Two beings from different universes simultaneously attempt to push the barriers of modern magic. (Un)fortunately for both of them this opens a vortex linking both universes temporarily. The other heroes in the guild rushed to help their comrade...
Since her coronation Twilight has been experimenting with her new Alicorn powers. In another universe, Gielinor, a talented young mage named Ariane was experimenting with a new teleportation spell using all three books of magic. Both magic users had made all of the necessary preparations and were well on their way to new discoveries to better their worlds. Unfortunately fate (and sleep deprivation) had other plans as both faltered and messed up the slightest details causing an interdimensional vortex to form. Coincidentally a few other Legend's guild members were in the adjourning room. They rushed into the room to see what the noise was, only to be sucked into the unforgiving vortex. Now four heroes (Ozan the amazing, Ariane the seer, Sir Owyn the faithbound knight, and the merciless Raptor. must adjust to life in a land that has no need for violence. (needless to say, Raptor is furious) The group temporarily stuck in this world until a solution is found.
Twilight Sparkle had been working on this spell for some months now, she had made a list covering any potential problem and what to do to fix it (from accidentally closing a portal while somepony was passing through resulting on said somepony being split through dimensions into a fly or any other kind of insect being transported alongside with the caster, leading to mindswitching. you name it), read through every book that the library of Canterlot and the crystal empire had on the subject of both teleportation magic and portal magic, and considered almost every possibility. Unfortunately, the copious work she put into this bred insomnia. Despite Spike and all of her other friends’ urging to set it aside and take a break, she pressed on. Most ponies evaded the Library due to the flashing lights.
“Twilight, you’ve got to get some sleep, please!” Spike begged the alicorn, but to no avail.
“Spike, you don’t understand! I’m so close, soon we’ll be able to create a networked teleportation system that anypony can use!” Twilight said and clapped her hooves. Her hair was mussed, and her eyes took on a crazy look. "Imagine the possibilities!" she said with a somewhat forced smile that made spike shiver inwardly.
“That’s great and all, but what if you mes-" spike abruptly stopped when Twilight gave him a hard look "uh, I mean, make a little mistake?"
“That’s nonsense, I've worked out everything!” Twilight shouted back, causing Spike to retreat temporarily.
“Besides, if I keep working I’ll be able to cast it within the hour!” Twilight exclaimed after Spike had left.
Spike found himself wandering Ponyville in search of anypony that could convince Twilight to take a break. many have tried, and all of them failed. But there was a pony that never gave up! *spike heard some snoring* but since rainbow dash was napping the day away, he would have to go with option two... He eventually made his way to SugarCube Corner to ask Pinkie for help.
"Heya Spike! What can I get you?" Pinkie asked as the worried purple dragon entered.
"Pinkie! I need your help with Twilight." Spike confessed.
"Well of course you do! And I have just the thing!" Pinkie exclaimed mysteriously.
"You do?" Spike perked up at this.
"Well, duh! I mean, what could snap Twilight out of this better than a party!?" Pinkie asked sarcastically.
Meanwhile, in another world
Ariane had been working at this spell nonstop. the yellow scrolls and dusty books that piled up on the furniture on the corners of her room in the Legends' Guild were evidence of that.Despite the warnings from both Rakkardar and Xenia (though both of them assisted originally) she carried on. The stacks of elemental and catalytic runes and teleporting jewelry that she had carefully set on the spell circle that took the center of her room would allow , in theory, instantaneous travel to any specific point not only in Gielinor, but any plane connected with it.
“Ariane, are you STILL working on that?” came a loud man’s voice from the room beyond. Arianne decided that it was best not to answer, Ozan was always trying to distract her. Whether he was genuinely worried or not was still in unknown to her.
“Not even going to answer me huh?” Ozan said as he walked into the messy room only to be stopped by the furious looking red haired woman. The arcane drawings around the room disturbed him slightly, the runes set up all over the place didn't really help the situation.
“Not. Another. Step.” Arianne warned, any disturbance in her arrangement could cause catastrophic failure.
“Woah, calm down. I was just wondering if you were planning on taking a break anytime soon.” Ozan replied, concern vaguely discernible in his tone.
“Not right now, Ozan. I’ve almost got it.” Ariane said, her expression and tone softening slightly.
“Alright, I’ll check back later. I was just telling Owen and Raptor-” Ozan began only to be interrupted.
“The Raptor.” Came a deep metallic voice.
“Yeah, him, I was telling them about about the time I...” Ozan started, but was interrupted again. This time by Arianne.
“Look, I’m sure it’s very interesting and all, but I’m busy.” Arianne said, slightly annoyed by the antics of her ‘friend’.
“Suit yourself, I’ll just tell you about it later.” Ozan said with a shrug as he disappeared back into the other room. Ariane didn’t even notice that he had unintentionally misaligned one of the Law runes that controled the spell's range as he shut the door..
When Ozan returned to the dining hall, he was greeted with expectant stares, or at least one, he never knew what kind of expression The Raptor had under his helmet. In fact, nobody really knew what the heavily armored warrior looked like.
"Well?" Sir Owen asked gesturing for Ozan to explain.
"Unfortunately, she's still absorbed in whatever she's doing." Ozan sighed. "I can't believe anyone can stay cooped up in a room for that long. Last one of us to do that was you Owen, remember? You were praying to Saradomin for days because you and that one girl..."
"Don't remind me." Sir Owen cut Ozan off mid sentence.
"You know, I could always go in there and knock her out." Raptor suggested.
"She's a mage, you wouldn't be able to get TO her, let alone hit her." Ozan said with a chuckle.
"And you're a ranger, I could always use you as a shield against her magic." The Raptor responded seriously.
