//------------------------------// // Chapter 28 - Battle In Ponyville Pt: 2 // Story: Terraria: Friendship Is Magic // by Pomp-Neigh //------------------------------// -EQUUS, CORRUPTION BIOME, PONYVILLE- The sounds of energy blasts via magic based attacks and the clanking of metal from physical weapons engulfs the area as all out war breaks out in Ponyville. Eater Of Souls were seen picking off various individuals from the army as they plead for mercy, sadly, the monsters of The Corruption have no mercy. Such a concept was simply non existent to beings who fed off of sin, in a way these abominations might as well be called demons straight out of the absolute depths of Tartarus. One wouldn't be wrong to call them that. "Stay strong everypony!, fight them off and make sure to use the purification powder to cleanse the area as we push them back!", Shining Armor exclaims as he and his allies, comprised of The Pillars, Stygian, Chrysalis, Tempest Shadow, Trixie, Big Mac, Mayor Mare, Garble, and Sugar belle form a circle formation in front of Town Hall fighting off various of The corruption's monsters, specifically many of The Eater Of Souls. Multiple scenario's play out in the group: Shining Armor would blast away any of the eater of souls who tried to swoop into the group hoping to pick someone off. Sugar Belle would do the same as the unicorn prince while also bucking a small Eater Of Souls. Garble honestly felt he was having the time of his life as the dragon scorched any parasite's who were trying to drop down on the group from above, the red dragon would even take to the skies to slash some of the parasites clean in half with his claws as he shouts out: "Hah!, these things are so weak!" Big Mac used his royal guard lance, one of many weapons that was gifted to those who agreed to join the army to help fight back the infection, to literally skewer every parasite right through their heads upon which he'd then toss the corpse of the Eater Of Souls towards another parasite. A couple of the rather smaller sized parasite's managed to get closer however Big Mac was quite the earth pony. He bucked them so hard that they'd explode on impact causing their body parts to disperse in the area. The Pillars, despite some of them being old, were still just as powerful as they've always been. Star swirl's magnificent magical abilities would often make short work of the flying parasites not to mention he'd support Shining Armor in casting a barrier in order to give everyone some time to recollect themselves before removing the barrier and returning to battle. Rockhoof was essentially a more powerful version of Big Mac, where the red stallion sent parasite's flying and the smaller parasite's to explode on impact with his powerful bucks Rockhoof effortlessly tossed them away with his might, stomped them to a fine paste, and batted/killed many of the parasite's with his trusty shovel. Mage Meadowbrook was the team's healer and as such they all tried their best to protect her. Most surprisingly, it was Chrysalis who dedicated her efforts into protecting Meadowbrook much to the mage's surprise. The former changeling queen would zap away any parasite that tried to come after the mage however Chrysalis was surprised to see that she couldn't suck any love away from the flying parasites often commenting: "This can't be, everything has to have a shred of love no matter what!", little does she know these beings, to put it bluntly, are nothing but empty husks. They have only one objective: To take your soul and die trying. Somnambula would shout various strategies to her allies upon which they'd enforce and enact, she wasn't very gifted in terms of combat prowess however her intellect was, to put it bluntly, vastly superior. She comprised plans with back up plans and back up plans for the back up plans. Yes, she was an incredibly smart pegasus mare and she knew how to apply it. The only one in the group who matched her intellect possibly even surpassing it was Stygian. One can not let Mistmane's appearance fool them for she was still a very powerful sorceress. Much like Star swirl, she too effortlessly blasted away any parasite that tried to swoop in for a bite. Flash Magnus took to the skies and combated the flying monsters head on striking them with his hooves and a lance similar to what Big Mac had possessed while also using his superior agility to avoid their counter attacks. He'd return to the group to recuperate whenever Shining Armor and Star swirl would cast a barrier. Surprisingly, he and Garble even performed a combo attack in the skies above Ponyville. Many would not expect this from 'The Great And Powerful Trixie' but she too was handling herself quite well. Thanks to using various smoke bombs throughout her performances she was comfortable with using Purification Powder in combination with her own attacks. Thanks to Starlight Glimmer, Trixie's magical abilities had improved thanks to her friend's tutorage as she'd throw some purification powder right into the face of a parasite followed by an energy blast powerful enough to push back and kill some of The Eater Of Souls. Mayor Mare was not an earth pony to be underestimated, the saying: "Desperate times calls for desperate measures.", represented the Ponyville mayor perfectly as she did everything in her power to fight off the hoard of parasite's. Bucking, slicing with her royal guard blade, headbutting smaller parasite's, throwing