//------------------------------// // Limit Break // Story: The One Who Leads The Way // by TundraStanza //------------------------------// Céri wasn't entirely sure what he was looking at. The pony that he had just convinced to let her friends pass on peacefully... turned out to be something else. Her eyes were now unblinking, watching... analyzing... "Excuse you?" he asked. "Céri Dylanson of Equestria No. Two Hundred Ninety-Nine Thousand, Eight Hundred Eighty-Eight." The monotonously uniformed unicorn elaborated. Her horn glowed and pulled a small 'key' card out of her pocket. "You are here because I requested it." "No way..." He was at a loss, unsure of how to even react. "You're the displaced person?" "I am," she replied without faltering. Okay, I have a whole bunch of questions racing through my head right now. Céri wiped his forehead. "Then, what was that whole deal of acting like Twilight and that story of losing your friends five years ago?" "Several irregularities corrupted the data within this interface." The eyes above the glasses finally blinked once. "Key details had been locked by the administrator's unwillingness to cope with isolation. The irregularities that resonated most closely were those of the late Twilight Sparkle of this version of Equestria." "I... I'm not sure I understand." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "Are you saying that some emotions and dead pony's memories made you go cuckoo or something along those lines." "That is within the realm of correctness with an uncertainty of plus/minus seven point seven percent." Céri sighed. "Why are you talking like that? Did you cosplay as some kind of robot before meeting the merchant?" "The administrator was under the guise of a crossover of Twilight Sparkle of Fourth-Generation My Little Pony and Yuki Nagato of an original series 'The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya'." She didn't even sound like she needed to pause for breath. "Consequently, this data interface's appearance and habitual standards was the result. Rather than a robot, it might be more accurate to say that I am what you would consider an alien." Céri raised his arms high. "Well, that just makes things so much simpler." He abruptly dropped his arms to his sides. "Sensors indicate that your arbitrary changes of tone and posture are a sign of less than fifty percent seriousness." "Well, at least you can pick that up." He crossed his arms. "So, now that you've drowned me in techno babble, what can I do for you?" "You have already given the correct passwords with the correct vocal frequencies to allow this interface to go through a complete scan for the irregular data points and remove the corruptions." Sparkle actually blinked a second time. "I owe you my gratitude." She bowed her head. "Oh." He blinked in surprise. "Huh... so... that's it?" "That is it." She lifted her head back to stare ahead at her eye level. "You wouldn't happen to know how much longer I have before I get pulled back to the Equestria that I was in, would you?" "I do know, but the series of algorithms necessary to calculate the exact time frame between displaced users' arrivals and departures would likely sound incomprehensible to you." "Yeah, trigonometry was never my strongest subject," he admitted with a chuckle. "These algorithms would technically fall into algebra and statistics," she corrected. "Right, well... it's all Greek to me." He shrugged. "Mathematics." She blinked again. "Would you please stop that?" There were a couple of seconds of silence before she flatly said, "Okay." ... "Anyway..." Céri looked around. "Is there... anyone else in this world?" "Surveillance for the last three hundred sixty-five earthen day cycles has returned null results aside from hazardous plant and predatory animal life forms." His eyes widened at that. "You've been alone... for a whole year?" "With uncertainty levels-" He shook his head. "Forget the numbers for a minute. You've been alone, yes or no?" She almost looked taken aback. "Yes." His mouth started moving before he was ready. "What if... when I find the key that lets me call you... would you... like to spend some time with me... and the friends I've made?" Her eyes fluttered shut. "Perhaps I would." "Alright, cool." He smiled dumbly before looking around. "So... any idea what I should look for that'll work as your 'key'?" Sparkle's glasses twinkled a bit. She held her hoof to the right as her horn glowed magenta. After a little jingling, a familiar necklace floated within a few inches of her hoof. She willed it to hover right in front of her mouth... right before her lips moved to form syllables at such a rapid pace that Céri couldn't hear all of them. The orange apple jewel glowed briefly before returning to its original shine. "I have updated the programs within this Element," she explained at a more steady pace. "It may now be switched on and off at User Céri Dylanson's