//------------------------------// // Chapter 22 // Story: Lunaverse: Galaxy Rangers - The White Raven // by Rixizu //------------------------------// Lunaverse: Galaxy Rangers - The White Raven Chapter 22 by Rixizu “Is that any way to talk to your father?” Night Light snarled. “I give you everything and this is how you repay…” With some effort, he composed himself. “Look at you,” Night Light beamed, “the Element of Magic. You are the true protector of Equestria now. Isn’t this what you’ve always wanted? I still remember the little filly that put on a cape and swore that she would defend Equestria from the evil of Corona.” Twilight smirked. It appeared that her father still hadn't realized something. "I'm not the Element of Magic. Nor could I ever be." “What? But…” Night Light said in confusion. His head jerked towards Trixie, who was still lying on the ground unconscious. “No…” He growled in annoyance. “That mare is a cockroach.” Night Light teleported and appeared next to Trixie looming over her and aimed his horn right at her for a lightning bolt at the helpless mare, but Twilight anticipated this. She teleported next to Trixie the moment her father disappeared and shot him point-blank in the head before he could launch his spell. She grabbed Trixie with a hoof and teleported to safety. It surprised Twilight how easy the teleport was. It took almost no effort at all. Often times teleporting with another pony was difficult and painful. Must be a perk of her new powers. In a blink, she and Trixie were in the Canterlot Central Park right next to the water fountain with the statue of the princess herself. Despite the late hour and the fact that the sun was setting in the distance, ponies were still milling about in the park. They gasped at the sudden appearance of the strange mare in armor and chatted to each other in low voices. Twilight ignored the spectators and grabbed Trixie by the leg with her magic and dropped the unconscious mare into the fountain. In a moment, Trixie surfaced, coughing and sputtering, waving her legs frantically in the air. It took a moment, but the magician pulled herself from the fountain, soaking wet. Trixie shook the water off herself and turned towards Twilight looking about to rant at her, but froze wide eyed at the unexpected appearance of the strange pony in white armor. “Who the hay are you?!” Trixie backed up against the fountain and gave Twilight a wary look. “Trixie. I’m me.” Twilight said. “Twilight.” Trixie gaped, eyes as wide as dinner plates. “T-Twilight? Why are you… Are you a Ranger now?” Twilight nodded. “It’s a long story.” "That's good," Trixie said after a moment, "we could use the help." Twilight beamed. She glad to be part of them team. "Just one question," Trixie said, "why the hay did you almost drown me in a fountain?!" Twilight rubbed the back of her neck in embarrassment. “It was the only way I could think of to wake you up quickly.” “So, the answer was to almost kill me?! You don’t know some kind of waking up spell?!” Trixie demanded. “Well…no,” Twilight relented. Trixie was overreacting. The fountain was only three hooves deep. "Fine, whatever," Trixie said. She still looked a little sour but wanted to drop the subject. “So, you are alive.,” a voice approaching them growled. Twilight and Trixie turned to see Night Light coming their way. “Why can’t you, just bury yourself, in a hole, and die already?” Trixie grinned and pulled out her morpher. “It’s morphing time! Ursa!” She transformed and did her own battle pose. “What can I say? They call me the Great and Powerful Trixie for a reason. I’m basically unkillable.” "I was hoping," Night Light said through clenched teeth, "that you would at least not have your powers anymore. It seems my daughter was right about you still being the Element of Magic." Trixie gave a noncommittal shrug. Night Light responded by launching a larger than normal lightning bolt at Trixie that struck at her with unnatural speed. Twilight saw this coming and pushed Trixie out of the way. The bolt flew between them and obliterated the fountain and statue behind them. Twilight looked behind her at the carnage and gasped. “That was a priceless piece of art! That fountain has stood there for over 500 years!” She said in outrage. “That was the work of Chiseled Perfection himself!” Night Light snorted. “It was an eyesore.” Ponies around them screamed and ran for it. That was good at least. Twilight pointed her guns at her father and shot a volley of blasts at him. He deflected them with his sword held in his aura with little difficulty. Trixie used the distraction to come at him with her own sword. He dodged the blows and did his best to keep his distance before retaliating with a kick towards Trixie’s head that she blocked with her sword. He drove his sword down at Trixie and it scraped the side of her head but she moved out of the way in time to avoid most of the damage. Night Light attempted to unleash a spell at Trixie point blank but flew across the park when Twilight shot him. He got back to his hooves and teleported. Twilight’s eyes darted back and forth, trying to find where her father disappeared to. There. She fired and her father screamed as the volley of bullets struck him as he reappeared. He tried to dodge them by weaving, but there were too many of them and he mistimed a dodge and a bullet hit him in the leg making him lose his footing. He twitched as he struggled to his hooves