Somewhere…

… Somewhere, not even Shy knew where, she stood. Around her Everfree Forest slowly came into focus. She felt Zecora’s hut from behind her, the warmth of the cooking fire inviting. Sunlight bathed the clearing before the home where she stood. Somewhere in front of here, just out of focus, she thought she could see Zecora as well.

“This is what you choose, isn’t it?” Fluttershy asked softly from behind her. “I kept this place perfect for you… For the both of you.”

Shy squinted to try to see Zecora clearly but she just couldn’t. “I spent so long here, so many years… But… ”

“It’s both your home’s,” said Fluttershy to her short haired doppelganger. “By denying Celestia- ”

But Shy shook her head. “I did not deny the Princess to accept you.” She stopped trying to see Zecora. Like mist, the black and white far from her disappeared. “I hate both of you equally. You are both to blame for my pain.”

Behind her, Shy could feel Fluttershy’s disappointment. “You could have everything you wanted. You could have a home, a purpose, a love… Kindness… ”

“My kindness is different from yours, Fluttershy.” The red eyed pony waved her creator off. “Go.”

Sniffling quietly, Fluttershy faded away. “Where will you go… ” Her words echoed into the woods. The greens and browns began to meld into one another until only the memory of a forest could be seen, an abstract rendering of a thought.

Alone in that painting of remembrance, alone with the question of purpose, Shy stared where Zecora once stood and felt her knees weaken. Tears streamed down her face.

A chill wind pushed all the colors into oblivion. Darkness surrounded her, inside and out.

Five years, eleven months after meteor...

Spike swore as Fluttershy fell to the floor, her severed wing in his claw. No! This wasn’t how it was supposed to be! FLUTTERSHY!

For a split second Spike thought he saw a snowflake fall into his vision. In the next, he and everyone else was flying backwards. A freezing wind pulsated out from Fluttershy so strongly that Spike slammed into the castle wall. He slumped to the ground in a daze, the sounds of shattering glass and screaming filling his head.

It wasn’t… this way…

Darkness overtook him and he collapsed.

The wind picked Steel up and shot him through a stained glass window. He tumbled end over end until he crashed into the ground. Somehow he managed not to break anything in the fall, though the shards of glass had cut his back and neck. He lay on his stomach in pain, eyes closed.

Something fell down in front of his face. He opened his eyes and saw the bandana he always wore had fallen off. The blood that had soaked it on top of the constant wear had worn it beyond repair. It was little more than black threads woven loosely through one another now. It stood out in contrast to the small spears of green coming up from the dirt.

The end of my kind…

The dog grit his teeth. Not without a fight! Steel slammed his fist into the dirt and felt something respond. Small flecks of dirt rose and stuck to him. Blueblood!

The monstrosity Blueblood had become was stopped dead in its tracks by the blast of wind. His thousand toothed tail snapped backwards. Claws as long as hooves dug into the stone floor, preventing him from being knocked far back.

“CELESTIA!” his scream more a roar, the words launching themselves from his deformed maw.

Beyond the pony, the double doors were also hit by the wind. They flew off their hinges into the room beyond to the accompaniment of yelling. The prince knew the castle would be mobilizing to his aid but also knew they would only get in his way. I have to end this here and now!

Shy felt a chilling tremor rush through her. The world snapped into motion again, sound crushing into her head. She heard something huge hit the castle wall, something smaller smash through a window, and something enormous roar.

“CELESTIA!”

Guess again! The pony pushed herself up. Blood pumped out from the wound on her back where her wing once was. She felt it covering her back and hind legs. Even though she knew she was losing a lot of blood her mind was crystal clear.

I choose myself.

The sound of wind rushing brought her back completely to the moment. Shy pushed and flipped herself midair, the razor sharp tail of Blueblood slicing into the stone where she once was. As she rolled, she commanded her blood to cover the rest of her body. As the tail whipped back she landed on her back legs. She caught Blueblood’s eyes and he hesitated. Smiling, her blood turning her body from yellow to bright red, Shy said softly, “Celestia is dead, just like you wanted.”

