“Any news?” Shifting asked. Luna shook her head, the pair looking over the maps in the shielded war room.
“Nothing. The Organization isn’t informing us of anything. They likely will only let us know when the attack is over and we can assist.”
A parchment *popped* into view, Luna’s eyes widening in shock as she read the simple message.
“Or…not. I’ll go get Celestia,” she said, the alicorn’s frame being hidden by dark armor summoned from various portals.
“I’ll hold down the fort. Bring the stars, Luna,” Shifting added, reaching over to give his Fiancé a kiss. “Let’s end this once and for all.”
The powerful glint in the Lunar Empress’s eye bore no argument to that fact.
Toxic ducked through a blast of chaotic magic, screams and cries fading from his awareness with ease. The horrific scenes barely registered now, the stallion able to completely ignore what the King threw at him. No nightmare was new, no fear enough to make him bow.
“Oh, come on now. That’s the fifth time you’ve used that one!” Toxic taunted, glaring at the Shadow. “Give me something new, you peasant! A King should do better than that!”
The Shadow King’s eyes widened in fury, a new wave of nightmares battering Toxic’s awareness as his limbs appeared to be soaked in gore up to his barrel.
Yet the protective spell around his armor prevented anything else, a soft pink shield protecting the majority of his body.
“Such insolence,” the King growled, “even those spells the witches gave you have their limits!”
“True,” Toxic admitted, “but you haven’t found them. Not even close! You’re losing against a pony, King of Shadows! You have not phased me! A mortal is besting the King of Shadows, a ruler in the Limbo realm!”
Toxic bit back a smirk as the Shadow conjured up another horrific vision, the King refusing to let a mortal have the last word.
“And yet you are all words, pony,” the King spat. “I can wear you down over weeks. You can’t stand against me forever! You barely have the strength for that, let alone to rescue your gryphoness!”
Toxic stared back, finding himself nodding in agreement. That was a new thing, but the Shadow was right. He barely had the strength to stand after five days of dealing with the nightmares, Gelliana sleeping another day away.
“You know, you’re right,” he admitted, the Shadow starting to chuckle in victory. “But you know, I’ve learned something in dealing with you, something you will never understand.”
“Oh?” The King humored the pony, oblivious to what was going on at the peripheral of Toxic’s vision.
“I’ve learned to trust my friends,” Toxic stated with a now-confident grin, “to trust those I care about.”
The Shadow’s eyes widened in absolute horror; the room holding Gelliana abruptly beginning to fade as he removed his focus from the pony.
“Wait. What have-”
“I don’t need to hold on that long. I just needed you to be distracted for a few minutes,” Toxic grinned. “She is out of your reach now. See you later, demon.”
The Shadow’s form vanished as he returned to the normal world, Toxic chuckling as the room faded completely from view. A brief casting of a spell to confirm things, and Toxic sat down in the dreamscape as it began to dissolve.
“I’ll see you soon, Gells. Just hang on.”
The magical readout on the Lantern’s bridge confirmed Pick’s hopes. Toxic had distracted the Shadow-King for a few precious moments. The fleet had arrived on a different side of the area shield, punching through the barrier with ease. The previous attack must have weakened the King’s domain, for the gas was at reduced levels along with the shield’s strength.
Or it may be that more than a dozen airships blasted it with spells. The barrage of explosive bolts and magical surges had fried everything within sight of the impact zone, the shield shattering outwards. The ground beneath the shield turned to glass, trees turning to ash in an instant.
There had been very little argument between Toxic, Pick, and Varti. The former, despite being barely able to stand let alone fight, wasn’t about to be left out.
He could play a crucial role all the same.
Staggering from the Lantern’s spell chamber, Toxic leaned on a bench, looking out over the bridge as Pick directed various craft and creatures. The airship fleet spread out, only a few chaos-creatures present on the ground below.
Orders came and went smoothly, every creature at their station laser-focused. Varti’s report from the sensors then came over the speakers; the communication’s officers taking notes. Hammer sounded off that the shock troops were ready to deploy; Knife Twist and the Templars too.
Something then punched through the stallion’s exhaustion-addled brain, a thrill making his chest glow with warmth and tears coming to his eyes. The pony’s emotions were still boiling near the surface, more than five days of nightmares having shredded most of his mental barriers. In times like this, he could barely stop himself from outright sobbing.
