• Published 15th Mar 2012
  • 9,936 Views, 350 Comments

My Little Avengers - koolerkid



Big Mac finds a magic hammer, and leads a team of heroes to protect Equestria.

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Chapter 10

“This is all fer us?” Big Macintosh asked in awe.

Luna chuckled as she led him through the entrance hall of the mansion. “This mansion belonged to Prince Blueblood’s family, I believe. He donated it to the cause. He has already begun outfitting it with a large variety of equipment, the function of which I can only begin to guess at. His new gift of invention is truly an astounding thing.”

“No kiddin’,” Big Mac replied, thinking of the report he’d read on the capabilities of the ‘Iron Pony’ armor. “You sure about havin’ him on the team, though? Ah’ve heard some pretty nasty stuff ‘bout that one.”

“My sister assures me he has changed,” Luna said, though her tone betrayed some doubts. “The truth of that claim remains to be seen. The team should already be awaiting us in the conference room. Would you prefer to meet them as Thor?”

“Eeeyup.” Big Mac nodded. “That’s prob’bly best. Ah don’t want anypony to know about Big Mac until Ah’m good and ready.” He pulled Mjolnir from his saddlebags, set the bags aside (he’d retrieve them later), and rapped the staff against the ground.

“Let us meet the team,” spoke Thor, once his transformation completed.

“As you wish.” Luna said, leading the way up a flight of stairs and down a long hallway.

As they walked, Big Mac reflected on the information he’d been given on his team. First there was Spitfire - no, Firebird. He had to get used to those code names. He was a bit concerned about her. She was an able fighter, he knew that - he’d seen it himself, firsthand - but he wasn’t sure if she was up to being a member of a team like this. The last battle she was in, she’d totally lost control and nearly injured herself. What if it happened again? Not to mention she was accustomed to being in charge; how well would she take orders?

Then there was Blueblood, aka Iron Pony. As he’d told the Princess, he was wary of the
Prince. Luna had very little good to say about him, and Mac still remembered the stories his sister had told him of the spoiled jerk’s behavior at the Gala. Mac wasn’t especially close to Rarity, but a high-class filly like her deserved better treatment. Then again, Princess Celestia had recommended him personally - though the same Princess had also replaced his toothpaste with hot sauce, so her judgement was suspect.

Finally, and most worryingly, Caramel, now Captain Equestria. Caramel was the only member of the team Big Mac knew personally, and while they weren’t close friends they were certainly on good terms. Big Mac had given the colt advice from time to time, imparting whatever wisdom he had to offer, and he knew the younger pony as a good-hearted but bumbling young colt. Now, the files told him, Caramel was a soldier, or near enough, and some kind of ‘super-pony’. The idea of it made Big Mac nervous, especially considering... well, calling Caramel a failure would be unkind, but he certainly wasn’t the most able of ponies. Still, if nothing else, he was a hard worker, with a good heart, strong work ethic, and a great team player. The team might be good for him.

As they approached a set of double doors that led to what Big Mac assumed was the conference room, they could here the sounds of raised voices and shouts. The pair of Alicorns shared a concerned look as the argument seemed to grow more heated, and shouting could be heard. Without needing to speak, they both hurried for the conference room, hoping to arrive before things got out of hoof.

-----------------

Spitfire arrived at the mansion nearly an hour early, hoping to get a chance to talk to Big Mac before the meeting started. She’d been such a wreck the last time they talked, she never had a chance to thank him properly. Their little chat had done more to help her recover from her magical overexertion than any amount of magic, medicine, or treatment could have, and she hoped to get a chance to tell him so.

She glided to a landing in the mansion’s courtyard, giving a low whistle as she looked up at the massive structure. It was probably the biggest, most impressive building she’d ever seen that wasn’t made out of clouds. She doubted the Royal Treasury could afford this kind of luxury even for such a special team; whoever was funding them had some serious cash.

The impression of wealth was strengthened when Spitfire was greeted at the door by an earth pony butler, who bowed deeply, called her ‘Lady Spitfire’ (which she found rather hilarious), and escorted her to the conference room. If she needed anything, the too-formal-to-be-real butler informed her, she need only ring the bell sitting on a small end table to call a servant. With that, the butler left, leaving Spitfire all alone.

