//------------------------------// // The War Rages On // Story: Flash Sentry Chronicles: War of the Lost City // by Banshee531 //------------------------------// Ruby, Trixie and Soarin stared up at their opponents, Shadow, Tempera and Terror smirking down at them. "So...you're the three we'll be destroying." Shadow chuckled as he cracked his hooves. "Can't say I'm impressed." "Of course you're not impressed," Terror added as she pointed at Trixie. "After all, they have a complete weakling on their side." Trixie started to backpedal at this comment, now seeing the giant grin on Terror's face as the memory of the previous fight went through her head. "Don't listen to her Trixie," Ruby countered, "She's just trying to get into your head." Soarin nodded in agreement, "Yeah! You're way stronger than she is." "I doubt that," Shadow spat, "I don't allow weaklings to stand by my side." "Enough talk!" Ruby yelled as she created a bunch of crystal arrows, firing a barrage at the trio. But as this happened, the unicorns teleported away, allowing the arrows to impale the scribeasts instead. And as the serpent, dragon and insect vanished, the three reappeared with Ruby charging at Shadow. "YAH!" She swung two crystal blades at him, but the dark unicorn summoned his own blade, blocking both with ease. "Master!" Tempera shrieked as she pulled out some paper, only for Soarin to suddenly appear in front of her. "Surprise!" He slammed into the mare, pushing her to the sky before she could react. "Let me go!" She screamed as she tried to thrash, but Soarin kept hold with ease while starting to spin like a top. And after a good few seconds, he let go, sending the unicorn divebombing to the ground. "Gyah!" the mare yelped, her horn now sparking while throwing a drawing to the floor. Her spell struck the paper, causing a minotaur to appear, catching her in its fuzzy mane. She sighed in relief as she felt the soft fur, "Good boy." The minotaur snorted air out of its nose as it put Tempera down, the mare shaking her head as she began to look around, "Now...which way is master Shadow in?" "Why do you think I spun you around?" She looked up to see Soarin try to tackle into her, only for the minotaur to jump at him....and be destroyed with a well-timed spinning kick. Soarin then hovered above her with crossed hooves, "Don't think you'll get away from me. I threw you over here that way so you can't teleport back to your precious master. After all, if you don't know where he is-" "SHUT UP!" The mare screeched as she threw out a bunch of quickly drawn paintings, soon summoning a small army of uni-troopers that charged at Soarin. The pegasus just cricked his neck as he began to dance around the creatures, dodging each slash. And as one thrust its sword at him, he began to go over in his mind what Flash had taught him. "Okay..." he shifted to the side, "Dodge!" He grabbed the hand of the scribeast, "Grab and twist!" The monster lost the grip on its sword, "Pull!" With one final yank, he pulled the sword free and held it in his grasp. "Nice," he cheered before he started slashing at the uni-troopers. Tempera growled at the sight, now pulling out her sketchpad. "Alright," she drew her next creation, "Let's see how you do against this!" She threw the page into the air and hit it with magic, causing the image of a lindworm to come alive. Soarin cut down the last uni-trooper when the giant wolf snake crashed onto the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. The Wonderbolt turned to the monster, the beast growling before it curled up and started spinning. "WHOA!" He yelped as he leapt out of the way, the lindworm rolling past him and slamming into a building. And as the structure fell over from the blow, both ponies saw the building began to collapse toward them. Shadow and Ruby's blades clashed as Trixie and Terror shot a barrage of beams at one another. Terror had yet to use one of her cards, but Trixie knew it was only a matter of time as Terror spoke up, "I warned you to not keep playing. This is no place for a talentless mare like you!" "You don't know me enough to call me talentless!" Trixie called back before teleporting behind her. But as she tried to throw a punch at Terror, the unicorn spun around and caught the hoof. "What?" "I told you last time. I see everything." Trixie then stared into the mare's eyes, only to go wide-eyed as she saw Terror's eyes were now glowing again. But before she could say anything, the sound of a crashing building made everypony turn and see a cloud of smoke appear several streets over. "Looks like I found Soarin," Trixie added before gripping Terror's leg and sparking her horn. And before Terror could react, they both teleported away. SHING! In a flash of light, Trixie and Terror appeared midair on a nearby street, both now rolling along the ground after the teleportation. And as they did this, Terror got under Trixie and thrust her back hooves forward, knocking her over to a minotaur that Tempera had created. "Trixie!" She heard Soarin yell, the mare opening her eyes to see the bull monster raise its giant fist above her head. She gasped and quickly teleported away, managing to escape just as the minotaur punched the earth. She then appeared next to Soarin, both getting into a battle stance as Terror ran up to Tempera, the artist now speaking up, "Use the Lover card," Terror nodded and reached into her cloak, only to freeze up as she pulled out the card. "I can't," she then shifted her hoof around, taking out another card as she threw it into the air. "But this should help instead!" The dome exploded around the two until the card stopped spinning, appearing upside down. "Arcana of the Reversed Empress!" The dome shrank down and encased Tempera before exploding, the light going into