Cider was indeed a spring of enlightenment for the ponies, but instead of a weakness they were hoping for, they were given knowledge of the mastermind behind everything that's happened thus far.
Yimeck, a business tycoon, is believed to be the one behind Equestria's attack, and more. Selling scrolls for spells and anti-magic swords, he's not one to be taken lightly, as his influence has spread far and wide from his monopolized empire.
With the four ponies rested, they are ready for a voyage across the grand ocean for Equestria's stolen magic. However, Tempest Shadow has to make one more stop, before she is can traverse this journey.
Pushing the drape aside with a groggy look on her face, Tempest Shadow covers a yawn as she walks into Mino's store. A scent of cinnamon hits Tempest's nose this time upon entering, but it did little to drown the aroma of tomatoes that lingers on her body. She rubs her bare neck as her eyes adjust to the indoor lighting, quickly spotting the small owner of the place using a bellow to warm up the giant cauldron with liquid that emits the spicy scent she got coming in.
Tempest eases her stance in her battle gear, falling into a daze as she waits for Mino.
"Stayed up late, kupo?" Mino asks, still attending his work.
"I... just had some trouble sleeping last night."
"Because of the smell, kupo?"
Tempest shakes her head, "It's because I had another ni..." she pauses for a moment, releasing a tiny bit of her breath as she clears her mind. "Let's just get back to the reason I'm here. The other day, you said that if I got you six tentacles from that creature in the tunnels, then you would help make my Focus Crystal stronger in some way over the course of the night."
The tip of Mino's hat bounces as he nods. He scampers over to a worktable to retrieve the necklace.
"So how do tentacles fit in with upgrading an accessory?" Tempest speaks louder to fit Mino's distance.
"By synthesizing six of those tentacles, six steel pipes, and six bottles of my special remedy, I made a 'Solomon Ring'." Mino digs out the necklace from a table drawer and makes his way back to Tempest, "I purified it to make a 'Ring of the Lucii', and then synchronized that with your crystal, kupo." Mino bestows the accessory for Tempest to take, "No longer a 'Focus Crystal', but now a 'Guardian Crystal', kupo!"
Tempest scoops up the lace of it and lets the crystal sway before her eyes, studying the deep blue mineral for anything different about it. "...nothing's changed."
"It has changed, kupo." Mino blusters, "I swear on my pom-pom it has."
"Then what's different about it?"
"It has two new properties to it, kupo."
The liquid inside the room's giant cauldron begins to bubble, signaling Mino to retrieve a bottle and make his way over to the pot, scooping some of the liquid into the container.
"Do you know how energy is, kupo?" Mino asks as he corks the bottle.
"It's something that I'm lacking right now," Tempest's dry sense of humor ironically has a yawn at the end.
"Energy, in physics, is something that can only be transferred from one thing to another through the result of work, kupo. Moving around, making a sound, those are a form of energy being used, kupo. Even your soul plays a part in this as it transfers its own energy into the body heat you're emitting. And your flux light acts in the same way as your soul does, but with magic, kupo."
"So what does all this have to do with the crystal?"
"Your Focus Crystal could only keep some of this magic from escaping your body, kupo. But this improvement will seal all magic within your body until you want to use a spell, allowing you to make the most out of your magic, kupo."
The news interests Tempest enough to escape her drowsy state, but part of that is due to the issue she notices, "It sounds helpful, but it also sounds like it would give me some problems if I don't keep casting spells."
"It would, that's why the second feature will fix it, kupo. The extra magic you'll possess won't truly be sealed within you, but rather transferred over to the crystal for storage, kupo. When the crystal begins to shine yellow, it won't take in any more magic and it'll begin to emit the extra magic it gains from itself, kupo. Once it does turn yellow, you'll be able to use the magic stored inside to make a big powerful spell, kupo."
Tempest looks at the crystal, waffling over this change, "And what kind of spell can that be?"
"Your choice, kupo." Mino waddles his way over to Tempest, carrying the bottle in hand. "Just use any spell you like and push yourself to the limit, and it'll break your spell to greater heights if you do that, kupo." He points the bottle's head at the pony, "Making a powerful and effective burst of magic!"
Mino pops open the bottle and the cinnamon scent it holds comes charging out towards Tempest's sinuses. The powerful smell snaps all the drowsiness out of her and leaves her at full attention.
"It'll take some time to refill after each use, so pick your times wisely, kupo."
"Time!" Tempest exclaims with fresh ambition. She flips the necklace over her head and lets it fall around her neck. "I gotta hurry over to the docks!"
At the edge of town, where there's a port hanging off a steep cliff, dock airships begin to sail off into the clouds. But directly below the suspending haven, all the way down to sea level, lies a harbor with a series of boats being loaded. One ship in particular, The S.S. Liki, is an average sized ship that's a little on the small side. It's a ship that mainly transports goods, but it carries a few travelers along with it as well, acting as a cargo-ferry ship. Passengers are already boarding the vessel, conversing and taking glances over the ship's railing, giving them a view of the early morning sun over the ocean. The crew members though are busy working, loading up the ship with the crates and barrels still on the dock. It's near one of those crates, the one that contains bags of flour inside, that stands Second Wind and an armored Flash Sentry, the latter studying the former's skill on operating his metal wing's keypad.
With one final tap on the panel, Sentry's armor flashes out of sight. "Stored," Wind informs as he sees the monitor of his wing updating, "your suit is right next to the ribbon and the... comb?" Wind sounds uncertain in his answer and leans closer into the shade being cast from the crate he stands by. He winces at the monitor more intensely, "Bomb! I meant 'bomb'. Sorry, it's hard to read the screen when the sun is reflecting off of it."
Wind returns back to typing, looking a lot more at ease and leaving Flash a lot more confused, "Not going to correct yourself on the 'ribbon' as well?" Sentry asks.
"Nope. I remember storing that one."
"Why store a useless thing like that?"
"For the heck of it." Wind pauses after a moment, catching that he's still getting a bewildered look from his higher-up, "You develop a habit of improvising when you're missing some pieces," Wind waves at Flash with his prosthetic wing.
"Speaking about a habit," Flash turns his head to Shining Armor, who's pacing around in circles, "still performing the carousel, I see."
Armor's face expresses his worry, and the constant glancing around displays his agitation.
"Take it easy, Captain." Sentry pitches, "She'll be here any minute now."
"And it's within those minutes that Equestria is left weakened and magicless," Shining reminds the pegasus. "I'm tolerant at allowing moments for us to rest, and I understand why we needed to sidetrack yesterday, but now that we can progress, I want to use this time to get back Equestria's magic as soon as possible."
"We'd still leave only when the boat does."
"True, but I would feel a lot better if all of us were on the boat, and Tempest is cutting it close for me. I don't want to miss the boat and waste this day away for tomorrow."
"I would prefer it if all four of you didn't leave, to be honest," the scruffy voice of Cider's discloses.
Shining Armor turns to the abyssinian staring out at the sea with an uncomfortable look on his whiskered face.
"It's been a while since I last sailed a vessel on the ocean, but this old cat's bones are telling him that now isn't a good time for a voyage."
Taking into account what he said, Shining takes in his surroundings. It's a clear, sunny day with a salty smell coming from the breeze that brushes his fur, "Far be it for me to question your sailing experience, but this looks like the perfect weather to travel in."
"But is it the perfect waters to sail through?" Cider points out, "I've come to understand that the ocean is a lot like a lady in many regards. It can be gentle, it can turn rough, and if you're caught when it turns violent, you won't be able to escape its wrath."
"Tell me about it," the married unicorn recollects, "but the route we'll be taking shouldn't have any problems. The captain told me that the ferry has been sailing this route for years and it's been nothing but calm waters."
Cider shakes his head with an amused smile, "I appreciate the reassurance, Captain, but I'm not easily swayed. I tend to keep firm on my first instincts, and after years of experience, I've learned that you can't always tell what the ocean is hiding. It's a mystery, something that you can't understand, not unless you take the time to learn how it flows. And my nautical senses are ringing over something that doesn't agree with these waters."
Shining bites his tongue from asking Cider if he isn't confusing his nautical senses with his feline, "Well if we happen to come across anything unwelcoming, then I'll just form a barrier around the ship. I've managed to keep a barrier up around Canterlot for days once, so keeping a barrier up for a few hours won't be an-" he stops short of his sentence upon seeing the face everyone was waiting for, "Tempest!"
Sentry and Wind glance towards the name and Shining gestures at them to get on board. Armor excuses himself from the conversation with Cider by giving a nod and gallops for the boat's ramp. As the pegasi head up on deck, Shining pauses at the ramp's bottom for Tempest, who slows into a trot as she approaches.
"You were cutting it close," Shining squeezes in a conversation with the passing mare, "was that errand really necessary?"
Tempest pauses at the ramp. She looks up at her forehead with a broad expression on her face, "Unfortunately."
"Unfortunately?"
She glances over to Shining's horn, quickly gaining a disinterest in the small talk. "You wouldn't understand," Tempest brushes off the question and resumes up the rump.
Tempest studies the ship as she gets an onboard look of the vessel the closer she gets. The pathways of the boat are pretty wide for passengers to walk through freely in small groups, yet there are a few piles of crates tied down to the walls that would undoubtedly cause traffic issues. The helm stands in the cockpit near the ship's center, giving a clear view of the ocean and the opened deck below it. The rails that go around the boat aren't the best as almost anyone can slip under the railing, the only thing that's there to stop you are the spread-out vertical bars of metal and a single horizontal bar that goes around the boat, separating the top rail from the wooden floor in the middle.
