Logan and Carol; The Wolves of Equestria

by JNKing


Tirek Arc: Luco - the Villain with a Heart

When Carol came to, the blanket had been tied completely around her body and her head, tying down both her claws and her magic. She could still smell Luco’s stench as he sat before her, chewing on what smelled like cake.
“You know,” Luco said in between chews. “Your ponies have such marvelous hospitality.”
Carol’s ears flicked, picking up the moans of two gagged ponies in a corner near her.
“I can see why you’d gain such a soft spot for them,” Luco noted, popping the rest of his food into his mouth.
“I’m going to kill you, Luco,” Carol snarled. “I’m gonna rip your brain out, and show you how Logan felt.”
“Oh-ho,” Luco cackled. “You know how Logan feels? Tell me something, my pretty; did you get your magic and intelligence sucked out?”
“My pack mate did!” Carol insisted. “His pain is my pain.”
“Really,” Luco shot back. “Your pack mate?” He giggled. “From what I’ve heard, you’d make a pretty poor mate for him.”
Carol paled under her fur, and her retorts died in her throat. Luco seemed to realize his comment went a step too far, because when he spoke again, his voice was quieter.
“Listen,” he said. “I don’t have much time to play Joker and Batman with you. T. Rex is coming.”
Carol looked up. “You brought a…” she started to growl, before realizing… “You mean Lord Tirek,” she deadpanned.
Luco scoffed. “Whatever the centaur wants to call himself,” he dismissed. “Problem is, he’s becoming a bit of a handful. Call me crazy, but it might have been a teensy bit of a mistake to release him from Tartarus.”
“Oh, you think?” Carol snapped.
“Why, yes, I do think,” Luco replied. “I’ve had intelligence far longer than you have, girl, so pay attention.” He got closer, his breath flitting across her snout.
“I can get you everything back,” he tempted. “Your pony friends, your pack mate. But in exchange…”
“What?” Carol snarled. “You want me to kill Tirek?”
Luco cackled. “I don’t want you to kill people,” Luco said. “Where’s the fun in death?! No,” he cleared his throat and continued. “I want you to help your pack mate.”
Carol’s ears tilted. “I’m listening…”

#

See, as it turns out, a giant centaur throwing you into the side of a mountain can sort of diminish your feelings towards the guy.
“Getting rid of your magic so that I cannot take it from you?” T. Rex snarled at the battered princesses. “Was that your plan?”
Personally, I couldn’t help but feel a surge of both respect for your kind… and a flare of irritation. On the one hand, my treacherous T. Rex had another obstacle to overcome. On the other, I needed him to get alicorn magic if my own plans were to succeed. Or did I?
“You will not prevail, Tirek,” The white one said. Only the 1,345th time I’ve heard that before!
“Give my regards to Cerberus,” Tirek replied, before hitting them with a beam spell. I’m guessing he sent them off to Tartarus or something, but, eh, at least he’s polite about it, giving regards to Cerberus and everything.
With the princesses out of the way, I got the chance to politely and calmly ask him…
“WHAT WAS UP WITH THROWING ME INTO A MOUNTAIN!?!?” I shrieked at him. Again, very polite – very calm.
T. Rex gave me a sour look. “You've done nothing but vex me, ape,” he snarled down at me. “Not only does your madness ceaselessly annoy me, but something is wrong with the magic you’ve offered me.” He rubbed at his throat, where I had seen the silver claws grasping for freedom. “The wolf’s magic is not like the others; it will not stay where it belongs!”
“Oh,” I moaned sarcastically. “Did I forget to mention that his magic is ENTWINED with his sapience. By taking his magic, you took his mind as well.”
Tirek growled, grabbing me. “Tell me how to keep his magic where it belongs,” he commanded. “Or I will…”
“Oh, no!” I argued. “We had a deal, T. Rex.” I whacked at his thumb and made him release me. “I give you magic, you give me Blazy.” I started to sing, even.