"Nobody is using anybody as a shield." Sir Owen interrupted. "She can't keep this up forever."
“Alright, if my notes are right" she checked over her shoulder the scrolls that she placed on the wall behind her where her desk used to be before it had to be moved away to make space for the magic circle, the misplaced law rune going unnoticed. "I should be able to cast the spell now.” Arianne said as her eyes glowed white with power. All of the jewlry, drawings and runes took on a bright ominous glow. Before she could realize that something was wrong, she saw a terrifying sight of a rapidly forming portal. Despite her attemps, she could not keep it from growing.
"What's going on in here!?" Came the voice of Sir Owen as he barged into the room, the others right behind him. The sight they were graced with was of Arianne being sucked into a swirling vortex.
"Run! I can't control it!" Arianne yelled above the roar of the maelstrom. Seconds later, she was sucked in. The whirling tempest was slowly getting more powerful.
"You heard the lady!" Ozan said as he turned to run, only to be blocked by The Raptor's hulking form.
"Coward! I for one, relish the challenge." The Raptor proclaimed as he charged and jumped feet first into the perilous hole in space-time. Unfortunately, he dragged Ozan in with him.
Sir Owen sighed at the sight, at this point he wouldn't be able to escape anyway. He let go of the door frame and was dragged into the vortex.
back in Ponyville
“Everything’s ready!” Twilight proclaimed as she charged up her spell. The massive amount of magic being used quickly took it’s toll on her tired mind. Luckily, she was almost done casting the spe-
“Surprise!” an obnoxiously loud voice came from behind her.
“Pinkie Pie, no!” Twilight managed as her concentration broke. Her control over the spell faltered and caused a strange shockwave that launched both her and Pinkie out of the library.
"Where are we?" Came a voice different from any voice that either of the mare had ever heard.
"Inside a tree...this place must be gnomish." Another odd voice.
"It had better not be, I hate gnomes." Came a third voice, this one sounded like it was from inside some kind of helmet...or bucket.
Suddenly, Pinkie inhaled and shot off into the library, yelling something about new ponies. Twilight barely managed to stand and lumber into the library herself.
“What do we do with it?” Ozan asked as The Raptor dangled the pink creature by it’s back hoof.
“I think it’s a her…” Arianne replied as she studied the equine.
“Can I kill it?” Raptor asked, causing the pink one to flail desperately.
“Don’t hurt me! I just wanted to throw you all a party!” Pinkie squealed as she struggled valiantly.
“I’m going to kill it.” Raptor said flatly.
“Her...and no, you aren’t. She doesn’t mean any harm.You can speak our language?” Arianne said, she looked intently into the pony’s terrified eyes as she nodded.. “Put her down.” She continued sternly.
The Raptor gave as menacing a glare as he could muster behind his heavily plated helmet. After a fifteen second standoff between the two, Arianne grew tired of The Raptor’s stubbornness and her glare intensified. As proud as Raptor was, he didn’t want to take a fireball to the chest...not currently anyway. The pink one dropped from his grasp and quickly scrambled to Arianne’s feet to get away from her former captor.
“We’re in an unfamiliar place and the first thing you can think of is to murder the first little pink creature that offers us a party...Probably a damn good party too.” Ozan said with a sigh.
“Pinkie, are you alright?” Came a worried voice from the door, a winged purple unicorn entered and immediately began to stare in awe at the strange creatures in the room.
“Twilightthatguywasgunnakillme!” Pinkie yelled as she ran at unrealistic speeds to hide behind her friend. Once she thought she was safe, she pointed an accusing hoof towards the metal man who offered a simple nod in return.
“No no no! I’m sure he wouldn’t have killed you...errr maybe he would have, but I assure you that none of the rest of us are hostile!” Ozan proclaimed in an attempt to not blemish his reputation in a new place. “But he’s a really charming guy once you get to know him.”
“Screw off.” the Raptor’s raspy metallic voice cut in.
“What are you all?” Twilight asked, her mouth still agape.
“I’d like to ask you the same question. Are you a horse of some kind?” Arianne said to the purple alicorn as she approached to get a better look. These creatures seemed harmless, but they were an enigma to say the least. Creatures that weren’t of Gielnor, or any plane known to her...and yet they spoke the same language.
“I’m a pony, actually. Are you humans?” Twilight stated. “And you? Where are you from? Is it”
“I-we are humans, yes. How would you know that?” Arianne asked curiously.
“Heh-it’s a long story, I’ll explain it later. But you all aren’t dressed like any humans I’ve ever seen.” Twilight mused as she looked between the three humans gathered...three? “Weren’t there five of you just a moment ago?”
“Yeah...Where did Ozan go?” Arianne asked the others, eliciting a quick shrug from The Raptor and a facepalm from Sir Owen. “Wait...Where’s your pink friend?”
“Pinkie?” Twilight asked as she turned her head to look for her friend. Her looking became more frantic when her friend didn’t answer.
“Don’t worry, Ozan’s harmless...unless you’re a jewel...or money...or anything shiny really.” Sir Owen said calmly. “I promise he’ll give back anything he manages to steal here...I’ll force him to if necessary..”
Elsewhere
“Sister, the creature has struck again...The victim is in a similar condition to the last.” Luna said with a grimace.
“Could they identify the remains?” Celestia asked, almost not wanting to know.
“It was...one of the lieutenants of your solar guard...Lieutenant Sunspot.” Luna said grimly.
“Lieutenant Sunspot...Did anypony witness their battle?” Celestia asked as Luna shuffled through papers.
“Two soldiers claim to have been ordered to retreat once that...thing was identified. There was also an earth pony present that reported that she watched the whole thing from the safety of a dumpster nearby.” The lunar Diarch said as she read from one of the papers.