leisure, and only through your permission." She shoved the jewelry against the card fighter's hand. Céri held up the necklace. "You're saying I can put this on and take it off whenever I want to and it won't get stuck?" Sparkle nodded. "Yes." He hummed in curiosity. Cautiously, he put the gold band around his neck. Within a few seconds, he had taken on the visage of that orange pony again. Then, she put up a hoof and yanked it off. Sure enough, he was standing back up as himself with his shoes intact. "I'm not sure how often I'll actually use that," he commented. "After all, I'm fairly certain that the Twilight in my world and all of her friends are still alive." "Additionally, I have made slight modifications to allow access to the late Applejack's memory instinct and quadriceps output." Céri raised his brow. "Her what and her what?" "One moment please." Sparkle lowered her head and her horn glowed brightly. With a soft pop, she vanished. Just before he could wonder where, though, she reappeared near the entrance of her house. Sitting next to her was a giant boulder. "What in the world...?" Céri wandered over and placed a hand up against the giant rock. "Where did you get this?" "It was just gathering dust outside of the late Rarity's boutique," answered Sparkle. "She will not mind. I will set up defenses to prevent the structure of this house from suffering any test runs you may wish to take with that Element." "Uh... no offense, Twilight, but I'm pretty sure no one could possibly kick hard enough to budge a rock of that magnitude, let alone break it." "Initiating heart-wrenching, infant canine mode." What happened next would be a blur in Céri's memory. All he could comprehend in that moment was the look of a small, purple puppy dog pouting at his presence. She just wanted him to trust her. Was that so wrong? "Oh, alright." He put the necklace back on and turned around. "If you insist." She trotted over toward the table to get some good distance. After that, she took a galloping start at the rock. Just a foot before she reached the stone, she slammed down on her front hooves, turned around, and whipped out her hind legs. Oddly enough, she barely felt her hooves make contact with the boulder before they made a sound akin to a wrecking ball. She turned her head to see what had happened. What she saw then made her green irises go all googly. The rock had been replaced with a conglomeration of pebbles and dust. The only thing keeping them from spreading all over the tree library was a set of magical barriers being held up by Sparkle. "Sweet celery stalks," gasped Céri. "Did I do that?" "You did that," answered Sparkle without faltering. "Well, I'll be a rattlesnake's uncle," she marveled as she held up her necklace. "Maybe I can find a use for this after all." He took it off and pocketed his new 'key'. "The passphrase is 'Ready to begin, Ezekiel?' " "Alright, I think I've got it," he said with a nod. --- "So... this is Ezekiel." Céri pointed to his newest, displaced comrade. Redheart blinked. "Uh, hi. I'm-" "Nurse Redheart," interrupted the alien Sparkle, "a current employee and occupier of Ponyville General Hospital. Status: Single." Redheart raised her brow. "Wait, what?" "She's kind of an alien with a quirk of abusing the thesaurus." Céri scratched the back of his neck. "At least, that's what I gather." "User Dylanson's analysis has a plus/minus twenty-two percent uncertainty." The uniformed pony didn't miss a beat. "Well, it's... nice to meet you?" ventured Redheart. "I am grateful for this encounter as well," said Ezekiel. ... Awkward chuckles were given by Redheart and Céri. There had to be a way to break the monotony. "Oh, hey..." Céri pulled out his cards. "How about I teach you two how a game of Vanguard works?" Ezekiel turned to look at the deck. Her glasses twinkled as she held up a hoof. A little orb of light was procured and reshaped itself into a gelatinous blob. Before Céri and Redheart could ask what was going on, the blob had taken the form of a full deck. "Er... I guess that'll work," commented Céri before handing his deck to Redheart. "Here, you can use the Angel Feather clan." --- "Battler of the Twin Brush, Polaris," stated Ezekiel. "Attack the Vanguard." The small polar bear with weapons on its paws charged forward. The scissors-wielding angel Ramiel took a full force of impact, forcing Redheart to take two more damage checks. It was already a few turns in, yet Céri was still baffled as to how Ezekiel had somehow created a full Great Nature clan deck from absolutely nothing. Redheart sighed. "I stand and draw." She looked around between her cards in hoof, the field, and the damage zone. There weren't a whole lot of options left, but she decided to go for a choice rather than nothing. "Show both the healing and the discipline of medicine." She held the card up and slowly lowered it on the Vanguard circle. "On top of Prophecy Celestial, Ramiel, I break ride