//------------------------------// // Chapter 5: Diabolic Takeover // Story: The V-Team // by Reizthefakebrony //------------------------------// It was a bad a night to rest inside the Castle of Two Sisters. Just when Zade and his companions were about to take a real break from their rogue beginning, they found themselves being ambushed a mob of ponies and changelings blocking the doorway where the four demonic ponies came from, with Royal Guards wearing a golden armor being among them. The quadrupedal creatures were looking at them with a mixed feeling of fear and scorn. The worst mix ever. Two pegasi Royal Guards, being a stallion and a mare, were flying above the four ponies, probably studying their appearances. Visibly frustrated by this, Zade tried to maintain his calm in order plan something in other to deal with them without do any damage. Chris just kept a eye on each one of them, Sera was partially irritated for both her fatigue and the stress of the previous encounter and Jace was just surprised upon noticing the bright colored insectoid "Those insect-like ponies looked familiar to me." Jace commented "Perfect. Another unwanted encounter." Zade murmured annoyed by that. "I can't even have a break from this nonsense, isn't it?" Sera complained, irritated by both the current situation and being woke up after only four hours of sleep. "Judging their unnerved faces, I don't think they had any sleep either," Chris pointed out. "Why, of all places, they went right there?" Jace asked in bafflement. "And who the heck are these guys anyway?" The two pegasi Royal Guards slowly descended on the ground, landing next to their comrades. "What kind of demons are you!?" The male pegasus demanded. "That you are with the Regime or not, we cannot allow you to complicate the situation!" The female pegasus said. Upon hearing that Zade recalled something that her heard earlier, giving him a vague and yet plausible possibility. "I think I know who we are dealing with." Zade said, half convinced of what he said. "You know them?" Chris said confused. "They must be the Insurgence that Twilegion talked about." Zade replied bluntly. "Wait, what makes you think about that?" Sera asked perplexed. "That male pegasus said that we were part of Twilegion's Regime," Zade responded. "Putting aside that claim being contradicted by his colleague, I can assume that they must be the ones who are opposing her. As for our situation, they lost a refuge during a battle. They were probably looking for a new sanctuary to escape her control until they found this castle." "And they weren't expecting us to be there." Chris added. The ponies and changelings blocking the doorway whispered at each other in mild paranoiad when a emerald unicorn in a dark-blue armor, being probably a Night Guard, stepped out of the mob and looked at them. "What are we waiting for?" The Night Guard said, emerging from the group. "Let's seize them!" "Are you nuts!?" The female pegasus said shocked. "We don't even know what these monsters are capable of!" "I don't know you guys," Sera said with a intimidating tone as she slowly stepped toward the mob. "But I'm going to kick their asses." "Sera!" Zade shouted as he tried to stop her. "Don't do anything!" Before the two could even argue, a female voice, accompanied by hoof steps coming from the entrance caught the attention of all the present ponies. "What's going on here!?" In that moment, three red hooded figures made their way through the mob and stepped toward Zade and his companions before stopping a few inches away from them. Zade and the other three ponies scanned the appearance of the three ponies, with one of them being a taller one with a green skin and two average ones, with one of them having pink coat and a saddle bag, and the other having a gray one. "I didn't saw any villain that resembled any of them," The pink coated one said said with a disturbed tone. "Who are they?" "We found them in this very throne room in our arrival," The Night Guard informed. "That they are in coo-hoots with Twilegion Spadeus or not, we cannot say. That gray pony and that unicorn over there, however, are probably these two demon's masters." "We are what?" Zade exclaimed confused. "That's absurd!" Sera retorted. Jace's eyes went wide-eyed in realization. "That voice... !" The pink coated hooded pony grabbed his own hood and unveiled himself. The pony was a pink mare unicorn with a violet mare with azure stripes, blue eyes and slightly stern face. The four ponies were a little surprised to see her, with Jace