Equestrian Steel

by Shieldheart204

Finish what you start

Finish What You Start

Shield Heart was contemplating the scenery, and processing thousands of bits of information at the same time. His main focus was around the glowing eyes in the Diamond Dogs and on the Fell Wyvern that nearly killed him in an alternate future. They seemed to be enslaved, or maybe indoctrinated, when they showed some other color besides black on their pupils. His problems were getting more complicated as he tried to think of a plan to end his mission.

The quickest solution involved having Saphira roar them into submission, but then again, he had grounded her for the rest of the mission. And suddenly asking for her help would look somewhat weak on his behalf. Oh buck it! Thought Shield it's not like I have a reputation for being a Blueblood. But before executing his plan, he laid down on his bed and rested.

His brain processed all the new information, trying to see if there should be anything important that he should calculate before he makes his next move. He had learned that the changelings used magic-powered firearms, and also that they wanted to capture people in order to process them. He needed to learn more about changelings, because he thought that they only extracted love and affection.

Also those rifles must have some sort of mana breeder since two Humes, or humans who cannot fully control magic, were able to use the weapon with what looked like relative ease. He knew that they were Humes because it was easy to detect a mage when you were also one.

What bugged him was that mana breeding gems were very rare, and to have every soldier in your army equipped with one was a clear sign that you have power.

Also, what did she mean by slaying love? Harmony she clearly meant the elements, but she had only managed to take one down, the rest were most probably alive. But Love wasn't an element, he was completely sure of that. His gut told him that this, somehow, involved Cadence and Shining Armor. But before he could do anything, the sandman took him to Neverland.

The following morning Shield woke up first, meaning that it was his duty to prepare breakfast. He prepared yet another stew, since there really wasn't much to go on with. As the smell of the meal reached his companions' mouths, they got up and gathered around the campfire.

"Good morning sleepy heads, how are you feeling today?" asked Shield Heart while stirring the pot.

"Fine, my stomach has stopped hurting, but it is still bothering." said the child, his hand clutching the wound.

"How about you?" he questioned the drake.

She merely grumbled like a bored zombie and got up.

" Perfect! I woke up because I smelled the delicious meal that my brother Shield prepared with so much love!" mocked the knight with an imitating voice.

"So how did it go?" asked Saphira, rubbing her eyes.

"Not good, the future is horrible." said Shield Heart with a depressed tone of voice

" Really? Was it Grimdark? Were there super soldiers clad in three meter tall power armor with gigantic guns that shoot rockets? Was there a zombie apocalypse and you were the only survivor? Were you..." said Hawkeye, his curiosity getting the better of him yet again.

" Are you stupid?" interrupted Saphira "How can it be a zombie apocalypse if he told us yesterday that it was changelings that caused the problem?" replied Saphira

" I dunno, maybe they are capable of infecting you by biting."

"Cannot, changelings aren't known for carrying diseases, they are known for identity theft."

" Who says that they cannot infect you? Maybe they can turn you into one."

"Cannot."

"Can too."

And with this Hawk Eye and Saphira began repeating the same words over and over again until Shield plucked up the courage to shout: " Enough! Both of you! We need a plan of attack..."

"Wait a sec, WE? I tout you said that we were staying here while you saved Equestria yet again, if I might add." interrupted Saphira.

"Yeah well... The Vision has made me desperate to return to Canterlot, which means that I have to wrap this up quicker than Zero Punctuation during reviews of stuff he hates."

"So what's the plan?" asked the archer.

" The plan is simple, we will go to K-9 to confront the dogs. Saphira will fly above, hearding them like sheep while you hover about picking out any stragglers. I will then proceed to acquire that cannon and interrogate one of the mutts. Hopefully we will be able to get back to the train station after lunch."

" Your plans always sound simple, but things never go according to plan. How are they gonna fight you when there is a badass dragon flying over them? Wouldn't logic imply that they shoot me first?"

"Because Hawk will be in charge of taking down anyone who grabs the weapon. Isn't that right?"

" Of course, I will not let my aim falter, it will always strike true." said the boy with pride.

