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Is it because...I have a pair of wings...? Would you be the same... If I shed my pair of wings?

-Vader, Wings (for Fluttershy)

The rites are drawn...to celebrate, The fall...that never happened. Over. And over...you kill the same god... Whose name, I don't even know...

-Vader, Wings (for Link)

CRIES OF FLUTTERSHY

The tortured body of Fluttershy rested in the strong arms of the dark armored Link as he quietly searched for the exit in the endless maze of earthly stone, her hurt body wrapped up carefully in the black cape of the armored Hylian to keep her warm. She was too weak and blind to walk on her own, even so, he would of carried her still. There was no telling what she had gone through down in this haunted, hellish web of tunnels beneath the surface of the world. And if they were attacked, he wanted to ensure she could keep up with him.

Link was busy watching the many entrances to go down and thinking who, or what, would want to do this to his friend. She was likely the most gentle soul he knew, in all his numerous adventures did he ever meet anyone who came close to her level of kindness.

He contemplated the many methods he could requisition to use on the one responsible should he find them. Plenty of dark thoughts were entering his mind, and soon he noticed it was getting harder to keep up with them.

He stopped his march. This place was trying to throw him into total madness, if he allowed this, he would lose. And Fluttershy would again be alone in the dark, to die a lonely death with no sight and no one to see her safe.

…

It's amazing how a small, innocent creature like this pony could turn a corrupted soul who's darkness was beyond his own comprehension, that dwelt in a world of eternal shadow for a millennium to change so abruptly. He was once a mighty emperor, a feared king, a powerful warlord who was never challenged for his strength, and a fierce dark shadow so black that the most evil of devils shied from his presence. Not even the three goddesses and all their benevolence could revive the light that was stolen from him by his enemy. Yet this once pure being he held carefully in his arms had reversed a thousand years of pain and suffering, igniting his ebony heart and bringing some semblance of light back.

He didn't understand anything anymore. Nothing could ever make sense now. How could anyone ever desire to harm this angel? He felt Fluttershy shift in her position, moaning painfully as she used her sore muscles to try getting comfortable.

She never deserved this.

In Link's steady marching, he came upon another torture chamber. Perhaps he could find a tool to remove the torture device surrounding Fluttershy's neck. It would hurt getting that thing off her, as he can see several small spikes were embedded in her neck as points where their entry would not cause death, only severe pain. Likely, the spikes were embedded in nerve joints. If Fluttershy lowered her neck, or closed her mouth for too long, the device would constrict and drive the spikes further in. There was a compressor device attached to the metal wheel with a thin piece of wire wrapped around her neck and hooked in her mouth that did this. When elevated wrongly, gravity activated the compressor. He couldn't tamper with the wiring either, or it would activate, at least that was what she told him.

For only Hell knows how long Fluttershy has remained awake and standing. Only the Gods knew just how tired she really was. He could probably of guessed if she still had eyes, but the poor creature was robbed of it. And that, of all her injuries and scars, must've hurt the most. Not just physically, but mentally. For the idea of never being able to see again was the worst fate to bestow upon any being. And Fluttershy...was the last being who could deserve such a fate. Link himself would not have the will to live on if he had lost something so precious as the gift of sight.

Link pushed the steel cage door open with his right shoulder and closing it with his left foot. His dark gaze examined the layout of the room, taking note of a stretcher in the middle with freshly installed chains. Along the walls, various blades and tools to inflict as much pain as possible were hung.

Link took in all of them, searching for something that could relinquish the unholy device around his dear friend's neck.

She had not said a word since he picked her up. But neither has he, he couldn't think straight with Fluttershy's condition clouding his mind and judgment. Every now and then, she would let out an "eep" of pain or surprise, but nothing more. The only sound aside from Link's boot steps was her hagged breathing.

Link placed the pony down on the table as carefully and gently as he could.

"Stay here, I'm going to search this place for something to get that...damned thing off your neck."

"Okay..."

Link walked over to the northern end; several sharp, rusty blades for various forms of dismemberment or "surgery" hung loosely. Not one of them looked like they could saw through the metal binder. He picked up a thickly hand grinder, it was bent out of shape for unknown reasons and if he was to use it properly, he'd have to straighten it out.

He searched for a hammer of some type, something he could use to bend the grinder back into its proper geometry. A man-sized sledge hammer laid against the western wall. It was massive by all standards and the weight of the bulky head would make reforging the grinder easy work.

A vise bolted to the work bench against the eastern wall beckoned Link to use it as a grip, giving him the ability to use the hammer with both arms and allowing for more control with his swings.

But he needed a furnace to heat up the steel paddle so that he could reforge it properly. Only there was none.

"I'll need to make a fire, I've found something that could work, but I need to fix it first." Link spoke to his charge, who was busy looking around blindly as she tried to get her barrens. She gave him a nod to acknowledge his words, but remained silent.

He could tell she was traumatized. The more he thought on it, the more anger swelled within him. But he was wise enough to channel that anger into determination to punish the one responsible. And he will.

Pieces of an old broken bench and some wooden doors dry enough for burning lay in one corner, hidden in the eastern end of the room. Link gathered as much as he could and placed it in an empty and dry corner. Before lighting the wood, he felt a sudden urge to lock the door.

The hair on the back of his neck stood in warning. Danger was close by, he could feel it. But the halls were deathly silent.

"Fluttershy, is there something here I should know about?" Link asked quietly as he locked the door and approached the pony. She turned her low head to his direction as she tried to remember.

"Y...yes...The m-monster that d-did this to me..." She turned her head away.

Link's eyes narrowed. All his mind could think was lock Fluttershy here and rip the halls apart looking for the entity responsible. But he knew that was likely what the enemy wanted him to do.

'...If you don't come to me, I will come to you.' Link swore in his mind to the unknown being.