There's a few crew members within Tempest's sight as she steps onto deck. The passengers are barely surpassing crew members in numbers, but the majority of them are sea folks and bipeds, leaving her team of ponies to stick out amongst everyone. And speaking about Tempest's teammates, Second Wind approaches her with his prosthetic wing out at the ready to be fiddled with, "So now that you're here, do you want me to store away your armor?"
The cool breeze hitting Tempest suddenly feels a lot colder to her, "No!" she abruptly responded. Tempest takes a few steps back with her tail curled around her plot, "No, that's alright. I'll just keep it on, thanks."
Tempest heads off to survey the ship some more, leaving Wind with Shining Armor as he walks on board after witnessing the scene. "She's the one that I can't understand," Armor admits to Wind.
With it stocked up and the anchor weighed, the transport ship begins its journey to Ivalice. Shining Armor stands with Second Wind as they wave goodbye to Cider down on the docks.
Cider returns the gesture, "Keep that featherbrain in order, Captain."
The informal nickname leaves a smile on Shining, "He's a pretty interesting character, your uncle."
"Had a feeling you'd see him that way, the two of you are a lot alike in many ways. Protective, committed, and the two of you can really be stubborn."
"Am I really?"
"At times," the stallions lower their hooves, easing themselves for the long ride ahead of them. "He also had a habit of smoking back in the day."
"Smoking's for dragons," Shining shakes one more wave towards the idea, "but since we're on the topic, mind filling me in on how you're related to Cider?"
"I guess the 'uncle' title wasn't fooling you," Second sighs that the cat's out of the bag, as well as the family tree. "Well it's pretty much as you see it. Him and I don't have any blood between us, but he's been a lot like a father to me throughout my life."
The two of them make their way over to a wall and rest against it.
"So what brought you two into meeting each other?" Shining continues.
Wind leans his head back to gather his thoughts, "It was a few months after I was born, so I don't quite remember it happening. I was told that my mother was dealing with something at the time and she needed somebody to care for me in her absence."
"So he's basically someone your mother knew?"
"She placed a lot of faith in him for my sake, even though I might've gotten his whiskers twisted at times."
Shining grins at the relatable experience, "I'm sure you couldn't be any more difficult than what a baby alicorn can bring."
"It's a good thing that you have Cadance to even the playing field then."
"Heh, that's true, but it doesn't mean that she's always there when I need help. She could be in a meeting or making a public appearance, just to name a few. One time, Cadance was late coming home, so I had Flurry Heart for the entire day." Shining makes an audible 'oof' just from recalling that day, "No amount of guard training was as exhausting as putting Flurry Heart to bed. I eventually got her to tire herself out through various games where I intentionally lose. While she placed everything she had into beating her old stallion, I just paced myself until she began to fall asleep."
"And how long did it take to accomplish that?"
"A lot shorter than you'd think. After galloping around the castle in a game of tag and magically lifting things eight times her size in a competition to see who was the strongest, she was out like a light."
"Eight times her size!" Wind astonishment gives Shining a proud feeling for his little girl's feat, "I knew Alicorns had powerful magic, but I wouldn't have imagined that Flurry could lift something roughly the size of an elephant."
"Alicorns are indeed powerful, but they're still like any other creature, they become fatigued by overexerting themselves. The greater the feat, the faster you'll fatigue. She's still a little girl that hasn't gotten a complete control over performing her magic yet, and sense building a spell is the most difficult part in casting with maintaining it being only second, outlasting her was a cinch," a gentle smile forms as Armor reinvasions the adorable site of Flurry Heart sleeping, "watching her after that was a very soothing experience. It really calmed me down from Cadance's lengthy absence."
"What kept her?"
"It was the day that The Storm King's army invaded Canterlot. So..."
"I was collecting water stones for Mino on that day, so I missed the entire event. I even missed the princess when she and her friends came through town as I was down by the shorelines." Wind rubs his chin, "If I remember right, they were running away from a group lead by The Storm King's commander, who just so happens to be the 'nonunderstandable' one of our team," he plays with his captain's depiction on Tempest. "Was there a reason why she'd go so far as to capture the princess?"
Shining shifts, "To what Twilight told me, Tempest was following orders of The Storm King's with the promise that if she helped him steal the princesses' magic, then he'd use the magic to restore her broken horn."
Wind casts his eyes down, giving a shallow look at his prosthetic wing, "I guess her horn must really mean a lot to her."
"But to give up the kingdom, her home, as a sacrifice to regain her horn?" Shining scoffs the question, "Just how low can one get?"
Second Wind catches the firm sound in his captain's voice, warning him of his stubborn thoughts on the matter, yet Wind ponders for a moment before a smirk appears on his face, "...why don't we try answering that. Just how low can one go?"
Armor quirks a brow to what end this will bring.
"Tell me, would you shave your mane for Equestria?"
"I still have a couple more years before worrying about going bald, it'll grow back."
"Alright," Wind taps a feather on his chin, "would you give up your job?"
"I wouldn't be much of a guard if I chose my job over Equestria."
"True, true, then how about this... would you give it up for your daughter?"
A sudden chill quakes throughout Shining Armor.
"If you had to choose between giving up Equestria or Flurry Heart, which would it be?"
Shining feels his mouth running dry as this question seems impossible to answer. "Th...th-the comparison you're trying to make between Tempest's circumstance and these question isn't similar at all," Shining attempts to dodge at giving an answer. "One is a selfish backstab, while the other is a 'sacrifice the few for the many' quandary."
"But they're what both choosing parties care deeply for. So much so that they'd give up Equestria for it."
"It's still choosing between a life and an object," Shining continues to defend his reasoning, "One can't be replaced, but the other can at least be compensated to an extent."
Both stallions stay silent for a moment, letting the tension settle down before it gets out of hoof.
"...have you noticed," Second Wind asks, "ever since we met her, that Tempest has never smiled?"
Armor shifts his eyes about, reflecting on the past events with her.
"After proving a point or even being cocky to your expense, she hasn't given a smile to anything, not once this entire time."
Shining shakes his head, "No, I didn't pick up on that."
"'Hatred can blind us from the truth, and desire can cloud our better judgement.' That's something Uncle Cider used to tell me."
"But that doesn't necessarily mean that it's related to the loss of her horn. I mean, it had to be years ago since she lost it. She must've moved on by now."
"Perhaps you have a point, but sometimes, we never really recover from a part of us we've lost," Second Wind stares up at the clear sky, "whether it be something attached to us, or someone we're attached to."
Resting her forehooves on the boat's railing, Tempest Shadow feels the salty wind hitting her right side as she looks out to the ocean they sail across. It's chilly, but she's too lost in her mind to notice it.
"..."
"So is this anything like your early days working under The Storm King?"
The voice breaks Tempest's contraction and she shifts her sight to the left, seeing Flash Sentry talking to her, "Taking long journeys around the world, riding in giant vessels and easing to the breeze in your face." He asks again, " Was it anything like what we're going through now?"
"It was like having hyperesthesia," Tempest makes clear, "always staying aware of your surroundings with no interest at offering pity in a fierce, yet dignified, manner."
"Because you needed to put up an act to keep your subordinates in line," Flash receives a raising eyebrow from Tempest and he returns a smirk from his insouciant expression, "right?"
"..."
"But now, where you can just be yourself, you're finding it difficult to not be reserved."
Tempest looks out at sea, "...I'm ashamed to say that I really do miss it. I really didn't have much going for me in my life before that. I was basically just heading from place to place, getting whatever small job that was available at the time. My options were very limited after all." Shadow lays a hoof on her fractured horn, "I don't have the strength of an earth pony, or the schooling for any particular careers, so taking up on Storm's offer as a soldier was like a breath of fresh air."
"Hmm," Flash nods to her words, "I can associate with that. I didn't really have much of an education either, so my career options basically came down to military choices."
"What made you decide that it should be palace guard?" Tempest continues the conversation with her own question.
"They always came off as admirable to me. A strong presence in the room that many would acknowledge towards."
"I have a tough time believing a guard would stand out sense many of them look the same."
"Well it was basically how I saw it in my younger days, but you're unfortunately right, I'm just another pony in armor among the majority." Flash heaves out the fact in a sigh that's heavily lacking in spirit, "the grand image was just a façade overflowing from a young colt's aspiration into his adulthood." Sentry passes by Tempest, "It's ironic how nothing's really changed now that I'm here."
"Was that what you were hoping to gain?" Tempest's question causes Flash to abruptly stop with his composer in check, "Recognition?"
"..."
Sentry continues down the pathway, ignoring her question with a stone face.
Shadow goes back into her pensive mood. Her eyes wonder until they're drawn to a soft radiant glow below her neck. She ganders in amazement that the crystal that she's wearing has turned yellow. She lifts the crystal closer to her face, it's just like what Mino said it would do, which would mean that she has some of her reserved magic inside.
"...wonder how much it's housing," Tempest speaks her mind with a feeling of contentment for having this necklace, but the more she looks at the accessory, the more she starts to resent the jewelry. Shadow drops the crystal back and places her forehooves on the railing of the ship. She watches the water that's passing below her, making out her reflection on the ocean's surface. The ripples and waves distort the image for her to see it clearly, but she can almost make out a much different looking unicorn staring back at her.