She was regretting coming early now. Nopony else was here yet, including Big Mac, and she was bored. Pegasi weren’t made to sit still and wait, especially not stunt fliers like her. Patience was not the easiest thing in the world. She paced around the room a few times. She sat down on a cushion. She got back up and paced some more. She rang the bell and asked for a snack, and received some of those fancy pastries she saw at those formal parties she hated.

Finally, she heard the door open, and she looked up excitedly. Finally, somepony to talk to! It wasn’t Big Mac, as she had hoped, but another pony nearly as big. That alone was noteworthy; you didn’t get many ponies that size, not even earth ponies like this one. He had a cream-colored coat and a light brown mane, and three bright blue horseshoes for a cutie mark.

“Ah, hello,” the stallion said nervously. It was actually kind of cute, Spitfire thought to herself. She didn’t normally have much patience for shy colts, but this one exuded a sense of power and strength, a sort of raw force of presence. The fact that he appeared completely unaware of it just seemed to enhance the effect. “I’m sorry to bother you,” he continued, giving an uneasy smile. “But is this the conference room? I was told I’d meet the rest of the team here, but I’m a bit early, so...”

Spitfire glided over to him and stuck out a hoof. “Yep, you’re in the right place! I’m Spitfire, from the Wonderbolts; you might’a heard of me,” she said, giving him her best poster smile. “Only I’m supposed to go by ‘Firebird’ around here. I guess I’m your new teammate!”

“Oh!” The stallion said, suddenly smiling brightly. “It’s very nice to meet you, Miss Spitfire,” he said, shaking her hoof. She could feel the strength in his hoof, though he was very gentle. She took the opportunity to examine him more closely; his muscle tone was better than most athletes, but he had the hard, rough hooves of a farmer, or something similar. Maybe he was a mutant? “My name is Caramel - Captain Caramel, that is. My codename is Captain Equestria.”

“Just Spitfire is fine, Caramel.” She said, releasing his hoof. “Captain Equestria? You thought of that yourself?”

Caramel blushed brightly. He was easily embarrassed, Spitfire thought with a mental chuckle. “I... y-yeah, mostly. I just thought... w-well, it was the Royal Guards who gave me this opportunity. I thought... I thought should stand for something. Be a.. a symbol, I guess.” He chuckled uneasily. “Pretty stupid, huh?”

“Not at all.” Spitfire said, trying not to laugh. “I think that’s pretty cool, actually. If there’s one thing the Wonderbolts have taught me, it’s that the people in the colorful outfits can be a major inspiration to others.”

“Heh... thanks,” Caramel said, settling down on a cushion. “You know... I’ve never actually seen the Wonderbolts perform. Maybe I should go one of these days.”

“Oh, you totally should.” Spitfire said, landing on a cushion next to him. “I could get you tickets, if you want.”

“That would be very kind of you, b-but you shouldn’t put yourself through any trouble on my behalf,” Caramel said shyly.

“It’s no trouble at all, though there probably won’t be any shows until Soarin’... well, there won’t be any shows for a few months.” Spitfire felt a small stab of pain as she remembered what had happened to her closest friend, but she shoved it away. There was half an hour before the meeting started, and she got to spend them flirting with her cute new teammate. She’d been a bit apprehensive of working with a new team, but if they were all as sweet as Caramel, then she had nothing to worry about.

-----------------

Caramel felt like he was dreaming, except he’d stubbed his hoof against the big conference table and it hurt, so he was definitely awake. Still, his whole world had been turned upside-down, and he kept nervously waiting for the other cosmic hoof to drop. Things couldn’t get so good so quickly, could they?

It was all just so surreal. He’d taken a royal chariot, pulled by pegasi guards, to a huge mansion that was even fancier than Miss Rarity’s place. The servants had bowed to him and called him Captain Caramel - CAPTAIN Caramel. The promotion still made his head spin. Then he’d been led inside by a butler who was very nice, if a bit formal, and brought to the conference room. The room itself was pretty plain in comparison to the rest of the house - a soft, carpeted floor, a nice but solid oak table, a few very plush-looking cushions to sit on, and just a few paintings on the walls - but it was still nicer than any other house Caramel had ever been in. Then he’d met Spitfire - Firebird - who was a celebrity and really pretty and nice and actually flirting with him. He was so embarrassed by her attention that he kept blushing bright red, and his stutter was slowly returning.

