Chapter 8
"We can't kill the Queen," Calypso deadpanned, shifting in her seat at the table and pushing her scarlet red dreads back behind her ear.
"Why not? She deserves it!" Dribble retorts, throwing his hooves up.
"I'm not saying we shouldn't kill her," Calypso began. "I'm saying we literally can not kill her. She can kill with a simple spell, you saw that first hand. Not to mention all her guards that follow her around at all times."
Dribble sat back, mumbling to himself.
Shadow Breeze nods along, thinking to himself as to what they can do.
"Anything can be killed," Scamp commented. "Remember what they said about the Nightmare? That was supposed to be impossible to kill, but we did it."
"Yes, but we had the Queen's backing, and if we hadn't had the spell's she'd provided, we'd never have stopped it," Calypso reminded her.
Shadow Breeze suddenly looked up at them, an idea coming to him. "What if we don't have to kill her to win?"
"She dies, no questions," Dribble snapped loudly.
This didn't faze Shadow Breeze as he continued, "I'm not saying we don't kill her, just not right now." Everyone looked at him with questioning looks. "If we free Lance, he can fight her himself."
"Lance lost his powers," Greg interjects. "In the book he says he can't talk to Break or Dawn anymore. And he lost his angel powers as well."
"I don't think he did," Shadow Breeze says with a small smirk. "So I've been thinking about it. How could the Watcher take away his angel form? I don't think he did, at least not really. I read the last chapter of his book, and combined with what Ominus said, I think they're just locked away."
"What do you mean?" Greg asked.
"The Watcher doesn't have the authority to erase souls, remember? He just collects them. And sent Lance here instead of collecting his soul, because apparently, according to Ominus, he needs Lance away from his original dimension." Shadow Breeze looked around at everyone, seeing they were still confused about his meaning. "So basically, if the Watcher can't erase souls, and couldn't control Lance directly, then I think he could only hide Lance's powers from himself. Make him believe they were gone."
"Oh," Greg said as his eyes widened slowly. "Oh! So Lance could still have all his powers, but he's been tricked into believing they're gone?"
"Exactly!" Shadow Breeze said excitedly. "So I'm thinking if you can cast the same spell on him that released Break and Dawn, then he might be able to access his powers again. At least some of them. But that'd be more than enough to handle this new Twilight."
"Would this work?" Calypso asked, not following fully but trusting them.
Shadow Breeze looked at her and replied honestly, "I'm not sure, it's just a theory. But from what I know of Lance, I'm very sure this will work."
Dribble listened along, "Okay. If it'll end in her dying, I'm for it."
Scamp smiled as she leaned forward, "I'm fairly certain that if we can return Break and Dawn to Lance then he'll be able to take care of the Queen all on his own."
Calypso rubbed her chin in thought, taking everything in.
"It'll work for sure. The spell is super simple too, like anyone could do it," Greg said with a confident smile.
"Then it’s settled," Calypso said as she stood up. "We're going to free Lance and have him fight the Queen."
Scamp then frowned, "Well that still leaves the problem; how will we break him out? Not only is there an anti-magic shield around the area, but the moment we attack the facility, the Queen will just appear and wipe us out before we breach the first door."
At this, Calypso smirked, "I might know someone who can help with attacking the facility. The only problem is we'll have to attack the palace at the same time as the prison as a distraction, otherwise this won't be possible."
Dribble thought for a second before slamming his hoof down on the table, "I'll take over attacking the palace, it'll give me a chance to face that bitch."
"No," Calypso said firmly. "It can't be you. Your drive to kill the Queen will jeopardize the mission."
"Don't you want her dead?!" Dribble asked, offended at her words.
"Of course I do!" Calypso snapped back. "She killed my parents and sister! But we have to be rational here. Attacking the palace isn't about killing the Queen, it's about distracting them and making them think she's the target, that way our assault on the prison will go undetected."
"I'll do it," Scamp spoke up, catching them both off guard. "I'll perform the assault on the palace so you two can free Lance."
Calypso shook her head in disbelief, "But wouldn't you rather be there when we free Lance? It's what you've been working towards most of you life!"
Scamp just smiles at her, "It is, but I need to do this. It's my fault the others were killed. My fault our families were forced to die on live TV."
"It wasn't just your fault, Scamp," Dribble sighs. "We're all equally to blame. It doesn't matter if it started as your burden, we all made our choice back in the office building. Whatever happens is on all of us." A solemn look fell across his face, "And we'll all have to live with the consequences."