Link grabbed two rocks left from the damaged walls and dropped to one knee. He began hitting the rocks against each other hard and fast, causing sparks to fly. It took several minutes of silence between the two and slapping the rocks against each other for a small flame to ignite. Link blew at the embers, trying to raise the flame and make it hotter. The fire needed to be hot enough to loosen the metal.

After getting the fire started, Link gathered some dry wood around and added it in. As he waited for it to all catch fire, he sat next to Fluttershy, overlooking the many scars left on her once elegant body.

And then he noticed something terribly wrong.

"Fluttershy...what...happened to your beautiful wings...?" Link demanded in a hushed voice, horrified to his core.

The young pony looked to the small stubs that her elegant wings once were. A long silence followed, with the dark warrior slowly loosing the strength he had for so long. As he waited for Fluttershy to explain, he felt tears in his eyes for the first time in an extremely long time. Who could commit such a crime against the elegance of nature itself? To such a wonder upon his life?

"...I lost them...I was...forced to give them up," She explained nonchalantly. "It was the only way to get free..."

His painful tears aside, Link shook like he never shook before. His fists tightened harder than he ever had them. Blood drew from the palm of his hands from his fingernails cutting into his flesh. But he didn't care, all he could see was red. His hatred was slowly consuming him, the need to annihilate the demon who dared to do such an unthinkable thing! They MUST pay!

What hurt the most was he was powerless to reverse this all. He had the dark powers of Kingdom and the shadow people at his command, and yet in all that ability, not one thing could reverse what was done.

Mentally, he began to turn on himself, why had he not been stronger? How could he let this all happen to her? She was the brightest of his newfound friends and now her life is ruined.

"When I was caught, they brought me down here...They...hurt me..." She continued, resting her head against his arm. "I managed to offer a deal, for freedom..."

Link had gently wrapped his arms around her form, trying to keep her warm. She was shaking, but not from the cold. She was shaking from the experience. Link lowered his head, letting his face be buried in her mane.

The dark shadow loomed about in the room, gathering the many tools it had just finished using. Fluttershy's body was strapped down, her form writhing in pain from the horrendous torture session. Before her eyes were taken, she had seen portraits of Pegasai ponies on the wall, her captor had embedded many numerous knives into the wings of the portraits, showing an obvious distaste for the Pegasai. This senseless hate was not limited to her brethren, but to anything bearing a pair of wings, feathered or not.

Stuffed bats and birds hung from the ceiling by their necks, only frightening the holder of kindness more. But her biggest fear was now looming over her once more. She could feel the evil wind of the creature burning her face, a stench so foul her stomach could hold no food.

Broken, Fluttershy could only lie there and wait. But a thought had since entered her mind when the 'thing' was not around. Maybe it had targeted her because of her gift of flight? Now was her chance to find out, for the devil was making sure she did not die after all it had put her through.

"...W-why...? I-is it...b-because I ha-ave...wings? W-would y-you stop i-if I gave th-em to y-you...?"

A long silence followed, the creature and its clawed hands had stopped working roughly on her injuries when it heard her offer. The only thing Fluttershy could do was pray to Celestia that it accepted. For she did not know how much longer she could take the nightmare. It had put her through so much that she was willing to sacrifice her wings to stop the onslaught of torture.

"'Give up your wings, pony, and you can go free' was what it said...I didn't want it to hurt me anymore...so I gave them up. When it was all finished, it dragged me away and left me...I-I haven't heard it come around s-since..."

Link didn't move. His grip on the pony tightened in sorrow. If he could of given his life, he would of gladly done so to spare her from that experience. How could she live now? Her life will be not but an eternal mental hell surrounding this morbid place. With no eyes, she could not return to her life as the caretaker of the wild. And now, without her wings, she can't return to Cloudsdale. The very place she was born.

What would the others say? Could they take this pain? He himself was barely getting by knowing only what her body could tell. The shear idea would haunt him forever. His mind began to numb...his breath grew rough, his grip tightened further.

With an expression that could melt the heavens and the underworld in fear, Link raised his head. He only felt one thing now. Not pain, not sorrow, not happiness, not absolution...

Just. Hate.

Tearing his tunic's sleeves, Link wrapped Fluttershy's legs to keep the wounds from getting dirty. He had no medicine from his home world with him, leaving him to survival tactics to keep her from catching any infections. The grinder had been burning in the fire for an hour now, slowly reaching the appropriate level of heat.

He began to wrap her head up, covering her sockets for now they were useless to her. A thin strip from his cape covered her waist and engulfed the stubs of which Link could not bare to look at without busting a hole in the wall with the sledge hammer to relieve his anger. Even then, he refused to show his temper, he didn't want Fluttershy to become anymore uncomfortable than she already was.

He had taken his hat off and used it as a cleaning cloth, heating up some water he gathered from the dripping ceiling in a bucket and using the warm water to clean Fluttershy's body. With each eep the pony emitted, another surge of sadness washed over him, immediately swallowed by his steadily growing rage which hangs by a thread now.

Another bucket was currently being boiled to ensure purity for her to drink. Her mouth was ungodly dry and she was dehydrated more than than could be allowed. But he had no hay for her to feast on. The most he could do was get some liquid back into her system to help her recover faster.

"Link...what happened?"

The question caught the dark king off guard. And more importantly, he wasn't sure what she meant. If she meant why they were down in this abyssal pit of despair, he had no clue.

"What do you mean?"

"The war...who did you fight against?"

That was just it, the war had yet to start when Link was brought here. The day it happened, he wasn't expecting it, it felt like a vacuum of dark air, ancient and evil, sucked him up and spit him into some distant dimension where the war either never happened, or was lost.

"I never fought in your princess' war. It hadn't started for me."

He knew it confused her.