“What did she see?” Celestia asked.
“She says that it looked as if the lieutenant was fighting a ball of rags with legs...But this ball of rags apparently had claws and haunting red eyes. Sunspot was said to have fought bravely, but was almost unable to hit the creature...The report says that in the end, it speared him with two set of claws and then proceeded to rip his corpse to pieces” Both princesses shared a brief shudder.
“Has his family been informed?” Celestia asked to break the silence.
“The rest of his team took it upon themselves to break the news.” Luna said.
“That’s good, but we need to find some kind of solution to this menace. The trail is beginning to near Ponyville...if we lose the element bearers, Equestria could be in serious trouble.” Princess Celestia said, obvious concern permeating her voice.
Suddenly, a letter appeared in front of the pair. The words Dear princess Celestia showed across the top.
Ozan and Pinkie took to the streets once Twilight and Ariane started talking about ‘important things’. Both of their amazing stealth skills allowed them to slip away completely unnoticed by the others.
“So, what is there to do in this land of magical ponies?” Ozan asked boredly.
“Ooh, there’s so much to do in Ponyville! I mean look around! There are ponies walking around, talking, ooh look! There’s one eating!” Pinkie Pie replied with pure enthusiasm.
“Err...right.What I meant was; where can somebody get a drink?”
“Like Chocolate milk?” Pinkie asked curiously. “ I make a mean chocolate milk...mean doesn’t sound very nice...I make a very nice chocolate milk! Yeah, that sounds much better.”
“No, something to take the edge off. Maybe a beer? Wine? Cider?” Ozan asked, the first two suggestions elicited curious looks from the pink pony, but the third caused her eyes to grow wide and her smile to match.
“To Sweet Apple Acres!” Pinkie yelled and suddenly dashed off, Ozan suddenly being dragged by his cape..
“Wha?Hey, let me go! I have legs you know!” Ozan exclaimed.”C’mon, this is my favorite cape!” His final statement caused a white Unicorn to suddenly stop Pinkie in her tracks.
“Hrr Rrrity!” Pinkie exclaimed with a mouthful of cape.
“Pinkie Pie, let go of the creature’s cape.” The white unicorn said carefully.
“rrkrr drrkrr!” Pinkie said before spitting the orange, drool covered fabric out.
“May I ask your name mr…?”
“My name’s Ozan. I assume you two know eachother?” Ozan said as he tried to dry his cape.
“Yup, Rarity’s one of my bestest friends in the whole world! And just about everyone in Ponyville’s my friend so that says alot.” Pinkie replied.
“Right...Well, I really should get back to my friends…” Ozan said as he slowly inched away from a suddenly close up white unicorn that seemed to be observing his clothing very closely.
“High mobility...yet very elegant. Mr.Ozan, would you mind telling me what kind of silk that is? I can’t say that I’ve ever seen any fabric that Pinkie Pie can chew without heavy damage.”
“Kalphite silk...is that a standard way of measuring the durability of materials here?” Ozan asked incredulously.
“You’d be surprised.” Rarity said simply as she examined the cape..
“Speaking of surprised, why aren’t you curious as to what I am?” Ozan asked, shaking off the last statement.
“Hmm? Well, let’s say I’ve seen my share of odd creatures in my time.” Rarity said without even looking up. “Kalphite silk though? I can’t say I’ve ever heard of such a thing.”
“Trust me, it isn’t very easy to acquire. Fighting bugs that can grow to be taller than I am is...well it’s worth it, but I hope to never have to do it again.” Ozan said with a grin.
“Bugs taller than you? That’s terrible! How in the world can you discuss something like that so casually?” Rarity asked, her eyes finally straying towards the owner of the cape she had been admiring.
“Well, I am a hero...I am known as Ozan the magnificent, the amazing, the-”Ozan was interrupted.
“The thief that makes up his own descriptions!” Sir Owen’s voice boomed in attempt to match Ozan’s tone.
“Yes, that too. But usually the other ones.” Ozan countered.
“Really, are you so sure about that?” Sir Owen said with a raised brow.
“Yep. You can’t prove otherwise.” Ozan said with a broad smile.
“True. Pinkie Pie wasn’t it? Your friend Twilight was worried about you.”
“She’s always worried, such a worrier that one. Oooh, I just remembered. I need to throw you all a party!” Pinkie declared.
“Err, right.” Sir Owen looked to Ozan who offered only a shrug in response to the pink one’s antics. He then looked to the white unicorn that was currently examining his plate armor”I don’t believe we’ve met. I am Sir Owen.”
“Very nice to meet you, my name is Rarity...from the way you introduced yourself, you must be a knight of some kind.” Rarity said with genuine anticipation.
“Yes ma’am, I am a knight of the Temple Order of Saradomin.” Sir Owen said proudly.
“Sara Domin, I can’t say that I’ve heard of her. Is she the girl in your group?” Pinkie Pie interjected.
"No, Saradomin is the god of all that is good in Gielinor, the land we come from, and he is the god I serve." Sir Owen said standing proudly.
"Gil nor..." Pinkie said tapping her chin with a hoof. "Nope, never heard of anyone with that name either."
"No, Gielinor, I just said that it was the land that we-" This time Sir Owen was interrupted by a terrible shrieking sound that was accompanied by several other shrieks. Before anyone could even comment on the awful noise, Ozan and Sir Owen were already headed in that directions with their weapons drawn.