"Good, I like your Great Bridle attitude. Now, both of you will be a couple of meters behind me, fifty should be good enough. Under no circumstances are you to pop up before I give one of my signals."

" Which one? You have like a thousand signals, is it the crimson sparks, the boomtastic explosion or will it be the rare cry of an emotionally scarred twelve year old girl?" asked the drake.

" Probably the sparks, I don't want to compete with you." refuted Shield.

Saphira kept shut, thinking it would be wise to not stir him up. They left their luggage on the camp, knowing that extra burden could be dangerous.

Shield walked all the way to the end on the tunnel, where with the help of his friends, he got on top of the rail Toward K-9. The walk involved balance, and lots of it. Being several meters above the ground, a simple breeze was powerful enough to send any dare devil base jumping ten kilometers down. It could have taken him ten minutes to cross, but with the winds he lost half an hour crossing the mountains.

He touched ground and started walking slowly. In five more minutes he was reaching the cave entrance, which was flooded with armored dogs brandishing spears and snarling. He tried showing that he came on peace, but they still looked like they wanted to skewer him and eat him for lunch.

"Why does the Dragon Master approach? " asked the Cat-Dog Hybrid.

Shield noticed hat they were starting to encircle him, using the pointy ends of their weapons to discourage him from moving. He needed them to calm down, but he still prepared his wand just in case he needed help.

"We will now kill you, because we cannot trust Humans like you!"

"Why not?"

"Because we were betrayed by the Violet Gem Finder, and because the Queen demands your death!"

"Which queen, there are about five political queens and about a million "queens" that are really just rich women with too much money on their hands. And by the way, who is the Violet Gem Finder, he sounds a little badass, but then again, beating you is no easy task."

The leader's eyes filled with rage and he screamed "KILL HIM!"

Instantly, one of the dogs appeared with the explosive weapon, and shot in a heartbeat.

Shield crossed his arms to create a crimson barrier, which managed to absorb most of the blast. But the momentum still remained, which sent the hero back a couple of meters. Using his weight, he managed to land safely, and he prepared his crossbow.

He aimed at the cannon-dog and fired. The bolt hit its mark and rendered it unconscious. He reloaded and fired three jets of crimson magic, which exploded into pretty fireworks high in the sky.

Three seconds later a loud roar echoed through the mountain, scaring all of Shield's enemies. The grunts immediately turned tails and fled into the mountains, while the two uniques faced him.

Imitating the Old west, he withdrew his crossbow and fired it at the mutant, while his wand shot the pitbull. With both enemies down, he raced to grab the black cannon. It was heavier than expected, but still light enough to carry while sprinting.

Saphira appeared, her large dragon form inspiring fear into the monsters. She landed with her four massive claws, inhaled and fired a fireball at the cave entrance. It collapsed with a powerful earthquake and a deafening sound. "That went better than expected." said Hawk Eye with a surprised tone.

Shield barely heard it, since his ears were damaged because he was a little too close to the collapse. He stocked his pinkies in his ears and started massaging his eardrums. It helped, somewhat.

He gathered round his companions, and said: "Good job! This is the first time since The Baltimare Blitz that everything has gone as planned..." his voice trailed off, expecting the mountain to crack open and reveal some monster that was hungry after millennia of hibernation.

But to his surprise "Nothing." he said amazed. "Fine, Saphira, I need a ride back to our camp."

"Why?" asked the drake in human form.

"Because you are large and the only one that can carry me, c'mon don't be difficult."

Saphira grunted, but she still complied. Transforming into the blue fire monster, she grabbed him with her claws and carried him off to their next objective. After grabbing their gear. they initiated their return journey, half way through Saphira, still a dragon, asked Shield: " What are we gonna do about the monorail?"

" I have no idea, guess we will have to label it under collateral damage and call it a day. I really can't focus on details at the moment. Our priority is to get to Canterlot and tell Princess Celestia of my time traveling self and save Equestria." responded Shield Heart.

" That simple?"

" In a nutshell, yes."