"It was but a day after meeting the dual princesses that I was attacked by a dark cloud. It had a power I never felt before, and was clearly stronger than me. When it engulfed me, I blacked out from the intensity of that ancient-like magic."

He paused as he washed the cloth in the warm water and continued giving the pony a bath. He briefly checked the fire to see it was nearly finished heating the steel grinder up.

"When I woke up, I was down here with no knowledge of how I came to be here or how much time had passed. The last thing I remember was leaving the castle and walking through a dark forest on my way back to the gates of Tartarus to summon my army..."

Fluttershy's confused expression met Link's blank one.

"...But...um...I saw you leading your troops to Canterlot..."

Link raised his head from the cut he was cleaning and looked to Fluttershy's nonexistent eyes in confusion.

"That's impossible, I haven't had the chance to summon the troops yet!"

"If...if you didn't really fight in the war, who...?" She stopped mid sentence to think. Link claimed he had yet to partake in the war on Celestia's behalf, so who else could command his dreaded army?

"It doesn't matter. What does matter is I get you out of here."

'And find the one responsible for this...' He added darkly.

He grabbed the bucket of drinking water and set it aside in the coldest spot to allow it to cool before he let Fluttershy drink. He pulled the steel grinder from the fire, it glowed red from the heat. Grabbing the man-sized sledge hammer, Link placed the grinder in the vise and tightened it up.

Checking the door to ensure nothing could sneak in, he raised the heavy tool over his head and brought it down hard. But he forgot to warn Fluttershy...

CLANG!

Fluttershy squealed and jumped in surprise and almost fell off the bench, Link took notice and dropped the hammer. He rushed to her side, scorching himself by accidentally falling on the fire in his rush to reach her side. Ignoring his burns, he wrapped his arms around her in an attempt to silence her fears. His hand passed over her crest back and forth while the other rubbed her nuzzle in soothing motions. He brought a finger up to wipe away her fresh tears.

"I'm sorry, Fluttershy, I should of told you I was about to start..." He hushed the pony who was shaking in terror.

She finally calmed back down, and Link let her have a nice drink from the bucket, now that is was perfect temperature. He let her drink her fill before he let her go to finish the task that must be done before they could continue.

"Ready?" He asked her, receiving a meek nod. She was still drinking from the bucket.

Again, Link raised the massive hammer with a great intake of air, and exhaled quickly as he brought it crashing down. Another thunderous clang erupted as he worked, slowly straightening the very thick piece of metal. With what seemed like an hour of work, the grinder was reforged properly and ready for the next step.

Miraculously, the teeth of the grinder were intact, but some needed replacing, so the warrior took a chisel and using a much smaller hammer head, began eating away at the grinder after heating it back up to soften the metal.

When he was finished with a freshly made grinder in his hand, he stuck the tip into a drain filled with murky water and listened to the hiss that followed. Steam protruded forth from the metal as all traces of the reforge were removed.

Giving the tool a quick look over, Link analyzed the device surrounding Fluttershy's neck.

"It's done. All we have to do now is see if it will cut through the ring." He announced.

He approached his equine friend who had shifted her black gaze to his direction to show she was paying close attention to his plans. Link sat next to her, placing the grinder down and gently took hold of Fluttershy's neck. She let him look at the device, twisting her neck to allow him to see all angles of the device and its entry points, gathering information on how best to cut it without activating it.

Finally, he had seen enough.

"If it starts to hurt, let me know."

She nodded. Link picked the grinder back up and gently began to saw away at the top of the ring. She tensed as the vibration irritated the spikes in her neck, but she said nothing. Link continued to saw carefully away, watching as the dust-sized particles of metal fell around Fluttershy's coat, Link's lap, and the bench they sat on. Slowly, the grinder ate away, eventually reaching the middle of the ring's outer line.

Link wanted to quicken his pace, for he sensed she was feeling a little pain from the grinding and wanted to get it done faster.

Suddenly, a loud booming slam resounded down the hall, with a snarl and in reaction, Link's left hand reached up and ripped the Master Sword from his scabbard and pointed it at the door. Fluttershy let another silent yelp out at the sudden sound, pressing herself closer to Link's armored chest for protection.

Link watched the door in silence with a powerful glare as Fluttershy hid her face in his armor, trying to regain control of her breathing. A large portion of Link wanted to leave her here and hunt down the cause of that noise, for he knew it was the being responsible for this treacherous condition of Fluttershy's. But another part of him demanded he not leave her side.

His burning hatred for the creature responsible was slowly bleeding right through his conscious, but his desire to protect the Element of Kindness washed away the river of anger rising in the black lakes of his heart.

Fluttershy, on the other hand, wanted nothing to do with the cause of that noise, and she didn't want Link to chase after it. But her fear had engulfed her so badly that she couldn't plead to her protector to stay away from it. Her voice had caught in her throat and her heart was pumping adrenaline throughout her hurt body, numbing most of the pain she was in. Her mind grew dazed at the thought of encountering the abomination haunting the catacombs they were lost within. The lightheaded feeling she was now experiencing was almost too much for her to stay conscious.

She held tightly to his armored waist, hoping her action would speak for her. Link was fighting himself back from storming out and laying waste to the halls. His vision was growing red with his rage, the utter need to brutalize the insolent being was getting the best of him.

Fluttershy searched for her voice, temporarily forgotten in the face of panic. Reaching deep, she found a word and breathed it in.

"D-don't..." Fluttershy barely croaked out, voice wracked by her horror.

She couldn't muster anymore than that, there was more to it, but her throat refused to loosen enough for her to speak clearly.

Her words did not reach him.

Slowly, with his fury in full control, he started to stand, silently prying Fluttershy from his waist. He did not take his eyes off the door leading to the halls.

"Don't leave this room." He commanded darkly.