The prince snarled, his tail poised to strike. A low rumble outside made Shy glance towards the window. The monstrosity took that opportunity to strike, this time with his entire body. His black to orange scales streaked through the air, claws reaching for her.

It was at that last moment that the last of Shy was covered in red. She flicked her bloody dragon claws up and parried the prince’s claws. From below him came his tail to slash into her chest. Bone white teeth shattered against her blood armor, but the force of the blow sent her reeling back. The rest of Blueblood came crashing into her an instant later. He was atop her, clawing and thrashing, sending chunks of the stone and crimson flying.

Shy tried her best to ball up and get out from under the beast but he regained his footing first. The snake tail his back left leg had become tried to ensnare her while his maw came down to devour her. Shy’s own face changed as more blood covered it but had not finished becoming the dragon.

Something brown slammed into Blueblood’s side, flipping him off Shy. She took that moment to roll backwards and back to her hind legs. The sound of scuffling behind her forced her peek over her shoulder. Behind her were guard stallions filling the hall outside to bursting, their eyes looking unsure, weapons halfheartedly raised. It only took one growl from Shy’s completed dragon maw to make them lose the rest of their nerve. Many ran, others simply wet themselves.

The distraction dealt with, Shy turned back to the prince. What she saw made her blink in confusion. A tidal wave of dirt had forced its way through the now open window. Standing atop it was the dog she had seen before, the one who had shot her and humiliated her. A layer of brown dirt covered his legs and arms. The tree he had used to knock Blueblood off of her was cracked in half.

The pony and dog locked eyes. Recognition filled his, followed by rage. Blueblood raising back to his mutated legs turned both their heads to him. Before the prince could attack again they stole a glance at one another. A simple contract was formed.

After.

Torn between two targets, Blueblood chose the closest: the dog. He lashed with his tail as he dove at the smaller creature. The dog backed up, arms reaching down to hurl large chunks of solid earth at his pursuer. Each chunk blocked an attack from the monster’s tail but did little else. It was obvious to Shy that the dog didn’t know much about his powers yet. She considered letting the two elements fight to the death but knew Blueblood would win. And then he would launch a crusade against me.

Shy ran forward towards the two combatants. Blueblood reached the dog and slashed wildly. In what appeared to be a last resort, the dog dropped to all fours. In an instant he appeared to slip into the dirt like water. The prince followed him claw first, digging like the thing he was after.

Shy took her chance. Her dragon claws flashed out at the prince’s scaled side. Much of her attack was turned away by the hard armor, but thin red lines showed where she penetrated for a brief instant. Blueblood roared. The pony was batted into the air by his snake tail leg. It whipped out at her again, catching her by the leg and holding her upside down.

The prince’s eyes bled white sparks. “You are nothing to me! I am chaos!”

Like a torrent the dirt under the monster surged upwards, lifting him collide into the ceiling. Shy was lifted high as well, still held by the snake tail. As they both began to fall the pony realized the impact would be devastating to her. She commanded the blood to do something she didn’t think would work but couldn’t afford not to try. While it shifted on her she slashed at the snake tail, severing it.

Halfway to the floor her wings fully formed. She flapped them madly, barely breaking her fall enough to tumble to the floor. Her body bounced as Blueblood landed hooves away from her. Without thought she rolled away from the prince to put some distance between them. Shy saw dirt engulf the monster’s legs in a vain attempt to hold him down.

Blueblood kicked the dirt away. In his thrashing a claw found purchase and the dog came flying out from beneath. The monster’s jaws snapped forward around the dog’s leg midair. His teeth sliced through the dog so cleanly his flight continued uninterrupted. Shy cringed as the dog’s scream was cut off by the sound of him colliding with the throne room’s wall. His body fell to the floor, his breath coming in gasps.

The monster wasted no time celebrating his attack. He pounced on the still form of the dog.