A haunting screech resounded throughout Ponyville. The following screams and sounds of ponies being attacked caused further panic. Ozan and Sir Owen arrived just in time to find the culprit cornering a small foal with a bow in her hair. Even Sir Owen stopped for a moment when he saw the ball of rags approaching the cowering filly. As the claws suddenly slipped free of the strange cloth cloaking the creature, Ozan nocked an arrow and fired it directly into the back of the thing. Said being suddenly hissed and darted out of sight.
“Owen, snap out of it!” Ozan said shaking Sir Owen out of his stupor.
“That was...that was a ripper demon.” Sir Owen said while pushing Ozan away from him.
“Wait, do you mean the demon from that Saradomist story?” Ozan asked. “Now that you mention it...You might be right. Weren’t tho-” Ozan quit speaking as he barely dodged a set of claws that seemed to have come from nowhere. The deadly blades went through the stone wall behind Ozan without a sound or sign of resistance.
The Ripper demon followed up with a second slash but was matched by Sir Owen’s blade. Thankfully, the Saradomin Sword was able to deflect the blow and even allowed Sir Owen to counter the attack and almost hit the foul creature. By this time all of the ponies around had either run away or retreated to a safe distance to watch the battle.
“Ozan, where did you go?” Sir Owen asked when he realized he was alone fighting the demon. “You coward! I can’t defeat this thing alone!”
From this point on the Ripper began to relentlessly slash at Sir Owen, who was quickly beginning to lose his ground. Thankfully, most of the actual damage from the demon was inflicted upon their surroundings. Sir Owen decided to take a risk in order to at least injure his opponent, he used one arm to wield his blade and barely blocked another swing, causing the ripper to stagger for an almost imperceptible moment. He quickly used his other arm to punch the demon directly between its red eyes. The impact actually managed to knock the rag clad demon down for a split second. The hissing noise the creature produced caused every hair on the back of Sir Owen’s neck to stand on end. It suddenly disappeared from sight again.
One of the ponies in the crowd that had been watching was having difficulty keeping up with the fast paced battle, the sparks flying all over the place when sword and claw met. Each blow seemed to be quicker than the last. She wanted to run, but the fight was hard to look away from.
“Reveal yourself Zamorakian scum!” Sir Owen boomed.
Suddenly, the ripper demon complied. The claws swept through the air with ease and managed to catch Sir Owen by surprise. The resulting gash in his arm was the least of his worries surprisingly enough. The blood seemed to send the ripper into a frenzy and Sir Owen’s slightly hampered ability to block was starting to become problematic. He still wondered where Ozan had run off to. Sir Owen knew Ozan was a thief, and maybe a bit of a blowhard, but he would never abandon a friend to die.
“Owen duck!” a voice rang out as a sudden whizzing sound pierced the air. Sir Owen ducked just as an arrow pierced the midsection of the demon. Suddenly, both combatants looked at the arrow that seemed to have a burning fuse…
The arrow suddenly exploded with an array of bright colors and fire. The hissing sound of the burning demon could be heard as it flailed in an attempt to put itself out.
“What was that?” Sir Owen yelled at Ozan as the orange clothed hero appeared on a rooftop.
“Wasn’t it cool? I found these fireworks in a random abandoned stand.” Ozan said proudly.
“You stole them? Please tell me you left some money or something there!” Sir Owen yelled back.
“Yes, I left Gielnoran money at a pony firework stand so I could tie the fireworks to my arrows and save your sorry ass.” Ozan laughed.
“We’ll talk about it later.” Sir Owen growled. The ripper finally stood, the majority of its body was singed and still smoldering.
“Agreed” Ozan said as he notched another firework arrow and fired it at the recovering demon. The ripper dodged the arrow with ease and bounced between buildings to reach the rooftop that Ozan stood on. The thief jumped backwards to evade a flurry of deadly blows from a seriously pissed off ripper demon. He finally managed to escape his opponent for a moment by throwing a handful of firecrackers in its face and jumping off of the roof to regroup with Sir Owen.
“Damn, that thing’s unstoppable.” Sir Owen said as he observed the Ripper shaking off the firecrackers. The moment it finally freed itself of the small explosions, it was impacted by another firework arrow. This time, the explosion didn’t even phase it as it charged the pair of heroes.
“I probably ought to quit pissing the thing off.” Ozan said as he jumped back and allowed Sir Owen to engage the demon in melee combat again. “Where are the others? We could use some magical artillery about now.”
“I just told them what was going on.” Came a voice from behind Ozan. “They should be here soon, but in the mean time...nice time...This thing is about to feel the wrath of my party cannon!”
“Pinkie? Get away from here!” Ozan yelled at the pink one in an attempt to deter her. Unfortunately she bounded into the melee and seemingly managed to pull a cannon out of nowhere. The ripper demon didn’t see it in time to be covered in streamers and comically launched backwards into a wall. The now very colorful demon was...a bit unhappy to say the least. It lunged for Pinkie, and just as the claws touched her fur, was impacted by a giant shield.
“You saved me!” Pinkie yelled joyfully at the Raptor.
“Only I can kill this pink thing.” The armor clad warrior replied as he readied himself to engage the damaged demon. It hissed and lunged at him.
“Not so fast demon!” Ariane yelled as a large firewave smashed into the demon from the side. It was quickly consumed by the fire and finally seemed to slow down as the mystic flames continually scorched it. Finally, none of the rags or paper streamers remained and the ripper’s true form was revealed. It looked like some kind of spirit, its flesh was ethereal and only its claws and parts of its arms seemed truly physical. The red eyes glared at all of those around it but the body itself did not move. Finally, Sir Owen approached the creature and, raising his sword as high as he could, beheaded it. The severed head and ghostly body suddenly seemed to catch fire and were reduced to a mere pile of ashes.
"Aren't ripper demons supposed to travel in packs?" Ariane asked cautiously.
