//------------------------------// // Kaiju III - Ramiel - The luminous // Story: Sometimes They Call Me Super // by KorenCZ11 //------------------------------// Applejack Celestia and Ah walked inta the castle door, and somehow, it felt nostalgic. Ah know that Ah’ve only been gone fer a few days, but bein’ asleep fer almost that entire duration really screws with yer sense of time. “It sure has been a long time since Ah’ve used the front door ta get in here. Ah'm always either drivin’ in from the other side, or Goose just pops us wherever Ah want ta go,” Ah said as we entered the halls. Celestia nodded, makin’ the spears around her neck clank together. “I suppose it has been a long time since I did the same. Teleporting across the country makes it easier on travel times, but it takes a lot out of a pony. The magic to distance ratio isn’t very gracious either for that matter, but it certainly beats trying not to fly too fast without breaking the sound barrier and… paying for damages.” Celestia sighed, and Ah chuckled as we continued on in silence. We reached the edge of the final hall before the livin’ room and Celestia suddenly stopped me. “Uh… is there somethin’ wrong?” She shook her head. “No, it’s nothing like that. First, I’m going to whisper the incantation to you. You won’t be able to pass this to anypony else unless you decide you want to learn the secrets behind spoken alicorn magic, which I don’t recommend, but memorize these words and lock them in your heart. For them to work and bend the world around you to your will, they must be spoken with the utmost passion.” Celestia then whispered a pair of words Ah didn’t understand inta my ears, then, as if a mirror had been removed of fog, Ah knew exactly how the words must be said. “Aufer-” Ah started ta repeat the cleared words, but quickly she covered my mouth. “Not here, not yet. Just speaking them risks setting off the live Slayer, and I’d prefer not to put a hole in the castle where everypony in Manehattan can see it. Now then, the second thing…” she started, but her tone began ta change as she did. “Yeah?” She wouldn’t quite look at me, and that had me worried. “One of the mistakes I made, a mistake I regret to this day… was… waiting too long to tell somepony how I felt, or rather… leaving words left unsaid. Before the revolt, I managed to tell Twilight’s father that I loved him three times in the years that we spent together. Once before we were secretly wed, once during that day, and once after. He was a romantic, and I was not. I would use gestures to show my affection, but he would use words. Sweet nothings, shows of care. An aspect of love that I wouldn’t learn until it was too late. On the day we were separated, I never got the chance to say it, and now… I never will. I know it might be hard, and after your dreams, I can see why, but… try to avoid following me too closely. Tell him the truth. Don’t… live with a regret you don’t have to, if the day ever comes that you don’t get the chance.” Her tone was heavy with remorse and she didn’t wait for me ta respond, she just quickly headed down the hall where the sounds of life could be heard. If the day ever comes… that Ah don’t get the chance… “Uh… howdy y’all,” Ah said reluctantly as Ah made my way inta the livin’ room. All the voices stopped and everypony turned ta stare at me. In less than half a second, there was one pony on me. By the time the half second had come to, there were two. Shortly after, the rest followed. “Oh my goddess, you’re okay! What happened? Nopony told us where you were or what was going on!” Goose exclaimed, him bein’ the first ta me. “Thank goddess you’re back! She’s been beating us to death, and we’re just not Harmony without you!” Pinkie lamented while pointin’ at the midnight blue princess. “Hmph. I would think that you have all improved without her presence, thank you very much,” Luna scoffed. She looked tired, but also extra pissed off today. Ah can only wonder why. “But for real though, even having you around for a few sessions of training and then not having you made a huge difference. I don’t know how you do it, but good on you for being able. Glad to see you here,” Rainbow said with a solid pat on my back through the two ponies clingin’ ta me. “I’ll say. You guys would get so close and then just fall short right at the end. It was kinda sad to watch,” Scootaloo poked. Rainbow rolled her eyes and went back ta her seat. “W-welcome back,” Fluttershy said quietly from her seat with a reassurin’ nod and a borderline creepy smile. Ah saw a flash of both colors in her eyes, and Ah wasn’t sure how ta feel about that. “Hope you feel better now, darling,” Rarity whispered after she managed ta get a hug in herself. “It’s good to see you home. I knew that you really helped pull the team together when you first showed up, but after trying to fight together without you… it certainly makes a world of difference,” Twilight said from her seat between the princesses. Ah felt that familiar sting in my eyes again and bowed my head. Home huh? It sure took too damn much ta realize that that’s what this place is. Ah sniffed the tears back and grabbed everypony near and hugged them off the ground. “It’s good ta be back, y’all.” Ah put them back down and we headed back ta our chairs, once everypony was seated, the questions started. “So, first on the agenda, whether or not