18th December, 69 BNM
Late Morning
North-Eastern Equestria
Salty Basin badlands

Nestled in the crook of the Applechian range and the northern Equestria/New Gryphon bordering mountain range, the 'lesser' badlands of Equestria were not as sparse and immense in scale as the badlands towards the south, the Muthican wastes as they were called. Here, the terrain was dusty brown and beige, the many ridges merely adorning the edge of its vast dust bowls, dry deserts and large salt flats.
Yet out here, wealth was to be found by those seeking and able to acquire it.
It also explained why these particularly badlands were relatively recent in Equestria's history, and not at all natural.

As Chack gazed out over the landscape before him, the Salamander took another swig from his water sack, his parched skin next as he took a small amount and rubbed it over his body beneath the bright white robes he wore.
Breathing more calmly as moisutre set into his skin, Chack remarked aloud.
"This land, it does not seem like it should be like this."
On his belt, the green tool, the artifact that linked him to the forest being of Everfree, replied to him, his voice echoing as if a deep rumble on the wind in his mind:
"No, it should not. I recall a time when the great forests I now preside over had links up to this basin. Sweeping grasslands, a river and swamp basin, beautiful in its own way. But then, centuries ago, Alicorn magic and rule took its toll."
Chack's eyes narrowed as he heard this, letting Everfree go on, the slightly bitter tone in the spirit's voice not going unnoticed:
"They dug, they found valuable minerals, minerals they mine to this day. In a bid of what was one of many 'reshaping' ways in Equestria, Alicorn rulers, even old royalty before the Queen you saw the death of was born, they ordered weather be redirected to lands fertile in ways better suited to farming, so as to 'prioritise' rain for maximum yields."
"Over time, with no rainfall, the land here died. And though rain falls now ever since the cloud manipulating pegasi stopped their work a hundred years ago, the damage has been done. Nothing grows here anymore. The land is dead."
As Chack gazed out, he saw the small town at the base of a shallow mountain slope, sandwiched between a salt flat, and an excavated side in the mountain, the salt mining and copper pit the source of the town's income.
"The Alicorn in charge here, he presides, he oversees the salt and copper mining that takes place in the mountains and on the plains. A wealthy Alicorn, a son of the Alicorn family that has mined here for generations."
"A perfect target for her. No wonder she came here." Chack remarked aloud, his webbed hand reaching to clench his old sword. Despite his efforts to repair its burnt parts being imperfect, he managed to restore his acid dissolved katana to a semblance of its original quality.
"This will be her 4th Alicorn kill since Queen Aurora's death, but we have arrived before her."
"A change of things that will ensure she dies."
Chack's blunt remark was met with silence, as it wasn't until he started walking the long path towards the town that Everfree's voice floated from his blade:
"And when she does, when one more threat to Equestria's greater peace falls, you intend to leave Equestria still?"
"This is not my war. Taking her out is a matter of justice, for what she has done, for what she is."
"And of who she was before all this? She was desperate enough for Siral to gain her by your actions years ago?"
"Which only makes me see her as unfinished business. Bushido requires responsibility for one's actions. Her death, is my responsibility. One I happily will uphold."
As Chack's smile played on his lips, Everfree quietly rumbled from the sword:
"Time is short, whatever you decide, do it swiftly."
The Salamander's expression didn't change as he continued on towards the distant mining town down in the salt flats.
"But whatever you do end up doing, perhaps, it would be best to, let her take the Alicorn's life."


This caused Chack to actually stop, his expression turning to an uncertain frown as he asked Everfree through his green blade:
"Why?"
"She will become overconfident in success. And, his family were responsible for this place turning to wasteland. I still have my own personal feelings on that history of things..."
"You want me to let Siral get away with what he wants through her?"
Chack's question was slow, he truly was puzzled by this sudden admittance. But Everfree finished:
"Siral's minions are a menace, make no mistake. You saw the future of what together they would have done. A much lessened but still dangerous threat. But the Alicorns have forged the world to their will for so long, would it hurt to take back slightly?"
"You presume I care deeply about these ponies? I have no stake, they are expendable if it takes that to kill her. 2 years I have hunted, I will end it today."
Chack's statement was final, as his expression hardened, the smile on his face in anticipation soured and gone right now as he reinforced his will in this cause.
The distant Everfree said no more, while Chack continued his pacing towards the town in the distance, the sun still high overhead.