Fluttershy blindly reached out with her hooves as she attempted to regain grip on her friend, but her hooves fell on empty air. The sound of his heavy boots stalking the sound leading away from Fluttershy brought her great fear. The door opened and closed, and a chain was wrapped tightly around the hinges to ensure no unauthorized intruding.

Seeing that she could not change his set mind, Fluttershy pulled the cape over her head and lowered herself as far as she could go without triggering the device.

Link walked loudly, making sure whatever was down here heard him in the hopes it would come face to face with his presence. He examined all rooms on the way towards the noise, ensuring that he left no stone uncovered. The Master Sword shimmered dimly in the abyssal darkness, providing some light to his search.

His long Hylian ears listened intently, searching for signs of life, or movement of any kind. But all he could hear was the dripping droplets, the torches cracking, and the rodents squealing and scratching in the hollow walls. A few bugs flew about, some crawling on his face only to be slapped viscously away.

Then he heard it.

A grunting growl. It was monstrous in sound, a total abomination of nature. And it was behind him. Link turned sharply and swung, but the blade cut air only and the hall was empty. The sounds of chains rattling across the floor, and a chained door being shaken resounded. Then, a blood curdling scream.

"AAAH!!!"

...It was Fluttershy...

Fluttershy was breathing heavily as she fell off the table, pushing her self back against the wall and underneath the work bench in which Link used to reforge the grinder. Something was beating on the cage door and it sounded angry. She screamed again, hoping Link would hear her. She had no words left to cry, all she could do was let out scream after scream.

The creature at the door continued to beat at the bars, fruitlessly trying to gain entry but the thickly chains Link placed all around the hinges held tight. She could hear the door shake violently, and feel the hateful and evil glare of a pair of eyes on her form.

"Fluttershy!" Link's voice called from afar, and she could hear his hasty approach and the rattling of his armor hitting his equipment attached to it.

What was at the door seemed distracted by the approaching warrior, and Fluttershy brailled about for a new hiding spot, one which concealed her form from view at the door.

She heard Link's running boots rapidly approaching at swift speed, and the creature attacking them moaned again. That was it for her, she pressed her hooves against her closed ears to block out the sound and sobbed in terror.

"Fluttershy!"

Link ran as fast as he could possible without tripping over his own feet, sheathing his sword to give him extra balance for speed.

He reached the door where Fluttershy was concealed safely within, and he spotted a malformed bipedal like creature hidden by total Darkness. The creature was trying to see his approach, but the lack of torches in the vicinity made spotting each other difficult, for all they could see was black outlines of themselves. But he was coming in too fast to stop and draw his sword and begin hacking away at the abomination before him.

When Link was in range, he took flight. Bringing the heel of his right boot up to the head of the monster in a crushing blow that struck the chin of the head. All of Link's three hundred pounds of muscle and armor hit full force like a boulder crashing down the side of a mountain.

Both of them went crashing down to the stone as the monster gave a howl of pain from the blow, but Link managed to roll upon impact and stand back up. Not wasting a moment, he initiated Mortal Draw and brought the Master Sword down in a powerful chop. But the glimmering holy blade struck the stone, sending debris flying and shrapnel struck Link's face leaving deep gashes in his cheeks, forcing Link to cover his face in reaction. Blood drew forth from the wounds, but the sting was ignored as he lowered his hand to reveal his murderous expression.

Baring his teeth to the shadows, Link searched for the creature. But it was gone. There was no trace that it had ever been here.

"I will find you, demon! I will hunt you down, to the center of this earth if need be! If it's the last thing I do, I will find you!" Link roared in anger, his voice echoing down the empty halls and back to him. Fluttershy's whimpering reached his ears, his anger subsided at her voice, and he looked for her. She was not on the table anymore, and he couldn't spot her.

"Fluttershy, where are you?" Link called.

The frightened pony inched her self out and gave a weak "here" in reply.

"I-is it...safe?" She asked as Link made sure the halls were empty.

"Yes...for now. However. I feel it will return...soon," He answered, leaving the last part to himself.

CLING...

The ring had been broken, and now Link could pry it off. He analyzed the spikes to make sure there were no teeth to keep them from coming out, but there were none, luckily for Fluttershy.

"This may hurt...I'll be as careful as I can," Link warned as he helped Fluttershy to her feet.

She whimpered as he set the grinder away, most of its teeth now eroded once again. He had spent allot of time watching for the creature's return, but managed to saw four sides parallel to each other on the ring of death as he dubbed it. All that was left to do was pull each side out. There were only four spikes and he managed to separate each one from the other.

Before hand, he broke the triggering device and removed a small string that went straight to Fluttershy's mouth and was hooked in. But unlike the rest of the device, the mouth piece was utterly harmless and only served to trigger the device if her jaw was closed. When he removed it, he watched in satisfaction as she sat on her hind legs and moved her jawline back and fourth, up and down in relief. Now she was able to be more comfortable when resting.

"Try to remain relaxed so they can come out more easily," Link instructed as he gripped the first one.

Fluttershy took a deep breath and released it.

"Rest your head on my shoulder. That should ease the pressure on your neck..."

She did as he instructed, resting her jaw on his left shoulder which was now armor-less as he worked tirelessly to break through the ring of death.

Taking a breath of his own, Link slowly began pulling the first quarter of the ring from the top of Fluttershy's neck. He felt her tense at first, gulp, then relax again as he gently pulled it free. Some blood came out as he did so, prompting more cleaning before he let the journey proceed.

In a matter of minutes, Link had removed the ring entirely and tossed it harshly out side the room. He then torn more pieces from his own tunic and cape to tie Fluttershy's neck with until he got more water to clean the wounds with.

One thing he knew was certain now. He wasn't going to make the same mistake of leaving Fluttershy alone again. He will patiently wait for the thing to return, and then like a cat does a mouse...

He will pounce.

