The Mare walked across this hallowed ground, as the earth seemed to shift under her feet. The muddied waters squished under her feet, and her armor clanged as she continued her trek.

She grit her teeth. She concentrated her telekinesis on her sword, only for her to relax.

It was natural to be a little nervous when starting her journey.

After all, she was about to kill herself some demons.

[]

Underneath the earth, a creature stirred. It seemed to shift a little, only for it to realize something.

It smirked, realizing just what it had walking across the surface of its lair.

And it let out a guttural roar.

[One Day]

Equestrian Souls

Chapter 0: Hell To Pay

[Will This Be Over?]

The mare felt the ground shake even more. Of course, this was Equestria; it was to be expected of this little hellhole.

“Doesn’t even look like that nice a place.” She muttered. She entered an abandoned castle; probably belonged to a prince, once upon a time. She walked right in, and, lo and behold, a mindless pony could be seen.  

His soul was clearly taken; his eyes seemed hollow. He turned his head to the knight, and roared. It was then that she got a clear look at him.

He was famished, starved due to his nature as a Fledgling. His soul was stolen many years ago, but it was just now that he wandered into this place.

He was a pitiful stallion, with a broken dagger in his teeth and some broken, raggedy old clothes, but he was still taking a stance against this trained mare.

Of course, the knight felt a twinge of pity. She sighed as she walked to the soulless, and raised her blade in preparation.

One swipe, and its head was gone. Blood splattered against the cold stone, as the body hit the ground with a thud. The head rolled by her hooves, and the mare continued onward.

One kill wasn’t going to slow her down.

[]

Several minutes later, the mare was standing face to face with something more…recent. This time, it was a soldier, this time with his soul stolen just recently. The mare smiled despite herself. There was a demon here. It was so close.

But first, she had to deal with this stallion. And this time, it was still smart enough to wield a sword with proficiency.

It was a pegasus, too. “Not making this easy, are you?” She raised the sword again.

The soldier swooped in, spear in his hooves, before twirling above. She dodged it, sliding her sword against the spear’s head just to deflect it.

It worked spectacularly; the pegasus was sent spiraling out of control for a second, bashing himself into the brick wall.

Of course, it only served to piss it off. The soldier growled as he regained control of his flight, and charged once more.

This time, she slashed above her head, cutting the underbelly from ribcage to tail. The fallen soldier crashed into the floor, the combination of pain and blood loss sending it into a frenzied death rattle.

The mare grinned. That was one less problem.

“Only a thousand more to go.”

[]

This creature was a little more formidable. It was a unicorn, much like herself, only this time with a heavy set of armor. Its eyes glowed blue, and its weapon was a long, sharpened rapier. It was clearly modified to both cut and pierce, and it was strengthened with souls.

She readied herself, and raised her own sword.

She made a mad dash to the creature, only for it to parry her initial strike easily. The armored horse shoved her backwards, forcing her into a wall. The mare had a split second to react before the armored horse sent a shield careening into the wall. A hole was blasted into it, and the mare just barely dodged the blow.

She sighed both in relief and exasperation, before raising her sword again.

She had a better idea of how this thing worked, now. She swung again, only for the armored stallion to block the blow…

Except this time, she planned this. She swung the rapier around several times, gripping the handle with a simple thrust.

She sent the weapon flying backwards, leaving the armored stallion with just a shield…which she kicked away in the midst of the armored stallion’s confusion.

It glanced up at her, fear suddenly filling those glowing eyes…before she sent her blade into its skull.

[]

She walked to the final chamber, sighing as she reached it. At last, she reached the lair of this demon; after all, it was what she had come here for.

All that lay between her and her prize was a simple door made of fog.

She walked through it…and there it was.

It was a fat creature; imposing in its size and in its demeanor. It had three eyes, and it wielded an enormous axe made of steel and stone. Its teeth jutted out of its face, and its stature was stinted and primitive.

She sneered. It was as ugly as it was large. She raised her sword, and prepared to fight.

One slash of the axe, and she dodged it. She rolled across the ground, her armor light enough to grant her mobility over this creature. She slashed at its legs, only to discover that it didn’t pierce it as much as she hoped. Although blood spurted out of the wound, the creature seemed to be less "injured" and more “annoyed.”

It raised the axe, and brought it down upon her, only for the mare to dodge it at the last second.

She slashed at the legs again, with similar results. The demon was getting more and more annoyed.

As the fight wore on, the room that they were fighting in was becoming more and more damaged, with dents covering the wall.

Eventually, the damage took its toll on the demon. It fell over, the blood loss in its legs causing it pain that even itself couldn’t bear.

The mare panted as the demon fell, and raised her sword.

Maybe now she could finish it off.

And so, she brought her blade down, jamming it into one of the demon’s eyes.

It shrieked, the blade piercing into its brain. Suddenly, it stopped, and its body disappeared, disintegrating into thin air…and leaving a strange device.

The mare sighed in triumph…only to stare at this curious new item.

It was a spire. One that was jammed into a rock.

“An archstone…I’ve never seen one before.” She touched the spire, curious as to what wonders lie ahead.

“It wouldn’t hurt to try.”

[]

She was teleported to another location entirely. It was here that she realized that she was nowhere near where that demon was before. Instead of the wonders of the castle, she was instead in the desecrated ruin of a catacomb, one that predated even Celestia’s rule.

She walked through it, the shadowy cave doing more than a little to creep her out.

It was then that she felt the earth rumbling once more.

“There it is again.” She walked forth, drawing her sword…

Only for the source of this trouble to reveal itself.

The section of catacomb in front of her crumbled. In its stead was a horrific beast, one standing thousands of feet above her. It stretched through these ancient tombs, its many eyes glaring at her with contempt and hatred. It was an unequine creature, the orange scales around it cracking as it stared her down…and raised a single arm.

The mare readied her sword, and prepared for a fight…

Only for the fist to reach her before the first attack could be dealt.

The mare flew backwards, her ribs cracked, her organs ruined, and her skull shattered. She hit the back wall, leaving an enormous crack in it as the Archdemon growled in contempt, before unleashing a horrible, animalistic roar, the sound echoing throughout the ruins of Equestria.

And that…was the end of her story.

Next Chapter: Chapter 1: Nexus Estimated time remaining: 9 Minutes