Now give me the secret, T. Rex…

But, of course, he cut me off again, by seizing me by the neck.
“Another note of music from your mouth, and I will take your tongue,” he snarled.
“Now you take tongues?” I asked sarcastically. “Magic not flashy enough for you?”
"I’ll make an exception,” Tirek growled, before Discord thankfully popped me away.
“Now-now,” he said, grinning at both of us. “There’s no need for violence between friends. We’re all on the same side.” He turned to me. “Luco, you know that I know about your love for Blazy-Blue.” He even shifted into an – admittedly disturbing image of her – before turning back. “But Lord Tirek can’t get her to you without every type of pony magic. Including alicorn.”
Tirek nodded. “He is right,” he noted.
“So, c’mon,” Discord asked. “Be a little more patient? For me?”
“And quieter?” Tirek added.
I rolled my eyes, but... what the heck; I liked Discord. I saluted him. “Of course,” I replied, before tossing a pink bottle at Tirek. “That’s Pony-bismol by the way,” I told him. “Should help with your little magic nausea.”
Tirek huffed, but smiled gratefully at Discord.
“Thank you, Discord,” Tirek said. “I want you to have something.” He took an odd little amulet off his neck and handed it to Discord. “This was given to me by someone very close. I give it to you, as a sign of my gratitude and loyalty.”
“Oh, my!” Discord cheered, putting the amulet on. “I do love a good accessory. I suppose that’s Rarity’s influence.”
Tirek laughed. “Amusing. But we have no time for such things.” He began to march back to the door. “With the princesses out of the way, we now need to discover where they stored their… magic…” He paused, gazing at a stain-glass window featuring a purple alicorn. Not one of the three he had just express-packaged to Tartarus.
It was almost funny seeing how long it took him to connect the dots.
“There’s a fourth alicorn?” Tirek growled, turning back to me and Discord. “And neither of you told me?”
“Didn’t you see the wings on her when we were spying on them?” I replied. “Or were you just so weak back then, that you were blind?”
Tirek probably would have zapped me to Tartarus if Discord hadn’t jumped in.
“I just needed some assurance that you truly consider this a team effort,” Discord replied. He tapped the amulet between his talons. “And now… I have it.”
“Then where can we find this fourth princess?” Tirek demanded, grabbing Discord by the neck. “Where is her castle?!”
“Castle?” Discord laughed. “No, Princess Twilight Sparkle lives above a library in Ponyville.” He fell out of the air, giggling as Tirek stormed by. “Castle?” he asked again.
“Yes-yes, very funny,” I replied, before I paused. “Listen, can you transport me there ahead of Tirek,” I added in a whisper. “There’s… someone I want to get for him.”