"Lesser ripper demons are known to, yes. But this was not some common assassin demon...It was too powerful." Sir Owen said as he inspected the ashes, suddenly noticing the blood dripping onto the grass.
"Owen, we need to get you patched up." Ariane said as she noticed the wound. "That looks deep."
"Alright, alright. But what was a demon of this caliber doing here?" Sir Owen asked looking up at the suddenly cheering ponies.
"That's what worries me. This world seems untouched by any of the gods, I've seen no symbols, none of the inhabitants even know any of the names...And yet, here is a demon of Zamorak."
"How do you know it isn't Zarosian?" Ozan interjected.
"I've met Zarosian demons. And historically, Zaros wasn't the type to attack those who stayed neutral in wars." Ariane responded.
"Zamorak..." Sir Owen muttered angrily as he realized the implications of what the group's mage was saying. Zamorak was here...or planned to come here. That was not good...
“I could have died!” Sir Owen accused Ozan. “You shouldn’t have abandoned me just so you could steal some fireworks!”
“Firstly, you didn’t die.” Ozan countered, slightly annoyed by the argument that Sir Owen had started for the third time since they banished the Ripper. “And secondly, those borrowed fireworks saved your life!”
“Borrowed? Borrowed! What, did you plan on returning their ashes!?” The knight exclaimed incredulously.
“I’m going to repeat the fact that the fireworks saved your life.” Ozan said with a heavy sigh.
“And I’m going to repeat the fact that you stole those fireworks.” Sir Owen said, he wasn’t going to let Ozan get away with this. “And as soon as I find a guard system in this Saradomin forsaken town I’ll turn you in myself!”
“Het’s breath give it a rest. You couldn’t catch me if your life depended on it.” Ozan said..
“Both of you just shut up, we need to figure out how we got here and how to get home.” Ariane said, proving once again that she was the voice of reason.
“We can’t leave here until we find out what a Zamorakian demon was doing here. This place may be in danger and Zamorak may be here gathering his strength.” Sir Owen argued.
“For once, I agree with Owen.” Ozan said.
“It’s Sir Owen.” Sir Owen declared through a powerful glare.
“I was trying to back you up.” Ozan said matching one glare for another.
“Both of you quit! Argh…” Ariane groaned as she gathered her thoughts. “I only said we need to know how to get home. Of course we’re going to make sure this plane isn't in danger.”
“Oh.” Ozan and Sir Owen said together.
“There you all are.” Came a familiar voice.”Pinkie Pie finally finished setting up your party. Oh, and she told me to tell you that The Raptor is already there.”
“We just saw Pinkie fifteen minutes ago, how quick can someone set up a party?” Sir Owen asked.
“Well, not many will be there seeing as a Demon just attacked the town. Many will be barricaded in their homes for the next few weeks.So, setting up the party wasn't too difficult.” Twilight said simply."Though, even if the entire town was coming, she could probably set it up within minutes...That's just Pinkie Pie."
“Good enough for me!” Ozan proclaimed as he followed the lavender alicorn.
“But, but that doesn’t make any sense.” Ariane tried to say as the others continued walking. “Fine, we have more important matters to attend to anyway.”
When the group arrived at the party, the first thing they noticed was the small number of ponies that had gathered. Sir Owen and Ariane shrank back a little at sight of the unknown ponies while Ozan brightened up considerably.
“I’m starting to think that this wasn’t a great idea…” Sir Owen said cautiously.
“Nonsense! This is fantastic!” Ozan said as he dashed for the gingerbread-like house.
“Ugh…” Ariane managed when she realized that there would be no way for her to study this world’s strange magic tonight.
“Don’t worry, most of the ponies in this town are great! Even if they are a bit close minded at first” Twilight said confidently.
“We have to don’t we?” Sir Owen asked. The purple alicorn nodded.
“If you don’t want Pinkie to drag you there, yep.” Twilight said. The pair of heroes nodded and slowly walked into the building to join the party.
“Where’s Raptor?” Ozan asked the party pony when he found her. She pointed to what appeared to be a pink struggling suit of armor tied up in ribbons.
“He tried to attack me when I told him he had to go to the party so….I painted him pink, wrapped him up, and put him in the corner so all the other ponies could talk to him without any chance of him attacking. He’s still warming up to them.” Pinkie said with her usual chipper tone.
“Oooh, this is too good.” Ozan said as he leapt over the crowd of ponies to taunt the captured warrior.
“Shut up.” The Raptor said as if ashamed.
“The pink one beat you? How?” Ozan said through fits of laughter.
“She was fast, the pink one is a great warrior.” The armored man sighed.
“So, let me get this straight, you were beaten by a pink pony...that lives in a candy house...and plans parties...HAhahaahahaha!” Ozan lost it, this was quite possibly the best moment of his life. He didn’t even notice that Ariane and Sir Owen had walked up from behind him.
“What’s so...Is that The Raptor?” Ariane asked as she inspected the pink suit of armor.
“Yeah! get this, the pink pony. Beat him, painted him, and tied him up in ribbons!”Ozan said breathlessly.
“you’re kidding me! That’s rich, I can’t even- Sorry, sorry Raptor this is a one time thing.” Ariane said trying to stifle a giggle.
“The...Raptor.” Was the only response she got.
Suddenly, the door swung opened to reveal a large white alicorn.
"Who's the fat ass?" Raptor asked and was quickly kicked by Ozan.
Where am I? Why do I always get pulled into the spontaneous vortexes? The orange haired Dorgeshuun thought to herself.
“What do you think it is?” came a squeaky voice.
“I think it’s breathing!” Came another.
“Maybe we should wake it up…” Came a third, this time with a distinct southern drawl.