Purification Powder at her foes much like Trixie, the town mayor did everything in her power to contribute. She might not be much compared to most of the other members of her small group but one couldn't help but to admire her fighting resolve. Determination was the best way to describe how hard she fought to support her allies. Tempest Shadow, despite having a broken horn, was still a powerful force to be reckoned with. Combining her physical attacks with powerful blasts of magic she was the ultimate example of a Melee/Mage pony. Had she been thrown into Terraria with Twilight Sparkle and the others this would have been her role. Stygian, in combination with Somnambula, shouted various combat strategies while also attacking their foes with magic blasts of his own. It was he who suggested for Garble and Flash Magnus to perform various combat combinations in the skies. After the events of The Pony Of Shadows, Stygian dedicated himself to improving his magical aptitude and as such he blasted away some of the opposition while dodging and striking others. Various fighting scenarios played out through out all of Ponyville as the rest of the army fought hard and well against the flying parasites on both the land and in the skies. Surprisingly, despite losing some of their numbers everyone did manage to fight the parasites evenly and matched/overpowered their foes. Unfortunately, things were about to get worse as the flying parasites were just the beginning, the first wave so to speak. The ground begins to rumble as if something were burrowing underneath the earth, this was quite accurate however it wasn't just one but many of the large worm like abomination's of The Corruption: The Devourer's. The battle was instantly turned towards The Corruption's favor as these large worm abominations made quick work of various members of the army even killing many individuals with one swoop. The Devourer's would emerge from the ground and shoot up into the air as they then open up their large mouth's while falling back to the earth over those unfortunate enough to be caught. In one swift motion the individual, or individuals, would be swallowed whole as the worm burrows back into the earth. Every Devourer performed this act of guerilla warfare as they continued to feast on all members of the army. Changeling, Dragon, Pony, Yak, Hippogriff, Griffon, Zebra, Minotaur, It matters not what specie you were for as of this moment they were all equally prey for the worm abominations. One couldn't help but to pity those who lacked the gift of flight as they were forced to deal with the worms burrowing in the earth. Those in the skies were not entirely saved however as not only did they have to face the flying parasites they also shouldn't underestimate just how high the large worms could launch themselves up into the air. Dragons, Hippogriffs, Griffons, and Changelings who felt too safe in the air payed dearly as the jaws of the worms closed down on them before returning to the earth. As if things weren't already bad enough three new types of enemies presented themselves much to everyone's displeasure, some of these new creatures were more powerful versions of The Eater Of Souls and the Devourer's including a whole new enemy: Corrupt Slime, World Feeder, Corruptor. Shining Armor and the others stare on in disbelief and absolute horror as the unicorn prince shouts: "No, it can't be!. They've already begun to evolve at such a rapid rate, we have no documentation on these new creature's!. That Hive Mind was right, we gave them time to spawn new allies!" "We must retreat for now Prince Shining armor, these new foes are tearing our army apart!." Rockhoof exclaims. "I hate to admit it but I agree, I ain't no coward but even a dragon knows when we've bitten off more than we can chew!" - Garble "I'm going to cast a spell around all of Ponyville, I pray those in our army hasn't left its borders yet. It will teleport us all to The Outpost, Pillars, support me with your magic!", Star Swirl exclaims as he and various members of the Pillars start to channel their spell. Shining Armor casts a barrier around the group while gritting his teeth in order to buy them enough time to cast the powerful teleportation spell. The group could only watch in horror as those outside the barrier were still locked in combat or being killed off by the arrival of the new monsters of The Corruption. "We must hurry!, once we cast this spell we can save those who are still alive out there so long as they are within Ponyville's vicinity.", Star Swirl exclaims. As this goes on everyone else in the barrier can't help but to pray that Shining Armor's barrier holds up and The Pillars can cast their spell in time. Suddenly, Mayor Mare gets an idea and turns to Chrysalis asking: "You're a changeling, that means you can feed on love right?" "Of course you fool, what of it? I already tried to do that with these monstrosities but they have no love to give!" - Chrysalis. "Don't do it to them, do it to the rest of us and give that power to The Prince and The Pillars!" - Mayor Mare. "Of course!, a changeling can give their power to others if need be. Thorax proved that himself, Chrysalis you must do what Mayor Mare says!" - Stygian. "I don't want some bug to take anything from me!, but, If that gets us out of here then fine!" - Garble. "The Grrreat And Powerful Trixie still despises you for that whole incident with your