this is really it, what happened? Where were you?” Goose asked, cuttin’ Twilight off before she could start. She scowled at him, but a nod from Celestia told me this was important. “Oh, well… Ah had some… personal issues that were… hinderin’ my ability ta lead. But, Ah think that Ah managed ta get through the biggest ones, so Ah should be in better shape now.” Everypony but Twilight tilted their heads. She however, frowned. “So, mom had you, right?” Ah gave a short nod. “That… pretty much sums it up.” Twilight rolled her eyes. “Whatever. You could’ve said something, you know!” she yelled at Luna. The night princess was taken aback. “Wha- me!? You act as if I know everything she does! One thousand, two thousand, even after three thousand years, I may never figure out how that head of hers works. Never forget, I did not even know about you until you were at my doorstep!” Luna shot back. Twilight then turned her sour gaze ta her mother, who only smiled in return. “The matter was private and settled now, and that is all anypony needs to know. So, on to the real agenda, today I bring you these. Applejack and I made them over the course of the last few days.” Celestia laid the spears out on the table. She passed me the glowin’ one, and every pony but Rarity and Twilight got an inactive one. “Applejack, if you will,” Celestia motioned. “Of course.” Ah stood from my chair and took the spear in two hooves. “Based on what we know, the princess has decided that Ramiel will likely be out next fight. That said, we needed a lot more protection and a better way ta fight against somethin’ like him. These are called…” Fer whatever reason, the name slipped my mind. Ah decided ta read the inscription on the shaft until Ah found it, then read that aloud. “Deus Interfectorem.” But then Ah stopped when Ah got a weird look. Not just from the table, but the princesses too. Luna tilted her head, but Celestia’s eyes went wide. A bright flash of gold blinded everypony and Ah dropped the spear. When Ah looked up, Celestia and Ah were in the trainin’ room. “Applejack, what are the spears called?” she asked frantically. “Deus Interfectorem.” That’s what she called it, isn’t it? “Applejack, what are you?” “Ego in terra equus.” Wait a minute, now that doesn’t sound right. “Son of a bitch.” A bright blue flash. Followed by the sound of cold metal stampin’ on crystal told me somethin’ was very wrong now. “What did you do!?” Luna yelled. “That’s what I’m trying to figure out! Don’t you dare think I did this on purpose.” Celestia took a breath and ran a hoof through her mane. “It was supposed to be two words for an incantation, not an entire dead language!” Luna's ears perked up. “An incantation!? What are those things you made? Why did she need to know that? Sister, what did you do?” Luna's tone went dark, and Celestia looked away. “Okay, you’ll have to bear with me for a moment, please. First, we need to get her tongue sorted out. Applejack, you are an earth pony. Repeat after me. I am an earth pony.” “Ego in terra-” Ah started, but stopped because, while Ah knew that’s what Ah was sayin’, it didn’t sound the same. “I.” Celestia began. “E… Ah.” Ah started, then corrected. “Am.” She continued. “Su… er… am.” It finally started ta click as ta what Ah was hearin’, and it wasn’t what Ah normally spoke. “An earth pony.” She finished. “In ter- uh… An. Earth. Pony.” What the hell did she do ta me? “Now all together. I am an earth pony.” “Ah… am an earth pony.” Suddenly, it felt like every word Ah knew now had another equivalent that… Ah’m not sure if Ah know or not? “Shit. How did this happen? Do I not understand that spell? Or have I forgotten just what exactly it does? I’ll have to run some tests with you later…” Celestia muttered to herself. Luna got up in her sister's face. “Hello!? Do you even realize what you have just done!? What if she starts reading artifacts aloud? How many seals could she break on accident before she gets a hold of this!? You should know damn well just how many things we have had to trap in the earth over the centuries!” Celestia took a deep breath, then turned to her sister, putting both fore hooves on her shoulders. “I know. I am sorry. I didn’t think this would happen, but here we are. Please stop yelling at me.” Luna let out an exasperated breath and sighed herself. “Very well. But this is on your head, and I will not be cleaning up after her.” She scowled at Celestia, then me. Her face went from angry, to apathetic, then inquisitive as she shoved Celestia off and circled me. “Now, I do have to wonder. Applejack, would you please read aloud what is written on my yoke?” She asked, well more polite than she’s probably ever spoken ta me. “Uh, sure.” Ah studied the black plate with her moon emblazoned on it, and just below it did Ah notice the runes when the light hit it just right. Ah looked at the odd runes fer a moment, and then, just like earlier, they didn’t look like runes anymore, but plain equestrian like everythin’ else. “Oro ut luna et emittam furorem virtutis eius.” Ah said like it was any other sentence. The oily black armor all over her began ta shine with a pale blue light. In a flash, Luna had gone from somethin’ of a princess ta a nightmarish creature. She was covered in that oily black in plates of armor and spikes. Her mane had turned from the ethereal blue ta a shadowy black smoke riddled