His organization, the creation to which Toxic had thrown blood, sweat and tears into, was alive. For the first time in his life, Toxic was an observer in a critical mission. It was his brother, best friend and trusted confidants leading the charge.
For the first time, his participation in this part of the operation was optional.
Despite tears clouding his eyes, the stallion walked over to an empty console, usually reserved for diplomats. Calling up the fleet’s sensors he could only stare at the readouts.
Over a dozen ships, hundreds of troops, thousands of armaments…
It was a military that could challenge any of the current standing nations. And now its sole purpose was to rescue a single gryphoness. Ships flew evenly in formation, pushed along by jets of magical energy. The Organization’s symbol shone brightly on their sides; a lighthouse emblazoned amid a shield.
Shock troops stood at attention in their deployment bays, flying creatures being the first individuals to leave the ship when ordered. Slowing spells would aid the decent of non-winged individuals, none left out from the strike.
It was a well-oiled machine, the Organization able to run without him. Just the guidance of his brother and best friend…
The display then shifted, Toxic’s throat closing up with emotion as Varti’s newest tests came back from the lab suits. It was a constant side project; a most-automated assembly line discovering and creating new biohazard suit and mask filters that could mimic Toxic’s abilities.
So far, nothing had worked. Hundreds of prototypes that the eccentric Yak had created, and none had come close to mimicking the stallion’s abilities.
Until now.
‘Prototype 711.
Minimal magical residence test: Passed
Minimal acidity resistance test: Passed
Minimal biohazard filtration test: Passed
Minimal radiation dampening test: Passed
Minimal chemical resistance test: Passed
Minimal penetration of bladed weapons resistance test: Passed
Minimal penetration of pointed weapons resistance test: Passed
Conclusion: Prototype 711 furthered to medium tests. Submitting material prototype as option for ‘minimal’ hazard suit.’
Toxic had long since stopped hoping for an end to his work. The light at the end of the tunnel was never to open air; it was always another train.
Yet now, that light seemed to be genuine. An organization that actually was set to replace him. A nation dedicated to helping others.
Leyline energy flickered across his limbs, a bit of exhaustion leaving them as he sent a silent thanks to the two entities that had made this all possible. Two mares who had kept him safe; Gelliana safe when he couldn’t.
It was only a blink, but Toxic saw Clari and Fide appear to him, kind smiles on their faces before vanishing.
It’s almost over…
The opening salvo had Toxic grinning ear to ear, Pick actually chuckling.
The two embedded crystals in the mountain detonated, their matrix shifting to be the perfect shaped charge. The face of the mountain was abruptly removed, the creatures inside either blasted to pieces or laid out unconscious from the shockwave. It didn’t touch the inner chambers though, where Gelliana was. That would have to be breached manually.
Toxic paced back and forth as the updates came in; Pick and Hammer relaying information back and forth as Knife Twist and her Templars made their way to the upstairs chambers.
‘We’ve got a few dozen Chaos-creatures here!”
“Blast ‘em!’
A volley from the ships pounded the unfortunate targets repeatedly. What remained on the ground was torn to shreds by the landing troops and templars, each making sure that nothing was left to regenerate. Anything moving was stabbed, hit with magic, and then secured to an explosive charge to pulverize the remails.
Such actions often occurred in that order.
Pick doubled the scans on the surrounding area; there were too few of the chaos creatures, less than half….
A grin split his crystal muzzle, the Fleet Commander barking orders to the fleet. The Chaos-Creatures had apparently a final trick to play; a large portion of them having adjusted their forms to fly. The three nearest ships turned broadside, Hammer grinning ear to ear as he issued the order.
“FIRE!”
A wall of magical strikes, explosive ballistic bolts, and old-fashioned cannonballs ripped through the air and flattened the frontmost creatures. The still-flying ones behind them met another volley; this one from the Lantern. The flagship’s armaments dwarfed the smaller vessels, the magical blasts nearly enveloping two of the creatures whole. The salvos then synchronized, tearing into the creatures. Another volley, and another, the thunderous rain of projectiles following the creatures to the forest floor where they pounded the creatures into literal pieces. The ground turned to glass, shattering under the repetitive barrage as nothing but fragments of the chaos-creatures remained.