hive. However, Trixie will go with this plan." "Ah' agree too, take it!" - Big Mac. "As do I!" - Sugar Belle. "Do it now!" - Tempest Shadow. As this goes on the monsters begin to slam, bite, and claw at the barrier much to Shining Armor's displeasure. The world goes in slow motion for Chrysalis as she ponders the words everyone has just spoken. She despises them all however she also doesn't want to meet her end, gritting her teeth she shouts: "I hate all of you!, but I refuse to die today so fine!", Instantly, Chrysalis opens her jaws and sucks the energy from everyone present aside from Shining Armor and The Pillars. Once she gets her fill everyone she sucked the energy from collapses to the floor however she immediately floats into the air and extends all of her limbs upon which many light purple energy rings fires at Shining Armor and The Pillars. The energy rings enters the bodies of The Pillars and Shining Armor and as a result they all couldn't help but to feel empowered and rejuvenated. The barrier suddenly became denser from the new surge of energy Shining had collected as Star Swirl exclaims: "Well done Former Changeling Queen!, the spell is ready!" "I AM The Queen you old-" [POOF] -EQUUS, OUTPOST 2- [POOF] The remnants of the army dropped to the floor as everyone was teleported by the spell Star Swirl and The Pillars had casted. What was once a large force comprised of many different species was now cut entirely in half possibly even lower. Everyone groans as they start to come to, Star Swirl looks around and asks: "Is everyone ok?, it would seem the spell has successfully been casted. Well done Pillars an-" "Everyone, we need to leave now!", A Changeling shouts out as they look towards the skies in utter disbelief. Large flying entities began to do the unthinkable: Spreading The Corruption. They began to spit projectiles that would further spread The Infection upon making contact with any object and, most disturbingly, any one. Some members from the army were hit by this spit and what happened next made some want to hurl. They'd scream out in pain as their body was taken over by The Corruption which resulted in grotesque abominations, a complete mockery of what they once were. A griffon was hit before the groups very eyes and they watched on in horror as the bones in the Griffon's body cracked and various body parts began to shift unnaturally. The griffon's head was now placed on its chest, both wings were completely plucked of feathers as they sat on opposite sides of the body. Purple ooze began to leak out of the griffon's ears, mouth, nose, and eyes followed by a deafening yet disturbing moan. "By Celestia... come everyone, we must retreat to The Crystal Empire!", Shining Armor shouts as he and everyone present made a run for it. All around them this horrifying display played out as every being present, that wasn't a monster from The Corruption, ran and flew away for their lives or became corrupted much like the Griffon had become thus turning on their former allies. Tempest Shadow couldn't help but to think internally, the very same thing that was no doubt on everyone's mind: -This is absolute madness, how the hay do we fight against this thing?!- -EQUUS, EVERFREE FOREST- A group of survivors from the outposts makes their way deeper into the wild forest of The Everfree. Miraculously, the magical forest has been combating against the corruption as the vines of the Everfree manages to kill off some of the monsters while also preventing The Corruption from spreading into the forest. The group was made up of survivors from all three Outposts and were being lead by an earth pony and a pegasus: Derpy Hooves and Dr. Whooves. "This is absolute madness!, things couldn't have gotten any worse!. Now we're forced to seek shelter in what is arguably just as dangerous as The Corruption itself. You know what?, I take that back, I'd rather be here then out in that infection.", Dr. Whooves says as he and the survivors stop to catch their breath. "Dr, perhaps I could fly back to The Empire and seek help?. There has to be a way to fight back.", Derpy Hooves asks. "I'm sorry my dear assistant but that option has already been exercised, that army we sent into Ponyville was the absolute pinnacle of the entire coalition. No, we need something to help tip the scales in our favor. But what?, great whickering stallions I'm at a loss.", Dr. Whooves replies. "Everypony wait, we found something.", An armored earth pony mare says however her voice was very, monotonous. "I've spent most of my life studying rock science and I've never seen a mineral like this one before. It radiates an otherworldly aura, it's both dangerous yet if harvested correctly it can be applied to various uses.", The pony is revealed to be Maud Pie as she both studies and admires the unknown 'rocks'. Maud was accompanied by two other armored mares who are revealed to be Octavia Melody and Vinyl Scratch. DR. Whooves, Derpy, and the rest of the group trot/runs over to the trio of mares as the doctor asks: "What is it?, what did you-" The doctor's words were cut off as he and everyone else present stares on to the unknown marvel before them. Some strange type of purple rock vein was formed on the forest floor but most shockingly, there were many large veins of this unknown material scattering the area. "Do you know what this stuff is doctor?", Derpy asks. "No, but for some reason I feel like we could... use this..."