Never Lucky

by Ferris the 1st

Chapter 28: Unto the Breach

Let it not be said that alicorns do not have a sense of humor, however dry it might be. It felt like I'd barely put my head to the pillow in the room I'd been granted within the castle when I was being shaken awake. A wide eyed Agent Glass was all but tossing me off the mattress. She was screaming something about a lead as I was half-lead, half-dragged into the office I'd become familiar with.

Apparently Sunslayer was starting to slip up. One of the spies had spotted the featherbrain in the industrial section of Manehatten. So much for not going out during the day. Martial scrambled our small group for departure. Dawn was currently doing her job and would take too long to gather (according to Silent). Not wanting to give Sunslayer time to depart from the city, we left a letter to tell her what had happened and rushed to the armory.

I'd thought I'd seen some advanced equipment in the armory that Silent had taken me to before, but it was nothing compared to the priority one gear. It was the kind of stuff that required at least three agents to gain access to and had enough security warded into the walls and doors that I doubted Twilight Sparkle herself could have broken in. The pride and joy of the Builders.

Pristine hoof and horn rings, Suits of shimmering armor, wing blades crackling with stored lightning, and things I'd never be able to describe in my life lay in organized piles. This was the kind of stuff that cost the bits that only the biggest nobles could afford...

...and Glass was chucking various pieces at me, calling out their purpose in a rush. In short order, I was given an enchanted ear piece that could connect to similar devices to send and receive orders and information. Following it came an amulet filled with stored energy in case I tired myself out, then a pair of hammer hooves that felt oddly light. Featherweight enchantment. Less weight, but all of the impact. Finally, a cloak was tossed my way, enchanted with a shielding spell to protect me from high speed attacks.

As all of this was being thrown at me, Martial was rattling off the plan. For what it was. We were going to storm the castle in a sense; going in weapons drawn to bring down Sunslayer once and for all. According to the report, he'd been sighted near a warehouse between the poorer districts and industrial and hadn't been seen leaving yet.

So we loaded up on the train first thing in the morning, doing our best to blend in with all of our equipment stashed away in our bags. I still have no idea where Martial stowed her lance away. Our train was quietly granted highest priority and authorized to push the engine to its limits.

That was how I discovered that I hated motion sickness...

Somewhere between my groans and proclamations of my own death, Martial made contact with the Manehatten branch of the HERD. After quickly confirming that Sunslayer still hadn't left the warehouse, we prepared for war as the train slid into the station.

The staging area of the attack was a small diner near the warehouse. The owner had been informed about what was happening and had closed up shop for the day, giving us the room to quickly don our gear. It had been a while since I'd been in full armor and forgotten how naked I felt without it.

We met with our contact, a unicorn named Quick Fix, and he pointed out the building to us. Honestly, it wasn't something that screamed “crazy villain here.” It was just a warehouse with a faded red paint job. Nothing special. A single, massive door stood sealed at the front with a smaller door offset from it slightly.

With Martial leading the charge, we darted for the door, fully equipped and ready to fight. A message had been sent to the local authorities to lock the area down and keep anypony from going in or out, so when we kicked in the door, there were no civilians to worry about.

The door opened into darkness, the light from outside only reaching a few yards in. Night vision goggles came out for those that couldn't see in the dark and we let out a collective gasp. Crates littered the area, ranging from small boxes to towering containers.

But it was what was in front of us that concerned us. A line of creatures stood in a loose line, including the minotaurs I had seen before. Right in the center was the albino gryphon himself complete with mask...

A loud thunk echoed in the warehouse and we all cried out in alarm as we were temporarily blinded by the lights coming on. As we struggled to pull off our goggles, Sunslayer spoke, “Welcome, friends. We've been expecting you. Come, let us show our guests the proper hospitality!”

“Ambush!” cried Martial as all Tartarus broke loose.

Before my vision could finish adjusting, I noticed a large shape blot out the light in front of me. Quickly, I raised my hooves defensively and caught a strong blow against them that sent me staggering. Hopping backward on my hindlegs, I blinked rapidly to get my sight back while my opponent continued to press forward. It was one of the minotaurs bearing down on me with a dangerous look in his eyes.

The charcoal colored bovine was opting to go hoof-to-hand with me and had plenty of power to do so. It was all I could do to weave around the attacks and keep myself from taking a rough hit. Thankfully, he was all muscle and no agility.

A quick glance around told me that the other agents were equally engaged, some of them fending off two opponents. Martial Cadence had decided to go for the head of the snake and was spiraling around the warehouse in pursuit of Sunslayer. I returned my attention to my own combatant as he let loose a bellow and charged.

