//------------------------------// // That's a Big Bear // Story: Final Fantasy VII: Darkness in Equestria // by Axel IV //------------------------------// The Royal Throne room was quiet and timid today, the warm summer breeze making its way through the castle's windows carrying the scent of freshly baking pies from the town. Celestia could almost taste the delicious peach pies, and she had to make sure her royal mouth didn't water in front of anyone. It was the time of day when Pony's from all over would come to speak with her on important matters, and there was almost always a long line in front of the doors. Sighing, she had to hold back a groan when Prince Blueblood entered the room. Prince Blueblood...the most arrogant, self-centered, laziest pony in all of Equestria. Princess Celestia was so annoyed that he was actually related to her. When he stepped into her throne room, his head held high, she almost wanted to throw up rainbows. What was the matter with him? Why did he always visit her about stupid trivial things? Last time he came, he was complaining about how his plumbing wasn't fast enough. Quickly, she needed something to grab her interest...something that would allow her to avoid Blueblood for the day...but what?! As the prince began to open his mouth, the throne room doors were thrust wide open, "PRINCESS CELESTIA!" "THANK THE HEAVENS!" The princess exclaimed, before clearing her throat with a nervous chuckle, "I mean...what is it?" When she saw Clear Skies tumble through the doorway, Celestia's heart stopped. Clear Skies...wasn't that the pony that Luna sent to investigate the Northern Impact in the mountains? What happened? Where was her team?...And why did she look so scared?...The once firm, fearless Clear Skies was now shaking, her eyes wide in horror. What had happened up there? "Princess..." She choked, her voice shaking, "I...come...w-with n-news from the in-investigation. I-I...." "Guards! Get her cleaned up and warm!" Celestia commanded, "She needs a place to warm up and rest. Blueblood, I'll hear you out. This is urgent." The prince grumbled something and walked away, the throne room doors closing behind him. Whatever had occurred at the northern meteor impact was definitely something that needed to be looked into. Celestia watched as Clear Skies was carried away by the guards. Poor thing...its as though she had seen a monster. Cloud cracked his neck, his sword hanging from the harness on his back. He sat at the bank of a small river in the forest, splashing the shimmer cool water onto his hot face. This was the only peaceful spot he found in the forest, and that was where he stayed at night. He slept up in a tree, and that itself was incredibly uncomfortable. Waking up with a stiff sore back sucked, and Cloud wondered how he had managed to do it during their hunt for Sephiroth all those years ago. Sephiroth. It really made him mad whenever he thought of the murder that mercilessly slaughtered the people from his hometown. Everyday, the image of the demon turning his back to him in the flames of his town appeared in his mind, instantly throwing Cloud into a bad mood. Yes, he defeated Sephiroth a total of three times. But was that man ever truly destroyed? I will never...Be a memory. Cloud thought about the last words Sephiroth spoke to him. Sephiroth would never be done. Sephiroth would come back time and time again until he won. And that is why Cloud needed to return to his home planet. Only he could beat his nemesis. The thought of returning to a burning planet enraged him, and Cloud slammed his fist hard onto the cold stream, splashing the water all over his black glove. And with the sharp pain that followed his attack on the harmless river, he changed his train of thoughts back to the last creature had had fought. The weird blue bear seemed to be littered with stars and was slightly translucent. That was the one creature that Cloud had fought in this world that was actually dangerous...It was stronger than many creatures he had fought back on his planet, but nonetheless he had no trouble defeating it. He guessed that he just crossed into its territory, and he really didn't need to take its life away. Cloud stood up, taking out a small cell phone from his pocket. He flipped it open, staring at the wallpaper picture he put it. It was a picture of him, Tifa, Marlene, and Denzel in front of the bar. They were all smiling...well, except for Cloud. With a sigh, he shoved the phone back into his pocket. He wondered what they were doing with their lives...how were they without him? After the Sephiroth incident, he really stepped it up. He was home as often as he could be, and he was really supporting the small family they created. Cloud's boots dug into the earth as he walked on, pulling a few branches out of his way. He decided that going back to Ponyville was the only thing he could do...He needed to reveal himself in a somehow casual fashion. Or maybe something so completely flashy that they maybe would except him right on the spot. A huge, deafening roar echoed through the trees, the leaves rustling as the ground starting having minor tremors. He heard what sounded like trees falling and large footsteps, followed by screaming. That was NEVER a good sign. Gritting his teeth, he drew his large sword, sprinting after whatever was chasing the screamers. Looks like he might have to reveal himself a little too soon. "TWILIGHT!" Rainbow Dash screamed out, "Can't you do some weird magic to make it go away?!" "Have you seen how BIG that thing is?!" Twilight yelled back, the mini earthquakes making