//------------------------------// // Chapter 11: Moral Bankruptcy // Story: Memories of the Stone // by WanderingPony //------------------------------// Leaving a few drifting trimmed tail hairs and the hint of burnt mane in the air, Big Starlight and Orange Wedge slipped through a crack in the stadium walls and leaped free of the hole, wings springing wide. A chunk of rubble jammed it's way into the crack as they escaped, multiple thuds and scrapes marking when the pursuing horde hit the no-longer-open exit. "Oh, that was a NICE one Wedge!" "Hay, we sure left those featherless freaks eating our misty....misss...oh, oh....no no no no NO!" The shining vista in front of the pegasi was already cracked and scarred in dozens of places by what could only be described as war. "Slaughter" would have come closer save for the thin armored line near the train tracks, distant gleams of unicorn magic criss-crossing the elemental fury of demonic bombardments. Occasional balls of flame, frost, or lightning marked the line, spreading over what defensive barriers the unicorns of the Guard had managed to hold up. Desperately, earth ponies tried to distract the incoming Kindred from their positions, but found that hooves and spears alike did little to wound the things. At best, they were knocking down a grey-skinned giant, only to have it stand and resume the attack moments later. Likewise, what few bolts of concussive force the magically inclined guardponies could generate were only managing to briefly disrupt any imp or ahriman that busied themselves with burning down their four-legged prey. Barely visible streaks of feathered fury marked the pegasi in the ranks, circling tauri in an effort that frustrated and baffled the enormous quadrupeds, but did little real damage. If some of the demons hadn't been occupying themselves with butchering whatever terrorized ponies they could winkle out from the wrecked buildings and cratered streets, they would have already broken the line. From the air, it looked more like the demons were having a grand time of killing and maiming whatever happened to be close at hand, almost at random. Barely visible to the south, the Royal Train was chugging down the tracks, last in a line of trains filled to bursting with civilians. More ponies followed the tracks, leaving a trail of discarded luggage, broken carts, and the occasional pony who had lamed themselves or worse trying to flee the horror. A sound like a warehouse full of wind chimes began to toll in the wind, and Orange Wedge turned on a wing just in time to see Crystal Waters of Healing Hospital implode on itself as the bottom floors collapsed, tiny colored dots leaping from impossible heights in a futile effort to escape. None had wings. From the heights they had jumped from, nothing without them would survive. Something even more massive than the tauri roared from within the cloud, black spikes of mane waving about in the dust. It charged out of the cloud to crash through a block full of housing the next street over, crushing the glittering walls into wagon-sized chunks of razored death. The behemoth slowed and carefully danced it's way across the rubble pile, brief squeals of pain and cut-off screams showing exactly why it was taking it's time. In a single, horrified moment of realization, the two guardsponies realized what had happened- Sombra distracting the most powerful defenders of Equestria almost single-hoofed as his army massacred the innocent treasures the Sisters treasured most. It was a plan no sane pony would have imagined, and worst of all- it was working to diabolic perfection. "Sweet suffering Sisters, we've got to tell the Princesses! They don't know! They can't know! We've got to- GAGKTH!" Squealing with hunger, an imp latched onto Big Starlight's neck and dug the bony spines of it's thumbs through the pony's windpipe. Blood sprayed into a crimson mist as he went limp, the chittering fiend riding the already stiffening body to the ground. A second imp narrowly missed Wedge as he rolled belly up to bring all four hooves into the face of his attacker, hammering iron-shod hooves into it's chest in a rapid-fire pattern. It was like kicking a steel wall. Sparks flew and the imp wobbled in the air, but showed no signs of real harm as it began to summon a blast of arcane energy. Tears of rage and frustration streaming from his face, Orange Wedge did the only thing he could. He flew for his life, the life of the ponies dying on the ground, and for his duty. Wings beat to the breaking point as he raced to clear the top of the stadium, a spear of ice splintering against his armor and cracking two ribs. Below him, Equestria's royalty continued their duel against Somba, unaware of the drama outside. Pulses of energy crackled between them in a web of certain death. Orange Wedge was past caring about dying. Wings folded against his sides, he dove into the killing zone. A burst of green against flaming red tore away his helm, sending it flying into the burning air. It survived a moment of freefall before being slagged. A downdraft flipped him end over end into a ball of feathers and hooves as he cannonballed out of control from the stunning blow, black and red crawling into the sides of his vision as the spin stole blood from his brain. "This it it...", Wedge managed to think as the ground spun large in the few sparks of vision that remained before the inevitable loss of consciousness, then life. Orange Wedge's vision went black as he impacted....soft? Feathery? Oh, if the world would stop spinning...and it did. Bloodied and crippled, the wounded guardpony found himself still flying, his four legs flopping over the flanks of one midnight-hided Princess Luna. "THOU ART MAD TO FLY IN THIS STORM, PRIVATE!", Luna's normally painfully loud speaking voice being just enough to rise above the sonic assault of combat. "P...ponies in city....d-d-dying, my lady. Arm....army attacking, city is almost lost.", gasped Wedge as his broken ribs stabbed into his lung, stealing most of his breath. He fainted away, slipping into a red dream of the deadly games being played outside the stadium walls. The Princess of the Night bugled in midair, her wings spreading out as the news raced through Luna's mind, Wedge's nightmare of a dream telling her everything the guardpony could not manage to speak before succumbing to his wounds. She veered away from the attack, Celestia looking on in confusion only for a moment before switching to the defense and covering her younger sister's retreat. A moment's flight took her to the grounds where Twilight Sparkle still stood, her friends gathered close. Letting the shattered pony down on a broad wing, Luna gave the six ponies a wild-eyed moment before blowing out a breath she had unknowingly been holding for a full minute of horrified silence, the image of the behemoth-torn hospital replaying itself in Wedge's sleeping mind and her own. "TWILIGHT, MY FRIENDS! AID NOW MY SISTER IN HER FIGHT. GRIM TIDINGS ARE AFOOT IN THE CITY, AND MY LITTLE PONIES NEED A PRINCESS TO LEAD THEM. ALL SHALL BE LOST WITHOUT!" A collective gasp of fearful concern came from the Bearers before the mask of determination settled back down. Pinkie Pie's maniac grin, Rarity's look of dismay, Applejack's head lowering just an inch to let her hat settle more firmly in place, Fluttershy managing to look even MORE nervous than the entire battle had done so far, Dash's nervous circling of her friends speeding it's orbit just a little more... "AND SEND NOT THIS WARRIOR BEYOND THE WALLS, PRINCESS. THE CITY BE NO LONGER..." Luna choked for a moment, a vision of falling ponies crossing her mind's eye. "...TIS' NO LONGER SAFE. CARE WELL FOR HIM HERE, AS SAFE AS YOU CAN MAKE SUCH A PLACE." Twilight's already thoughtful look went into overdrive as she looked towards Celestia and Sombra, still fighting. Emerging from a door above the warring magicians, Twilight spotted her sister-in-law and her brother making their way to a cloth-covered stone. "Go ahead, Luna. I have....a plan!" Dark wings beat once on the down-wing, lifting the Moon Princess a dozen yards into the air before she flew over the stands. Her cobalt horn began to glow, a line of spells marching across the alicorn's mind as she left the stadium to face what ravaged the city beyond... "FIGHT BRAVELY AND BE THOU OF STRONG HEART!" was her cry- as greeting to the embattled Royal Guard and farewell to the seven ponies who remained behind.