the unicorn. "Your magic back to full?" "Oh yeah," Tempera chuckled as her horn began to glow, summoning a sketchpad next. "Don't let her finish!" Soarin yelled as he leapt at her, ready to body slam the mare. "Oh no you don't!" Terror pulled out a Tower card and was about to throw it, only to suddenly leapt backward. Trixie then appeared where Terror was before, now tripping and falling into the dirt, "Too bad!" She tossed the card into the air, the card spinning before stopping right side up. "Arcana of the Tower!" The card unleashed a bolt of lightning at Soarin, the Wonderbolt's eyes going wide until Trixie teleported in front of him and summoned a shield. "Augh!" She cried, her head ringing from the fast pace she had to use the spells. "You okay?" Soarin asked as the lightning faded, Trixie's spell following suit. "She won't be for long," Terror pulled out another card, this one exploding into a light that the two recognized as the rune barrier. "No more teleporting for you." "But we don't have such limitations," Tempera added as she finished her drawing and threw it upward, a beam of magic hitting it next before summoning a manticore. Both Soarin and Trixie gulped at the sight of the two monsters, standing side by side. Tempera then turned to Terror with a big grin, "Tell me Terror, what do you think of our odds in winning now?" Terror unfolded five cards onto her hoof, a grin growing on her face as well, "Oh, just the usual perfect odds." Trixie and Soarin began to growl in unison as the unicorn tilted her hat in anger, "Don't count us out just yet!" Meanwhile... Now alone, Ruby spoke up as she dodged a swipe of Shadow's sword, "What did you do to Sombra?!" "Who?" Shadow replied with a raised eyebrow, only to tilt his head for a second before an exaggerated look of realization appeared on his face. "Oh! You mean Armalum, don't you? Why did you call him Sombra? His name is Armalum." "It doesn't matter what you call him!" Ruby barked back before firing several crystal arrows, "How is he with you?!" Shadow raised a lone hoof as he created several portals, collecting the arrows before sending them right back at Ruby. The mare gasped as she created a wall of crystal that blocked the arrows, Shadow taking this opening to teleport behind her and slash with his sword. And as she turned and blocked it with her own swords, he chuckled and shook his head, "Tell me, would you like to know why my most loyal servant looks like that?" He then leaned up her eye level, a huge grin on his face, "Let's just say...I'm borrowing his body for my purposes." "What?" And as this battle continued, the rest of team Flash were watching in the castle with nothing but tension and anticipation. "Come on....you can do it." Flash whispered as he tapped the table with his hoof. "Considering who they're up against, I'm inclined to disagree." Cold added in a deadpan tone, "Shadow's powers are like nothing any of them have faced before." His hoof moved to his chest, remembering the hole that had previously been stabbed into him. "Though Ruby does have a minor advantage." "Which is?" Springer asked as the image now showed Shadow encase his sword in a decay cloud. He then swung it at the Crystal Knight, the mare forming a shield that blocked the attack...and it didn't turn to dust. "See? Crystal doesn't particularly age. That means it is semi-immune to Shadow's decaying magic." "I guess that's good," Flash commented as Ruby jumped around her shield and tried to slash at him. "I just hope she doesn't lose it like she did before. This Sombra thing's really knocked her off her game." The others nodded in agreement, only for the map to glow below them. Looking down at the table, the group raised an eyebrow as a second section of the city began to be cornered off. "What's happening?" Heart asked, only for the roulette machine to appear above the table again. "Seriously?" "Maybe whoever's playing this game wants to speed things up," Cold added as the first orb flew out. This one had Cold's cutie mark on it, the knight nodding before the next one popped out with Springer's face on it. "Oh no." Soul put her hooves over her eyes, her lips trembling as she repeated, "Please not me, please not me, please not me." Heart swung his wing over her, hugging her as she opened her eyes to see the final orb...and saw that it had Flash's cutie mark on it. "Oh thank goodness." "Nice!" Flash cheered before turning to the two, "You both stay safe in here, alright?" "What could we possibly do in here that's not safe?" Heart asked, his question going unanswered as the three were teleported away. And as this happened, the duo looked back at the map, now gulping in fear as three more names appeared. As soon as the teleportation light died down, Flash raised his sword and entered his Theta Mode while Springer went Battle Mode and Cold formed a pair of Cold Sabers. The pegasus took to the skies while Springer closed his eyes, Cold glancing between the two. "Find anything?" "Nothing on visual," Flash announced as he quickly descended back down. "I've got 'em." Springer added as he reopened his eyes. "Follow me." "Lead the way bud," the defender responded as the jakhowl took the lead, bolting down a street. The knights quickly followed, the three zigzagging through the roads until Springer raised his palm while coming to a stop. "They're all together," the jakhowl finished as he pointed at a large building in front of them. "Behind there." "Got it," Cold replied as his horn began to glow. "Cold Dragon!" He stomped down, creating a giant serpentine ice sculpture that flew up before arcing back down over the top of the building. As it did this, Cold and Springer raced up its back while Flash flew above them. But as they reached the top of the arc, a massive burst