//------------------------------// // Tale of The Titanfall // Story: Hurricane Trinity // by Lovesick-Ded //------------------------------// HURRICANE TRINITY An MLP Extended-Universe Story Written by M.J. Hopper CHAPTER ELEVEN “So, um…” Capper paused to take in his surroundings for what appeared to be the third time before looking back at Novo and Skystar, one of his ears twitching a bit. His expression was one of both befuddlement and curiosity. “Why, uh…why’d y’all choose to bring us here again, of all places?” “You’ll soon find out,” Novo informed them, nodding in his direction as she descended the final step; for some reason after hearing Capper’s tale of the daggers, Novo had insisted that the entirety of the group—Storm included—follow her lead, which apparently was down a painstakingly long flight of stairs into the heart of the Citadel’s basement chamber. Pausing to eye one front claw for a moment, she lifted her head and began to strut toward a small wooden door. “I apologize for the walk y’all had to take to get down here, but…we hid this chamber in the Citadel for a reason…uh…” Her eyes shifted toward Storm with a furrowed brow; Storm threw up his hands, eyes rolling. “I get it, I GET IT.” He folded his arms tightly across his chest and huffed a bit. “As if I’d even come down this stupid flight of stairs myself anyway…” Novo glowered at him a bit before continuing. “SO…as I was saying, back when your ‘friend’ here was still in power, the Hippogryph race was tasked with protecting and preserving the history of the worlds that lay beyond the Sea of Defilement, as well as safeguarding our own. In order for the things that lie beyond this door NOT to fall into the wrong claws…” She raised one claw to the center of the door and began moving it in a motion as if she were painting something. “…We made this specific chamber to contain them, should such an event ever arise.” She removed her claw from the door and raised her head. “Behold.” The group looked on in awe (for the most part; Storm still appeared unamused) as an arcane circle of pure lavender light came into view, glowing brightly in the darkness of the chamber in what appeared to be the exact array of lines Novo had originally traced on the door. The inner symbol flashed twice before turning to the side like a key in a lock and fading away, as the door gave and creaked open. Novo smiled to herself and nodded a bit before looking toward the others. “Arcana Sealium spell,” she informed them, sounding a tad boastful in the process. She winked at Capper. “We Hippogryphs still have a few tricks up our sleeves as well. This one in particular was passed down through centuries of research into Equestrian magic.” Capper smiled a bit in response, folding his arms and giving a nod of approval. “Not bad, Queenie, not bad. Still, wouldn’t recommend makin’ a door outta wood next time. One good blow shoulda done the trick back in the day…” Novo shot him an irritated glance, but decided to brush that statement aside and waved a talon toward the entrance. “Well, we’d best get this over with as soon as possible, regardless. The sooner you know the secrets of what you possess, the sooner you will know what exactly is in store for you.” “It’s much appreciated, Novo.” Celaeno bowed her head politely in response, and for a brief moment of time her own talon seemed to shift toward the side of her belt, where the hilt of her sword was still visible. She violently shook her head in an attempt to clear her mind and blushed a bit. “Uh, we…we really do appreciate that you were willing to listen to us…you know…” She glanced over at Storm in disapproval. “…Despite the fact we decided to drag HIM along.” “Hey, I—” Storm began, raising up a finger in objection, but quickly snapped his jaw shut once he saw the near-death-glare the parrot woman was giving him. He grumbled to himself and kicked a bit at the dusty floor with one hoof. “Gods, whatever.” “Y’all are welcome to enter this chamber and discover what lies ahead. However...” Now it was Novo’s turn to death-glare Storm. “Storm King…or should I say, ‘Storm,’ as they’re choosing to refer to you as…if you even DARE to step one of your dirty, cloven hooves outta line, I’ll bring the fury of the Hippogryph race down upon your sorry ass faster than a creature can blink.” She brought her muzzle close to his at the last word, baring her molars as she did so, and Storm recoiled a bit from the sudden motion of this move, eyeing her with a mixture of befuddlement and apprehension. “Do I make myself