//------------------------------// // Seventh Principle // Story: The Manual of Heroes // by Kaliann25 //------------------------------// Seventh principle: A hero doesn’t get surprised by a villain. It is the hero who takes the villain by surprise The Kingdom of Equestria was usually peaceful, and calmed. More than it was when the Bearers of Harmony were still young. That’s why it was only on very especial occasions that the presence of the four (now five) Princesses of Equestria were needed. Plus, the highest ranks of the three Royal Guards. Fear and tension were almost tangible. But, at least, everypony was doing their best to stay firm at the crisis. Also, there were a few lesser problems, like the fact that newly crowned Princess Flurry Heart and her parents stayed in opposite sides of the room, and refused to talk to each other. And the fact that Flurry named her friends, the League of Heroes, as her personal knights didn’t help to her case. “There’s only their awesome captain missing!” said Flurry, posing as a hero from her favorite comic books. “But, hey, I can assure you, Captain Awesome is really, really close.” Princess Celestia glared at her, making the youngest Princess to gulp. “I’m going to say this once, and just once!” said Celestia. “This is not the time for your stupidity. Now, behave if you don’t want to spend a night on the dungeons!” Nopony said more, and they passed to the only point on the agenda: the return of Grogar. Princess Luna turned to one of the few military present on the room. “Commander Sentry, please let in Prince Bright Spark, and Miss Luminositè Belle.” Flash hurried to open the door to his son, who smiled to him, and, after a quick hug between them, he joined his friend Lumi to appear before the Royal council. “Prince Bright Spark, Miss Luminositè Belle, please show us your letters.” asked Princess Celestia, The two teenagers pulled out, not the letters, but the photos they took from the letters, and presented them to the main Princess. “Tambelon.” Mumbled the white alicorn. “That place sounds familiar.” “It is an island, lost in the sea.” explained Flurry Heart. “Most of the historians agree that once it was a beautiful, and full of life. But one day, the ‘calamity’ came, and all the life was extinguished in a heartbeat. Now, Tambelon is only a lifeless rock on the middle of the sea.” They all turned to look at Flurry, in confusion. “What? Mom made me study all the potential foes of Equestria!” explained Flurry. “Anyway!” said Bright. “Let me guess: the calamity was, actually, our old pal the goat” Luna glared at him and frowned. He only shrugged, with an unconcerned smile. “Do you realize he swore revenge against you two, stupid?” asked Luna angrily. “The rest of us are nothing but insects to him. But he hates you two with all his heart.” “Precisely, but because we are the only ones who have defeated him.” Said Luminositè, taking a notepad. “Besides, all this time, Bright and I have been preparing for the retour of monsieur chèvre. The only inconvenient we had, was that any other than Grogar would be vaporized at a single shot.” Everypony shivered at the idea. “Bright, this is serious. Do you realize what you’re doing?” asked Twilight, confronting her son. “I know it sounds dangerous, but we have proven we have our arsenal under control.” Explained Lumi. “And, to avoid any problems, all our weapons are programmed to answer only to our DNA”. “Also, we won’t let him touch you, or dad, or godmother. Any of you!” said Bright Spark, really serious. “Last time we were lucky since we caught him by surprise. But now, he knows that our weapons work without magic, and he will be prepared for us.” “And, this time, we’re also prepared. Back then, we were lucky. This time, we have been training for this day.” explained Luminositè. “Monsieur Chèvre won’t be able to stop us from ‘reforming’ him for good.” “How are you planning to do that?” asked Celestia, concerned. “For starters, we’ll start with our final weapon. The very same tool that stopped him the last time.” finished Bright Spark. Celestia looked at Bright Spark, with fear in her eyes. Grogar was a fearsome and very powerful. No one could ever stop him… until Bright and Lumi came with their machines. However, Grogar proved to be extremely powerful, by resisting much more than the others. All the other villains would have perished before the monstrous arsenal the two ponies