Instantly, the blood covering his front claw pierced his scales and tore the appendage to shreds. Blueblood’s roar of pain and confusion was interrupted by Shy’s claw slashing him across the face. Streams of blood flew into the air. Without proper support, the prince toppled forward. Shy continued her assault by aiming for the beast’s exposed neck. More warm blood covered her.

The pony moved away quickly after the damage was done. She saw that she needn’t have bothered: Blueblood’s crimson blood was pouring out onto the floor. The remains of his front claw had been trying to repair themselves, small chunks of flesh undulating. This had forced his mind off regenerating the rest of himself, Shy guessed. Whatever the reason, the monstrosity that was Prince Blueblood convulsed as his life slowly ended.

Shy kept one eye on the Prince while she moved towards the dog. The smaller creature looked battered but not dead, his chest rising and falling rapidly. A wheezing laughter shot her attention fully to Blueblood. His brilliant white eyes locked with hers and a horrendous smile crawled onto his lips. An oily smell hit her nostrils. The blood oozing from the monster turned clear and gelatinous. Sparks from his eyes fell into it as his laughter grew louder.

“FUCK!” was all Shy was able to scream before the monster exploded.

Residents in Appleloosa and Dodge City where startled by the quake that woke the cities and shattered windows. Those already outside were able to view the spectacle in all its glory as well as feel it. The clouds overhead seemed to run from the source, giving a clear view of it.

Canterlot was as bright as the sun.

Several hours later…

Spike flew over the rubble of Canterlot Castle. The explosion had sent a majority of the city sliding down the mountainside. It was the largest landslide the dragon had ever witnessed, though he had barely had enough time to teleport out before Prince Blueblood exploded.

Fluttershy is… dead…

Some small hope inside of him died. No pony could have survived that blast. He knew he had been a fool to even give it a cursory glance.

Sighing, Spike raised his claw and teleported away.

Somewhere…

…. Somewhere, not even Shy knew where, she lay. It was too dark to see anything at all. Even so, she felt calm. “I’m dead, aren’t I?”

Lying beside her a too familiar voice answered. “No,” Princess Celestia said flatly. The pony broke out in a cold sweat. The alicorn smiled. “Did you think me completely gone? As long as even the faintest memory of me remains, so will I.”

“You say that, but you are powerless,” Shy said through grit teeth. “As you say, you are a memory. You have only as much power as I let you have.”

The Princess’ cold eyes met the pony’s. “You’re right. But there will be a day when your world will shatter around you. When you have no choice but to remember just how powerful I am. And in that moment when you falter, I will rise again.”

“Like hell!” Shy punched the darkness in front of her, cracking through it. She kicked and punched until she was free from the blood cocoon she had surrounded herself with unconsciously. The rubble of Canterlot was all around her. The pony took in a lung full of fresh air and turned to where the alicorn had been in her mind.

A chalk white skeleton grinned back at her, long multicolored hair splayed out around it. The bones of Princess Celestia, hidden somewhere in the castle, were revealed for the world to see.

Shy held her breath for several heartbeats. When it was clear the bones would not move again, she exhaled slowly. “I don’t need you,” she told the bones, “Equestria doesn’t need you.” The pony kicked the blood cocoon‘s side down, covering the alicorn’s bones.

A groan turned her around. On the other side of her cocoon lay the dog. Either by her own will or by sheer luck he had been saved along with her. The bleeding from his severed leg was stopped by a bandage of dried blood. Shy shook her head, not really knowing what she had been thinking.

Grumbling under her breath, Shy picked the dog up over her shoulders and began walking back to Ponyville.

That evening...

Steel’s eyes flew open. He took in the inside of the room in an instant, quickly scanning for any threats. The dim light coming through the cracks of the boarded up window told him it was either morning or evening. His paw went to his gun holster first. Gone. Next to his crystal knives. Gone. Pain shooting up from his leg broke his focus and made him stifle back a bark. He tore a blanket off of himself to reveal his missing leg.