perfectly clear?!” “Gods, YES.” Storm’s tone was one of irritation more than anything, which he wasn’t originally intending to imply but it slipped out regardless. “Do you really think I could do anything about it anyway? Like, the most I could do is like, get Grubber to trip you over…or something.” His eyes shifted to the side as he realized how utterly stupid that sounded, and decided that perhaps it was best to keep his mouth shut for a small duration as it was clearly not helping his cause. Novo shook her head and turned her attention back toward the doorway. “We call this area the Chamber of History,” she began, as she took a step into the room; immediately a flood of violet light shimmered upward from beneath her front talon and spread across the room. Storm could faintly hear Skystar giggling with anticipation and both Grubber and Capper gasping in awe as the full chamber came into view, and, once adjusting to the light’s radiance, eyed it himself, slowly following the others in. Novo continued: “This chamber is a secret, and important, area in the Citadel, and for good reason too.” She smiled as the young Abyssinian and the little hedgehog’s eyes simultaneously glimmered in wonder at the relics and shelves strewn out before them, their smiles brighter than the hue of the light that they were currently bathed in. “As I was saying before…the Hippogryph race takes great pride in its history and lessons of the past…possibly things to come, as well.” Celaeno looked up from a small figurine she was viewing on a glass pedestal and furrowed a brow slightly. “What do you mean by, ‘things to come?’” “Prophecies,” was all Novo replied with. She turned around to face them, the violet light somehow giving her an appearance that unusually displayed more regality than normal. “It’s part of why I brought you here. Those daggers…the ones that the Abyssinian currently possesses…” She sucked in a breath, lowering her head, before looking them in the eye and opening her mouth. “I know—” “Ooh, ooh!” Skystar’s eyes immediately lit up and she grinned from ear to ear, bounding forward eagerly. She twisted in a circle anxiously before bringing her face up close to her mother’s. “Mom, Mom! I know the story you’re gonna tell…can I tell it? Please?” When Novo eyed her with a disgruntled expression, her eyes wavered playfully. “Pretty please? I did a really good job with it last time, and—” Novo heaved an irate sigh before rolling her eyes toward the ceiling. “Very well…fine. If y’all wanna tell it, I won’t stop you. Not like I could, at this point.” “Eee, yay!” Skystar squealed with glee before bouncing around on her feet a few times and folding her wings, facing the others. Her smile was more illuminated than the room itself at this point. “Okay, guys…I’m gonna tell you a really, really, REALLY awesome story now. I think some of you may have heard of it before, but I’m gonna recap anyway.” She giggled a bit and began bounding toward one of the nearby walls. “It’s a mythical story passed down through ONLY oral tradition the past, like, a thousand years or something…the story of the Titanfall.” Capper’s ears immediately pricked at these words. “Hold on a minute…y’all said ‘the Titanfall’ just now, right? I wasn’t, like, hearin’ things again or whatever?” “Nope.” Skystar merely gave a silly grin in response to this; the little Hippogryph princess could probably not be in a more ecstatic state if she tried. “I said I’m gonna tell the story of the Titanfall to you, and by the gods is it gonna be really good!” She squeaked a bit and shut her eyes before turning toward the wall. “Er, anyway…let’s see if I can remember how to…okay!” She smiled and traced a claw along the base of the wall as it flickered with faint light before a shimmering visage came into play, revealing what appeared to be a…six-eyed goat? Capper wasn’t entirely sure, and he raised a brow, but decided to remain quiet and listen, his ears alert for any information that may prove useful. This was the first time he was hearing the tale and, by the gods, he was going to burn it into his memory if need be. Skystar began: “Okay, so…a long, long time ago…I think maybe two thousand years or something? Anyway, there was a land to the West called…well, we don’t really know what it was called anymore, sadly…but we refer to it instead as the ‘Land of Trinity.’ Originally the place was really scary…like, seriously scary. It was ruled by a Demon overlord only known to mortal creatures as ‘Argon’.” Grubber cocked his head slightly, nibbling on one finger a bit in confusion. “’Kay, so, again, I heard the story before, but I need to know exactly, since you’re good on history n’ all…what exactly is a Demon? Like, I know they’re from a world beyond our own…but…” “Demons are, for the most part, manifestations of negativity in our world,” Novo interrupted, stepping forward for a brief moment. Her tone was grim. “Because they thrive on negativity and darkness, they are beyond the point of reason, and therefore are considered a high threat to all forms of life as we know it.” She paused for a moment as she saw Storm’s eyes waver and he turned his head away for a brief moment, in… …Was that shame she saw…? She frowned a bit but decided to dismiss it for now; it probably was nothing. Skystar nodded her head vigorously and continued: “So, Argon was an evil force known as a ‘Titan’, which is I guess what they call Demon overlords in their world. He was probably named so due to his size, or power or something…I dunno really.” She brought a talon to her mouth and blushed a bit in embarrassment. “Sorry…a lot of the information we know is kinda…like, vague. The ancestors refused to write it down, so we can only gather stuff we know from stories.” “That’s fine, Skystar,” Celaeno encouraged, folding her arms and raising an eyebrow curiously. “Please, continue. Vague or not, I want to hear this.” “Okay.” The young Hippogryph nodded her head and looked up toward the wall, as the vivid lines of light re-arranged themselves to depict an image of the goat-monster emerging from what looked like a volcano. “Anyway…Argon was feared throughout the entire Land of Trinity because of his immense hold over Demon armies. His realm was a huge volcano in the center of the land, where he was always seen looming over the entire area, terrifying its citizens to their very cores!” She flicked a wing slightly; the light became an image of three creatures in separate frames. Capper, Celaeno and Grubber all raised their eyebrows in unison; they had never seen beings that looked like this before. The princess smiled and raised her front talon to the frame, pointing each one out: “But then, something amazing happened! The three leaders of the races uniting the lands decided to band together to stop Argon. They were the noble Yeti…” The image of a large, furry, almost ape-like creature began to glow brighter than the others. Skystar smiled and brought a talon to her chest. “The brave Caprinians…” The light shifted its focus now to the image of what appeared to be a muscular goat-being, and as Novo continued to observe, she saw, once again, a flicker in Storm’s eyes as he eyed the etching with a quivering jaw. Her eyebrow raised, she looked over at the etching for a moment before Skystar added again: “…And finally, the third race, a group of dog-beings known as the Corgians.” The third image flickered into focus, revealing the visage of a creature that was obviously canine in nature, but had larger, pointed ears and a stout appearance. The light swirled and faded and Skystar looked at the group. “These three species didn’t always get along, though. For a very, very long time, the races were locked in a conflict amongst each others’ belief systems and traditions. They weren’t really the type to fight, but mainly kept to themselves and did not negotiate with the other lands.” “What happened to them?” Celaeno tilted her head a bit inquisitively. “How have we never seen any of these races beyond this point?” Storm was visibly trembling now, his tail tucked between his legs as he looked down at the floor, clutching his chest. Novo could tell that he knew something about this, and it was obviously inducing a mild state of trauma in the goat-creature, but why…she didn’t know, and the curiosity was gnawing at her psyche to the point where she almost demanded him to speak. Somehow, though…she kept herself silent. Now didn’t appear to be the time to pry. She struggled to turn her attention to her daughter; Skystar lowered her head a bit. “Well…now is kinda where it gets sad, guys. Because of Argon’s influence, um…” She shut her eyes tightly. “The Corgians…are extinct. Argon ravaged their land before the Titanfall and destroyed everything. I…I don’t think many of the poor things escaped with their lives.” Her eyes wavered a bit as she opened them, appearing saddened. “I…I don’t know what happened to the Yeti or Caprinians…but…” She paused to clear her throat, and attempted to regain her happy composure. “Th-that’s not the point, though. The point is, after the destruction