//------------------------------// // Chapter 47: Prelude to War // Story: BlackWarGreymon: Warrior of Harmony // by I-C-U-P //------------------------------// By using the newer train from the Crystal Empire, princess Twilight and her friends had returned to Canterlot at a much quicker time. As they arrived at the train station, it was almost late afternoon. The sky glowing orange from the sun slowly reaching towards the horizon. As soon as the train came to a stop, the Mane Six and Spike made it onto the platform. Where they were greeted by a very familiar face. “Princess Celestia!” Twilight said, always excited to see her favourite teacher. “Twilight. It’s so good to see you and your friends back safely,” The white Alicorn replied as she gave Twilight a welcome hug. Afterwards, the tall princess noticed that not everyone was among them. “Wait, where’s Luna?” She instantly received a response. “I’m over here.” Turning around, Princess Luna was seen walking towards the group with BlackWarGreymon following close behind. “Sister. We have so much to tell you,” Luna added, excitement evident in her voice. Celestia chuckled in response. “I can imagine so. And how are you BlackWar…” Celestia paused midsentence as she turned her gaze onto the Digimon. Startled from the sight of a large crack across his armoured chest. She could also sense that his energy was somewhat depleted. Although the Sun Princess suspected that King Sombra had returned to the Crystal Empire, she wouldn’t had thought that the Unicorn would give BlackWarGreymon such a hard time. Something didn’t felt right. “Wha…what happened to you!?” She asked in concern. BlackWarGreymon looked down at his wound before speaking. “Like Luna said, we have a lot to tell you. But I’m fine now.” Though Celestia remained concerned for BlackWarGreymon, his words were enough to reassure her that he would be ok. But deep down, she was a little shocked that something in Equestria was able to hurt him. She was snapped out of her trance when Twilight’s voice reached her ears. “You said in your letter that you have a special surprise for BlackWarGreymon.” “Oh yes. All of you follow me to the Canterlot gardens.” Doing what she said, the group followed Celestia towards the gardens. During their walk, the White Alicorn glanced over to BlackWarGreymon. Wondering what he and the others had been through at the Crystal Empire. But she would ask them after her little surprise was out of the way. Before she turned her head away, she saw that Luna was walking beside him. All the while glancing over to him with a smile with him responding with a glance of his own. Then Celestia thought of something. While the group left the train, Luna didn’t appear to be on the same coach as the rest of the ponies. And by arriving alongside BlackWarGreymon at the same time, it was evident that she shared the same coach as him. Celestia then faced back forward, hiding a small smile on her face. ‘Seems Princess Cadence was right in her letter.’ Ever since the Grand Galloping Gala, Celestia had suspicions that something was going on with her little sister. So when the group went to the Crystal Empire, Celestia secretly sent a task for Cadence to watch over Luna and see how she acts. Especially around BlackWarGreymon. And if anything ‘interesting’ happened, her niece would write back to her. So when Cadence wrote back to Celestia about the group returning from the empire, she added in her findings. Of which the white Alicorn found interesting and confirming her suspicions. But it was a matter to talk about on a later date. Since there were a few things to cover up first. As the group entered the Canterlot sculpture gardens, Celestia spoke up. “Also your timing couldn’t be more perfect. For it has just been finished.” “What has?” Twilight asked. After emerging around the bend in the hedges, the white princess revealed her surprise. “That.” The mares and dragon gasped in astonishment at what they saw, while BlackWarGreymon was simply left speechless. Because standing in front of them, was a large statue of BlackWarGreymon himself. Measuring twenty feet tall and standing on a large dais. The posture of the sculpture was just him standing tall and strong. But just the look of it and the amount of detail put into it was enough to wow anyone who would look upon it. Celestia chuckled from the looks on her friends’ faces. “Well, what do you think?” “Wow,” Twilight simply said. “The big guy’s got his own statue,” Rainbow Dash added, slightly jealous that she wasn’t immortalized in