of fire caused the downward section of the dragon to explode, forcing them to quickly land. "Salix's here!" Flash yelled out, only to see their opponents fly out of the smoke. The nirik was rocketing ahead first, Storm and Wingill not far behind. "Surprise!" Salix shot another stream of fire out of his hooves, only for Springer to jump in front and summon an Aura Guard to block the flames. "Storm Cutter!" Storm roared as he swung his blade, firing a blast of air next. However, Cold then grabbed his teammates and sparked his horn to teleport them away. The blade struck the remains of the dragon and shattered it, the three appearing on a nearby roof as it fell apart. Flash then pointed his blade at the trio while Springer summoned a white aura orb as both yelled, "Flash/Aura FORCE!" Two beams of pure power came out of them, all three leaping into different directions. Flash saw Storm take to the sky, his own wings now flaring as he declared, "I'll get Storm!" Cold turned to Springer, "I'm the best choice to tackle Salix. You think you can take Wingill down?" "I did it before," Springer replied while giving him a thumbs up before jumping over the side of the building. The jakhowl then spotted the hippogriff close to one of the canals, the jakhowl quickly charging at him while forming a Bone Breaker in his paws. "Lets go, seaweed brain!" "Oh, we'll go!" Wingill barked back while raising his claws, water now shooting out of the canal before forming a pair of water whips. He then took to the air and started swinging them around, Springer countering by spinning his energy bone to knock the water away. "Now!" He roared as he smacked away one of the whips, only to vanish. "What?!" Wingill yelped as he saw Springer disappear, his body now feeling a slight rush of wind above him. "Head's up!" Springer yelled above Wingill, the hippogriff looking up to see an aura bone slam into his head. "Gyah!" He cried as he was sent crashing into the canal. And as he turned into his seapony form, he shook his head before looking up and seeing Springer land on the canal's edge. "Idiot, I've got you now!" He thrust his fins forward...only for nothing to happen. "What?" He looked down at his fins before trying again, "Don't tell me..." He did it again, growling as he tried three more times before his brain clicked over the issue, "No...I can't control water in this form!" As he realized this, Springer tried to backpedal from the water as he felt a surge of pain go through his body. "Darn it...I really shouldn't have tried Velocity Strike right there." He took a deep breath as he gripped his chest, "Maybe it should be trump card if I think I'm in trouble..." His ears flared up next as he looked back up to see the water explode, Wingill leaping out while raising his claws. "This ends now!" He thrust his claws forward, a massive surge of water now shooting out of the canal. "Aura Guard!" The shield came up around Springer as he blocked the water, the stream now pushing him back. And as the water slowly came to a stop, the jakhowl dropped the shield as both began to glare at each other. At the same time... "Flash Driver!" "Storm Vortex!" Flash charged at he turned into a light drill, the attack slamming into the whirlpool that Storm had created. He then cut through the water, zipping up to the pegasus before Flash exploded out of the drill. He then swung his blade at Storm's face, only for Storm to block it with his sheath. "You still haven't told me how you got that thing!" Flash grunted while pushing him back, "There's no way Grand trained you, so you must have stolen it!" "You sure about that?" Storm asked with a giant grin, "I told you that Grand never told you everything." "Maybe...but I know he'd never train someone like you!" "HA!" Storm guffawed, spit flying out that almost landed on Flash's face as he then leaned up with his still growing smile, "For all you know, the reason that old mule picked you was because he failed with somepony superior like me!" Storm then did one last push, this one making Flash flap his wings back while the pegasi spun the blade's dial. "Storm Shower!" A barrage of lightning bolts shot out of his weapon, Flash quickly spinning around to dodge the attack. "Flash Grinder!" He spun into a wheel of light, charging at the pegasus while knocking away several bolts. "Grah!" Storm yelped as Flash hit him, the knight sending him straight into a building, "AAAHHH!" He screamed, the wheel pinning him against the stone, only for Flash to slow down and kick him away. "Flash Force!" Flash then yelled as he pointed his sword at Storm, unleashing a laser beam. The pegasi countered with lifting his weapon, swinging in as a lightning wave came out to intercept the attack. However, it only slowed it down before the beam struck him, sending him flying though the building with a pained cry. As this happened, Cold teleported down to a nearby street as the sound of the two other fights filled his ears. But as he did this, he yelled, "Cold Defender!" He forged an ice shield and spun around, a fireball then exploding off his barrier as Salix rocketed out of an alleyway. He slammed a burning fist into the shield next, causing it to shatter. Cold reacted by forming a pair of swords, swinging both with a x-like slash, "Whoa!" Salix yelped as he leapt back to avoid the blades, "Watch it with those things! You could poke an eye out!" "That's the idea," Cold replied as he thrusted the swords next, Salix hopping back before unleashing a wave of heat from this mane. The flames made the blades melt, Salix chuckled as Cold just dropped the swords without a hint of emotion. "Bad idea Coldy!" Salix mocked as he started flicking his tail around, fireballs now covering the area, "Haven't you ever played a video game? In fire verses