“The past does not define someone,” I said, “I will not condemn those who made the decision to put Cozy Glow down here. Was it horrific? Absolutely. But if she no longer holds any animosity, then neither will I. Anger and hatred has done nothing but drive me towards callous and poorly thought-out decisions. But not here...not anymore.” I looked around to try and find the source of the voice to no avail. Despite this, I was keen on my path to snap back, and keep this thing at bay so it could no longer fill my head with confusion. “I decide my own fate! Not you, not the alicorns, nor do any of the other powerful beings who attempt to make themselves out to be gods!”
Much to my surprise, Quick Draw stood beside me to provide her own words of encouragement. “That’s right. We’re not going to allow you to shape or control the events of time! We’re going to fight for the outcome that we want, and there’s nothing you can do to stop us!”
Corkscrew flew up to my other side, and shouted. “Damn straight. We’ve been through too much to even consider the idea of quitting now. So go on. Watch us as we make history that nopony else will ever be able to compare to!”
There was a palpable silence throughout the underworld. As if time itself had stopped. Fortunately, the eerie emptiness wouldn’t last for very long.
“Is that so? Well then...you all have made your choice. In a few moments, you will finally come face to face with the beast that you have so desperately hunted after. Are you all prepared for it?”
I looked at both of my crewmates. Each of them responded with a nod.
“Absolutely,” I replied.
Without warning, we felt a surge of magic overtake us. As a result, we returned to our normal, adult pony bodies. And best of all? My coat fit again. The legionic voice dissipated, and we came face to face with a familiar foe whose appearance had been concealed by it the entire time.
“...and once I take over, we shall--hm?” The mare whose hair functioned as limbs had appeared before us on that tower platform. Mane-iac hadn’t gone to Hollow Shades at all! She had been here the whole time to reap souls for extra power. “Ah, so you saw through my bluff did you? And you brought some new friends…”
Behind her, I noticed a spectral figure that took the appearance of a...it was hard to describe. But it looked like a spider-esque being with dozens of eyes! But instead of regular spider legs, it had hooves, and rows of shark-like teeth. Was that the form that Grogar currently took to hide his true appearance? “That I did, Mane-iac. But we know what your intention is now. Legion told us all about it.”
The hairy mare whispered something to the beast before it scampered off. “Ah, the voice of historical context, hm? Well, it’s going to be my turn to enter the ranks of the history books. And you won’t stop me. Don’t you remember how effortlessly I defeated you and your other friends?”
I readied my gun with a flick of the lever. “You won’t stop us either. We have an ace up our sleeve.”
She leaned forward, and used some of her hairs to recline upon her back. “Oh? And what might that be?”
I smirked at Corkscrew.
One hour ago. At Canterlot castle…
While we waited to speak with Twilight, I had an idea. I needed to find Spike. Why? Well I knew he was a fan of the Power Pony comic books. If he read them well enough, then he would likely know about Mane-iac’s weakness.
Now you may wonder why I was concerned about that. After all, Mane-iac was apparently threatening to attack Hollow Shades, right? Well, I just had this sneaking suspicion that we were being bluffed. Just in case she decided to show her face in Tartarus, I needed to know all I could.
So I got up from the lobby seat of the castle. “Hey, I’m gonna go...check the perimeter.”
Quick looked at me with a raised brow. “Really? Just got to the bathroom if you need to.”
The boss sat back in his seat with his hat over his eyes. Cool as ever. “Hurry back now. Don’t take forever.”
That wasn’t exactly my intention. But ya know what? I rolled with it. I needed to get ahold of Spike. I knew he had to be around because Twilight tended to have him manage other areas of the castle while she was in meetings. Luckily, I didn’t have to search for very long. Spike was busy sorting files in one of the offices at the other end of the castle. It was odd to see him with a pair of reading glasses on his face.
Anyway, the door was wide open, but I tapped it with my wing to be polite so that I didn’t scare him. “Spike? Got a minute?”
“Hm?” the young adult dragon looked up from the paperwork he had. “Oh it’s you. What do you need, my guy?”
Awesome. He was easy to cooperate with, so I gave him the gist of the situation. “...and I need to know if you know any of Mane-iac’s weaknesses.”
“Power Ponies?” he replied as his eyes shot open. “Now that takes me back. It’s been a while since I’ve read those.”
Wait what? Okay, I was on a job but I was still a bit curious. “Huh? You don’t read them anymore?”
“Nah. I haven’t had much time to read comics since I started working more. Twilight has pretty much made me the ambassador to the non-pony races. And with that comes a slew of problems,” he rolled his eyes, and put his arms behind his head to recline in his chair. “But anyway. In reference to what you need. Mane-iac’s weakness is…”
I got my answer.
“...really now?” After he told it to me, I expressed my thanks, and decided to offer him something in return. “Hey. Wanna read comics next time you’re off? I could help you catch up on Power Ponies. And show you some of the comics I got from Japony.”
“Really? Thanks. But only if you’re able to do so as well. I wouldn’t want to divert too much time away from your job.” He reached into a jar of gemstones, and plucked a few from it to eat. “I’ve been there, and it’s cost me valuable time I could’ve spent honing my skills. It’s made me a complete burden to Twilight and her friends in the past.”
I looked down. Yikes, man. That feel was realer than I anticipated. “...Yeah, I get you. Having been through an Academy where one best friend had to constantly protect me, and the other had to constantly help me prepare and study--I always felt like that.”
To my shock, Spike actually got up from his chair, and pat me on the head. “Hey now. Don’t feel like that. Your friends love you and want you around because they know you’re a valuable member of their group. Don’t fall into the same slump that I did.”
Man that felt good down to my soul. My heart almost melted, but I had to keep my emotions outta the job. “Yeah...you’re right. Thanks again for the help.” With the knowledge gained, I flew up and out of his office.
“No problem, buddy!”
As expected of my friend Corkscrew. Always there with the clutch to save my flank when I least expected. So what was the plan that I had devised in order to exploit Mane-iac’s weakness?
CLINK!
I threw my gun down on the floor, much to everyone’s initial confusion.
SMASH!
With a press of my hoof, I stomped upon, and broke it into pieces. I took out the crystal shard that powered the blaster, and stabbed myself in the chest with it...right on the heart. “Grhh! Ffff…”
“PALE WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” Quick screamed.
Corkscrew was silent. I suppose that it was too horrific for him to put it into words.
Mane-iac remained perplexed as she gazed upon me with an intense stare to see what would happen next.
It was all or nothing.