//------------------------------// // We Need Anthers! // Story: Scattered Seeds // by 111segasonic //------------------------------// "Oh my goodness! Luna, are you okay?! Luna? Oh no! Guards! Somepony help!" Celestia, having just raising the sun, had only wanted to check up on her sister. Maybe even to encourage her after the loss she suffered. But as Celestia entered the room, she was welcomed only by horror. Not a second later, two guards burst into the room. "Yes, your-" They never got to finish, for they were struck dumb. Princess Luna lied motionless on the floor. Whether she was still alive or not, they didn't know. "Get a doctor," Celestia ordered. "Now!" The guards saluted and bolted out the door. In the meantime, Celestia quickly checked for Luna's heartbeat. She sighed in relief; Luna was still alive. She lifted her sister with her magic and laid her on her bed. Somehow, she knew permitting Luna to fight would only bring more bereavement. Yet Celestia once again did nothing to stop it. Or maybe if she postponed the griffon meeting, they'd have prevailed against the creature. Celestia felt nothing but guilt, but that wouldn't help her sister. After half an hour, the door finally swung open, revealing the guards. They marched in with unusually uncomfortable expressions. But that wasn't the first thing Celestia noticed. "Where's the doctor?" The guards glanced at each other nervously. "Your highness, we couldn't find any of Canterlot's usual doctors," one explained. "I don't know all the details, but I think they've all gone on vacation or something." Celestia's eye twitched. "Vacation? Why did they all decide to go on vacation? Now of all times?" She did a good job to keep from yelling, but from her tone of voice, you could tell she was upset. "Well, not all them...but we've never seen him before." "If he's skilled in aiding sick ponies, I'm sure he's qualified. Please, bring him in." The guards nodded then turned to the door. "You can enter now." From the door, came a light gray stallion. He wore a sharp light blue lab coat with a black belt strapped around his hip. Blue rubber gloves covered his front hooves and stretched almost to his knees. His stylish mane was black with a hint of gray. Small round glasses rested on his snout, gleaming brightly. He looked well-dressed and formal. But despite his pleasant look, something seemed off about him. And the guards could sense it too. But whatever it was, it didn't matter. "My name is Dr. Bonesaw," the doctor said. "I believe I vill be helping your sister, correct?" "Yes," Celestia said, "she's over here. Can you help her? She may have been like this all night, but I'm not sure." Dr. Bonesaw nodded in understanding and walked toward the wounded princess. Suddenly, the door burst open. A guard stormed in, looking for Celestia. The two guards caught him before he plowed straight into her. "Princess Celestia! The rest of the Night Guards has been found!" Those words seized Celestia’s attention. "Where?" "Everything in here..." I said, barely able to contain my rage, "has spoiled!!" I slammed the fridge shut, rattling its useless contents. I steamed to the living room to retrieve my seed gun. "You didn't have much in there, to begin with...." Sunflower mumbled. I wasn't sure, but I knew something sarcastic left that Sunflower's mouth. This was the reason I usually kept my house free from these plants. Because of the mouth I constantly got. But thanks to the power outage, I began relying on them more and more. At that moment, Marigold hopped toward me, holding a Snow Pea packet. Once getting my attention, she handed the seed packet to me. I smiled and thanked the Marigold. She was one of the few plants that were actually quite helpful. I'd use her more if it wasn't for the fact she was completely useless for combat. I planted a bunch of ice plants in the fridge. After doing so, I walked back into the living room. I then proceeded to collapse on the couch. I gazed at the ceiling, replaying that strange dream in my head. Something still bothered me about it, more specifically, that winged unicorn. Did it really infiltrate my dream? Or was my subconscious that crazy? The answer: who cares? Whether it was legit or not, it made me realize an important fact. These horses were probably intelligent. I really should've realized this sooner. I mean, you'd think the armor and planned attacks would be a dead giveaway. The question now is how is this going to affect me? In short, a lot. Every battle they fight is a learning experience for them. Unlike the zombies who fall for the same tricks, they'd