A warming smell filled him. Beside the bed was pair of rusty crutches. Quietly he slipped out of bed and used one of the crutches to hobble to the room’s door. Equally as quiet, he opened the door a crack. Through it he saw the yellow pony standing on two legs stirring a cooking pot suspended in the fireplace.

“Come on, it’s almost ready,” he heard her say. Steel cautiously opened the door all the way. He had to rebalance himself several times. The pony looked over her shoulder at him, her eyes amused. “I’m sure there’s a wheelchair somewhere in the hospital that isn’t completely melted.”

“Why did you help me? Weren’t you trying to kill me?” the Iron Dog spat at her. He felt his next words come out in a flood. “You killed all my friends. You killed the one I loved! We could have defended ‘urselves from those bastards if you hadn’t hunte’ us!”

The pony’s expression turned melancholy. “I took my anger out on you. They didn’t deserve to die, I’m sorry.” She turned back to the pot of food. “I can’t take back what I’ve done.” Her yellow hooves held a ladle aloft and began pouring soup into two bowls. She picked one up and placed it on the table beside him.

“You don’t get it! My entire world is gone!” Steel shook, emotions spiraling. The rusty crutch supporting him snapped and he fell backwards. He didn’t cry out or thrash. The hut’s ceiling overhead came to a point far away. “I have nothing left… ”

“Neither do I,” said the pony. “But unlike you I never had anything to start with.”

Steel couldn’t stop himself from laughing. “Unlike me… I was born a Stray Dog, left to die in the lowest pits of the city. Everything I gained I held onto for fear of being as alone as I was back then.” Tears welled in his eyes. “I am as I was: a Stray.”

The pony sat at the table with her own bowl of soup. “That makes two of us, then.” He heard her begin eating her food. The fire crackled loudly as a log broke in half.

The Iron Dog grit his teeth. This is all your fault…

Later that night…

A symphony of birds flew through the crystal clear sky, singing all the while. Fluttershy watched their flight with wonder in her pink eyes. Her smile was matched by her five best friends in the town square around her. Everything was so wonderful she almost couldn’t take it.

“Fluttershy… ”

The yellow pegasus turned to the voice. “Shy! Oh how nice of you to come visit!” Fluttershy moved towards the other pony. “Come on, Pinkie Pie just made some fresh cupcakes!”

But Shy did not move from where she stood. Uncharacteristically, the other pony went down to all fours and sat. Confused, Fluttershy moved closer to her. “What’s wrong, Shy?” As she moved closer, the other pony raised her hoof and booped her on the nose. Fluttershy giggled at her touch.

Shy smiled slightly, her hoof staying against Fluttershy’s nose. “Fluttershy… I am yours, and your memory will stay with me wherever I go, I can’t change that. I’m… sorry I’m not what you needed.”

Head tilting to the side slightly, Fluttershy smiled. “You don’t ever have to be sorry, Shy. Because of you, Ponyville will always be safe and happy and beautiful. Shy… I lov-”

The loudest crack of thunder Fluttershy had ever heard ripped through the air.

Earlier…

In one motion Steel rolled, putting his leg under himself. He used it to spring at the pony with all the force he could muster. She didn’t even try to dodge and they tumbled over together. He gained the top position, wrapping his claws around her throat. Dirty nails dug into her yellow furred skin.

The pony stared into his eyes without an ounce of fear. Even when she started to gag involuntarily, she never looked away or struggled. Steel felt like he could peer into her very soul at that moment.

You’re like me. You didn’t know what it really meant to have something to lose until it was gone. There’s nothing else in this life for us. His eyes went wide. You saved me for this moment, so I could set you free.

He let her go, arms out wide. She coughed in oxygen. “No,” he said down to her, “I won’t do it. If I have to suffer, so do you.”

The pony’s pink eyes turned pleading for only a moment before anger took over. “Get off.”

Steel used the table to stand up and hobbled over to his seat. The pony rose as well and sat before her soup. The two elements of harmony quietly ate, their shared hate of one another keeping them silent.

After Steel was finished he licked the bowl. “Good soup.” The pony grunted in response. “What’s your name?”