ice, fire always wins!" Cold just teleported away, dodging each flame as Salix continued to create a volley of fire. As he did this, Salix saw Cold start to pant, his body slightly shaking as he teleported again. Salix laughed at this moment, taking in a deep breath as the flames flew off his mane and into his mouth. The nirik let out a roar, a single stream of fire now coming at Cold, only for his horn to shine, "Cold Force!" He unleashed a frozen tornado, the ice charging at the flames...and cutting right through them. "WHAT?! How did you-" Salix yelped before coughing, accidentally cutting his fire breath short. "If you stopped playing video games and took an actual science lesson, you'd know that fire can lose to ice if it's too cold to burn." Before Salix could react, the tornado wiped out the last of his flames, striking him with ease. "Gyah!" He screamed as the icy wind bit into him, his entire body quickly being covered in ice. And as another second passed, Cold stopped his attack as he now saw his opponent completely immobilized, a look of shock frozen on his face with his now frozen body. Meanwhile... CLANG! That was the sound of two blades clashing, Ruby now blocking Shadow's sword. They had been evenly matched, both blades having done no damage to each other. As this happened, Ruby's horn sparked as she suddenly teleported away, making Shadow raise an eyebrow before hearing a sound behind him. Spinning around, he now saw a barrage of crystal arrows coming for him. Seeing this, his entire body exploded into smoke, letting the arrows fly right through him before solidifying just as Ruby charged at him with her blade. He quickly blocked her attack, Ruby sidestepping with two more thrusts as Shadow dodged both before their swords became locked again as Ruby growled, "You...did Sombra teach you that?!" "Maybe," Shadow chuckled as Ruby leaped back, the unicorn not following after her as he instead just spun his blade in his hoof, "Does it really matter?" "It matters to me!" She roared as she pointed her sword at him, "I'll ask one last time before I get really angry. How did you revive him?! Sombra said he's been with you for eight years, but that's impossible! Until last year, he was banished along with the Crystal Empire and me!" Shadow shook his head in response, "My my, such a temper. Tell me, how do you know it's really him?" He then fired a laser out of his horn, Ruby ducking as the beam struck a nearby building, destroying it in one blow. "You know, maybe I just made him look like Sombra." "Why would you do that?!" Ruby barked as she teleported in front of him, trying to swipe her blade at him, only for him to turn into a cloud of smoke. He then floated backward as he began to reform, "That's for me to know," Shadow replied as he shot a chain out of his horn that struck Ruby's back leg, quickly pulling her, "And for you to wonder!" Ruby yelped as her leg was yanked, making him fall to the ground as he pulled her down the street. The sight made Shadow laugh as a sadistic smile graced his face, "You know what, I'm feeling generous. You see, a year ago I heard rumors of an ancient city that suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Intrigued, I went to see what I could learn about it....and as I did, I saw something." "What?" Ruby groaned out as she tried to get back up. "A vision," Shadow replied while holding up his sword. "I saw your friends, Flash and Sombra, in a white void. They didn't seem to notice me or hear me when I spoke, and together we all saw...well, let's just say something to complicated to explain in our current situation." Ruby went wide-eyed at this, now remembering what Flash had told her when he had saw the exact same vision. "You...had it too?" Shadow nodded back, "When I eventually arrived at the outskirts of the empire, I found myself drawn to something. A strange red horn." He then shined a huge grin, slashing his sword down at Ruby. But as he did this, Ruby's horn sparked, teleporting a few feet away. And as she reappeared, she stumbled over as she whispered, "So that's it. You found Sombra's horn and used it to revive him..." She summoned a new crystal blade and pointed it at him. "What is that armor?! Is it some form of mind control?! Is that why he thinks he's somepony else?!" Shadow shook his head as he rubbed his hoof over his blade, "I think I've revealed enough for today." He looked back up before charging at the knight, "I have more important things to do!" Their swords clashed again, Shadow pushing the mare back as their vision locked onto each other. Talking was now over. Meanwhile again... "Whoa!" Soarin yelped as he dodged an impaling manticore's tail, the pegasi quickly zipping around to the lion-bat-scorpion hybrid's side, body slamming it with full force. As this happened, Trixie was rolling on the ground, dodging a bunch of punches from a minotaur. And as the beast kept hitting the ground, Trixie flashed her horn and created a bunch of fakes that began circling the monster. The minotaur's eyes starting to spinning as it tried to watch each one, only for a beam to hit its back, burning a hole right through it before exploding into ink. "Gotcha!" Trixie cheered. "Maybe," Terror added as she reached into her cloak, "But there's more where that come from." She tossed a card up as it started spinning, Tempera now drawing a new creation as the card stopped face up, "Arcana of the Moon!" The card exploded into a puff of black smoke that now surrounded Trixie. "What is this?" She asked as the mare started blinking, seeing she now couldn't see a thing in front of her. Soarin then turned to his friend, remembering that card from his fight with Terror. However, he couldn't see the dark fog over Trixie, making him blink at the sight, "Wait...its