of the Corgian race…Royden, the last Corgian, decided to put aside his differences and approach the Caprinians and Yeti with a request.” The young Hippogryph raised her head and nodded, fluffing the feathers on her chest a bit. “That request…was to band together, and defeat Argon!” Grubber plopped down on the floor and looked up, like a young child during story time. “How’d they manage to do that?” “Ooh, that’s where it gets fun.” The light returned to Skystar’s eyes and she giggled with delight, prancing a bit on her feet. “Okay, okay, so…” She gestured toward the wall again, as the image of a small band of warriors came into view. “The Caprinians and Yeti both agreed to Royden’s idea, and they gathered a small band of their best warriors AND representatives who could fight! Along with Royden himself, there were six others, all consisting of the strongest leaders and fighters from the remaining races. Three Caprinians, and three Yeti…I think.” She paused for a moment to tap below her beak in thought. “But anyway, they all knew that defeating Argon was not going to be an easy task. Demons have tough skin that most of our weaponry would just bounce off of, and of course since Argon was a big evil Demon lord, he was the worst of all.” She leapt forward and landed in front of Grubber, bringing her face close to his. “He was fearsome and cruel, and some even claimed his skin was made of magma because you’d BURN when you came near it!” She put a lot of emphasis on the last sentence, nearly shouting a few of the words, and Grubber yelped and almost fell backward, trembling all over as he wrapped his tail around his stubby legs. Skystar giggled a bit and reached out to pat him on the head in apology. “Sorry,” she said, although she couldn’t contain the mirth in her tone. “But seriously, Argon wasn’t an easy foe to defeat, obviously. Many had tried throughout the history of the races, and many had failed. But, Royden and the others were smart! They found out that the volcano contained a special type of ore that could be smelted into weaponry, and they also knew that it was the ONLY thing that could damage him.” “Argosteel,” Capper whispered, his green eyes growing wide as he came upon this realization. He looked down toward where he had sheathed the daggers. “So…wait, y’all are tellin’ me that—” “Yes.” Skystar nodded. “Those daggers you have…they were originally created to battle and destroy Argon.” “There were seven weapons in all.” Novo stepped forward, raising her head. “All of differing types, and one for each warrior destined to fight Argon. They were all crafted from Argosteel, and each one possesses a special ability. Those, in question, were originally called the ‘Destroyers of Hate’ and were wielded by a Yeti rogue.” “S-so…Baalade wasn’t lyin’…” Capper’s jaw dropped a bit and he stumbled backward, rubbing at one of his temples with a paw. “Oh man, this is a lotta stuff to process right now…” “I know, right?” Grubber replied, looking up at him. “You’d expect a merchant like that to lie WAY more often than he should.” Capper paused for a moment to give Grubber a perplexed look, as Novo added: “The runes etched into the blades are the symbols of the Yeti for ‘hope’ and ‘mercy’, which is what each blade was named after. Because the weapons were smelted from Argosteel, it is believed, through oral tradition at least, that the weapons possess some sort of sentience to the world around them. Not just ANYONE can wield those daggers…the weapon must interact directly with its master in order to be used with proper skill. Rather, the user doesn’t choose the weapon…” She looked Capper directly in the eyes, her expression serious as the word could possibly get. “…The weapon instead chooses its user.” Capper’s pupils seemed to narrow a bit and he shook his head, taking a shaky step backward as he eyed her in utter shock and disbelief. “No…no, there ain’t no way. I’m just a simple city kit. There’s NO way in absolute Hell that these things would choose—” Don’t be afraid. Capper’s ears flicked upright and he blinked, as the voice entered his head again. He recognized it all too well…it was the same voice he had heard during the battle with the Sand Kraken, when he had wielded the daggers for the very first time. Her voice. I won’t, he thought to himself in response, hoping the voice could hear him as he shut his eyes and heaved a deep breath. I won’t be afraid. Not anymore. He raised his head, and a glint of determination shone within his eyes. “Okay then…but, obviously there were six