"But," Shadow Breeze asked as he looked between all of them. "How will we break in and free Lance? And do it undetected? Even if Scamp attacks the palace, the Queen will prioritize the prison over the attack on the palace."
"Communications blackout," Dribble said as the idea formed in his mind. "Yeah, if we put up our own magical barrier around the palace, they'll think we're doing that to cut them off from calling for help. Not keep the prison from contacting them. They'll be in the dark thinking the attack on the palace will be the main target. Of course they'll still call for help from other sources, but we can handle those a lot better than the Queen herself."
"Yeah, but Scamp all by herself? Injured?" Shadow Breeze asked with worry and doubt.
"Nah, I'll be there," Greg said with a cocky smile. "My magic will be useless at the prison anyways, and I can show anyone how to do the spell. It's not that hard once you get the concept." He then leans back confidently, "Besides, if it's just Scamp it'll look suspicious. But if I'm there, it'll look like a real threat and like we're all serious and shit."
"As far as my injuries go, let me handle that," Scamp added confidently.
"I don't like it," Calypso commented. "But, we really don't have the luxury of being picky."
"So the plan?" Shadow Breeze asked, wanting a summery.
"We're going to head to New Ripman, the Brony shanty town near Manehattan, and meet up with someone I know. They should be able to point us to some allies who will be willing to attack the prison. From there, Greg and Scamp will attack the palace while Dribble and I attack the prison with our new allies. If all goes according to plan, we will radio you two to let you know when you can pull back. Main point of attacking the palace though; avoid actually confronting the Queen."
Dribble chuckles at this, "Sounds so simple."
"The best plans always do," Scamp says as she sits back, hooves behind her head.
ooo000<^>000ooo
"So this is a Brony shanty town," Jero said in a conflicted tone.
The town of New Ripman was nothing like he'd expected. All the buildings looked like they'd been built already in a state of dilapidation, and the ponies didn't look much better.
Where the streets of Manehattan were filled with well dressed and happy looking ponies, these streets were filled with dirty ponies and not a single one looked happy. They all had B's where their cutie marks should have been, which only saddened Jero further.
"Great place, huh?" Dribble asked, looking uncomfortable.
"It's not that bad," Scamp said as she looked around, seeming to look for something in particular. "Here, I'll catch up with you guys at the meeting spot, I need to gather supplies."
"I'll come with ya," Greg said as he stopped and turned to her.
She only shrugged as she began walking off towards what appeared to be the market, Greg walking after her.
"Will they be okay without us?" Jero asked the others, not liking leaving Greg and a wounded Scamp alone in this place.
"She comes here all the time, so she'll be okay," Calypso replied as they continued down the street.
This didn't stop him from worrying, but it made him feel better.
The trio walked down the street, getting looks from all the Bronies around them. Calypso and Dribble had their gear in bags slung over their backs, so their cutie marks were clearly visible, showing they were normal ponies and not Bronies. Even Jero, despite being a Brony, was seen as a normal pony since his cutie mark was also visible.
"So who exactly are we meeting?" Jero asked, uneasy with all the looks they were getting.
"Not here," was the only answer he received from Calypso as they neared a decently large building.
As they neared, a pony stepped out and approached them. They all came to a stop a few feet away from each other, just looking at each other.
"Yes, Cally?" a voice said from a radio attached to the pony who came out to greet them.
"I need a favor that benefits both of us," Calypso said to the voice on the radio.
There was a pause before a response came, "Alright."
The pony before them nodded and started heading for the entrance to the building.
"Come on," Calypso said as she started walking after the pony, followed by the other two.
"So who is this guy on the radio?" Jero had to ask.
Calypso looked over her shoulder at him, "Jack-o, a second generation Brony. He used to work with Echo back before the OEA started cracking down on working with Bronies. He's a solid guy that I trust."
"What's a second generation Brony?"
"The kid of a original Brony. If one of your parents is a Brony, you are labeled as a Brony. Same goes for anyone who has human blood in their family tree. It's why so many ponies avoid getting with Bronies, don't want to doom your kids and their kids."
Jero shook his head, the concept seeming so stupid and unnecessary to him.
The pony ahead of them lead them to a door inside the building and opened it for them. The trio walked in and was greeted with a pair of Unicorn's. Both of their horns began repeatedly flashing as they walked around them.
"Don't panic," Dribble said to Jero as he started to get nervous. "They're just checking if we're bugged or under any kind of spell."
Once they finished, they disappeared into a door. As soon as they were gone, a pony walked through another set of doors and beckoned for them to follow.
He led them to another set of doors and allowed them through.
Inside they were greeted with a middle aged pony, looking at them with raised eyebrows. "So, Cally, what possibly could you want this time around?"
