A Second Life: Chapter 7: Into the flames

>Your heart was pounding out of your chest as you lay in your room, awaiting this “trial”
>You didn’t mean to kill him, your training just took over, and mixed with the alcohol, you used too much force.
>You slowly sat up; your ribcage aching from that double kick
>As far as you could tell, the worst you sustained were a few cracked ribs, if that.
>You really went overkill on that poor unicorn.
>There was a soft knock at your door, and Luna entered, flanked by the guard.
“Is it time?”
>Luna shook her head no. “Not quite yet. I wanted to see how you were doing.”
“Like any prisoner that’s about to be executed.”
>Luna looked over to the guard. “Leave us, and close the door.”
>”But Princess-“
>Luna only glared, silencing the guard who bowed, continuing only after he left the room.
>”My sister will not execute you. She’s better than that.”
“Comforting. I’m still going to be in a world of hurt.”
>”I’ll do my best to fight for you Anonymous.” She leaned over, nuzzling your cheek.
>You reached your arms around her neck, holding her gently and stroking her mane.
“I didn’t mean to kill that unicorn, really, I didn’t.”
>“Tell me what happened…”
“I was having a drink at the bar. Well, a few drinks. A mare came up to me, trying to hit on me when her ex showed up, and dug her off. While he was dragging her, he kicked her in the head. I just… couldn’t let that go.”
>”Did you know the mare?”
“No, I don’t even remember her name now. All I remember is she left after I fought the unicorn.”
>”You defended a mare you didn’t know?”
“Of course. I’d do it again.”
>“I would not tell Celestia you would do it again. But that is most honorable Anon.”
>You stood, walking to your closet and began putting on your best clothes, wincing as you struggled with your shirt.
>The shirt came alive around you with Luna’s magic, making it easier to slip on, the buttons magically buttoning themselves.
>You looked over at Luna, a small smile spreading across your face at her.
>She walked back over to you, giving you a small kiss, breaking away for a second, then back in for a more intense and loving one.
>The kiss broke, moving into an embrace as the guard knocked on your door. “Princess Luna. Celesita s ready to begin the trial.”
>Luna escorted you out into the hall where the guard began to lead the two of you to the throne room.
>The walk was both longer and shorter than you liked, as much as you wanted to get this over with, you knew nothing good wan going to come out of this for you.
>”Anonymous?”
“Yes Luna?”
>”I just want to let you know, whatever happens; I will never leave your side.”
“Thank you Luna… I’m glad to have known you.”
>The golden doors ahead of you swung open, revealing a very unhappy Celestia sitting on her throne.
>“It appears I should be more careful when listening to you advice sister. I give the demon one day of freedom, and it already takes the life of one of my subjects.”
>Luna stopped, about twenty meters from Celestia’s throne, where you stopped as well.”
>”Sister, your place is at my side, not the demons.”
“I will represent Anonymous in this case, he is not the most fluent in Equestrian still.”
>Celestia gave a glare but continued nevertheless.
>”Demon, you know your charges, what say you to them?”
“He was defending a mare against an abusive unicorn. He should be acquitted of all charges.”
>”Does this mare have a name? We may bring her in to testify.”
“N-No, Anonymous does not remember her name. He was drinking at the time of the incident.”
>”So he is not only violent, but a drunk.”
>Luna was beginning to get flustered, this wasn’t looking good.
“He did not intend to kill the victim either. Things were taken too far in the heat of the moment!”
>”So we add impulsive to the list. This demon is proved to be a violent, impulsive, drunk. It has no place in Equestria.”
“Celestia! This-”
>”SILENCE!“ Celestia’s horn began glowing with a powerful aura, her Royal Canterlot Voice was at max. “DEMON! I HAVE ALLOWED YOU TO RESIDE IN MY LAND AS REQUESTED BY MY SISTER. BUT MY GENEROUSITY ONLY GOES SO FAR.”
>She was seriously calling herself generous?
>”I HAVE BEEN READY FOR THIS DAY FOR A LONG TIME, SEARCHING THE ARCHIVES FOR THE PROPPER SPELL. I SENTENCE YOU TO LIVE OUT THE REST OF YOUR DAYS IN TARTARUS!”
>You heard Luna shout a resounding “no” as a large orb of light shot from Celestia’s horn at you.
>The light blinded your eyes, and exploded with a concussive wave that rattled your body, knocking you on the floor.
>Something went wrong.
>You could tell before you even opened your eyes.
>For one, the air about you hadn’t changed from its pleasant temperature, and the floor beneath you hadn’t changed to obsidian.
>You slowly opened your eyes, finding the murals of the throne room above you.
>”I don’t understand… WHY?!” Celestia cried out.
>Did the spell backfire?
>You sat up, slowly blinking as the rest of the room came into focus.
>Celestia’s mount was agape in horror.
>Luna was… wait.
>Where was she?
