//------------------------------// // Chapter 13: Necessary Evil // Story: Into Oblivion // by ChaosZero460 //------------------------------// Not every story has a happy ending, not everypony deserves one. I know I sure as hell don't. We call them "fairy tale endings" because that's the only place they exist. We grow up hearing stories about overcoming insurmountable obstacles, about finding the true strength that lies within us, and about true love conquering all. We're all the protagonists of our own stories, why shouldn't we get to live happily-ever-after? But this is the real world, and that's not how it works. An unreachable goal is just that, unreachable. Sure, it's heroic to try, and everypony loves to root for the underdog, but at the end of the day, you can't beat the odds forever. Simple as that. We love stories about the downtrodden and world-beaten soul rising up and seizing control of his life, making a change for the better. But 99% of the time, that lone pony, the one who's been struck down so many times he doesn't even bother to try to get to his hooves anymore, stays there. He'll die alone and forgotten. Not that he's anything special, happens all the time. As for the whole "true love" nonsense... I find it somewhat ridiculous how all the stories about romance and the aforementioned all-powerful force of love fail to realistically depict it. These two star-crossed lovers meet and instantly fall for each other and will go to any lengths to be together. That isn't love, that's infatuation. A childish fictionalization of what love actually is. And at the end of the story, it all works out for the best. Because apparently true love means not having to work for it, having no conflicts or issues to resolve. And of course that's assuming there's somepony out there for you at all, which it's entirely possible that there isn't. ... I already know how this is going to end. A nagging, infuriatingly optimistic little voice in my head keeps trying to tell me that nothing's set in stone, maybe it'll turn out different. Maybe you'll walk away from this. Between you and me, that little voice is an idiot. _________________________________________________________________________________________________ Onyx stands on the balcony of the suite, the rising sun casting a harsh glare across his weary, tired face. His eyes had dark, deep bags circling under them, there was a coldness in his gaze a stallion of his years should never have been burdened to carry. The pony looked like he had aged ten years over the course of a single night. He hadn't slept last night, he hadn't even made an attempt. Even if by some miracle of Luna herself he could drift off, the nightmares that were surely awaiting him made sitting alone in the dark silence for hours on end seem like a welcome alternative. They had started since his resurrection at the hooves of Blackout, he prayed he would simply grow out of them, like he had when he was a young colt, but instead they had only became more violent and disturbing as time passed. Onyx came to dread the setting sun, there was no escape from the night-terrors that relentlessly pursued him throughout the night. He was forced to re-live the explosion, losing his family, over and over again. He'd witnessed his loved ones, the only ponies that ever gave a damn about him, get ripped and blown to pieces right before his eyes. Every night Onyx would awake, wanting to scream to the heavens themselves, demand an explanation of why he was being tortured this way. Instead of suffering further torment, he chose to spend the remaining hours of the night ironing out the wrinkles in his plan. Everything needed to be in place, he couldn't afford to fail. After tying up all the loose ends and verifying everything was as it should be, he doubled checked his work and went over it again. And then checked it a third time. He was halfway through with a fourth review before he finally called it quits, fearing any further reading of the same information would drive him insane. The steady, thunderous snoring from Bruiser filled the room, rattling the likely exorbitantly-expensive paintings hanging on the wall. The stout, cobalt pony kicked and fidgeted on the plush, snow white carpet that had to be an absolute bitch to keep clean. Every now and then he'd mumble or groan something incomprehensible, on occasion even shouting. Angel Fire meanwhile took the bed, curling up under the numerous thick blankets. The bed was bordering on ridiculously huge, there was ample room for all three but Bruiser had opted to take the floor. Walking in on Onyx and the mare in Fillydelphia had given him enough motivation to sleep elsewhere. He said he didn't care to wake up in any "mystery fluids". Onyx looks out at the ornate white palace stretching before him, the sunlight filtering through the fuchsia energy field surrounding Canterlot looked almost like a giant stained glass window, casting a faint violet hue on everything in sight. It wouldn't be long before Twilight took to the podium to address the council, and the plan would swing into effect. He gives a glance back to his teammates, before looking back to the castle, hanging his head. "I'm sorry guys...I'm so sorry" _________________________________________________________________________________________________ "We're just minutes away from Twilight Sparkle's first official act as princess, where she will be giving her statement to the Royal Council regarding the rising tensions between Equestria and the Griffon Empire" the radio