other warriors we’re all talkin’ about, right? What were the six other weapons, and do y’all still have ‘em?” “After the—” Novo began, but Skystar pranced in front of her, looking slightly offended. She seemed to draw her beak into a very mild pout, at least, as pouty as a beak could possibly get. “Heyyyy!” Her voice seemed a bit hurt. “Mom, lemme tell them the rest of the story first! I was just getting to the good part, too!” “Princess Skystar—” Novo began to chide her again but sighed midway and shook her head. “Fine, fine.” She placed a talon against her forehead. “Just, please wrap it up quick, okay? Now that our guests know, it’s imperative that we inform them of what’s to come.” “I’m gonna cover thaaaaat,” Skystar replied, sighing herself before looking over at the others. Her smile immediately returned; nothing could keep this Hippogryph down for very long, it seemed. “Anyway...okay, Mom said to make this as brief as possible, so I’m gonna tell you what I know in general for now. So, Royden and the others smelted these seven weapons, right? After they were crafted, the seven brave heroes traveled to Argon’s domain…the volcano in the dead-center of the land. They faced many challenges and cut down hundreds of Demons in their path! And eventually, there he was, rising from the magma in the crater…” She lowered her front legs and spread her back ones, as if preparing to pounce, and gave her tail a swish as she spread her wings. “…Argon HIMSELF.” Grubber gave a shocked gasp and brought both paws to his mouth, eyes wide, and Skystar grinned before bringing herself back upright, folding her wings in the process. “A huge battle took place then…the seven heroes versus everything Argon had. Argon fought viciously, but the others refused to give up! They continued with everything they had, every ounce of mind, body and spirit! Then…” She gestured toward the wall again, as the light-etched image of three appendages—a hoof, a paw, and what appeared to be an apelike hand—appeared, grasping a staff of some sort in unison. Turning toward the wall, she looked up, her eyes glittering as she said the next part: “Wielding the Staff of Trinity, a relic weapon crafted from the very essences from the fallen souls of all the lives lost…the three leaders combined their power into one incredible force. Together as one, they unleashed something so amazingly strong that it was enough to send Argon into the depths from whence he came. But…it came with a price.” She turned back toward the others. “Royden…I don’t know why, exactly…but he leapt into the fray in order to ensure Argon was downed for good. He lost his life in the process, ending the Corgian race as we know it today…” She shut her eyes and lowered her head to one side, trembling a bit. “…I…I’m sorry. I always get sad when I tell this part of the story. And…to make it worse, despite Royden’s noble sacrifice…Argon, he…” She choked up a bit at the last part, and Novo stepped toward her, stretching a wing and wrapping it around her daughter’s shoulder. The older Hippogryph looked up at the others. “Before he was downed, Argon somehow managed to use his dying breath to bind himself to the volcano. As a result of this, from what we know, the land from there on out was forever plagued. Not only that, but, he cursed the heroes and swore an oath that he would return to exact his vengeance upon not only the Land of Trinity, but the entire planet…or so it’s told. It was prophesized by the Yeti shamans that he would, indeed, return and that a second Titanfall would happen.” Her gaze drifted to Capper and she closed her eyes. “Guess we shouldn’t have doubted them now.” “Y’all can’t blame yourselves.” Capper stepped forward. “You had NO idea that this was gonna happen to us, let alone do anything to really stop it. Pretty damn sure your ancestors would’ve felt the same way too, had they been there.” “We…” Novo looked up, but her voice trailed off as she realized that Storm was no longer among the others; her eyes widened a bit in dread but she forced herself to remain focused on Capper for the time being. “We haven’t heard from either race in centuries, truth be told. After the first Titanfall happened, a majority of the weaponry was given to the Hippogryph race to ensure that they would not fall into the wrong claws. Then…well, they just…vanished into the mist. Tambelon, the Caprinian capital city, was the last place we heard from, and that was over a century ago. They were the ones that tasked us with the relics and upkeep of history for their