>She didn’t…
>She did, the crown and necklace and shoes laying on the marble floor in front of you were all you needed to see to confirm it.
>She jumped in front of you and caught the spell.
“Luna, you stupid girl, why did you have to go and do that?”
>Celestia leapt off her throne down at you, her horn aimed at your face.
>“You caused this!”
“Me? You cast the spell! You gave me a mock trial! You were going to convict me no matter what!”
>Celestia’s eyes glowed with more hate than ever at you.
>Her chest was heaving with every breath, her horn glowing intensely as if she was deciding what spell to cast next.
“Well, aren’t you going to send me to Tartarus?”
>”You wish to return home now? Perhaps I should send you-
“OR you could do the smart thing, and send the one being in Equestia that knows the most about Tartarus, and mount a rescue.”
>That caught Celestia off guard, her eyes widening. “Are you trying to make some sort of a deal?”
”I’m trying to save Luna. Tartaus is no place for her.”
>“Implying I couldn’t just send in a legion of guards to rescue her.”
“And so many lives would be lost. I’m the only being that’s made it through that place in one piece, I’m your best chance.”
>Celestia backed away, allowing you to stand. “This feels like a trick…”
“Every moment you wait is another moment Luna is potentially being tortured. Once I get back, I don’t care what you do to me.”
>”Why would you do this for me?”
“I’m not doing this for you! I’m doing this for Luna.”
>”…Why?”
“DO YOU WANT LUNA TO BE TORTURED ANY LONGER THAN SHE HAS TO?”
>Celestia’s horn charged back up, preparing to fire.
>”If you do this… I will reconsider letting you stay.”
“Ask me if I care right now.”
>“…Do you-“
“No, now do the spell”
>The white ball of energy leapt from Celestia’s horn, slamming into your chest knocking you out once again.
>This time when you woke up, the long lost smell of burning flesh and sulfur filling your nostrils.
>Your back was already burning from the hot obsidian underneath you.
>You stood slowly, taking in your surroundings.
>Primary Objective: Find and retrieve Princess Luna.
>Secondary objective: You need weapons.
>“Hello Anonymous. I’ve been expecting you…”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zagTlOh67Tk
>You turned finding the ultimate Frankenstein of a creature slithering through the air.
>Head of a goat, two different horns, paw of a lion, talon of an eagle, tail of a dragon, ok fuck this, what isn’t this thing made up of?
>”Discord’s the name, chaos is my game. Now, I believe there is a certain alicorn that you’re looking for?”
“Where is she? I don’t have time for shenanigans.”
>”Oh but you do have time Anonymous! Now the Princess… she may not.”
>You grabbed for the creature’s throat, only to have your hands grasp empty air.
>”Ah, ah, ah! I’m willing to help you, but only for a price.”
>Seeing no way around this, you had no choice but to accept.
“Alright, I’m willing to make a deal.”
>”That’s the spirit Anon! Now tell me. First, what is it you need?”
“I need a weapon.”
[LUNA'S POV]
>Luna woke slowly, nearly gagging on the stench of Tartarus, then quickly leaping into the air with her wings realizing the burning sensation the ground gave her.
“Sister, so help me, when I get back I am going to… UGH!”
>She focused her magic, preparing a teleportation spell to head back to the castle.
>Just as she cast it though, her horn fizzled, giving a small pop.
>She looked around, confused.
“Why didn’t that work?”
>She tied again, focusing even harder, but to no avail.
“Ok, I did not see that coming. This is bad”
>That was an understatement.
>She focused an offensive spell, a simple lightning bolt, pointed at a piece of obsidian rock.
>An arc of lightning  shot through the air, splitting it in two, the sound of thunder echoing around her.
“Ok, that works.”
>Finally she picked up a rock, ensuring telekinesis still worked as well.
>She turned behind her to the sound of roaring , finding a pack of horrid creatures beginning to encircle her.
> Two dogs, and a griffon in the middle.
>Their faces were blank, their fur gone along with skin, showing only scarred and burned muscles.
>Luna shot a lightning bolt at the first diamond dog that attacked, causing it to explode.
>The other lunged at her, it’s claws digging across her underside.
>She flapped her wings, putting some distance between her and the ground as she charged up another shot.
>sweeping around, she shot off another arc, exploding the last dog.
>Something caught her attention in the corner of her eye at the last second.
>Before she could react, the Griffon T-boned her midair, digging it’s talons into her side.
>Luna yelped in pain, doing a barrel roll to bring the griffon under her and crashing into the ground.
>The griffon released its hold, rolling away and leaping on its feet and charged.
>Luna quickly leapt to her hooves as well, delivering a double kick at the charging griffon’s face, knocking it away.
>Luna flapped her wings again, taking off into the sky in hopes to get away.
>She looked behind her to check, only to find the griffon on her tail, and closing fast.
>It was smaller, faster, more maneuverable, she had no chance in out flying it.