All in all, Caramel thought as he ate some of the chocolate that Spitfire was sharing with him, this had been the best day he’d ever had. It was better than becoming Captain Equestria, better than graduating from boot camp, better than that time he’d won a stuffed Celestia doll at the party for Luna’s return, better even than the day he’d gotten his Cutie Mark. It almost seemed like nothing could ruin this day.

Of course, he was still Caramel. It couldn’t last.

About ten minutes before the meeting was due to start, a pure white unicorn stallion with a dirty blond mane walked into the room, a distracted look in his eyes. He had an unusually large build for a unicorn, though still smaller than Caramel, and he seemed to be thinking very hard about something. He completely ignored the room’s other occupants, taking a seat on one of the cushions and muttering to himself. Caramel’s enhanced senses picked up some mumblings about emitters and magical radiation and other scientific mumbo-jumbo that Caramel couldn’t hope to understand.

Caramel and Spitfire shared a look at the unicorn’s odd behavior; he hadn’t even bothered to introduce himself. Caramel stepped forward and cleared his throat, hoping to get the pony’s attention. He was ignored. Caramel tried again, louder, once again failing to get a reaction. Caramel was getting unnerved now, but he tried one last time. “Excuse me?”

The unicorn spared him a quick, distracted glance. “Ah, good, a servant. Listen, could you fetch me some paper and a quill? I need to write this down before I forget...”

Caramel felt his face flush red, but with anger rather than embarrassment this time. He fought to keep his voice under control as he told the absentminded pony “I am not a servant.”

“Pardon?” The unicorn turned and actually focused on Caramel for the first time.

“I’m not a servant,” Caramel repeated, forcing himself to calm down. Why was he so angry? He never used to get angry. It’s just that, on the first day when he finally felt like a somepony, being treated like a nopony all over again felt so offensive it felt as though he’d been slapped. “I’m a member of Luna’s new team. That’s why you’re hear, isn’t it?”

“Ah!” The stallion’s mind finally seemed to snap into focus. “Yes, yes of course. This is my mansion, you see. I donated it to the Princess to use with the team, but I’m not used to having other ponies here besides myself and the servants. Not to mention... well, you rarely see earth ponies in Canterlot unless they’re servants. So you’re a mutant, then?”

All the earth ponies here were servants? The sheer offensive racism of that statement was so blatant that Caramel and Spitfire both winced. Caramel was fairly certain it wasn’t even true; though there were a lot more unicorns here than any other type of pony, he doubted they dominated the city the way this stallion seemed to think. “No, I’m not a mutant.” Caramel said, only his polite nature keeping him from growling. “I am Captain Caramel. Who are you?

“I am Prince Blueblood, the highest-ranking mortal member of the Royal Family,” the stallion said, his eyes narrowing. Caramel suddenly felt all his old nervousness return at the realization that he was speaking to royalty. “So if you’re not a mutant, why are you here? What use is an unpowered earth pony?”

Caramel’s jaw dropped. Who was this stallion? Did he casually insult everypony he met? He vaguely noticed Spitfire stiffening in anger off to the side, but he barely payed attention. He opened his mouth and proceeded to do something he’d never done before: yell at another pony.

Dimly, he realized that yelling at royalty would end his dreamlike day rather abruptly, but he couldn’t make himself care at the moment.

-----------------

Blueblood was having trouble focusing again.

Of course, this was not a new experience for him. Before his mutation, he had found focussing to be... difficult, to say the least. That had mostly been due to lack of interest in... well, in anything, really. Now, he discovered he was having the opposite problem.

He’d hit on a wonderful idea, a new invention, a groundbreaking equation, a revolutionary bit of technology or spellcraft. His mind would go into overdrive, thinking of the possibilities, expanding on his idea, mentally working out the kinks in whatever theory he’d dreamed up. Then, suddenly, a new idea would interrupt his train of thought, throwing him off course as he suddenly forgot his first idea to pursue the new one.