had. But Grogar survived all their weaponry, until Bright and Lumi had no choice but use their final resource: the egg-shaped nightmare. At this point, no one was completely sure what the scariest thing was. The fact that Grogar have survived the attack. The fact that Bright built it at the tender age of ten. Or the weapon itself: the nuke. “Are you telling me that you didn’t dismantled that things as we commanded you?!” asked Celestia. Bright nodded. “I’m sorry, godmother. I did it, of course. But, when I received Grogar’s letter, I had no choice but rearm them.” Cadence nodded. “Sorry auntie, but this time, I’m with Bright Spark. The egg-shaped nightmare is, well, a nightmare. But it was what saved us the last time.” Luna agreed, siding with Cadence and the two teenagers. “I also agree. Considering who are we dealing with, I’m actually relieved that we have those things.” She turned to Bright Spark. “Tell me, do you think you can shoot those things to Tambelon?” The colt grinned. “I only need the coordinates.” It seemed like the perfect solution, but this time, Flurry Heart had to object. “None of you guys read comics?” They all glared at her, but she explained herself better. “What I mean, is, what if this letter is a trap to make them waste their most powerful weapons? I may be mistaken, but, what if I’m right?” Silence. “That… actually makes sense.” said Shining Armor. “Of course it makes sense!” said Flurry. “Comics have a smarter writing than you think.” “Remember our time as villains?” asked Luminositè. “You would be surprised of how much we learned about the villainous nature by reading comics.” added Bright. “Then, what should we do?” asked Twilight. “Don’t worry, je have the solution.” Said Lumi, happily. “Remember the first encounter between the League of Morons with Monsieur Z and Le Puppè?” “League of Morons?!” protested Shadow Ninjutsu and Flurry in the unison. “Prove us otherwise.” said Shining and Cadence coldly. Ignoring them, Watt looked at the two geniuses, smiling. “I remember. That’s brilliant!” The two friends exchanged a look, and smiled. “So, do we have green light to do as we please?” asked Bright to his mother. Twilight nodded, reluctantly. “Alright.” Bright smiled, but Twilight put a hoof on his shoulder, as Flash Sentry faced him. “On one condition.” It was strange to see Flash as serious as he was now, but Bright nodded. “Of course.” “Do not lose control. Last time you were about to kill him.” Bright hugged his parents, an uncommon gesture coming from him. “Of course, mom, dad. I promise I’ll do my best to control myself… and my inner demons.” “Do not let the madness win.” said Twilight. “Same here, Luminositè. Promise me you’ll control this side of yours the best you can.” said Rarity to her daughter. “I will, mère. I promise I won’t surrender to the madness. But please, be at my side. If you’re with me, I can be sure the madness won’t take control.” “What?” asked Rarity, scared. But, she shook her head. And nodded. “Of course. Everything for you, Luminositè.” “Don’t worry. You won’t have to leave Ponyville.” said Bright. “Listen, this is what we’re going to do…!” At his sign, one of his Z-Bots turned into a flat screen. Island of Tambelon, a week and a half later: Villains of all races and shapes were waiting. They were summoned by the most powerful being in the world, and of course, they hurried to assist. No one could disobey Grogar. Most of them suspected it was a trap to exterminate them, but, even if that was the case, still there was no escape from Grogar. If they obey, they would have a quick death. If they dared to defy him, he would kill them slowly and horribly. But still, half of the villains were missing. Lady Catrina, Tirek’s teacher, was offering the mother of all parties on her own island. Unbelievably enough, the messages continued coming, saying how crazy the party was. And it was getting wilder by seconds. Even Tirek got lucky, and disappeared with his old teacher on her bedroom. In the meantime, in Tambelon, everyone was afraid, waiting for the lord of all villains; even if, on their own, they were a collection of fearful monsters of all sizes and shapes. Squirk the squid, Queen Porccina, King Charlatan (his son Edgar was having fun at Catrina’s), Chrysalis, Sombra, just to name a few. They were all waiting for the announcement of the most evil being of all times, and asking what kind of punishment would await for