//------------------------------// // Balance of Power: Deal // Story: Imbalanced: New Age // by Nameless Narrator //------------------------------// [Blazing’s Entry] Where to even start? Fake Guiding wasn’t a dangerous enemy per se, so I’m not exactly worried about our next encounter, at least from the threat standpoint. She was feral, fast, and strong, but those traits aren’t as important as skill and intelligence, which she seemed to possess very little. Granted, Nightmare might make use of REAL Guiding’s experience next time and be lulling me into a false sense of security, but… ...something felt off about the god. I can’t put a hoof on it. It was Nightmare, I could recognize the divine power anywhere. However, she managed to get inside the vault before me, track me without me noticing, and even get behind me without revealing her power. Nightmare has never been the sneaky sort as far as I know. Possession of her victims? Yes. Lies? Yes. Sneakiness and manipulation in her real form? No, she’s the kind who when she reveals herself she goes for the kill, not for games. On the other hoof, have I ever seen Nightmare without a host? No, I didn’t think it was possible. I thought the Pact of Harmony prevented it. Although, now that Harmony broke it by trying to openly turn the world into its, or I guess his because both Discord and Harmony are closest to what we mortals call a male, image it could mean Nightmare doesn’t have to play by the Pact’s rules anymore. Then why not kill me? I’m not stupid enough to believe she was worried about Bucket. She didn’t even destroy him, only disabled him for a moment. Maybe she just doesn’t understand technology and used the kind of power which would kill a normal living creature? Damn it! Too many questions and so little information to work with. Alright, once again and from the beginning. Nightmare GAVE me the second Blade, there’s no other explanation, and kept me alive. My best guess is that she’s so sure about herself that she thinks she can simply watch me squirm as I try to gather as much power as I can in order to defend myself, believing it would ultimately amount to nothing. Involving Guiding in the events would point to this result. Yes, Mistake, I know. The second option is that she wants me alive so that I do something. If she’s been watching me, she must know Harmony is my target, and her mention of the third Blade of Balance no one has ever heard of could be her pushing me in the right direction. Just like before, I know that Equus is the gods’ battleground, but from the little fragments of Void’s memories I got the idea that at this point they compete by gaining power and influence over Equus rather than go for each other’s throat. Hmmm… both are valid possibilities. Okay, what changes depending on which one it is? Can I stop going after Harmony? No. He’ll lick his wounds and send his avatar back for me and those few ponies I know. Do I care if Nightmare is just trying to torture me? No, not really. So no, nothing really changes between the two options. Anyway, I asked Bucket about Starswirl and the third Blade of Balance, and he didn’t have a clue. Granted, he barely knew anything even about the creation of the twin Blades we now possess, but at least he knew those were the output of some Starswirl’s top secret personal research. Maybe each Blade requires different materials and process, and he didn’t manage to discover the exact way to make the third before he died? No, that can’t be. Nightmare wouldn’t know about it that way. That points to the conclusion that either the third Blade exists somewhere, or there are blueprints for it. Of course that’s me assuming Nightmare was correct, wasn’t just messing with me, and so on. Huh… what if… if a single Blade grants minor magic resistance and twin Blades grant complete magic immunity but destroy the user’s own magic… what if all three actually DO have the ability to effectively fight true divinity? Wait… would they destroy the user’s own divinity like they do with magic? Hmmm… that’s kinda likely now that I think about it. No… why would Nightmare want me to have a weapon which could very likely kill her? There is a catch, there has to be. I must have made a logical error somewhere or there’s a crucial piece of the puzzle I’m missing. Hmmm. I’m thinking in circles, which means I should just stop for now. Alright, issue two. BUCKEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEET! I never thought I’d have such irresistible desire to hit