Archdemon of the displaced

by Megaphiles

Superficial damage

Gaismagorm looked behind him and noticed he could no longer see the ruins of the castle—he had gotten that far from his starting point. He scratched his chin and decided it was time to surface.

The massive elder dragon quickly made his way out of the underground, his face breaking through into a body of water.
“Great, I made a tunnel into a river,” muttered Gaismagorm as he climbed out, water cascading down his armor-like scales. The Qurio swarmed in hordes around him, their crimson glow illuminating his dramatic entrance to the surface.

He looked around and paused.
“…I have no idea where the hell I am,” he muttered.

Gaismagorm wasn’t sure if he was still in the Old World, the New World, or even the world of Monster Hunter at all. Although he'd already spread the Qurio, he began to realize something.
“Damn it. I should’ve thought this through... Oh well. Can’t cry over spilled milk,” he shrugged, beginning to march toward the horizon.

However, he immediately froze when he saw a small town in the distance—something straight out of a cowboy movie.
He squinted. Did he just see people? The thought made him uneasy. But maybe it was time to make first contact.

He slowly approached, step by step, doing his best to look non-threatening and remain aware of his surroundings. What he didn’t notice, however, was the tremor his massive footsteps created with each stride. As he got closer, he realized the figures weren't people, but… small horses? Baby horses?

They immediately bolted at the sight of him.

He tilted his head, puzzled. Not only were there no humans—there wasn’t much life at all. Everything disappeared indoors as soon as he neared the town. He rested an arm on a nearby rooftop—only for the roof to collapse under his weight.

“Oops,” he grunted and quickly lifted his arm. Peering into the ruined structure, he scanned the interior. No one. He sighed in relief. But just as he looked away, a single pony peeked out from a hiding spot within the rubble, only to vanish again upon noticing him.

Seeing there was nothing of interest left, Gaismagorm walked around the village—accidentally knocking down the clock tower with his tail, and not-so-accidentally crushing the train tracks beneath his massive body.
He didn’t notice that some of his Qurio had begun attacking a few ponies, only to retreat quickly and follow their host again—leaving most of the ponies alive… barely.

“Good thing it was an abandoned town,” he said to himself. “Maybe this is a sign I should stay away from civilization.”

The red swarm of Qurio followed him as he stomped into a nearby forest—flattening it in the process and crushing several apple trees along the way.

As he marched forward, a barren wasteland—the Badlands—came into view. He still had plenty of energy thanks to his earlier feeding frenzy, so he figured a stroll through the Badlands might help erase his tracks.
“Can’t destroy landmarks if there aren’t any to begin with,” he muttered to himself, stepping onto towards the cracked, sunbaked terrain.

---

Meanwhile, back in Ponyville…

“Gaismagorm… Gaismagorm…” Twilight repeated under her breath as she flipped through book after book about dragons, cultures, and ancient species. She searched desperately for any clue about this mysterious name.
While Twilight buried herself in research, her friends were still tending to the Chimera—hoping Fluttershy could find a way to rid it of the Qurio, since Twilight had found nothing about the parasites.

“There’s nothing here!” Twilight groaned, slamming shut a thick book on dragon culture. Scrolls, books, and loose pages were scattered across the floor of the library.

“What about this one?” Spike asked, holding up a book of legends from non-pony species.

“Already read it. There’s nothing—no mention of anyone or anything called Gaismagorm,” Twilight said, sighing in frustration.

“What about asking Princess Celestia?” Spike suggested, grabbing a quill and scroll. “She’s been around for thousands of years—maybe she’s heard of him?”

Twilight paused, then nodded.
“Alright, let’s try it,” she said, starting to dictate.
“Dear Princess Celestia,
A lot has happened in Ponyville. We experienced a small earthquake, and now a Chimera has appeared—covered in winged, pink leeches.

Fluttershy was able to communicate with one of the leeches. It called itself ‘Qurio’ and mentioned someone named Gaismagorm before refusing to speak any further.

I was wondering if you had any books about these creatures—or if you know anything about this Gaismagorm—”

Before she could finish, a plundervine crashed through the window, knocking Spike aside and splattering the letter with ink. Twilight grabbed Spike and the Elements of Harmony as more vines burst in, one attempting to snatch the dragon and the magical artifacts.

Another vine curled through the balcony as Twilight grabbed her pet owl and leapt out of the library. All around her, Ponyville was being overrun by the black, thorn-covered vines.

More plundervines sprouted from the earth, and the very ground beneath her home began to crack. The library groaned under the weight of the vines—until the structure collapsed entirely, swallowed into a growing abyss.

Twilight rushed to the edge and stared in horror at the chasm where her home once stood—only to leap back as more vines erupted from the pit.

She placed Spike on her back, stuffed the Elements into a saddlebag, and bolted.
“DEAR PRINCESS CELESTIA—FORGET WHAT I SAID! THE TOWN IS BEING OVERRUN BY SOME KIND OF DARK VINES—SEND HELP!” Twilight shouted as she ran. Spike quickly sent the hastily rewritten message via dragonfire.

They didn’t look back. Their only hope now was to reach Fluttershy’s cottage.

That’s when they heard it—a terrible, bone-rattling roar. They turned and saw something burst through a nearby wall, cloaked in smoke and an eerie crimson glow.

As the dust settled, the Chimera stepped forward. Some of the Qurio had detached from her skin—now they circled her like satellites, their red glow swirling around her body. Strange red particles danced through the air, and her eyes… her eyes glowed with a terrifying, unnatural red.

And then those eyes locked onto Twilight.

Comments

[Dr_Doom666]

Fun and interesting story can’t wait to read the rest

[RandomCommentor]

Good story so far, maybe get a proof reader and correct some of the grammatical mistakes.

[DisplacedWriter]

congrats on making it to front page!

[Greenhorn]

This story sounds interesting. I will keep reading it for now to see where it would go.

[Adampie]

a+ on writing my dude

[Megaphiles]

12164851
Thanks (sorry for answering so late, only now I discovered how to reply to comments)