be stronger with each fight. Normally, this wouldn't worry me. But after taking inventory, I learned a few things. All but one of my lawnmowers have been totaled. I thought about using it, but what good would that do? Not only that but most my power ups are missing. Namely, the power snow, power toss, power flame, and power pinch. Other than the power zap, I have no backup in case the fight went south. And to be perfectly honest, that sort of frightened me. I only have so many plants, can I really hold out against them? Could I actually lose? "Nah!" Celestia paced anxiously outside of Luna's door. It’s been half an hour and she was still waiting for Dr. Bonesaw to finish. At least this gave Celestia time to reflect on the creature and its house. It was a mystery how the night guards ended up unconscious on the roofs of Ponyville's houses. Thankfully, Ponyville's hospital took the wounded guards in for treating. According to the doctors, they suffered from some kind of fall. In fact, that speculation fits well with what happened to Luna. What possibly could've happened to cause that? Celestia thought. She made a note to question one of those night guards later that day. But despite the unanswered questions, Celestia felt as if something had to be done. The creature must've needed a great amount of power to decimate an army of a hundred and an alicorn princess. This proved it was dangerous as she suspected. Celestia's thoughts were abruptly interrupted by the door creaking open. Dr. Bonesaw was finally done, but his expression suggested bad news. He slowly closed the door behind him and sighed deeply. "Zat took longer zan I sought...." Celestia hated to asked, but she needed to know. "Will...will she be alright?" A smile managed to form on Dr. Bonesaw's face. "No." "I hope you don't mean she's going to...." "Oh, zere's still hope for her, but it's slim. I can easily deal vith her physical vounds, but it looks like she’s suffering from great mental trauma. It might take veeks for her to recover from somesing like zat. I'll do my best, but zere's a good chance she may never vake up again." Celestia stood in silence, trying to process the doctor's words. He sure didn't sugarcoat anything. Speaking seemed pointless since nothing she said could change the diagnosis. But there was one thing she could do. She thanked Dr. Bonesaw for his time and turned down the hall. But before she got far, she was stopped by a hoof on her shoulder. Celestia turned to see Dr. Bonesaw. "Princess, I understand vat you're going zrough. You feel zat you’re losing control of everyzing. And zat nozing vill change unless you did somesing about it. And you’re right. But you have to be careful not to do anyzing irrational." "Irrational?" Celestia questioned. "You know vat I mean. Granted, zis isn't any of my business. I shouldn't tell you how to do your job in as much as you shouldn't mine. But I have a feeling you're about to make a poor decision." Celestia raised an eyebrow. "Sink of it zis vay. If zis monster can easily launch an alicorn and her army across ze map, vat do you sink you could do? You could try to fight, but you'd end up like your sister or vorse. Zis country needs you alive, so I suggest you move as far as possible from zat house." "So what do you want me to do? Send more innocent ponies to their deaths while I lie idle in my castle?" Dr. Bonesaw chuckled. "Trust me, no army you could muster vould be able to match zat sing. At least, not vizout massive bloodshed." "Look, if you're suggesting we give up...." "No no, of course not. I'm merely suggesting zat brute force vill only bring more disaster. Ze creature outnumbers us; its army is infinite. To beat such an overpowered being such as zat requires strategy." "Strategy? Hmm…I don't suppose you have any ideas." "Vell...." Dr. Bonesaw smiled pridefully. "I've been in a few scuffles myself. I know a zing or two about strategy." Dr. Bonesaw returned to his serious state. "But I can't guarantee everyone survival. Zis battle might sacrifice some lives. It's your choice. Vee could go vith my plan or vee could just give up pursuing zis creature." Celestia thought it over. "What's your strategy?" The next day... "...If you use the priorities I gave, fighting these ponies should be a lot easier," Sunflower concluded. She'd just finished dumping a truckload of exposition on the rest of the plants. Though Sunflower had finished, the plants were still slightly confused. But they dared not say it in fear she'd start over. "Is everyone cool with this?" Kernal-pult's eyes lit up. "Yeah, is everyone cool with