>she readied another lightning bolt, and flared her wings.
>The griffon soared past, but not before dragging it’s talon along her left wing, tearing a gash in it.
>The pain made her lose focus, shooting the arc of lightning off just as the griffon came in front of her.
>The griffon exploded into a red mist of blood, coating Luna as she passed through, arcing through the air and crashing into the hard ground below.
>She unsteadily got to her hooves once more, looking down at her blood coated coat, and began puking her lunch out.
>After puking for a few minutes, she stated dry heaving, before finally binging her gag reflex under control, and looking up at the path ahead of her.
>Several demon dogs blocked the path ahead of her, while griffons circled overhead.
>behind her were more dogs, mixed with p0nies.
>Trapped, with no way out.
>What did Anon always say in his nightmares? The words echoed still.
”If there’s no way out, make one.”
>Her horn glowed once more, brighter this time, shooting a stronger arc of lightning that arced along every demon ahead of her, making them all explode.
>With all her strength she raced ahead, the griffons overhead diving down on her, tackling her to the ground.
>Talons dug in all over her, and a dog loomed over her, blade in hand, raised above his head.
>Luna’s eyes went wide as the blade came down, a fountain of blood squirting as it made contact.
>Discord snapped his talons, teleporting you to a white room.
>Shelves raced by you, inches away from your body, with one passing between you and Discord.
>Just like the Matrix.
>Swords, guns, grenades, knives, other explosives along with gear was piled around you.
>First thing’s first, clothes to protect you from the harsh landscape.
>A uniform, black steel toe boots, and Kevlar gloves.
>Next you donned a tac-vest, and extra magazines for your weapons
>An M14, outfitted with a bayonet for when things got frisky
>A M9, just in case.
>Across your back you slung a shotgun, tucking extra shells into the sling
>two canteens full of water, a rucksack with a 3 liter bladder full of water as well.
>In the bag, you placed a few claymores, a bottle of alcohol for cleaning wounds, which you and Luna would no doubt sustain, some trail mix
>Finally, a large medkit, full of gauze, pain pills, compression bandages, and a couple tourniquets, in case some shit really went down.
>”Seems you’re ready for war Anonymous. Are you prepared to hear the price for my aid?”
“Name it.”
>”Excellent. First, when you go out there, cause some chaos. Second, IF you succeed, blow up the statue of me when you get out so I can leave this place.”
“Is that it?”
>”That’s it. What do you say?”
“I say I don’t have much of a choice, so I suppose you have a deal.”
>You racked the charging handle of your rifle, and Discord brought you back to the spot where you entered Equestria
>”Oh and Anonymous, if you don’t hold up your end of the deal, I’ll be coming for you. Remember that.”
>In a puff of smoke he vanished into the air, leaving you to your mission.
“Time to fuck some shit up.”
>You halted in your tracks, wiping the sweat off your forehead as you took in your surroundings.
>Several flying demons circled an area far to your left, pinpricks of blackness against the angry red sky.
“That must be where Luna is.”
>You took another small sip of water; the heat radiating from the ground was dehydrating you quickly.
>You needed to ration out what you had, being sure to save at least a canteen for Luna.
>How was she doing?
>After all, she was a magical creature; surely she had some offensive spells to defend herself with.
>Surely after living so long she had figured out some form of attack.
>Or did she rely on her guards for protection, instead focusing more on other areas of magic?
>Either way, you needed to Charlie Mike, continue mission.
>With a spring of energy and resolve, you set back to a light jog across the ash covered obsidian grounds.
>You looked back at the spot you saw the demons, but found no trace of them.
>They must have attacked whatever it was they were circling.
“Please don’t let that be her…”
>Your ears perked at the sound of demonic shrill crossed with the scream of an eagle, coming from directly behind you
>You spun, raising your rifle just seconds too late, the .308 going off wildly into the air as a griffon made up of charred flesh and bones tackled you, driving a set of talons into your left arm
>You fell to the ground with a hard thud, the griffon lunging in with its sharp beak.
>With your free right arm, you gave a quick right hook across its face, then brought your elbow back across it.
>In a daze it let loose its grip on your arm, stumbling off long enough for you to draw your 9mm and place a pair of shots center mass, dropping the creature for good.
>You got back to your feet, checking the condition of your arm.
>It had a pretty nasty gash, a steady stream of blood already running down from it.
>With no time to bleed, you grabbed your smaller medkit and wrapped the wound up with gauze and placed a bandage over it.
>It was pretty hastily made, but it seemed to have stopped the blood loss for now.
>Celestia had said you would live out your days here, meaning you were a mortal on an immortal plane.
>Under that logic, if you died here, chances are you’d be lost forever.
>As would Luna.
>Brain, this is not the time to think about that stuff.
>Then get your ass in gear and go get her!