those who disobeyed him. At some point, someone noticed that in front of Grogar’s gate, there were two thrones entirely made out of obsidian, with two names engraved on them. Mister Z. Le Puppè. “It’s been a while since I hear those names.” Mumbled Sombra. Chrysalis agreed. “I know. I miss the times when they were just playing with us.” Suddenly, everyone muttered at the sight of a large hoof, followed by another one. And, then the rest of the Evil Overgoat. He frowned at the sight of the few ones who came to his call. But what truly irritated him, was to see that his guests of honor weren’t present. Screaming in anger, he grabbed Squirk with his hoof, and looked straight to his eyes. Squirk cried in fear, releasing a stream of ink at Grogar’s hooves. Grogar glared at Squrik, making the squid to cry in fear. “Give me a reason to not to make you an example here and now.” “I’ll clean it away! I swear!” And he began to lick his own ink from the hooves of the Overgoat. Grogar spitted to his face, and kicked him away. Squirk groaned in pain, but smiled widely at Grogar. “Thank you, sir! May I have another one?” Grogar frowned. “Where’s your dignity? Come on, stand before me, face me like the intelligent being you are. Not this garbage who begs for more punishment!” Seeing that the stupid squid was not going to answer him, he grabbed Porccina by the neck. “You! Tell me where is everybody? I was very clear when I commanded you to come.” She squealed in fear, pissing Grogar. “Do you want me to give you a reason to squeal? A REAL REASON?!” Gulping, the Queen of Pigs began to talk quickly. “Please! Do not blame us! Half of us decided that you’re not as frightening as they are, so, Catrina pulled a party. But we came! We’ll always follow you, my lord!” Grogar grinded his teeth. “Who are ‘they’?” “The only ones who have defeated you…” said Porcchina, weakly. “Speaking of, where are they?” asked the Overgoat. “I GAVE THEM AN ORDER!” Porccina trembled, afraid to answer. “What’s on your mind?” asked Grogar. “Answer me.” She lowered her gaze. “My Lord, since they defeated you, they don’t see you as a threat.” Finally, Grogar released Porccina. “Those two, I can overlook. But the rest of you, is completely unacceptable!” He charged his power, ready to make an example of all the villains of this island, and then, massacre the ones at Catrina’s island. But, out of nowhere, a voice called him. “Grow up! People don’t like you, accept it. Change, or continue like this and become a loner, who cares.” All the villains froze in terror, and slowly turned to the voice. As they suspected, it came from Bright Spark, who was walking side by side with Luminositè. They were wearing their power suits, ready for battle. Behind them, a small squadron of machines were ready to open fire at their sign. Grogar grinned. “It is you. Finally. You have to have guts to show up late.” “Monsieur Chèvre, we have very busy agendas.” explained Luminositè. “We don’t have the time to attend every single one who challenges us. You should be grateful that we came. Now, let’s finish this.” “Yes, we have things to do!” complained Bright Spark. The others just looked at Bright and Lumi in awe. How could they be this disrespectful to Grogar? Okay, they have defeated him, but that was only one battle. They couldn’t be really this overconfident, right? But Grogar laughed happily. This was hilarious! He truly hated those two, but he was pleased that the two of them decided to appear. As for Bright and Lumi, they were checking the small screens on their visors, analyzing Grogar in all aspects. Since his biometrics, to his power-levels. He was the perfect guinea pig for their most powerful inventions. If they were facing Grogar, they could use all their power without being concerned to kill him. Unlike the other villains, Grogar wasn’t fragile nor delicate. “Something is wrong.” said Bright to Lumi. “I know. Monsieur Chèvre, why are you using an illusion spell over yourself? Are you hiding something from us?” Grogar grinded his teeth. “You realized.” “Yeah, and we’re only a button away to blow your cover. So, why are you doing it?” asked Bright. “It’s a surprise.” said Grogar. Bright and Lumi nodded. “Okay then.” The other villains exchanged confused looks. “Wait, just like that?” “Yeah.” said Bright Spark. “Is not like we have to worry about anything. I mean, take a look around. The entire island is surrounded by our