Damn Xenia, why couldn’t you just go through the vortex yourself? I keep on falling for the whole ‘swan song’ thing...I should have listened to Zenevivia.
“What are you and what in Tartarus are you doing in my home?!” Came an angry male voice.
“Shiny! Have some manners…I don’t think it came here on purpose.” Came a much calmer female voice.
“That doesn’t excuse anything Cadence.”
“Quiet down before I do it for you.” Dionysius replied angrily.
It was a relatively normal day in the hive...aside from the rock colored lizard currently at Queen Chrysalis’s hooves. It had been brought, along with a few smaller variants of it, by a strange hooded being who disappeared as quickly as he had appeared.
“rrr….” The creature growled in its sleep, the voice was very faintly female. “My...children...I can hear them again.”
“Hmm? Wake up creature!” Chrysalis said as she nudged it awake. She could feel a primal type of love from this creature and the others that had been brought with it. She had a strange thought of empathy for the ‘lizard mother’ as she decided to call it.
“What sort of madness is this? How did you appear from that odd swirling abyss?” A karamjan sounding voice rhymed.
“Uhh, I’m Postie Pete, you are a pleasure to...meet?” The small skull replied in an attempt to mimic as he looked up at the zebra. He quickly found his post bag nearby and grabbed it in his teeth. “I’d love to share more poetry, but I’ve got post to deliver!”
“Wait! This journey into the Everfree must not be made this late!”
“I’m a mail skull, danger is an everyday thing!” Pete argued as he bounced out the door, the Zebra rushing behind him in an failed attempt to dissuade the stubborn skull.
“Who art thou!” An obscenely loud voice yelled right in the face of a short man as he slumbered. She stared at the crown upon his head and backed down a little bit in surprise.
“Agh, I have to deal with the Consortium on a daily basis and you have to wake me up like this? Guthix damn this hangover.”
“Wait, did you say Guthix?” The stunned blue mare said as she paled.
Postbag from the hedge!
Hey folks! It's me, Postie Pete! I figure I should just go ahead and start this new year with a postbag...Unfortunately I only had a few letters to deliver.
Dear Banker, I expect a bank to be a quiet place of money changing hands, being lent, and being deposited. Instead, when I came into the bank the other day, there were a bunch of ruffians simply shouting out that they were buying or selling sets of armor, food, etc. I came in to deposit my gold bit pieces but instead I found my ears assaulted. You really should clean the place up, or I will take my business to a snobbier establishment. Sincerely, Jet Set
Dear Jet Set, We realize that you may be unhappy with the recent solicitors, but please understand that we have tried removing them many times, but they keep on shouting in our faces. We even attempted to get our local guard to remove them and possibly arrest them for public solicitation without a permit. Unfortunately, the only reply we received read thusly:
Dear Bankers, We would be glad to remove these 'law breakers' from your establishment. Unfortunately, we have a shortage of guards due to your 'patrons' murdering them as they man their guard posts around the cities for 'clue scrolls'.
As we said before, we have done all we could and hope that you can look past these evil salesmen and continue to utilize all of the useful services we provide. Sincerely, The Gielnoran Banking Union
“Princess Celestia?” Twilight asked as she made her way between the humans and her teacher.
"Hello Twilight, I presume these are the 'humans' that you mentioned in your letter?" Princess Celestia said as she strode calmly to the corner that the humans had been conversing in. The ponies in the room bowed as she passed.
"Yes, we are humans." Arianne said as she and Sir Owen bowed respectfully. The pair scowled at Ozan until he mimicked the gesture. "I assume you are Twilight's teacher, she makes it clear that you are a very powerful magic user. And being in your presence, I can sense that what she said was an understatement."
"I can sense much potential in you as well."She said without breaking her professional tone."I'm afraid we must continue this conversation elswhere."
"Wha-" Ozan began to ask as a golden sphere encompassed the group of humans and two ponies. The next thing anyone saw, they were in the outskirts of the town.
"Teleportation...without a line of sight or relaying through the abyss? amazing..." Arianne said as she looked around curiously.
"Now, I will have to ask you all to return to your realm." Celestia said as her look changed from calm to a slightly intimidating glare. "I can't have you here endangering my ponies."
"What? Just a moment ago you seemed completely fine with our being here!" Ozan said.
"I had to keep calm in order to prevent my subjects from panicking, they have no idea what you monsters have already done." She said as she took a slightly more aggressive stance.
“I think the Raptor takes offence to that.” Ozan said in an attempt to lighten the mood a bit.
“I'm giving you a chance to go home before I am forced to eliminate you. One way or another, I will not allow you to continue harming my subjects!” Princess Celestia said, stomping her foot in anger as she ignored Ozan's comment.
“Unless you call demons your subjects, I don’t think any of us have actually harmed any of your...ponies.” Ariane said reasonably.
“Well, there was the time that Raptor was threatening the pink one.” Ozan interrupted.
“That isn’t helping, Ozan!” Sir Owen chastised.
“Do not pretend that you didn’t know that thing that terrorized my ponies, attacked our settlements, and killed my soldiers.” Celestia said, her anger seemed to be heating the area as it quickly became almost unbearable.
“We actually did meet that ‘thing’, and you should be happy to know that we slew it.” Sir Owen said.
“And I helped!” Pinkie announced proudly.
“You say that...but you carry a very similar aura of corruption.” Celestia said, backing down ever so slightly.
“Sir Owen, corrupted? hah, I don’t think that’s even possible.” Ozan said with a chuckle.
“Quiet, I’m talking to the corrupting one.” Princess Celestia said without any amusement. “I still believe you’re a danger to my people.” Strangely enough.