stone. “It’s… it’s impressive,” BlackWarGreymon said as he eyed the details on the sculpture. “I take it that you had this made while we were away?” Luna asked her older sister. “Yes. This is my way to thank BlackWarGreymon for what he has done for Equestria.” She then turned towards the Digimon. “This world would be in a very bad way if not for you.” “I’m… I’m honoured. Really I am,” The Digimon said. And like the others, he wasn’t expecting the next piece of news from Celestia. “And this is just half of my surprise.” The group looked at the white Alicorn in surprise. Just what else did she have to honour BlackWarGreymon with? “Really? What’s the other surprise?” Fluttershy asked her. “Follow me to the Canterlot halls and I’ll show you.” “I love surprises!” Pinkie Pie uttered as she and the others followed Celestia once more. Before they left the gardens, Luna spared one moment to look back at the sculpture of Equestria’s newest protector. ‘Good. But not as good as the real thing.’ As the group entered the Canterlot hallway, they were once again greeted by the colourful stain glass windows. All showing the key events in Equestria’s long history. From Discord’s reign to Twilight Sparkle’s coronation. Although already familiar with the events, BlackWarGreymon took a good look at them as he walked past. He then heard Celestia talking to him. “As you know, BlackWarGreymon. Certain events in Equestria are reflected in these windows. Events for all to see.” She then stopped walking. Seconds before she looked up at one particular window. “And you arriving in our world…is certainly one of them.” When the group followed Celestia’s gaze, they were stunned as the sight of the new stain glass window. The image showed BlackWarGreymon’s first day in Equestria. With him in the Everfree Clearing, glaring down at Tirek beneath him with his Terra Destroyer attack held above his head, while Twilight and her Ponyville friends were in the background. Protected by their defender. “Th…that’s me!” BlackWarGreymon said. While in awe it was the only thing he could say. “Indeed. Thanks to your timely arrival in our world, you were able to beat a mighty foe, and protect the magic of friendship in these six ponies. And your actions on that day, caused the magic of friendship to accept you,” Celestia said as she gave the Mega a heart-warming smile. “Now you’re famous like us!” Pinkie Pie cheered. “I…I don’t know what to say,” The Digimon said, but in truth he was honoured beyond his expectations. “Trust me. You’ll get used to it,” Rainbow Dash said to the awe-stricken Digimon. “And I think these gifts for BlackWarGreymon were very thoughtful of you,” Twilight said to Celestia. With Luna joining in. “Indeed they are.” As the group made their way towards the throne room, the white Alicorn once again took a quick but concerned glance over to BlackWarGreymon’s chest. Since they had returned, she wondered what could’ve caused the crack. Though the Digimon reassured her, she still found it off putting. Knowing that Chrome Digizoid armour was a part of his being, and that it was stronger than any metal they could make, then it would mean that a very powerful force must’ve dealt the damage. And from the look of it, it must’ve been painful for him. As they approached the Celestia’s throne, she paused her advance as she spoke to the group. “Now that the pleasantry is out of the way, it’s time to get back to the matter.” When the group stood still, they had a feeling that Celestia would chance the subject towards their previous mission. Celestia continued as she turned to face them. “Though Princess Cadence wrote to me of your return, she neglected to include any unfortunate incidents. Please tell me… has anything happened at the Crystal Empire?” Before Twilight, Luna or BlackWarGreymon could start, Rainbow Dash started it off in a less settling way. “We… prepare yourself for a bit of a shock.” “Rainbow!” Twilight said, disapproving her way of delivering bad news. The white Alicorn felt a little uncertain of what she was about to hear. “I’m listening.” BlackWarGreymon was first to speak. “Your suspicions were correct. The storm that attacked Canterlot the other day, was the work of the Unicorn named King Sombra.” Celestia was startled by the news. But what Luna said next was even more startling. “Not only that. But when we encountered him, he had the power to summon the Shadow Legion.” The white princess gasped in shock and disbelief. “But… that’s not possible. That spell was forbidden. Locked in the deepest depths of Tartarus.” “Yes. But