“So that’s where all the extra creatures went,” Pick mused as he tuned back into the battle. It appeared most of the primary chamber was secure, prisoners being restrained and teleported back to the ship. The Templars and elite squads had finally located the main hallway that led to the Shadow-King’s primary chambers. Naturally, they had to sweep for traps first. But so far nothing had been found.
“Minimal resistance entering the upper chamber- wait, we’ve got a few more of those things!”
The sounds of battle echoed over the communications channels; Knife panting into her helmet as something shrieked.
‘Not as many as I thought…It’s a large chamber. Big map-like thing in the middle, kind of like the one in Twilight’s castle. There! You two, send the deactivation code! We’ve got Gelliana- she’s out cold in some sort of cage! No spells detected or fail-safes. It’s like they just…left. There’re some broken weapons here, all melted. Looks like they tried to kill her but the shielding spell was fully active. There’s a dead chaos-creature too; looks like they tried everything.’
Pick’s eyes flickered over to Toxic; the little brother checking up on the anxious stallion as he paced back and forth continually.
‘Bracelet deactivation code received- we’ve got her! Initiating transport!’
Toxic met Pick’s eyes, the stallion’s hooves already moving towards the medical facilities of the ship.
“Thank you, Pick,” he said softly, his wavering tone conveying what words could not.
“Anytime Bro. But I think this is going to drag on a bit longer; but let us handle that,” Pick said, knowing Toxic was thinking something similar. “You may want to look out the window in a few minutes,” he tapped the communications command, “all forces. Once the area is secure, retrieve any prisoners and return to ships. Initiate a triple-count to make sure nobody is left behind. The Princess’s are on standby. Code ‘Mid-Day Meteor.’”
Toxic couldn’t help but let a tired smirk slide onto his features.
“I’ll take a look. Level the place, Pick.”
“With pleasure.”
The stallion was then off as fast as his leaden limbs could move. Toxic managed to make his way to the med-bay of the ship, nurses already hooking Gelliana up to various monitors. Two familiar entities were scanning the gryphoness; an ethereal mare and gryphon.
“She will be alright, Director,” SMALL said happily, CESAL nodding in confirmation.
“No injuries detected outside of what were already present during our escape and evasion time. She is sleeping. Her mind is guarded here.”
The Gryphon’s eyes widened as the stallion stumbled, the entity catching the pony and promptly lifting him to an adjacent medical cot.
“We will attend to you in a moment,” CESAL said firmly, Toxic actually quite happy to simply lay there for a time.
Gelliana was safe; they were safe.
Safe, and among friends. Perhaps now he could finally close his eyes.
*A short time prior*
Commander Chaster let out a frustrated sigh. The feline was patrolling the edge of the massive cavern with a dozen creatures, as he was oft to do. An alert had just gone out that out of a fleet of ships coming in fast; the chaos things slithering up the walls to respond. The Mercenary commander directed his own forces to the rear guard, a weight in his chest as he did so.
Despite the offered opportunity, his life was worth more than gold. If the chaos-creatures fell, then the Commander knew what his final option was; and he trusted the wrath of two ponies rather than the Shadow-King. The King wanted the gryphoness dead if the base was breached; but so far nobody had been able to get close to the comatose creature. The shielding spell had fried one of the Chaos-Serpents within seconds.
The wall nearest to him abruptly began to glow from two large points, the cat abruptly backing up as the sword shook in his hands. This entire operation was beyond anything he had imagined. He was a mercenary. Robbing caravans, breaking into vaults, the occasional hostage…but this? War?
You had to be alive to spend your gold, and that eventuality was rapidly diminishing.
Two Chaos-Creatures clambered over the walls, looking at the two areas that were dripping molten stone. They turned, clearly about to say something-
The world detonated.
Chaster’s sensitive ears only registered a high-pitched ringing, bright sunlight blasting into the cave. The entire cliff-face was simply gone, a fleet of a dozen ships hovering outside the entrance. Dozens of figures jetted from their underbellies, armored creatures thundering down to land around the dazed Commander. Their bodies were clad in thick armor, blades leveled at his throat as they charged in.
The Chaos-Creatures still standing were torn to shreds, overwhelmed by the blasts that the ships rained down, the attackers then setting upon then before they could regenerate. Teams of shock troops piled onto the Creatures, tearing them limb from limb with blade, crossbow-bolts, and magic.
