Prologue - The Final Stand
[listen-Victoriae &Triumphi Dominus by Turisas]
A large daisy blew lightly in the wind, swaying back and forth with indifference to the rest of the world. A silver boot landed next to the flower, the sun glinting of the polished metal. The boot was connected to an armored leg, which in turn led to a tall, imposing knight in full battle attire. The knight was unidentifiable by gender or face, Its head covered by a helmet. This tall warrior was walking across an open field slowly, but surely. Out of the trees opposite the knight came scores of slavering beasts, crudely armed and dressed, howling and calling at the sight of the lone knight. These were the Diamond Dogs, who had been attacking Equestria for years now. The silver Knight came to a stop, the polished helmet showing no emotion. It drew Its sword and let the tip rest softly against the earth. The army of dogs started their charge, screaming and howling for the knights blood.
[listen-Rex Rebi Rebellis by Turisas]
The knight crouched low, sword raised and poised for strike. As the horde reached it, the knight struck. Blood flew in great arcs as the knight moved through the dogs like a hot knife through butter. The sword flashed and shone in the bright sun, each strike taking at least one dog with it. The knight duck and wove through them, killing all it could. Dogs barked and howled, slavering and crazed. They attacked with a new passion as the knight reached the center of the field. The knight staggered as a large dog with a club stuck its back. The knight turned and brought its sword whistling through the air, towards the beast's stomach. The tip of the sword seemingly missed the dog by mere inches. The dog roared and took a step forward, only to have its insides spill out through the gash in its stomach. The knight was already moving through the ranks, armor dented and smeared with blood, mostly dog, though the knight had cuts and bruises on the skin not covered. The knight was a force of death, scything through the animalistic dogs pressing in around it. The knight slashed up diagonally, nearly splitting a dog in two, though it did the next one, catching it under the arms, slicing through flesh and bone alike, sending a spray of gore and bone flying.
The one sided battle continued for hours, the dead dogs piled everywhere, the once serene field forever marred by war. As the dogs dwindled in number, the Knight began slowing down out of exhaustion. A large dog in impressive armor stepped from the treeline, hefting a huge long bow, drawn back to its extent. It let fly, the arrow whistling through the air, slamming into the Knights stomach, ripping through the first armor plate, and denting the back outwards. The Knight flew backwards, roughly landing on the ground. It got to its feet and shakily reached back, pulling a hidden shield off its back. It shifted its weight and broke into a run, screaming out in anger and pain. It caught another huge arrow on the shield, the extra thick steel deflecting the arrow, but at the cost of severely denting the shield. The Knight deflected three more arrows with the shield before one went through, stopping just shy of hitting it. The Knight tossed the buckled shield aside, gripping its sword with both hands. The large dog quickly strung another spear sized arrow and fired, catching the Knight in its left shoulder, staggering it. It shifted the grip on the sword, holding it just in her right hand. It swung quickly as it ducked to the side, catching another arrow with the flat of her blade, sending it into the ground, embedding itself nearly a foot into the blood soaked ground.
The Knight kept running, closing the distance between her and the archer quickly. The next arrow pierced through her right thigh, sending her to the ground. She struggled to her feet, in time for her left foot to be pinned to the ground. It cried out and stuck the sword in the ground, leaning on it, panting heavily. It looked up to see the the Colonel of the Diamond Dog regiment drawing its final arrow. The Knight lifted its right hand, grunting as it summoned forth eldric lightning, glowing a bright purple. It tossed it as the archer released the arrow. The lightning tore through the dog, killing it instantly, as the arrow plunged deep into the Knights chest, just to the right of its heart. The Knight reached up and pulled off its helmet, dark purple hair spread out, a pink streak standing out. Twilight Sparkle weakly gasped, blood smearing her face. She smiled, looking at the bodies spread out. She grunted as she pulled the arrows out of her, tears streaking her face. She pulled a tube from her belt, uncorking it and pulling forth a scroll, already with most of it covered in statistics. She reread the last line 'I have discovered what path the Dog's scouting party are taking and will deal with them. I shall finish this after the battle'. She pulled a quill from the tube, noting the ink well was missing. She dipped the quill into the blood pooling on the ground, writing a few more lines at the bottom on the parchment, before sending it with a burst of magic. She coughed up congealed blood and groaned, falling backwards, landing heavily on her back. She looked upwards, at the twilight gloom, watching the first of the stars appear. She smiled softly, as she faded from the realm of life, sightless eyes staring up at the night sky,surrounded by thousands of slain Diamond Dogs.
Far away, located in an ornate castle, the leader of all Equestria, Princess Celestia, sat crying in her throne, cradling a blood stained scroll to her chest. She wiped her eyes and unrolled the scroll, re-reading those awful red words at the bottom
'I am sorry milady. It was not a scouting group, but an entire regiment. I killed them all,the refugee caravan is safe for now. I'm afraid I won't make it. Their leader was a good shot with a bow, and I took many hits. Please let my friends and family I love them. I'd ask only to be remembered, because In the end, we're all just numbers in war.'
-Yours forever, Twilight Sparkle