this?" Snow Pea rolled his eyes, knowing the joke was directed at him. "Wow, never heard that one before...." "No need to be so cold, Snow Pea!" Spikeweed remarked. Kernel-pult laughed. "Exactly! You need to snow when to chill!" All the plants joined in on the laughter. "Ice one, Kernal!" Spikeweed said. "Yeah," Snow Pea muttered, "hilarious." "Hmm, icy Snow Pea isn't enjoying our puns," Sap-fling joked. "I just don't understand," Snow Pea said. "Iceberg Lettuce is standing right over there. Why am I your target and not him?" "Because he's adorable," Kernel-pult explained. "Isn't that right widdle guy?" "Why am I cursed with these adowably large eyes...," Iceberg Lettuce mumbled. "D'awww," the plants cooed. "But really Snow Pea," Sap-fling said, "you shouldn't take these puns personally. You should learn to...let it go." All the plants burst into cheerful laughter. Snow Pea sighed, but still managed to smile. "Alright, alright, that's enough. The ponies could be arriving any moment. We're on thin ice here, so let's stay frosty." The plants were completely silent. "Oh come on! That was a good one!" The plants shushed the Snow Pea as they remained silent. "Do you hear that?" Sunflower said. For a while, all the plants listened intensely. "It was probably-" Before she could finish, a faint cry echoed within the forest. "Charge!" At the back of the house.... The plants could hear the clash of battle growing louder from the front of the house. There was certainly a battle going on. If only they could see what was going on. Were they winning or were they losing? Only time could truly tell. "Do you see anything, Sunflower?" Sap-fling asked. One of the Sunflowers at the ends peered around the house, trying to make out what was going on. "I could see part of the battle, but not much," she replied. "How I wish I was in that fight right about now," Spikeweed said. "Real unicorns...ha! I find that hilarious! I wonder how resistant they are against my spikes piercing their hooves...." The plants looked at him in disgust. "Just...no." "Yo Sunflower, do you see any of the ponies?" Sunflower leaned in further to get a better view. "I do, but I'm not sure what they're doing." "What do you mean?" Snow Pea asked. "They're just standing there, allowing their shields to tank all our shots. Are they trying to wear us out or something?" "Psh, good luck with that," Spikeweed taunted. "What are you planning ponies...." Sunflower mumbled. "Since we have some free time," another Sunflower said, "let's use it to review our battle plan." A loud groan swept among the plants. But that didn't stop Sunflower from clearing her throat and- "Guys, the ponies, they're gonna ambush us!" Iceberg Lettuce cried, interrupting Sunflower. And he was right. Several silhouettes crept in the shadows of the forest. But though he was right in his assumption, his cuteness betrayed him. "Are you trying to tell us something widdle guy?" They said. "Yes, look! They be hiding there!" He motioned constantly at the figures in the forest ahead. "Y'know, you're the only guy who can cheer me up when I'm disappointed," Spikeweed said. "CAN ONE OF YOU TAKE ME SEWIOUSLY!!" "CHARGE!!" The plan was going perfectly. A decoy squad distracted the plants from the front while lowering the defense of the back. When the signal was given, the ponies struck the plant's defenses furiously. It was happening, they were finally winning! Each of the guards felt untouchable as none had taken any serious damage. The plants were completely helpless. But then, the plants actually started firing. Almost instantly, the battle was thrown in their favor. They were immediately nailed with frozen peas and rained on by sap and butter. By the looks of it, this was their worst battle yet. But still, the ponies didn't back down for a second. They charged with their swords held high, willing to lay down their life for their country. Sadly, their bravery was not rewarded. The sap scattered on the ground made it almost impossible to advance. Butter smashed into their faces, blinding them. The frozen peas had a chilling effect which slowed their movement significantly. The were covering no ground at all. "L-lieutenant," a guard said, shivering from the cold. "Th-this isn't-t w-working." "I know!" Their leader yelled. "We should probably...." At that moment, a loud cry was heard from the back of the army. "Leeeeet's do iiiiit!" A purple pony charged to the front of the rush while snatching a sword from a guard's hoof. The pony then did a miraculous leap over the spikes and sap. Without taking a hit, the pony swiftly passed