A more complete unicorn.
Suddenly, another pony appears next to her reflection. Tempest looks up to her right and sees Second Wind mimicking her posture.
"That gloomy face of yours looks more gloomier than usual," Wind teases in a friendly manner.
Tempest gazes back at the water and rests her head in her folded forehooves, "Are you here to ask me something too?"
"Well sense you're offering, I was wondering if you could share something with me," Second Wind makes light of the conversation, but takes a moment to choose his words carefully before continuing, "...I'm hoping if you could tell me how you lost your horn."
The request of her 'conversation starter' leaves Tempest with the need to suspire,
"If it's too painful, then you do-"
"I've been asked about my horn so many times before that I'm pretty much numb to the pain it brings me now," Tempest cuts Wind off, "...I was a filly when it happened, back when I was a run-of-the-mill flicka. I was among others I could relate to, all young and foalish without a care in the world."
"Your friends, I presume."
"I guess you'd call them acquaintances... I played with them. Until one day, when I ventured into a cave to retrieve a ball that bounced inside, I was attacked by an ursa minor. I was terrified, but instead of running away like any other pony would, I tried to fight it back with my magic. And as a result..."
Tempest pauses. Wind watches silently as she shut her eyes, giving him a good look at the scar over her right one. Her broken horn sparks as she reopens her eyes again.
"I remember the faces of those foals the next day, when I tried levitating that ball and my magic started to crackle and snap as I struggled, their expressions weren't showing concern or pity from my failed attempts. ...it was terror. My incapability to cast magic was striking fear into them no different than from what that ursa was with me. They took the hint however and ran away from me the moment they got the chance, but as I watched them leave me behind, it occurred to me of just how different my world was going to be from then on. How it will be filled with nothing but hardships for the things that I took for granted, like being in another reality that resembles the one I knew, only it's more hellbent on snuffing you from its garden than the prior one was."
Wind reflects on Tempest's words for a moment as he begins to consider something.
"...and you?" Tempest asks, breaking Second Wind's concentration.
"Hmm?"
"How'd you lose your wing?"
"Eh, it wasn't anything as amazing as facing an ursa minor," Wind downplays his loss. "just a really bad case of angel wing that resulted from a bone infection. It started when I began to feel my wing getting sore one day, but I didn't put much thought into it and considered that I might've sprained it somehow. I decided to lay off flying for a short while, but it only got worse, so I went to see a doctor to get this under control. Attempts were made, pain was endured, and once my wing was unable to tuck at my side, it was time to amputate it." A smile of bittersweetness gently appears on his face as he looks at his prosthetic wing, "Honestly, it was harder to deal with the pain my wing was giving me, rather than dealing with the fact that I lost it."
Tempest glances at the specially crafted wing of his, "You were lucky in the end though. You may have lost your ability to fly, but you got a metal wing with a space pocket out of it," Shadow nestles into her folded forelegs on the rail. "It's better than losing your control on magic and getting an ugly stub in the middle of your forehead."
"Oh I don't know," Wind tries to reassure her, "I think that broken horn of yours makes you look kinda cute."
Tempest holds her pose, keeping her head planted and swerving her eyes towards Wind with a mirthless look against his sunny smile. "........" she turns her head away from him, "...you have poor eyesight," and buries her cheeks into her forelegs.
Dunking the head into the bucket of water before slapping it on the floor, a bulky creature below deck wipes the floor with the mop in his hands. Hunching over in the tight space and humming a tune, he minds his work with the utmost care.
"Hey, new guy!"
He turns to his temporary nickname, bumping his horns on the hanging lamp and pinches it from swinging around. He looks down at a biped turtle that bears a shell that appears too small for his long, thin limbs to retract inside.
"Go have a ten minute break," orders the reptile, "be back on time."
He bows, "Thank you, Captain." and dunks the mop's head into the bucket. He watches where he places his hooves, tending not to slip on the wet surface and makes his way to the outside deck.
He adjusts his eyes to the late morning sun, breathing in the smell of the ocean and lets out a poem.
"Ah, the open sea.
Fresh air in a land so free.
.....but not much to see."
The crew member straightens the striking fabric he wears and gyrates his guard-covered shoulder. He loosens up with a twist at the waist, turning to his right to see a few crates roped against the wall, then turns to his left to see a few passengers resting on the rails.
"...wait a minute," he places the aerobics on hold upon recognizing two of the passengers conversing with one another, Tempest Shadow and Second Wind. He gasps, pointing a finger at them, "YOU!"
Tempest and Wind turn to the loud outburst, instantly recognize the creature from his giant stature. minotaur frame, and painted face, Genji Spirit.
Genji springs back and slams with a 'thud' on top of a large crate with the word, 'FLOUR', printed on the side. Genji perches himself like a gargoyle in a bell tower, "So our paths have finally crossed again, and soon," he stands up as the ring on his right finger flashes and a large two-handed sword with a wide golden fuller appears in his grip, pointing its tip at the Equines, "our swords will too!" Despite the threat he makes, he shows signs of struggle at keeping the heavy sword pointing at them with only one arm, "I have waited a long time for another chance to finish what we started, and The Arbitrator will settle our tussle!"
The display of his actions begins to catch the attention of the other passengers on board.
"'Long time'? We've only just met a few days ago." Second Wind points out.
"Long, short, time is an irrelevant spiral of twelves. What matters is the continuation of our conflict! Come, call forth your teammates so we can make history together!"
Tempest Shadow makes an audible groan. She hops back on all fours, "Better get the other two," she orders Second Wind, "I get the feeling that he's too bullheaded to let up on this pointless conflict. I'm already geared up, so I'll keep him occupied till you return with Shining and Flash."
Wind nods without questioning her methods and gallops off, gaining a few more eyes from the passengers. Tempest lifts up her right foreleg and pulls out her broken sword from its sheath.
"That is your weapon of choice?" Genji glances over at Tempest's broken horn, "How symbolic."
Taking one more glance at the crystal around her neck, Shadow gives a 'humph' and whips herself into a fighting stance, channeling her magic to form the blade as she gives the minotaur a blasé look.
Genji pushes his jaw forward, "...very well. We shall make this our warm-up!"
Genji jumps at Tempest with his giant sword over his left shoulder. Tempest reads the posture, he's going to swing down at her in a diagonal, so she charges Genji at his left. Genji isn't able to redirect the weight of the swing enough and Tempest weaves under to manage a strike at Genji's thigh with the tip of her sword's magic.
The impact leaves a perturb sensation over Tempest, as she doesn't feel any resistance to it.
Tempest doesn't get the time to think of a reason as Genji turns around, sweeping his giant weapon in the form of an attack. Being so close to the large minotaur, Tempest uses her stature by laying low to the ground and lets the heavy blade wheel overhead. With another opening available, Tempest springs up and hits him with a good amount of her sword's magic.
Once again, Tempest meets with no resistance. Armor, flesh, or bone, the only thing that she feels she's cutting at is the air.
Before Tempest can even consider this to be an illusion, Genji shoves her away, forming distance between the two. Genji pulls back his sword with the tip of the blade pointing at Tempest and lunges at her. Tempest hops back to let the weapon pull Genji out of his stance and she goes for the counter. Genji jerks his arm back, bracing for impact from behind his sword as Tempest swings at him.
Both parties are in vain as there isn't any impact, just Tempest's magic sliding along Genji like the rain rolling down an umbrella.
Tempest distances herself from Genji and glances at her sword. She taps the tip of it on the floor.
*Dung dung*
The magic portion of the blade is solid upon hitting the surface.
"Your eyes lack that resolve you had the last time we met," Tempest turns to Genji, listening to his words as he loosens his stance, "is this the reason why your strikes fail to connect?"
Tempest ponders over the reason herself until glancing down at Genji's equipment, discerning the sword and armor. She sheaths her sword to speak, "Your equipment, did you get them from The Magick Kingdom?"
"Hmm..." Genji answers in a tone that he was impressed by the question, "I may have misjudged your eye in craftsmanship."
"So not only do their weapons cut through magic," Shadow murmurs to herself, "but their armor can nullify it too."
Tempest's ear makes a twitch, picking up the sound of something flapping in the air. Flash Sentry suddenly drops in next to her, wings folding with his halberd in hoof. Tempest turns to the small crowd of watchers, seeing Shining Armor brushing the passengers aside with his shield for both him and Second Wind to get through, joining her and Flash into the four-pony team that they are.
"Ah, so the gang has finally assembled," Genji smirks as he stabs the sword into the deck. He raises his right hand, the ring on his finger flashes for a scroll to appear in his grip. "You were fortunate to catch me off guard the other day, but I'm really feeling it today," he swings his arm and flexes the scroll's tip at himself, "witness my 'Bravery' in action!"
The scroll shines and a yellow bullet made of magic shoots out into Genji. He stands firm, but a yellow aura begins to emit over his body. Gripping a firm hold on the two-handed sword with only his right hand, Genji yanks it out of the floor and easily swings it around as if it's a one-handed weapon.
Genji flips the sword over his head and catches it in his left hand, swinging it behind himself in stylish fashion and rocking the boat, "Any last minute changes before we conclude our epic battle?"