a machine, but here it is. Life is full of surprises. He just left me in the dark regarding what awaits me in Manehattan, saying it will either make me super happy, or really sad. He’s leaning towards happy, though. Nothing I had to say during the caravan trip made him budge. Why did he chase after me on his own when Heavy would have gotten to me faster? Why did he say he needed Heavy and others to guard the Silver Sun HQ in case something went wrong. Is there a new threat tied to the ‘surprise package’ for me? Gaaaaaah, Blaze mad! Must. Not. Punch. Would. Hurt. My. Own. Hoof. Anyway, what could the message ‘We always keep our word’ mean? Who could it be from? ENOUGH! We’re passing the place where Veronica attacked me for the first time and we’ll be arriving in Manehattan within few minutes, I can see the city walls through the thinning line of trees already. No reason to waste more paper, although my new journal seems rather infinite for a book the size of two hooves put together, and I always get a full pen. Cool power, though. Helps kill time during the trips I hate oh so much. [End Entry] Walking on the thin road leading from the Silver Sun main gate towards the mansion, I can’t help noticing an enormous square crate, its side being over five times the length from my hind legs to my head. Its front part is lying on the grass and the whole thing is empty, although... “Ehh, Bucket? What did you order from Amarezon? The claw marks on the inside are terrifying.” “That was for you.” “Was? For me? I don’t want my own dragon pet. I hate flying, and I think I can cook on the fire of my own tentacles.” Bucket lets out his distorted chuckle. “Head on to the cellar next to the armory. We cleaned it out for you, and according to my reports Heavy and Cross are standing guard.” We enter the mansion. “What the hay, Bucket? Stop being so mysterious.” “You lasted all the way here, although don’t think I didn’t hear the angry mumbling.” “I didn’t mean saying that I would dip you in salty water until you’re all rusty literally.” “As far as I know, my chassis is rather rust-proof anyway, and the cables underneath are organic. Go on, I need to get my keys.” I roll my eyes. He heads upstairs to his office while I take the side stairs leading underground. “Ugh, fine...” After a short trip through the musty cellar corridors and giving the wine storage a thoughtful look, I turn a corner- “Blazing?” I hear Heavy’s happy voice, “Blazing! Sorry I missed you last time. You just dropped by and left immediately.” “Good afternoon, Blazing,” Cross gives me a curt bow. “Afternoon, you two,” I brace myself as Heavy gives me a crushing hug, forelegs and tentacles wrapping around me, “Thanks… I didn’t… intend to breathe… today anyway...” “Oops,” Heavy smiles, looking me up and down, “You look… different. Taller. No… you feel different.” “Long story short, Mistake is back, I dealt with Insanity, Harmony almost killed me, Joy saved my ass, I’ve got the second Blade of Balance, Guiding is dead, and Nightmare is on my tail now as well, although she’s acting weird. Did I forget anything important? No, I don’t think so.” Heavy’s eye twitches. “You were gone for a month...” “You know me, I keep my schedule packed,” I shrug. Heavy smacks my head, “Ow! Anyway, what’s the deal with all this?” I point at the heavily reinforced metal door which is managing to look and feel about ten times my weight, “Bucket told me less than a Black Ops agent under enemy interrogation.” “Where is he anyway?” “Gone up to get the keys.” “Well, we’re supposed to give you this,” Heavy’s tentacle reaches into his saddlebag, and pulls out a scroll case. I grab it, unroll the letter inside with a small bit of its top torn off. That must be the part Bucket brought me. That robot missed a calling by not acting in a theatre. Finally, at least some answers. I levitate the missing bit up and add it to the message. We always keep our word. There was no way we could leave your service to the Griffon Empire and us unanswered. Your acts alone have stopped the civil war, possibly saving millions of lives, or if Legius failed to stop the horrors he unleashed… well, you know best what could have happened. Corrupted territories are slowly spreading, but according to our scientists we have years, possibly decades to research a way to stop it. We sent agents to negotiate with supreme queen Nightshade and ask her opinion on the situation. In accordance to her wishes, we are leaving wild Corrupted alone unless they try to