crackles. Blackout sits in his office, picking up the radio broadcast directly. He looks out at the blank steel walls with indifference, awaiting the news of a successful kill, ready to detonate the bombs scattered throughout Fetlock if the broadcast proceeded without incident. "Don't do anything stupid Onyx" he quietly snarls to himself. A deafening roar of cheers fill the airwaves. "And there she is! Princess Twilight has taken the stage accompanied by Celesita and Luna." Meanwhile in Canterlot, Onyx watches from the hotel balcony as the purple alicorn walks out onto the stage, flanked on both sides by the two princesses. She waves to the crowd, before giving a nervous, excited smile directed to five other mares in the front row. The pink earth pony was holding up a ludicrous, irrationally large banner with "HI TWILIGHT!" scrawled on it in bright pink letters. The dozen or so ponies seated behind her couldn't see a damn thing. They grumpily weave, duck and crane their necks, attempting to peer around the sign. The air was thick with patrolling pegasus guards, squads of unicorns made their rounds, weaving in and out of the crowd. They weren't taking any chances with security, not with an entire platoon being slaughtered the night before. Because of this, Onyx had requested Angel Fire and Bruiser scatter to different locations, both to minimize their chances of getting captured and to provide additional lookout and support for each other should they run into trouble. Onyx laid down on the balcony's floor, the optical implant zooming in to get a clear look at the trio of princesses. He purposefully kept the crosshairs off of them, the red plus hovering just over their heads. Twilight steps closer to the edge and clears her throat, the crowd quickly hushed. "My fellow ponies" she started. Onyx sweeps his sights across the crowd, it was a veritable sea of ponies. He'd never seen so many in one place all at once. He makes his way to the edges of the mob as Twilight continues her speech. Onyx eventually finds Bruiser, he was in his bomber jacket and standing inconspicuously as possible. The deep blue pony glances up to the balcony, unable to see the black stallion positioned there but feeling watched nonetheless. Onyx's crosshairs pan down and to the left, after a few moments of searching he found Angel Fire. She was wearing a white dress that had a red sash tied around the middle, her wings having shredded her favored pink dress the previous day. The mechanical pegasus was glancing up at him, a hint of uncertainty in her eyes. Bruiser and Angel hadn't been completely sold on his plan, Onyx told them he was planning on shooting the tower looming over the princesses, the rubble would come crashing down in what would appear to be a genuine attempt on their lives. However, he had slipped a note to Twilight beforehand, warning her of the impending attack. She'd throw up a forcefield at the last second, protecting them from the destruction raining down. After that, they'd haul ass out of Canterlot, likely with the entirety of the Royal Guard nipping at their hooves. Or at least, that was what Onyx had told them. He'd kept the second part of the plan secret from them. Onyx absolutely hated, loathed himself for it. These weren't just his teammates, his coworkers. These were his only friends, and here he was, blatantly lying to their faces. They trusted him, and he was using that against them. "We can't let blind hatred and meaningless hostility cloud our vision, make us lose sight of what's truly important" the alicorn says. It was almost time, once he committed to this path, there was no turning back. This was a one-way trip. If he was going to back out, now was the time. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't tempted, of all the things that scared Onyx, uncertainty was near the top of the list. He shakes his head. No, you're not backing out of this now. You know what you need to do, so do it. Onyx brings the crosshairs up to the white tower stretching up to the sky just above the three princesses, the gold spire casting a harsh glare into the magnified image. He targets the base of the tower, charging up a full-power blast. Blue arcs of energy spit and dance on the horn's silver surface. "I believe we can solve this peacefully, because I believe in the good that lies in us all." That was the signal to fire, as ironic as it may be. Onyx exhales, attempting to make peace with himself. He concentrates, sending the mental command. Destroy. His eyes close as screams fill the air, awaiting whatever fate lie in store for him. _________________________________________________________________________________________________ From the crowd, Angel Fire watches as the savage blue bolt snakes across the sky in a split-second, slamming into the watchtower in a massive explosion. The crowd erupts in chaos, panicked shrieking deafens all listening ears. True to Onyx's plan, the tower crumbles like a house of cards, carriage-sized rubble raining down in a cloud of dust and debris. A protective bubble of Twilight's magic enveloped the balcony almost instantly, the huge chunks of wreckage harmlessly bouncing off it's surface. The mob explodes, ponies running every which way all at once. Somehow through the pandemonium, her eyes find Bruiser's. He nods, and they start to make their way out of the castle grounds and head to the rendezvous point outside of town. Suddenly, the sound of a massive spell being cast diverts their attention back to the princesses. Angel Fire turns, just in