Having arrived to the monorail station, Saphira reverted back to her human self. hoping that no one saw her because dragons were never a good sign, especially in the mountains. On their way down, they saw the train station, and a unique seven-wagon long train plated in pure gold.

" Uncle Gold Heart is here!" exclaimed Hawk Eye, and darted to the main hall, his white translucent wings giving him extraordinary speed. But a red aura stopped him in his tracks.

" Hold it Hawk, I need you to get me one of the black evidence cases for our lovely friend here." said Shield motioning to the black cannon on his hands. " And also bring some three cases for our weapons, we don't want to repeat the incident in Hollow Shades."

"Oh, right, completely forgot that. Then let me get 'em, be back on a jiffy." and he took off to the train station where his wagon was locked away. Five minutes later, the young flier was carrying a large black aluminum case and three pure aluminum briefcases.

Shield opened it immediately and placed the weapon onside, the foamy surface gave in to the heavy object.

Before anyone could do anything else, Hawk Eye shot to the train station, where he was later followed. Upon arriving to the golden transport, they were greeted by and average height, ginger-haired man with small round glasses resting on his nose. He was wearing a pink shirt, a black vest, denim pants and black boots.

"Gearloose! How are you doing?" asked Shield Heart.

" Shield, what a surprise to see you here! What are you doing in this town?" asked the man.

" Oh, just the usual, beating the crap out of monsters that threaten our peace. So where is uncle?"

"Oh, he's with the mayor, he got bored and decided to see if there was anything profitable he could buy. We'll probably return to Canterlot to get Princess Celestia to sign the deeds."

" all right, thanks Gear. Oh hey, I got a favor to ask of you."

" Sure, what is it?"

Shield gave him the aluminum case.

" I need you to take a peek at what's inside, just don't go pressing any buttons, that thing is incredibly powerful and I don't want the Chief of R&D getting killed. Okay?"

" Sure thing!"

". Thanks Gear, and we'll see you real soon, we just have to go with the mayor and report about the mission."

And with that they left, Saphira was looking somewhat confused. " What's on your mind Saph?" asked the blond man.

" It's nothing." she responded, but it failed to convince him.

" C'mon, what's bugging you, you are rarely this quiet."

" Is it safe to leave that stuff with Gear? What if his engie side gets the better off of him? Uncle's train will be destroyed!"

" Look, Gear knows how to spot something dangerous when he sees it, and if he wants to press buttons, he will do it in a way that no one gets hurt."

And right on cue, a large blast occurred behind them. Looking behind, they saw a cloud of green evaporate part of the mountains.

" Told ya, Gear knows what he is doing."

" Hopefully." grunted Saphira.

"Hey, I need you two to stay in the car, and get it hooked up to the Golden Express."

Hawk Eye looked disappointed, and Saphira merely grumped.

" Don't worry Hawk, you will get your chance to say hello to uncle Gold Heart, just wait a moment."

He huffed, and Shield decided to leave before he had a change of heart.

He walked through the plaza, it was more crowded than before, probably due to the fact that no one was working.

He reached the mayor office, where they tried to stop him, saying that the mayor was on an important meeting,but Shield couldn't care less, he knew that the mayor wouldn't mind.

Inside the mayor's office, a thin man dressed in a blue frock coat, red dress shirt, a black top hat, short white hair and red leather spats covering brown leather shoes, his left hand was holding a black wooden cane sporting a golden pommel shaped like a heart. The man turned around, his face sporting round spectacles covering two large black round eyes.

His face produced a large smile and exclaimed: " Shield, what are you doing here m'boy?"

Shield opened his arms and hugged the old man, who was in his mid-sixties.

"Nothing uncle, just the usual. Saving people, beating monsters."

"Saving Equestria should mean something more than just being a chore, m'boy." said the old man.

" It is an honor to serve my country, but it still gets tedious."

" So how did it go?" asked the mayor, his face showing more worry than a musician waiting to see if his friends like his song.

" There is nothing to worry about mayor, the Diamond Dogs have been dealt with and are conveniently trapped in mount K-9. I will be sending a clean-up team shortly to help restore the mines to working condition." responded Shield

" That won't be necessary Shield, I have purchased the mines and have already called upon my men to start working, they start first thing tomorrow morning." interrupted Gold Heart.

