(A/N) I'm trying to get the creative juices flowing, so I decided to write this little one-shot between writing my main stories. For those of you who've read my story, Paladins, this takes place from the point mid-way through chapter five. The fight in Canterlot to be exact. For those of you who haven't read the main story, this could be somewhat confusing for you. Just letting you know. Most one-shots you see are usually romantic or have a slice of life feel to them, well I'm throwing all that out the window and doing something a bit darker. Hope you enjoy =)

The soft tapping of blood dripping on the floor was the only noise that filled the room, the interior of the library had suffered extensive damage. Connor leaned against a wall near the front door, his metal hand clutching a nasty gash on his right arm he had received from the now dead Hunter on the ground. The fight he had found himself in had been an unexpectedly difficult one, it seemed as though the monsters they called their enemies were getting faster, stronger and smarter everyday. The sensation of blood flowing from his wounds was not an unfamiliar one, he and others like him had suffered various and extensive injuries throughout the war. He could feel the warm liquid running freely from the opening, down his arm to his fingertips, before falling from his skin to the ground below. A small pool had began to form on the surface of the floor, coating the white tiles like red wine in the snow.

With a pained groan, Connor forced himself off the wall and exited the building, stepping out into the plaza outside the library. A short distance away from him, the sounds of an ongoing fight immediately caught his attention. Up ahead, Connor's attention was drawn to a green hedgehog fighting for his life against a small group of Hunters. Glimpse was doing his best to hold of his current foes, slashing and slicing his sword around himself attempting to injure or kill his opponents, and drawing on his Chaos energy to blast them back if they came to close. However, the Hunters themselves were only a small part of the threat. An Elite Hunter stood with its fellow monsters, joining the fight against the Mobian that stood before them. Its blades were already extended from its forearms, slicing towards Glimpse as its attached blades hungered to taste the hedgehogs flesh. Glimpse parried one particular slice from the Elite before raising his hand up beside his head with his palm facing the ground, quickly dropping his palm onto the the stone below him and sending out a shockwave around himself. The Hunters were knocked off of their feet and thrown away into their backs, though the Elite still stood its ground.

The Elite sliced it blade at Glimpse as he turned to face it, catching the Mobian unawares. Glimpse let out a cry of pain as he fell back, a nasty gash had been sliced into his face from his right jawbone up to the left side of his forehead. He grabbed his sword off of the ground where he had dropped it with his right hand while he took several quick steps backwards, his left hand clutching his wound as blood soon began running down his face and past his fingers. The Hunters had begun finding their way back to their feet once again as the Elite stalked towards its prey. Glimpse watched as the Elite suddenly lurched forwards and automatically spun around, a single knife was clearly embedded within its back. Looking past the beast, Glimpse found Connor a short distance away with his arm still extended in front of himself, it was no secret where the knife had come from. The Hunters were now starting to approach Glimpse as the Elite moved towards its new target, Glimpse removed his hand from his face and gripped his sword with both hands as he prepared himself.

Connor studied the Elite as the two circled one another, he had already drawn a second knife and currently held it in his right hand. His grip on the blade was weaker than he would have liked, the injury on his right arm had been more severe than he first realized. If he were being completely honest, facing the Elite wasn't a position he wanted to be in either. They were much smarter and deadlier than their Hunter cousins, their endurance was higher as well, able to take much more punishment than what would normally kill a basic Hunter. A drop of blood fell from Connors knuckle and dribbled down the blade of his knife, forming a single Crimson streak along the silver flat of the blade. A drop formed at the tip of the knife, slowly expanding and pulling down as it grew heavier. A drop of red fell through the air as gravity drew it towards the ground, and the moment it hit stone, the fight began.