Mid Afternoon
Salty Basin badlands
Copperfield town

The dusty, desert dwelling town was formed of stone and mud formed buildings, pock marked with imported canvas coverings over the market and doorways.
The copper mine and salt flat harvests were the town's source of income, and as the high number of Unicorns and their one Alicorn allowed, food requirements were met with many wagons of food. Crucial to the manufacture of magic imbued weapons, copper was a key metal for the war effort on both sides, in this case Nationalist aligned.
But as the blue maned, white bodied Unicorn mare held her white cloak tight to shield from the scorching sun, she couldn't help but see what the town did harvest for itself besides the mineral wealth.
If not for the underground water reservoir that the town's main well tapped into, the town would have been unable to survive in these badlands.
The market bustled with ponies pulling the usual wagons of salt blocks and lumps of raw copper ore, ready for transport, and the bustle of the families of the workers going about the usual trade and socializing.
As Teal Quirt kept her cover, she eyed up the stone walled building near the end of the town, larger then the others and decked with more ornate copper furnishings on the outside, a sign of opulence on behalf of the town's leader.
The Being of Envy saw the leader's home, and sought out the Alicorn who owned the mine. From what she heard, he was scrupulous, fair but uncompromising in his management of the town he was both leader and chief beneficiary of. Apparently he worked his share, even if not fair given how adorned his house seemed, in the mines with the rest of the workers.
Which meant he had a schedule...

2 hours later
Late Afternoon
Copperfield town outskirts
Copper shaft mine, main tunnel

A few hundred feet into the mine, and here was where the incident that caused work to stop for a moment occured.
A mysterious collapse, not a total one thankfully, but it trapped a worker's leg under one of the support beams that had snapped to cause it.
As they strained to move the collapsed beam, the trapped worker pony yelled in pain as it finally began to shift from him.
"Keep 'er steady, and, got it! Get him clear!"
The rather lean built Alicorn stallion held the collapsed wooden beam up with his light red magic, as the two Earth pony stallions pulled the wounded third out from underneath, the beam having collapsed onto the stallion's rear leg.
Carefully putting the support beam back down, Lord Mccairn called back down the mine shaft for the town medicine mare to be ready for a miner's crushed leg. If they were fast, they may well save it with magic and standard means of mending bones.
Turning his gaze back to the support beam, Mccairn noticed the faint burns along it, as did the Earth Pony who had stayed behind with him:
"Sir, we should get out before another collapse.... What is that?"
"This beam was cut by magic."
As Mccairn's light red magic continued to shine on the beam, the darkness of the shaft mine around them still, the Earth Pony stallion asked cautiously:
"But, only you and the healer are Unicorns, and she's been in town the whole time as always. So who?"
"Something's not right here. We have an intruder."
Confused, the Earth Pony wiped some dust from his muzzle as he quizzically wondered aloud, with Mccairn standing upright more to hear him out:
"Nopony magical left the mine. You think they, uh, vanished out of here?"
"No, transport spells need you to see where you're going, unless they are very powerful or skilled. And I doubt one as powerful as that would have interest in this place. The only way they could have gone is further into the mine, like a trapped rat."
As his magic's light red colour lit up, Mccairn gave a small smile as he saw his mining chief take up a hoof pickaxe.
"This shouldn't take long."
With that, the Alicorn and Earth Pony walked down the shaft, Mccairn's light red horn glow lighting their way.

Copperfield town outskirts
Copper shaft mine
Entrance

"Get him to the healer."
The brawny Earth Pony worker watched as the worker with the crushed leg was swiftly carried on the makeshift stretcher, away towards the town, doped up on drink to numb the pain.
Turning away to check on any other workers as the mining was ceases earlier then normal, the talk of a few miner ponies on break floated by his ears in the background.
"Where's Mccairn and the Chief?"
"Gone in, something about an intruder that cut the beam."
As the mine worker ponies spoke however, they and all others failed to notice the webbed footprints pass them by, forming briefly in the sand before an invisible tail swept them out of shape. The invisibility spell cloaked Salamander snuck into the mine, past the workers, with ease.