Tempest Shadow steps back and glances at the team, "We could be outmatched fighting him as he is now, but if that scroll is intended to be a consumable product like all the other ones, then the spell must have a duration before it wears off. Staying on the defensive would work best till then."
"So there should be no complaints for a Captain of The Guard to lead the team," Shining challenges the mare for command, "right?"
"I have no objections," Tempest straight faces him, "only if you know you can handle it."
Armor almost glares back at Shadow for her doubts on the credibility of his title, but he hesitates upon seeing her expression. Noting how she doesn't seem to indulge in her remark with a grin or a smirk.
"...well?"
"...spread out," Shining takes the lead, "keep your distance from him, but strike periodically to keep him on edge."
The ponies disperse and surround the minotaur to the best of their ability within the confined space the deck has to offer.
"Ah, the old Round Pounce," Genji comments like a veteran, "a formidable choice, but also a foolish one!" he jumps in place and slams down with force, causing the boat to bob and give everyone a shift in their balance, "Now to pick you off!"
Genji dashes at a wobbling Tempest, but he gets thrown off his attempt by a shield covered in a light pink aura as it rams into his blade via Shining Armor's interference. Genji watches the shield flying around and directs its trajectory back at him. He smacks the shield away like a fly, appropriate as the shield curves right back at him like a persistent pest.
Summoning another scroll into his hand, Genji points it at himself and activates it. A barrier forms around him following with another barrier over that one and another one over that. The barriers fade in the order they came in and then Genji stands there firmly as Shining's shield spirals for him again. Genji makes no attempt to defend himself from the magic-controlled weapon, and as the shield hits him, it springs back without so much as fazing him.
Shining Armor attempts another assault with his shield, but finds his hold over the weapon unresponsive as it flies at himself faster. He dims down the aura around his horn, but to his surprise, his shield continues to fly at him, still within his aura. Armor takes the impact of his weapon, sending him back to the edge of the growing crowd.
Genji laughs to the resulting actions of his 'Reflect' spell, "Your hocus-pocus will be your downfall," he lectures in a pompous manner, "for I am rubber, and you are glue," his robust posture suddenly sags, "Ooooh, I just realized the irony in that one."
A rushing impact rams Genji's right shoulder blade, shoving the minotaur off balance by a purple-armored Flash Sentry bolting through.
Genji steadies his equilibrium to the rocking deck, enough time to catch Flash circling back for another rushing charge with his halberd in grip. Genji pulls back his sword, and as the two of them are within range of each other, they make their move with a swing of a sword and an acrobatic backflip, avoiding the blade and allowing Sentry the opportunity to strike a kick at the minotaur's arm.
Genji swings Flash off and the pony returns to the sky while the minotaur summons another scroll from his ring. Genji points the scroll at himself and casts a red orb into his body. A red aura covers the minotaur as he shields for impact upon Flash diving at him. Just as Flash is about to stomp a hoof on the weapon, Genji vanishes, effectively resulting in the pony to crash into the deck.
"Aha!" Genji showboats around Flash, leaving afterimages of himself under the effects of his 'Haste' spell, "Nothinginyourrepertoireofskillscanbestmenow!" he blurts out his words.
Flash adjusts to the rocking boat as he gets up and continues to fight the minotaur, all while Second Wind is swiftly fiddling with the keypad on his prosthetic wing.
Sentry spins the halberd in his wings at a horizontal angle, coming across as a helicopter to ward off Genji's attempt at finding an opening, but his huff implies otherwise. "Yourtechniqueislacking," Genji spouts and proves his point in the blink of an eye by halting the rotation simply by holding his sword in the halberd's path, "itneedstobemorethanjustflashy."
Genji makes a sudden flinch upon feeling something hitting his skin from behind. He glances back, seeing a dart sticking out on his rear. Following the angle of the dart, Genji traces the trajectory toward a blowgun that's being held by Second Wind.
Breaking away from Flash, Genji focuses on the pegasus that shot him, "It's impolite to interrupt." His eyes suddenly widen, realizing how casual that sounded, "My 'Haste' spell! What happened to it?"
"It was countered," Wind informs with a smirk, "you're still under the effect of 'Haste', but the tranquilizer shot I gave seems to have brought you back to normal speed."
"Biological warfare to my magic enhancement, huh?" Genji flicks the dart off him, "You think that this will be enough to stop me, Genji Spirit?" he gives the pegasus a firm glare in a dynamic pose, "I have only just begun to fi-"
*Splash*
Before he could finish his statement, Genji suddenly gets hit by a body of dirty water from the crowd of creatures that's formed around him and the ponies during the course of the fight. Despite his soggy state and tilting floor, Genji maintains his pose like an unmovable statue.
"You're late, new guy."
Hearing those words from a familiar voice however, broke his composure into a shiver. Genji immediately identifies the biped turtle in the crowd that's holding an empty bucket with a stern glare on his face, "C-Captain!"
"I allowed you passage on my ship in exchange for your work, and yet here I find you picking fights with the passengers that paid for theirs."
"M-my apologies, I just got cau-"
"I don't want to hear your excuses!" the sea captain rebukes Genji's attempt to avoid punishment.
In the midst of this scolding, Tempest, Flash, and Wind gather around Shining Armor, sharing their expressions to the scene before them. The situation appears to be getting under a calm control now, despite the verbal fight that's happening. The ponies try to steady their balance to the swaying ship as they continue to watch the lecture.
"This is a ferry, not a showboat!" the captain scolds as he maintains himself on the swaying carrier, "I wanted you scrubbing the floors to make this vessel look fresh out of the yard, not to jump around trying to rock this ship belly up!"
Tempest lifts a forehoof over her mouth, catching something very off about the captain's remark. She sees some of the passengers gripping the boat's railing, she notes her teammates leaning up against the walls, and she finds a sudden need to drop her hoof to the floor before she falls over. It dawns on Tempest that something isn't subsiding despite the missing action, and before she can dwell on the thought any further, the cause reveals itself through a tremor.
The ship suddenly shakes, violently rattling every creature on board. Some stumble to the floor while others let out a cry, but nevertheless, they all heard the sound of something hitting the boat.
Everyone tries to get their bearings straight from the abrupt shock, but Shining Armor looks over to his lieutenant instead. He flicks his head to the side, giving Flash a silent order to investigate the situation.
Flash Sentry takes to the sky with a mighty flap of his wings, leaving his halberd and focusing solely on scouting the area. He starts by gliding along the starboard side of the ship, noting the amount of work placed into making a smooth surface until he reaches a dent, and a large one at that. The size of the impact nearly matches his stature, but they could be dealing with something much bigger than this.
Flash glances at the rough waves around him. He ascends high into the clear skies for a bird's eye view, but he's finding it hard to make out anything with the water slushing about. The crewbeasts and passengers steadily move to the starboard side to make their own sense of the situation.
Wind, Tempest, and Shining move across the deck with caution as well and wrap their forelegs over the railing to fight the wild ride. The waves only get rougher with water splashing on deck. A large wave comes rolling at everyone and Shining forms a wall of magic to cover them. It blocks the impact and stops the water.
Literally.
Like blowing out a match, the waves suddenly stop. The ship gradually steadies, but everyone can feel their nerves shaking to the ominous events.
"I'M SEEING SOMETHING!" Flash yells to every creature below, "Can't really tell what though," he mutters to himself. Flash watches the murky creature circling the boat at a gentle pace, forming an image of them much like Sentry is doing on it. He can see some faint shimmers of multiple colors coming from it from time to time, but it's body mostly blended with the water it was in.
It finishes a lap around them before swiftly swimming off.
Flash makes certain of its retreat as he watches it get farther and farther away until it stops. It takes only a moment for him to realize its intent, "IT'S GONNA CHARGE US!"
Sentry's warning sends everyone into a panic state and they all tend to it in their own way, but for Tempest and Wind, they look to Shining Armor, already psyching up to use his magic.
The figure starts rushing towards the boat, "IMPACT IN FOUR... THREE... TWO..."
Shining lights up his horn and forms a dome of magic over the starboard side.
"ON-" Flash stops mid number as the figure makes a sudden shift down and vanishes into the dense ocean, "IT JUST DOVE DEEPER!"
Armor quickly expands the barrier across the hull of the ship, cupping the patch of water the boat bobs in. He braces for impact...
*SPLOOSH*
...but he, along with everyone else, turns to the sound of the creature leaping from the water on the other side of the ship.
Everyone sees the creature's figure as it goes over them, but Flash sees a mouth that's ready to chomp him whole. Flash frantically backs up just before the jaws snatch him inside and now leaves him tumbling on a long muzzle. Bouncing along its moist azure scales, Flash catches a reflection of himself off of the monster's dark-butterscotch eye to this beshemoth. Flash is slapped by a pectoral fin that consists of gradient colors of lavender to lilac at the tip. Water droplets fall off her and showers the passengers below as she soars over them. The sun glinting off her scales leaves everyone a wynorrific sight of this creature, this giant sea serpent.
The serpent slams back into the ocean after her overarching leap, finishing off her ostentatious display by splashing a hill of water that sprinkles the air for a spectrum of colors and sends every creature into a state of hysteria.
Flash Sentry stumbles onto deck and the other ponies gather around him. He lays a hoof on his head, disoriented from bouncing on the serpent's body. "She nearly ate me!" Flash groggily reports.
Second Wind tends to Sentry and Tempest looks over at Shining, "So how are we going to confront this, Captain?"