" So once again I have saved one of your investments uncle, at this rate I should start charging you."

" And I should cut my fundin' from your little labs back home."

" Ouch, I was only teasing uncle. You know I don't charge family."

His uncle merely muttered humbug.

"Okay, then all that remains is for you mayor to look into my eyes."

" I am so sorry, what?" asked A perplexed governor.

" It is standard procedure, I can't have you remembering my name or face. Do not worry, I will only make you forget the faces of my friends and I. It will also pass on to anyone who looks at you, but do not worry, your other memories will remain intact. You will simply forget my name and face."

And staring right into the mayor's eyes, his ocular organs emitted a small crimson bolt. With a small flash of crimson on his pupils, the mayor slumped to his chair, falling asleep.

" Well then, would you like to accompany me to Canterlot to get the final authorization? Not like the Princess will deny it, she never has before." said the old man.

" Of course, we still have to report to headquarters."

" Really, I thought you would want to return to Vanhoover. Let's walk-and-talk." and motioned the young Warden to exit the room. He obliged and his friends followed him.

" Well uncle, as much as my apathetic self would like to return to Vanhoover and lock myself up in my room, I was given top secret intel that is crucial. But I can only tell you once we reach the safety of your room, I fear that He may have spies here."

" I understand, so do not say another word about that." the journey consisted mainly of business topics. Stocks, inventions, and trade routes we the main points. It was somewhat boring, but it helped them reach their destination without looking at the depressing background.

They arrived at the third car and opened the door. The outside was of a standard wooden passenger car, except that it was covered in pure gold. The inside however, was much more elaborate.

Based primarily on Art Deco, the fashion trend of Tall Tale, all furniture sported a sleek metallic and straight design. The car was the Living Room, with a silver chandelier composed of shiny grey sticks adorned with golden edges. The three sofas consisted of pure white cushions embroidered with silver lining. The arm rests, and the entire outside was pure ebony wood. In the center of the seating furniture stood a coffee table made of the same dark wood as the sofas. The floor was beige with a golden yellow heart inside a crimson circle.

A man, standing about a hundred and ninety centimeters tall, opened the door connecting to the next car. He was wearing a black tuxedo with a black Bow tie, and dark grey striped pants.

" Welcome back Master Gold Heart." he said in a snob tone. His eyes looked down and saw the blond warrior. " Master Shield Heart! I was expecting you."

" Really now, how did you expect him?" asked the man in the frock coat.

" Uncle Gold Heart!" came a shout from the next car and Hawk Eye burst through, tackling Gold. Despite his age, the man withstood the hit and managed to grab the child with both hands, and spun him around.

" How are ya Hawk? Haven't seen you in three months! What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in school studying, preparing to help me handle ma money?"

" Don't worry about that uncle, I am scoring straight eights! And anyway, this was a holiday weekend."

" No it isn't, I perfectly remember that there are no holidays in May. You have been cutting class, and that is unacceptable. And y'need to score nines as a minimum, not eights."

" Uncle, please give me a break, school isn't hard."

" that's because you aren't studying, you need to increase you math average if y'want to join me company."

" Fine, I'll stay I'm school once we get to Vanhoover. But you better bring me a souvenir from Manehattan Shield."

" What are you talkin' about boy?"

" Uncle, this is what I wanted to talk to you about." intervened Shield Heart and he stared at Hawks Eyes. " In private if we may." Hawk Eye skipped out and the adults took their seats. Copperworth entered with a tray with two short glasses filled with ice and a bottle of single grain malt whiskey blend decorated with a blue label. He handed a glass to the elder and hesitated to give one to the adventurer.

" You still drink don't you m'boy?" asked Gold Heart.

" Of course uncle, just not on the job." responded the blond.

" Good, then you are not under any restrictions. Serve him a glass Copperworth." and the butler proceeded to follow instructions.

" Uncle, I am still on the clock." said the youth while pointing at his pocket watch and leaving his glass on the coffee table.