Copperfield town outskirts
Copper shaft mine
Main excavation chamber

The red light hued all around the chamber, about the size of a cathedral, but criss crossed with many rock columns and arches. It resembled a gigantic swiss cheese interior almost, with the only unnatural features being the wooden walkways that the mining operation had set up. Off to the sides there were dark holes that led down to unknown areas, but that was not their concern right now.
"Come out! We know you're in here!" Mccairn bellowed into the mine, his voice echoing over all the various columns and arches through the main chamber. Beside him, the Chief Earth Pony glanced about cautiously, trying to listen in.
There, a rattle something scuttling about in the dark echoed back to them.
"Who's there!?" The chief pony spun around, only to see nothing. Behind him, Mccairn turned in the direction of the noise too, remarking quietly:
"Calm down, we outmatch them..."
As the pair of ponies wandered deeper into the main chamber, the Alicorn paused beside one of the darker holes, taking a sniff suddenly as he asked:
"What is that foul odour?"
"Rotten eggs we threw to give away toxic gas, one of the new tunnels. We abandoned it because copper yield wasn't high as expected, and we nearly lost Haysaddle to the fumes."
"Remind me to use magic to seal off that tunnel tomorrow. Steel your breathing meanwhile..."
Mccairn breathed through his mouth as he spoke, while the Chief nodded through his held nostrils as they moved from the fume drowned tunnel.
The gas was heavier then air, and remained where it was found.

Hidden in a small corner of the main chamber, an unseen Salamander watched, waiting, webbed hands stroking the two blades he held, the green one pulsing strongly in the presence of the enemy he sought.
Overhead, he sensed it, his Salamander skin able to detect vibrations in the air enough to compensate for his poorer vision. Glancing up, he saw it, movement among the ceiling arches.
Chack waited patiently. he just wished that strange smell would go away, it was bad enough that it burned his eyes. But seeing as how dark it was, vision was a premium anyway.

Overhead, something clattered to the ground, a small pebble. Shooting his gaze and red light upwards, Mccairn saw nothing except the brown/yellow stone of the mine.
Staring up with him, the Chief replied to the Alicorn stallion: "Perhaps we should get more in here?"
"Wait." Mccairn shushed the chief with a hoof, as he narrowed his eyes at the stone ceiling about 20 feet above them.
To his horror, part of the stone ceiling moved. But it was no cave in. A stone coloured creature dropped down, scorpion like legs and ape-like torso shifting to a darker colour as the green eyed monstrosity leapt down, claws wide as a green light shot from her eyes.

The green light struck Mccairn's horn, the overload of magic shocking him into dropping his illumination spell. Highlighted in green in a series of flashes, the silhouette of the Chief Earth Pony was impaled by one green hued claw, before next hurling it towards Mccairn as he was pulled forwards in a green magic grip.
Then, a loud wet snip echoed in the cavern, silencing Mccairn's half scream before it could grow too loud. In the faint glow of the green sickly light of Teal Quirt's eyes, the body of both the Chief Earth Pony and Alicorn Lord Mccairn lay on the ground, the latter with his head rolling to a stop nearby.
As a satisfied clicking laced the sigh she released, Teal Quirt ignored the subtle movement in the dark that approached her.
But as a whistling noise sounded behind her, her eyes widened as she spun around.