pass our barriers, and focusing on stopping the spread of the tainted soil. That, however, should not be your concern right now. Unlike about the overall course of action, we didn’t ask queen Nightshade for permission regarding the operation, we informed her about it. She sent her emissary Knowledge speaking both for her and princess Twilight Sparkle to assist with the operation, minimizing our losses. Let us say the following first, Blazing. All agents and soldiers involved in the mission did so voluntarily. Understand, they have families your actions saved, and even if some of them lost their lives during the mission, they did so with pride. You gave us the future of our Empire, we only regret that the best we can give you is the reason you came to us in the first place. Nicolai said there’s something called the ‘Wall of Names’ in the Silver Sun headquarters into which you inscribe those who died in service to your or because of you. The full list of names of the brave griffons who gave their lives for the honor of our Empire during the operation is attached if you choose to add them. Signed: Cassius Irongrip Nicolai Irongrip “Wha…?” I stare at the message in disbelief, barely able to see through the gathering tears. That's impossible. The levitating scroll is trembling just like I am. On reflex, I put it back into the case and pull out a second list. Thirty-six griffons. Thirty-six more names to carve into the wall behind the mansion. One name I won’t have to. The most important one. I can’t wait the minute or two for Bucket to come down here. I simply can’t. I put a hoof on the massive door. I need to be inside. I don’t care how. I don’t care about anything else. I must get inside. Now. Fiery cracks spread onwards from my hoof, and a moment later I step into the pool of molten steel rapidly cooling on the floor. The enormous corrupted griffon inside the crystalline cage in the middle of the large room looks at me with bloodshot eyes while flailing his tentacles. “SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!” “I love you too,” I breathe out. *** “Oh geez,” mutters Bucket, carefully stepping through the still burning hole in the door, “You just couldn’t wait, could you?” “No,” I whisper. “Was it worth waiting for the surprise?” “My legs are still shaking...” “Not mad anymore?” I just wipe my eyes and sniffle. “What do I do...?” I turn to the robot. Why didn’t I feel like this when meeting Joy? I know I love them both, so why? You did, the first time you saw her after you died. Heh… you still know me better than I know myself. I’m the one able to think right now, not the one sniffling and bawling. Now go on, the nice machine pony asked you something. “I… I don’t know. There is no direct cure for Corruption. The only ponies who returned to normal are Celestia and I as far as I know, and it took me a divine rebirth. From what I heard, Celestia managed to do so via sheer self-discipline by calling upon all the massive divinity she held when Twilight jogged her memory. Crom doesn’t have that much power. I tried that in Drachenberg, and it ended with me ending nearly ripped in half.” “Grrrrwrrrrrrr!” Cromach growls, smashing his tentacles into the huge crystalline cage. “Will it hold him?” “According to my calculations,” Bucket points to some blue beams of light coming from the corners of the room into the corners of the cage, “We are managing to transmit enough energy to the crystals to keep them stable even when someone as absurdly strong as Cromach hits them.” “And his divinity? I saw him call up lightning from the sky and fry all electronic equipment in the area.” “That’s what the crystals are for. They absorb electricity and become harder. The Black Ops agents specifically said that what happened in Drachenberg will not happen again as long as Cromach is inside.” “Hissssssssssssssssssssss!” Cromach flails his tongues which stop when they pass the cage. I hear a faint ‘bzzt!’ and then they retract. “Plus,” Bucket continues, “they generate an energy field between them which is highly painful to living organisms, but to Cromach it shouldn’t be too dangerous. The agents said it was the best containment method besides stasis they could come up with.” What now? What now? What now? I start pacing back and forth. Joy is somewhat on my side now, and Crom is here, although still beyond my reach. Hmmm… I wonder. Since I can use my power somewhat reliably now, what if I can do the same I used to do when I got resurrected by Joy’s pawns? Focusing