just an illusion?" "Ha!" Tempera laughed before throwing a piece of paper in the air, "Arise!" And as she fired a spell at the paper, a cragadile appeared, the rock monster turning to charge at Trixie. "Look out!" Soarin yelled as he leapt at her, tackling the unicorn before the cragadile could take a bite. They both rolled across the ground before Soarin stood Trixie upright and pointed her head around, "Fire!" Trixie's horn instantly sparked, shooting a beam right into the rock crocodile. BOOM! "Did I get it?" "Yeah," he turned to the mare, "Can you see yet?" "No...wait," Trixie blinked her eyes as the smoke slowly started to vanish. "It's getting better." "Right," Soarin jumped in front of her next, "I'll keep you safe until your vision's back." Tempera then created a bunch of uni-troopers, all rolling at Soarin as he charged at them. Trixie could only watch as the blurry images in front of her moved around, the mare barely managing to distinguish who was who. But as she did this, she saw something coming close to a blue figure, "Look out!" she yelled, Soarin unable to react as he grabbed a uni-trooper's blade that was in front of him as another spun around to his back. "NO!" Trixie exclaimed as she saw the blue image not react to the uni-trooper behind him. She then fired a magic beam, this one ripping right through the beast before going across the street. Terror let out a gasp next, having to dodge the sudden blast. "Whoa!" she then tripped over her own hooves, causing several cards to fall out of her cape, "Shoot!" As this happened, Soarin side-stepped while releasing the blade before delivering a kick to the scribeast's head, destroying it in one hit. He then flew over to Trixie, her vision now finally coming back. "Thanks for that." "No prob," Trixie replied while turning to see Terror pick her cards up. "No," she said while grabbing a Tower card, "No, no, no, no, yes!" She threw a card up, a dome appearing around her and Tempera. "What are you doing?" The artist asked as the card stopped spinning. "Arcana of the Reversed Chariot!" the dome then shrank around Tempera before exploding into light. "What do I need speed for?!" Tempera yelped, only to turn to see Soarin about to throw a punch at her face, "Eep!" She then ducked, only to see Soarin spin with a kick, making her dodge backward. "Ah...that's why." She commented as Soarin kept trying to hit her, the mare barely able to dodge each blow. As this happened, Trixie fired another beam at Terror as the unicorn kept going through her cards. But as the beam was about to hit her, Terror ducked under the attack. The sight made Trixie let out a screech, "What?! How do you keep doing that?!" Terror giggled at Trixie's outburst as the mare fired five more blasts, Terror summoning a force field that only blocked one of the spells while the other four flew past her. "I told you before, its pointless. I see everything." She then reached for a card, but stopped as her hoof touched it, quickly changing to another one. As she did this, Trixie saw a certain familiar glow in the mare's eyes. And as this sight went through Trixie's brain, gears began to grind in her mind, going over both battles until a certain pony appeared in her mind. "It can't be...." Trixie whispered before her voice slowly got louder, "Terror, can you...see the future?!" As this question exited her mouth, Terror froze in place as she just gripped a card, Soarin and Tempera also going still as they all turned to Trixie. Terror then shifted her gaze at Trixie, her voice slightly cracking, "How...did you know?" In another part of the city... Cold continued to stare at his frozen opponent, waiting to make sure the kirin vanished into dust. But as this happened, he started to see large droplets appear on the side of the ice, making him growl, "Great." He then formed an ice hammer, slowly moving over before a wave of fire suddenly exploded off the ice. "RAAAHHHH!" The nirik screamed as a tornado of flames consumed him, barely walking out of the fire next as his teeth chattered, "Not cool dude! If I end up with hypothermia, you'll be sorry!" "Do you ever stop talking?" "Only when I'm asleep, and even then I've been told I tend to sleep talk." He then spun around and launched several tail flames, Cold knocking them away with his hammer before seeing Salix put himself into a bull charge position. Cold's horn shined as he teleported a few feet away, his horn now sparking as Salix bum-rushed down the street with flames burning behind him. "Cold Tigers!" A small army of ice cats appeared, Salix coming to a stop before unleashing a wave of fire that melted the first line into steam. He then started swinging his tail around like a mace, slamming it into the other ice sculptures. But as he took down the last one, he staggered back, panting as the heat died off his body. "Cold Saber!" He looked up to see a mid-air Cold with a pair of swords, gravity pulling him down as he swung the first one downward. Salix jumped back in response, dodging the first blow before Cold thrust the other at him. Side-stepping the attack, Cold magically pulled the first sword upward, Salix still backpedaling as Cold kept swinging both blades at him. And as this happened, not a single flame came off Salix as he kept dodging. Meanwhile once more... "Aura Blast!" Springer roared as he fired an energy sphere at Wingill, the hippogriff summoning a water ball the morphed into a buzzsaw. The two attacks collided, only for Wingill to feel a foot slam into his face. "GYAH!" Wingill yelped as he was knocked back, trying to quickly recover before thrusting his claws at Springer. As he did this, water bullets shot out of the canal, the barrage hitting Springer before he could summon an aura shield. "Augh!" he cried as the water