//------------------------------// // Chapter 19: Rite of the Legion // Story: The Adventure of the Apex Legion // by DeffBwade //------------------------------// Previously on The Adventures of the Apex Legion "I gotta hand it to all of you," Cozy started to say, "You were so close to stopping my plans. I mean, all you had to do was remove a couple of artifacts and that would've stopped the spell. That's kinda...kinda lame if you think about it," she continued before she scowled, "Unfortunately, I can't have you impede what I worked on for a while. That's just not what friends do. Right?" "Is it because you want power like you told Neighsay?" I asked, "Because if that's the case, then I'd say you have quite enough already. I mean, you're clearly the one holding us down to the ground. How else do you explain the red eyes?" "Oh that. That's just a natural effect of being around those who have dark magic," Cozy explained. “H-hold on. Are we really gonna fight Cozy Glow? Because I feel conflicted about fighting a little filly,” I said as I turned around…only to see that Cozy has gotten up and was now floating, a dark red aura surrounding her, eyes now glowing completely red, and an expression basically saying that she wanted to hurt me so bad, “Then again…she has magic that could potentially spell ‘doom’ for all of Equestria.” “Guys, I’m the only one that has the means to fight Cozy, and I don’t want you to get caught in the crossfire,” I said before another orb crashed into my shield, creating more dents, “Get the princesses, get Discord, our professors, anyone! I got this!” Another hit to my shield. One more and it will shatter, “Please! I don’t want you guys to get hurt!” “Golly. It seems your ‘friends’ decided to bail on you,” Cozy said, drawing my attention back to her, “Too bad, so sad…but perfect for me.” “Oh. They’re not bailing on me. But that doesn’t matter. You want me, Cozy? Come and get me,” I said confidently as I dropped my shield. "Hey little clod!" I yelled as I launched my hoof forward...only for it to be stopped as it was shrouded in a red aura. "Hello to you too," Cozy said as she turned towards me before she gave me an almost devilish grin as her hoof became a claw once again. I examined my body. My chest had noticeable claw marks running across it. It was a miracle that Cozy didn't manage to hit my wings when she attacked me from behind. My fur was a bit singed from the all the electricity those orbs pumped throughout my body. I saw my friends struggling to escape from the levitation spell that held them in the air, a magenta aura shrouding them. And the one that was casting the spell...was Headmare Twilight. She and the rest of the professors had glowing red eyes and emotionless expressions. "P-professors?" I stammered, "B-but...they should be..." "Thought they should be miles and miles away from Ponyville? Well surprise!" she exclaimed gleefully, "They've been here all this time. I only kept them on stand by just in case somepony managed to find my spell circle." Time seemed to slow down as she turned and shot the orb towards me, electricity crackling around it. I tried to move, blink away, put up a shield, but I couldn't. Once again, I was in too much pain and my magic was drained. All I could was watch as it continued to fly towards me. I then did the only thing I could've then right then and there. I closed my eyes. The Adventure of the Apex Legion Written by DeffBwade Chapter 19: Rite of the Legion There were no more sounds of electricity crackling or my friends shouting for my safety. There was just…nothing. All I was able to see…was nothing. It was just darkness. Is this wha— Oh wait. My eyes are just shut. I slowly opened eyes to just bright lights everywhere. As I looked all around me, all I saw were these bright lights, almost astral like. There was no noticeable ground to be standing on. It was like I was simply standing on air. Wherever I was, it sure gave off a feeling of…peace. Tranquility. I then realized that I didn’t feel anymore pain. I glanced around my body and didn’t see neither singed fur nor claw marks. I even flapped my wings and felt no pain nor discomfort. It was like I was a video game character that somehow healed all of their broken bones, bullet wounds, and mangled flesh by applying bandages to their wrist. Or the guy from Resident Evil 7 that reattached his sawed off hand and healed it by dumping this healing oil all over it. Seriously, how the fuck does that work? Sigh. It’s whatever. But the astral surroundings and my healed wounds only brought up multiple questions. “W-where am I?” I thought to myself, “Did I die? Is this…heaven?” Hmm. Interesting. I always imagined heaven to be less starry and more…cloudy? So let’s recap. Giant orb that’s crackling with electricity