" No, you are jobless right now and in desperate need of a drink. Copperworth, would you be kind and bring him a bottle of ginger ale?"

" Of course master Heart." said the servant and left.

The rich man leaned forward. " So tell me, what is so important that you have to tell me?"

Taking a deep breath, Shield explained to his uncle the events of the future down to last every detail. Shield usually reserved his feelings, but with his parents and uncle, it was completely different. They seemed to understand his importance of having a platonic relationship.

" Listen Shield, I can understand your concern about this. But I must warn you about the mess you'll be getting Equestria into a load of trouble."

The butler entered and filled the half-empty glass that belonged to the knight with the light brown liquid.

Shield thanked Copperworth and took a sip. The semi-bitter drink ended with a sweet aftertaste. This bittersweet beverage always managed to relax Shield, although he couldn't tell if it was the cold drink itself or just the alcohol acting.

" I know uncle, but the memory was extremely real, I can't simply ignore this." he said as he pulled the destroyed timepiece out of his coat. He handed it to his uncle, who inspected it very closely. He opened it and stood gazing for three seconds. His expression changed drastically when he emerged from the trance.

" This justifies your plan, but it still doesn't change the fact that you will be arming a country that prides itself for lacking weapons. That can be seen as a sign that we are ready for war. And I needn't remind you that there are greedy warlords just waiting for the excuse to invade us." Gold drank half of his liquor, which was prominently refilled by the butler.

" I know uncle, but how would you fend off a swarm of shape shifting bugs of it isn't through the use of firepower?" and he took a sip.

His uncle proceeded to grab his cane and poke him in the head. " With that m'boy. Only this." he said pointing to his brain while he closed his left eye. " With this piece of grey matter sleeping on top of yer head can you do anythin'. You just have to think of an alternative."

" Well what do you suggest? I can't fight off a horde of bugs by myself!"

"But ya can fight them with help! Get Shining Armor to help you, he's already there."

" I can't ask him for help! What if he gets married anytime soon? He won't be always available."

The wise man looked at him in surprise. "What are ye talking about ya war headed halfwit, Shining Armor already got married!"

Shield must have swallowed a particularly large ice cube because the news hit him harder than a train going downhill at full speed. The chunk of frozen water chocked him, enforcing its authority as a natural killer. Shield coughed it back to where it came where it came from. " What did you just say?"

" Just like ya heard it, Shining Armor got married in April, didn't you know?"

" No, I was stuck in the basement for two months conducting tests."

" So you have been living under that rock?"

" Pretty much."

" But didn't you get an invitation? I am sure you wouldn't dare neglect you mail for a day."

" There was no invitation, no letter, no small note of apology no nothing. Gahh! I'm going to kill that Bakka!"

" Now watch your language son, he may be air headed..."

" No, he is the single most incompetent Captain of the Royal Guard so far."

" And if that wasn't enough, ya should know that changelings infiltrated the guard and invaded Canterlot. Later on, the Queen manifested herself only to be defeated by the power of love between Shining Armor and Cadence."

The young blond's rage was starting to reach his limit, because even though he hated wedding parties, he never turned down a chance to save his impossible love.

His head cooled down, as the information got past his emotional barrier. He suddenly realized that this was a crucial piece of information. This explained so much, from the attacks on Manehattan, to the fall of Equestria to the lingerie he found in the suitcase to the reason why Twilight Sparkle would go to Manehattan. He also realized that the suite he had visited was in fact the honeymoon suite. But This was bad. This was really bad. If the changelings had managed to infiltrate the Royal Guard then there is no telling how far they have planned. What if the Manehattan police was corrupted as well, what if his friends weren't his friends, but phonies studying his moves.

"I know what yer thinking of m'boy, don't worry, that love wave that they cast sent them all flying to the badlands." intervened Gold Heart.

" I just want to arrive to Canterlot and sort this out Uncle. I need to figure this out." Said Shield Heart as he left his uncle.

Author's Note:

If you really like this story, please give it an up vote and drop a comment. This is the only way I am sure I am doing a good job, Thanks in advance!!!!!