Pawns

by Corah Il Cappo

Pawns and Queens

Elegance, Red Glare, and whatever remained of Luna's once powerful army fled from the battlefield, which had now become a sea of writhing, bladed tendrils of sand. They raced back towards the gates of their city at a mad pace, furiously flying over the desert sand, trying to escape the god who hovered just over their heads. As they approached, the gates swung open, as if to greet them. They all knew that the wooden walls would offer them little protection from the desert alicorn, but it was at least better than being out in the open.

As they dashed towards their city, Elegance was shocked to see that their gates had been flung open to them, as if someone within was expecting them. One look to the face of his comrade told him that their thoughts were the same. Something was horribly wrong here, but neither of them could put their hoof on it. Despite this fact, both pressed on towards Damarescus. Whatever danger they faced inside would be nothing compared to the ominous black specter that darkened the skies about them. To face an army alone would be a valiant last stand. To face a god would be a meaningless suicide. Their minds made up, the two generals charged in through the open gates, hooves and blades prepared for a fight. Inside however, there was no army facing them. Only one unicorn stood in their path. Nightshade.

"Good afternoon Gentlecolts." She said, her muscles giving a nervous twitch. "Sorry to be the bearer of bad news here, but your city is already done for. I would advise you both to surrender right now." Another twitch.

Red Glare stepped forward, gritting his teeth. "I'd rather die than surrender."

"You said it, not me." Nightshade let out a chuckle, as she cast her blade. She stood in place, her spasmodic twitching becoming even more prominent as the earthpony charged her. Her body was practically shivering with excitement as she aimed a slash towards his throat. Belladonna closed in fast, prepared to rend both flesh and bone to sever her foe's head, but the strike never connected. In the split second before blade met flesh, a brilliant shaft of silvery magic deflected her attack, allowing the earthpony to deliver his unimpeded. Red Glare struck out with his hoof, cracking his foe square in the chest.

Nightshade went sprawling from the sheer force of the kick, tumbling along the ground until she skidded to a stop. Her breath had become short and rapid, and she could taste the distinctly metallic flavor of blood running from her mouth. She lifted her head to see that the unicorn, Elegance, had cast his own blade to counter hers. Now it was two against one. Behind their two generals, the soldiers began to rally. Unicorns cast their blades and began to weave spells, while earthponies furiously stamped their hooves in anticipation of one last charge. Any other pony would have turned white with terror staring down as many ponies as there were, but not Nightshade. Instead, she did the unthinkable. She curved her lips into a sickening grin, even as crimson blood trickled from the sides of her mouth and in between her teeth. The purple unicorn rose to her hooves, and bared both blade and teeth at her enemies as she waited for them to make their move. She didn't need to wait long, as her foes instinctively charged her.

Nightshade parried a flurry of stabs and slashes from her attackers, stepping backwards with each blow. Her enemies began to form a semi-circle around her, and inched ever closet with every attack she deflected or dodged. There was no way she could defeat them all at once. Luckily for her, she didn't need too. Nightshade unleashed a wave of telepathic force from her horn, catching her assailants off guard. Once they had been momentarily distracted, she turned tail and fled. Her hooves clattered over the cobblestones, and the roar of hoofbeats from her enemies was closing fast as she darted into the town square. Red Glare and Elegance were hot on her heels, and quickly followed suit.

As they entered the square however, they quickly realized that they had made a devastating error. They saw their quarry now standing at the forefront of a large squadron of Sand Shrine's rebels. The tables were turned as Nightshade and her soldiers prepared to counterattack, and Luna's forces trembled in terror as their enemies began to close in on them. Before the two armies collided however, they were both stilled by a sudden, earsplitting voice that cut in on their combat.

"Enough." The single word was delivered with such power and such volume that it drowned out the sounds of battle entirely. Many of the ponies clamped their hooves over their ears, as they sought relief from the resounding echoes of the voice. As the voice faded away, it left utter silence in its wake. The heavy noise of flapping wings filled the void, as Sand Shrine himself lowered into the square. His hooves touched down on the pavement with a quiet clip clop, and he surveyed the two armies that surrounded him. Shrine's own ponies knelt before him. The air suddenly felt warmer and drier in the alicorn's presence. In addition to this, there was a feeling of pressure that radiated out from him, as though his mere existence commanded respect and awe.