exploded, sending him tumbling as Wingill got back on this feet. He then pulled out some more water, turning it to a whip before lashing it at the jakhowl. The water quickly grabbed him, making Wingill laugh as he pulled Springer back towards him. "Ha! Time for payback!" Wingill cheered as he clenched his claws, talons popping out as the whip pulled Springer right up to him. But as he did this, Springer summoned a Steel Paw, cutting the water with one swipe. "What?!" Wingill yelped as he tried to hit Springer with a water whip again, only to bounce off a sudden Aura Guard. "On come on!" "You're not winning this fish breath!" Springer barked back, still blocking Wingill continuous water whip lashes. But as he did this, a new voice spoke out, "Flash Cutter!" A light blade went straight for Wingill, making him hop back as an orange blur landed right by Springer, letting the jakhowl drop his shield. "Flash!" "Hey bud. Thought you could use a hoof." "Thanks," Springer added, only for a barrage of lightning bolts to hit the ground between them and Wingill. "Whoa!" Flash yelped as he grabbed Springer to dodge the attack, both quickly getting down the street. And as both spun around, they saw Storm now hover over Wingill. The sight made Flash raise his sword and point it at both enemies. "Hate to say it buddy, but you might not want to thank me yet." "Eh, we can take 'em." Springer replied as he made a Bone Breaker. Flash put his blade over his shoulder, a grin gracing his face as he continued, "You're right. Let's show 'em a good old fashioned defender of the peace beatdown!" And as the battles continued, one had come to a halt. Four ponies were in a standstill, Terror glaring at Trixie as she asked, "How...did you know?" Trixie's face didn't falter or change at the question, a look of nothing but determination showing itself now as she replied, "Well, it's not like you hid it well. You said it yourself that you could see everything, and in all our fights, I can never seem to hit you, even when I knew you couldn't see it coming." She now pointed at the unicorn, "That's why I thought you could see the future. You're too perfect when fighting, so I knew it had to be some other trick." "Even so," Tempera added as she took this moment to jump away from Soarin and pull out her sketchpad. "It's an awfully big jump to go from wondering how she dodges to coming up with seeing the future. How'd you know she doesn't have some kind of mind reading ability?!" "Because I've never heard of magic that let's one read another's mind...but I do know of ponies that can see the future. Our friend Flash's mother for example, she also has the ability to see the future, though it's not on demand as your powers seem to be." Terror went wide-eyed at the comment, her voice shaking as she responded, "I'm...not the only one?" Trixie's grin now appeared as she tipped her hat, "Plus, mind reading wouldn't explain your cards." Tempera tilted her head at this as Trixie continued, "Your cards keep coming out with an outcome that's always positive for you, whether it be right side up or upside down." Soarin gasped at this as he caught on, "She's using her ability to see what the outcome of each card is!" "Exactly," Trixie grinded her hooves into the ground, getting back into a fighting stance. "That's why she hasn't been using the Tower card so much. If she did, I bet it would have been upside down. Let me guess, that would mean you get zapped." Terror just growled as she reached for a card, "Don't think you're so great just because you figured it out! Knowing my powers in one thing, but beating it is a whole other story!" She threw the card up before it span and stopped right side up. "Arcana of the Sun!" Trixie's eyes went wide before she pulled Soarin over to her, "Close your eyes!" He did so, the card exploding into light as it came after the duo. But as it did this, Trixie put up a barrier with her eyes closed, this one not being the usual blue color of her magic, but rather an almost blackish blue color that the light hit. The bolt exploded off the dark shield, the light dimming as the blinding spell was negated. And as Trixie and Soarin opened their eyes, both gulped as they saw a new sight in front of them. A lindworm, quetzalcoatl and a chimera now landed before them, Soarin whispering out, "Not good." "We have to get out of here!" Trixie yelled as her horn sparked, instantly consuming both in a smoke screen. "Seriously?! This again?!" Terror sighed before her eyes glowed again, only to let out a gasp. A second later, an army of Soarin flew out of the cloud, each carrying a Trixie. Each flew off in a different direction, the unicorns and scribeasts unable to tell which one to follow. "Which ones do we go after?" Tempera asked as she turned to Terror, only to see her eyes glowing again...only to let out a sigh. "I don't know." She growled as they all got out of sight, "Damn you, Lulamoon." "Eh, its fine. They can't hide forever," Tempera began drawing again, throwing a full sketchpad up next. In a flash, a miniature army of uni-troopers, half sized lindworms and giant flying eyeballs appeared. "Find them!" The scribeasts all let out roars of understanding before heading off, leaving the two alone. "And while they're busy hiding, we'll find the orb." Terror nodded in agreement as they ran down a nearby road. "Ruby FORCE!" The Crystal Knight screeched as she fired a gem laced tornado from her horn. It flew at Shadow, the pony waving his hoof as he summoned a shield, "Try again," he replied as he rubbed the length of his blade, "You're not half bad, for a mare." Ruby growled as she summoned two crystal swords, Shadow just staring at her as his shield disappeared, "If you surrender now and pledge yourself to me, I might decide to go easy