//------------------------------// // (V3) A New Ally // Story: Voyages of the Lightbringer: Episode 4: Variances // by Admiral Wyatt Stone //------------------------------// {VARIANCE START} "He ignites it, and KILLS his true enemy!" Assistance. When dealing with difficult tasks, you will need assistance. It may come in the form of a device or a tool to help you fix something, or in some cases, it can be an army of people willing to make sure you succeed. I needed Gawd's help in stopping Mister Topaz from killing her forces and taking control of her home, I needed to have Xenith's help if we were going to get out of Fillydelphia alive, I needed to have Steelhooves' help if we were going to stop the Steel Rangers from destroying my home of Stable 2, and I would need the help of all of my friends if we were going to stop the Enclave. But for what my friends and I were about to head into, the ones whom we expected to rescue us would not be anyone who I would consider a friend... ----------> I turned to my right as I entered another hallway within the Star Forge, my friends following behind me as we kept our guard up. After our home of Equus was hit by a protomatter torpedo courtesy of J'ula, we had started getting coded messages from a disguised source. The contact said that they wished to assist us in stopping J'ula from using the Star Forge to create her infinite armada, and had sent us an immense amount of data to use in getting inside. Thanks to some of Daniel's agents, we had acquired a captured ship to use to sneak aboard the Star Forge, and thankfully, we'd encountered no resistance whatsoever. As we neared the door to the next room, I lifted my Pipbuck to check my map. I could see several red dots within the next room, we'd have to fight our way through them before continuing on. I looked to my friends, all of them facing me as I spoke. "Alright, we're gonna have company in the next room, so get yourselves all set up." Our green alicorn raised a hoof as she spoke to me. "Littlepip, I'm sensing a familiar presence within that room. I'm assuming that we will be fighting some of our sisters when we enter." I raised an eyebrow at her words, my friends growing worried expressions as I replied. "Well, when we take the offensive, let's try and incapacitate them." My friends and the trio of alicorns all nodded as the latter surrounded us, all of them deploying shields as I pulled out Little Macintosh. After looking back to my friends, they all gave a single nod as we trotted to the door in front of us. As it opened, we entered the room to be greeted by several disruptor shots, all of them hitting the shields of the alicorn sisters as we waited for the right moment. As the shooting ceased, I looked down to the floor for a moment, unlike the majority of it, the section we were standing on had several tiny holes on it, the edges boasting yellow and black lines. We'd been led into a trap. Before we could react, we all let out cries of pain as we were electrocuted by the floor panel, all of us falling to the floor as the zapping ceased seconds later. As I forced my head up, I finally got a good look around the room, it was a bluish-grey color, at the sides were six glass cases that held at least three metal sticks inside. In the room with us were four alicorns, two soldiers in white armor, around ten or so Klingons.... and a face I had not wanted to see after the incident at Taloraan. "Well done, my friends! T'gath, your efforts on that booby trap deserve a fine reward after today is over." Red Eye said with a smirk as he trotted over to me, the Klingon in question smacking his fist to his chest and bowing while we all scowled at the red pony. "You clever son of a bitch! You were the one sending those transmissions?!" The cyberpony chuckled slightly as another voice spoke up. "And he has performed exceptionally well in our fleet." We all looked past Red Eye to see the bitch herself, J'ula, smiling victoriously as she walked over to join the stallion. "Thanks to his efforts, I can finally end this futile effort of yours and create my fleet. With it, no one will be able to stop us!" "You underestimate the Alliance, J'ula. Our allies have fought worse foes than you. When they hear of this, they'll send every agent they have to take you out!" Our blue alicorn said as she glared at the Klingon, all of us looking away from J'ula as we heard a laugh behind her. "How funny, my dear sister. I hate that it had to end like this, you could've made quite an ally in our ranks." I gasped as I saw the dark green alicorn trot over to us. She had black eyes with green irises and a band that held two sticks like the ones in the cases on one side and a single saddlebag on the other. Unlike when we first met at Canterlot, she didn't have bones for armor. "N-Nightseer?" I said with wide eyes as the dark mare pulled out several rings from her now open saddlebag, placing