"This battle is over." Shrine's voice resonated over the court, assailing the ears of everypony in Damarescus. "Damarescus has fallen, as has Princess Luna. Those few of you who survived the battle today are free to live the rest of your lives in peace here, so long as you recognize me as your new God and sovereign ruler. If you simpletons understand my words, then bow before me."

Very few of Luna's soldiers did as they were commanded. If Sand Shrine was angered by their insubordination, he didn't show it. Instead, he merely singled one of them out, and motioned for him to step forward. The pony he had selected was general Elegance. The general didn't move.

"Come forth unicorn." Shrine said, his voice booming in the ears of the commander. Still Elegance refused to budge. Since he would not respond to verbal commands, the alicorn opted to use force. His horn lit up, and Elegance found himself surrounded by an amber glow. The unicorn was dragged, against his will, towards the god.

Unicorns were taught from a young age how to protect themselves from the telepathy of their fellow spellcasters. It was such a simple, yet important enchantment for them to learn. But somehow the alicorn had managed to deactivate this enchantment, and in a matter of seconds no less. It was as if Shrine was simply outside the rules of conventional magic. Elegance shuddered at the thought, but restrained himself from showing fear. He needed to remain strong. All eyes were on him, and if he gave in now, so would his soldiers.

"You refuse to bow before your new god, unicorn?" Shrine stated, his voice lower than usual. "Why? Are you so dull that you cannot recognize the futility of resistance?"

Elegance swallowed hard. "No. I don't bow because you aren't my god."

"You have no alternative. All others are either dead or dying."

"You can destroy our cities, you can crush our armies, and you can kill our gods, but we have something that you can never take away." The unicorn said boldly, "We always have hope. And as long as there is hope we-"

Elegance was suddenly silenced as Negrev flashed into existence, then thrust through his eye in the time it took the onlooking crowd to blink. The blade shattered through the back of the unicorn's skull, effectively driving its way through the general's head. Elegance's body slumped down, then slid to the ground as Sand Shrine removed his blade. The crowd wanted to cry out in shock, to mourn the death of their leader, but fear kept them silent. All were silent, save for one.

"As long as there is hope we will continue to fight." Red Glare stepped forward, completing his friend's dying words. "We'll never give up, we'll fight till our-"

Negrev shot across the court, and its glass tip slashed across Red Glare's jugular. The motion was so swift and so fluid that most of the crowd didn't see it happen. They simply saw a flash of motion, and then a spray of red from Glare's neck. The earthpony was killed instantly, and joined his fellow general on the cobblestones, his blood starting to pool about his corpse.

"Now, are there any further objections? If there are, you are free to join these two. If there are no more complaints, then bow." The alicorn spoke this last word with such force that he sent shivers through the ponies surrounding him. Luna's soldiers eyed their fallen leaders, and began to see just how futile it was to resist. This being had thrown down both of their goddesses, and bore not a scratch from the endeavor. For them to fight him anymore would be worthless. The soldiers knelt down where they stood, their set as stone faces now bathed with tears.

The earth beneath the warriors feet began to tremble and shake, as the tiles of their court began to crack. Celestia's insignia, much like the goddess herself, lay shattered into bits at the hooves of Sand Shrine. The shards of stone began to skitter about, rearranging themselves into a new mural. They now formed the distinctive outline of two sand dunes, Sand Shrine's cutie mark.

*****

Luna awoke with a resounding crash. Her eyes shot open as her body slammed against a massive stone mountain. She slumped down against the cliff face, her deep blue coat covered with dried blood. The alicorn let out a cough, and slowly rose to her hooves again. Her battered legs shuddered beneath her own weight, and she very nearly collapsed, but Luna locked her knees, gritted her teeth, and held firm. Now that she had regained consciousness, she scanned the area in which she had landed.