His green blade ringing as he slashed it out, the faint outline of Teal's figure spun to sidestep him, a flailing claw blocking the blade and redirecting Chack's leaping slash into a nearby wall.
Grunting from the impact, Chack heard the surge of many legs, and the Salamander ducked down as a green hued claw stabbed into the rock where his head was. Kicking against the ground to skid underneath her hide, Chack slashed out, his old katana cutting into the bottom of Teal's thorax as he slid under her.
Shrieking from the pain, she reeled back, and like a leaping spider she leapt upwards, her green hued legs plunging into the ceiling as she took up purchase on the higher stone archway. As her eyes tracked the Salamander, she hued one of her ape hands green, and from it a hurricane force wind surged.
As the wind blew the mining cavern's air about with tornado force, she dropped onto an archway, her other ape hand glowing green as she used her magic to heal her slash wound on her underside.
But as the wind died down, she saw something leap up to an archway 30 feet away, with a green blade in one of his hands, a second sword in his other.
"Had your fill of death?"
Chack's cold remark carried through the dark cavern, to which Teal's own voice, laced with spiteful arrogance, replied quietly:
"If you cared so much about those I've slain, why did you wait until after I killed them?"
"A well planned hunt involves bait."
"And it only took you over two years to find me, to actually plan well."
Teal Quirt's retort didn't phase Chack, as he effortless replied as he raised his green blade to point in her general direction, a green hued line facing her amidst near darkness.
"And I do not intend to let you slip away this time."
"For what? Some shallow redeeming of your pride because I killed one too many leaders you have little reason to care for? Tell me that isn't misguided..."
As Teal Quirt replied, she clicked her claws together, and cracked her ape-fist knuckles within the green hue of her 4 facial horns glowing a toxic green. Before her though, Chack assumed a crouched stance, both blades ready as the green glow of his own enchanted blade showed the almost malevolent smile gracing his amphibious maw:
"Its not in my culture to let a rampant killer go unpunished."
"The same culture that justifies your own acts of killing, of utter contempt for innocence? Spare me."
"That is not why I am here..."
Her own eyes narrowing, Teal seized the iniative and slashed out her ape hand, a streak of green light arcing forwards in the cavern, slicing like a gigantic blade to send many of the arches and columns in its wake collapsing. In a blur of his own green light, Chack leapt forwards, his swords slashing aside debris and burning bright green as he leapt through the green hued dust and smoke.
Another wave left Teal's claws as she leapt backwards, Chack's blade slashing onto the ground uselessly as he landed. Glancing upwards, the Salamander saw the Being of Envy scuttling over the cavern ceiling like the scorpion her lower body was, green magic glowing on her four horns briefly as she vanished, plunging the cavern into darkness.
The scuttling noise ceased as soon as the last light dimmed, as Chack gave a derisive snort while dimming the light on his own green blade. Now utterly black, the mining chamber became silent.
Seconds passed before the noises of silent leaping, landings, legs scrambling along rock ceased too. Then, the first clash rung through the cavern, a green flare as Chack's blade knocked aside Teal's green hued claw swiping at his side, forcing her to withdraw into the darkness.
Leaping off of the archway and down onto a half collapsed pillar of rock, Chack glanced around cautiously. This one, unlike the others, was fighting smart. No overt magic, it was a battle of outwitting, of out-sneaking the opponent.

Outside the mine, the noises had attracted attention, as a few of the Earth pony miners ventured inside, the noises of rumbling too loud for anything their Alicorn lord should be contending with.
A pair of them darted inside the tunnel, towards the echoes of battle, as a gust of wind blew out from the mine. And with it, the faint smell or rotten eggs.

For many minutes they fought, a single flash, a slash, a flurry of blows, and then silence as they leapt into the darkness away from each other.
Landing as quietly as he could, Chack breathed in silence, the faint smell creeping from the lower levels of the main chamber an irritation to him. Closing his eyes, he tried to gain a sense of where she was, without moving so as to remain hidden himself.
He felt it, the vague shapes, but it was blurred, like smudged paintings to him. Focusing, he cleared his mind.
Then, he felt it. A tickle to the lower left, as the faintest of rustles on the ground reached his senses. Hurling his green blade out like a spear, Chack's vision was greeted by a green blaze.
In the lower reaches, as she seemed to be holding her breath against the noxious fumes, Teal Quirt screeched as the sword had plunged into her ape arm, pinning her down with its momentum as she'd braced upon leaping from a higher level.
Then, up on high, Chack raised his old Katana above him, leaping down as his blade whistled in the air.
Wrenching herself free, Teal screamed as the green blade stuck out from her arm as she backpeddeled, Chack's sword clanging against the ground she'd just been pinned to. Not wasting a moment, the Salamander leapt at her, his hand outstretched to make the suddenly glowing green sword fly from her skewered arm and into his free hand.
Firing a shockwave of green magic at him, Teal scuttled backwards as Chack leapt off a corner of a pillar to dodge, flying at her with both swords raised, the green one envelping him in a almost static-like shield. Her own green energy flew up around her like an embalming fluid, as her claws flew out to clash with his twin blades, magic and normal.
In the darkness, the cavern lit up with the collision of her magic against his blades, their energy fields crackling as they glared into each other's faces, blood on their minds, eyes burning and throats tickling from the fumes Teal's early hurricane spell had thrown up from the lower tunnels.
A moment later, everything around them turned deafeningly loud, fiery, and they were hurled away from each other with their shields barely intact. Their clash's sparks had set the gas pocket ablaze.