on precise control, I summon four tentacles burning with phoenix fire which surround Cromach. He swipes at one which simply sways out of the way like a blade of grass before grabbing his foreleg. Every other tendril grabs another one. Cromach heaves against his new bindings. “Owwww, crap!” I curse, seeing double as a burst of pain from behind my eyes runs from my horn down my spine. Gasping for breath, I don’t let anything break my concentration, and through haze of pressure inside my head I can see corruption retract from Crom’s legs. Inch by inch, it gives way to the pure white fur before- “W… huh… happened…?” I find myself on the floor, the side of my head hurting, this time from a small bump. “You just keeled over,” says Bucket, “and your power holding Cromach faded.” “H- How long was I out?” I stumble back on all fours. I’m getting better with each passing second. I’m not exhausted or anything, only slightly dizzy from how I must have hit the head against the stone floor. “One minute and twenty-seven seconds. I spent the time observing your power’s effects on him, and I regret to say the physical aspects your divinity un-corrupted got twisted back almost immediately.” I nod. It’s not like I expected anything else. “So there’s no way to force it out,” I breathe out. “From what you said, either a complete reconstruction of said individual, or significant resistance from the personality inside is required.” “And I don’t think there’s enough of Cromach remaining imprinted in his divinity to matter. Celestia had millenia of being herself, and she still needed somepony important to her to jog her memory.” I sigh and turn away. As much as I want to stay here day after day and spend time talking to Crom in hopes he remembers something, I simply can’t. I can’t stop, I have to keep going, to find and stop Harmony, to reveal what Nightmare is trying to do this time. If I don’t… ...they will find us when THEY are ready, like they did with Guiding, Bloodrage, Crimson Heart… Waaaaaaait… Bloodrage… The amazons. Didn’t they say they had some potion or something which helped them keep their mind intact when breeding with Corrupted? Maybe some smart alchemist might discover more if I give them a sample? Bloodrage said the recipe was a secret… ...but I won’t ask twice this time. As much as I hate doing so, I’m going to have to approach things by force. However, doing that blindly can’t end well. I need some time to think and plan ahead. Hmm… that could work. I need to find out if I even CAN threaten anyone. I need someone against whom I can go all out with at least minimal degree of safety. Someone who can help me gauge the amount of power I have right now. Against Harmony’s avatar, it was close. I had reasonable damaging capabilities, but not enough endurance BY FAR. Heavy wouldn’t be enough. He’s strong, but he would hold himself back. “Bucket,” I turn to the robot curiously watching me pace back and forth, “I need the list of top three most powerful entities you know.” “Discord, Harmony, Nightmare, in no particular order,” he answers without hesitation. “Someone I can do a serious practice with.” “Powerful from a general perspective, or just those whom your magic-warping power won’t nullify completely?” A good question. My power brought Nightshade herself to her knees, although I think I just caught her by surprise. No one must have physically harmed her new body in so long the fact that I did so paralyzed her with agony. “Ignore pure magic users. They are useless against me,” I decide. “Sorting… done,” Buckets eyes turn black for a moment before the blue circles return, “I have compiled a list of the most powerful not clearly hostile or unapproachable beings I know under your parameters. Corrupted Queen Nightshade. Threat level - deadly. Powers - draconic strength, infinite stamina, immunity to non-magical physical weapons, unparalelled regeneration-” “Paralelled, definitely paralelled,” I shudder as I recall Harmony’s avatar recovering from being literally gutted, “Anyway, pass.” “Are you sure? Cromach used to spar with her quite often.” “We… aren’t exactly on speaking terms. Next?” “Princess Celestia. Threat level - deadly. Powers - solar divinity-” “Pass. Celestia relies too much on both magic and divinity, otherwise she’s an average fighter. She has no real chance.” “Should I filter out divine beings as well then?” I nod. “Yeah. I was an obstacle to Harmony. Lesser divine creatures don’t really matter to me.” “Alright, then we have… huuuh… this