the ice spheres and sliced three snow peas in half with one swing. "Now that is a bloody domination!" the pony cried as she stumbled backward, somehow avoiding the projectiles. "Is that pony mad?!" a guard exclaimed. "I think she's drunk!" another said. "Whatever she is, she's distracting the plants. Let's use this to our advantage and continue fighting!" "No," the lieutenant said, "this mission was doomed from the start. Even if we get a slight upper hoof, that creature will use that magic leaf of his to finish us off. Grab that pony and fire the signal; we're retreating." The guards were surprised at their leader's orders. If Shining Armor was leading, he'd fight to the end. But whether they wanted to or not, they needed to follow orders. Two earth ponies ran to the purple pony's aid. "Gonna kill you and I'll keep killin' you and I'll never, cause you're 'onna be dead and then I'm gonna kill you," the pony slurred. "My goodness I think you're right, she is drunk!" "Seems like even a drunken pony is braver than we are..." A unicorn fired a magical firework into the sky, and the remaining ponies fled into the forest. An angry hoof slammed on top of the table. "What the hay just happened out there?!" a royal guard yelled. Several hours had passed since the ponies lost to the plants. But though the battle was over, the sting of defeat was ever-present. Princess Celestia had just called a meeting to discover the very question that had been asked. Now, she and some participants of this battle intended to answer it. "Weren't you there? We lost," another guard mumbled. "This is why you don't take any advice from a doctor," one said. "He was only trying to help," Celestia said, "and I myself thought it was a decent plan." "Well, it wasn't. We were beaten senseless out there." Princess Celestia sighed patiently. "Maybe you could be more specific about what happened. After all, I'm the only one here who wasn't present during the event." "Allow me, your highness," Lieutenant Blockade said. Without any shame, he described the battle in detail, leaving nothing out. From the feeling of victory at the beginning, to the wake-up slap of reality towards the end. It was actually quite funny, considering how blunt he was. Some of the guards even snickered at the beating their comrades suffered. "Can you describe the plants you've encountered?" Celestia asked. Blockade nodded. "With sunflowers as an exception, most of them were variations the first ones we've seen. The pea-shooters were light blue and fired frozen peas enchanted with a slowing effect. The cabbage catapults had two variations. One looked like a sapling and threw pinecones dripping with sticky sap. The other looked like half a corn stuck into the ground; it lobbed butter and pieces of corn. A few new plants were also seen during battle. Such as plants disguised as spikes, and ice lettuces that freeze ponies when touched." "I see...." Celestia said. "Judging by how calm you are, I assume it wasn't a total loss." Blockade smirked at Celestia's observation. "No, it wasn't." The guards looked at him, confused. They never heard of any progress being made. He turned to one of the guards. "Would you like to explain to everypony what you've discovered?" All eyes were fixed on the guard as he nodded and began to speak. "As you know, our squad was instructed to draw the creature’s attention to the front. That way, the creature will be too busy to deal with the sneak attack from the back. While we did so, we were able to examine the plants from the safety of our shields. We've noticed that, when firing constantly, the plants have breaks between every shot. They had a charge time or reloading time before firing again. For the shooting plants, their reload time was exactly 1.5 seconds. For the lobbing plants, their reload time was exactly 3 seconds. We're not sure if this rule applies to all plants, but it's still a good thing to keep in mind." "That is certainly interesting," Celestia commented. "But I fail to see how it is helpful." "Well, it really isn't...." the guard admitted, "but it's also not the only thing we've learned. We learned that these plants seem to have sapience. They planned and strategized each of their attacks like second nature. At one point, they stopped firing and waited for our defenses to drop. After a while, they'd attack all at once, knocking us back. Clearly, there was some intelligence at work." Celestia thought it over. "Wouldn't it make sense that the creature simply gave them orders and the plants obeyed?" "That may be the case, but that only confirms the creature's