somehow King Sombra was able to obtain that spell. And used it for his own needs,” Luna said. Then Twilight continued their story. “After we arrived at the Crystal Empire, Sombra teleported us away and separated us from BlackWarGreymon. While we found ourselves in a secret room of the castle where Sombra waited for us, he sent BlackWarGreymon outside the empire. Where he faced a massive army of Shadow Ponies.” “You…faced Sombra himself?” Celestia asked Twilight. With her and the others nodding to confirm her answer. Then she looked over to the black armoured being. “And you faced the Shadow Legion alone?” “I did. Sombra plan was by separating me from my friends, he hoped that he would exact his revenge on them without facing me. And that I would be overwhelmed by the army’s numbers,” BlackWarGreymon answered. “But to our amazement, not even the army of a thousand could stop him. BlackWarGreymon wiped out the legion and arrived in time to face Sombra himself,” Luna said. As Twilight explained further, Celestia’s face grew wider and wider in amazement. “Sombra tried every trick he had, but none of it worked on him.” “Yeah, and after the fight, the big guy sent that Unicorn packing!” Rainbow Dash said. The group deciding not to mention the moment when the Digimon was nearly mind controlled. “Impressive. So you’re strong enough to defeat Sombra,” Celestia said, amazed by the facts. But her amazement changed to concern when the expression in BlackWarGreymon’s eyes darkened. “But after his defeat, Sombra had done the unthinkable.” “What did he do?” “Well… during the fight, Sombra managed to gain samples of BlackWarGreymon’s hair,” Luna answered, followed by Twilight. “And by combining BlackWarGreymon’s data with his dark magic, he… successfully created a Digimon of his own.” Celestia gasped in shock at what she heard. “What!? What do you mean!?” “Using my data, Sombra created a clone of me. The living embodiment of all my negativity and hatred. And Sombra even dared to give him a name,” BlackWarGreymon said. Joined by Twilight. “His name is ChaosBlackWarGreymon. And unlike our friend, his armour is grey, he has a golden chest plate and his eyes are as red as blood.” “Not to mention that he was so terrible. I’ve never seen anyone acting so cruel and heartless,” Rarity added. “Yeah, even more so then Sombra,” Spike joined in. Celestia was almost speechless from the news. Just the thought of an evil Digimon in Equestria was just frightening. “I…I’m aware of such cloning spells. But clones are said to be weaker than the originals.” “That’s what we first thought. But when we met him, we were wrong,” Luna replied. BlackWarGreymon then explained to Celestia the events that unfolded regarding his clone. “At first, Sombra tried to use ChaosBlackWarGreymon to frame me for acts of violence. But later on that same day, the two decided to reveal themselves. Like what Luna said, I too thought that the clone was just a mere rip-off of me. But it turned out that he was every bit as strong as me. His speed, strength and power were all equal to my own. And when I arrived, I fought him head on. Our battle shook the Crystal Empire.” The white Alicorn looked at BlackWarGreymon in disbelief. But was then confirmed by Luna. “What he said is true, sister. With their level of power, the battle was unlike anything we’ve ever seen. Even more so then his past battles.” Celestia then looked back at the Mega as he continued the story. “ChaosBlackWarGreymon and I fought to a standstill. At first we were evenly matched, but then he revealed a deadly secret. Being a creation of Sombra, he inherited all of his dark magic.” Celestia gasped in fright at what she heard. “He…can use magic!?” BlackWarGreymon gave her a glare as he spoke. “How must you feel, if you faced someone with my kind of power, while possessing magic of an evil sorcerer.” The white Alicorn slightly trembled at the thought of such a thing. The way BlackWarGreymon described it sounded as though ChaosBlackWarGreymon was an even bigger threat. Twilight continued the story. “The moment ChaosBlackWarGreymon started to use his magic, BlackWarGreymon couldn’t predict his movements and was overwhelmed.” Fluttershy then began to shiver at a certain memory. “And it was horrible to see him torturing our friend the way he did.” Celestia then looked back at the crack on the Digimon’s chest. “He… did that to you?” BlackWarGreymon looked down at his chest before he responded. “He did. But you should’ve seen the state I was in at the fight. But if it hadn’t been