>You didn’t have to talk to yourself twice, and you took off back down the path at a faster pace than before, ignoring the pain from your little scuffle, which had also jostled your already sore ribcage from the night before.
>You rounded another corner coming face to face with a dark cave with a writing inscribed above it in what looked to be old style Equestrian.
“The Spire onward… this must be the way to the tower.”
>You suddenly seemed to recall the prison cells lining the tower that led to the portal to Equestria
>maybe Luna would be in one of those cells.
>You entered the cave, feeling your way around as the darkness faded.
>Another turn, and you found yourself in a massive torture chamber, a narrow obsidian path lined by pitfalls on both sides.
>At the bottom were pools of bright orange magma, cast iron cages suspended above them with prisoners screaming from the heated metal against what skin they had left.
>The nearest creature, a demonized unicorn noticed you first, dropping the cage into the magma and facing you.
>Before you had time to even think a fireball shot through the air, straight at your head.
>Reflexively you let your feet go out from under you, landing on you bag as you sent a trio of shots down the path way.
>The unicorn doubled over as two rounds slammed into his chest, slipping off into the vat it had guarded
>A demon dog behind him caught the last bullet in the side of his head, a pink mist appearing on the other side.
>The three claps of thunder the rifle produced brought the attention of the guards and other workers, staring at you with black voids of eyes.
>They charged at you, while you stood at the entrance letting the soft, fleshy, unarmored creatures funnel themselves along the path, save for a few Pegasus and griffons that took to the air around  the charge.
>You let loose another burst of bullets, the Full Metal Jackets punching through several demons at a time.
>For an unexpected bonus, the first casualties you inflicted crumpled to the ground, slowing the ground advance, along with a few extra casualties that tripped into the pools of magma.
>You turned your attention to the Pegasus and griffons, dispatching them methodically as they each drew closer and closer.
>One Pegasus was too close for you to take down in time, slamming into you with its body weight and driving you back into the tunnel leading to the torture chamber.
>Without talons digging into your flesh, this demon was easy to fight off
>you drew your knife from its sheath on your shoulder, and sliced the throat open, rewarding you with a squirt of blood across your face.
>You pushed the demon off, finishing your mag as two last flying demons landed in front of you.
>The ground forces had finally clambered over their extra dead companions, and were back to charging at you full steam ahead
>You kept your knife in hand, drawing your pistol as your rifle fell to the ground, and finished the rest of its ammo as well, leaving only two demons left.
>The first, an earth p0ny leapt at you, allowing you dive under it and drive your blade into the dog behind it
>The demon p0ny spun back around, leaping at you again.
>This time you came at it with an overhead stab, driving the blade through its skull.
>Your adrenaline was pumping, preventing your from noticing the ache in your ribs getting progressively worse, and the ringing in your ears from the high power rifle going off.
>You quickly changed magazines in your weapons, leaving the bloody mess behind you and running through the chamber, bringing each cage up to ensure Luna wasn’t in one.
>There were a few p0nies, but none were the one you were looking for.
>You didn’t know if you were lucky because she wasn’t being tortured, or unlucky because you hadn’t found her yet.
>Still, you weren’t going to do her any good standing her contemplating the meaning of life, and you ran through the exit of the chamber.
>You emerged back into the rocky plains of Tartarus, the tower closer than before.
>Hopefully, so was Luna.
>You continued along the mountain path at your feet, taking the last few precious sips of water from your camelback rucksack.
>This place didn’t seem at all familiar to you, as if the landscape had changed since you left Tartarus.
>Possible, this place was highly volcanic, maybe it did change.
>As for now, you were resigned to the mountainous path leading up toward the tower.
>By path, you meant there was a path with several hand holds and places to put your feet, but there was no way you could walk.
>You knew you had to keep up your momentum, lest you take a break and realize just how fatigued you were.
>The bandage on your arm had bled through by now, and you were fairly certain a rib had broken since your adrenaline rush from the torture chamber had long worn off.
>You silently swore to yourself as you gripped another hand hold, pulling yourself up another few feet.
>The hold crumbled beneath your weight dropping you like a stone toward the ground.
“SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT FUCKING SHIT!”
>You swore not so silently now, scrambling around the cliff face for a proper hand hold.
>You found one by the grace of some deity, halting your descent abruptly, but at the cost of a sharp pain in your shoulder as it felt like it had been pulled out of its socket.
>Looking up you found yourself about twenty feet from the spot you fell from.
>God fucking damnit
>You checked functionality of your arm, and though it was in a bit of pain, it was working.
>Stupid. So stupid.
>Three points of contact at all times. Not two, and definitely not one numb nuts.
>You had a special lady depending on you to come on and save the day, and you can’t go about doing that if you fall off the side of a mountain
>You paused a moment, resting your head against the cliff face.
>Your adrenaline spiked during the fall, but you could feel it already feel it dissipating.
>Yep there it was. Fatigue was rearing its ugly head, and there wasn’t a damn thing you could do about it.