looking at her surprised, seemingly recognizing her. "What the..." Jace stammered. "So you are the leader of the Insurgence after all," Zade said calmly. "Look, if you are going to attack us, at least tell me who is your name." "I don't know why you are with those monsters but I guess you should know who we are," She said. "I'm Starlight Glimmer, and I am indeed the leader of the army opposing Twilegion Spadeus. The Front of the Lost Harmony." "The Front of the Lost Harmony?" Chris said perplexed. "Insurgence is just a tag that the regime put on us." Starlight said with a bit of defiance." Twilegion called her regime the Order of Harmony.... I don't know what are you plot-" "Stop!" Jace interrupted, gesturing her to stop. "Stop." Zade, Chris, Sera, Starlight and the other two hooded ponies turned their attention to him. "Jace, could you had at least let her finish?" Zade said sternly. "Guys, I'm sorry but..." Jace paused, stuck in disbelieve. "This is Starlight Glimmer that we are talking about!" "We have no time for your fucking nitpicking!" Zade pointed out annoyed. "No, dude!" Jace protested. "This has to be addressed. Starlight is the same one who had brainwashed a entire village after removing everypony's cutey marks." Starlight flinched upon hearing that, with her heart skipping a beat. "How dare you!" One of the changelings of the group shouted. "You are seriously talking ill of her!? You are the real scums!" A unicorn mare of the group shouted. "Calm down, guys! I can handle that!" Starlight said to the group before returning her attention to the four creatures. "I know what I have done and I know who I was, but that's all in the past. My comrades knew about that as well and accepted me after I had finally atoned for that. You can't make me falter with a chapter that I had put behind long time ago." "Do you really expect me to believe that?" Jace retorted, distrustful. "I mean-" "That's enough!" The Night Guard shouted, interrupting him. "Starlight. If those creatures are at the same level as Sombra or Tirek, then we can't allow them to roam free across Equestria. Their goal would probably be trying to overthrow Twilegion, just to take over our already devastated word!" "We are doing what!?" Sera exclaimed, taken aback from that. "Good job, Jace. You have only contributed to piss them off," Chris said with a serious tone, rubbing his forehead with his three-digits claws on his hoof. "I just said the truth!" Jace complained. "In the worst time possible," Zade retorted nervously. "Besides, I knew that they thought of us as the bad guys, but I wasn't expecting them to put that on the extreme level." Starlight looked a little doubtful about what to do, but after one pondering moment, she returned her attention to the four creatures, looking at them with grim determination. "We cannot afford to fail at saving Equestria because of them." Starlight said sternly. "Wait a second!" Zade said. "All of the unicorns!" Starlight shouted. "Prepare your horns. We are going to seal them!" The four demonic ponies became instantly dismayed upon hearing that. "WHAT!?" True to their words, Starlight and all of the the unicorns pointed their horns at the them. Their horns glowed and with much bright and intensity. The other two red hooded ponies took a few steps back to distance themselves from the scene. Seeing the situation was going to get worse, Jace was about to take his own initiative when something inside him stopped him and subconsciously suggested him another possibility. Jace became more surprised about that, with confidence growing even more. "Here I comes!" Jace proclaimed as he suddenly disappeared in veil of flames in front of all of the ponies' eyes and immediately reappeared behind Starlight, startling her comrades. "What the...!" Starlight exclaimed, looking behind her. "Starlight! Watch out!" The taller hooded pony yelled with a almost soft male voice. Starlight didn't have the time to react that Jace turned into a coil of black-red flaming mist and wrapped around Starlight's body, engulfing her in black flames. Her horn stopped glowing due to her loss of focus. She screamed briefly, one moment before the flames started to enter inside her mouth and through her coat. "STARLIGHT!" The taller hooded pony screamed. After a few seconds, the flames dissipated, leaving a strangely entranced Starlight in their wake. She looked down to the floor as the unicorn, including the Night Guard were rushing toward with a very worried look. They didn't know what happened to Starlight or even explain