machines. Land, sky, and sea. We clearly have the advantage over here.” “Not to mention, Monsieur Chèvre cannot predict our moves, and we have multiple surprises in storage. Let him have his, doesn’t it affect us.” Grogar’s eye twitched. “You two are really pissing me off. What do you win from that?” “Finish this quicker, and go home early.” They both sat on their thrones, waiting for Grogar to do his move. All this overconfidence was irritating to say the least. But Grogar was happy. “Five years. I’ve been waiting for five long years for this moment. Don’t think I’m not ready for you this time.” Luminositè made a gesture with her hoof, calling her dollies, who served her tea. Bright made a gesture to his Z-Bots. One of them approached, and opened its chest revealing the refrigerator inside. Bright picked up a smoothie, and began drinking it. “The thing is, what do you think we’ve been doing this five years, Grogar?” asked Bright. “If you thought the weapons we had when we were ten were powerful, you’ll be absolutely speechless to what we have now.” “I’m sorry to tell you this, but you’re going to lose. Again.” said Luminositè. Grogar grinned, and the two thrones glowed in a red aura, forcing the two youngsters to stay sit, as Grogar’s eyes turned completely bright red. The two of them tried to free themselves, without really trying, but they saw it was impossible. At, least for the moment. Grogar stared at them with his bright red eyes. The Silver Cowbell glowed, separating from him, and dividing in two. A new attack? No, there was something else. “Sorry for disappointing you, couple of lunatics.” said the Overgoat, with a voice that wasn’t his. “But the fight you two yearn for won’t happen. The truth is, my Champion is in no condition to fight you two.” He took a look to the other villains. “Oh, such a shame. There are not as many witnesses as I wanted, but, you two are the ones who I care about.” Two of the machines in the air aimed their weapons to Grogar, as the two teenagers looked at him apparently uninterested. “Seriously? A stupid speech?” asked Lumi. “We weren’t lying when we said we have things to do.” “Yeah, start fighting now, or we will.” said Bright. “We came a long way to get here, and this trip is not going to a waste.” “Don’t you listen? There’s not going to be a fight. I invited you, to make you an offer you can’t refuse. An offer I won’t let you refuse.” The two rolled their eyes, and sighed deeply. They were clearly disappointed. “Come on! We spent five years developing our arsenals. At least a tiny fight?” asked Bright. The ‘witnesses’ have never questioned if these two were crazy, but this attitude surpassed all expectation. But, also, what did Grogar meant with an offer? Something was wrong here. In the end, Luminositè had the solution. “Okay, fine. Talk, and then we fight. Seriously, this is very anticlimactic.” The possessed Grogar began. “Before Creation, there needs to be Destruction. During eons, my purpose in life was to assure the balance in the world, protecting it, and tehm destroying it so a new world can be born. I’ve seen the lifespans of countless worlds, from their birth, to their death. Thousands of millions of beings starting and ending their lives over and over. But, this isn’t as simple as it looks. Each new world have their own set of rules, and in order to destroy it, you have to adapt to those rules. That’s why I always act through Champions, to act both as protectors, as destroyers of worlds. And êI always choose the evilest being in the world to act as the Destroyer.” Bright finally got it. “You are not Grogar, but the one who gave him his power.” “Precisely.” said the ram, still possessed by the Silver Cowbell. “I chose Grogar because there was no one who is more evil than him. I found him when he was young, and offered him the eternal life, promising that he would find a worthy opponent, eventually. I never thought it was possible, I thought his frustration would grow to the point he would destroy the world without blinking. And, right when he was about to reach his breaking point… you two defeated him. YOU TWO DEFEATED THE ONE WHO SHOULDN’T SUPPOSED TO BE DEFEATED!” “I see.” Sighed Bright, as he nodded. “Rejected!” “What?” Bright shrugged. “I like the world, I live in it.” “Wi, excuse moi. But Bright and I will be mauvaise tête but we like the world the way it is.” Grogar’s eyes glowed. “I told you, I’m not letting