“… Shy. You?”

“Steel.” The dog pushed the bowl towards Shy. “So, what’s the plan, Shy? Live here in this dead town until another madman shows up?”

The pony pushed her vegetables around her bowl. “Actually, that’s something you can help me with.” She looked up into his eyes. “I can’t leave until a certain somepony is dead. But you might not believe me when I tell you about her.”

Steel laughed from the bottom of his stomach. “Pony, after what I’ve seen, I’ll believe anything.”

Fluttershy felt something warm drip slowly down the side of her head. She reached up with a hoof and touched it. It was sticky. She looked at it. The color was the brightest of reds she had ever seen. She looked up at Shy.

The other pony had tears in her eyes.

Smiling, Fluttershy tried to reach up to wipe them away. No one… ever cries… in…

As if falling underwater, Fluttershy slowly fell forward. Shy reached out and caught her in her front legs, holding the perfectly clean pegasus against her unwashed body. It was a surreal feeling for the wingless pony to watch the light slowly fade from Fluttershy’s eyes.

“I hate you… ” A tear ran down her cheek. As blood hit the perfectly trim grass, flecks of green drifted into the air. The beautiful grass was floating away. “… I HATE you… ” When the green hit anypony, that pony too started to disintegrate. Fur and skin of all colors joined the sea of illusion. “I HATE YOU!” The clear sky clouded. Rain suddenly poured down onto the barren earth and revealed bone.

Holding her creator, her enemy, her master, Shy screamed to the heavens in anguish. Only she remained outside memory.

Steel watched Shy hold herself tightly and scream from his hiding spot behind the Town Hall building. He felt a sick satisfaction that he had caused the pony pain, though he didn’t really understand how or why. Regardless, it felt good to hold his weapons again. The pony had found where the Iron Dogs had stored a cache of them in the town and returned them to him.

She had told him to shoot directly in front of where she pointed. Shy had tried to explain the purpose of it but it was beyond him. All he knew was that now she had no reason to stay in this disturbing town.

He went off to complete the second part of his mission.

When every illusion and dream was gone, Shy held Fluttershy in the reality she had ran from. Rain went through her as if she were a ghost. Shy thought she could just sit there holding the other pony forever, but knew she was out of time. Steel was probably already completing his next task.

She wasn’t exactly sure what to say in that moment. In all the fairy tales and historical events she had read about nothing seemed close to what was happening to her now. Shy guessed the one thing Fluttershy would have wanted to hear more than anything else in the world.

Her voice little more than a whisper, Shy leaned in close to Fluttershy. “I love you, too.” She let her go. Like she had never been there at all Fluttershy faded into mist and was gone.

An intense heat made her look to the side. Fire roaring from inside the Town Hall began to engulf its outside as well. Letting a long sigh out, Shy made her way to the nearest skeleton. In the dark it was difficult to tell which pony was which. Shy found she didn’t really care, if she ever did. Lifting it up over her shoulder she made her way to the burning building.

As she walked, more buildings roared to life.

The entire town of Ponyville burned to the ground that night. Eventually the rain ceased its pouring, and morning came.

From where Shy and Steel stood they could see the dying embers of the once bustling town. They both wore thick cloaks she had salvaged before destroying the place. This should have happened all those years ago, Shy thought numbly. Now they’re all together again…

Steel adjusted the backpack he wore. “Ready?”

Shy lifted the backpack by her hooves onto her back. She pulled her hood down so it would be difficult for anypony to recognize her. “Yeah… let’s go.”

Together, the last Iron Dog and the Element of Kindness walked away from their pasts.

Author's Notes:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dhpYT37krc

And so ends Part Three with Shy saying goodbye to Ponyville. Much of this chapter was inspired by the above song.

I love this story and want to write the next two parts badly but I may not have time anymore. I hope everyone has enjoyed it and has stuck through it even through all the theme changes. If you have any questions about the story so far or want to write a review of it all, please ask/do!

Thank you to everyone who has read this story, you kept me writing through the hard times!