Leading him around a stack of crates, I lashed out with a flurry of blows. He barely reacted to each hit and swung his fist toward my head and forced me back. For every one attack that this tank of a creature missed, I slammed a trio home, but it was quickly becoming apparent to me that he didn't care. What were they feeding this beast?

With the rest of my group fighting just as hard, I wasn't able to rely on backup and this minotaur was pushing his advantage. I was draining my amulet quickly after a couple of minutes of trying to make this guy so much as flinch, but he might as well have been made of steel.

I was only able to keep scrambling for so long before I felt a firm hand grip my hoof. With a snort, I was lifted bodily off of the ground before being intimately reintroduced. The air left my lungs in a rush before I found myself sailing through the air courtesy of Minotaur Airlines.

My flight was stalled mid-air as I slammed into somepony else. Silent let out a grunt as I realized the minotaur had used me as a projectile to strike him and we fell to the ground roughly. In fact, it looked like most of us had been thrown into a pile... and a circle of weapons faced us.

The only one still fighting was Martial as she soared after her target, hurling insults at him. Sunslayer, for his part, was chuckling as he grasped a saber in his talons, parrying her attacks. I hadn't seen anypony who had the skill to match Martial, but the two of them twirled in a lethal dance.

“I'm impressed, Martial Cadence,” Sunslayer taunted between strikes, “the stories about you are true, oh Mistress of the Lance. However, it would appear that our game is over.” The demented gryphon gestured to us with his free claw to us and I watched Martial's eyes grow wide in horror.

“I'll tell you what, Lieutenant... I've heard that your talent makes you unstoppable in the art of combat. I wish to see it for myself,” Martial looked at him disbelievingly, “a small deal, Miss Cadence. Activate your talent and land a single blow on me and I will release you and yours.”

Martial scowled and I opened my mouth to tell her not to take the deal, but a sword point at my throat, held in the hand of a Diamond Dog kept me from speaking. I could tell that Martial was getting played; call it a gut feeling. I wasn't sure how, but if Sunslayer knew about her talent, then he wasn't going to make that deal if he wasn't sure that he could beat her.

Against my silent wishes, Martial flicked her head, tossing her helmet away, “Not only will I strike you, Sunslayer, but I will also bring you to heel!” Closing her eyes, Martial took a deep breath, a technique I'd come to know as her pulling on a memory to trigger her talent. Her eyes flashed open with a silver light as she charged Sunslayer, who floated there, his free claw going into the fabric of his cloak.

The magic happened instantly, confusing myself and those around me as Sunslayer simply... teleported. No fanfare or burst of magic. He simply was in one place and then he was in another. Martial's face scrunched incredulously as she spun to find her target hovering a few paces behind her.

“One.” he stated smugly.

Martial flashed forward with a burst of superpony speed, her lance at the ready. The point met empty air. Sunslayer appeared above her in a moment.

“Two.” he counted again.

Desperation filled Martial's eyes as she spun in place and gripped her lance tightly. Twisting with a swift wing motion, she hurled the weapon toward Sunslayer. It cracked light thunder as it blasted through the space that the gryphon had been a moment before. We could only watch in horror as Sunslayer materialized a breath from Martial as the light faded from her eyes.

“Three...” he finished before twisting his saber and striking Martial with the flat of the blade.

The thestral mare fell to the unforgiving floor of the warehouse with a grunt and lay still. The clatter of her lance landing somewhere in the back was the only thing that broke the silence. I could only stare open-mouthed at the spectacle before me.

“Amazing, isn't it,” came Sunslayer's voice, his gaze meeting mine as I looked to him, “a gift from my own benefactor. One of many enchantments lost to time under the tyrannical hoof of your princesses, Lucky. I must say that I'm impressed that you still live, but you are... unpredictable, aren't you?”

Reaching down, he gripped Martial by her mane and dragged her toward me. The circle of weapons parted for him as he tossed her down at my hooves. I made to reach for her, only to find my hooves halted by the gryphon's saber. The tip moved from me to the back of Martial's neck.

“It does present an opportunity to make a new deal. Lucky Signs, you are going to do a little job for me or I will bleed each of your companions dry until you either comply or they all lay dead at your hooves. What say you?”

I didn't have a choice...

Comments

[Emperor]

Dang. Sunslayer really must want Lucky's talent really bad. I'm guessing this ambush was set up to capture everypony and ensnare Lucky precisely for that purpose, to get the same thing Sunslayer was talking about several chapters earlier. It could have easily backfired on Sunslayer, too, with Lucky's talent (and it still could).