>You had some food in your bag but there was no way you could get to it while you were on this cliff side.
>You could just give up, fall off the-
“Shut up brain, you damn well know that I will not accept defeat.”
>Alight man, it’s your funeral.
>Back to climbing, this time slower, more methodical, and a lot more careful.
>You found a pretty good process that kept you going at a decent pace.
>Hand, hand, leg, leg, rinse wash and repeat, never moving more than one limb at a time.
>You continued scanning the face of the mountain for the right path to continue on.
>You chose a path and committed to it, snaking your way up to the ledge ahead hoping for a big enough spot to pause and rest your aching muscles.
>With the last little bit of strength you had, you hoisted yourself up and onto the ledge above you, crawling through a thick layer of ash until only your feet dangled off the edge.
>To your surprise, you made it to the top, a long stone bridge full of guards were all that separated you from the spire that housed several prisoners and Cerberus.
>Sticking to the ashy ground, you crawled over to a large boulder, taking cover behind as you began counting the guards.
>At least thirty of them, pretty equally distributed between p0nies, griffons, and dogs.
>You looked up from your rifle sight, refocusing on the tower at the far end of the bridge.
>A large dog, dressed in heavy black armor, with a massive blade was dragging a body of a p0ny by the leg.
>Despite the distance, and the pony being covered in blood and soot, you were sure it was her.
>It was a p0ny, no doubt. A bit larger than a normal one and it had wings.
>Too far away to tell if it had a horn too though, but still, it was your best lead.
>your stomach protested before you could line up your first shot.
>Mixing a few pills with the mix you shoved a handful of contents in your mouth, washing it down with a quick swing of your canteen.
>Poking your head around the boulder once more, you chose your first target.
>Griffons were the most dangerous type of demon to you with their talons and speed, with dogs being a close second.
>Worse yet, they were the most common types of demons here it seemed.
“Here we go.”
>You lined up the first shot waiting for just the right moment to place a head shot on the nearest griffon.
>It’s… BEAUTIFUL!
>The griffon flipped over the edge of the bridge, crashing into the lava below it.
>Other demons gathered around the edge, looking down at their fallen counterpart.
>Several griffons hovered above the edge, looking down.
>They were making this too easy, and you lined up a two for one deal.
>The bullet leapt forth from the barrel, passing through the body of the first griffon and imbedding itself into the head of the second.
>Your rifle was nothing more than a whisper compared to the thunderous back ground noise.
>the two demons fell, tumbling down into the lava along with their fallen comrade, sending the others into a frenzy.
>Before they all unclustered, you drew a grenade as you exposed yourself from cover as you tried to close the distance between you and the mob of demons.
>You let the grenade into the air, watching as it arced through the sky and bounced along the stone bridge and into the crowd.
>Two seconds of five.
>A few of the demons noticed, letting out one of their shrieks to alert the others to your presence.
>You dropped to a knee, sliding though the ash as you squeezed the trigger a few more times.
>That thing should have gone off by-
>An explosion cut you off, sending blood, limbs and bodies up and out in a fountain of gore and destruction.
>Several sharp pains lanced through your body as you continued to squeeze off the rest of your magazine.
>You quickly dropped another empty magazine, rolling to the side to avoid being hit by a demon dog’s claw.
>You were literally fighting from the ground, rolling every which way to avoid being hit by the sharp talons, beaks, claws, and teeth that were all around you.
“Fuck it, I’m Conan the Barbarian now!”
>Leaping up, fixed bayonets, driving it into the stomach of the first dog several times, then using the rifle as leverage to toss him aside
>That bought you enough time to put another fresh magazine in, allowing you to continue fighting the rest of the demons, finishing them off with half a mag left.
>Stepping lightly over the bodies, you made your way across the bridge, where five dogs stood guard, encased in black armor similar to the one you saw earlier.
>If you were a more dramatic person, you would have attempted to strike up a conversation before killing them, but you. had no time, and no patience.
>Pausing 100m away, you lined up a shot on the first one, putting the bullet right between his eyes.
>The next one you settled for a chest shot, seeing the remaining four demons charge you.
>The FMJ impacted with force, denting the armor in a few inches, shoving the dog back off its feet.
>Three others followed suit, save for the lead one that simply flinched as each round struck it’s armor.
>25m and closing, you lined up a headshot, blowing its brains out.
>You reached for another magazine, patting your vest down franticly.
>Out of ammo already? That couldn’t be…
>The three dogs that you hit in the chest slowly got up, shaken, but not dead.
>Well, this was not good. This was in fact, just the opposite. This was very bad.
>You drew your 9mm ,checking to see how much ammo you had on hand for it.
>One magazine. 15 rounds
>firing a trio of rounds, two denting the chest piece and one evacuating its brain, you dropped the first target.
>As it fell you dove under the swing of the second sword, rolling and emptying the mag into the knees, immobilizing the creature.