time to see a swirling column of raw magic energy streak through the air, directly at the hotel balcony. The two ponies stare helplessly as the room explodes in a fireball of ethereal flame, utterly destroying the entirety of the room. The raspberry-colored flames lick and twirl as the gaping, smoldering crate belches smoke. "ONYX!" Angel Fire screams. She stares in complete disbelief. "No..." It didn't feel real. He couldn't be dead, not that quickly, not that easily. There was a chance he could have survived, wasn't there? He wasn't dead. He wasn't gone, he was fine. He was... he was probably waiting on them outside of town. Yes, that's where he was. He'd gotten out of tough scrapes before, this was no different. Onyx was fine. He had to be. He wasn't dead. "Son of a bitch..." Bruiser mutters. He stares up at the flaming hole blasted into the hotel. The cobalt stallion knew, there was no way anypony could have survived that. Angel continued to stare blankly, her normally glossy and vibrant emerald eyes looked dead. Her mouth was stuck halfway open, as if emitting a silent cry. The stallion places a hoof on the small of her back. "Angel, let's go." Her eyes don't deviate from their fix on the ruins. "Angel Fire, we need to move, now" he said, this time more forcefully. "W-we can't leave him..." the mare says, voice barely audible in the best of circumstances, but surrounded by the deafening roar of screams it went unheard. Bruiser tugs at her, quickly losing patience. "Snap out of it! We have to clear out of here!" She furiously swats his hoof away, her seemingly soulless eyes had tears flowing from their corners and down her cheeks, passing over the small cuts. The stallion took a surprised half-step back. He'd never seen her show any sort of emotion other than pure rage and passive indifference in all the years he'd known her. "I CAN'T LEAVE HIM!" she desperately screams. "Angel, listen to me. Onyx was my friend too, but he's gone now, and we're gonna be dead if we don't get the hell outta here right now!" he yells back. Angel turns back to the burning hotel, Bruiser knew she wasn't going to come willingly. Leaving him with no choice, she is dragged away, fighting, kicking, and screaming the entire way. A small, faint trail of tear drops dotted the cobblestone street where they passed. _________________________________________________________________________________________________ "Details are still coming in by the minute, but we're able to verify an assassination attempt has been made on the Royal Sisters as well as Princess Twilight Sparkle a few short moments ago. It appears that they are unharmed, authorities are searching the remnants of the sniper's position as we... yes, ok. We just received word that the Royal Guard have confirmed the assassin has been killed. We will continue to keep you informed as more details surface. "GODDAMMIT!" Blackout roars, his voice making the steel walls tremble. He slams a hoof down onto his desk, splitting it down the middle with a sharp krakk! The black cybernetic alicorn kicks the half away, sending it flying across the office and landing in a loud clatter. He stands there, absolutely fuming. Onyx had failed, although Blackout was angry with himself more than anypony. The young stallion wasn't ready, he hadn't had enough experience. What a waste of resources, anti-magic weapons were among the most expensive and labor-intensive hardware to produce, why had he even entrusted him with it in the first place, let alone this pivotal mission? Nephew or not, he should have known better. Blackout's robotic eye falls to the detonator control on his metal hoof. He had no further use for Fetlock, and the bombs had use elsewhere. Celestia was no doubt preparing retaliation, he couldn't afford to waste valuable munitions. "Unit 5, collect the explosives and return to base. We've hit a snag" he says, his mechanical components broadcasting the signal. "Yes sir" the radio crackles. _________________________________________________________________________________________________ Twilight sat in her room, locked inside as an entire platoon of guards stood watch outside. She pulls out the folded note she had found earlier that morning, wanting to reassure herself that she had in fact, done the right thing. She skips to the end, which looked like it had been written quickly and hastily with an unsteady hoof. "After making sure the other princesses are ok, I need you to destroy the hotel room. The very top center, you'll see the bolt. Teleport me somewhere else, doesn't really matter where, but make sure the room goes up. Don't leave any doubt, blow the living shit out of it. I need to die, I need to be history. I know I'm asking a lot here, and I realize I've got absolutely no right to do so, but I'm down on my knees here. I can't do this without your help. I'll be gone as soon as this is over. You won't be hearing from me again, as far as you're concerned, I'm a ghost. I can't promise you much, but I can give you this. I'm going to make this right, one way or another. Keep an eye out, you'll probably be able to see the fireworks from here. -Onyx Shard" She sighs, folding the note back up and tossing it onto the nightstand. Was he going to be alright? That sounded an awful lot like a pony that knew he wasn't going to survive. The large double doors swing open, the familiar faces of her friends enter as the doors promptly shut behind them. "Are you ok sugarcube?" The alicorn discretely slides a book over the folded note. "Yeah girls, I'm fine."