with spots of white, and her face was now hidden by a helm that could’ve passed fer an executioners. She started ta laugh deep from her belly, and more than anythin’ it was off puttin’. “Desino!” Suddenly, the armor vanished in the black fog that used ta be her mane. Celestia rolled her eyes and Luna continued ta laugh. “Ah... uh... what was that?” Luna stopped laughin’ ta look at me, then her face broke and she went back ta laughin’. “I... I do not even know why... why I was so upset! This... this is hilarious! Ha-have fun digging your way... your way out of this one!” Luna said as she teleported away. Celestia sighed and then wrapped a hoof around my neck as she headed for the staircase. “In the event you haven’t realized this, I have accidentally imparted to you the language of my ancestors. Between you, my sister, and myself, we are the only ones on the planet that know this language. If you see anything, and I mean anything at all, written in Equus, please do not read it out loud. I had only intended to give you access to the two words you needed, but apparently, that’s not how that spell works, and because the last time I used it was, oh, say, over two thousand and fifty years ago, I’ve clearly forgotten what all it does. If the time comes, and you need to use the spear, you can. However, please refrain from even saying the incantation in Equestrian in the event it comes out in Equus and kills somepony.” Ah nodded and walked with her. She sounded very tired now, so Ah guess this was a bigger fuck up than Ah know. “So uh... Ah get that this was an accident and all, but what was up with Luna? Her laugh is... kinda creepy.” Celestia huffed and rolled her eyes. “Right. There was once a time where I needed to... restrain her because of a conflict brewing between us. So, the armor she had you activate, cannot be activated by her own voice. Much like my own set, it enhances our powers even further and is what allowed us to ‘seal away’ so many ‘things’ over the centuries. It hasn’t been necessary for us to don it in over a millenia at this point, and I never removed the seal. You didn’t break the seal, but you also have the power to activate her armor now. I suppose she simply found it funny.” Celestia had a hint of anger in her voice, and that in and of itself was kinda scary. “Did ya... not trust her or somethin’?” Celestia tilted her head and flattened her ears against her head in annoyance. “Have you ever had a fight with your brother or sister before?” Ah nodded. “Of course you have. When you were little, you probably threw tantrums and tried to hit each other. Now take that ‘tantrum’ and scale up the power from ‘child’ to ‘demi-goddess’ and you have Luna about fifteen hundred years ago. ‘I want to be in charge for once. Why are you always the one in command? Why can’t I be the leader? Am I not just as capable as you are? Why don’t you ever listen to me?’ etcetera, etcetera. The complaints became more vicious over time, and just before it came to blows, I sealed her armor away, and gave her the chance to lead. To say the least, it didn’t go well. We nearly lost a section of the country that you know today in a battle over land, and she had many a soldier slain in the name of ‘her tactics’ as a vain attempt to prove she was a better general. Of course, she learned after that war that there was more to leading than defeating your enemy and decided to leave the armor sealed away to try and become a better pony. As you can see, she’s... still working on that. I will say that she did a much better job of it during my pregnancy, even if it was still too much for her. I remember one of the guards telling me that there was almost a coup while I was away, yet nopony ended up slaughtered this time. It was astonishing, really. I always give her a chance every couple hundred years, and this was the first time nopony in the service was killed during her few month reign.” Celestia's went from apathy ta amazement, and ah wasn't sure how ta feel about that. “Huh. Ah think Ah remember her tellin’ me about that when we first met. Uh, the last one, obviously. Is she really that bad? Ah mean, Ah get that she’s kind of a dick, but... is that worth a coup?” Celestia shook her head. “You don’t know the half of it. She once raised taxes on all classes in an effort to help build more government sanctioned roads and schools without telling the ponies that they would all experience a five percent increase on wage deductions. Can you guess just who had to put out that fire?” Ah felt my face drop. “Oh. Oh, that probably didn’t go well at all.” Geez. Ah can’t even imagine how pissed off Ah would be if the government started takin’ five percent more of my income every paycheck outta the blue. “Mmhmm. I returned from vacation to, ‘Oh thank the goddess you have returned! They do not like what I did, and now they are trying to kill me, please help.’ Her heart was in the right place, but she just doesn’t understand the complex balance of pleasing as many as possible without pissing off the entire population. Eventually, I managed to sell the tax increase, but it took a lot of work and time to repair the relationship between us and the ponies.” Celestia stopped on her step and started to giggle. “I h-have to say... Twilight has been much easier to raise so far by comparison,” she laughed. “Sixteen trying to raise a five year old versus a few thousand trying to raise my own baby is a much different experience.” She shook the laugh away and we started movin’ again. We made it back ta the table, and Luna could barely keep a straight face while the rest were still confused. “She’s been like this ever since she came back. It’s creepy, and I don’t know how to make her stop. What’s going on?” Twilight asked. Celestia rolled her eyes and motioned for me to take a seat. “Something unexpected happened, so we’re just going to deal. There’s only two hours left until whatever is coming arrives, so explanations can wait. Anyways, the spears. These are called God Slayers, and they absorb magic. Twilight, Rarity, do not touch them, and do not use magic if you do. You might survive, but if Rarity were to try and use magic on one or while touching one, she would die without question. When the spear gains a green glow like the one Applejack has, that means it is primed to use it’s second function. When tossed while charged, the spear will release all of its stored magic at whatever it hits, much like a grenade. If the inscription is read while charged, then the spear will fire a blast of all the concentrated magic it has absorbed.” Celestia formed a bowl shape on the wall with her magic and then motioned fer me ta pick up the charged spear. “Applejack, if you will.” Ah picked up the spear and aimed the tip at the golden bowl on the wall. “Auferte Deos!” Ah called on the spear, and just as it did in Canterlot, the bright green laser fired. The intense heat threatened ta sear the fur off my wrists just before the blast ended, and the bright light forced me ta look away. When Ah felt the massive recoil stop, Ah checked the spot Ah fired at, only ta see Celestia’s bowl cracked ta pieces, just barely bein’ held together. She let go of the shattered magic bowl and then took a few short quick breaths before continuin’. “As you can see, it is very destructive, and this is why only Applejack knows the firing incantation. I doubt anypony other than Goose could handle the recoil anyways, so better to not risk you killing yourselves with it. Now then, we’re going to go down to the training room to run three simulations over the next hour and a half before you need to head out.” Celestia was about ta turn when Pinkie raised her hoof. “Yes?” “Uh, what did Applejack even say? She started speaking gibberish, and then you two just freaked out and warped away.” Celestia frowned. “Ever observant, always a good trait. Questions are for later, now is the time for preparation! Let us be off, the clock is ticking!” Then marched down the staircase. Ah got up and everypony else looked ta Luna fer answers. “What? Do not cast your gaze at me. She said questions are for later. Take up your queries after you return alive from your mission.” Reluctantly, they all got up and followed me down ta the trainin’ room, where Celestia was waitin’ with the sharin’ spell. “Let us begin.” “You guys remember how we found out that I can’t heal you if you lose a body part entirely? Well, keep that in mind because if it goes like some of those simulations did, then we’re either all on disability for the rest of our lives, or half the group is dead,” Scootaloo said as the first pony ta get up. The simulations were hard. Celestia didn’t pull any punches with her creation this time, and the thin’ we fought was supposed ta be a Ramiel clone. Not a bit of this bodes well fer the near future. “Unfortunately, we’re out of time, but had we more, none of these attempts would receive passing grades. I suppose you’ll just have to deal. Survive, above all else. It’s eleven thirty. Get dressed and head out.Twilight, you’ll need to create a small hole in the barrier as you leave. If you didn’t notice when I arrived, the spears will attempt to charge themselves on it, and I don’t know what that will do to the castle or you. We’ll have Pinkie carry them as quickly as possible just to make sure.” Pinkie rolled on her stomach and complained at the princess, “Are you kidding me? I can’t hardly hold one of those things, let alone five!” “Can’t Goose do it? I mean, his teleporter power is the result of a mirror, so shouldn’t that be unaffected?” Rainbow asked. Goose and Celestia shook their heads. “Nah. She had me try it during the simulation. Something about the magic in the spear prevents me from teleporting while I’m holding it. It doesn’t hurt me, but it doesn’t let me move as well as I could either. The best solution I found was to actively toss the spear to my next location, then warp while it’s in the air.” Pinkie groaned and fell back ta the floor, and then the argument was settled. After we made it back ta the livin’ room, everypony separated ta get their costumes on. Once we all regrouped, fifteen minutes had passed and it was almost time. “Well, time’s about up. Ah’m sorry Ah had ta take care of my personal problems over the last two days, but what’s passed is behind us. Whatever happens next, Ah want everypony here ta make me a promise. ‘Ah’ll see ya tomorrow.’ Ya got me?” Ah put my hoof out in the center of our colorful group and waited fer everypony ta respond in kind. Hooves fell in one by one, until even Princess Luna had fallen in. “I’ll see you tomorrow,” we said in unison. The seven of us who were off ta fight trekked down the crystal halls, leavin’ Scootaloo and the princesses behind. We approached the nearest and highest buildin’ a few blocks away from the north side of the park, and the time turned ta eleven fifty-eight. “We’re in position,” Ah signaled. “Good. I’m sure he’ll find you in the next couple seconds. No matter what comes your way, survive, all of you,” Celestia replied. In agonizin’ silence, we waited fer two minutes ta pass. The clock struck twelve and a bell sounded through Manehattan. One... Ah could hear everypony hold their breaths. Two... Armor clinked and muscles tightened. Three... Hooves shuffled and ponies trembled. Four... Fear, excitement, and anticipation filled the air. Five... One pony swallows, a drop of sweat rolls down my forehead. Six... Feathers rustle, a liquid starts to flow in the air. Seven... Metal clinks to metal, shields are drawn. Eight... Ponies put distance between each other. Nine... He moves closer to me, Ah can feel his warmth against mine. Ten... The clock echoes throughout the empty city. Eleven... Silence, nopony moves. Twelve... Lightnin’ Strikes! An orange bolt shoots up from the ground in blindin’ brilliance from not far away. An odd sound of rushin’ water, electricity in the air, and gale winds form around the spot as the glow dissipates. A liquid pillar of somethin’ clear with a cyan tinge ta it rises from the spot lightnin struck. It begins ta swirl around a red glowin’ piece in the center until the shape became a sphere, then a square, and finally a diamond sits loftily in the sky. An orb of what looks like clear liquid ebbs and flows around it in a radius, yet bends and moves through solid objects as if it’s not really there. All screens near by flash on, and there, the mask appears. “Ah, there you all are. I looked in many places I’d expected you to show up, but in a random part of the city north of central park? There’s nothing significant about this area, so I can only wonder what makes you gather here. And what... interesting weaponry you have here. Shields and spears? My, have we devolved so far that you must rely on something so base to defeat my Kaiju? Surely you realize that if something like a bullet does so little to my kaiju, that your spears won’t likely do so as much as scratch the surface? But alas, that is neither here nor there. The clock strikes noon and your next challenge awaits, Harmony and the traitor! I’m done simply sending my Kaiju to search for my missing object! Those that follow Israfel will be out to destroy as much as possible and kill those who stand in my way! Heroes and the traitor, the time to rise above is here yet again! Go beyond and show me what a true hero looks like! Begin, Ramiel!” As soon as Persona finished his speech and the screens went dark, Ramiel immediately turned toward us and switched ta his firin’ form. “Blur, Crow, Target, phalanx formation! BK, with me!” Light began ta build at the center of the large crystalline flower that was Ramiel as time was clearly not on our side here. A large clear tower shield on everypony’s non-dominant foreleg raised and spears pokin’ out the gaps formed a shield ta cover Diamond and Centurio as the Black Knight and Ah dashed ta opposite sides of Ramiel. His body looked ta start six blocks away, and the strange heat blur like motion started at five. “BK, aim just under the bottom petal about ten meters out from the body at the heat blur! If that’s where the shield is, Ah’ll move in and javelin his mirror!” Ah called out. He stopped in place right where Ah expected him ta toss the spear, then he looked at me with his head tilted. “Heat blur? What in the world are you talking about?” he asked. “What do ya mean, ‘what am Ah talkin’ about?’ it’s right in front of yer face, throw the damn spear!” Can he not see it? “Shit, we don’t have time! Get out of the way!” BK hopped the opposite direction, and just as he did, Ah noticed the light was much brighter than it was a few seconds ago. Shit! Ah kicked the ground and launched myself away. The heat blur moved away from the center of the crystalline liquid in the shape of a cone. A sharp sound shot through the air before Ah even managed ta land. A beam of blindin’ cyan light covered in small branches of lightnin’ that shot every which way fired straight at our formation. The force of the wind it pushed outta the way nearly knocked me off balance as Ah landed, and Ah couldn’t bear ta look at the light very long at all. A loud sound not unlike the sizzlin’ of grease in a pan filled the air. As the laser dissipated, my comrades were still in formation, but the edges of their shields were frayed and fried like an egg poured in a hot pan, and a single spear was fully charged from the blast. The stone, brick and mortar that felt just the edges of the beam had all become various shades of black and glowin’ orange and white hot the closer ta the blast it was. Metal around the epicenter had simply melted from the heat and cords and cables along phone lines had caught fire, sparkin’ and shootin’ electricity in wild bright blue branches. “Fuck! It burned my coat under my suit!” The Crow yelled. “M-my spear is charged! W-what do I do now?” Target worried. “Marevelous, that blast fried the edges of their shields! This kind of energy isn’t something these shields were designed to handle, if we run out of spears, this is all over! The shields can take another hit, but after that they’re done, and we had three