Needless to say, it was all very distracting.

Ever since Rarity and he had assembled a lab for them both within the mansion - Sweetie Belle had returned to stay with her parents, leaving Rarity with more time to spend in Canterlot - Blueblood found himself rarely leaving the room. His end of the heavily reinforced chamber - more than one experiment had ended in explosions - was covered in papers and half-finished inventions.

Right now, Blue was working on his latest idea - a calculating device, like a calculator but a thousand times more advanced. For now, a crude model using metal to conduct the magic would suffice, though the final model would have carefully sculpted crystals instead. If he was correct, he could create a device that could store, retrieve, correlate, edit, and interpret data. Such a device would be revolutionary!

He was carefully levitating the next bit of metal into place when Rarity entered the lab. He turned to look at her, smiling. “Ah, Rarity. Have I missed lunch again?” Blue had developed a habit of getting so entranced with his work, concerns like food and sleep were occasionally forgotten, and Rarity took it upon herself to remind him.

“No, Blue. Today’s the meeting with the new team, remember?” Rarity reminded him gently.

Blueblood checked the special clock he’d designed, one that displayed the time with holographic numerals hovering in the air, rather than the usual minute and hour hands. “The meeting isn’t for nearly two hours yet! I am in the middle of a very delicate experiment, I need to finish before I can even think about that sort of- hey! Unhand me!” Blueblood was cut off as Rarity seized his tail with magic, dragging from from his desk.

“You need the extra time to get cleaned up, dear. You haven’t looked in a mirror lately, have you?” Rarity brought him to a polished metal surface. Blueblood gaped as he looked at his reflection; he hardly recognized himself. His mane was wild and unkempt, his coat filthy and rumpled, his hooves were stained with oil. His hooves hadn’t been cared for in nearly a week, for Celestia’s sake! What on Equestria had come over him?

Rarity was still bemoaning his appearance behind him. “Oh, your poor mane! What a disaster! Look at you, darling, you’re an absolute mess! You really must get out of this lab more often. Normally I’d recommend a full day at the spa, but you kept insisting that I let you keep working and now we haven’t nearly enough time.” Rarity shook her head and sighed. “Luckily, you have me here! Don’t you worry, Blue, I’ll have you looking yourself in no time.”

Blueblood let himself be dragged from the lab and into the master bathroom, where several beauticians met him and had reactions to his appearance much like Rarity’s. Rarity herself led the charge, shampooing his mane and brushing it with a vengeance. Blue let his mind clear, allowing himself to enjoy the treatment; he really needed to do this more often. It was so much easier to think when clean. He used to do this almost daily, but there was hardly any time...

It was an hour and a half later when Rarity finally proclaimed Blueblood presentable. He’d put on one of his casual suits, which Rarity had cunningly tailored to make the diamond in his chest all but invisible beneath it. He had other suits designed to show it off, of course, for when he wished to make an impression, but Rarity had insisted on the ‘humble’ approach. Not only would it be good practice, she explained, but if he was to work in a team with other ponies he needed to make it clear he didn’t consider himself above them. Blueblood deemed this perfectly reasonable advice, and resolved to take it to heart.

Unfortunately, that resolve had not lasted long.

Blueblood had entered the conference room, his mind buzzing with ideas again. Clean body, clean mind, his grandmother used to say; Blueblood had to agree, as he found his thoughts much easier to keep track of now. So wrapped up was he in his thoughts, he hadn’t noticed the other ponies in the room until they addressed him.

Blueblood glanced absently, and saw an earth pony. The higher reasoning functions of his brain being somewhat occupied, Blueblood automatically assumed him to be a servant and requested some paper to write on. He’d been mortified when a disgruntled response jolted him back to reality to notice that he’d just inadvertently insulted one of his new teammates. His attempts to explain himself seemed to only irritate the other stallion, as it did the pegasus mare hovering behind him. An actual apology probably would have smoothed over, but a vestige of Blue’s old pride would not allow an apology to pass his lips, especially towards an earth pony.