how Jace disappeared. Zade, Sera and Chris were completely astounded by that. They had a hard time to process about what happened. Then a vague and macabre idea of what Jace was doing in that moment flashed in front of their eyes. They became quickly disturbed upon considering the various implications of what they where seeing in that moment. They slowly, reluctantly turned their heads toward the immobile Starlight. "I.... Is that really happened?" Sera stammered. "Did-" "Sssh," Chris said to her before whispering. "We have to confirm that yet." "I don't even want to know what Jace managed to do," Zade murmured. "Starlight, you are alright!?" The taller hooded pony said with a worried tone. "Wait, why her coat wasn't burnt at all?" The gray hooded pony asked in annoyed disbelieve with a slightly arrogant female voice. "You are not of any help at all." The taller one retorted. Starlight remained motionless, not saying anything or moving a muscle. Then, after some seconds, she lifted her toward Zade's group. She smirked. Without any warning, Starlight glowed her horn and teleported both herself and the two hooded ponies next to Zade, Chris and Sera, much to their confusion and that of the ponies and changelings of the mob watching the scene dumbfounded. "Starlight, what are you doing!?" The taller one asked in confusion. "Alright, dudes!" Starlight with a voice being a hybrid in between her own and Jace's demonic one as glowed her horn. "Let's get out of this funk!" In a blink of a eye, 'Starlight', the three demonic ponies and the two hooded one disappeared from the sight of the whole group of ponies and changelings. They were left deeply shocked by what transpired, with the Night Guard being about to handle their leader's ponynapping. Still in the Castle of Two Sisters... In the secret reading room. There was a flash of white energy. Zade's group, 'Starlight' and the two hooded ponies appeared. Confused, the ponies outside 'Starlight' looked around to see where they are. The hooded ponies turned their heads at their leader, who was nearby the three members of the demonic party, who looked at her with their incredulous faces. "Starlight?" The taller one said, seemingly confused by her behavior. "W... What are you-" "Oh, c'mon dude!" 'Starlight' interrupted annoyed. "You saw what the hell happened and you are still questioning it!?" The two hooded ponies winced. Zade, Chris and Sera, on other words, looked at him in bewilderment, with their jaws almost falling. They vaguely knew what happened to the unicorn and their friend, but refused to believe that happened. "J-J... Jace!?" Sera stammered. "That must be a joke," Chris said, having a hard time to remain composed. "Of the worst caliber..." "I know, pal," Starlight/Jace said, a little embarrassed, giving a quick look at her body. "I'm not used to inh-" "No. That's not the point." Zade interrupted. "You are telling me that you had actually hijacked her body!?" "Look, neither I expected myself to be able to do that. But since I'm the pony equivalent of Diablo, I should hav-" Starlight/Jace couldn't even finish his phrase that Zade put his hooves at her and start shaking her back and forth. "You had kidnapped other living beings!!" Zade screamed. "What is wrong with you!!?" Jace released himself from his grasp. "Hey, those ponies didn't gave us any choice!" "HEY!" The taller hooded pony screamed, getting their attention. "I don't know what is going on but I command you to get out of her body!" "Only if you listen what Starlight has to say once I got out of her body." Jace replied in annoyance. "I will never-" The hooded pony stopped and changed his tone with a confused one. "Wait, what?" "Jade,what are kind of idiocy you are plotting this time?" Chris demanded. Jace was about to answer when Starlight's voice suddenly yelled inside his mind. "Get out of my body already!" "Don't rush me, dammit!" Starlight/Jace screamed in annoyance. The possessed unicorn glowed her horn and teleported next to the two hooded ponies. They didn't have the time to react that her body was suddenly engulfed in black flames as a black-flaming mist came out of her mouth and her coat, leaving Starlight to collapse on the ground with her hooded companions approaching her, apparently unconscious. The flaming mist flew next to three demonic ponies and shifted his form, turning itself into a solid one. Slowly, Jace's flaming form reappeared, showing a dazed visage. "Whoa... I'm totally not used to this." Jace said. "Now who's talking," Sera retorted. "You crepped me