Awaking from their dream, Fluttershy was once again in tears. Matthew comforted her, reminding her that they still had each other. Aside from that, Matthew was now back to his top physical condition, along with the impressive new powers of the eagle. Fluttershy looked into his eyes, which of course, now resembled those of an eagle. Matthew looked back at her, and he could make out every detail of her face. They shared a kiss, and they started their day.

Two more months passed, and Matthew and Fluttershy had managed to stay hidden from Celestia the whole time. Matthew had fully mastered his eagle powers, even eliminating the damaging effects on his health when he used the power. He could now stay in his eagle form for up to one hour. He tried not to do so though, for even still, the negative effects on his health still remained just slightly. They weren’t enough though that they deterred him greatly. He put this power to great use, helping him kill his prey with ease. His vision helped him hunt like a pro. He had become a true predator.

After those two months had passed, Matthew and Fluttershy’s friends finally started to visit again. They had remained away from the two of them for so long just to make sure Celestia wasn’t on to them. Their first meeting in two months began with a group hug. Afterwards, Matthew demonstrated his new powers, and went on to explain how he got them. In his eagle form, Matthew couldn’t speak normal English, but, Fluttershy could actually understand him. She could, after all, understand animals. All of the girls were amazed by Matthew’s new abilities.

That night was spent outside, together by a fire. They enjoyed a freshly cooked meal from Matthew, and he and Fluttershy were informed of Celestia’s current state. Twilight noted that Celestia had only increased her efforts to hunt for the two of them. Celestia had actually ruled out the Everfree Forest already. She apparently figured that with the way she left Matthew, he wouldn’t be able to survive in the Forest. She was completely wrong. Not only had he survived, but he was now even more powerful. Once Twilight finished, everyone just continued to eat and talk. Everything was just fine.

After that night, another nine months passed. The girls celebrated Matthew’s one whole year of living in Equestria with a not-so-small party. Matthew had asked for it to be discreet, but Pinkie refused. The party was great anyway. The one year was marked three months after the girls had finally started to revisit Matthew and Fluttershy. The two of them had managed to remain hidden for another six months after that point. But, Matthew knew sooner or later that Celestia would find him and Fluttershy again. He knew he would be ready. At that point, Matthew was a true master of his new powers. Now, the only reason his eagle form would be hazardous to use would be if he had been injured to a severe degree in his human body.

Matthew held on to the knowledge of Celestia eventually finding him. He was always ready for anything. And it was a good thing he was ready, because that day finally arrived.

Matthew was parkouring through the Everfree Forest, hunting for the night’s dinner. Fluttershy had decided to take the risk of going into Ponyville to visit Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie. She wasn’t in any real danger though. Fluttershy had become quite good at remaining hidden and keeping a low profile. She spent the day with her friends uninterrupted. That was, until there came the explosion from the Everfree Forest.

Matthew continued his hunt. He was having a crappy day, barely managing to snag even the smallest creature. At home, there was more than enough food, but Fluttershy had gone to Ponyville for the day, and he needed something to do. Finally, he caught sight of a manticore. Matthew had managed to fell about 50 manticores in his time in Equestria, and he was about to rack up another. He drew his bow, but before he could draw an arrow, the sound of wings caught his attention.

He looked to the sky, and what he saw made his heart stop. There, hovering above him, was Princess Celestia, clad in her battle armor.

“After all this time, I have finally found you Matthew. I hope you are ready to die, because unlike our last encounter, you will not be leaving here alive,” she spoke to him, and she charged her horn. Matthew instantly dropped from his perch, just as Celestia fired at the tree, breaking it apart. Matthew’s instincts were to run.

“You will have nowhere to run now Matthew! You cannot hide from me now!”

“That’s where you’re wrong Celestia,” he responded, and within a blink of an eye, he transformed into the eagle. Celestia was completely dumbfounded by what had just happened. What was once a human now was an eagle. The bird of prey shot through the sky with rapid speed. Celestia quickly chased after it.

Matthew changed back into his human form as he neared his home. He knew better than to be there, but he had nowhere else to go. Before Celestia could find him, he ran inside, grabbed as many ammo clips as he could, grabbed a small bag with food and supplies, and rushed back out. He was greeted by Celestia.

“So, this is where you have been taking refuge. I must say, you did a fine job for yourselves, you and Fluttershy. But now, your home shall crumble!” Celestia charged her horn for something big. Matthew ran as fast as he could to get away from the structure, but he couldn’t get far enough.

Celestia shot a beam of energy so great it would make a solar flare look like a simple campfire. The beam struck the home, making the structure implode on itself at first, only to burst in a torrent of flame, wood, and whatever else was in the home moments later. Matthew was sent flying through the air, landing hard against a tree. He fell to the floor. He tried to get up, but something stopped him. He looked to his legs, and all over his body, to find he had chips of wood lodged throughout his body. Small fragments of wood laced his skin, but his right leg had gotten hit the worst. A small chunk of flesh had been torn off, revealing to Matthew his calf muscle. He gripped it in pain, but he couldn’t stop. He had to keep running.