Chief Nurse, Shamsiel!" The nurse with giant syringes stood. A vibrant air glimmered along her glasses. "Using Ramiel's Break Ride skill, I pick up one card from the damage zone, add it to my hand, replace it with the top card of my deck, then give my Vanguard 10000 power," said Redheart. "Plus, a new card in the damage zone gives the following units 2000 more power: Thousand Ray, Million Ray, and Shamsiel." The two armed pegasi and the chief nurse glowed with power. "I call Holy Zone, Penemue and Sunny Smile Angel." Calling a strong defensive unit to the Rear-guard instead of holding onto it? wondered Céri. She's gambling a lot to make this her final turn. "Sunny Smile Angel gives an extra boost to Penemue's attack against Geograph Giant." "No guard," stated Ezekiel. The panda holding the globe was knocked away to the drop zone. "Peniel boosts Shamsiel's attack." A bright pink Vanguard circle of light spun forth. "Limit Break! Since Shamsiel's attacking your Vanguard, I can pick up a card from the damage zone and move one over there from my deck. She and my two pegasi Rear-guards power up again. Healing Rays of the Heavens!" The giant needles that Shamsiel was carrying were practically glowing hot pink. The lasers on Million Ray's back were practically crackling with all of this new energy. In the meantime, the polar bear was on the verge of several oversized vaccinations. "Guard." Ezekiel placed three of her cards from hand into the Guardian circle. Their shields totaled 25000. Along with Polaris' 10000, a total of 35000 power was defending against Shamsiel's current total of 29000. At least, that was the case before the drive checks. "First drive check." Redheart turned the card over, revealing another Sunny Smile Angel. "Heal trigger! I recover one damage and give the power... to Shamsiel." She's going to need one more trigger if she wants that attack to go through, thought Céri. Redheart's leg trembled as she reached for the deck. "Second check..." When this card was turned over, a unicorn with a rocket booster was depicted. "Sweet Celestia, it's really there!" She held the card over her Vanguard. "All effects to Shamsiel." The chief nurse's power rose to a whopping 39000 with a critical to boot. This attack was successful and dealt two damage to the opponent. Ezekiel monotonously flipped two cards over from her deck. The first had no trigger. The second did... but it was a stand trigger, not so useful when it was the sixth point of damage. "I... I won?" wondered Redheart. "That was satisfactory entertainment." Ezekiel bowed her head slightly. "Thank you." A flash of magenta swished over her horn before a similar glow pulled her cards together and straightened out the deck. "I will see you again." Some lights that resembled squares peppered the displaced unicorn all over. It was like watching a teleporter from the outside. Was there no consistency with how displaced people traveled between the multi-verse? Céri shook his head. Meanwhile, his companion rushed over to the now empty floor space. "What happened?" asked Redheart. "Where did she go?" "Back to her Equestria, I imagine," answered Céri. "Oh." Redheart trotted back over and started pushing the Angel Feather cards into a singular pile. Céri was still baffled how hooves were able to get any grip like that. Sure, he had experienced the sensation for himself before, but he still couldn't fully believe it. "Here you go." Redheart held up the finished deck. "Thanks." Céri pocketed the cards. "You were quite determined for a while." "I don't know," she admitted. "I think I just got lucky." "Maybe, but I think that's only part of it." He looked seriously at her. "Luck rarely falls on just anyone. There's an element of pure willpower that goes along with that good fortune." Something sparked in Redheart's mind. --- The colt on the ground needed serious attention. He wasn't breathing. She had to do something. She just had to! Small, slightly gray hooves pressed down against the colt's chest. The motion was quick and repetitive. Come on! Yes, there it was! A heartbeat! It was faint, but definitely beating! --- "Pure will..." Redheart looked down at her hooves. They were still the way she remembered them. "You may be right." The moment was interrupted by an unholy screech. Both pony and human lifted their respective limbs to cover their ears. "Attention, Ponyville! Guess who's back, back again! Platinum Quill's back with some brand-new friends!" Céri and Redheart rushed out the door. This seemed a little familiar. Only this time, the skies were only partly cloudy and the sun practically gleamed from the soldiers and assortment of creatures standing by the hippogryph's side. Many whites and blues covered their clothes and/or bodies. "You have got to be kidding me." Céri looked at them all in disbelief. "Foul villain that has taken upon himself the Paladins of Shadow," the megaphone screeched again, "prepare to taste