Description

Is it because...I have a pair of wings...? Would you be the same... If I shed my pair of wings?

-Vader, Wings (for Fluttershy)

The rites are drawn...to celebrate, The fall...that never happened. Over. And over...you kill the same god... Whose name, I don't even know...

-Vader, Wings (for Link)

CRIES OF FLUTTERSHY

The tortured body of Fluttershy rested in the strong arms of the dark armored Link as he quietly searched for the exit in the endless maze of earthly stone, her hurt body wrapped up carefully in the black cape of the armored Hylian to keep her warm. She was too weak and blind to walk on her own, even so, he would of carried her still. There was no telling what she had gone through down in this haunted, hellish web of tunnels beneath the surface of the world. And if they were attacked, he wanted to ensure she could keep up with him.

Link was busy watching the many entrances to go down and thinking who, or what, would want to do this to his friend. She was likely the most gentle soul he knew, in all his numerous adventures did he ever meet anyone who came close to her level of kindness.

He contemplated the many methods he could requisition to use on the one responsible should he find them. Plenty of dark thoughts were entering his mind, and soon he noticed it was getting harder to keep up with them.

He stopped his march. This place was trying to throw him into total madness, if he allowed this, he would lose. And Fluttershy would again be alone in the dark, to die a lonely death with no sight and no one to see her safe.

…

It's amazing how a small, innocent creature like this pony could turn a corrupted soul who's darkness was beyond his own comprehension, that dwelt in a world of eternal shadow for a millennium to change so abruptly. He was once a mighty emperor, a feared king, a powerful warlord who was never challenged for his strength, and a fierce dark shadow so black that the most evil of devils shied from his presence. Not even the three goddesses and all their benevolence could revive the light that was stolen from him by his enemy. Yet this once pure being he held carefully in his arms had reversed a thousand years of pain and suffering, igniting his ebony heart and bringing some semblance of light back.

He didn't understand anything anymore. Nothing could ever make sense now. How could anyone ever desire to harm this angel? He felt Fluttershy shift in her position, moaning painfully as she used her sore muscles to try getting comfortable.

She never deserved this.

In Link's steady marching, he came upon another torture chamber. Perhaps he could find a tool to remove the torture device surrounding Fluttershy's neck. It would hurt getting that thing off her, as he can see several small spikes were embedded in her neck as points where their entry would not cause death, only severe pain. Likely, the spikes were embedded in nerve joints. If Fluttershy lowered her neck, or closed her mouth for too long, the device would constrict and drive the spikes further in. There was a compressor device attached to the metal wheel with a thin piece of wire wrapped around her neck and hooked in her mouth that did this. When elevated wrongly, gravity activated the compressor. He couldn't tamper with the wiring either, or it would activate, at least that was what she told him.

For only Hell knows how long Fluttershy has remained awake and standing. Only the Gods knew just how tired she really was. He could probably of guessed if she still had eyes, but the poor creature was robbed of it. And that, of all her injuries and scars, must've hurt the most. Not just physically, but mentally. For the idea of never being able to see again was the worst fate to bestow upon any being. And Fluttershy...was the last being who could deserve such a fate. Link himself would not have the will to live on if he had lost something so precious as the gift of sight.

Link pushed the steel cage door open with his right shoulder and closing it with his left foot. His dark gaze examined the layout of the room, taking note of a stretcher in the middle with freshly installed chains. Along the walls, various blades and tools to inflict as much pain as possible were hung.

Link took in all of them, searching for something that could relinquish the unholy device around his dear friend's neck.

She had not said a word since he picked her up. But neither has he, he couldn't think straight with Fluttershy's condition clouding his mind and judgment. Every now and then, she would let out an "eep" of pain or surprise, but nothing more. The only sound aside from Link's boot steps was her hagged breathing.

Link placed the pony down on the table as carefully and gently as he could.

"Stay here, I'm going to search this place for something to get that...damned thing off your neck."

"Okay..."

Link walked over to the northern end; several sharp, rusty blades for various forms of dismemberment or "surgery" hung loosely. Not one of them looked like they could saw through the metal binder. He picked up a thickly hand grinder, it was bent out of shape for unknown reasons and if he was to use it properly, he'd have to straighten it out.

He searched for a hammer of some type, something he could use to bend the grinder back into its proper geometry. A man-sized sledge hammer laid against the western wall. It was massive by all standards and the weight of the bulky head would make reforging the grinder easy work.

A vise bolted to the work bench against the eastern wall beckoned Link to use it as a grip, giving him the ability to use the hammer with both arms and allowing for more control with his swings.

But he needed a furnace to heat up the steel paddle so that he could reforge it properly. Only there was none.

"I'll need to make a fire, I've found something that could work, but I need to fix it first." Link spoke to his charge, who was busy looking around blindly as she tried to get her barrens. She gave him a nod to acknowledge his words, but remained silent.

He could tell she was traumatized. The more he thought on it, the more anger swelled within him. But he was wise enough to channel that anger into determination to punish the one responsible. And he will.

Pieces of an old broken bench and some wooden doors dry enough for burning lay in one corner, hidden in the eastern end of the room. Link gathered as much as he could and placed it in an empty and dry corner. Before lighting the wood, he felt a sudden urge to lock the door.

The hair on the back of his neck stood in warning. Danger was close by, he could feel it. But the halls were deathly silent.

"Fluttershy, is there something here I should know about?" Link asked quietly as he locked the door and approached the pony. She turned her low head to his direction as she tried to remember.

"Y...yes...The m-monster that d-did this to me..." She turned her head away.

Link's eyes narrowed. All his mind could think was lock Fluttershy here and rip the halls apart looking for the entity responsible. But he knew that was likely what the enemy wanted him to do.

'...If you don't come to me, I will come to you.' Link swore in his mind to the unknown being.