Standing up, Matthew felt something slide off of his back. His bow had just been broken in half. The string of the bow now only held together two halves of a once glorious weapon. Matthew looked at the broken bow in disbelief.

‘Aw man, I liked that bow. I didn’t even think it could break so easily,’ he thought to himself, but his thoughts were interrupted by the reminder that he still had Princess Celestia to worry about. He figured that making a new bow would be pointless, so he threw off his quiver of arrows and started to run. Celestia was hot on his trail, and soon enough, she managed to catch up to him. She landed a few meters away in front of him, stopping him dead in his tracks.

“You have nowhere to run now Matthew. ELITE GUARDS, ATTACK!” On that very command, at least fifty camo-covered soldiers emerged from the trees, bushes, and shrubbery. They were all clad in more advanced Royal Guard armor, but the colors were that of camouflage. They were all unicorns, using magic to wield their weapons. Most wielded spears, but the more prominent looking soldiers wielded swords and axes. These guys didn’t seem like they were going to go down lightly. They began to attack.

Matthew quickly drew his tomahawk and slid out his left hidden blade, changing it to a knife. One guard came at him with a spear from behind, which he quickly stopped. His tomahawk guarded the spear behind him, and he pulled the guard forward. Matthew stomped in the ankles of the guards forward and hind left legs. Both stomps let out noticeable crunching noises from the bones being broken. Matthew finished with a deadly slice of the guard’s throat.

Two more guards came at Matthew, one with a sword, the other with a spear. Matthew quickly sheathed his two weapons as the spear wielder came forward a bit quicker. He went for a stab, but Matthew dodged, grabbed the spear, and took it under his own control. He pulled the guard past him, whipped the spear around, and sliced the sword wielders head clean off. Blood shot through the air as the guard’s head landed on the ground with a thud. Matthew quickly turned around to meet the other guard. He spun the spear around and lunged at the guard, sending the spear up his throat. The guard began to gag as Matthew pulled the spear out, leaving a gaping hole in the guard’s throat.

Matthew flipped the spear over and chucked it with all his might at another guard. The spear was thrown with such force that it not only went straight through the guard's head, but it managed to lodge itself into a tree. The spear hung there, still lodged through the skull of the guard. The spear had been sent straight through the guard’s right eye, and Matthew made note of the eye on the tip of the spear. But, his focus was quickly turned back to his attackers.

One of the more bulky guards came at Matthew with an axe. Matthew had no choice but to duck under his swing. He quickly shot out both his hidden blades. He held his knife in an underhand position, slicing at the guard’s chest. He flipped the knife and brought it back over the guard’s chest again. He finished by delivering his right hidden blade into the guards skull, pushing him to the ground.

Three guards came at Matthew, two with swords and one with a spear. Matthew quickly blocked one of the sword wielders with his knife, pushing the blade aside. He underhanded the knife and backhanded it into the guard’s chest. He delivered two quick blows to the guard with his right hidden blade, finishing with a knee to the chest to send the guard to the ground. But, Matthew couldn’t react quick enough to stop the second sword wielder from slicing at Matthew’s right leg.

The guard had cut into Matthew’s thigh pretty deep. Matthew faltered and started to tip over. As the spear wielder went for a stab, Matthew just barely dodged, but he had been clipped on the right side of his chest. Matthew wouldn’t stop though.

He quickly used his underhanded knife to slit the guard’s throat. He drew his tomahawk and lunged at the sword wielder. He pulled his sword away, chopped once at both of his front legs, and finished with by chopping the guard in the side of his skull. Matthew pulled the guard away from him, noticing how deep he had managed to chop the guard. His muzzle was practically half-attached to his face, and half of his teeth had been ripped out. Matthew was shocked at how ruthless he had been fighting, but he couldn’t continue.

As four more guards lunged at Matthew, he jumped up and changed into the eagle. But, having been injured, the use of his power would be much more of a risky prospect, but he had no choice. He had to get away from the guards. They weren’t pegasi, so that gave Matthew an upper hand. However, he still had Celestia to worry about. She followed him, shooting beams of energy at him as they flew.

“You cannot run from me Matthew! You shall die this day!” Matthew ignored her words, and he got an idea. He let out an eagle cry, and he shot high up into the air. Celestia followed him, continuing her assault. But, Matthew was faster. He managed to gain a little ground on her, enough for his plan to work. He quickly turned around, and dive-bombed straight at Celestia. She charged her horn for a powerful shot. As she released the beam, Matthew changed back into his human form. Everything went into slow motion, as Matthew felt his body spin around the beam. He quickly met Celestia, driving his hidden blades into her wings. She cried out, and they fell.

Hearing a loud explosion from inside Sugarcube Corner, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Rainbow Dash all rushed outside. Unable to see where the explosion came from, Rainbow flew up into the sky. She saw a large flame emerge from the Everfree Forest. It was the exact spot of Matthew and Fluttershy’s home.

“Um, Fluttershy, I think your house just got totaled,” Rainbow called down. Fluttershy immediately was filled with fear.

“Matthew,” she said softly. “Matthew is in trouble. I have to get to him!” she cried up to Rainbow.