could be interesting.” “Who is it?” “Someone fortunately once again within our ranks.” Once again... Heavy? No. Heh, why didn’t I think of that first? A first-rate fighter specifically created to surpass the physical attributes of alicorns, dragons, and various other species. The chimera killing machine who in his free time writes erotic fiction about him and his commander, and who is currently just outside the door standing guard next to his real lover I brought with myself back from the dead… if we ignore the details. “Horatio Cross. Threat level - titanic. Powers - unparalelled weapon mastery, high regeneration, maximum physical attributes boosted by love energy not measured yet, suspected draconic strength, immunity to natural environmental hazards, numerous magical artefacts at his disposal.” Yep, Cross is the best match. I don’t have to be afraid of breaking him easily, and he’s THE perfect fighter. On top of that, unlike Heavy or few others, he won’t go easy on me if I ask him. He understands what we’re up against. After all, he did fight one on one against Nightmare’s avatar in the past. He lost. So did I. He even survived Nightmare’s close presence when he helped save Luna after Nightmare possessed her again in Ponyville. On top of that, he fought Harmony’s cultists in the sacrificial valley. “Bucket.” “Yes?” “Arrange the death arena. I’ll explain to Cross what I need. Have the best medics ready. Then take the unbroken Blade of Balance, do all the scans you can, and try to reforge the broken one according to what information you get. They will be similar, but… polar opposites.” “I disagree.” “With?” “Nightmare’s gloating during our last encounter supports my hypothesis. I had time to think about it and compare the structure details I scanned a long time ago. I thought I was wrong, but the Blades weren’t attuned to conflicting flows in thaumic field-” “I’m not a scientist, Bucket.” “I think Nightmare wasn’t messing with you when she said there should be a third Blade. However, from the two I cannot with enough certainty design the third one. I need more information.” “Alright, reforge the second one. For now they might be enough to face off against Harmony if his host shows herself nearby. I’ll plan further depending on how I fare against Cross, but I’m sure my next step is Ponyville. I’ll check up on the survivors, and I have to talk to Bloodrage.” “Orders recieved.” “Thanks. Bucket. I know I’m a massive drain on Order’s resources.” “Drain? Yes. Massive? Not at all. Don’t worry about it. I’ll gladly go along with at least some plan, since I don’t have any.” *** Standing in the center of a stone circle spanning the entire training grounds in front of the mansion, I nod at Cross. There’s only the two of us. No one can see or hear us. “Don’t hold back, no matter what. If one of us knows he lost, we can tap out, but I doubt we’ll be in the shape to do so in the end. I didn’t tell Bucket or Heavy one thing, though.” “Which is?” the ‘batpony’ raises an eyebrow, stretching. “Once my divinity flows properly, it will break the undying enchantment. I told Bucket to have his best healers and medics on standby, but-” “One of us can still easily get killed,” Cross nods. He’s taking this well, “I know. I DID tell Heavy myself that this might happen. We had our moment, we said all there was to say. I also heard what you went up against from Bucket and Heavy. I know why you need to go against me and in this setting. I still want to tell you one thing, Blazing.” “Which is?” “I can see it in you. You aren’t ready to kill,” he looks me in the eyes, and a faint shimmer around where his horn would be if he wasn’t disguised as a batpony tells me how smart his transformation actually is. In this form, I can’t break his horn to stop his magic. I have other ways, but I’m certain he knows. Two swords practically gleaming with magic materialize next to him, “I am. If you don’t survive this, then you weren’t anywhere near strong enough to stop the ultimate threat.” I give Cross a bitter smile. “No, Cross, I’m not ready to kill. I never was. And yet… I never had the luck to avoid it,” I levitate up my own standard-issue longsword and turn my back to Cross, “On the count of ten?” Cross nods and through my tracing spell I see him turn as well. We take our first step. “One...” “Two...” “Three...” “Four...” Our swords clash in the air as I turn and attack Cross already charging at me. “Enemies don’t wait until we’re ready!” we growl in unison, sparks flying.