Connor rushed the Elite as the beast prepared itself, taking its stance while it waited for its moment to strike. The moment he was close enough, a blade made of bone swung through the air. Before it could land its strike, Connor dropped and slid between the beasts legs. He jumped up once he was behind it and gripped the handle of his second knife, pulling it from the Elites back as he retrieved his weapon. The Elite spun around, swinging the blade on its right arm. Connor blocked it with the knife in his left hand and slashed at its arm with the one in his right, aiming for the tendons in its arm as he attempted to give himself the upper hand in any way possible. A strong foot connected with his chest and Connor was booted backwards, he hit the ground on his back and quickly used the momentum to roll himself back onto his feet. Pain wracked his body as he dropped down to one knee and gripped his chest, he let out a short series of coughs and a small amount of blood came up with it. Ribs had been broken and a lung had been punctured, this was anything but good for him.

Getting back to his feet, Connor spared a glance to check how Glimpse was holding up. The group of Hunters he was facing had been reduced to three. He was still fighting strong, and by the looks of things, would be finished with the remaining trio soon enough. Turning back to his own opponent, Connor found the Elite making its way towards him. As it approached him, he spun the knife in his right hand so he was holding it by its blade. Once the beast was close enough, he used all the strength he could muster to throw his weapon before the Elite had the chance to react. The knife flew along its path and ended up embedded through the Elites left knee, sending the creature down to its knee from the sudden lack of strength in the joint. It looked down at its knee and pulled the knife, turning its attention back to the human just in time to see him drive his metal knee into its chin. The force from the blow snapped the Elites head back and sent it crashing down onto its back. While it was still reeling from the blow Connor grabbed ahold of its left arm with both of his hands, planting his right foot on the ground beneath him and his left on the Elites chest. With the position set up, he began to pull. At first nothing seemed to be happening, but soon enough a pop greeted his ears as the shoulder dislocated from the joint. The Elites skin around the joint became taught and started to stretch, and soon after, began tearing. Muscle and skin began to separate as opposing forces became to much, black blood was seeping and soon flowing as flesh tore further apart. With one final burst of strength, Connor pulled the limb away from its body. Blood sprayed out after the removal and pulsed out through the new stump, Connor tossed the limb away from himself and wiped some warm liquid from his face as he waited for the next move.

The Elite rolled itself onto its front and punched the ground with its remaining fist as it got to its feet, quickly stomping towards Connor. Connor raised the knife and his free hand in front of himself as he prepared to defend himself, this was the first time he was seeing a creature of the Harrowed display any form of emotion such as rage. The Elite swung its arm at Connor, its blade retracted back inside its limb. Connor ducked the swing and swiped his knife at its chest, following up with a punch from his metal hand. The Elite absorbed the blow and swung again, this time following up with a boot, catching Connor off guard. Connor stumbled back a few paces as he hunched forwards, coughing up more blood in process. He rushed forwards again and brought his knife down on the Elite, his hand was batted aside and he received a swift headbutt in return. Again he stumbled back again before quickly stabilizing himself. The Elite was quicker this time however and Connor felt its fist connect with side of his face, a follow up slammed into the opposite side as it brought its hand back across in the opposite direction. One final blow crashed into Connors chest and sent him stumbling and tripping backwards, coughing, wheezing and gasping for air as he desperately tried to recover from the assault. Even in his disoriented state, he could still make out the unmistakable sound of the Elite extending its blade out from its arm. In an act of desperation, Connor quickly raised his left hand in front of himself. The noise of metal scrapping and tearing greeted his ears as a blade of bone tore through the middle of his hand. The Elite wrenched its arm back, flinging Connors arm out of the way before bring its arm back and sending its blade forwards for a second time.

Connor didn't hear anything, he couldn't really feel it either. A deafening silence seemed to fill the air, as if the world had suddenly become void of any and all sound. There was no pain, just a sudden impact connecting with his chest before a feeling of chill and shock gripped his body. The Elite before him didn't move a muscle, it simply stared at him with its emotionless red eyes. Connors face was blank as he turned his gaze downwards, the sight that greeted him didn't surprise or shock him, he already knew what had happened. The blade from the Elites arm was out of sight, impaled through Connors chest and piercing out of his back. He could almost feel it, pierced through his chest, sliding past his ribs and coming to a stop outside of his back. He breathed heavily, gasping for air now that both of his lungs had been punctured. It was only now that Connor noticed a wound on the Elites body, a puncture through its chest just below the sternum where Glimpse had likely managed to stab his sword. Movement brought him back to the situation at hand as the Elite began to draw its arm back. A plan springing into his mind, Connor grabbed its arm with both hands and pulled it back to its original position. A choke escaped his throat as the blade sank into the same wound for a second time, he held onto the arm with his left hand as he reached into his jacket with his right. The object he was looking for was located quickly enough, it was an item he held onto for emergency situations. While the Elite struggled to pull its arm back, Connor shot his right hand forwards and dug it deep into the wound in the creatures chest. Once he pulled his hand back out again he let it hang down by his side, the pin from a grenade slipped from his fingers and clattered down onto the ground.