Shining opens his mouth...
"I don't know."
...but the boat's captain answers instead, misunderstanding to whom the question was for.
The Equestrians turn their attention to the sea captain, the stern look he had moments ago has melted to a concerning one as he helplessly watches the serpent, "This is just a transport ship. We don't have things like harpoons or cannons to defend with." His eyes suddenly widen as the serpent's dorsal fin begins to slice through the water in their direction, "EMBRACE FOR IMPACT!" the sea captain alerts everyone.
Before everyone went hysterical again, Shining Armor forms a magic barrier around the ship and encases part of the ocean in a light-rose sphere.
The serpent slams into the barrier, achieving nothing but a winch from Armor. "Get everyone below deck," Shining orders the sea captain, gaining his attention and a glance at the light-rose aura around Armor's horn, connecting the dots of with the barrier. "This ship is going to be rocking and we can't risk the chance of passengers flying off it. Get them secured and try to keep them settled until this is over. As for the serpent, let me and my team handle it."
The sea captain studies the group of ponies, noting the way they carry themselves with the weapons and protective gear on them. He clicks his tongue, finding the idea of trusting these new faces to be in charge of his ship unsettling, but he has little option other than to hope that the ponies live up to their suits.
The captain refashions his authoritative stature before addressing everyone on board, "ALRIGHT CREATURES, HEAD BELOW DECK!"
Shining let's the captain handle it from there and focuses on the creature outside his magic forcefield, wincing on maintaining the barrier from another strike by the serpent outside. "I'm open for suggestions," Armor asks of his team. He glances at them, "Tempest, Flash, Wind, Ge-" Shining shakes his head upon seeing Genji Spirit among his teammates , waiting and willing to help in any way possible.
"We're in the same boat here," Genji clears up Armor's confusion, "it would be best if we worked together on this."
Shining keeps his eyes on the minotaur for a moment longer as he turns back to the team as a whole, "Got any ideas?" Shining asks the group again.
"Let me see what I got up my wing." Wind offers, proceeding with reviewing his inventory.
Armor withstands another strike and looks over to the lady of the team, "I could really use your expertise in combat right now, Tempest."
"It's not looking too good, Armor. Going by how she reacted to your barrier and then following it up with an assault on our aerial vantage point, we're dealing with something that can strategize and form out plans to engage with. What makes matters worse is that she can move around in the ocean more easily than the ship can. With those tactics, that freedom to strike, and how unprepared this ship is for an assault, the best option for us is to defend ourselves until we reach shore."
"That's easier said than done." Shining flinches to another impact on the barrier, "To ensure we won't get a surprise attack, I've encased us in a sphere that won't allow anything in or out, including water." He recoils to another strike, "There needs to be a flowing system to take in and push out water. Without it, we won't be going anywhere that isn't within this sphere; but the more complex a barrier becomes, the harder it'll be at maintaining it." He winces to another strainful ram, "The pressure of strong blows our friend outside is giving is already making things difficult on me. The nearest land is still hours away and we don't know when or if the serpent will give up during that time. With those extra hurdles, I'm bound to slip my hold on the barrier."
"May I make a suggestion that we use magic in a way to supercharge the boat's speed for a grand escape?" Genji adds to the conversation. "We could try using some of my scrolls to blow us forward at an accelerated rate."
"One of the fundamental rules of flying is that you need to maintain a sense of balance at all times," Flash comments. "We'll need to outrun this thing, so we might find ourselves losing control of the ship and start making flips through the air."
As everyone continues to debate over an answer, Second Wind continues to fiddle through the inventory in his wing for something useful. His eyes start narrowing and pulls his metal wing up closer. The monitor is displaying his items, but the sun's glare is making it hard for him to read the screen, all he's seeing is his own reflection on it. Wind gyrates his prosthetic wing and tries to shield the sun from the monitor until something catches his eye.
On the monitor, the one that's reflecting Wind's appearance, shows another vague image of some creature slithering up to him slowly. Its skin matches the ocean with a body that comes across as a serpent, but the face it has isn't distinct at all, it blends in too well with the rest of its body.
The creature arches its back, standing up like a snake ready to lunge at its victim.
Second Wind tenses up with the creature and he takes the initiative first with a spin around, smacking the creature with his prosthetic wing in the turn.
Everyone hears the impact of a loud slap, drawing their attention to the splashing sound that follows as the unknown creature hits the wall and spatters into droplets of water.
Before any of them can figure out what happened, a series of splashes come from the ocean and many water streams come flowing up to the deck, all with the same appearance as the sea serpent. The copies waste no time at charging the party while more continue to jump out of the sea.
Tempest Shadow gets her weapon ready just like the rest of the team to this wave of creatures, yet before she could grit her teeth oh the handle, she feels a clamp on her hind leg. One of the water creatures has gripped her in its mouth and yanks Tempest off her hooves with a thud. Everyone is already dealing with a creature of their own as Tempest pushes herself up and sees another one leaping at her. She charges her broken horn and shoots a 'Firework' spell at it to blow the body of water apart. Another tug pulls at her, the creature on her leg is dragging her closer to the edge of the ship.
The body of water slides its lower half off the boat with Tempest in its jaw, but the mare catches herself by holding onto the railing. It wiggles as Tempest pulls both of them up, far enough to take aim and shoots another 'Firework' spell to splash apart.
Tempest promptly gets back on her hooves with newfound vigor. Taking out these copies is starting to look like that it'll be foal's play, but upon seeing her teammates, Tempest's certainty begins to waver as all of them appear to be struggling. It's understandable for Shining with him maintaining the barrier; however, Flash and Wind are placing extra effort behind their swings just to send them flying.
The sight bothers her, but it's Genji's attempts that's really making Tempest uncomfortable. He's placing just as much effort as the pegasi are, but she's finding that he's pushing off the liquid creation with his sword to be very off-putting to her.
Tempest's ear flicks to the sound of a few water creatures charging at her side. She lights up her broken horn and she zaps a current of magic at one of the creatures, which chains to another creature and continues to another one. Tempest breaks the magical connection and the creatures burst into puddles of water. She takes another look at Genji with a puzzling expression on her face.
Over where Shining Armor stands, he keeps his shield close to him in his aura as he fights off the manifestations that surround him with quick swings from his weapon. He's fighting off a dozen water copies, far more opponents than what the rest of his teammates are facing. His hold on his shield staggers as he endures another ram against the barrier he's maintaining in the midst of this endless swarm, but he still tries to tough through it.
Five of the copies make an attempt to pounce Armor, and as Shining bashes two of them into puddles, Flash Sentry suddenly swoops in and drives into the other three. Sentry hops back to cover Shining's flank, "You and I both came to the same conclusion that these things are magical manifestations made by the serpent, right?"
"I've never heard of such a spell that controls water like this," Shining swipes a copy apart, "but there's no doubt that this is all the result of magic."
"But to make so many copies like this?" Flash bats away another clone, "She must be exhausted by this point."
Shining begs to differ upon receiving another wallop on the barrier, this time leaving a crack in the magical shield. Armor tries to focus on recementing the fractured portion, but nine copies come sliding at him and forces Armor to fend this approaching threat. He breaks apart two of them and Flash pushes back three with his halberd, but that fifth copy starts giving Flash problems as it clenches his halberd in its mouth, locking the weapon in place. Flash tugs and pulls for control of his halberd, but the fifth copy isn't allowing it and the sixth copy wraps around Flash to restrain the pegasus. The last three water manifestations manage to also get themselves around Armor as well and they're wrestling for submission from the unicorn; one pulling to get him off his hoof, the other gripping around his waist to weaken his breathing, and the last squeezing around his neck to tear focus from the barrier.
Without the magic to reinforce its durability and Shining's focus being pulled everywhere, the sea serpent shatters through the barrier and rockets towards the ship. She lurches her body up and slides onto deck, brushing into Shining and Flash and smacking them back and splashing her copies back into puddles. She slithers around and coils her body up like a snake as the two ponies stagger to get back on their hooves while the serpent already has her back arched up.
She strikes her head at them and Shining lights up his horn. He shoots a bit of his Equestrian magic at the serpent and grazes the scales on her cheek, just enough to make her flinch back. She hisses at him as he and Flash make it back to their hooves. The serpent makes another round of water manifestations to splash on deck and follows up with another attempt to lunge at them, only to receive a smack from Shining's shield this time.
Shining continues to ricochet his shield off the serpent with the use of his magic while Flash fends off the water manifestations that are surrounding him and his captain. Driving, ramming, each stallion is putting in strong and relentless strikes in their attempts, but the number of copies aren't decreasing and the hits the serpent receives is irritating her skin at best.
Flash Sentry takes a few steps back, "Any chance you could break her concentration, Captain? Something that'll interrupt her focus or control over these water clones."
"If the raging assault she's giving hasn't changed the flow of those water sprouts yet, then I don't know what'll break that focus!" Shining snaps, frantically smacking the serpents ceaseless attempts as they get more aggressive. "Pain can be distracting, but her scales, belly, fins. No matter where I'm striking, nothing seems to be leaving her with severe pain.
Flash glances at the serpent, observing the furious glare she's making. "'Life and Death Battle with a Bengal Tiger'. Familiar with that poem?"
"There better be a purpose to that question."
Sentry pulls his halberd closer to his chest, "Give me a moment."