flies towards me, I closed my eyes, then I open my eyes to…well this. “So this is it, huh?” I said to no one in particular, “I would say that I’m too young to die, but I guess that’s not gonna help me. Oh well, at least I went down in a blaze of glory.” “You mustn’t worry young one, for you still live.” I yelped at the unexpected voice before I turned around and saw— “Headmare Twilight?” I asked, confusion written all over my voice, “Did you kick the bucket too?” “I am not your headmare young one,” ‘Headmare Twilight’ stated. Looking at her closely now, ‘Headmare Twilight’ did have an astral effect to her entire body. I suddenly realized who I was talking to. “The…Tree of Harmony?” I asked. “That is correct,” the Tree said with a nod. “Huh. Well…I guess it’s nice to see you again,” I said, before I realized something that she…it…said, “Wait. Did you just say that I’m still alive?” The Tree nodded once more. “That’s impossible. A giant orb the size of a filly and crackling with electricity was hurtling towards me. And after all those injuries that I’ve taken, it would be a miracle to be alive. And even if I was alive, then how do you explain this place?” I asked as I gestured to the environment, “For that matter, what the heck is this place?” “This is the place where all magic in the world comes from. It is from which the magic of the Elements of Harmony originate from. It is where my magical spirit lives to maintain peace and harmony throughout Equestria,” the Tree explained. “So what. This place is your home?” “You could say that.” “Wait a minute. How did I get here? And what happened to all my injuries?” I asked, “I mean…I had claw marks across my chest and back, not to mention all the singed fur.” “It was I that brought you here and healed you of your wounds,” the Tree explained, “I saw what your fate was going to be and decided to intervene.” Heh. That rhymed. “Oh. Wow um…thanks for the save I guess. I appreciate the help, really I do,” I said, “But how did you bring me here? I thought at this point that most, if not all magic has disappeared.” “The same reason that your magic hasn’t diminished yet,” the Tree started to explain, “While each species has their own unique magic, harmony magic, also known as light magic, exists within us all and comes from here,” it said as it held a hoof to its heart. “Light magic. That’s a way better name than ‘harmony magic.’” It makes sense that light magic comes from the heart. After all, honesty, kindness, loyalty, etc. also comes from it as well. But that begs one question. “But why am I the only one besides my professors that’s able to use it?” I asked, “Is it because I’m special? Because let me assure you, I’m not. I’m sure there are plenty of creatures out there that have way better hearts than me. Like Ocellus. She’s as sweet as a um…I don’t know, some kind of sweet candy, but you what I mean,” I continued, “Now that I think about, I’m not even from this world to begin with! So why the hell is an alien who makes gameplay videos as a hobby destined to utilize the light and fight darkness? I mean you must’ve saw how poorly I performed! I failed to defeat Cozy Glow, I failed to save Equestria, and I failed to protect my friends!” I started to take deep breathes after I ended my little rant. I actually started to feel tears begin to build up, but I managed to suppress them. "You know, I find it ironic," I chuckled, "About that test you gave me some time ago, I mean. How it prattled on about how much of a failure I was. Turns out, it was right. I'm nothing but a failure." I then drooped my head as I sat down on my haunches. I don't know if it was out of anger, out of sadness, or out of defeat. Hell, it might've been all of the above. Anger towards myself, sadness for being too weak, and defeat...well...it speaks for itself. "Now look at me wallowing. What would the others think if they saw me like this? What would Jrod and Gaming think? Probably something along the lines of 'get your ass up.' Something mean yet profound." Heh. That does sound like something they would say. "You haven't failed yet young one," the Tree said, breaking me out of my thoughts as I looked back up. I would've expected some kind of stern or disappointed expression, but instead she had a smile filled with...hope, "After all, you always lived by the rule of to not give up until it's over. That's what drove you to get so far ahead in life." "Didn't you hear my whole rant? Cozy kicked my ass, my friends are held captive, and if weren't for you, I would barely be able to move. So I don't know about you, but to me it sounds like it is over!" I stated. "Magic isn't completely gone from Equstria, right?" it asked, "You still have a chance." "Yeah, a chance that's guaranteed to fail," I rebutted, "As you probably saw