and Trixie took advantage of this by delivering a devastating blow to his chest and with a follow-up kick which sent him sprawling. Night Light teleported again to Trixie’s right, but she blocked several cuts sent her way with her own sword with little difficulty and delivered another kick, this time in his ribs. He crashed into the pavement. Twilight teleported in front of him and shot him several times point blank in the head, causing him to writhe on the ground in pain. He teleported again, but Trixie cut him down seconds after he reappeared. Sparks flew and he lay on the ground motionless for a few moments. “Ha! Not so tough now, are you?” Trixie taunted. “You’re too tired to fight the two of us now!” Her father glared up at Trixie growling under his breath and teleported again. She readied herself for him to reappear and continue the fight, but he never returned. Twilight scanned the immediate area for him but saw nothing. “Coward,” Trixie scoffed. “Quiet!” Twilight chided. Trixie looked taken aback and was about to say something, but decided against it. Where the hay did he go? Did he really flee like Trixie said? She did not like the feeling of this. He was a cornered animal now. Who knows what he might try? He reappeared and Twilight did not like what she saw. In his aura was the book of forbidden knowledge he used earlier. Night Light gave a derisive snort. “You’re right, I am too tired to fight you now. I will just have to even the odds a little.” Trixie took an instinctive step back and her poster became wary. "Twilight! Destroy that book now!” Twilight nodded and lit up her horn for a teleport, but it was too late. Her father’s horn lit up with a strange green color and Twilight almost lost her balance as the ground shook. She stared in shock as dark purple roots shot out of the ground. Not just one or two but hundreds of them broke through the concrete and trees of the park. One broke the fountain next to them in half. They were huge and almost as thick as tree trunks. “What the hay are these things?” Trixie said in a tight voice, watching the roots with some weariness unsure what threat they might pose. In a blink of an eye, they stuck. One whipped down at Twilight and she rolled away just in time. The root smashed the concrete floor below it to bits. Trixie used her sword to cut the one coming towards her in two. It flopped on the ground then went dead a moment later. Then more of the roots struck at them. Twilight dodged or shoot the incoming roots, but there were too many of them. She screamed as one grew right out from underneath her causing her to lose her footing and sent her crashing to the ground with a painful thud. Trixie rushed to her defense, cutting down any of the roots that came near them. “Are you okay?” Trixie asked. “Fine.” Twilight’s eyes widened as she saw her father teleport behind Trixie. “Watch out!” But it was too later and Trixie was blindsided by a lightning bolt spell. The roots wasted no time in wrapping around and immobilizing her. She gave out a small cry of pain as they began to squeeze the life out of her. Twilight wasted no time and shot the root until it was blown to pieces. Trixie gave a nod of thanks and they faced Night Light. His horn was alight again with green magic and the ground shook as more roots appeared. Twilight could not believe the amount of the things in front of her. They rose out of the ground and whipped around with more ferocity than before. She jumped back to avoid several of them lashing out at her. Twilight’s eyes widened when she realized what her father was doing. He was trying to separate them. From the very beginning, Twilight could tell that her father hesitated in fighting her. His attacks were always aimed at Trixie. She couldn't afford to leave them alone together. She panicked when she lost sight of Trixie, the roots too thick to find her. Twilight thought about teleporting, but all the roots made it difficult. There were too many of them and their behavior too wild to get a clear place to teleport to. She didn’t want to teleport into a root. Gritting her teeth, Twilight blew the roots in front of her to pieces. But every time she destroyed a root, another took its place. But she refused to give up. As Twilight destroyed the surrounding roots, she hoped she wouldn’t be too late. --- Trixie screamed Twilight’s name as the roots grew in front of them, separating them. She cut and diced every root in the way, but it didn’t seem to matter. They just kept sprouting from the ground. It didn’t take long for her and Night Light to be boxed in by the roots. Trixie turned towards the former noble with trepidation, not liking whatever crazy trick he would pull out of his hat this time. She was surprised to see from his body stance how tired he was. It was like his whole body was sagging. There were also green sparks coming from his horn. Trixie could hear Night Light wince in pain every time it sparked. Was the dark magic taking a toll on him? Night Light gave a weak laugh. “It’s just you and me now, Lulamoon. I’m going to enjoy finally tearing your body limb from limb.” Trixie readied her sword. “I’d like to see you try.” Night Light stalked forward, sword in his aura, but stumbled and fell to one knee. "No, not yet." He growled. His breathing sounded painful. “The cost of your dark powers?” Trixie mocked. “It doesn’t matter.” Night Light shook his head. “I’m finished, anyway. There isn’t