Flash takes to the air and Shining forms a small barrier of magic around him, shifting to defense to guard against both the water manifestations and serpent as they begin to pummel the protective dome. They completely ignore Flash, a grave mistake for what the pegasus that's carrying the sharp weapon is planning. Flash arcs and propels himself at the serpent's face from her blind spot.
Flash Sentry pulls back his halberd, and in a powerful swing, the deadly weapon goes right into the serpent's eye.
The serpent halts herself. All of the water copies suddenly fall on the floor, dispersing like the liquid that it is.
Shining Armor, Tempest Shadow, Genji Spirit, and Second Wind look about and ease up at the welcoming ceasefire. Armor lowers his barrier, the rest of the team on deck gather to him and they look up at Flash as he holds his halberd in the eye of the serpent. The sight leaves everyone feeling a twist in the bottom of their stomach.
Flash flaps there, still applying pressure into the serpent's eye socket with the tip of his razor-sharp weapon, but it hasn't even punctured the eye itself.
Sentry feels his feathers stand on edge to the sound of his halberd scraping against the serpent's eye as she rolls it to settle her sight on the pegasus. Her pupil dilates with the sharp blade pressing against it, breaking focus on her water copies not from the feeling of pain, but the feeling of rage.
The serpent's temper begins to boil out of her in the form of a low growl. She swings her head into Flash to send him spinning through the air. She opens her mouth wide, she stretches out at the pegasus and suddenly receives a wallop by Shining's shield from the side of her head.
Shining trades glances with the other ponies, "You don't suppose..." he begins to ask them.
The serpent cuts Armor off with a hiss and a piercing gaze that she's had enough of Shining's interference. She dives at Shining Armor and he lights up his horn for another barrier around himself to receive the strike, but he doesn't immediately receive it. The serpent zips past the magic dome and coils around it.
A heavy strain begins to rip through Armor's horn as a strong pressure begins to squeeze his magical dome. He almost feels like his horn has cracked upon finally receiving that strike from the serpent, and he continues to endure a fury of blows from her as she attempts to crack the barrier open.
The other members of the team quickly respond to spare Shining of this pummeling and start striking the serpent. Flash, Wind, and Genji make attempts with their weapons at breaking the serpent's hold, but the result isn't any different than from what Flash got earlier as she's completely unfazed by their efforts. As for Tempest Shadow, she pulls out her broken sword and forms the blade with her Equestrian magic while swinging it into the serpent's tail. And as a result, Tempest leaves upon her a deep gash.
The serpent screeches a piercing cry that ripples the ocean. She throws a leering gaze at Tempest and the broken sword in her mouth that emits her Equestrian magic. The serpent makes a hasty retreat, uncoiling her hold on Shining's barrier and diving back into the ocean.
Armor drops his barrier in a daze. He wasn't prepared for the rushing barrage of assault like that, but he managed to withstand it with only a sore horn.
Flash sees to him, leaving Tempest and Wind to their thoughts, "It's almost like that time..."
"We're not done, comrades."
The ponies look over to Genji, standing at the railing with a finger pointing out to sea, "She still has some fight left in her."
The group of equestrians gallop over, lifting their forelegs over the railing to get a better look at the serpent that's watching them from a lengthy distance. She's exposing half of her body above the ocean surface as she swims back and forth. There's no clear idea of what she intends to do, but the team knows that it's going to be more devastating than what she's shown thus far.
"So..." Genji gathers the attention, "are we going with my plan about outrunning her, or what? I'm certain I have a few scrolls with some powerful winds magic to them."
Flash rubs his chin, "Say, Genji, would it be possible to hit her where she's at now with one of your scrolls?"
"What's that now?"
"We've encountered something like this before," Second Wind explains, "a creature with impenetrable skin that's only susceptible to magic. It's not exactly the same species, but..."
"I got ya!" Genji's ring flashes and a scroll appears in his hand, "I've been saving this one for a while now. Stand back, she's about to taste the magic of The Kingdom's finest."
The edge of the scroll lights up as Genji steadies his aim, lining the shot up with the serpent. Everyone feels their fur stand up to the sound of a sharp crack coming from the scroll as a lightning bolt comes blasting out. It soars over the sea as a bright light, too fast to be prepared for, not even for the serpent as it strikes her head on and engulfs the sea monster in a dome of electricity.
The party closes their eyes and covers their ears to the loud, blinding attack. As it fades and everyone clears their vision from the lasting effect it gives them, they consider on repeating their actions from what they see, a serpent pacing about without so much as a scorch mark on her.
"Unbelievable!" Genji shreds up the scroll in a scornful manner, "I paid good money for that spell!"
Tempest gives the minotaur a skeptic look before turning down to her sword.
"Then it couldn't be like..." Flash checks over with his teammates.
The serpent makes a dive under the water, making everyone jump back to prepare for the worst. The party cement themselves on the floating boat, gently rocking on the vessel with no sign of any danger. Manes and fabric gently brushes to the breeze hitting them as they slowly shift their bodies for a better stance.
Everyone sees the spot where the serpent sank starting to splash with mounds plopping up. The ship begins to tilt while the patch of water begins to form into a growing spire. It becomes a tower of spiraling liquid that reaches high into the sky and plumes out steely clouds that overtake the bright clear day. The clouds shade the boat along with the five members of the team who stare up in amazement and suspense that the serpent made this waterspout, this tornado that they must confront. They see brief exposures of the serpent's fins poking out from the spout as she along the column of water, likely to maintain her spell's form.
The spire twirls the water as it pulls towards its base, spreading across the surface and catching the ship into the water flow. The ship makes a sudden jerk that throws the party off their hooves; Shining falls against a wall, Tempest drops to her knees, Genji catches himself with the railings, and Flash braces against the mast.
Second Wind trips headfirst at a large crate in his tumble. He pushes off the box and he catches the word, 'FLOUR', printed on the container. Wind hesitates, looking at the serpent residing in the spire of water before turning back to the crate. He contemplates over the thought, turning to Genji upon settling on the idea.
The rest of the team reacquaint themselves to the ship's erratic turning. The ferry is flowing straight towards the waterspout, but Shining Armor fixes that issue by looking to the only member of the team who can fly against the current, "Flash, take over the helm!"
Sentry nods in Shinning's direction and soars for the ship's wheel with haste.
With the struggle for control over the boat is being attended to, Shining Armor receives some breathing room from the suffocating spot they're all in. but it doesn't loosen his mind that's digging over what their next course of action should be. Fighting off this serpent with weapons and magic aren't proving useful, but defending or escaping doesn't seem like a possibility either. She must be getting tired from the excessive magic she's been making, that's the only hope he sees at getting out of this, but will they be able to outlast her assault until she wears herself out?
Shining feels his body trying to cool down to this intensity with sweat. He firms his stance to fight off the quivering in his legs and shakes the doubts from his head, but it's starting to become clear to him that they're outmatched and could very well be spending his last few moments alive. He struggles to hide his fear under his determination, maintaining a calm stature will help fight against any hysteria that could botch their success.
Shining Armor considers that now is more than an important time to reassure his team that they're going to get out of this alive. He starts with Tempest Shadow, and as Armor views her, he's lost for words upon seeing how solid and strong her stance is. Tempest is staring up at the waterspout with no visible signs that the stacking odds is of any hindrance to her. The scowling glare she makes at the waterspout tells him that she's concerned about the situation, but it also expresses that she doesn't have a clue on how to face it.
They're at the mercy of a life-and-death situation that could make any creature fear for survival, but with the way she's handling it, Shining can't help but wonder if there's anything that does scare her.
"And an alley-OOP!"
Through the loud roars of the water sloshing ahead of them, Armor's attention snaps over to Genji Spirit and follows the wooden crate of flour being thrown from the minotaur's grip. Being under the effects of 'Bravery', the crate flies an outstanding distance towards the waterspout and plunges inside the vortex. It leaves no changes, but after a few seconds, a brief flash appears in a small area within the spout. The water starts to change in appearance as it gets thicker and begins to collapse into sticky mounds of batter, revealing the serpent that's struggling to move in the restricting gooey substance. The sea monster topples back into the ocean, bringing an end to the waterspout.
As Shining and Tempest exchange an unclear look, Genji and Wind exchange a clap of their hand and wing respectively. The two unicorns turn towards the supplier of their party, and Second Wind catches their expressions that asks for an answer, "I had a bomb in my inventory, so I lit it, placed it a crate of flour, had Genji throw said crate, then watched it explode to release the flour inside for it to mix with the water and interrupts the serpent's magic as it becomes a hindrance on her."
Tempest still holds her sword in her jaw, leaving it to Shining Armor to speak up their conflictions on the matter. "Next time, run your thoughts by your superiors first before you make another brash decision like that again. A team not in line with each other during crucial moments can lead to some unwelcoming outcomes." he firmly states, "...but, that was a clever solution nonetheless."
"We should take this moment and start making preparations for her next assault," Genji addresses, "that batter isn't going to stick around for long if she's in the ocean, she'll likely try to attack us again once freed."
Shining places some thought on Genji's suggestion to strengthen their defense, but looking out at sea and taking into account how calmer the ocean has gotten, he considers another choice, "I think we should focus on escaping for now. Casting offensive spells like those water copies and making a giant waterspout must've taken a lot out of her. If she's the persistent strategist that she's proving herself out to be, then she must be keeping her distance to formulate another plan while mustering up what little magic she has left in her."