Link grabbed two rocks left from the damaged walls and dropped to one knee. He began hitting the rocks against each other hard and fast, causing sparks to fly. It took several minutes of silence between the two and slapping the rocks against each other for a small flame to ignite. Link blew at the embers, trying to raise the flame and make it hotter. The fire needed to be hot enough to loosen the metal.

After getting the fire started, Link gathered some dry wood around and added it in. As he waited for it to all catch fire, he sat next to Fluttershy, overlooking the many scars left on her once elegant body.

And then he noticed something terribly wrong.

"Fluttershy...what...happened to your beautiful wings...?" Link demanded in a hushed voice, horrified to his core.

The young pony looked to the small stubs that her elegant wings once were. A long silence followed, with the dark warrior slowly loosing the strength he had for so long. As he waited for Fluttershy to explain, he felt tears in his eyes for the first time in an extremely long time. Who could commit such a crime against the elegance of nature itself? To such a wonder upon his life?

"...I lost them...I was...forced to give them up," She explained nonchalantly. "It was the only way to get free..."

His painful tears aside, Link shook like he never shook before. His fists tightened harder than he ever had them. Blood drew from the palm of his hands from his fingernails cutting into his flesh. But he didn't care, all he could see was red. His hatred was slowly consuming him, the need to annihilate the demon who dared to do such an unthinkable thing! They MUST pay!

What hurt the most was he was powerless to reverse this all. He had the dark powers of Kingdom and the shadow people at his command, and yet in all that ability, not one thing could reverse what was done.

Mentally, he began to turn on himself, why had he not been stronger? How could he let this all happen to her? She was the brightest of his newfound friends and now her life is ruined.

"When I was caught, they brought me down here...They...hurt me..." She continued, resting her head against his arm. "I managed to offer a deal, for freedom..."

Link had gently wrapped his arms around her form, trying to keep her warm. She was shaking, but not from the cold. She was shaking from the experience. Link lowered his head, letting his face be buried in her mane.

The dark shadow loomed about in the room, gathering the many tools it had just finished using. Fluttershy's body was strapped down, her form writhing in pain from the horrendous torture session. Before her eyes were taken, she had seen portraits of Pegasai ponies on the wall, her captor had embedded many numerous knives into the wings of the portraits, showing an obvious distaste for the Pegasai. This senseless hate was not limited to her brethren, but to anything bearing a pair of wings, feathered or not.

Stuffed bats and birds hung from the ceiling by their necks, only frightening the holder of kindness more. But her biggest fear was now looming over her once more. She could feel the evil wind of the creature burning her face, a stench so foul her stomach could hold no food.

Broken, Fluttershy could only lie there and wait. But a thought had since entered her mind when the 'thing' was not around. Maybe it had targeted her because of her gift of flight? Now was her chance to find out, for the devil was making sure she did not die after all it had put her through.

"...W-why...? I-is it...b-because I ha-ave...wings? W-would y-you stop i-if I gave th-em to y-you...?"

A long silence followed, the creature and its clawed hands had stopped working roughly on her injuries when it heard her offer. The only thing Fluttershy could do was pray to Celestia that it accepted. For she did not know how much longer she could take the nightmare. It had put her through so much that she was willing to sacrifice her wings to stop the onslaught of torture.

"'Give up your wings, pony, and you can go free' was what it said...I didn't want it to hurt me anymore...so I gave them up. When it was all finished, it dragged me away and left me...I-I haven't heard it come around s-since..."

Link didn't move. His grip on the pony tightened in sorrow. If he could of given his life, he would of gladly done so to spare her from that experience. How could she live now? Her life will be not but an eternal mental hell surrounding this morbid place. With no eyes, she could not return to her life as the caretaker of the wild. And now, without her wings, she can't return to Cloudsdale. The very place she was born.

What would the others say? Could they take this pain? He himself was barely getting by knowing only what her body could tell. The shear idea would haunt him forever. His mind began to numb...his breath grew rough, his grip tightened further.

With an expression that could melt the heavens and the underworld in fear, Link raised his head. He only felt one thing now. Not pain, not sorrow, not happiness, not absolution...

Just. Hate.

Tearing his tunic's sleeves, Link wrapped Fluttershy's legs to keep the wounds from getting dirty. He had no medicine from his home world with him, leaving him to survival tactics to keep her from catching any infections. The grinder had been burning in the fire for an hour now, slowly reaching the appropriate level of heat.

He began to wrap her head up, covering her sockets for now they were useless to her. A thin strip from his cape covered her waist and engulfed the stubs of which Link could not bare to look at without busting a hole in the wall with the sledge hammer to relieve his anger. Even then, he refused to show his temper, he didn't want Fluttershy to become anymore uncomfortable than she already was.

He had taken his hat off and used it as a cleaning cloth, heating up some water he gathered from the dripping ceiling in a bucket and using the warm water to clean Fluttershy's body. With each eep the pony emitted, another surge of sadness washed over him, immediately swallowed by his steadily growing rage which hangs by a thread now.

Another bucket was currently being boiled to ensure purity for her to drink. Her mouth was ungodly dry and she was dehydrated more than than could be allowed. But he had no hay for her to feast on. The most he could do was get some liquid back into her system to help her recover faster.

"Link...what happened?"

The question caught the dark king off guard. And more importantly, he wasn't sure what she meant. If she meant why they were down in this abyssal pit of despair, he had no clue.

"What do you mean?"

"The war...who did you fight against?"

That was just it, the war had yet to start when Link was brought here. The day it happened, he wasn't expecting it, it felt like a vacuum of dark air, ancient and evil, sucked him up and spit him into some distant dimension where the war either never happened, or was lost.

"I never fought in your princess' war. It hadn't started for me."

He knew it confused her.

