Castlevania Equestria: Paralogue 6: Tail Raider

Sophitia was a bundle of heartache and nerves. She knew that Niakoro had the right idea, hiding away from the vampire lord and any of his cohorts, but....Tia just wasn't that kind of girl. Being cooped up in a witch's hut, in the dark, dank Everfree, was a burden on her very soul. And yet, staying in Ponyville hadn't been an option either. As much as it pained her to be losing gentle, beautiful creatures like Ephemeria, whom she hadn't embraced in so long because of being in hiding, she would only endanger them and herself by staying there. So with a promise to Nia that she'd be careful and move as swiftly as possible, she'd gathered her things and fled the forest, hoping to catch the Ponyville train to Canterlot. There, she could seek asylum with the royalty-who knows, she might even be able to discover that handsome Alphonse character, perhaps he had a spare room? Was that a blush to her cheeks? Surely not! She pats her fluffy whiskers as she pulls her shawl tighter around herself. She needed to ditch such fancies! She needs to focus on getting home, grabbing a few things... Her claws fumble with the key in the darkness as she attempts to unlock her front door-it's been so long since she's been here, everything is so overgrown-she resists the urge to pause and grow some of the plants properly-but before she can even get inside, a bright glow flares up behind her, causing her to gasp and drop her key as she whirls around. Silhouetted behind her is what appears to be an earth pony, sitting atop a rock, a flame in his hoof, licking around it harmlessly. He's not facing her, but looks over his shoulder, firelight dancing in his eyes. "Daaaaaaaaaamn. For eldritch and nature-attuned beings you witches are stupid as HELL." a grin starts to creep across his face as he watches her look change to horror. "Oh what? You really thought we were going to let you go? Listen, Drago might be a pretty face, but I like taking a more aggressive approach. He was the good cop-I'm the bad cop. I'm gonna ask you what he did-just less nice, and far more heated..." he hisses as he slips off the rock. "Are you gonna come join us, and play with the GOOD guys, or do I need to turn you cooked carrion for all the little pretties we've spent months breeding?" he says as the flame in his right hoof grows, lighting up the front walk of her house brighter. Tia absolutely hates fire. Out of all the things that terrify her the most...it is a top fear. Not only because of its destructive capabilities, but because it is the bane of all she loves-pure, burning danger. Her eyes flick from the stallion's eyes, to the flame in his hoof, to the clearing-she can see the eyes of the creatures he is talking about-and feel their malice from the shadows. As one who loves woodland creatures, she knows these things are not friend, nor do they contain a fiber of benevolence in them. If she tries to run, they'll catch her. And there's no way...she can take him. She's gonna have to talk this out...maybe if she can...slip inside...very slowly...maybe if he turns his head... "Ya'll....ya'll want me? Ta....ya want what from me? Ah'm just an herbalist, ah don't....understand what yer lord wants from me, really...ya want potions...? Aging tinctures?" she tries to make a little joke in hopes maybe he'll laugh. "Don't fuckin' play with me you flea-ridden sack of SHIT. We KNOW you witches have more stuff you're capable of. I will NOT stand here and be made a fool of!!" the stallion yells angrily as his mane and fur ignite as well-she can feel the heat from here as fire like a funeral pyre fills the area. "Doesn't matter what you do or don't have, you FUCKIN' BELONG TO DRAGO AND YOU'RE COMING WITH ME OR YOU'RE DYING! LAST CHANCE!!" he raises both hooves at the feline as he heaves with anger. So much for talking this out-an absolute lack of rationale combined with a temper to be feared-she has one chance at this-if she can get inside her front door, she could possibly deflect enough of the blast... Before she can respond, there's a pained howl and snarl from one of beasts in the shadow, followed by alarmed howling and roars from several others. It takes Tia a moment to realize the smell-but it soon hits her olfactory nerves in a rancid wave-the smell of corpses on the window-and not long after, a hollow, rasping cacophony of groans. Even the stallion whirls about to see what he's dealing with... On the edge of the clearing, clearly illuminated, is Sophie's sister from another mister-the savannah cat looking to be the most hideous thing to have crawled out of a nightmare. Her eyes are milky white, her face drawn in an unarthly snarl, her face paint glowing as well as patterns on her fur, as she grips her skull-topped staff in her hand, uttering in a nasty, echoing voice at the intruder: "Idọti ti gbogbo idọti, choo should know we travel in packs FILTH! Momma gon'ta use your corpse as a merry play t'ing you deluded waste of FLESH!" she hisses as clearing descends into chaos-the night creatures forced out of the trees by what looks like droves of shambling corpses-they claws, fangs, and wings of the ugly companions of the stallion mean nothing before the sheer numbers... The stallion, roaring with rage, raises a hoof at Niakoro and Sophitia each, gritting his teeth. "WITCH BITCHES! YOU THINK YOU WON ANYTHING HERE!? THIS JUST GIVES ME THE EXCUSE I NEED TO CHAR-GRILL YOU AND TELL DRAGO I WAS JUSTIFIED AS HELL!! I WANT YOU TO WATCH THIS YOU INBRED SHIT STAAAAAAAAAIN!!" his roar becomes unearthly as the entire townside lights up around them-if Nia's display of voodoo had been infernal enough-this probably topped it. A massive, flaming effigy that looks like the upper torso of some sort of minotaur-like creature, mostly bones and skin-materializes above the stallion, preventing any of his foes from getting close as he looks over at Sophitia. The cat is already hurriedly trying to erect a barrier made of plants-it's pointless. He's between her and Niakoro-and freedom. She reaches down for the key, shoving in the lock-but all that accomplishes is turning her back to the massive fireball that sends her slamming THROUGH the door and into house-before everything fades from existence. Niakoro's scream of rage as her wave of undead surges at the stallion is lost-he just howls with demonic laughter as the entire clearing is engulfed in flames-leaving smoldering corpses and not a single trace of him as acrid smoke wafts into the sky, leaving Niakoro to her scene of grief-nothing but death, stillness, and crackling flames her companions as she digs through the wreckage of the small cottage, sobbing Sophitia's name....