#

Luco raised his hands as Carol began to struggle harder against her bindings.
“Not to give you to him, of course not,” Luco said. “But… I suppose I went on for a tangent.”
Carol, however, hadn’t missed it. “So, Tirek can’t keep Logan down,” she said, hopefully. “He could get out.”
“Could, maybe,” Luco admitted. “That medicine I gave him was a total placebo, if you must know. Won't do anything. So, I’m thinking, with a little help from a fellow wolf, our dear Logan can get free. And then…”
A familiar stomping sound caught their attention. Luco swore, and raced over to a window. Carol struggled briefly, before he hefted her up as well, dragging her over.
“Use your magic on me, and I’ll pluck out your eyes,” Luco warned, before yanking Carol’s blindfold off.
Carol gasped in horror. Discord had the Mane Five! Spike, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Rarity and Pinkie Pie were all trapped in a metal cage. Carol’s heart gave a lurch as she saw Logan there too. And towering before them was…
“You’ve gathered up all of them?” Tirek asked.
“And her little dragon too,” Discord said with a bow, his tail teasing Spike and Logan as the latter tried to chomp at him.
“Why are you doing this,” Fluttershy cried. “I thought we were friends.”
Discord looked at her, and for a moment, actual sadness flickered across his face. But, with another look at Tirek, the chaos spirit covered it with a grin.
“Oh, we were,” Discord told her with a pat on the head. “But Tirek offered me so much more than just tea parties. Surely you saw this coming."
“I didn’t,” Fluttershy whimpered, crying into Applejack’s shoulder. “I really didn’t.”
But before she could say any more, Tirek unhinged his jaw and inhaled.
“No!” Carol screamed, but Luco covered her mouth and held her in place.
“Easy now,” he assured her, before pointing. “Look!”
Carol saw it; as the Mane Five’s magic was sucked away, Logan’s silver head briefly appeared, clutching at the auras of magic before Fluttershy’s aura smacked into him. He grabbed at it, only to be pulled down with her.
“Logan…” Carol whispered.
“Yes,” Luco said. “You use that fancy pack link of yours right when Tirek drains another person,” Luco theorized, “And the two of us…”
“Us?” Tirek was saying. “Who said anything about us?”
Luco froze as Tirek began to loom over a now shocked looking Discord. Carol’s eyes darted between the human and the chaos spirit.
“W-What is he doing?” Luco stammered.
“You tell me,” Carol snapped. “You allied with him!”
“You’ve helped me grow strong,” Tirek told Discord smugly. “You’ve provided the means by which I can obtain Princess Twilight’s magic. And now… you are no longer of any use to me.”
“NO!” Luco briefly screamed before covering his mouth, as Discord’s magic was torn from his body, and sucked down into Tirek’s gullet. Carol stared at Luco in shock; the human looked devastated. A tear traced down his face as the chaos spirit thudded to the ground, powerless and alone.
“But…” Discord whimpered, lifting the amulet like a shield. “You said this was a sign of your gratitude and loyalty. A gift from someone close to you.”
Tirek’s gaze was unsympathetic. “My brother who betrayed me,” he replied, turning his back on Discord. “It is as worthless as he is.”
As Tirek stomped off, Luco snuck out of the house, giving the centaur worried glances as he rushed over. Luckily, the centaur was more focused on Twilight, and did not even see the human as he raced to Discord's side.
“Surely, you saw this coming,” Applejack chastised the beaten chaos spirit.
“I didn’t,” Discord whimpered, as Luco raced up to him. “I truly didn’t.”
“Discord,” Luco bemoaned, pulling the chaos spirit into a hug. Discord reciprocated, as the mares eyes widened in shock at the sight of the human. Logan's dog form growled angrily at Luco.
“Y-You’re the human Logan warned us about,” Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
“What in tarnation are you doing here?” Applejack demanded. “Yer the one that let that varmint out, aren’t ya?”
Luco glared up at them, and then over to Carol. He raced back, and pulled her out.
“Maybe,” he replied, pulling out his baseball bat. “It’s a mistake I’m about to correct.”
He didn’t have to go far.
“YOU HAVE SOMETHING THAT BELONGS TO ME!” Tirek's voice suddenly bellowed, echoing across Ponyville.
A burst of magic sounded. Luco and Carol glanced at each other before Luco dragged Carol to the source. They spotted Tirek out in a field, before he hurled a bolt of magic… right at Ponyville.
“What is he doing? He’ll destroy the town!” Carol yelped. She tried to prepare a lightning shield before Luco forced her eyes shut.
“No,” he said. “That magic is powered by almost every pony in Equestria. You can’t…”
He was cut off as the bolt streaked past them, smashing right into the library. Twilight jumped from the explosion, an owl clutched in her hooves. She gasped at the sight of her destroyed library, before a look of pure rage came over her.
“Oh… Tirek just messed up,” Carol whispered.
“What d’you mean?” Luco asked, backing up with her.
“He messed with Twilight’s books,” Carol said. “He shouldn’t a-did that!”
Sure enough, the princess took to the air, and with the power of four alicorns behind her, she was soon carving Tirek into the ground, a look of demonic rage across her face.
But Tirek held the power of every pony in Equestria, and struck back, slamming her into a mountain before charging right through. For a moment, Carol worried Twilight had been crushed. But then the purple alicorn appeared above Tirek, slamming him into the ground before diving into his body, burying him six feet under.
Yet the centaur rose up again, hurling her off him. The two briefly exchanged magic bolts before two final beams reduced the field outside of Ponyville to a barren wasteland.
Luco gasped. “Quick,” he declared, seizing Carol. “I’ve seen enough anime to know where this is going!”
Carol reluctantly let Luco drag her along as Tirek and Twilight got back to their hooves, glaring each other down.
“It appears we are at an impasse,” Tirek noted, before Twilight blasted him again.
“I will break you in two,” Twilight snarled. But it was far from her normal voice. Four voices seemed to speak in sync in her, and a demonic light had appeared over her eyes.