"It was but a day after meeting the dual princesses that I was attacked by a dark cloud. It had a power I never felt before, and was clearly stronger than me. When it engulfed me, I blacked out from the intensity of that ancient-like magic."

He paused as he washed the cloth in the warm water and continued giving the pony a bath. He briefly checked the fire to see it was nearly finished heating the steel grinder up.

"When I woke up, I was down here with no knowledge of how I came to be here or how much time had passed. The last thing I remember was leaving the castle and walking through a dark forest on my way back to the gates of Tartarus to summon my army..."

Fluttershy's confused expression met Link's blank one.

"...But...um...I saw you leading your troops to Canterlot..."

Link raised his head from the cut he was cleaning and looked to Fluttershy's nonexistent eyes in confusion.

"That's impossible, I haven't had the chance to summon the troops yet!"

"If...if you didn't really fight in the war, who...?" She stopped mid sentence to think. Link claimed he had yet to partake in the war on Celestia's behalf, so who else could command his dreaded army?

"It doesn't matter. What does matter is I get you out of here."

'And find the one responsible for this...' He added darkly.

He grabbed the bucket of drinking water and set it aside in the coldest spot to allow it to cool before he let Fluttershy drink. He pulled the steel grinder from the fire, it glowed red from the heat. Grabbing the man-sized sledge hammer, Link placed the grinder in the vise and tightened it up.

Checking the door to ensure nothing could sneak in, he raised the heavy tool over his head and brought it down hard. But he forgot to warn Fluttershy...

CLANG!

Fluttershy squealed and jumped in surprise and almost fell off the bench, Link took notice and dropped the hammer. He rushed to her side, scorching himself by accidentally falling on the fire in his rush to reach her side. Ignoring his burns, he wrapped his arms around her in an attempt to silence her fears. His hand passed over her crest back and forth while the other rubbed her nuzzle in soothing motions. He brought a finger up to wipe away her fresh tears.

"I'm sorry, Fluttershy, I should of told you I was about to start..." He hushed the pony who was shaking in terror.

She finally calmed back down, and Link let her have a nice drink from the bucket, now that is was perfect temperature. He let her drink her fill before he let her go to finish the task that must be done before they could continue.

"Ready?" He asked her, receiving a meek nod. She was still drinking from the bucket.

Again, Link raised the massive hammer with a great intake of air, and exhaled quickly as he brought it crashing down. Another thunderous clang erupted as he worked, slowly straightening the very thick piece of metal. With what seemed like an hour of work, the grinder was reforged properly and ready for the next step.

Miraculously, the teeth of the grinder were intact, but some needed replacing, so the warrior took a chisel and using a much smaller hammer head, began eating away at the grinder after heating it back up to soften the metal.

When he was finished with a freshly made grinder in his hand, he stuck the tip into a drain filled with murky water and listened to the hiss that followed. Steam protruded forth from the metal as all traces of the reforge were removed.

Giving the tool a quick look over, Link analyzed the device surrounding Fluttershy's neck.

"It's done. All we have to do now is see if it will cut through the ring." He announced.

He approached his equine friend who had shifted her black gaze to his direction to show she was paying close attention to his plans. Link sat next to her, placing the grinder down and gently took hold of Fluttershy's neck. She let him look at the device, twisting her neck to allow him to see all angles of the device and its entry points, gathering information on how best to cut it without activating it.

Finally, he had seen enough.

"If it starts to hurt, let me know."

She nodded. Link picked the grinder back up and gently began to saw away at the top of the ring. She tensed as the vibration irritated the spikes in her neck, but she said nothing. Link continued to saw carefully away, watching as the dust-sized particles of metal fell around Fluttershy's coat, Link's lap, and the bench they sat on. Slowly, the grinder ate away, eventually reaching the middle of the ring's outer line.

Link wanted to quicken his pace, for he sensed she was feeling a little pain from the grinding and wanted to get it done faster.

Suddenly, a loud booming slam resounded down the hall, with a snarl and in reaction, Link's left hand reached up and ripped the Master Sword from his scabbard and pointed it at the door. Fluttershy let another silent yelp out at the sudden sound, pressing herself closer to Link's armored chest for protection.

Link watched the door in silence with a powerful glare as Fluttershy hid her face in his armor, trying to regain control of her breathing. A large portion of Link wanted to leave her here and hunt down the cause of that noise, for he knew it was the being responsible for this treacherous condition of Fluttershy's. But another part of him demanded he not leave her side.

His burning hatred for the creature responsible was slowly bleeding right through his conscious, but his desire to protect the Element of Kindness washed away the river of anger rising in the black lakes of his heart.

Fluttershy, on the other hand, wanted nothing to do with the cause of that noise, and she didn't want Link to chase after it. But her fear had engulfed her so badly that she couldn't plead to her protector to stay away from it. Her voice had caught in her throat and her heart was pumping adrenaline throughout her hurt body, numbing most of the pain she was in. Her mind grew dazed at the thought of encountering the abomination haunting the catacombs they were lost within. The lightheaded feeling she was now experiencing was almost too much for her to stay conscious.

She held tightly to his armored waist, hoping her action would speak for her. Link was fighting himself back from storming out and laying waste to the halls. His vision was growing red with his rage, the utter need to brutalize the insolent being was getting the best of him.

Fluttershy searched for her voice, temporarily forgotten in the face of panic. Reaching deep, she found a word and breathed it in.

"D-don't..." Fluttershy barely croaked out, voice wracked by her horror.

She couldn't muster anymore than that, there was more to it, but her throat refused to loosen enough for her to speak clearly.

Her words did not reach him.

Slowly, with his fury in full control, he started to stand, silently prying Fluttershy from his waist. He did not take his eyes off the door leading to the halls.

"Don't leave this room." He commanded darkly.