Glimpse had found himself down on the ground on his back, the final Hunter on top of him as he desperately kept its claws at bay. His sword had been knocked out of his hand, lying just out of reach away from him. The ferocity of the Hunters had caught him off guard, it seemed as though they had become deadlier since he last saw them. Normally they were much easier to deal with, but the latest group had been a challenge he had not expected to encounter. He grabbed ahold of its wrists and spared a moment to glance over towards Connor, the sight caused his eyes to widen in shock. The Elite was missing an arm but had still managed to impale Connor with the blade from its remaining limb. The situation became more alarming when he saw Connors hand covered in a black liquid and a metal ring fall to the ground, he immediately knew what it belonged to.

Connor caught Glimpses gaze, he had hoped it would not have come to this. Glimpse was a strong fighter, there was no denying that. The injuries he had sustained in his fight however would likely have weakened him. The Hunters had turned out to be formidable foes and an Elite, even with its limb missing, would prove to be even more of a challenge. Connors own injuries were a cause for concern for the human as well, his fight had caused extensive damage both externally and internally. The moment the Elites blade left his chest, his wounds would be near fatal. There was the possibility that his injuries could be stabilized if the right medic were to attend to him, or Gold may have been able to heal his body should his powers be strong enough at the time. However, the chance that he would die before any medical care could be given to him was far greater anything else. He was doing the only thing he could, giving someone else a chance at survival. A soft smile made its way onto Connors face as he held Glimpses gaze.

"I'm sorry,"he gasped, closing his eyes as he held the smile.

The grenade exploded, along with much of the Elites body. Connor was flung away from the detonation, his body rolled along the ground several times before coming to a stop. He was left curled up on his side, his back facing Glimpse. Glimpse stared at the scene that had just unfolded before him. He couldn't believe what had just happened, he didn't want to believe. His eyes turned back to the creature on top of him and his face slowly took on an expression of rage. He let go of the Hunters arms and reached for his sword, soon he felt the beast sink it claws into his flesh and begin tearing away mercilessly. Glimpse grabbed the hilt of his sword as he let out a roar of anger and swung it towards his final enemy. The blade cleaved through the Hunters neck, sending its head flying away from its body, and bit into the ground leaving it embedded in the stone.

Glimpse rolled himself onto his front and began crawling forwards, he no longer had the strength to stand on his own feet.

"Connor!" He shouted as best he could as he continued onwards. "Talk to me!"

No response came, Connors body lay motionless on the ground ahead of him, having not moved an inch since the explosion. Glimpse continued to shout his friends name, but soon he didn't even have the strength to move. His eyes grew heavy and the world around him faded to black, but not before he caught the sound of hurried footsteps accompanied by a familiar voice.

"It came from over here! Quickly! ...no..."

A soft beeping greeted Glimpses ears as his senses returned to him once again. Opening his eyes, he found himself lying in a hospital bed. Tubes and wires attached to his arms and chest, bandages were wrapped around much of his body, red stains were barely visible through the white layers.

"Hey, you're awake," a voice stated. "And alive, thank Eon," they added with a sigh.

Glimpse slowly turned his head, finding a familiar blue fox standing by his bed. "I feel like I should be dead, Gold," Glimpse replied.

"You would have been if we hadn't found you when we did," Gold explained, letting out another sigh as sat down in a seat beside the window in the room. "I patched up some of your more life threatening injuries, that seriously hurt by the way, and then you were brought here to the Canterlot Hospital. What happened out there Glimpse? I can understand the Elite being a challenge, but I once saw you take down a whole pack of Hunters without so much as breaking a sweat."