them all onto the three alicorns' horns along with mine and Velvets before closing the bag again. My friends all looked to me in surprise as my old enemy replied with a grin. "Oh, I'm pleased you remember my name, little one." Nightseer then turned away from us as she returned to her original spot, Red Eye lifting my head up with a hoof as he spoke to me. "I had hoped it wouldn't turn out this way, but I suppose this is how it must play out." I could see a saddened frown play across his face before he removed his hoof, the red stallion trotting over to a small section of the room where the two armored soldiers stood between. "Bring them to the center, it is time that we make an example of them!" J'ula said before the two Klingons standing in between the door pulled all of us up, Steelhooves and Xenith being picked up in the magic fields of the two alicorns at the sides of the room as we were pulled to the room's center. As we were all dropped onto the floor, the Klingons returned to their spots as the two armored soldiers lifted their weapons up into the air. They were a strange staff that had four black claws on them, the two pairs generating beams of electricity as they were activated. Red Eye also pulled out his own weapon of a similar design and put it into his mouth as the weapons activated, but his own staff had metal blades. As he and the two soldiers in black and white armor lifted their weapons, I looked to my friends, all of them giving looks of fear and worry as I spoke to them. "I'm sorry." "'eH!" J'ula said in her native tongue as my friends nodded to me in understanding, myself then turning to face the green alicorn to our right. She looked to Nightseer, nodding at her as she did the same before looking to her sister at our left. As I watched the dark mare, I saw her horn glow as she pulled out one of her two metal sticks. "muH!" J'ula said once more as we all closed our eyes, waiting for the energy blades to strike us. But they didn't come down. I heard a surge of energy before looking up to see J'ula standing in place, a single energy blade piercing her chest as she slowly looked down at her wound. As I looked to our executioners, the two armored ones' heads twisted around as they grunted, a magic field releasing their weapons and necks as their bodies fell to the ground. Red Eye grabbed his staff in his hooves as J'ula's body fell to the ground, Nightseer and her two sisters trotting closer to us as one of the other Klingon guards cried out. "magh! HoH chaH Hoch!" Nightseer pulled out her other energy sword as she spoke to her two sisters. "Protect our captives!!" As she pulled out the first blade from J'ula's back, the other Klingons pulled out their own energy bladed weapons, Red Eye raising his to his mouth again as he charged around us and at the flanking Klingons. I watched as Nightseer spun her two blades around like fans at the four incoming Klingons at her sides, both pairs raising their weapons to deflect the attack. Their efforts were futile as they lost grip of their weapons and were cut into several pieces by the energy swords. As she pulled her blades to her, the dark mare was struck by a disruptor blast from one of the Klingons behind us. Nightseer merely gave a laugh as she wiped some of the blood from her wound with her magic, forming it into three blood daggers as she spoke. "I can do this all day, Klingon!" The dark mare then shot her daggers at the attacker, who could only take out two of them before the third struck him square in the head. As I got up and turned my head, I saw Red Eye stab one of the Klingons in the chest, bucking another as I heard another surge of energy. My friends all got up as we saw one of the Klingons pull out two metal swords from his back. "I'll handle T'gath!" Red Eye said to us as he turned and charged at the Klingon, the two clashing their weapons as we turned to see the rest of the battle. The two other alicorns were cutting their shoulders open as four more Klingons came at them. The warriors would be too late as the two green sisters created at least eight of their own blood daggers before flinging them at their attackers, who only stopped three of them as the rest finished them all off. We all then turned back to Red Eye and T'gath, the former spinning around as he struck the Klingon's blade twice in a double swing. T'gath took the advantage and took a swing, slicing the cyberpony's staff in half before grabbing him in an arm choke. He then pulled out a small knife as he tried to slit Red Eye's throat, but was stopped when another blood dagger flew at T'gath's head, impaling him before his body fell to the ground seconds later. As Nightseer pulled the magic inhibitors from our horns and back into her saddlebags, Velvet spoke up in shock. "Would you mind explaining what this is about?!" Red Eye gave a proud smirk as he answered the charcoal unicorn. "I wouldn't have sent