Calypso broke her normal character and smiled largely as she walked across the room and hugged the pony. After a moment, they broke the hug and she returned to her normal self.
"They killed Dew, Jace, Parker, and our families," she said simply.
"I saw," the pony replied, a sad look on his face. "But why have you come here? You know I can't help you with the Queen."
Calypso shook her head at this, "No, not the Queen, Jack-o. We need to break into the Bastille."
This caused Jack-o to raise an eyebrow. "Why? It's a Brony prison, what benefit would that bring you?"
"Ever heard of Lance Greenfield?" Calypso asked, which only seemed to confuse Jack-o more.
"You mean the guy that killed the Queen's lover and earned her eternal hate? Yeah, I might have heard of him. But why do you want him?" Jack-o asked, stepping away from her and back around his desk, sitting down.
"We believe he's the key to defeating the Queen," Calypso offered, not revealing too much about their real motivations.
"But, the guy’s old, and just a Pegasus. What could he possibly have that could fight a literal God?" Jack-o leaned back, trying to gauge the true meaning behind Calypso and the others coming here.
Calypso let out a sigh and leaned on his desk, "We have reason to believe that if we were to get him away from the anti-magic field we could cast a spell on him that will awaken some hidden powers. He would use those to deal with the Queen."
"You mean the fantasy powers he said he has in his book?" Jack-o asked, catching Calypso off guard. "Yeah, I have a copy of his book. It's fiction, written by a mad pony."
"But it's not!" Jero interrupted, walking up to join them. "I'm Shadow Breeze, I'm from the same dimension as Lance. It's all true, the whole book. It's just not true in this dimension."
Jack-o looked between the two of them, not looking impressed. "Seriously?"
"Test him," Calypso offers. "Have a Unicorn here scan his memories."
He rubbed his chin as he thought about it, but finally he sighed. "Fine." He reached over and hit a button, causing a Unicorn to come sprinting into the room.
"Yes, Jack-o?!" The young Unicorn asked eagerly.
"Scan this pony's memories. Tell me if he's really from that book written by the crazy pony locked up in Bastille."
The pony sloppily saluted and trotted up to Jero, staring him in the eyes the whole time. Jero only smiled nervously back as the Unicorn leaned forward, his horn glowing continuously.
A few awkward moments passed before the Unicorn snapped up and looked at Jack-o in shock. "He's the Shadow Breeze from the book! He really is!"
"That's enough, you may leave," Jack-o cut him off. The young pony quickly left the room, not able to hide his excitement.
"Okay then," Jack-o said once he was out of the room. "Tell me, what's your plan?"
ooo000<^>000ooo
Scamp stepped into the dimly lit shop, filled with assorted herbs and plants. She walked straight for the front counter.
As soon as Greg stepped into the shop, a bit of panic hit him. He knew what kind of shop this was immediately, and it didn't sit well with him.
"My shits legal," the pony behind the counter said before Scamp neared him, obviously knowing who she was.
"I'm not here on police business," Scamp said with a hint of annoyance as she reached the counter and stared him down. "I need something for pain. Something strong, but won't put me on my ass. I need to be able to move."
The shopkeeper narrowed his eyes at her, not trusting her, "Ain't got anything like that here. Never have."
Scamp growls and slams her hoof on the counter, wincing from the pain in her midsection. "Yes, you do. I know you do. I'm not here to bust you, I'm here as a customer." She pulls out her foreleg mounted pistol and slides it across to him.
He eyes the pistol eagerly, seeing that it was a SWAT model. "Well, I think I have something for you after all." He disappears into the back.
She grunts as she grabs her side, clearly in pain. But she waves Greg off as he starts to help.
The shopkeeper returns with a small box with syringes in them filled with a green liquid. "This'll do you, nice doing business with you, Officer."
Scamp started to grab them, but Greg suddenly stopped her and got up on the counter with his forelegs, staring across at the other pony.
"Oh no no no, that ain't the good shit, bro. That'll knock her on her ass after like ten minutes. We want the blue ones." Greg glared the other pony down, who stayed firm at first, but eventually sighed and took back the box and returned to the back.
"How'd you know the difference?" Scamp asked in amazement.
Greg smiled proudly at her, "Believe it or not, I ran a similar business like this back home. And from what I can tell the process for making things is the exact same, so ya know."
Scamp wanted to comment that that wasn't something to be proud of, but she held her tongue, just grateful he'd caught it.
"The blue ones are kinda bad though, they'll keep you up and going through almost any injury, but damn are they addictive. Plus they have diminishing returns, so the more you use them the less effective they are."