“Err, I think you have the wrong guy. Out of just about anyone I’ve ever met, Sir Owen is one of the least corrupt. But he does seem to have a stick up his-” Ozan said only to be interrupted.
“Ozan...Enough, she’s right.” Sir Owen said sternly.
“Wait, what?” Ozan said. Ariane didn't show anywhere near as much surprise, but still seemed ready to help Sir Owen out if it came to a fight.
“Wait, corrupted? How so?” Twilight asked Curiously.
“I’ll show you.” Ariane said as she cast a swift spell on Owen revealing that his right arm seemed to be skeletal, the green tint of his skin on the right side of his neck didn't escape notice from the others either. “I sensed it when you returned to the legend’s guild with that centaur, but I figured you would tell us about it eventually.”
“I don’t think you understand how much of a threat your friend is, as we speak, the corrupt part of him is likely tempting him to kill anypony with any shred of purity within them.” Celestia said, pity beginning to seep into the anger in her voice. She was visibly calmer, and slowly dropped her combative stance.
“If that were the case, he’d be perfectly fine in our world.” Ozan quipped only to be met with a harsh glare from the others. “Look, all fun aside, Sir Owen wouldn’t harm any of us or your ponies.”
“He’s right.” Ariane agreed. “And Owen is too stubborn to succumb to any type of corrupt temptation.”
“As stubborn as he may be...It may still eventually take over.” Celestia said sadly, her anger seemed to have evaporated completely..
“And we’ll deal with it when the time comes. I’m sure there is some way that it can be reversed.” Ozan said.
“I don’t think any magic I've ever encountered could fix this.” Ariane said.
“What about the Elements of Harmony?” Twilight interjected.
“Twilight...I admire your inclination to help this being, but the elements would most likely kill him.” Celestia said.
“If it were possible to fix this, Saradomin would have done it when it happened.” Sir Owen stated. Princess Celestia shifted uncomfortably after his statement but managed to hide her unease before the others noticed.
“Well, from what you’re saying...Not trying everything we possibly can will lead to your death as well. So, Princess, aside from the ‘it could kill him’ issue...could the Elements of Harmony get rid of his corruption?” Ozan said, attempting to ignore the name of the ‘elements’.
“Perhaps…” Celestia said, thinking hard.
“Alright, then where do we find them and what do I need to gather to prepare for this quest?” Ozan asked.
“Well, nothing seeing as they are already in this room.” The princess responded only to gain blank stares from the four adventurers.
“They’re already here...what would objects of power be doing in a bakery?” Ariane asked.
“W were having a party, duh.” Pinkie Pie said as she re-entered the conversation.
“Wait, you’re one of the elements?” The Raptor asked, also butting in on the conversation.
“Mmmhmm, I’m the Element of…”Pinkie said as she leaned closer to the group. “Laughter!”
Ozan, Ariane, and Sir Owen all let out stifled laughs at the revelation that the embodiment of laughter had bested him. Despite the grave situation, they managed to lighten the mood slightly.
“Regardless, I refuse to simply use the Elements on him without knowing what else is entering through your realm.” said Princess Celestia. “I am sorry, but you must understand that my kingdom comes first. The elements can only be used once every eight days, and if we use them now, that will be one less vital tool that this land has to protect itself. You have my word that I will do everything in my power to help you all return to your home, but I simply can’t risk my entire kingdom to help one being." The golden sphere consumed the group and before they knew it, they were all back in the bakery.
Before anyone could argue, Pinkie Pie started spasming and hopping all over the place.
“What in the-” Ozan began, only to be cut off by the pony in question.
“Pinkie, slow down and repeat that.” said Twilight.
“My Pinkie sense is going haywire. I think it’s saying that we have someone new in ponyville.” Pinkie said, suddenly calm. Before anyone else could say a word, three of the four humans ran out the door, the fourth struggling with his surprisingly sturdy bindings. Pinkie noticed the Raptor’s problem and quickly released him and handed him his armaments.
“You won that round Pink one.” Raptor said as he ran out of the bakery to find what-or whoever had entered from Gielnor.
Girls, get away from that thing!" Rarity cried as she found the Crusaders playing with some sort of grey monster. Unlike the 'humans' that had appeared before, this one had almost normal sized eyes and an orange mane, there was no true reason to think of it as a threat, but that rugged dirty cloak it wore made her worry. She didn't want to have to force Sweetie to take another bath before being fashionably late to Pinkie's 'Welcome the New Creatures That Just Saved All of Our Lives from a Super Scary Monster!' party.
"But Zanik's cool!" Scootaloo protested as Zanik ruffled her mane.
"Err, let me expl-"Zanik began only to be interrupted by a trio of armed humans.
"Zanik!?" Ozan exclaimed as he lowered his bow. "How did you get here?"
"Ozan? Wait, Ariane and Sir Owen too! Where's the Raptor?" Zanik asked as her eyes lit up at the sight of something familiar.
"Oh, he...we didn't untie him did we?" Ariane asked as she scratched the back of her head awkwardly.
"No, no you didn't." The Raptor said as he trudged up to the group. "Zanik...I was hoping there would be something to kill here."
"What!?" Rarity recoiled in fear and disgust. "You...you want to kill things? I thought you were all heroes of some sort."
"The key phrase is 'of some sort' " Ozan clarified hesitantly. "While we are called heroes, the term speaks of our deeds more than our actual personalities. I can promise you that Ariane, Owen and Myself would never hurt an innocent. In fact, we've all placed ourselves in danger for people we don't even know. The Raptor on the other hand, is a slayer. One who is known for defeating great opponents for no other reason but the challenge."
"Ozan, that was probably the most intelligent thing I have ever heard you say...at least the most intelligent thing you have said honestly" Ariane said, clearly impressed.