that data to you if I didn't want to help you." I raised an eyebrow in surprise as I spoke to my old nemesis, Nightseer trotting up beside him. "Wait, you want to assist us in destroying this place?!" "You are correct, my old friend." The two alicorns trotted over to us as the red stallion continued. "J'ula was the one pulling the strings when it came to the assault on our home. While I tried to convince her to do otherwise, she believed your friends would pose a great danger to her efforts." The stallion frowned as he continued. "So, after Equus fell, I conspired with Nightseer and her sisters to assassinate J'ula, as well as send the data for the Star Forge to you all." He smiled a bit as he spoke once more. "I know the way around this area, and if you will accept it, I can lead you to the control room." As I raised my hoof to answer, Nightseer put a hoof up to my muzzle to shush me. "But like your griffon friends back home, we work on a contract." I gasped slightly at the dark mare's words. So, Red Eye would help us, but he wanted something else in return? I just wanted to cuff him right then and there, but if it meant that my friends and the people of the Wasteland would be safe... "Okay, what do you want from us, Red Eye?" I said as my friends and I faced the red pony, who gave a smile as he answered. "We desire exile." We all gasped in surprise at his words, Nightseer smiling at us as Red Eye continued. "After what has happened to our home, we want to start our lives over on a new world. We'll permit you to place security forces and orbital defenses if that makes you all sleep well at night, but we'll be out of your manes after that." He walked up in front of me, looking at me eye to eye as he finished. "No matter what, we're allies from here on out. That is, if you agree." Before I could reply, he looked to Velvet as he spoke to her. "And Miss Remedy, if you wouldn't mind, we'd like to acquire one of those gender-swapping brews for her." He pointed to one of the two green alicorns standing next to us. Velvet raised a hoof as she asked, "Perhaps, but what about you? How will you start a family without another mare at your side?" Red Eye laughed as he held Nightseer's hoof. "Well, as you can see, I've already found a mate." My eyes went wide as I looked at the two villainous ponies standing in front of us. I never thought Red Eye would have a thing for a mare with such cruelty as Nightseer, but after thinking it through, they must've formed some kind of bond during their time here. "An' if we don't?" Calamity asked with a raised eyebrow, Nightseer chuckling sinisterly as she answered my friend. "Well, lucky for you, we won't finish what J'ula had started, but rather hold you as prisoners while we all escape. When we leave, we will demand a ransom for your release. After all, you are all too important for the Alliance to lose." I sighed in relief at the dark mare's words, at least they weren't going to kill us for denying them a second chance. I took a deep breath as I stood firm, my friends looking to me as I spoke to Red Eye. "Well, despite what you've done to the ponies of the Wasteland so many years ago, not to mention us... I think we can all agree that for helping us out back there," I held my hoof out to Red Eye, the stallion gripping it with his own as I finished. "we agree to your terms." Red Eye smiled at my words, Nightseer and her sisters doing the same as the cyberpony spoke. "Thank you, Littlepip. I knew a mare such as yourself would be willing to understand the truth to my words." As we released our hooves from each other, Red Eye turned and trotted over to the door at the other side of the room, Nightseer and her alicorns following suite as he spoke once more. Now, if you will follow us, please." We all nodded as we joined the four rogue villains, the door opening as we all continued on towards the center of the Star Forge. {VARIANCE END} As the holographic screen vanished, we all looked at each other in surprise, Steelhooves being the one to speak first. "Well, that was a bit unexpected." Calamity nodded as he replied to the comment. "Ayep, Ah especially didn't expect Red Eye there to be wantin' a gal like Nightseer as a lover." "A match made in hell, it seems." Velvet Remedy said as she looked to her husband, myself looking between my friends before speaking. "Yeah... but, these seem to have something bad happen in them, something that makes them worse than our history, like, our home being destroyed or something." My friends all nodded in agreement before Xenith spoke up. "Perhaps there might be a timeline where we have a bright and peaceful future? One similar to Princess Twilight and her friends?" "Not counting ourselves, right?" I asked my zebra friend as she nodded, my friends all turning to face the console once more as I spoke into it again. "What if the great war between Equestria and the Zebras never happened?"