spears absorbing magic from that blast, we can’t last like this!” Twilight reported. “Ah get it, this isn’t great, we knew somethin’ like this would happen, just be thankful ya have the spears at all! Everypony, Ah need ya ta tell me what ya see when ya look at this thin’!” “I see a big baby blue diamond in the sky at the moment. Am I supposed to see more than that?” Blur responded. “Same here!” replied everypony else. Shit. Why can Ah see this? What am Ah lookin’ at? “Crow, what did that field feel like when ya hit it?” Ah asked. The monster slowly started ta float closer ta the phalanx, then what looked like the ‘face’ of the creature turned toward me, aimin’ itself at the empire buildin’. “I don’t know, like wet ice I guess? It was slippery, but hard, as if it were made of some kind of really strong rock. It felt like it was moving. Why? What are you seeing that we aren’t?” She asked. “Ah’m not sure, but it don’t seem ta care about y’all right now. Prepare ta intercept another beam and Fluttershy, trade spears with me!” As the phalanx came apart and my team started ta move, the monster switched forms. “Shit, move quicker y’all! BK, after Ah get the charged spear, throw yours at the closest side ta me, and away from any tall structures!” The light started ta build at the flower’s center and my team was nowhere near close enough ta protect anythin’ from bein’ toppled by a blast from this thin’. Goddess, if the empire buildin’ falls, then this place is gonna be in more ruin than it was twelve years ago! “Never mind, BK get ta me and gimme yer spear! Diamond, target us when Ah call fer it!” The light was gettin’ brighter and nopony was close enough ta stop it yet. Ah charged a trump card with the spear in hoof and shot it at the tall target Ramiel was aimed at. The spear stabbed straight inta the wall of the empire buildin’ with the head half stuck in it. The Black Knight’s spear reached me just as my other hoof was ready ta loose another trump card. Two spears in position, BK and Ah with our shields up, and the monster’s light just about bright enough ta fire. “TOKI WO TOMARE!” “ZA WARUDO!” The world froze and the monster’s light remained stopped in place. BK warped us ta the spears. He punched a hole in the wall of the empire buildin’ with one hoof, and held his shield up with the other. Ah ripped the spears out of the wall and held them tight between our shields. “Release!” Color returned ta the world around us, and quickly the bright light became too much ta handle and Ah couldn’t watch anymore. The sharp sound shot through the air, and then Ah felt an immense pressure comin’ from my shield. Everythin’ around us began ta heat up rapidly, and Ah felt the hairs just under my suit start ta singe. As soon as it felt like Ah couldn’t take anymore, the heat started ta subside, and the light has faded ta the point where Ah could see. Both spears were charged, and our shields were even more damaged than theirs were. “Holy hell, I thought I was gonna fry. What do we do now? This thing moves and fires too fast for us to strike back.” BK said. Ah shook my head. “Now we try somethin’ else. Everypony, follow that thin’s aim. Ah’m gonna use the spears. Let’s see how it likes a taste of its own firepower! Hold this!” Ah threw the still warm shield on my back and tossed the other active spear ta Goose. Ah hopped away from the empire buildin’ and shot down ta the nearest roof, keepin’ clear sky behind the line of fire Ah’d figured out. The monster began ta move, but Ah was about ta stop it in its tracks. Ah stamped one hoof inta the roof, rememberin’ just how far back the beam pushed me when Ah fired it earlier. Alright ya son of a bitch, let’s see how [i/]you like it! “Auferte Deos!” The spear made a similar sound ta Ramiel and then let loose a beam about half the size and just as bright as the one he fires. The blindin’ green light made contact with the heat blur and started ta push through it, changin’ the diamond shape inta somethin’ that morphed with the heat blur. The laser continued ta push through until finally it reached the main body. The bright light shot through the main body off center, but then somethin’ happened. The whole creature started ta spin rapidly, and from the looks of it, pulled the beam with it as it spun in place. The cyan vortex turned lime green until the laser finished, then reverted back ta its original color as branches of green lightnin’ shot every which away inta its heat blur. The vortex reshaped itself inta a diamond, then aimed its face right at me. It...it didn’t work? The diamond started to shift its shape inta the flower and suddenly a light started ta grow at its center, the heat blur shiftin’ away as it did. “What are you doing!? Get out of the way!” Fell on deaf ears. No... It’s not that it didn’t work, Ah missed my target... The light came close ta reachin’ its peak and the Black Knight had put his hooves on me. “Stop we need this! Diamond, Harmony! “TOKI WO TOMARE!” “ZA WARUDO!” Last freeze. The strain of havin’ all seven of us in here is well more than she can handle fer just a couple of seconds. If my next plan doesn’t work, then we’re fucked six ways ta Sunday. “Phalanx formation, center around me! Active spears ta me, shields up and get ready ta feel the heat!” Everypony very quickly gathered around as the timer ticked away, all of them knowin’ that this was