This didn't sit well with her, but she had no choice. She'd just have to be careful with them.
The shopkeeper returned and pushed a box of twenty towards them, not looking happy with the results of the transaction.
"Anything else?"
Scamp turned without saying another word and headed for the door. But Greg looked around and smiled. "Take bits?"
Outside, Scamp put the box in her saddlebags and looked around for the next shop she knew she needed.
Greg joined her shorty, putting something away in his saddlebags. She pretended like she didn't see what he had.
"Where to next, boss?" He asked in a chipper voice.
She started walking down the street, knowing where to go next. "If we're going to attack the palace, then we need gear and weapons."
"Definitely," Greg agreed happily.
The pair traveled down the streets, weaving through trash and ponies alike. Most ignored them, but a few seemed to recognize Scamp.
Finally, they arrived at a busy store with the words 'Final Bastion' written across the front. The inside appeared to have an assortment of gear and weapons laid out on tables with a few security ponies walking around.
"Behave inside," Scamp warned as they entered, gaining the attention of all the security ponies immediately. She walks straight ahead confidently and reaches a counter with a scraggly stallion leaning back in a chair.
"Lyle," she said in a flat tone.
"Scamp," he replied likewise.
"I need shit, the good shit," she said in an even tone, eying the stallion.
Lyle rocked back and forth, working something in his mouth before standing up and waving them to the back.
Once in the back, he led them to another room, this one locked with a heavy vault door. He worked a few locks and input a password into a computer screen, followed by the door opening just enough for them to enter.
Inside was an assortment of weapons, armor, and gear, more than was easily available back at the SWAT armory without special permissions.
"Ain't none of it cheap," Lyle remarked as he took up a chair behind a desk in the middle of the room.
Scamp only lifted the bag off of her back and dropped it on the counter. "Not a problem, I know you like SWAT gear."
This brought a smile to the stallion's face as he patted the bag. "Alright then, whatcha needin'?"
"I need a 45-70 semi-auto rifle with double stack mags, a foreleg mounted 10mm pistol with spare mags and armor piercing bullets," she glances over to the corner where she sees a suit of armor labeled 'Dragons Skin', and true to its name looked like it was made from the skin of a red dragon. "And if that's the real deal, the armor over in the corner."
Lyle whistled loudly at this, a smile plastered on his face. "Well, sounds like someone's planning to do something stupid. I love it." He started gathering the requested items, almost dancing around as he did so.
Scamp looked to Greg, who was messing with a blanket labeled 'Cover all!'. She ran her eyes over the rest of the room thinking over what else she needed, running calculations in her head.
"Anything else?" Lyle asked eagerly as he brought over the last item.
"Four hoof grenades, the YH-842 if you have them, eight compact flash bangs, RGH-09 preferably. Four hoof mounted retractable blades. And the helmet that comes with the Dragons Skin, the one with the built in targeting system."
"Oh shit this is getting me goin'!" Lyle said crudely, running around excitedly.
Greg lifted the blanket and threw it over himself, disappearing completely. "Whoa! Where have you been all my life!"
As soon as Lyle brought the requested item, Scamp looks at a display case and frowns. "Is that the combat drug created by Diamond Dog's? The one that boosts energy and awareness?"
"The very same!" he retrieves it and lays it by the pile. "Just be careful mixing that one with any other drugs, no idea what it'd do."
Scamp looked over the pile and nodded in satisfaction. She opens the bag and lays out her old gear.
Lyle looks it all over and nods. "That'll cover everything but the armor and the combat drug."
This caused her to frown as she looked down at her PDA, she hadn't wanted to trade it as it was important to her.
"I'll throw in my SWAT PDA, with unrestricted access to the Network. And untraceable. Not to mention it's already filled with all kinds of things ponies around here would trade an arm and a leg for."
A bright smile touched his cracked lips, clearly liking this trade. Unrestricted access to the Network alone was worth it.
"Throw in the blanket as well," Greg interjected, tossing the Cover All! onto the pile.
"Deal," Lyle said, not even thinking twice, eying the PDA hungrily.
Scamp smirked at this, "Well if you're that eager, then you're going to throw in those wing blades over there."
This caused his smile to transform into a frown, as now the deal was basically even. "Fine." He added the wing mounted blades to the pile. "Want this bagged?"
Soon the pair walked out of Final Bastion, bags over both of their backs.
"This timeline might be all kinds of fucked," Greg commented, a smile on his face. "But holy shit, does it have cool shit."
Scamp only smiled at this, as she had to agree with his assessment.