Calls to the Shadow-King went unanswered, but Chaster knew full well what that meant. The Shadow-King and his mysterious pony host weren’t about to make some noble last stand. The army in front of Chaster was beyond anything he had ever seen; the rag-tag groups in the badlands paling in comparison.
The Shadow-King could play the long game and that clearly didn’t involve the feline. What that game was, Chaster didn’t know. But if it meant his life was saved, the mercenary would gladly turn over that freaky shadow-thing.
He managed to dodge the majority of the fighting, all of the chaos-creatures appearing dead as he slid along the wall. His fellow mercenaries were surrendering; not that he blamed them. While this organization was clearly leading things surely, they had agreements with the ponies. Padded cells were preferable to death. Surrendering to Equestria was considered a pleasant outcome in the Badlands.
However, the odd thing was that all of the attackers were quickly escorting everyone…
“YOU! HALT!” An authoritative voice bellowed.
As an armored gryphon angled his sword, preparing to strike at the feline, Chaster immediately drew and tossed his sword away, plastering himself to the ground.
“Mercy!”
The air in the room jumped. Chaster was abruptly aware that instead of the cool, damp interior of the mountain it felt like the scorching sun of the badlands was beating down upon him.
Golden armor shining with a red fire, the Solar Empress walked next to the Templar. Her eyes were narrowed in rage as a serrated sword held itself out to touch the tip of his throat.
“Be glad that your life is not mine to judge,” Celestia growled, Chaster’s eyes widening in horror as stars began to fall outside. Their paths tore into the forest with an explosive violence he had never seen, the explosions reaching tens of stories tall as the mountain shook under Luna’s wrath, the Lunar Empress calling down the heavens to crater the Shadow-King’s territory. Anything left outside was turned to dust, the Princess’s blasting the ‘kingdom’ down to bedrock.
“I offer information for my life; not for freedom but for it to be spared,” Chaster stammered, the armored gryphon next to Celestia clamping restraints on the ex-Commander as they marched towards the opening.
“Then speak.”
The fact the armored gryphon glanced sideways to Celestia in an almost cautionary manner confirmed to Chaster something.
The fact was absolutely horrifying, the feline feeling a cold sweat breaking out across his brow. Celestia’s previous words suggested it, but this made it utterly clear.
The benevolent Princess’s weren’t the ones leading the charge. It was not with a pony the mercenary now was bargaining with.
His life was in the hands of…
The feline spoke as rapidly and clearly as he could. If the merciful ponies weren’t the ones to be imprisoning them; he had to appear useful-be useful.
Chaster’s nerves weren’t assuaged, however, as his news of the absence of the Shadow-King didn’t seem to surprise anyone who heard it. In a turn of events that Chaster knew was a once in a lifetime moment, the Mercenary was happy to have a Princess’s ear, even if he was bound for a jail cell.
Judging from the looks the other Last Light troops were giving him, Celestia very well may be the only thing standing between him and being thrown off of the airship onto the rocks.
Seeing the pieces of the mercenaries under his command that had not surrendered, Chaster knew what his fate very well may have been.
The pony casually watched as the Shadow-King ranted and raved, the hidden cave scorched with chaos magic as the Shadow exited his tantrum. Their mountain had been blasted in to a crater, the King’s ‘kingdom’ now reduced to a wasteland.
“Are you done?” he asked, the King glaring at the pony.
“AM I-” the King took a few deep breaths, nodding to his host reluctantly. “I am… better. It is an adjustment for me to lose.”
“I gathered. This is why I tried to prepare you,” the pony sighed. “There is a phrase here; to win a war, you have to lose a few battles.”
“That makes no sense.”
“Perhaps to you,” his Host admitted, “a creature not accustomed to losing. But this is a long game. Even though all of the pieces once taken have been returned to the board, we can start with fresh pawns, in time. Ponies have a short memory even if the Princess’s do not. However, there is still a key piece that needs to be eliminated.”
“And you have insisted on doing that yourself?”
The pony nodded casually.
“Of course, but in due time. Now we must wait and recover. Your methods failed. I would like to show you how to play a long game. You remove a piece, and then you vanish. A pawn is just as dangerous to a king as a rook or knight.”
“Very well,” the King admitted, “I am curious as to your methods. Most ponies are not vicious creatures.”
A fanged mouth parted in a smile, the concealment spell dropping to show the expertly-filed teeth.
“Most ponies aren’t. That is why we will eventually win.”