it quite difficult for her to actually run. "It's a preeetty big bear!" Pinkie cried out, "But I don't think its friendly this time!" "I'm too young to die!" Applejack cried out, "I haven't even had a special somepony yet!" The Ursa Major was ridiculously huge. It's child, the Ursa Minor, was huge...but not THIS huge. The Big, bad Ursa Minor was smaller than the foot of an Ursa Major. The Ursa Major itself was even more giant than the tall trees around it, and it was pissed off. Whatever had hurt its kin was in for a lot of trouble...and only the Princesses could defeat such a monster of that size and power. "Rainbow Dash!" Twilight panted, hiding behind a tree as the huge monster looked left to right for them, "You...you need to get to the palace! Get Celestia here!" "What?!" Rainbow gasped, her eyes wide, "No way! I'm not leaving you guys!" "You're the fastest one of all of us! We'll buy some time for y'all!" Applejack replied with shaking hooves, grabbing onto her friend's shoulders, "Do it! Go on! We'll be fine! Trust us!" Rainbow looked hurt, her ears flattening as tears began to well up in her eyes. She then shook her head, wiping the tears as her wings flared up, "I'll...I'll be back before you even know it!" With that, she took off towards the skies. The Ursa Major noticed her immediately, but before it could grab her with its massive paws, a small red apple clunked softly against its knee. "Hey you!" A southern accent called from below, "Get down here! There's more where that came from- Aw, horseapples!" The orange mare had to scatter away as the creature stomped down, leaving a huge imprint on the ground that could have been Applejack. Ponyville was only a short distance away, and they had to clear the town as fast as they could. Rarity and Pinkie were tasked with doing just that, and Twilight and Applejack were to distract it. Twilight's horn was glowing bright and hot, sizzles and powerful lights shining around it gloriously. Her magic was at its fullest, and she conjured a powerful temporary barrier that created a dome around the outskirts of Ponyville. This was a skill her brother had taught her after the changelings incident, but it was a different spell. It allowed those inside to go out, but those out couldn't get in. She could only hold it for a few minutes, but those precious minutes could save many lives. Fortunately, Pinkie and Rarity didn't have to do much convincing in Ponyville. Most of the ponies saw the gigantic bear roaring angrily as it stormed from the forest, and they were pretty much all in a panic to leave. They were all grabbing their children and most important things and running out from the large barrier, screaming for their dear lives. The guards were maintaining order, yelling out an escape route that everypony followed. Rarity and Pinkie helped out the elderly and the young, and when the barrier finally shattered, Ponyville was empty. "Pinkie! Rarity!" Twilight and Applejack yelled out, running to the center of town, "Is everypony gone?!" "Yes!" Pinkie declared, saluting, "Private Pinkie requests new orders!" The roar behind them shook the buildings, and even some of the glass windows had broken and splattered onto the ground. The giant monster was closer than they thought, and before they could even blink a huge purple foot was coming down right on their heads. "Celestia..." Twilight said quietly, her tears running down her cheeks, "Please...Save us!" Celestia was flying so fast that Rainbow Dash could barely just keep up with her. And this was the fastest flyer in Equestria! She had pulled a sonic rainboom to get to the palace, and she pulled one to leave as well. But Celestia was directly in front of her the whole time. Celestia was filled with overwhelming concern for the elements of harmony, and even more so for Twilight. Twilight was like important family to her...and she didn't want to lose her. The Ursa Major was seen in the distance, and Celestia saw the purple unicorn and her friends. But she only saw the bear attack when it was too late. With a powerful stomp, Ponyville quaked, some of the structures shattering and breaking down. The bear had stomped down directly onto the ponies. "NOOOOO!" Twilight had expected death to be like a cold embrace filled with a world of darkness where you can only cry and regret anything you ever did. But now she found it...kinda breezy?. Opening her eyes, she noticed that the Ursa Major's foot was about approximately thirty yards away. She blinked, looking around. Her friends were beside her, blinking in confusion. Applejack, however, was lying on her back with her mouth foaming. Twilight glanced over at the foot, "Wait...wha- It was then that she noticed the figure standing between them and the Ursa Major. It....was hard for her to describe. The figure was dressed in black head to toe, yet she could see what looked like arms coming out. Arms...and hands? Didn't only dragons and gryphons have those? At the top of what she thought was its head, was what looked like golden feathers spiking out. She realized then that it was hair. In its right hand, was the largest sword that Twilight had ever seen in her life. It was much taller than he, and it looked mechanical. "What?..." Twilight asked in a quiet voice. The figure didn't turn its back, and it began to race toward the massive monster. "Time to fight." Whatever the monster was, it was huge. Really freaking huge. But it wasn't like Cloud hadn't fought a large monster before. There were the weapons, and he could think of a few other creatures he had fought. But this would be on his own...he