for Twilight, Luna and Cadence distracting him… I wouldn’t had survived.” Celestia paused for a moment. Trying to bring her thoughts back in order. “Then…then what happened?” Then Luna spoke up, her tone changed to a positive one. “Then a miracle happened. After BlackWarGreymon protected me from one of ChaosBlackWarGreymon’s attacks, his anger suddenly exploded. And then he awakened his Ascended form.” “A…Ascended form?” Celestia asked as she looked at BlackWarGreymon for answers. “Remember when I took part in your test. My powers became infused with Equestria’s magic and my body glowed red.” “Yes I remember now. Wait, that happened again?” “Indeed. Because it makes me more powerful than before, I called it my Ascended form.” Rainbow Dash then joined in. “And when he went red, ChaosBlackWarGreymon didn’t stood a chance against him! Even his magic couldn’t protect him.” Celestia became amazed by the facts. “Wow. That’s… impressive. So you used this… Ascended form of yours to defeat him?” To Celestia’s confusion, BlackWarGreymon grew a disappointed frown. “Not… exactly. Because of the amount of energy flowing through my body, I became mad with power. Instead of using it to finish off ChaosBlackWarGreymon for good, I just toyed with him. No matter what he did, he couldn’t hurt me. But that led him to go as far as to try and destroy the whole empire just to get rid of me. And at that moment, I realised that even my Ascended form has limits. So when he used such an attack, I had to use all my ascended powers to deflect it away.” Again, Celestia was startled. But mostly by the actions of ChaosBlackWarGreymon. “He… nearly destroyed the Crystal Empire? But I doubt even Sombra would wish for that.” Then Twilight spoke up. “It wasn’t. Like BlackWarGreymon, he too had his own free will. Him and Sombra even argued with each other.” Then it was Luna’s turn. “After his attack failed, ChaosBlackWarGreymon turned on him…and…he killed King Sombra.” The white Alicorn gasped in shock. The fact that the once formidable Unicorn king suddenly became deceased was simply unbelievable. “I…don’t believe it. Sombra… is really gone?” The stricken Celestia looked back at BlackWarGreymon, eager to hear what happened next. “By the time of Sombra’s death, ChaosBlackWarGreymon and I were at the very limit of our powers. Though drained of energy, we fought on nonetheless. And with the assistance of Luna, we were finally able to defeat him.” “Then what happened?” Celestia asked. With Applejack answering. “That no good clone got away, and BlackWarGreymon collapsed from exhaustion.” As they finished, Celestia was beyond amazed at the story she heard. If it wasn’t from the friends she knew, she wouldn’t had believed them. But as peace was among the group, BlackWarGreymon spoke with a dark expression in his eyes. “But it’s not over yet. As long as ChaosBlackWarGreymon is still alive, every pony in Equestria is at great risk.” “I see,” Celestia said as she felt sorry for the Digimon. Fighting your own clone was like fighting against yourself. But she received another unsettling surprise from Luna. “but I fear that’s not the worst of it. From what we heard from ChaosBlackWarGreymon himself, it seems that both he and Sombra were… conspiring with another evil force.” “What!? They serve someone else!?” Celestia asked with shock and horror in her voice. “Yes. And whoever or whatever this force is, we believe that it has power ever greater than ChaosBlackWarGreymon’s,” Twilight added. Celestia was disturbed by their discovery. The thought of such a being living among them was simply terrifying. “Very well, then I suggest we keep our eyes and ears open for anything suspicious. The last thing we need is another disaster.” But then a split second later, a royal guard stallion charged through the main doors with concern on his face. “Princess Celestia! I bring terrible news!” He said as he bowed to her. His sudden arrival surprised the group. “Yes?” Celestia asked, allowing the guard to speak up. “It’s the city of Manehattan. It’s been attacked!” The whole room gasped in shock and horror. “Attacked!?” Rarity asked. “Oh no, my cousin Babs Seed lives there!” Applejack said as she began to fear the worse. “Yes, the centre of the city has been destroyed. But despite the damage, there were no fatalities. But some did receive medical attention,” The guard explained. Applejack sighed in relief that her young cousin was alright. “Do you know the attacker?” Twilight asked him. “Yes, your highness. Witnesses described him as a dragon warrior