“So if you’re not a mutant, why are you here? What use is an unpowered earth pony?” The words left Blueblood’s mouth before he had a chance to think them through. Darn it, that was the old Blueblood talking! He’d overstepped the line, he knew. He needed to apologize - pride be damned! - but he never had the chance.

HOW DARE YOU?” The earth pony snarled, shocking Blueblood with his vehemence. Nopony dared take that tone with a prince before. “Just who in Equestria do you think you are, calling other ponies useless? If it wasn’t for us earth ponies, you unicorns in your fancy castles would all starve!” He pawed the ground angrily, glaring at Blueblood. “We build your homes, grow your food, and if you don’t take that back right now, I’ll show you just how useful an earth pony can be.”

Indigent anger and wounded pride flooded Blueblood’s mind, blocking out his more rational thoughts. Nopony spoke to a member of the Royal Family like that! NOPONY! His old nature took over, and the arrogance he’d thought he’d discarded came back in a rush. “I stand by what I said. An earth pony cannot fly, and cannot work magic. You have no mutation, you admitted so yourself! What could a powerless pony like you possibly contribute? Earth ponies are better suited to the farming and labor; leave the fighting to ponies with power.”

The other pony’s face went a very interesting shade of red as he opened his mouth to reply, but he never had the chance. “BLUEBLOOD!” A familiar voice rang out. Rarity burst into the room, looking quite beside herself with anger. Blue’s own anger and arrogance drained away as he saw the look on her face. Oh dear. He’d overdone it, haven’t he? “Blueblood,” Rarity repeated, sounding for all the world like Blue’s old mother before she’d passed away. “We talked about this. If you truly want to change, you have to be kind and polite to everypony, not just the ones you like.”

“But...” Blueblood tried to interject, but Rarity wouldn’t let him finish.

“I don’t want to hear any excuses. You apologize to Caramel right now.” Even Celestia at the height of her power would have been a little frightened by Rarity’s ferocity. Blueblood didn’t stand a chance.

After a few moments of being at the receiving end of Rarity’s glare, Blueblood’s will broke, and he turned to Caramel. He took a deep breath, and finally said “My... deepest apologies, Mr... Captain Caramel. I will do my best to avoid such snap judgements in the future.”

Rarity turned her gaze on Caramel, but she needn’t have bothered. The shy earth pony was already apologizing. “Yeah well... I said some things that weren’t too nice, either. I’m sorry for blowing up on you like that.”

“Good!” Rarity said with a satisfied grin. “Now then, who’s hungry? The kitchen has some very nice pastries for us to eat as we wait...”

-----------------

Thor and Luna burst into the room, only to discover that everything was well in hoof. The ‘argument’ they thought they heard was, in fact, a game of charades in progress. Rarity, Spitfire, and Caramel all sat together on a group of cushions as Blueblood preformed, valiantly performing a fairly poor impression of a very famous pony. The small group had been shouting their guesses amidst peals of laughter, which from behind the thick doors of the conference room had sounded an awful lot like angry yells.

Luna’s mouth curved into a grin at the sight. “I believe the answer you’re looking for is my sister Celestia.” She told the group. “Am I right, nephew?”

“Thank you!” Blueblood said with an exhausted sigh. “I was starting to get worried these dimwits would never catch on!” Though the insult itself was pure Blueblood arrogance, the tone was light and joking. It was more akin to the lighthearted jabs amongst good friends than an actual insult.

“I dunno how that was supposed to look like Celestia.” Spitfire huffed grumpily. “I guess this means you win, Blue, since we hafta start the meeting now.”

“Yes, I’m afraid so.” Luna said with a smile. “Although it does my heart good to see you all getting along so well already, we have important matters to discuss.” The group nodded, moving their cushions back into their positions around the table as Rarity gave her seat back to Blue. Luna stood at the table’s head, while Thor seated himself at her right hoof.

“The purpose of this meeting is primarily to introduce you all to each other - something I’m happy to see you’ve all done for yourselves - and to ensure you all understand why we are here.” Luna began. “I believe you all have heard of Thor, who has agreed to act as team leader and official liaison with the throne. He shall take his orders directly from me, and pass them on to the rest of you. I expect you all to show him all the respect you would show me or my sister.”