>You picked up a blade from one of the fallen enemies, and took off toward the tower, hoping you wouldn’t encounter too many more enemies.
>The tower was a lot like how you remembered, the only difference being a few extra corpses skewered like worms on giant fishing hooks hanging from the center.
>You looked at the ground, finding fresh blood smeared across the smooth obsidian stone floor.
>Again, it was your best lead, and you crept down the dark sloping path to your left, sticking close to the shadows just like last time.
>Checking inside each of the cells, you found plenty of griffons and dogs, curled in the backs of their cells.
>You drew a claymore from your bag, fitting it through a cell door next to a light, and running a trip wire from it to the railing on the side of the walkway.
>You drew another at the bottom of the ramp, doing the same thing, ensuring this one pointed up the ramp instead of across it.
>”Anonymous?”
>You checked the cells at the bottom, finding a large pony  in the one directly under the stairs.
>The dim light made it impossible to make out any features.
>Wait a minute…
>You set your ruck down, searching its contents in hopes of finding some sort of light.
>You weren’t exactly sure why you brought a flare, but damn you were glad you did as you struck the end of it, illuminating the area around you.
>The p0ny was covered in blood and soot, several lacerations spotted her body.
>She had wings, and a crescent moon, but no horn.
>Wait, is that a dildo?
>No you pervert, that’s a severed horn!
>With haste you drew the shotgun, blowing the lock off, ripping the door open and rushed to her side.
“Luna!”
>”A-A-Anon? You came for me…”
“What, you already forget what I said Nightmare Night?”
>You quickly took your ruck off, bringing the last item out of your ruck; the large medkit.
>”You… said… ugh.”
“I would go through Tartarus and back for you.”
>You couldn’t see the smallest smile Luna gave. Even that small action took all of her concentration by now.
“This is going to sting quite a bit, but it’s needed. Here, bite down on this.”
>You removed your belt, placing it in her mouth as you opened a bottle of alcohol.
>You poured the contents of the bottle all over her body, disinfecting the several wounds over her body.
“You know how many p0nies I had to check to make sure they weren’t you?”
>Luna bit down on the belt as the alcohol washed over her wounds, the soot coating her fur washing away with the blood.
>”There shouldn’t be that many p0nies down here. Most of the criminals are from other lands.
“I ran into a whole torture chamber filled with them.”
>”Then we need to go get them!” Luna tried to stand, her legs giving out from underneath her.
“I’ll go get them, your flank is going  back to Equestria first.”
>”No! They need our help!”
“I’ll take care of it! You’ll only get in the way. If you want to help so bad, tell Celestia I need back up. I don’t have much ammo left.”
>You applied the last of your gauze, stuffing the worst wounds before applying bandages over her wounds.
>An explosion rocked the foundation of the tower, no doubt your first claymore going off.
>You grabbed her horn, wrapping it in an alcohol soaked cloth and shoving it in one of your mag pouches along with your unused supplies, leaving your ruck behind
“Alright your highness, your carriage awaits.”
>You threw Luna’s body over your shoulder, climbing the bird cage in the center of the floor.
>Gripping the heavy chain, you looked down at the joint.
>If you were right, there was an empty cage up top that acted as a counter balance when it was full.
>You onehanded your shotgun, the slug breaking the chain and sending you soaring into the air.
>There was an explosion below you as a team of guards hit the last claymore, being shredded to pieces by the hundreds of steel ball bearings
>The roof of the spire came closer and closer, the iron cage whizzing only inches by you and Luna as you passed the entrance of the spire.
>Shifting your weight, you swung the chain left, then right, then left once more letting go and soaring up toward the last flat portion of the tower before Cerberus chambers.
>Fuck, you misjudged this.
>With your only free arm, the one that was also injured, you reached out grasping the edge of said platform, your good arm around one very frightened Luna.
>Several guards showed  up below you making falling to the next platform not an option, but you couldn’t pull yourself up like this.
>With the remains of her strength, and her one good wing, Luna pushed the two of you up inch by inch, just enough  that you could swing her up to the platform and to safety.
>with her taken care of, pulling yourself up to safety was easy, and you once again threw Luna over your shoulders.
>You ran up the final ramp and into the den of the three headed dog you had already made it by once before.
>This time, the pooch wasn’t asleep on the job.
>The commotion had stirred him from his sleep, and he stared at you with intense glowing eyes, as if begging you to try and pass.
>Brain: Dude, I got an idea. Listen.
>…that’s retarded brain.
>Got a better idea?
>Nope.
>You drew one of your two remaining grenades, pulling the pin.
“Want the ball boy? Ya want it? Go get it!”
>You hurled the grenade to the far edge of the room, and the dumb dog went for it.
>Everything went better than expected, and you bolted for the portal once again, passing as the grenade exploded, sending bits of shrapnel into Cerberus’ middle face.