The conversation starts to diverge from Tempest Shadow's focus towards the ocean. There's nothing worth noting, but the female of the group is feeling her fur to be very sensitive to the breeze in that particular direction.
"Are you sure we're safe to travel again?" Flash drops into the conversation, in both senses of the phrase.
"I know it's safer than waiting and seeing what the next act is to her water show," Shining makes his point.
*...dung ding*
The sound catches the boy's attention and all of them glance back at the broken sword that rests on the ground next to Tempest. They trace up her body towards the mouth that dropped it and study the entranced look on her face. The four of them follow the direction Tempest stares, the ocean horizon. It's subtle, just like the faint sound of growls in the air, but everyone can see the surface of the water bending towards them as it rolls closer. It shouldn't be possible by natural standards, it's even exceeding in stature by covering the entire horizon, and it only keeps growing into what will certainly be a horrendous tsunami.
"Dear Yevon," the words escape Genji's lips, "the amount of magic this serpent possesses is terrifyingly monstrous."
"Shining," Tempest mutters, "be honest, how confident are you with your barrier magic?"
Shining feels the likeness of surviving beginning to bite at his skin, "...have you ever stepped on a chicken egg?"
The vigor everyone has begins to drain to the severe reality of the situation. Each member can feel their anxiety bubbling inside them as they reflect on their memories for solace and answers out of this, yet the hopelessness of the situation is starting to sink into them and drown any slim chance they may have at besting this.
Tempest Shadow eases herself, having to admit that there isn't any way of fighting this. She stares into space with a blank look and notices her sword is out of her sheath. She lowers her neck to return it back to her sheath, but before grabbing the handle, she feels something sliding up the back of her neck and stop upon hitting her ears. The yellow-glowing crystal around her neck suddenly swings into the mare's vision.
"..." Tempest straightens up. She looks at her teammates, seeing the gestures of suspense, regret, and anger as they try to cope with the situation. Resting her eyes for a moment, she expresses a lamenting sigh before glaring at the lethal force of nature, now only miles away at the height of a royal castle, "...I'll handle this."
The boys observe the mare with dumbstruck looks on their faces, skeptic doesn't even begin to define their thoughts to her statement.
Tempest aligns herself with the formidable obstacle around the best position to leave the ship intact in the end. It's unclear to her if this'll make any difference, relying on an object that's considered unnecessary by many, but it's the only option left. Overcoming this challenge with aided support, Tempest inlights her horn for this final effort.
"'Just use any spell you like,'" Tempest coaches herself with what Mino told her earlier, "'and push yourself,'" her horn begins to emit brighter as she charges up a spell. She can't create a barrier to protect anyone, but she has another idea that involves a spell she's strongly familiar with.
Each passing second adds more anxiety over the party, weighing them down to the taste of the grim fate that's coming for them.
The wave now towers before them at a height that only mountains can reach. In turn, Tempest Shadow arches her neck up with a horn that's spilling sparks of magic as it overflows from her charged up spell.
Feeling the droplets hitting her face, the tsunami begins to topple over them and Tempest feels a charge of magic traveling up the back of her neck to her horn as she exerts a 'Firework' spell directly at the collapsing wave.
The supercharged magic bullet flies at a much faster pace than normal, and it's much brighter than what the spell usually looks like, but the size isn't what Tempest hoped for as it didn't change in the slightest. A little spell versus a monster sized one, it's uncannily like watching the casters charging at one another.
Tempest's spell splashes inside the falling wave and continues to travel through it until the bullet suddenly glints and detonates an explosion that far exceeds what Tempest can normally do. The shockwave of the blast ripples the wave and brushes it aside for a clear sight of lights buzzing, hissing, and crackling in performance for the team to witness. A marvelous sight, and it leaves no party member disappointed as the lights dim to leave them a wide and open sight of the cloudy sky in the missing portion of the tsunami.
With the tsunami now bearing a giant hole through it, the wave comes slamming down around the boat that resides inside the liquid's missing portion.
The impact pushes the water under the boat and the ship is thrown high into the air. Shining Armor already has his horn illuminating to shield the ship when it falls back down, and upon reaching the peak, everyone hears the thunderous roar of the serpent.
Long, giant streams of water sprout out of the ocean and begin to curl towards the boat like a Venus fly trap planning to crush them like the tsunami should've done.
Shining Armor quickly forms a sphere barrier around the ship, just in time to keep the streams outside the light rose forcefield. The water splashes apart as it comes crashing at the barrier with loud thuds.
The water only streams down the barrier and a sigh of relief falls over everyone from the near hit, but it soon evaporates when they notice that something else wasn't falling with them, the ship.
Starting at the bottom, the streams of water begin to form together and start to rise up around the magic barrier with the water being collected. All of them watch as the water covers the sphere, unable to do anything else but to place their faith in Shining Armor's magic.
The liquid caps the top, yet the stream continues to add upon the layer of water. A loud thud causes everyone to jump, everyone but Shining, who winces at the serpent slamming into the barrier. She begins to swim in straight lines and starts orbiting around inside the water that's being collected.
"It's beginning to feel like we're in an aquarium," Tempest comments on the majesty behind it.
"An unsupported one!" Shining instates, immediately gaining everyone's attention. The look on Armor's face shows that he's enduring a lot of strain over his body, "She's building pressure. Every second, that serpent is steadily placing more and more pressure on the water." Shining shrinks the barrier to condense it's strength, "If it keeps increasing like thi-" a sharp sound of a crack forming on the barrier cuts Armor off and some water begins to seep through the fracture.
Shining shrinks the barrier further and places some magic to fix the crack in the process.
"THIS IS INSANE!" Flash yells out his frustration, throwing his weapon to the ground, "No creature, not even an Alicorn, is capable to perform such unheard spells in waves stronger than the last! Even the greatest ponies in history would've lost all of their Equestrian magic by this point!"
Tempest ponders on the comment for a moment before the floor suddenly vibrates her out of thought. The barrier has locked the ship in place upon shrinking to the point where it would be crushing the boat if it diminishes any further. Cracks start to form more rapidly and water begins to seep in.
Flash flies to cover up the patches out of reach by pressing his body against the force field, but he's only one body to a growing problem.
A roll of duct tape forms in Wind's wing and he calls out to Flash to catch the extra aid, but that too isn't changing much.
What seemed like being at an aquarium to Tempest a few moments ago is now reshaping her thoughts into thinking that they're inside a coffin, trapped in a container that's slowly rupturing under the weight of an element. The lives of everyone on board is resting on this spell to hold, but as Tempest monitors Shining Armor while he exerts his magic on maintaining the barrier, signs of an approaching demise is in store for everyone upon seeing him drop to his knees.
A sense of contrite rattles in Tempest for just standing there, focusing on Shining's horn radiating brighter to keep up the control over the barrier. He's in desperate need of help, he needs another caster to reinforce the spell, but as she looks up at her broken horn... Tempest tears her eyes away from the disfigurement with a dejecting groan escaping from her.
"This...spell...won't..." Shining says through his teeth.
"I got your back, pal!" Genji yells. His ring flashes and he grips a scroll containing the spell, 'Shell', "Some of Magick Kingdom's finest."
He aims the scroll, but his arm soon lowers down as a hoof slowly pulls it lower. Genji traces the hoof to Tempest, completely lost in thought with an austere gaze that keeps darting about at nothing. Her eyes start to shift faster. but her face... "...there's three variations..." ...her face softens even quicker. Tempest whips her head to Genji, "Cast it on me!"
Genji nearly questions her loyalty to the selfish request, but as he studies her, he begins to see that it's there now. The resolve she was missing throughout their fight earlier is now there, sparking in those fierce eyes glaring at him.
"HURRY!" Tempest pleads.
Genji nods and points the scroll at Tempest, casting it and his trust on her.
Tempest is hit by a light-pink magic bullet, and before she can feel the spell spreading through her body, she already is galloping to the ship's railing. She passes Shining Armor, "Keep the barrier up!" Tempest orders in an abrupt manner as she goes by.
Shining barely catches what she said, "What ar-"
"I'M DIVING IN AFTER IT!"
"BUT YOU'LL BE STOPPED BY THE BARRI-"
"KEEP IT UP!!!"
Leaving her sword as she passes it, Tempest jumps the rails and allows gravity to propel her down into a dive.
Tempest shuts her eyes and locks her breath for the approaching collision. She detects the moment her hooves touch the solid forcefield, feeling the impact of the magic wall gliding around her body no different than the layer of water she reaches on the other side. The liquid breaks her fall to a slow halt and begins to push Tempest back into the sphere. She doesn't fight the water pressure, allowing it to take her back to the barrier and she plants her hooves on the solid surface. She feels the weight of water pushing her down into a crouch and the bellowing roar that's vibrating her skin draws her attention to the approaching sea monster. Tempest's sight clashes with the serpent's as she's coming around at her in a thrashing state of rage, clear intention that she's going to deliver hell on the pony who dares to challenge her in her domain.
Tempest holds her stance, letting the layer of water made by the sea monster's magic caress her and focuses on keeping her breath. With her sights on Tempest now only being seconds away from impact, the serpent's eyes suddenly contract upon Tempest's broken horn as it begins to discharge sparks.