from my fantastic performance, I wasn't even able to get close to Cozy without getting hit by her dark magic. All because I haven't mastered the Element of Magic yet. Hell, I still don't know how to do so! I've been training for who knows how long and I'm not one step closer!" Yet again, I drooped my head. This time I knew it was out of anger for the fucking Element of Magic! "Besides my light magic, I know diddly dick about magic! I'm not a fucking unicorn, but a pegasus for Christ's sake!" I yelled. Many people would shit on me for yelling profanities at what's pretty much a celestial spirit. Okay, 'celestial' probably isn't the right word, but it's still some sort spirit so you know what I mean. "Just because you can't use magic like a unicorn doesn't mean you don't have it, and that's even if you don't have your light magic. Nor does it mean you can't represent the Element of Magic. After all, magic isn't a skill that takes time and effort to learn, but rather a tool that helps bring harmony across Equestria. The only thing that matters is how you represent it," the Tree said before it craned its neck to the side and pointed to...my cutie mark, "May I ask what your cutie mark means?" "What?" I asked out of confusion before I glanced out the aforementioned mark, "It doesn't really mean anything. It's just the symbol of a video game character, the Legion. Hence my name, Apex Legion. Why do you ask?" "Where was the Tree going with this? Does it want to talk about video games or something? Because I don't think now is the time for that," I thought. "Interesting," the Tree said, "Do you know what the term 'legion' means?" I had no idea where it was going with this, but fuck it. Curiosity killed the cat, I guess. "It means like...a group of people. You know...a team?" I responded. My answer seemed to satisfy the Tree. "I believe that is the answer to your problems young one," it said. "..." "..." "....What?" I asked. I was thoroughly confused at what it just said, "What is the answer to my problems? You mean a team?" "Indeed. More specifically, your friends that you care very deeply for. They are the key to unlock you full potential," the Tree responded, "As the saying goes, when one is strong and another is stronger, only together that nothing can stop them." "Okay. So I must be a team player with my friends? But...I already do that." "At school perhaps. But do you remember that field trip through the woods? And what you thought about as that Timberwolf was chasing you?" it asked. In hindsight, I was worried I made the wrong decision by basically abandoning my friends, but that worry immediately dissipated when I heard my friends calling my name in horror...as well as the sound of the wolf giving chase as I dodged and weaved through the trees. But...in a way...I was kind of relieved that my friends and the professors would be safe. "I-I thought about how my friends would be safe?" I responded, "But what does that have to do with—" "And what about that night before the break for Hearth's Warming?" There's only one thing I can do to stop all of this. I'd get in the trouble, sure, but in the end, it'll be a win-win for all of us. "Just stop fighting, please!" I yelled as I ran up and pushed my friends away from each other, "You guys wanna know who did it?! Well, fine! It was me, okay?! I messed up the tree!" "Hey! I only did that because otherwise we would all have to stay! What I originally planned would've been a win-win situation," I shouted, "...O-okay. I admit it wasn't the...best decision to make, but I didn't have any other choice." "There's always a choice young one," the Tree said, "And what was the choice you made when you faced Cozy Glow? Did you allow your friends to help you? Or did you send them away and tried to face Cozy yourself?" "I-I...umm..." I stammered as my eyes widened as it finally hit me just what the Tree was trying to say. “Guys, I’m the only one that has the means to fight Cozy, and I don’t want you to get caught in the crossfire,” I said before another orb crashed into my shield, creating more dents, “Get the princesses, get Discord, our professors, anyone! I got this!” Another hit to my shield. One more and it will shatter, “Please! I don’t want you guys to get hurt!” "I sent them away," I whispered, "And now they're in danger. Oh my god." "Do you understand now young one?" the Tree asked, "When times are troubling, you care about protecting your friends to the point that you deny them the choice to protect you." Those words hit me like a brick. Is what the Tree said the truth? Do I really care so much about protecting my friends so much to the point that I don't care about my own well-being? Maybe. It never really occurred to me. "Oh my god," I whispered again as I looked back down on the