She marched forward, looking ready to rend Tirek limb from limb. But as Tirek’s eyes widened in disbelief, he quickly snapped his fingers and eight bubbles appeared around him; the Mane Five, Spike, Discord, and Logan.
Instantly, Twilight stopped, the demonic light fading from her eyes as she stared up at her friends. Tirek smiled smugly.
“How about a deal, Princess Twilight Sparkle,” Tirek offered. “Their release… for all the alicorn Magic in Equestria.”
Logan snarled at him.
“Don’t do it, Twilight!” Rainbow Dash screamed.
“We aren’t worth it,” Fluttershy protested.
“Oh, but you are, Fluttershy,” Discord bemoaned. “You’re the pony that taught me friendship is magic.” He lowered his head in shame. “I had magic and friendship, and now I have neither.”
“That’s not true, Discord,” Luco whispered, clutching his hand to his heart. “Someone still cares for you.”
“Enough!” Tirek snarled. “I want an answer, and I want it now!”
Twilight gazed at her friends for the longest time. And, as Carol watched her, she swore she saw a rainbow shimmer appear briefly over her eyes. Then, the alicorn spoke.
“I will give you my magic, in exchange for my friends.”
Carol and the others gasped. Even Logan barked in protest. But Luco drew Carol closer.
“Get ready,” he told her, undoing her restraints.
The mares, dragon and wolf were released. Logan attacked Tirek’s hooves, but his biting didn’t even draw Tirek’s gaze. Twilight fixed her glare on Discord’s prison.
“All of them,” she said firmly.
“After the way he has betrayed you?” Tirek asked. “You still call him ‘friend?’”
“Release him!” Twilight snapped.
Tirek huffed. “If that’s what you wish.”
Discord fell to the ground as well.
“Thank you, Twilight,” he said somberly, sharing a sad look with Fluttershy. “I’m sorry.”
“And now…” Tirek declared. “It’s your turn.”
His jaw unhinged. Logan’s aura was waiting, his silver claws reaching out one last time.
“Now!” Luco declared. Throwing Carol into the air, he batted her like a baseball. “Use the pack link, Carolina! Use it!”
Carol understood. Hurling her lightning tendrils, she seized Logan’s aura… and the aura of the four alicorns as they were yanked from Twilight’s horn. Flipping over Tirek’s magic, and winking at his shocked look, she pulled the auras away from him.
“NAA!” Tirek tried to roar with his mouth full, only for Luco to jump onto him, bashing him upside the head with his bat.
“This!” Luco declared, smacking him in the jaw. “Is!” He punctuated each word with a blow from his bat. “For! Throwing! Me! In! To! A! MOUNTAIN!”
As Tirek was beaten, unable to bat Luco away, Carol began to win the struggle. Logan’s aura and the alicorn’s aura began to slide towards her.
But as Logan’s aura fled Tirek, it came with more. A black, oddly pattered aura; the same one that Tirek had taken from Discord. A plethora of auras, in varying shades of every color under the rainbow, was dragged out behind Logan. Carol tugged again, the auras spinning around her, before she shot them right to Logan. The wolf ceased his biting of Tirek, as if understanding what they meant, and opened his mouth; the silver aura disappearing back into him. With a flash of light; the original Logan reared up on his hind legs, howling to the sky above.
Tirek screamed in fury as the wolves continued to suck the magic away from him. Aura by aura, bit by bit, everything he had stolen was taken from him. Tirek shrunk; his beefy frame fading to a sickly skeletal thin. His horns vanished back into his head; his red skin turned dead maroon. And as the last bit of magic was yanked from his body, the centaur fell, the same sickly creature Luco had released from Tartarus.
“You… can’t…” Tirek snarled, Luco holding him down as the magic swirled around the wolves. Despite lightning them up in gold and ruby red, the ponies could see something was wrong. Both wolves sunk to their knees. Their fur burned. Their eyes glowed like two pairs of stars. And when Twilight tried to approach, the very air burned her hoof.
“Logan?” she called. “Carol! Are you guys…?!”
“AAAAAAAIEEEEOOOOOOWWWWWWWWWW!!!” both of them howled in agony.
Spike gasped. “They’re in trouble.”
“Of course, they are,” Tirek replied smugly. “Only I was capable of handling the magic of every pony in Equestria.” He tried to rise, before Luco forced him back down. Tirek snarled at his former ally before shooting a crafty grin to the ponies. “Give me back my magic… or your friends will be disintegrated by the overflow of power.”
Luco hit him again and glared at the mares.
“That’s not true,” he told them, before turning to the wolves. “Carol!” he barked. “That pack link isn’t for show! Use it!”
Carol moved like even the tiniest twitch was a stab of agony, but Logan forced himself up, and fired a pack link to Twilight. She caught it, and the aura thinned by a fraction. However, Twilight similarly glowed with power, and cried out in agony as the influx overwhelmed her.
“Twilight!” Spike cried, grabbing onto her… and promptly drawing out a link. Power poured into the young dragon, and he shifted in size, growing from a tiny hatchling to a full grown dragon in seconds. He almost started to grow too tall for the group to stay close to, before Rainbow Dash seized ahold of a pack link as well. One by one, the Mane Six gained a pack link. Spike’s size dwindled down to that of a full-grown dragon, before Discord took a pack link as well. As Spike's size stabilized to that of a still large but not Godzilla sized dragon, Luco released Tirek and seized a tendril as well. Before the centaur could recover, he found himself staring at a line of eight beings supercharged with the magic of an entire species.
Tirek forced himself up, and tried to unhinge his jaw… only for Luco to shove his bat into his mouth again.
“Glk….” Tirek tried to spit, before Luco shoved the bat deeper. The human’s sunken hazel eyes glared into Tirek’s yellow, the latter slowly widening in horror.
“You made a very serious mistake, T. Rex,” Luco said, his voice echoing with the voice of the other seven. “Now… you reap what you sow.”
Tirek raised a claw, growling through his mouth restraint, before Luco raised a hand. Black energy coursed through his fingers, before a fiery beam in the shape of a dragon shot out.
The last thing Tirek saw of Equestria was a dragon’s face snarling down on him before sending him on a fiery train back down to Tartarus.