>When you emerged from the portal, you were immediately  drenched in rain, as you carried the dark blue p0ny past the armored guards and to the nearby medical tent.
>Thank somebody for the red cross symbol being medic in this world as well.
>You set her down on the nearest table, and doctors rushed to her side.
>You heard Celestia yell as you bolted back toward the portal. “Anonymous! Where are you going?!”
“To save some more souls!”
>Back through the portal you went, the cool rain refreshing you for the task ahead.
>Cerberus was still howling up a storm when you entered his den again, giving you an easy entrance.
>You rounded the first corner shooting a guard in the face point blank, snatching his sword out of the air and slashing the next guard in line.
>Where you got this sudden burst of energy, you had no idea. Maybe it was the steady beat of war drums deep in your soul.
>Maybe it was because killing was your business, and business was boomin all around you.
>Sword in your left, and a shotgun in your right, you carved though the guards, checking each and every cell along the way down.
>There were no p0nies here.
>You slipped in the last few shells, thrusting your blade through two guards, making a shishkabob before kicking them down the ramp and into the wave of guards coming up.
>From the walkway you leapt into the center of the tower, clutching one of the empty cages and riding it like a bomb to the center of the tower and beyond,  then back up as the other counter balanced it, finally leaping off at the entrance.
>You bolted out the door, and back across the blood stained bridge of Tartarus.
>Ok you didn’t think this through. You had no way back down the mountain side in your current condition.
>You know what, fuck it.
>You pressed through the pain, unsure how you were going to get these p0nies up the mountain, but you would climb that mountain when you got to it, quite literally.
>Going down was actually somewhat harder than going up, as you were forced to feel for foot holds through melted steel toe boots.
>Still, you kept up a steady pace, using the reverse of your climbing strategy.
>Foot, foot, hand, hand. Rinse wash and repeat.
>Foot, foOHHOLYSHITHEREWEGOAGAINMOTHEROFNIPPLESBBQ
>Apparantly that foot hold was as crumbly as three day old MRE crackers, and you went for another intense round of extreme mountain boarding, without a board.
>You rumbled and tumbled down the mountain side, at the complete mercy of gravity, hitting several boulders on the way down.
>Finally, you came to the path that you had started at hours ago, maybe a quarter mile from the torture chamber.
>You tried getting up, only to find a shooting pain in your leg.
>Yeah, that was broken. No doubt about it.
>Alight, time to improvise. You took your ACU blouse off wrapping it around your leg tightly. Next was the actual brace, which you used the sword that had snapped in half in the fall.
>The blade was the perfect length to act as a splint for your shin, and you completed the field cast with a few wraps of your belt, tightening it so that it wouldn’t move even the slightest bit.
>This time, you managed to get up, and even limp slowly for a bit before resting against an obsidian boulder.
>Brain: “Dude, you need to go back. Your leg is BROKEN,”
“Fuck you brain, I do what I want.”
>You took a swig of your canteen, tossing the empty one aside.
>Just extra weight that you didn’t need.
>You still had one canteen left, which you originally planned for Luna, but the guards closed in too fast for you to give it to her.
>Back on your feet, you continued down the path in a silence you hadn’t known since you arrived in Tartarus.
>It seemed event the distant thundering had stopped, bathing the hellish world in silence.
>Finally, after what seemed like hours of torturous walking, the torture chamber came into view, lifting your spirits slightly.
>Once again, you felt you way through the dark tunnels until you reached the actual chamber, a soft crying filled the air.
>you rummaged through the dead guards until you found a large cast iron key, and slowly began raising each cage and unlocking them one by one.
>One p0ny jumped out, hugging you with tears in its eyes, sending  pain though your  already overworked leg.
>”THANK YOU! OH CELESTIA THANK YOU SO MUCH! I DON’T EVEN WANT TO KNOW HOW LONG I’VE BEEN HERE!”
>you pried the dark red p0ny off of you, working on the next cage.
“Why are you in Tartarus?”
>”I don’t know… It’s been so long. All these days of torture…”
“Got a name?”
>”Uh, Cinnamon… Erg… what was it.. smoke? Cinnamon Smoke! That’s it!”
“Cinnamon Smoke, organize the others and get ready to move, we have a long hike ahead of us.”
>You continued rescuing the p0nies, each one just as thankful as the last, at least the one’s that hadn’t died, their bodies charred into Kellogg’s P0ny Crisps.
>All in all, you rescued seven p0nies, fear gripping their faces as they approached you.
>”Why did you save us? Who are you, WHAT are you?”
“A favor to Luna, she believes you p0nies shouldn’t be here. As for who and what I am, my name is Anonymous, and for the time we are in Tartarus I am your guardian angel of death. Now who knows why they were sent to Tartarus.”
>”IT WAS CELESTIA!” yelled a blue p0ny from the back
“Orly?”