ground, "What have I done?" "You mustn't blame yourself for what has happened. Your heart was in the right place after all," the Tree said as it walked up to me and placed a hoof on my shoulder, "And like I said, there is still time to save Equestria." "And...and what should I do this time?" I asked as I looked up. I knew what the answer is gonna be, but I just want—...no...I needed to hear it from the horse's mouth. Pun intended? Heh. No. I didn't intend for that. "Let your friends help you. Let them carry some of the weight off of your shoulders. Be a leader." "A leader," I whispered, "But...what if something goes wrong? What if I only lead them into getting hurt? What if—" "Nothing bad will happen. Trust me," the Tree interrupted. "But how do you—" "Trust me," it interrupted again, "Please." I remained quiet for a seconds as I stared at the Tree's eyes. They were filled all sorts of emotions. The main ones being certainty and...hope. Taking her word, I nodded. "Okay," I said, "I trust you." "Embrace the light alongside your friends, and use it to strike back against the darkness," it said before it closed its eyes as its horn began to light up brightly, "Now go young one." As the Tree's horn continued to glow brighter and brighter, I closed my eyes and took a deep breathe. I thought back to all the times my friends had my back. How together we were able to accomplish tough tasks. Like the Tree said. One is strong. Another is stronger. But only together can they be unstoppable. And right now we will save Equestria...together! You got this man! After all... "I...am...the Apex Legion," I whispered before everything finally went white. "Golly. I just can't figure out to do with you all," Cozy pondered as she buzzed around her six mind controlled professors, occasionally glancing at her captives, "Should I imprison all of you? Let your professors choose for me? Mind control you into doing my bidding? So many choices to choose from!" "Y-you monster!" Ocellus yelled with anger, catching the filly's attention, "How could you just do this?! Give us back Legion!" "Oh? You wish to your little coltfriend again?" Cozy teased before she had a devilish grin once again, "Well now I know just what to do with you!" The six friends gasped as Cozy lifted a hoof up and summoned another dark orb, their eyes now filled with me. "You wish to see him so bad? Fine!" I'll..." Cozy proclaimed before she launched the orb at the six friends, "...send you to him!" They tried to struggle. Wiggle. Anything to break from the brainwashed Twilight's grip, but it was all for nought. And Cozy could only smile at what was about to happen. They were merely thorns on her side after all. Bugs in the system. But once they're gone, nothing will stand in her way. ... At least, that's what she thought. A bright light slowly started form in front of the six friends as the orb continued its path towards them, until...there was a flash of light that was even brighter. The six friends shut their eyes and looked away due to their close proximity, while Cozy and the professors used their hooves to shut her eyes as Cozy yelped. The break in concentration also caused Twilight to release her levitation spell, causing the six friends to drop to the ground. Once the light finally started to dissipate, Cozy slowly looked back…only to see her dark orb hurtling towards her. “Aw buck,” Cozy internally swore before she got knocked back into a wall. The six friends also noticed the dissipating light. They all looked up…and their jaws dropped at what…no…who they saw. Should I feel bad that I deflected that orb back at Cozy? Maybe. Do I feel bad that I deflected that orb back at Cozy? Fuck no. You know the phrase ‘an eye for an eye,’ right? Or is ‘poetic justice’ the right term for this sit—…you know what? It’s whatever. I continued to stare at friends whose jaws were all dropped, a small smile adorning my face. “Can’t really blame them. After all, they all thought I kicked the bucket,” I thought. “L-Legion?” Ocellus stammered, finally breaking the silence. “Hey guys,” I responded…before my changeling friend lunged at me and gave me an almost bear crushing hug, the others joining almost immediately afterwards. “It’s a miracle!” “Yona knew friend was alright!” “Dude, you’re alive!” “By Grover’s gold, how are you alive?!” “Do you have any idea how scared I was for you?!” “Guys…it’s very sweet of you to do this…but you’re all currently choking me!” I choked out, causing the others to loosen their grips. Everyone…except for one whom was currently shedding tears, “Ocellus?” Ocellus finally broke the hug and looked at me with tearful eyes. “I-I fine!” she squeaked out, “It’s just…I thought we lost you forever. I thought you—“ “Shhhhh,” I interrupted as I placed a hoof on her mouth and used