our last time stop. Ah traded spears with Target, took BK’s spear and passed him my shield. The monster’s light was sittin’ just before full charge, and Ah had a charged spear in each hoof about ta do somethin’ crazy. “Release!” The frozen world started ta dissipate, givin’ color back ta the black and white cityscape in front of me, the blue sky distortin’ around the cyan flower petals that floated in place, and soon the light started ta get brighter. One more time, mother fucker! “Auferte Deos!” The first thin’ Ah felt was the burnin’. The pure heat bein’ let off from the spears in my hooves hurt, and it hurt a lot. The fire felt worse than anythin’ trump card has done ta me, but the spears only just fired, and if Ah let go, we were gonna die. The green beams shot out first, then the cyan beam followed immediately after, both aimed at opposite spots. Closer ta Ramiel then us, the beams collided. The next thin’ Ah felt was the immense pushback from Ramiel’s beam. It was like tryin’ ta hold a semi in each hoof, the strain was so immense that it gave Tump Card a run fer its money. The spot where the beams met started ta grow and form a ball of mixed color light and the strain became more intense. The sky was recolored as the light became so bright that the sun was hidden in the brilliance of the clash. Sound boomed through the air as Ah felt the strain suddenly stop, then a wave of force blasted through our little formation, leavin’ nopony standin’ and the lot of us tossed ta the back of the roof we occupied. When the sky returned ta normal and Ah regained my senses, two thin’s immediately came ta mind: the first was that my hooves felt like they were still burnin’, and they hurt, and they hurt a lot. The second was the sky. It was partially cloudy when the fight started. At the moment though, there wasn’t a cloud anywhere near, and all around the blast zone were rings of cloud, like they’d been blown away. The pain finally became too much, and Ah had ta bring my attention ta my hooves. Ah stared on in horror as my suit had melted off up ta my elbows, and all of the orange coat that would normally be there was either blackened down ta the skin, or straight up seared off. Thankfully, it seemed like the bracers had protected me once again, and my wrists weren’t completely destroyed, but still black underneath ‘em. The throbbin’ burn coated anythin’ with a nerve that wasn’t covered, and my hooves themselves had been turned black from the backlash of the heat. “Holy shit, what did you do to yourself!?” Ah heard from my left as the Black Knight popped in place. He took hold of my right hoof, and Ah was thankful ta feel the cold metal on it, even if the slightest pressure was enough ta send my ears throbbin from the pain. “Too much. Where is Ramiel? Is it dead? He’s not in the sky anymore.” The heat blur was missin’ from all around, and the cyan creature was nowhere ta be seen. If it was destroyed in the blast, then Ah don’t have a problem with it. But until Ah see shards of a broken mirror, then Ah’m not gonna be satisfied. “I don’t know, but we should probably search for it. You need to get back to Scootaloo to have your hooves fixed again. Good goddess, at least they’re still attached. Can you feel anything? The skin is so badly burned here that it’s starting to bubble up in blisters...” Ah shook my head. “That’s not important right now. If that thin’ isn’t dead then we still have work ta do.” Ah gingerly rose ta standin’, makin’ sure ta keep any and all pressure off my forehooves. “Somepony get up and scout around ta see if ya find Ramiel or mirror shards. Persona hasn’t shown up yet, so Ah’ve got a bad feelin’ about this.” Target and the Crow had already gotten back up, so they both looked ta me and nodded, flyin’ away in either direction. Centurio was tendin’ ta Diamond, who looked like she was gonna pass out any second now, and Blur hadn’t gotten up yet. Thank the goddess we still have the shields and none of the spears are active anymore, but if that thin’ is still around, Ah can’t just leave ta get treated fer this. If worst comes ta worst, then the only way we’re gonna win a beam struggle with this thin’ is through havin’ more fire power, and Ah can’t do that again. If the Slayer beam can’t punch all the way through this monster on its own, and it can keep two at bay with a blast itself... then that means we have ta find a way ta get three charged without losin’ anypony or a big buildin’, and ta add ta all this, we’re out of time ta stop. “I’m coming up blank over here,” The Crow said from far away. “M-me too,” Target added. Damn it. Persona hasn’t shown up yet, and that thin’ is nowhere ta be found... what happened? “Well, shit. Keep yer eyes peeled, all of ya, and stay within a few seconds of the group. We don’t know if it has specific motives yet, or what kind of intelligence it has, and if it shows up again, we need ta be ready ta intercept fire.” The pegasus started ta return closer, and Centurio helped Diamond limp ta the center of our formation. “Do ya think ya can tough it out if we need another second, or are ya done?” Ah asked her. Her horn flickered with a spark of pale gray and she slowly started ta nod, never takin’ her hoof off her temple all the while. “I... in the event of an emergency, I could likely freeze time for five seconds with one pony at the most. I certainly couldn’t