.

“Just wait. None cross me and get away with it.”