"I don't know," Glimpse replied with a shake of his head. "They just seemed... different. Smarter, stronger, faster, it's like they're..."

"Evolving..." Gold finished, the realization hitting both of them.

"Well shit," Glimpse muttered. "I can tell you one thing though, if Connor wasn't there to help out I might not be..."

It was only now that Glimpse noticed the absence of his comrade, the second bed in the room left empty. Not only that, but at the mention of Connors name Gold had dipped his head and began staring at the ground.

"Gold..." Glimpse asked, uncertainty laced throughout his tone.

"Flare and Sora are pretty beat up about it. Though Scott's taking it the hardest, he's fucking pissed," Gold explained, Glimpse continued to stare at the fox. "When I got there... By the time I got there, his heart had already stopped beating. Even if that weren't the case, all of his injuries would have too much for me to heal, I would have likely died in the process. I'm sorry."

"There was nothing you could do, Gold. You don't owe anyone an apology," Glimpse explained somberly.

"Though we owe you," a regal voice announced as the door to the room opened.

Into the room entered the Princess sisters of Equestria. Both their faces held a mixture of respect and sadness.

"We must thank you for defending our kingdom against those who would do it harm," Luna explained with a bow of her head.

"And I cannot lie to you," Celestia began. "When you told us that forces of darkness intended to invade our world, I did not believe you as much as I should have. But now I see the truth in your words."

"The fact that your friend was willing to give his life for a world that was not his home speaks volumes about the rest of you," Luna continued. "We are prepared to listen to anything and everything you can tell us about these monsters."

"Thank you, Princess. This means a great deal to us," Gold replied, trying to be as polite as possible.

"Whenever you are ready to speak with us, we will be there," Celestia finished giving the two a nod before she and her sister left the room.

The moment the door to the room was shut once again, Gold kicked a nearby rubbish bin and began quietly cursing to himself.

"You alright?" Glimpse asked.

"I should be asking you that," Gold chuckled sadly. "Their ready to listen to us, that's great. It only took one of our friends dying for it to happen."

"There's nothing we can do now," Glimpse sighed, sinking back into his bed. A quick beep caught the attention of both of the Mobians in the room. "A message?" Glimpse stated as a holographic screen from the chip in his wrist lit up, he noticed Gold doing the same with his own.

"It's from... Connor?" Gold said, his eyebrows raising. "Do you think the others got this too?" He asked, receiving a shrug from Glimpse.

"Oh..." Glimpse muttered, letting out another sigh afterwards. "It looks like he programmed the message to forwards itself to us in the event of his death. It's a voice recording, I'll start it up," he explained receiving a nod from Gold.

"Warriors of Mobius," Connors voice began. "Paladins, friends. Our world was stolen from us, destroyed before our very eyes. The things you have all seen, the things you have had to do. No one should have to live through that much pain, that much suffering. I was there at the very beginning, the day the Paladins were first born. I've seen our greatest victories, and our most horrific defeats. Yet through everything I've seen, I can say one thing for certain. I have no regrets. If you're listening to this, then it means I've failed. You are all that remain of us, the last few who have maintained their honor and kept their courage. I need you to succeed where I have failed. All of us have suffered. Lost friends, loved ones. We must ensure it was not in vain. We may be the only ones left, but we can not go down without a fight. Let this storm, carry us home."

"Never forgive," Glimpse heard Gold say as the message ended, shifting his gaze to find the fox watching. A smirk found its way into his face as he remembered the old saying.

"Never forget."

(A/N) Not gonna lie, probably not my best work. Anyhow, that's it. Not sure where this came from if I'm being honest, I just wanted knock up something different and this is what came to mind. And yes, I realize it's quite short even for a one-shot. I just wanted to put something else up for the hell of it, so here you go. But yeah, like I said. If you haven't read the main story, this may have not made a whole lot of sense. I did warn you though, so you've got no one to blame but yourself. So there.

Anyway, as always.

Catchya =)