do everypony again but... what about you? Your hooves look awful, are you sure you can do anything like this?” she asked. No. “Ah’ll use my teeth if Ah have ta, we’re not done yet, and there’s no way in hell Ah’m havin’ Scootaloo come out if this thin’ is still around.” Hell, who knows if Ah could actually fire one of those thin’s with a spear in my mouth. The incantation has ta be spoken aloud, Ah can’t talk if I’m clutchin’ a piece of metal with my teeth. The best Ah can do is help defend right now. We don’ t really even have any way ta attack this thin’ without the spears either, so Ah don’t know what we’re gonna do next. Just then, a very loud sound shot through the air that sounded like the flash of a camera chargin’. Ah turned my head, and a very small piece of reflective material was floatin’ in the sky behind us. A bright light about as big as a pin prick started ta form at its center, and then finally, Ah understood what was goin’ on. The cloud rings weren’t formed because of the blast, Ramiel has expanded that far in the sky! The light got brighter and brighter, and Ah finally saw the heat blur around a giant disk that blended in with the sky itself. “Form up now!” Ah shouted at the top of my lungs. As quick as Ah could Ah grabbed a spear with my teeth and held it out straight in front of me. The rest of my team followed up with spears and shields as the light kept gettin’ brighter and brighter, even brighter than it ever had before. We managed ta get inta formation, and then it fired. The beam itself rivaled the sun fer brightness and all Ah could do was shut my eyes tight and hope we didn’t die. Ah wasn’t blockin’ it myself, but Ah could feel everypony else struggle ta hold the formation against the force of the blast. The spear in my mouth started ta heat up and Ah could tell it was already fully charged just by the temperature, but even then, it kept gettin’ hotter. My tongue started ta burn, then finally the force dropped out and Ah spit out the spear. “Damn it!” Ah shouted as Ah tried ta cool off my tongue as quickly as possible. When Ah finally did, Ah got the chance ta look around, and Ah was just stunned. All the shields were fried beyond repair, and every last one of our spears were charged. But nothin’ was worse than seein’ the body of Ramiel reform inta an even spikier and wider series of petals around the mirror and start ta spin. Shit! If we don’t shoot back, it’s gonna kill us! “BK, plant the spears in the buildin’, and everypony who isn’t a unicorn line up by a spear! If we don’t fire before this thin’ does, we ain’t got a shot at killin’ it!” Centurio and Diamond gathered around me in the center of our spear line, and everypony else prepared ta try and hold a spear after BK finished plantin’ them in the roof. Rings of light started ta form around the spark in the center of the spinnin’ cyan mass in the sky. The last one wasn’t even the most powerful beam this thin’ can make! Shit! As soon as everypony was in position, Ah stepped on my spear and called ta fire. “Auferte Deos!” All five spears aimed straight at Ramiel lit up with green lights, connectin’ at a certain point and convergin’ inta an even larger blast. Just before they connected with the mirror, Ramiel fired its own beam of cyan light, this one bigger than any before it. The beams were clearly matched enough fer each other because Ramiel was only pushed back so far before the beams started to form that mixed color ball of light with lightnin’ branchin’ off in every direction. The bolts struck the sky and ground at random, makin’ thunder so loud and near that it could bust an eardrum if ya weren’t careful. The ball exploded and blinded everypony once again. The force was further away, but even greater this time, and everypony was plastered against the rooftop. When next Ah opened my eyes, everypony was layin’ on the ground, save fer Centurio, who had what looked like a broken barrier still up. My ears were ringin’ and it looked like the world was spinnin’ all around. What’s goin’ on? Ah checked on the spears next, and Ah wasn’t quite sure how ta process what Ah saw. Most of em were bent and twisted in one way or another, and the ones Ah’d fired twice had melted ta some point where the spear head was only half recognizable as that. A star started ta twinkle above my head and the sky was really spinnin’ now. Oh no. That’s not the sky. Rings of light started ta form again, this time in different colors. There was a large one in red that just about encompassed the city. Then an orange one formed next, smaller than the red, but brighter. Then yellow, then green, then blue, then violet, and finally somethin’ that looked like pure white, but had a pinkish tinge ta it. Everythin’ hurt, and my body didn’t feel like it was gonna move any time soon. Am Ah about ta die? “Don’t… live with a regret you don’t have to, if the day ever comes that you don’t get the chance.” Celestia’s words echoed through my mind. If... if this is the end, then... Ah looked ta my side, and as always, there he was. His armor was all beat up, his helmet’s visor had been cracked open, but it looked like he was still breathin’. With everythin’ Ah could muster, Ah crawled a little closer ta him. Ah managed ta look him in the eyes before the light got too bright. “Ah love you,” Ah whispered. His eyes went wide, and then, the light engulfed the world.