"But...that's barbaric, how could anypony kill for anything but necessity?" Rarity argued now staring horrified at the large pink warrior.
"I don't have to justify anything." Raptor said passively.
"In a world of peace it is very easy to make the aggressive seem villainous, just as in a violent world it is easy to make the peaceful look moronic." Owyn said wisely. "Raptor is a slayer, it is his calling. None would ever judge you for being a tailor, unless you were in a war zone."
"I...you can't....errr." Rarity responded unable to argue. She still didn't seem to accept the view that violence could be one's way of life, but Owyn's argument made too much sense. She wondered if the world that they had come from was truly so violent.
"That's not right."Zanik shook her head disapprovingly. "Fighting for the sake of fighting is just wrong. If you truly believe that it is a just cause you're no better than Bandos and his lot."
"Odd to hear from a goblin."The Raptor grunted in response, considering the possibility of crushing Zanik. Ultimately he decided that she wouldn't be a challenge and turned away.
"What was that?" Zanik asked as her glare hardened.
"I said that it was odd to find one of you little green weaklings that didn't want to fight for your 'great' god of war." Raptor said without even looking over his shoulder. "At the very least, they have the ambition to be strong."
All eyes turned to Zanik as she gripped her crossbow. She quickly glanced down at the foals that were cowering behind her and holstered the weapon deciding that she wouldn't let The Raptor get to her. As she watched the armor clad slayer walk away, she felt the mark upon her forehead burn with Bandos's disapproval, something that made her grin as she fought the pain.
"Sometimes I really don't know why we associate ourselves with that sociopath." Ozan said, left a bit uneasy by the recent exchange.
"As I said before, he's a slayer. It's a part of who he is." Owyn said stoically.
"I know, and that's fine for him, but what happens when he decides that you would be a challenge to him?" Ozan replied.
"He won't, you may not see it, but he's not as terrible as he seems." Ariane interjected. The conversation went on for a few more minutes before Rarity interrupted.
"Well, it's time that the Crusaders got to bed." Rarity said and the foals in question groaned.
"Can Zanik hang out with us?!" Came the distinct squeak of Sweetie Bell.
"Er...well." Rarity began, attempting to find a reason to say no. "I'm sure Zanik and her friends have much to discuss."
"Not really." Zanik and Ozan both said.
Rarity gave them a defeated look and sighed. "I suppose the girls have room for a fourth if you need a place to stay for tonight."
"That'd be great!" Zanik exclaimed. "It'd be nice to get some rest."
"Awe...." The Crusaders moaned in unison once they heard that Zanik wouldn't be helping them get their cutie marks that night. Rarity, Zanik, and the CMC departed almost immediately.
"I suppose it is late." Ariane said with a light yawn. "I'm sure Twilight wouldn't mind me staying the night in the library, I'd like the excuse to attempt to learn to read Equestrian."
"I'll stay out tonight, after the incident with the Ripper I think it's best that we keep watch." Sir Owyn said, gaining concerned looks from his comrades. "We have to stay on guard in case something else attacks."
"Yes, but you need rest." Ariane said.
"Tomorrow night perhaps, one of you can stay up tomorrow." Owyn responded.
"Ehehe, shouldn't the ponies post guards? I'm sure they have some kind of military, even if the place is mostly peaceful." Ozan said.
"We are posting guards." A bored voice said as an armor clad stallion walked around the corner. "The princesses insisted that we set patrol routes all throughout Equestria because of you creatures."
"Excuse me? Princesses?" Ozan asked. "We only met the one with the sun on her ass."
The guard gave Ozan a hard glare at his disrespect for Princess Celestia. He obviously didn't really care for the laid-back attitude of the ranger.
"We'll ask about it later, come on Ozan, I'm sure Twilight can accommodate all three of us." Ariane said dragging Ozan by the scruff of his shirt.
"She can accommodate both of you, I'd still like to stay out and help the guards keep watch tonight." Owyn said as he walked off into the dusk.
"Stubborn as ever." Ozan sighed as he broke free of Ariane's grasp and walked with her to the tree library thing.
In the Badlands of the Minotaur homeland many large rumbles were heard as brown rifts opened. Creatures of various sizes and colors emerged from the massive portals and quickly set up what seemed to be war tents and encampments. The strange tree branch looking symbol of their flags waving wherever the portals opened. Before long, a massive creature with an incredible mace that radiated power appeared in the center of it all with a massive strike of lightening. Before long, a throne appeared that he reclined in and watched stoically over his massive legions.
"So, this is our battlefield." Bandos stated as he observed the lands before him.
Meanwhile in the Griffon Empire..
From the clouds a massive six winged bird-man like being descended to the top of an ancient perch in the heart of the Griffon Empire. Within minutes, legions of griffons gathered around this long abandoned shrine and bowed to the great Deity it was built for. The massive being drew a large poleaxe and raised it to the sky. An army of Aviantese then dropped from the sky and gracefully landed around their god. The Griffons began to worship the Aviantese as they had the first being that had arrived.
"Lord Armydal." The Griffon emperor said as he parted the crowds of Griffons. "It is as you foretold many thousands of years ago...The Griffon Empire still stands at your command."
Meanwhile in Zerbrica.
"Party!" a giant female gorilla announced to the many zebras that fled from her. The massive keg of ale she sipped from dripped liquid all over the ground. Anywhere the liquid hit, small portals appeared that monkeys quickly poured through. Behind the gorilla, cabbages sprouted from the ground as a massive cabbage bounced along.
"Fear the deliciousness fools!" Brassica Prime announced as he followed Marimbo into the capital of the Zerbra nation.