out!" "Guys, we have another problem to think about," Zade reminded them. "I demanded a explanation." The taller hooded pony said sternly as he removed his cloak, revealing himself. The pony was actually like one of the bright-colored changelings, except more taller and had beetle-like mandibles protruding from his forehead, making him look like a insect-like horse-deer hybrid. His eyes are purely purple and has three white diamonds attached to his torso. He had big wings and blue ethereal tail. Zade and his companion stared at him with a mix of astonishment and cautiousness. Jace in particular was dumbfounded by that sight. "What Hasbronian spore of mindfuck is this?" Jace whispered. "What is your game?" The changeling asked sternly. "First you took Starlight's body against her will. Then you took us in this room and now you willingly brought her back to us? It doesn't make any sense." "Maybe because they are amateurs," The gray coated hooded mare said blutntly. "How can you tell that?" The changeling retorted. "We saw him possessing Starlight." Before that could continued, a soft groan caught their attention. They looked at Starlight, who slowly opened her eyes. "Starlight! Thank goodness." The changelings said relieved. "I... I am free?" Starlight asked dazed. "Is ok, Starlight. I will save you from them," The changeling assured her. "Thorax, no!" Starlight shouted, suddenly standing up on her feet. "You have to listen to me! The flaming pony over there was right!" "Starlight, you don't make sense in this moment. What do you mean with that?" Thorax asked as he was worrying for her sanity. "You had to believe me. These ponies are not our enemies." Starlight said bluntly. Thorax and the remaining hooded pony remained silent for a moment before shouting. "Are you serious!?" Zade, Chris and Sera slowly turned their eyes toward Jace, with a very stern face. "Jace, what the hell did you had done to her?" Zade demanded. "Let me explain." Jace informed. " When I possessed her, I had saw her past, her redemption and, I can't believe what I had saw, helping a changeling, that being Thorax, to dethrone Chrysalis and become the ruler of a new species of changelings." "Wait," Sera interrupted him, glaring at him. "Doesn't that count as privacy violation?" "It was accidental, ok?" Jace replied annoyed by that. "Besides, I couldn't even continue that Starlight's conscience stopped my in my tracks and tried to fight back, but I managed to keep her in check. And since I knew that my action was outright villainous, I shared my memories of us and our encounter with Twilegion and made a deal with her. It was a fair trade." "You have done WHAT!?" Thorax exclaimed shocked. "Thorax calm down," Starlight said. "I will explain that." "I don't want doubting you," Thorax replied hesitantly. "But... Are you seriously telling that these creatures are not bad guys?" "Guys, give me one second to deal with a problem of our," Zade said before turning to Jace with a pissed off look. "You are kidding me, right? "You mean that you had showed her... Everything?" Sera asked with a almost homicidal tone. "Whoa! Don't exaggerate!" Jace replied nervously. "I just showed her only what she need to know. Hell, I didn't had told her about our private lives.... Except our activities as members of our mocking, satirizing occult club and the explosive incident. "What!?" Chris exclaimed shocked. Sera facehoofed, almost feeling a urge to kill Jace. "I understand that no one in this world would even believe or care about those details but why did you had spoiled that?" "Knock it off for a moment, all of of you." Zade ordered, then he took some steps toward Starlight. "Putting aside Jace's questionable tactic." Jace was about to retort until Sera blocked his mouth with her hoof. "You should remain unspoken, idiot." Sera whispered menacingly. "It's finally time that we got some answer," Zade said bluntly. "It's about seven- I repeat- seven hours since our arrival. We appeared in this world with have no knowledge regarding this world or this crisis, risked to die by the hands of that... pegasus-unicorn hybrid tyrant and couldn't rest properly. So I'm going to ask, crystal clear, what the hell is going on here?" Starlight took a moment to think about that, as something weighted inside her memory. She gathered that little of courage that she could take and prepared her words. Thorax was about to intervene but she gestured him to remain still, much to his confusion. "Alright, I will tell you what happened to our world... But you won't like it."