had no friends backing him up on this. Oh well...He could do it. The monster noticed him and snarled angrily, lifting a paw to swipe at him. But the blonde fighter was too fast. As the paw smashed the earth, he had leaped onto a row of buildings, running on top them. Heaving his sword above his head, he jumped at it. With a powerful slash, his sword slashed against the creature's arm, strange purple blood spouting from the wound. The bear growled, shaking its arm to get him off. The creature then stood up on its hind legs, roaring its challenge. Cloud back-flipped off, landing on the ground with ease. It's monstrous size was indeed a problem, but he was too small to be able to hit quickly. The monster tried to stomp on him, the houses shaking and creaking with damage. Cloud jumped back, landing on top of another building. He could slowly cut it down with small wounds, but the creature had a possibility of bleeding to death. He definitely didn't want to have a reputation of killing something in this world. He would have to knock it out in one blow. The monster roared, slashing down at the building he was on. Bending his knees, he leapt up as high as he could, and when the paw landed, he jumped right on top of it. He raced up the creature's arm, holding his sword to the side. As he was nearing the elbow, the giant bear attempted a swipe at him. Cloud ducked, the claw barely passing above him. When it was clear, he resumed his climb up the bear's arm. The monster then began to shake its arm wildly, growling in fury to get him off. But Cloud had already made it to its shoulder, and was high above the small town below. He jumped up, grabbing a hold of its ear and using it to propel himself high above the monster's head. It was now or never. Cloud spun around in the air, holding the sword above his head, the dull side flipped to the front. Cloud then started to emit a strange, foggy blue like glow from his body, his sword ready to strike as he readied his limit break. The monster looked up, snarling at him. Cloud then began to fall downwards, his momentum carrying himself down to the creature. This was a risk, but Cloud had risked his life many times before. The creature cocked its arm back ready to strike him from the sky. But the fighter could only smirk. Just before the bear could attack, it hesitated, the pain coursing through the cut on its arm. The monster snarled through it, slashing up at the sky. But that one moment's hesitation had been too slow. Its paw stuck the air behind him, and Cloud grunted, bringing his sword down onto the head of the beast. The contact had caused a powerful shockwave, the blue light exploded onto the creature's head, causing a loud booming noise. Cloud felt the vibrations course through his sword into his arms, and he bit past it. The monster didn't make a sound and it just seemed to sit there for a few moments as Cloud dropped from the impossibly high height, landing smoothly onto his feet. He smiled. One more second past, and the creature began to topple backwards. But before it could hit any of the buildings, a golden glow encased its body, and the monster began to levitate. Cloud blinked, watching the strange spectacle. He didn't think any of these ponies were that powerful...was there a special pony that had just arrived? "F-FREEZE!" A shaky, loud commanding voice echoed through the street. And before Cloud even realized it, he was completely surrounded by what looked like guards. They were wearing shiny golden armor, and each of them was a unicorn. Their horns glowed angrily at him, but Cloud only stared back. "D-Drop your weapon!" The same guard called back. He obviously wasn't calm in this situation. A few thoughts then crossed Cloud's mind. He could easily escape...there was probably no pony that could hold him. He could be out of there in a few seconds at most. Or, he could beat down the guards and escape that way. They couldn't take him. Cloud let go of his heavy sword and the weapon crashed onto the ground, making each of the guards jump a little. It was definitely as heavy as it looked. They were surprised that he knew what they had said...or at least they think he did. Celestia was about to decimate the creature before the strange figure in black had appeared. And in quick seconds, he not only beat the creature untouched, but he almost managed to keep it alive. She had to hurry and catch it with her magic, not wanting to destroy any more buildings. After a few minutes, she laid it down safely in the Everfree Forest and hurried back to Ponyville. The figure that had beaten the Ursa Major was surrounded by her guards, its massive sword lying still in the street. Celestia cleared her throat, walking up to the strange creature. It was donned in strange black clothes, and it looked like nothing she had ever seen before. It's body was covered in neither fur nor scales, and its hair was protruding oddly like feathers. Its eyes were a strange blue color, and as soon as she arrived it turned to stare at her. "Princess Celestia?..." One of the guards asked, "What do we do with the....um...thing?" She walked up, looking at the creature once more, "I'll deal with it. In the meantime, restore order to Ponyville." "I'm not a thing." Celestia blinked. This thing could...speak their language? But without another word, her horn flashed and they disappeared, leaving the large steel weapon on the ground. Author's Note: This chapter was hard for me to write and think about, so I might have a few weird parts in there. But it's done! And Cloud finally gets to meet the ponies! Tune in next time!