the true justice of Blaster's Blade!" There was an non-amused look from the soldier standing closest. "It's Blaster Blade." "Silence, you tool," muttered Platinum Quill. "I'm the leader and that means you follow my directions." Something buzzed against Céri. When he looked down, there was a blinking purple light. He pulled out the Vanguard card with Blaster Dark depicted on it. He wasn't sure how, but he just knew that this unit was itching for this particular fight. Well, if it meant shutting up that bird-horse for a bit, he'd gladly oblige. "Call! Anakin!" A Vanguard circle of purple color emerged from that card before shaping itself into the dark clad warrior. As Blaster Dark looked down the road, Blaster Blade stared in exactly the opposite direction. Their eyes locked, causing rival sparks to fly before any attacks had even been declared. While allies in times of greatest need, the Shadow Paladin and Royal Paladin clans would always rival each other at heart. "Go, Armie! Attack their evil leader!" Blaster Blade made a flying leap. His battle cry followed him through his straightforward strike. In response, Céri held out his hand in front of him, directing Blaster Dark to counter. Anakin gladly obliged with a yelling jump as well. Swords crashed against each other. Both warriors struggled for air space. A smile crossed Platinum's beak. "Marron, give Armen a boost." The blonde sage with thick-rimmed glasses and a red spell book took a couple steps forward. This unit held a hand over the open book. Something like lightning surged from the hand. The power was going straight into Blaster Blade's sword. Blaster Dark grunted as his opponent was suddenly pushing with more force than before. "Hey!" Céri flipped a few cards over before finding a suitable Grade 1. "Charon! Call!" What appeared was a blue-robed sage. They summoned a mystical circle in front of their index finger. A few arcs of dark sparks flowed over to Céri's other unit. Yet somehow, the extra boost still wasn't enough. Anakin was losing ground. With a last push, the Blaster Blade unit slashed across, forcing his Shadow Paladin look-alike back against the ground. "Ha ha! See how your wickedness cannot prevail!" "You idiot!" Céri shouted at the bird-horse. "You're the one that used the Shadow Paladins to attack Ponyville back when I first met you!" "Ha! Like I'd stoop so low as to resort to name-calling and digging up dirt from the past. Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to send all of my armies of light in a crusade against ponykind!" A golden dragon with blue lines along its arms, legs, and tail flew above the rest of the group. Its roar sounded like it cleared out the heavens. It started gathering energy that resembled a small star in its clawed hand. Blaster Dark struggled a bit, and barely managed to sit up straight to see what was happening. Céri looked down and clenched his fist. "Do you... seriously... think you can fight... a devil... in broad daylight?" Anakin dug his sword into the ground and stood upright. The partly cloudy sky started swirling around. Purple lightning mixed with golden sparks all over these bigger and darker clouds. The Shadow Paladin lifted his sword, drawing lightning of both colors down his weapon's full body. "Hraaa!" A new power surged through the warrior. Charon and Redheart had to cover their eyes. Céri could only stare ahead with an uncertain, yet unshakable will. Platinum almost laid an egg, impressive for a male. Meanwhile, Blaster Blade grunted in anticipation. Once the electric flares let up a bit, Blaster Dark stood tall, took a deep breath, and held his giant sword with one hand. Some golden highlights had brightened up the corners of his armor. A red cape split to either side on his back. But the spectacle didn't last long. In a whoosh of darkness and purple, Blaster Dark vanished. He reappeared behind Blaster Blade and promptly stabbed his rival in the back. Upon seeing the lead man fall, the golden dragon ceased its attack. "Crud! Armen, come back!" Blaster Blade's body turned into a bunch of golden sparkles, flung over to Platinum Quill's claws, and reformed into a card. He then proceeded to run away as the rest of the Royal Paladins vanished. ... "That seemed a little too easy," commented Redheart. "Yeah," admitted Céri. "That armor was that of Blaster Blade Seeker at most. Why did Anakin jump a generation and become Blaster Dark 'Diablo' instead of Blaster Dark Revenger 'Abyss'?" Redheart blinked twice. "I have no idea what you just said." "Sorry." The card fighter scratched his neck. "I guess Ezekiel's way of talking rubbed off on me." --- Elsewhere... "So, you failed me again, bird-butt." "I've told you a billion times, Catherine. My rump is fully equine." "It doesn't really matter anyway. This Cherry's new power won't be enough to stop my next victim. Eh heh heh!" "What is with that blackish-red glow?" ... "Lock," her voice whispered. ---