“Well, not directly, something was wrong with her… I don’t remember the details. Everything’s so fuzzy.”
“Fair enough, if you p0nies are scumbags, you’ll just be sent back here. For the ones of you who aren’t, welcome to your second chance at life. Now follow me.”
>You spun on your good leg, slowly .limping your way back through the chamber and out into Tartarus, the mountain ahead looming over you.
>It’s very sight was a big “fuck you” to your spirits, but you swore you would get these p0nies out.
>They gathered around you, the dark red one already collapsing. He looked to have gotten the worst of the punishment.
>Brain: Dude, don’t do what your thinking
>You thought of it.
>You snatched Cinnamon Smoke with one arm, throwing him over your shoulder, your leg screaming in protest of the extra weight.
>You pushed on, handing your canteen to the p0nies as you walked.
“One drink, no more. That’s all the water I have left.”
>Each of them nodded in understandment, drinking from the canteen and passing it on.
>Leg: Hey buddy, fuck you too..
>Lolwut?
>Another lance of pain shot from your leg, seemingly in unison with the other injuries you’d sustained, making you collapse.
>As you looked up, several demon’s came into view, as if determined to personally fuck your shit up for all the chaos you brought to Tartarus.
“Get behind me.”
>You set Cinnamon Smoke down, slowly getting to your feet and drawing your shotgun.
>six shots… and fifteen, sixteen, twenty… ok you were clearly fucked.
>BAM! CLACK CLACK! BAM! CLACK CLACK! BAM! CLACK CLACK! BAM! CLACK CLACK! BAM! CLACK CLACK! BAM! CLACK CLACK!
>You were going to die fighting as long you had some way to fight, even if they chopped off your arms and you had to bite their legs off.
>Seems the demons were out for a promotion, as they charged one by one, the next getting the butt of your shotgun.
>Just as two more began to attack, an explosion appeared out of nowhere, incineration the demons in an intense ball of fire.
>”Anonymous?”  the voice was soft, almost caring, yet filled with sorrow.
>You fell to your knees as exhaustion finally got the best of you.
>Your vision was slowly fading, but you could make out a pair of slender white p0ny legs, with golden shoes that went up about a foot.
>The p0nies around you fell, no, bowed along side you.
“It couldn’t be…”
>You looked up in amazement. Celestia had landed in front of you, along with several of her Royal Pegasus Guads.
>Her head, neck and breast were covered by a golden armor with purple gems throughout it, her once pastel rainbow mane replaced with a light blue flame, her eyes a lighter shade of purple/pink.

>You grasped one of the fallen demons beside you, holding up the bloody carcass and pointed to it.
“Demon”
>You pointed to yourself.
“Anonymous”
>You were about to repeat yourself when a magical aura snatched the corpse from you.
>”You don’t need to convince me anymore Anonymous. I believe you..."
>”Why did you do it Princess?” Cinnamon Smoke stood beside you, his body bearing the most scares of all the p0nies.
>”I will explain everything once we arrive back in Equestria. Guards! Give these p0nies a lift back to the portal.”
>A magic aura enveloped you, bringing you onto Celestia’s back.
>She launched into the air, holding you in place with her magic as she led the guards back to the tower, passing through unchallenged by the Cerberus.
>Made sense, she was technically the ruler of this place as well of Equestria.
>Her mane returned to normal as she passed through the portal, her armor disappearing in a white glow as she landed and kneeled so you could get off.
“Thank you Celestia.”
 >There were three words you never thought you’d say.
>”No Anonymous, thank you.”
>And there were four you never thought you’d hear.
>”As for you p0nies, when I banished you, I was under the influence of Discord, who transformed me into a tyrant. When he was defeated, I lost all memory of what happened, and ultimately the names of those I wrongly banished. I hope you can forgive me…”
>She lowered her head in shame, and despite the downpour of rain all around you, you could see the tears well up in her eyes.
“I forgive you Celestia.”
>Ha, surprise bitch. She turned to you, confused, almost begging for you to elaborate.
“You only wanted to defend your kingdom from another demon like Discord. I can understand that.”
>”And we forgive you as well Princess. ” Cinnamon Smoke exclaimed standing next to you, seeming to have been inspired by you.
>Several medics gathered around the group, lifting you up with their magic and helping the p0nies that could walk over to the tent.
>You felt the cold table beneath you, sending shivers up your body as two unicorns gathered around you, cutting away your blood stained, soot covered fatigues.
>”He don’t look so good, put him to sleep, this is going to be a long night.”
>Just then, your eyes grew heavy as you looked over to your left, seeing Luna resting peacefully, most of her body covered in bandages and gauze.
>So sleepy… no point in fighting it either. Hopefully these unicorns knew what they were doing
>You let sleep embrace you for the first time in what felt like weeks, as the ponies got to work stitching your wounds together, removing the bits of shrapnel from your body, and mending your broken leg.
>Mission Accomplished.