wearing armour.” Most of the group received bad vibes from the description. Knowing who was more likely responsible. “BlackWarGreymon. Is it him?” Luna asked him. Hearing her sister caught Celestia’s attention. Looking over to the Digimon to see the anger in his eyes. “No doubt about it. It’s ChaosBlackWarGreymon!” “But why would he attack Manehattan?” Fluttershy asked. “I say it’s his way of getting back at BlackWarGreymon for beating him,” Pinkie Pie guessed. “If you’re certain that it’s him, then I believe you BlackWarGreymon,” Celestia said before turning back towards the guard. “Where is he now?” “We don’t know, your highness. He suddenly vanished as quickly as he came.” Before more discussions were made, a second guard charged in the room. “Your highness! There’s an emergency!” “What is it?” Celestia asked. The others meanwhile received a bad feeling all of a sudden. But what the guard said next was as shocking as it was surprising. “The Kingdom of Griffinstone is under attack!” “WHAT!!?” Twilight shouted in disbelief. …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. Far far away, the ancient Kingdom of Griffinstone, home to the griffins… was on fire. Due to the dry vegetation and the poor conditions of the buildings, small fires quickly turned into an inferno. Even the giant tree-like structure in the distance was engulfed in flames. All the work… of an enraged Mega level Digimon. Amidst the chaos, a familiar griffin named Gilda was navigating through the falling debris. Unable to fly straight up without risking getting her lungs full of smoke, she and the other griffins had to escape another way. As Gilda flew by a destroyed shop, she heard a cry for help. “Hay! Someone help me!!” Following the sounds of plea, Gilda spotted another female griffin trapped under a large wooden beam. “Don’t worry, I got ya!” Gilda said as she flew down to lift the beam. At first the beam wouldn’t budge due to its weight. But with the danger around them and Gilda’s determination, she managed to lift the beam a couple of inches. Luckily the gap was just large enough for the trapped griffin to escape. “Oh, thank you!” The griffin said as Gilda dropped the beam. “Don’t thank me yet. Let’s get out of here.” But just as the two were about to leave, they heard loud cracking sounds. Similar to wood splitting. When they turned towards the source of the sounds, they couldn’t believe what they saw. In the distance, one of the giant branches of the large castle-like building could be seen snapping from the main building. As the fire weakened the bonds, the weight became too much. Resulting in the giant branch crashing towards the ground. The sight was horrifying for the griffins. Resembling the fall of the kingdom itself. But the only thing more terrifying then the fall of a kingdom, was the sight of the being that caused it. The two girls stared fearfully at something moving in the fire in front of the giant building. They then gasped when they saw him. Walking through the desolation he brought upon, ChaosBlackWarGreymon relished in the destruction. Evident in his sinister chuckle. To add in the fear, despite the red and orange glow from the fires, his crimson eyes were glowing bright. Then Gilda and her friend saw three male griffins landing on the ground. Glaring angrily at the tall Digimon. “How dare you destroy our homes, you monster!!” “You will pay for this!!” Before Gilda could protest, the three arrivals charged at the evil being. As the first griffin flew within range, ChaosBlackWarGreymon shifted to his left with his right arm raised. Then in one swift motion, he elbowed the griffin in the back. knocking him out cold. Before the second griffin could even get close to him, the Digimon leapt forward and slammed his left shin guard into his chest. With the air escaping his body, the second griffin fell to the ground unconscious. The third griffin immediately stopped in his tracks. Seeing how easily his two friends were defeated filled his mind with fear. After gawking at the strength of ChaosBlackWarGreymon, he instantly turned around to escape. But the Digimon gave chase and grabbed his tail. “Where do you think you’re going!!?” He shouted as he threw the griffin into a pile of rubble. Knowing that it was hopeless to stop the evil being, Gilda and her friend fled the scene. Leaving the armoured Digimon to laugh insanely with fire both around him and in his eyes. …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. Back at Canterlot, Twilight tried to get over her shock. “No. Not