In an explosive display, Tempest unleashes her Equestrian magic to engulf the water in a flurry of branching bolts that make up her magic, causing the sea monster to helplessly convulse about. The water pressure the serpent holds with her magic slowly begins to lighten, enough for Tempest to stand up straight and to float off the barrier.
Despite losing the weighted force and her realm turning into a plain filled with thunder, the serpent still keeps the entire sphere intact and struggles to fight against Tempest's magic, now making this endurance match between the two of them.
A few air bubbles escape from Tempest from her lungs tightening. Her spell wavers and surges back to keep the sea monster convulsive. Tempest is aware that she can't keep this up, but she refuses to let up, and places all that she has to quickly take this serpent down.
Their stubbornness to overcome the other continues until finally, after all her effort, Tempest's magic comes to an abrupt end.
And the layer of water begins to collapse immediately after, splashing back into the ocean.
Everyone on the ship feel themselves getting lighter as the barrier falls and lands back to sea level. Shining Armor drops the barrier as well as himself the very next moment, exhausted with an aching horn that feels like it's on fire. He tries to soothe the pain of his horn with a hoof until Second Wind attends to him by wrapping a damp towel around Armor's horn. A pair of wings flapping draws his attention to Flash Sentry as he finishes his own attending by bringing Tempest Shadow out of the ocean and back on deck, coughing out the sea water that got inside her lungs.
Tempest tries to catch her breath with the others holding onto theirs. Her coughing subsides and everyone bounces her with the same question, "How were you able to faze through the barrier?"
"With some of The Magick Kingdom's finest," despite her soaked body, Tempest's humor still stays dry. "All this time, we've been assuming that magic acts the same way no matter how it presents itself. If a sword can cut through my magic, then it must cut through the serpent's. If a scroll can't harm a creature, then my magic won't either. If I collapse using these spells, then they'd collapse too. Like understanding the fact that liquid evaporates, we've been viewing water, cider, and blood to be the same. But we've been dealing with three drastic variations of magic this entire time, each with a weakness and a strength to one of the other two."
Tempest looks over to Shining Armor, "You once told me that Equestrian magic is the strongest there is due to its versatility, but the Kingdom's magick has been proving itself to be superior in every way with each new encounter we have with it. Weapons, armor, spells, everything made by the Magick Kingdom is specifically intended to dominate over Equestrian magic. Kingdom's artificial magic pretty much makes our Equestrian magic void or uncooperative, but that serpent, her magic trumps over Kingdom's just as strong."
"That would explain why the lightning bolt from my scroll didn't do anything against her!" Genji realizes.
"And why you couldn't cut through those water clones while you could with my sword, which is where things come full circle, as Equestrian magic is this third kind of magic's weakness. Genji cast some of Kingdom's artificial magic on me, allowing me to get through Shining's barrier made of Equestrian magic. The serpent's magic forming the water canceled out the Magick Kingdom's magic on me, and my Equestrian magic turned the serpent's swimming pool into a blast zone. Which means that this serpent could still be just like..."
The ponies look towards the boat's railing, the side where the sea monster fell, and all four of them say the same thing upon seeing an array of ascending orbs of light, "IT IS!"
The four ponies gallop to the rails and swing their forehooves over it, inspecting the sea serpent. She's floating at the ocean's surface on her side, eyes shut while the orbs float out of her, making her transparent, as well as showing another serpent inside that's making the exact same pose.
Gradually the inner serpent becomes more clearer to see, and the equestrians eerily pull back at the unnatural composition of this bitter-lemon creature. The fringes on her head are severely uneven and a few of her facial scales bend at an awkward angle that shouldn't be anatomically possible. The jaw she's hanging open is alarmingly small, but the uneven air she's breathing shows more of a concerning issue.
The ponies are at a complete loss, finding it difficult to think of anything from seeing the serpent's true appearance.
After taking his time walking over, Genji studies the situation of their surprise, "What's going on here?"
Both serpents open their eyes in sync to Genji's voice. They manage to tilt their heads enough to spot the five individuals that brought them to this weakened state. While the serpent they fought has a sharp gaze, this new serpent's eyes have a downward slant to them.
"...what?" the serpent finally speaks, "Haven't you seen a sea serpent from the planet Betelgeuse before?" she gives a tame laugh at her weak joke, but with no one else joining her, she turns away and attempts to hide her face behind the tip of her tail. The gash Tempest made on the bigger serpent is clearly visible on the smaller serpent as well.
Shining recollects himself and takes initiative action, "Why did you attack us?"
"Attack?" the serpents lift their tail away from her face. She ponders the thought, "...I think ...I think I was attacking something in my sleep."
"Your sleep?!"
"Yes," she genuinely admits, "in my dream at least. An amazing dream where I was the most beautiful sea monster in the world." a weak smile briefly stays on her face, "Pretty silly, huh? Using the word 'beautiful' to describe a monster."
The orbs finally finish at getting the bigger serpent to disappear, and now continue with the smaller one.
"No, 'beautiful' is meant for creatures that can attract others to them, emanating off blissful feelings from the glances they receive. But I, the uneased look of discomfort I leave on others only drives them away."
Tempest tightens her grip on the boat's railing.
Shining hastens his need for answers, "What's happening to you? Why are you fading away?"
The serpent brings her tail close to her face. She can see through it towards the five passengers that's looking at her. "...so I am," her serene voice expresses tranquility at this information.
"How can you be so calm about this!?" Armor snaps at her.
She lowers her tail and meets the unicorn's solemn expression with her own, "Why should I act any differently?"
Shining Armor finds that he's at a loss for words on how to address the situation any further. The serpent might as well have told him that breathing is optional.
"Fear is only meant to be a reflection of ourselves, something that's meant to be reacted upon in our own ways. We might distance ourselves, ignore it, fight it off, or even laugh at it, but the process will always end the same way for fear. It's condemned to be a forgetful passenger, to fade away like a trivial memory in the lives of others."
On that observational note, the orbs of light escaping from the serpent's body starts thinning out...
"Perhaps, if the fear in everyone's hearts were to vanish forever, we could find purpose as to why we exist. And maybe, give us a reason to continue on existing."
...and pulls the sea monster out of sight.
"It'd be a bland life, but at least no one would be a monster."
The band of ponies slump back. Their second encounter with these creatures is now over, and while they narrowly escaped death for a second time, they feel a deeper guilt stronger than the first time they went through this. What makes matters worse is that they're still left in the dark on many things about these creatures in general, the only thing they can do now is try and think of what the connections are between the two incidents.
"'Why should I act any differently,'" Shining repeats the serpent's statement, "just what kind of response was that?"
"It's likely because of her Mandibulofacial Dysostosis."
The stallions turn to Genji.
"It's an inherited condition where the bones and tissues of one's face don't develop properly, often impairing many skills; from hearing and seeing to chewing and breathing. Judging by the way she spoke, she must've felt tormented by her condition and felt ostracized because of it."
"But there must be more to it than that." insists Shining Armor. "You just said that it's an inherited condition, meaning that she must've had it prior to birth. She grew up with it from the start, she must've accepted it just like any creature would with their own strengths and weaknesses. She may have felt left out, and perhaps even discouraged, but to act so casually for her well being in a moment like that... It's like her emotions got the better of her."
Genji nods, "All of us are emotional creatures first, and we can't help but feel it overwhelming us at times, which leads me to suggest that we postpone our bout for now. It would be disrespectful to her name if we continued our battle right after the tragic departing of such a great warrior. Let us part ways for today, we will continue our fight the next time we cross paths. Until then, let us remain as fellow passengers for the remainder of the trip."
Shining perks up to the word, "Passengers!" After the hectic experience the boat just went through, he can already feel a headache approaching as he thinks of the riled crowd that'll be asking questions and demands from him. Armor begins to massage the base of his horn, "We better tell the boat captain that the problem has been dealt with. If everyone isn't badgering him about the danger they were in now, then they're bound to be with us as soon as we get there."
Flash Sentry and Second Wind exchange glances, "We'll handle it, Captain." Flash voices. "After the amount of effort you placed on maintaining the barrier, you should focus on resting for now."
Shining refuses the offer, but before he can even say a word, the two pegasi leave him in his exhausted state. He gives in and plops his rear on the ground, gently laying pressure on his horn to sooth the strain he placed on it.
As for Genji, he's been watching Tempest for a while now. She hasn't moved from the spot since the serpent vanished. He turns over to Shining Armor, walking up to the unicorn and stands side-by-side with him, "Overcoming a disability may be a challenge all on its own, but learning to live with that disability, is an even harder one."
Shining doesn't respond and just listens to what Genji has to say.
"Not many can truly grasp the hardships that one is forced to endure on that road. They don't get to tread the path that's paced upon every day, theirs is a solus stride across severe terrains with no clear destination in sight. In a sense, they're lost, they can see this every time they're reminded of their limitations, and while some build their own paths off it, others might seek to return to that road they'll never encounter again. Searching for something that can't be reached can warp the mind in drastic ways, making them think or even consider on acting upon selfish choices that no one wins in."
"..."
"It takes a strong will to carry that weight through their life, and living with it only gets harder to bear the longer they let it stay over their head."
The words settle in Shining's head for a brief pause. He looks back to see Tempest, still supporting herself with her forehooves on the railing as she stares at the sea's horizon. His eyes rests on her shattered horn, and as he lowers them, he notices that her forehooves are trembling.