“Then we’re coming too,” Pinkie chimed in.

“No Pinkie. We can’t let Celestia know that you’re assisting Matthew and I. It will put you all at risk.”

“Fluttershy, come on. It’s time that Celestia knew that you two weren’t alone. We want to stand by you two, and it’s time we finally did,” Rainbow called down. Fluttershy simply sighed as Rainbow lowered to the ground.

“Are you sure?” Both Pinkie and Rainbow nodded. Fluttershy returned the nod and smiled. They gathered all of their friends, except for Twilight. They all knew that Celestia trusted Twilight, and that Twilight was Celestia’s student. Twilight understood this as well. She agreed with the girls to keep her knowledge of Matthew and Fluttershy a secret. She wouldn’t reveal her ties to the two of them until it was absolutely necessary.

Ultimately, Fluttershy, along with Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and Rarity, all started to head into the Everfree Forest. But, before their vision of the sky became blocked out, they saw Celestia chasing an eagle into the sky. She shot at the bird of prey, but it quickly turned around, and changed into a human. It was Matthew. He dodged one more shot and collided with Celestia. They began to fall to the ground.

“MATTHEW!” Fluttershy cried out, but both Celestia and Matthew had fallen to the ground.

Matthew started to pull himself up. He had managed to keep Celestia facing the ground, so she absorbed the great impact of the fall. But, Matthew still was hurt. Celestia hadn’t kept him from getting the wind knocked out of him. He stood up and looked to Celestia, who was already up and charging her horn. Matthew noticed the holes in her wings, as blood seeped out through the wounds.

“You shall not defeat me!” she cried out, and she fired at him. He quickly dodged, sliding out his blades and lunging for her. She magicked her sword and met both his hidden blades with a clang. They eyed each other.

“You have shown great endurance Matthew. I would honor you if it weren’t for your heinous crimes.”

“Fuck off Celestia! It’s not my fault that you can’t see reason! I stayed my blade the last time, but now, I’m taking you down!” he shouted back, and he pushed her sword to the side. As he was about to drive his blade to her throat, his blade met her horn. He pushed it aside as well, pulling her inwards and stabbing her in the side. She grunted, but wasn’t at all fazed by the hit. She shot at Matthew, successfully nailing him right in the gut. He fell on his stomach. He felt his strength fading. Celestia used all the strength in her wings to lift herself off the ground. She charged her horn for a familiar attack. Matthew was ready this time.

He changed into the eagle, flew right at her, and just as he reached her, changed back. He grabbed her and successfully threw her to the ground, landing on her with a knee to the back. He quickly jumped off, but as he was about to strike, she bucked him right in the chest. He flew back into the air, landing hard on the ground. He started to cough up blood, and he knew his ribs had been broken again. He gripped his chest in pain.

Celestia charged at him with her blade. As Matthew got up, he slid out his right hidden blade. He was just quick enough to catch the sword, but she had brought it down with enough force that his right hidden blade was cut clean off of the bracer. The blade had been broken. The impact sent Matthew to the floor. He quickly drew his pistol and fired off three rounds at Celestia, each hitting her successfully. He put away his pistol and tore the blade mechanism off of his bracer. He looked it over and threw it aside. He had just lost another great weapon, but the one upside was that now his right arm could move quicker. The blade added weight to his arm, but with it gone, he could strike harder with his tomahawk.

Matthew decided against it though, for his arm felt numb from what had just occurred. He simply slid out his left blade in hopes of plunging it into Celestia’s throat. He was met with a beam of energy. He flew back to the floor. Matthew’s strength was gone. He had barely enough strength to pull himself back up, but that may not have been the best idea.

Matthew felt a beam of energy shoot straight through his gut. He gripped the area that had been shot, and he felt the warmth of his blood flow over his hand. He fell to one knee, removing his hand to look at the wound. Another shot went straight through the right side of his chest, which made him fall on his back. He started to hack up more blood. Celestia magicked her sword back over to her and held it up high.

“NOOOO!” a voice cried out. Matthew turned his head to see Fluttershy, along with the rest of the girls, except for Twilight. Celestia, however, didn’t take her focus off of Matthew. She plunged her sword into his heart. Matthew made a short, noticeable grunt, as Celestia channeled her magic through the sword. One more burst of energy was fired through Matthew’s heart. Celestia drew the sword out.

As Matthew was about to speak out to Fluttershy, he faded. There, right before Fluttershy’s eyes, lied her beloved Matthew, dead.

Author's Notes:

Hey, look at that, Matthew died. Hmm, I wonder... nah, that's crazy.

Anyway, this chapter did feel a little rushed. I don't mean the whole battle scene, writing that felt fine. The beginning is what felt rushed. I just felt it was unnecessary to go into a whole other chapter of Matthew showing off the powers to the rest of the ponies. I easily could have, as well as writing about the one year anniversary of living in Equestria party thing. Plus, I'm making time pass in the story, and my brain can only think of so many things to happen in those time spans. But, regardless, I'm sure this will all work out. Hey, you got another kickass action scene didn't you?