Griffinstone.” “Yes. The description of the attacker is similar to a dragon. But he wore grey armour. By the time I received the news, he disappeared,” The second guard explained further. “What are your orders?” The first guard asked Celestia. After trying her best to get over the shock, the white Alicorn came to a decision. “I want you to send help and support to Manehattan and Griffinstone. We must not abandon those in need.” The two guards gave her a solute before leaving the throne room. After watching the guards leave, the mares and dragon heard sounds of grunting. Looking to its source, it turned out to be coming from BlackWarGreymon. His muscles tensed as his eyes showed a mix of shock and anger. “He’s angry at me… but he’s taking it out on the innocent!” Only a few of the group could understand what he was going through. Back in his past life, he had done the same thing to the Digital World. After he had reformed from his evil ways, he swore that such a thing would never happen to Equestria. But the fact that it was happening, and caused by someone with his own data, was starting to traumatize him. In sympathy, Luna rested her hoof on his leg. Trying to comfort him. “Don’t worry. He will pay for what he’s done.” However, her words did little to sooth the pain in his mind. “Celestia. I suggest that we mobilize the guards incase ChaosBlackWarGreymon should come this way,” Luna advised. “Agreed.” But before anything else could be said, a guard mare rushed in the throne room. “Your highness, reports from one of the royal patrols!” “Yes.” “The patrol spotted some dragon-like creature flying at high speed. They tried to intercept him, but they couldn’t keep up. And in the direction of where he was going, they said he was heading towards the Wonderbolt Academy.” While Spike and most of the mares were stunned, Rainbow Dash let out a surprised gasp. “WHAT!!? No! Anything but that!” “I’m afraid so, miss. Unless he changes course, the academy is the most likely place he’ll arrive at.” The usually proud Pegasus almost collapsed from the weight of the news. Disbelief written on her face. “No. Spitfire. Soarin. All my friends there. They’re all gonna be hurt. Or worse.” While in his traumatized state, BlackWarGreymon heard everything and glanced over to Rainbow Dash. He knew her as a brave, proud friend. He always had. But seeing her so upset and grieving didn’t felt right to him. It wasn’t like her at all. In truth, he hated it. He disliked seeing his friends in such grief. He would rather take immediate action and prevent such sadness from ever spreading. He then spoke out his inner feelings. Which gained everyone’s attention. “No. I won’t let that happen. I will not let him harm anyone else.” Despite his bold statement, Rarity saw a flaw. “But the academy is far away, darling. You’ll never make it in time.” Not wanting to accept defeat, BlackWarGreymon shouted in sudden rage. “No! I’ve had enough of this!” All of a sudden, the throne room shook as the Digimon’s energy suddenly went haywire. Invisible energy whirled around the group like a cyclone. Then as the negative energy gathered towards the ceiling, it began to reveal itself. In a form of swirling black mist. As more energy was gathered, the swirling object kept growing in size. As it grew thirty feet wide, Celestia, Luna and Twilight recognized what it was. An ability that BlackWarGreymon only used once back in his past life. A black portal. When the ponies and dragon all stared back at BlackWarGreymon, he made his statement in a rage-filled voice. “I’m not a spectator… I’M A WARRIOR!!!” Then without a second thought, he launched himself off the ground and shot straight through the portal. As the portal began to close, Rainbow Dash placed together the pieces of the puzzle in her mind. BlackWarGreymon was intending to stop ChaosBlackWarGreymon at all costs. And she remembered that Twilight once said he had the ability to create portals to another part of the world. Though it would cost him a lot of his power. Upon realising exactly where her friend went off to, and how much the Wonderbolts meant to her, she made a decision. “Hay!” Rainbow Dash called out as she flew towards the closing portal. “Rainbow, no!” Twilight called out, but the blue Pegasus disappeared through the portal seconds before it closed. Though the portal was gone, all eyes stared at the ceiling in disbelief. “Where…did they go?” Fluttershy asked. “If I could guess… the Wonderbolt Academy,” Twilight answered, understanding Rainbow Dash’s intentions of following BlackWarGreymon.