Copperfield town outskirts
Mine entrance

The column of air was immediately followed by fire. The two ponies who had ventured in to find their master were consumed instantly.
A jet of fire and smoke blasted from the mine, a hurricane of fire and smoke being forced out of a barrel. Equipment, waiting workers and piles of ore waiting to be loaded were blasted away if not consumed by the incendiary cloud.
But underground, as the screams of workers were cut off before they could leave their throats, the ignited gas pocket chain reaction spread. Compressed in the ground, and suddenly escaping by vast heat, the ground above the gas veins began to fracture and buckle.

Late Afternoon/Early Evening
Copperfield town

It would be the last setting sun the town would ever see.
A moment before, the rumble of the ground was from the mine explosion. A sight the ponies gasped collectively at, or worried if they didn't see it themselves.
A moment later, the ground beneath and around the town began to fracture, buckle and heave upwards. Great plumes of smoke and dust were hurled skywards in a series of branchlike patterns, fiery columns and plumes bursting in amongst them, the hydrogen sulphide fumes present in the more stagnant water pockets under the town catching ablaze in the chain reaction.
The ground opened, and Copperfield town was consumed by the earth collapsing in on itself, the great groaning of the ground masking the subdued death cries of ponies caught in the catastrophic collapse.
A disaster waiting to happen, triggered by the folly of combatants in an era where nobody knew how dangerous hydrogen sulphide fumes were.
The plume of smoke and dust rested over the crater that was once at the edge of a salt lake, as the town had been swallowed almost entirely. And those ponies who weren't consumed by flames or collapse suffocated by the non-burnt gases poisoning them.
Up in the mine, the rocky ceilings of the shallow mountain slope heaved as columns of more smoke and fire escaped, and the chamber caved in on itself.

Copperfield crater outskirts, mountain slopes

Bursting from the rubble, his shield barely holding together, Chack groaned as he dug his way out of the multitude of rubble and stones, his sword burning bright as he'd blasted his way out.
Climbing up, the dust clouds all around him on the slopes, he heard only the rumbles of fire and aftershock tremors from the mysterious blast that went off as they clashed.
Gagging as some of the bad smelling gas got into his mouth, Chack decided to get to higher ground, charging away from the smoke cloud and up the hill as fast as he could. His blood red armour was coated in a layer of brown dust now.
Out of the corner of his eye however, a green whiplike energy stream shot out. Bringing his sword around, Chack's eyes went wide as he felt it wrap around his green blade and yank him forwards and upwards, towards a higher part of the hill further away to his left.
The silohuette of Teal Quirt's claw came rushing to meet his neck, and the other his tail. Ducking as much as he could, Chack's scream rang out as he felt his tail's lower half get lobbed off as easily as hair from a mane. He let go of the green sword in his agony, uncaring for the moment of all else but his severed appendage.
Rolling away, the green sword flying as Teal Quirt hurled it aside, Chack grit his teeth as the scorpion/ape hybrid clicked her claws and knuckles at him menacingly, her piercing green eyes ablaze as she hissed to him through the pain his own slash wounds to her torso had done:
"No magic blade to save you this time..."
Teal's insult was laced with pain, as she limped slightly now from the explosion doing more damage to her as well. Though Chack was in no better shape then herself either.
Chack spat some blood from his mouth, as he pulled out his other sword. His old katana. As he did, her eyes narrowed at the sight of the blade that severed her first horn, that caused her so much grief enough to be a vulnerable victim of Siral's ploys.
Charging forwards, his death cry ringing as he did so, Chack swung his first upwards slash, earning a swift deflecting spell from Teal as she sidestepped to stab outwards with one of her pincers.
Ducking and weaving, parrying and returning the attacks, blade and magic, they fought on the mountain slopes baked hot in the sun, the remnants of the town destroyed in their bloodlust by way of collateral damage going unnoticed. They had eyes only for each other, and only slaughter on their minds.

Author's Notes:

In the story's final arc, it is Chack's finishing arc that stimulates Starswirl's in turn. He is after all the final one to set an example for Starswirl.