Fluttershy blindly reached out with her hooves as she attempted to regain grip on her friend, but her hooves fell on empty air. The sound of his heavy boots stalking the sound leading away from Fluttershy brought her great fear. The door opened and closed, and a chain was wrapped tightly around the hinges to ensure no unauthorized intruding.

Seeing that she could not change his set mind, Fluttershy pulled the cape over her head and lowered herself as far as she could go without triggering the device.

Link walked loudly, making sure whatever was down here heard him in the hopes it would come face to face with his presence. He examined all rooms on the way towards the noise, ensuring that he left no stone uncovered. The Master Sword shimmered dimly in the abyssal darkness, providing some light to his search.

His long Hylian ears listened intently, searching for signs of life, or movement of any kind. But all he could hear was the dripping droplets, the torches cracking, and the rodents squealing and scratching in the hollow walls. A few bugs flew about, some crawling on his face only to be slapped viscously away.

Then he heard it.

A grunting growl. It was monstrous in sound, a total abomination of nature. And it was behind him. Link turned sharply and swung, but the blade cut air only and the hall was empty. The sounds of chains rattling across the floor, and a chained door being shaken resounded. Then, a blood curdling scream.

"AAAH!!!"

...It was Fluttershy...

Fluttershy was breathing heavily as she fell off the table, pushing her self back against the wall and underneath the work bench in which Link used to reforge the grinder. Something was beating on the cage door and it sounded angry. She screamed again, hoping Link would hear her. She had no words left to cry, all she could do was let out scream after scream.

The creature at the door continued to beat at the bars, fruitlessly trying to gain entry but the thickly chains Link placed all around the hinges held tight. She could hear the door shake violently, and feel the hateful and evil glare of a pair of eyes on her form.

"Fluttershy!" Link's voice called from afar, and she could hear his hasty approach and the rattling of his armor hitting his equipment attached to it.

What was at the door seemed distracted by the approaching warrior, and Fluttershy brailled about for a new hiding spot, one which concealed her form from view at the door.

She heard Link's running boots rapidly approaching at swift speed, and the creature attacking them moaned again. That was it for her, she pressed her hooves against her closed ears to block out the sound and sobbed in terror.

"Fluttershy!"

Link ran as fast as he could possible without tripping over his own feet, sheathing his sword to give him extra balance for speed.

He reached the door where Fluttershy was concealed safely within, and he spotted a malformed bipedal like creature hidden by total Darkness. The creature was trying to see his approach, but the lack of torches in the vicinity made spotting each other difficult, for all they could see was black outlines of themselves. But he was coming in too fast to stop and draw his sword and begin hacking away at the abomination before him.

When Link was in range, he took flight. Bringing the heel of his right boot up to the head of the monster in a crushing blow that struck the chin of the head. All of Link's three hundred pounds of muscle and armor hit full force like a boulder crashing down the side of a mountain.

Both of them went crashing down to the stone as the monster gave a howl of pain from the blow, but Link managed to roll upon impact and stand back up. Not wasting a moment, he initiated Mortal Draw and brought the Master Sword down in a powerful chop. But the glimmering holy blade struck the stone, sending debris flying and shrapnel struck Link's face leaving deep gashes in his cheeks, forcing Link to cover his face in reaction. Blood drew forth from the wounds, but the sting was ignored as he lowered his hand to reveal his murderous expression.

Baring his teeth to the shadows, Link searched for the creature. But it was gone. There was no trace that it had ever been here.

"I will find you, demon! I will hunt you down, to the center of this earth if need be! If it's the last thing I do, I will find you!" Link roared in anger, his voice echoing down the empty halls and back to him. Fluttershy's whimpering reached his ears, his anger subsided at her voice, and he looked for her. She was not on the table anymore, and he couldn't spot her.

"Fluttershy, where are you?" Link called.

The frightened pony inched her self out and gave a weak "here" in reply.

"I-is it...safe?" She asked as Link made sure the halls were empty.

"Yes...for now. However. I feel it will return...soon," He answered, leaving the last part to himself.

CLING...

The ring had been broken, and now Link could pry it off. He analyzed the spikes to make sure there were no teeth to keep them from coming out, but there were none, luckily for Fluttershy.

"This may hurt...I'll be as careful as I can," Link warned as he helped Fluttershy to her feet.

She whimpered as he set the grinder away, most of its teeth now eroded once again. He had spent allot of time watching for the creature's return, but managed to saw four sides parallel to each other on the ring of death as he dubbed it. All that was left to do was pull each side out. There were only four spikes and he managed to separate each one from the other.

Before hand, he broke the triggering device and removed a small string that went straight to Fluttershy's mouth and was hooked in. But unlike the rest of the device, the mouth piece was utterly harmless and only served to trigger the device if her jaw was closed. When he removed it, he watched in satisfaction as she sat on her hind legs and moved her jawline back and fourth, up and down in relief. Now she was able to be more comfortable when resting.

"Try to remain relaxed so they can come out more easily," Link instructed as he gripped the first one.

Fluttershy took a deep breath and released it.

"Rest your head on my shoulder. That should ease the pressure on your neck..."

She did as he instructed, resting her jaw on his left shoulder which was now armor-less as he worked tirelessly to break through the ring of death.

Taking a breath of his own, Link slowly began pulling the first quarter of the ring from the top of Fluttershy's neck. He felt her tense at first, gulp, then relax again as he gently pulled it free. Some blood came out as he did so, prompting more cleaning before he let the journey proceed.

In a matter of minutes, Link had removed the ring entirely and tossed it harshly out side the room. He then torn more pieces from his own tunic and cape to tie Fluttershy's neck with until he got more water to clean the wounds with.

One thing he knew was certain now. He wasn't going to make the same mistake of leaving Fluttershy alone again. He will patiently wait for the thing to return, and then like a cat does a mouse...

He will pounce.