Luna squinted as she gazed out over the horizon. She could see the outline of Damarescus out there, many miles away from where she stood. She had failed. The city she had been sent to protect had fallen. Hundreds of ponies had died defending it, and for what? All they had managed to do was delay the inevitable. She had been outmatched, and out thought by her opponent, and he had done it all without breaking a sweat. Perhaps Shrine had been right. All she was, was a reflection of her sisters power, and Sand Shrine had cast her down with ease. If he had already destroyed Celestia, what chance did Luna stand?

Luna pushed these thoughts from her head. This was no time for self pity. There was still a war to win, and feeling sorry for herself wouldn't bring her any closer to victory. She spread her wings, as pain seared through every inch of her body for doing so. With a deep breath, she leapt from the mountain and glided to the rocky desert sand below. Only a mile ahead, she could see train tracks crisscrossing the land, like a black iron snake amid yellowed grass. The plume of smoke in the distance indicated that a train was currently on its way, likely containing the survivors from the battle. The iron horse chugged along the tracks at a steady pace, but as it approached Luna it let out a squeal of metal on metal and began to slow.

She entered into the last car, and her jaw dropped. Every row was empty. She threw open the door to the next car, and was met by the same sight. The entire train was empty. Had none survived the battle? No, that was impossible. She had seen ponies who were alive and well retreating from the battle. There was no way that Shrine could have killed all of them... Was there? There was only one last car to check, and that was the engine.

Luna threw open the door to the engine, and found Inkwell and Craven standing within, both filthy with sweat and soot. At the sight of their princess, both ponies instinctively kowtowed in reverence.

"My princess," Craven said, his face still directed towards the floor. "What happened to you? We saw you fighting with Sand Shrine, and then..."

"Silence!" Luna cut him off, her voice at a volume that could shatter eardrums. "My fight with Shrine did not go as planned. However, that is irrelevant. I had tasked ye with the defense of Damarescus, and now look ye yonder! Damarescus burns, and thou hast abandoned her in her darkest hour!" The alicorn paused for a moment, then went on. "Where are the rest of the survivors?"

"I don't know my liege." Craven replied, "Inkshell and I..."

"Its Inkwell." The jounalist butted in.

"Right, what she said. Inkwell and I got on the train alone. The battle had taken a turn for the worse, and so we..."

Before he could complete his thought, Craven was suddenly swept off his feet and hurled through the air. He flew threw the open engine doors, and came to a crashing halt against one of the train car's many navy blue cushioned benches. The earthpony coughed as the wind was knocked out of him on impact. He tried to take a breath, but he was suddenly caught again in Luna's magical grip and lifted from the seat.

"Coward!" Craven felt the alicorn's voice rattle his skeleton, "Thou saw that thy comrades were in the direst of peril, and thou chose to abandon them in their darkest hour? Who art thou that ye should live, and thy brethren should be slain? And Moreover, my orders to thee were to hold Damarescus at any cost, even unto death, and ye have had the feeble minded gall to retreat? I ought to have thee drawn and quartered for thy insolence."

"Please...don't..." The general choked as the magic squeezed around him. "It's...my...talent."

"What didst thou say?" Luna suddenly released him from her grasp, letting the earthpony fall upon the steel floor like a ragdoll.

"It's..." Craven gasped for air, "My talent. Cowardice is my special talent."

"How didst thou earn thy mark for such a despicable art? I hast never heard of such a thing in my immortal existence."

"Then consider me the first. When I was a filly, I ran away from every fight. Whether it was to stick up for myself or for somepony else, I still ran. You do anything enough, and its bound to become your talent. Its how I got this cutie mark." Craven pointed a hoof towards his flank, where the mark of a horseshoe with wings rested.

"Thou art a waste of equine resources." Luna spat, turning her back on the disgraced general. In front of her, looking more like a timid rabbit than a unicorn, stood Inkwell. "As for thee, I did not expect ye to stay and fight. Thou art only a scribe, and would be a fool to fight."

Luna observed that the pony to whom she spoke was trembling at the sound of her voice, and decided to tone it down. "However, even the most rudimentary of combat spells can be refined into powerful magic, provided thou art properly trained. Come, present unto me thy blade! Then I shall instruct thee in the proper technique!"