on the rest of your friends." "You're crazy!" Ruby charged as she swung both swords at him, Shadow blocking both with ease. However, as he did this, Ruby tried to push against his blade as she yelled, "I'd never join you!" "Why not? It'll happen sooner or later, as it's inevitable that I will rule over all. Save yourself a lot of time and pain and just give up now." "Don't underestimate us," Ruby growled as she leapt back and pointed one sword at him. "You may have gotten the drop on us a few times, but with every defeat my friends and I grow stronger. And if you think we're just gonna sit back and let you conquer our home, you've got another thing coming!" She charged at full force, her speed and precision suddenly increasing. Shadow raised an eyebrow as she rapidly thrusted her blades at him, Shadow blocking each at the last split second. But as she swiped again at him, his horn sparked, teleporting away. He then reappeared below a nearby building, slicing his decaying sword into the structure. It instantly started to fall, the mare gasping as she saw it about to fall on her. In response, she slammed her crystal blades into the ground, a tepee of crystals shooting up around her as the building collapsed on her. And as Shadow reappeared above rubble, he showed he was now in his cloud form to dodge the building. Solidifying next, he chuckled as he saw no sign of life in the pile of endless rubble. "Such a waste. Its too bad, as her magic isn't bad." He then turned around, walking away before suddenly feeling a rumble under his hooves. Looking back, a crystal pillar shot out of the rubble, a unicorn coming out of the stone pile next. The knight was panting, glaring at her enemy as Shadow just continued to chuckle. "I'm not done with you yet." "Oh? Are you sure?" Shadow replied as he pointed at her, seeing Ruby now forcing herself to get her breathing under control. "You're looking tired. Still don't wanna give up?" "Just like my friends, I'll never give up." She summoned a new crystal blade as she continued, "We will beat you and your goons." And as those words hit Shadow's ears, he let out a mighty laugh, "HA! Don't be absurd." He then pointed his decaying blade at her, "I always win, and that includes my followers." In another section of the city... Trixie and Soarin were now hiding in an alleyway, both panting up a storm as Soarin said, "This is nuts." His ears shot up next as he heard the sound of a wheel, "Hide!" The two curled themselves up against the wall before Trixie's horn sparked, both now being replaced by a large bush. A uni-trooper then rolled by the alleyway, passing by the bush before Trixie dropped the illusion, "We can't keep doing this," she gasped, "While we hide away, they're gonna find the orb." "Well, what else can we do?" Soarin asked back, "If we try anything, Terror's just gonna see it coming. How do you beat somepony that can see the future?!" Trixie rubbed her chin in thought, only to turn to Soarin, "You already did." "What do you mean?" "Didn't you and Cold beat her and Storm after she uh...beat me?" Soarin nodded back, "Yeah. We managed to trick them into taking each other out." "Exactly. There's no way that would have worked if she had seen it coming." "Oh," Soarin whispered, "Does that mean she has a limit or something?" Trixie nodded in agreement. "Probably. That means either she couldn't use it while fighting you...or she can't constantly use it. We just have to find that opening." This statement was followed by Trixie turning them into a bush again, dodging a flying eyeball before Soarin replied, "Okay, so her future power isn't perfect. But even if we can find a window where she can't see what's gonna happen, Tempera and those scribeasts are backing her up." "We can handle them. Terror's the real problem since she can be one step ahead of us no matter what. We have to take her out first..." She slowly began to smile, "And I think I know how." "I like that grin." Soarin cheered, "What's the plan?" Meanwhile... "This is ridiculous!" Tempera growled as she turned to her teammate. "Can't you just look into the future and see which building we'll find it in?!" "You know it doesn't work that way," Terror told her. "I can only see about a minute into the future when I'm actually trying to use it. The only times I can see any further is during visions that come naturally." Tempera grit her teeth at the response, about to yell at her before the sound of a nearby building collapsing caught her ears. Turning to see a giant cloud of dust, Tempera grabbed Terror and warped them over to that location, only to see Soarin dodging an attacking lindworm. "Well we found one." "Where's Lulamoon?" Terror asked as her eyes darted around. "Who cares," Tempera added as she pointed at Soarin, the pegasi hopping around due to his now broken left wing. It was covered in blood, slightly looking bent as Soarin flinched anytime he moved it. "Looks like my scribeast did some damage. Bet they already managed to beat the unicorn." She began to charge in with her horn shining, "Let's end this!" "Wait!" Terror yelled, but Tempera didn't listen as she fired a spell at the Wonderbolt. The pegasi turned to her, shifting his head to dodge a magic beam from Tempera. As he did this, the lindword swung its tail at the pony, only for Soarin to grab it with his hooves. "Oh, no you don't!" Soarin cheered as he began spinning on his back hooves with all his strength, swinging the serpent wolf creature around like a top before letting go. Tempera gasped as she saw her beast be thrown at her, the mare firing a blast that caused her creation to explode into ink. But as ink covered her vision, Soarin leapt over her. "Surprise!" He yelled, throwing a punch right into her face. And as the punch knocked the unicorn