you refuse this offer.” The now divided Silver Cowbell attached itself to Bright and Lumi. The power suits tried to resist, but the raw power of the Cowbell was too much for them to handle. “Say hi to the new Destroyers of worlds!” shouted Grogar. But the villains couldn’t say anything, they were too confused, and scared. Mostly confused. Then, something went horribly wrong. The two teenagers began to generate sparks, and black smoke. And, much to everyone surprise, they both exploded in a million pieces, revealing that they were machines. Simple machines. “WHAT?” shouted Grogar. Several drones appeared over the island of Tambelon, forming an holographic screen, showing the Map Room, on Twilight Sparkle’s Castle; where five Princesses of Equestria, Flash Sentry, Shining Armor, the League of Heroes, the Bearers of Harmony, and of course, Bright and Lumi, were watching, eating different types of snacks, and just lying around. “What?” asked Bright, looking down at the island. “Surprised? Tell me, moron, did you actually believed that we would show up in Tambelon, falling right into your trap?” “We’re both geniuses, and prepared a trap on our own.” Grogar screamed in anger. “DO YOU THINK THIS IS SOME KIND OF GAME?” “Pal, we’re not becoming the destroyers of worlds.” explained Bright Spark. “Also, we made a promise to our mères.” said Luminositè. “We would never take a life. And, we’ll have to, if you turn us into the destroyers of worlds.” she took a sip of the tea she was drinking. “Besides, I don’t see why not keep using Monsieur Chèvre. But, if you really tired of him, why don’t you choose any of the bunch of nigauds you have around?” No one dared to answer. Only Grogar, who laughed maniacally. “Is not that simple. These idiots are seeking for power, fortune, everything. They have no idea of what is pure evil. Once they fulfil their desires, they’ll forget about destroying the world. You wrote the Code of the Villains years ago, right? You two know that being evil is its own reward. You are not blinded by your desires, you have no other ambition but seeing how far you can go.” “Then stay with Grogar and leave us alone.” said Bright. “One day, he may defeat us.” “NO, he won’t. Remember my surprise? TAKE A LOOK OF WHAT HAVE YOU DONE! SEE… THE HORROR YOU UNLEASHED OVER HIM!” The illusion wore off, and what everyone saw, was not pretty. Grogar was thin, really thin. He was nothing but skin and bones. And even his bones looked like they have lost some mass. His fur have lost its life, just as his eyes. He even had several bald zones over his boy, revealing that his skin was full of dark spots, and protuberances. Around the face, his skin seemed like it was hanging. He could barely stay on his hooves, and had a hard time breathing. “Look at what you’ve done!” said Grogar, this time with his real voice. “This is what you did. You say you would never kill, well, guess what! I am dying.” He coughed, spitting some blood. “LOOK AT WHAT YOU’VE DONE!” In Equestria, everypony looked at the horrible vision, in awe. “Bright, what happened?” asked Twilight. The kid shook his head. “Remember when I used the nuke on him, for the first time? That you shouldn’t release the dome until we tell you to?” Celestia nodded. “Yes, because the inside was extremely toxic.” She opened her eyes, shivering. “Oh… WHAT?” Lumi frowned. “Yes. But, he survived to the explosion. We never thought he would be affected by the radioactive poisoning.” Luna couldn’t believe this. “So those are the side-effects of the egg-shaped nightmare?” “A nightmare indeed…” mumbled Shining Armor. Flash looked at his son, with concern. “Bright, is there something you can do?” He nodded. “Yes. Put him out of his misery.” Nopony said anything. This was too horrible. “There’s no other way?” cried Fluttershy, softly. “The other choice is a slow and horrible death.” explained Lumi. In Tambelon, Grogar heard what his enemies said, and closed his eyes, resigned to his fate. “A slow and horrible death, huh? Yes, during this five years… I’ve been dying, in the worse possible way. He vomited. Just waters since he wasn’t able to eat anymore. He was pretty much done. “Do it!” he begged. Bright Spark took out a computer, and wrote a series of security commands. “I’m sorry.” He pressed the button, sending a total of six nuclear weapons to Tambelon. He looked at the other ponies, clearly affected for what he have just done. “Now what?”