one of my wings to wipe the tears running down her cheek. I then lowered my hoof back down, “It’s alright Ocellus. I’m here now.” Aww. So cute. “Guys, I was wrong,” I said as my smile dropped, leading to the others having confused faces, “I thought…that the whole being some kind of hero of light was something that I had to do on my own…because I believed that going solo was the only way to protect you guys. But…I realize now…that it’s just suicidal to do so, and would only lead you guys to getting hurt.” “What the fuck am I even saying?” “Okay. I’m really not the best at explaining stuff. What I’m trying to say is…I can’t do this alone. I need help. I need you guys. Only together can we defeat Cozy Glow,” I explained before I held my hoof out, “So…will you help me?” They all stared at me for a few seconds before they stacked their hoof…paw…claw…limb…you get the idea…on top of my hoof. “We got your back dude!” “Ohh! This will be so much fun!” “Yona stick with friends!” “What kind of dragon would I be if I didn’t?” “Totally!” “We’re here for you Legion,” Ocellus smiled, “And we always will be.” I smiled at their responses. These guys really are some of the best friends I’ve ever had. “Thank you guys,” I said, “For everything, I mean. For helping me whenever I need it. For being by my side even after finding out who I really am. But most importantly…thank you for being my friends.” Magic. Cozy Glow finally managed to get back up after a few minutes of dizziness, albeit with a little bit of sway in her steps. “Golly,” she groaned as she rubbed her temples with her hooves, “I must be stronger than I thought because that really hurt.” Luckily for her, months of improving and honing her ambient dark magic was able to protect her from most of the damage. Cozy looked up to see what had caused her own orb to shoot back towards her…and her jaw dropped. The pegasus, Apex Legion, was standing amongst his friends, alive and perfectly unscathed from her previous attacks. But that wasn’t the only thing that surprised her. There was also the fact that they all had glowing auras surrounding them. Sandbar was glowing yellow. Gallus was glowing purple. Smolder was glowing light blue. Silverstream was glowing pink Yona was glowing orange. Ocellus was glowing white. And Apex Legion was glowing cyan. Cozy could feel all the…friendship exuding off of them. The harmony. The light. And it disgusted her. For there was only one source that she was aware of that exuded this much harmony magic. The Elements of Harmony. “Hey Cozy Glow,” Legion greeted smugly, “How are you doing?” “No,” Cozy whispered before started to raise her voice, “No. No! NO! You're supposed to be dead!” “Wel…I’m not, aren’t I?” the colt responded. Cozy gritted her teeth as she held up another orb. “I guess I’m gonna have kill you again, don’t I?!” she yelled before she launched the orb. I continued to stand my ground as the orb flew towards us. I mean, all I had to do was put up a shi— My thoughts were interrupted as something suddenly appeared right in front of me, and my eyes widened as I saw what it was. It was a sword that looked beautiful in design. The hilt of the blade, which was both black and silver in color, had an ornate design to it. The blade itself was colored cyan and actually looked like it was made out of glass. Woah! Where did this come from? Who cares where it came from?! I immediately grabbed the blade and, feeling like a badass, I swung it just before the orb was about to impact me. And no joke when I say this, the orb split in half and started to fizzle way. “Holy!” I shouted with glee as I looked at the blade, “This thing is awesome!” “How?” Cozy whispered again, catching my attention, before she seethed, “HOW?! I was kicking your flank not even 5 minutes ago! Where…WHERE DID THIS POWER COME FROM?!” I only smirked once again. “It was always with me Cozy,” I said, “I just needed some guidance on how to properly use it.” “Grr! It doesn’t matter! I’m still powerful enough in dark magic to defeat all of you. Not to mention…” she said before our still mind controlled professors walked up beside her, “…you’re not the only one with allies.” “They’re more like slaves, but whatever,” I shrugged. “Wait,” Sandbar interrupted, “Are we really gonna be fighting our professors?” “Yona not sure about hurting teachers,” Yona added. “As long as they’re still under Cozy’s control, then I’m afraid we’ve got no choice,” I said, “The only thing we can do is not hurt them too bad.” “Well? Any last words before I put you down for good?” Cozy asked as she formed another claw. ”Oh. The badass one liner every hero makes before they go into a big battle. Gotta make it count. Gotta make it count”! “YOLO!” I screamed before both sides charged at each other. “Fuck! That was terrible.”