kind…however, apparently only a few of them remain within our possession.” “Where are the others then?” Celaeno asked; her heart was beginning to crash against her ribcage in unease as she flicked her gaze toward the hilt of her sword. Novo shook her head, looking irritated now as she spoke: “Some buffoon of a historian thought that it would be best to send them to Princess Celestia after we re-took Mount Aris. Last I heard, they ended up in various shipments to Equestria over spans of time. Apparently they never MADE it to Equestria, though, due to the fact your friend here possesses the Destroyers.” The parrot woman’s eyes grew in shock and her heartbeat intensified; she looked off to the side and tried to speak further to prevent herself from hyperventilating on the spot. “Uh…um, so…c-could I maybe ask how EXACTLY the weapon ‘chooses its user’, like you mentioned earlier? Is there, like, some sort of…connection, or something?” “I don’t know, because I’m not one of the Chosen,” Novo replied. “But, from what I’ve heard, the weapon and its master…interact with each other, in a way. Something draws them together, like a supernatural magnetic force. It can be voices, flashes of light where there should be none, a sixth sense…any of these things, and you’ll probably know that the weapon has chosen you.” She raised an eyebrow slightly. “Why do you ask?” “I, uh…nothing.” Celaeno panted a bit and forced herself to look away. “I…I was just curious. That’s all.” “Er…” Novo appeared puzzled, but decided not to push the parrot woman any further for the time being; Storm was still loose somewhere and she needed to know where before something happened that she would come to regret later. “Very well…anyway, if there’s anything you need to know, please don’t hesitate to approach me later on. For now, however…we should discuss this further over a meal. I have no idea about any of you, but I cannot contemplate things on an empty stomach.” “Oh, I totally agree.” Grubber hopped to his feet and dusted off the front of his smock, adjusting it a little. “I can’t think for the life of me on an empty stomach. We should totally have, like, some dinner or somethin’ nice.” His ears flicked up then, and he looked around. “Hey…where did Storm go?” “That’s exactly what I wanna know,” Novo replied, storming forward toward the doorway. Her eyes narrowed as she looked back at them. “Come with me now. Chosen or no, if this turns out to be some sort of ruse, you ALL will receive the exact same punishment as HIM.” “Calm down,” Capper told her gently, stepping forward as the others followed, Skystar trailing behind in the back. “Look, I’m certain Storm didn’t go far. Y’all remember them steps, right? It took us forever just to get down the…” The young Hippogryph princess tuned out the voices as she thought to herself. She was happy that she hadn’t received a mouthful from her mother over leaving Mount Aris, and she was also happy that Capper, Celaeno and her friends were here. At the same time, however, upon seeing those daggers, and hearing that the second Titanfall was, indeed, not just a myth… …Well, she couldn’t help feeling a little twinge of jealousy. Capper and his friends were probably on their way to the Land of Trinity to stop Argon a second time, if the prophecy was correct…and there was probably going to be a lot of adventure afoot, explorations to be had, and laughs to be shared. She knew that her mother would never allow her to tag along without a good reason, and for that, she felt upset. She hung her head toward the ground. “I wish…I wish I were a Chosen, as well…” Skystar. The faint whisper of her name seemed to drift through her ears like a mild breeze; whipping her head up, she halted in her tracks and looked around. Despite the illumination of the room, she could still see nothing that could have possibly spoken her name like that. It was not her mother’s voice, and it was far too hoarse and raspy to be anyone else’s that she recognized… Skystar. “Who…?” She began trembling a bit, her eyes darting around in fear; she wanted more than anything to discover the source of this strange anomaly to quell her unease, but knew that she could not stay in the chamber for long due to the fact that her mother would no doubt scold her again. She broke into a canter, turning back once to call back to the voice: “I…I’ll be back later!” Then she was gone. The lights in the chamber slowly faded as the door shut, and everything returned to darkness. Everything, except for a faint yellow glow in the far corner.