anything left for me. Once I kill you, I’m content. I’ve given my daughter the destiny she deserves.” Night Light pointed his sword at Trixie. “Even if I die, I’m taking you with me.” Night Light charged with his blade, diving at Trixie’s head. She dodged with surprising ease and weaved through the barrage. She smirked. Even with her alone, Night Light was too tired and weak to be a threat. She decided to dodge and block his attacks, for now, to tire him out, then finish him when he was too exhausted. She strafed left as more attacks came her way. Trixie screamed as the ground under her suddenly moved from a root growing underneath her and she fell flat on her face. She tried to get back on her hooves, but Night Light shot a blast of magic that paralyzed her. It was only for a moment, but it was enough for some of those accursed roots to bind her. They wrapped around her and forcing her to the ground. “Trixie hold on! I’m coming!” Twilight yelled from a distance. Trixie tried to struggle out of her bonds, but she was still too weak from Night Light’s spell. She screamed when Night Light grabbed his sword in his hooves and wailed on her head. Sparks flew as he hit her. He increased the strength of his attacks and Trixie held on the best she could. “Stubborn mare,” Night Light said, panting when he stopped. “Is that all you got?” Trixie jeered. “My grandmother could hit me harder than that.” Night Light growled and kicked Trixie in the ribs over and over again. “Come on! You can do better than that!” Trixie admonished. She winced in pain when Night Light hit her again with his sword. He went in fro another blow to her head but stopped when he was overcome with another wave of pain. He shook his head and readied his sword for another strike this time with both of his hooves. Trixie felt her body regain its strength as the paralysis spell wore off. In a few moments, she could fight again. Night Light was just where she needed him to be and now! In a blur of motion, she tore the vines wrapped around her to shreds and headbutted Night Light in the face. He recoiled in pain and shock. “No!” Night Light aimed his horn at Trixie, but she smashed it with a hoof before he could get a spell off. He screamed in pain. “My turn.” Trixie summoned her sword back to her hooves and unleashed all the pain and anger she had felt from his constant torment. He tried to fight back, but Trixie was too fast for his weakened state. His head cracked the fountain’s base when he crashed into it. “Finally!” Twilight called out in triumph when she emerged after blowing a hole in the vine wall unable to contain her anymore. “No!” Night Light screamed impudent fury. “I will not have all I've done go to waste!” “It’s over Night Light!” Twilight proclaimed. Night Light recoiled as another wave a pain seemed to overcome him, but he stood his ground. He summoned his sword back into his hoof and growled in frustration. He charged at Trixie, but Twilight unleashed a barrage of energy shots at him. Night Light struggled to his hooves, but his body was shaking uncontrollably. “No. No. No.” Night Light muttered under his breath. He pressed a button on his morpher and teleported. Trixie pressed a button on her own morpher and readied herself. “Wrath of the King!” Night Light screamed. Trixie flipped out of the way as a torrent of electricity came at her from behind and struck her own attack at Night Light’s exposed flank. “Searing Blade!” Trixie cried out. There was an explosion of fire when Trixie’s sword connected and Night Light’s body tore through a wall of vines and kept going bouncing off the ground several times going through a few trees. Twilight pressed a button on her morpher too. A crosshair appeared over her right eye. She aimed her two guns in Night Light’s direction. “Unyielding Judgment!” Twilight fired off her guns and a barrage of rainbow bullets flew at her father. They homed on his location and every single one hit their mark. Twilight turned her back on her father. Night Light’s body erupted with energy. His armor was covered with an uncountable number of cracks. He collapsed to the ground on his knees and his body was engulfed in an explosion. When the smoke cleared, Trixie could see Night Light on the ground, his morpher in front of him. The device was full of cracks and the gem powering it was a pure black color like the color of obsidian. Trixie unmorphed and approached him with a little weariness. Twilight unmorphed as well and joined her. “No, it can’t end like this.” Night Light said weakly. He reached out to his morpher. Before he could reach it, it cracked in half and crumbled to dust. Night Light screamed and his entire body shook. To Trixie's horror, his started aging. In seconds, decades seemed to pass. His hair went gray and his face wrinkled in age. In a few moments, the former viceroy aged at least three or four decades. Trixie took a step. What was this? Was this the cost of losing his morpher? Was it the dark magic? Night Light wheezed in pain and mumbled to himself eyes wide and frantic. She looked at Twilight whose face was a stone mask. "Let's go," Twilight said turning away. “But…” Trixie tried to say, but she was already making her way out of the park. Trixie lingered for a moment unsure what to do but decided to follow Twilight. They still had work to do. Trixie saw tears falling from Twilight's face, but decided not to say anything. After all, what could she say?