Inkwell only stared back. The princess could see the confusion in the young mare's eyes, and so she rephrased her request. "Inkwell, cast thy blade."

"My princess," Inkwell replied, shaking nervously, "I...I can't cast my blade."

"Thou cannot cast thy blade?" Luna furrowed her brow, "How can this be? Thou art a combat scribe, art ye not?"

"My princess, I don't know anything about blades, or fighting, or magic. I'm just a reporter from the Canterlot Tribune."

"Then of what use art thou to me?" The goddess stated, turning her back to Inkwell and gazing out the window. "Sand Shrine won't settle for Damarescus. He won't stop until all of Equestria lies broken, bloodied, and subjugated to him. This was our single, shining opportunity to snuff out Shrine's rebellion where it began, and we hath failed. Unless we can make it back to Canterlot and receive reinforcement before Shrine can mobilize his army once more, Equestria is doomed."

*****

Back in Damarescus, Sand Shrine's army had kept itself busy looting what little treasure the town contained. Ponies were forcibly dragged from their homes, robbed, and often savagely beaten. Those ponies that had served in the military were herded together and forced into the city hall. The government complex was then sealed several times over with defensive spells, and garrisoned with whatever ponies Sand Shrine felt he could spare. The soldiers had become prisoners within their hometown.

The resurrected ponies had been hard at work stripping the city of all references to the "Old Older" as Shrine had called it. The local shrine to the goddesses had been set ablaze and left to burn. The Equestrian flag that once flew over the city had been torn down, replaced by a white handkerchief of surrender. Anything and everything that referenced the reign of Luna and Celestia was gathered up and systematically destroyed. Books, paintings, pamphlets, trinkets, and charms were gathered up in the center of town and burned. No artifact was to be left unscathed. History had not been kind to Sand Shrine, and so he had chose to eliminate it. Eventually he would reshape history to suit himself. It would take some time, but he had all time in the world. He was an immortal after all.

Shrine had left one soldier out of prison, the pegasus general Dream Sickle. She had remained in the thorny tangle of vines that Nightshade had woven around her. She hadn't had anything to eat or drink for the remainder of the day, and her lack of sustenance was beginning to take its toll on her. Her eyes slipped closed, and Sickle thought that she would never again open them. Though she had no idea how much time had passed, it seemed to Dream that she had only shut her eyes for a few seconds before an icy splash of water to the face caused them to open again. She coughed and spluttered, and looked up to see Sand Shrine standing above her.

The alicorn summoned his blade, and used it to cut the vines that bound his captive. As Dream sat up, Sand Shrine thrust a canteen to her lips, allowing her to drink to satisfaction. Once she had finished, he handed off the water skin to a nearby drone, then turned his attention back to Dream.

"You might be wondering why I spared you." He said in a hushed tone. "I have a mission for you. During my battle with Luna, I struck her with a rather powerful blow, and sent her spiraling off into the desert in that direction." Shrine pointed with his hoof. "I want you to fly after her and, assuming she is not yet dead, deliver a message. Tell her that my next target is Dodge Junction, and that I will be marching on it within the week. If you refuse to do this, then you will meet the same end as Glare and Elegance. Either you may face the elements, or you may face me. Its your choice."

Without another word, Dream Sickle took off into the now smoke choked sky, and flew until she faded into the horizon.

Comments

[Luminary]

Okay, not much to say with this chapter.
The good remains good. Still the proper amount of effective description. Still touching on a lot of good little details. Your prose remains far above the average, around here.

I don't even have anything mean to say about Sand Shrine. He pretty much plays the tyrannical megalomaniac to a 'T', which is exactly what he should be doing, from what we've seen.

I like Craven a bit less, I guess. But as I said last chapter, it's hard to keep from hating a coward, in a serious work. Nothing to be done.
Not sure how a he got as high in the ranks as he did, with that talent.

When I was a filly,

Ha! Made me double take and go to check his Craven's gender. I'm guessing he didn't get a magic sex change since his youth. A filly is a young female horse. A colt is a young male.

"Old Older"

I'm guessing that's supposed to be "Old Order"?