#

As Tirek faded from sight, the eight figures were left still struggling with the magic of an entire species.
“I don’t know about the rest of you,” Logan growled as he struggled. “But I’m not interested in keeping this much power forever.”
“Yer telling me!” Applejack moaned under the strain. “Twi!” she called out. “How’re we supposed to get rid of this?”
“I don’t know,” Twilight whimpered, with not even her alicorn status protecting her. “I’ve never seen magic transferred like this. We need to get the magic back to every pony in Equestria.”
Carol tried to take a step, before faltering. “How?” she asked. “I can’t move!”
Logan glanced at her, and shuddered as he started to notice the magic burning into her. Heck, it was burning into all of them. Spike and Discord weren't as badly burned, but even they looked like they were bearing the weight of several mountains.
“We can’t stay here!” he roared. “We have to get rid of this magic now!”
“H-Hang on,” Spike said, forcing himself to move. The magic had made him the size of a mountain, allowing him to easily pick up the other seven. “It’s hard to move, but I think I can manage.”
“But how are we going to make sure each magic aura goes back to our friends correctly?” Twilight bemoaned.
“Friends,” Discord noted wistfully, the power not overwhelming him as much as the others. “Tirek tricked me into believing he was my friend. Or… failing that, he could offer me something more valuable than friendship. But I can see now that there is nothing worth more.” He held up the amulet with a sigh. “He lied when he said this was given as a sign of gratitude and loyalty. But when I say that it is a sign of our true friendship…” he draped the amulet over Twilight’s neck. “I am telling the truth.”
With a shock, Twilight noticed the same rainbow sheen that had gone over her eyes… now shine over the amulet.
“You don’t suppose…” Applejack noted.
“One way to find out,” Twilight said, before looking up at Spike. “Spike; take us back to the chest.”

#

The minutes it took to reach the chest were unbearable; the auras struggled in between the pack links. Fur on mare, chaos spirit and wolf alike burned. But Spike powered on, his dragon armor protecting him as he stomped to the chest of Harmony.
Unable to fit his new bulk through the frame, Spike shakily set his friends down before the chest. Magic coursing through them, Twilight staggered her way over to the chest. The moment Discord’s amulet touched the chest, it sprang into a key form, and slid into the lock.
“T-Together,” Twilight said, turning to her friends as the magic whipped at her hair. “I-I think we need to do this together.”
Fluttershy whimpered, her pink mane charring from the magic, but Logan managed to get his claw to her.
“You can do it,” he told her. “I know you can.”
Fluttershy smiled sadly at him, and forced herself to her hooves. She and the Mane Five limped their way to their respective elements. As the overload of magic began to burn their skin, they clicked the keys to the side, unlocking the chest.
A bright white light flared up into the sky before extending past them all.
The last thing Logan saw was the Mane Six rising into the air, vine-like tendrils seizing them away from his pack link.