back, a piece of rubble from the previously destroyed building suddenly vanished and was replaced by Trixie. "Double surprise!" She roared as she fired a blast from her horn right at Tempera. "No!" Terror yelled as everything went white around her, the unicorn blinking as the world around her rewound to the previous minute. Terror then turned to the piece of rubble, quickly firing a beam at it. But as it hit the rock...it went right through with no pained scream. "What?!" She yelped before seeing Soarin throw the lindworm at Tempera. And as the mare fired a blast through the scribeast, Terror created a force field around her, stopping Soarin's attack cold. "Huh?!" He growled before jumping back, now glaring at Terror. The unicorn just looked away, glaring at all the debris around them, "If that piece of debris wasn't her and it was still an illusion, she's probably close by." She then pulled out a card, throwing it up as the dome appeared around her and Tempera, soon stopping right side up. "Arcana of the Strength!" The dome shrank around her before exploding, the light covering her. "Playtime is over!" She slammed her hoof into the ground, causing an earthquake that knocked both Soarin and Tempera off balance. Terror then charged at Soarin, firing blasts as the pegasi kept hopping around each beam, "Where is she?!" Terror yelled as she started throwing punches and kicks, Soarin now break-dancing around her to avoid the attacks. He could feel air blasts coming out of her hooves, wind pressure hitting pieces of rubble all around him. "What's the matter?" Soarin chuckled as he dodged another punch, only to grab and toss the mare over his shoulder. "Can't foresee where she is?" Terror growled as she hit the ground rolling, Tempera taking this chance to create a minotaur behind him. "NOW TRICKS!" The mares then saw him be consumed by smoke, an army of him suddenly coming out as the minotaur froze up from the huge amount of targets. "Where's the real one?" Tempera asked Terror, the mare about to activate her ability until she saw the many Soarins jump over to the rubble of the destroyed building. Each picked up a large rock before all but one of them spread their wings and took to the air. "Wait!" The grounded Soarin yelled, "Don't!" "That one!" Terror and Tempera both fired a spell at the grounded Soarin, causing the ground to explode around him. The pony went flying back from the blow, crashing into a wall with an enormous thud. "Got him!" Tempera laughed before looking up at the fake Soarins. "Don't bother. You can't trick us. There's no way any of you are real." But as she said that, the Soarins threw the rocks anyways, two mares rolling their eyes at the sight. However, one of the rocks then slammed into the minotaur, the two's eyes going wide as three more hit it, causing it to explode, "What?!" The two quickly brought up a shield next, the rocks now bouncing off the barriers as Tempera yelped out, "How are they doing this?!" Terror looked up, gasping as she saw all the Soarin clones vanish as the rocks stopped falling, "She was levitating the rocks! He was never here!" "Then where is he?!" Tempera asked as both lowered their shields. Her ears then heard a mighty roar, making her turn to see the pegasi charge at her to deal a powerful kick to her head, only for him to freeze midair as Tempera caught him in her magic. "Really?" She asked as she slung him into the ground. "AUGH!" He wheezed out, both now walking up to him as a smile appeared on his face, a dim light shining around him, "Gotcha!" Before they could respond, Soarin's body exploded into a million specks of light to reveal Trixie beneath it. "NOW!" She screamed before her horn exploded with light, hitting the two in the face with a blinding light. As they screamed and clutched their eyes, they then heard a loud booming sound coming from above them. Had they been able to see, the duo would have seen the real Soarin charging downward at such speeds that he had just hit the sound barrier. Rocketing through the streets at such a high velocity that a cone of air wrapped around him, he pulled his hoof back as he got closer to the two. Forcing her eyes open, Tempera turned to the sound to see a blue blur coming straight for Terror. "LOOK OUT!" She then fired a teleportation spell, warping her over to Terror before throwing her off to the left. Soarin saw the exchange, knowing he couldn't turn or slow down at all. "Dang it!" was all he could say as he charged ahead, throwing his hoof forward as he reached his target. BOOM! The impact caused a second sonic boom, a shockwave flying across the area next as the sound blocked out the screams of pain that Tempera unleashed as she was sent flying back. And as the boom began to come to a stop, Terror's eyesight cleared as she picked herself up, only to let out a gasp. "Tempera!" She screamed as she teleported over to her, her teammate now pinned against the wall of a building. The pony was now producing dust as she fell off the structure, Terror catching her in her hooves, "How?!" "They tricked us," Tempera wheezed out. Terror then glared over at Soarin, now seeing him help Trixie to her hooves, "Nice shot," she told him as he waved his hoof around. "Yeah, but I got the wrong one." "Better than missing all together." They both turned to see Tempera completely vanish, Terror picking herself up while glaring at the two. "You'll pay for that." Terror growled as her horn began to shine. Soarin and Trixie nodded to each other before getting in a fighting stance, not needing to say anything as they glared at their opponent. And as their battle was about to continue, the rest of the heroes were still in their own fights, all growing exhausted every second. These two battle's were anypony's game. Who will win?