intelligence. But that wasn't the point I wanted to expand upon. We've noticed something else about these plants. Something extremely vital if we want to defeat them." "Which is?" a guard asked. "The sunflowers," he stated firmly. "Have any of you figured out what they do? After all, they've been in every battle." Everyone took a moment to determine an answer. "We give up. What do they do?" The guard leaned back in his chair. "These sunflowers seem to do nothing but produce miniature suns. But does anyone take the time to see where those suns go? If left alone, the suns will disappear. But most of them are gathered by the creature with some sort of device. With this same device, he makes more plants. Is anypony making the connection?" The ponies sat there dumb, still trying to put the pieces together. Celestia's eyes suddenly lit up. "To make more plants, the creature needs the sunflower's suns!" "Which means...." All the guards finally understood. "If we destroy the sunflowers, we defeat the plants!" "Yes!" Hope had finally returned to the ponies. Maybe with this newfound knowledge, they could win. But amongst the happiness, was an irritated groan. "You ponies really think you've learned something here?" a guard said, shaking his head. "Yes, we know which plant to target now. But has any of you remembered we have trouble destroying one plant? How are we going to wipe out a whole line of the ones hiding in the back?" Everyone's smiles slowly vanished as their morale was crushed by his words. "So then... it really is impossible to beat them...," a guard finally uttered. "No, we just have to think harder," Celestia assured. "There could be other ways of winning that we just can't see. If we put our heads together, we can find something." "I really don't see the point," another guard said. "Why don't we allow this creature to live in its house. It's not going to hurt anypony from there." Celestia sighed. "We can't do that. Not again. We must deal with it before-" "Wait a minute, your highness," the lieutenant said, "that maybe a good idea." "How?" "Instead of fighting these plants, we could camp around the house. Eventually, the creature will run out of food, and as we know, all living things need food and water. We'll force it to surrender or die of starvation, but either way, it won't be our problem anymore." The same guard that shot down their first plan did the same to this one. "Couldn't it just eat its own plants? It has an endless supply of them, and they look edible enough." "The creature also needs air to survive. Maybe we could try smoking it out." "Actually, we've recently discovered there's a plant that can make huge gusts of wind. That's how the night guards were defeated last night. The creature will use it to blow the fumes back in our faces." The room was filled with silence. "Wow, you really are a downer." The guard shrugged. "I'm just saying...." "If we can't chase the creature out, we're forced to break in," Celestia said plainly. "Does anypony have any ideas of doing that?" "Hey, why don't we try teleporting into the house?" a guard suggested. This time, the whole room burst into laughter. "Don't you know what happens when you teleport into an object?" a guard finally asked. "Um, you... impale yourself?" "Exactly! Now, explain what might happen if we tried teleporting into a house we have no mental image of?" "...You could impale yourself..." "And that's not a pretty sight." More silence followed as the group tried to determine an answer. Slowly, a hoof raised amongst them. "Do you have a question, private?" Blockade asked the guard. "Actually, I have an idea. Let's have one more attack, except with the crystal guards. Put Flash Sentry in the front, and while they're in the heat of battle, tell everypony else to back off." Celestia frowned. "What will that accomplish?" The guard grinned devilishly. "We'll finally rid Equestria of its greatest threat...." Blockade groaned. "Look, it all boils down to this. We know the royal and night guards are incapable of winning normally. I'm sure the same goes for the crystal guards. Somehow, we need to use this information we discovered and give it to ponies that could actually benefit from it. At the time, those ponies aren't us." "Who do you suppose those ponies are then?" Celestia asked. "We need ponies that are brave and daring. We need ponies that are fast and evasive. We need ponies that can think quickly and plan effectively. We need ponies like..." At that moment, Soarin opened the door holding a handkerchief. "Hey, did anypony drop this?" The guards simply stared. "What?"