Thor nodded at the rest of the table’s occupants. “Greetings, my friends. It is a pleasure to meet you all.”

“The pleasure is all mine, Lord Thor.” Prince Blueblood replied, lowering his head in respect. “I am Prince Blueblood, of the Royal House of Blueblood, highest ranking mortal member of the Royal Family. I am codenamed Iron Pony, for the suit of powered armor I devised myself, with some help from my serv... assis... partner Rarity.” He gestured to the elegant mare who hovered just behind him, and she bowed deeply.

“It is an honor to meet you, Lord Thor.” Rarity said, her voice positively oozing high class. She made a pretty convincing noblemare, Big Mac thought privately. If he didn’t know better, he’d think she was born in Canterlot.

“I am honored as well.” Thor said with a polite nod. “It is good to meet you Prince Blueblood, Lady Rarity.” He turned to Caramel, reminding himself he wasn’t supposed to know him. “And who might you be?”

Caramel snapped off a smart salute, showing enthusiasm Big Mac hadn’t seen him with in a long time. “Captain Caramel of the Equestrian Royal Guard, sir. Codenamed Captain Equestria. I’m an enhanced earth pony - anything a normal earth pony can do, I can do... well, better.” He looked vaguely embarrassed at the statement, as if unused to being better than anypony.

“I see. A great honor to have such a warrior with us, Captain.” Thor replied with his own salute. He turned to the team’s final member. “And of course, the great Spitfire, captain of the Wonderbolts. I already know of thee and thy powers, Firebird.”

Spitfire actually blushed a bit. “I never did thank you for the other day. You know, with the Hulk. So... thanks. For catching me... and for stopping me.” She whispered the last part of her sentence, look everywhere but at the room’s other occupants, especially Caramel.

“It was my pleasure, Firebird.” Thor responded, smiling for a moment before his expression turned serious. “Today, my friends, we form something greater than any of us, even myself. We will become a team that will protect Equestria from all threats, from within and without. For now, we shall focus on the most immediate threat of Loki, but make no mistake. Equestria has changed drastically, and not all changes were for the better. Even after Loki is defeated, Equestria will need us, to act as a shield against the threats this new world will pose.

“We shall right the wrongs that Loki has wrought upon our nation; we shall stand for justice and truth for all Equestria. I propose we be called the Avengers, for together we shall take vengeance for the crimes committed by Loki and all those like him. United, we shall be the most powerful team of heroes Equestria has ever known!”

“I have no objection.” Luna said, her face unusually hard. Loki had taken the life of several of her ponies. Vengeance was most certainly due.

“Sounds good to me.” Caramel said with a nod. This was his chance to prove himself, to help not just the ponies in Ponyville, but everypony in all of Equestria.

“I like the sound of it.” Spitfire agreed. A smile on her face disguised her pain as she remembered Soarin’ still in his hospital bed. As long as she drew breath, that would never happen again.

“A most appropriate name, I think.” Blueblood added. This was his opportunity. He would improve. He’d become a pony that, when next he lay on his deathbed, he could look back on without shame. He would.

“I’m glad that we all agree.” Thor said with a smile. “And now, my friends, my close friend and ally Pinkamena Pie is preparing us a party fit for heroes! She should be waiting for us downstairs; shall we?”

The group left the room, smiling and laughing all the way; all except Spitfire. “Excuse me, Princess?”

Luna turned back to see a worried looking Spitfire hovering in the air. “Yes, my little pony? What is it?”

“Well... it’s just... Is Macintosh Apple here, ma’am?” the Pegasus mare asked, uncharacteristically nervous. “It’s just... I wanted to talk to him.”

The Princess hesitated for a moment. She couldn’t tell a direct lie, not to one of her subjects, but... “I’m afraid Macintosh is quite busy with his responsibilities, at the moment. If you like, I shall inform him you wish to speak to him, when next I encounter him.”

Spitfire broke into a grin. “Thanks a lot, your highness! I better get going before all the food’s gone!” She flew from the room, and Luna, chuckling, followed after as quickly as decorum would allow.

After all, as her first day back on Equestria had taught her, Pinkie Pie parties were not to be missed.