***Canterlot Castle
“And that concludes my report about what happened in the Dragon Lands,” Twilight Sparkle said nervously.
She stood in the same room that the Anti-Sasuke Task Force had been using as their headquarters. Around the table sat Agent Sweetie Drops, all three of the alicorns, the zebra Hamza, and the pegasus Swift Arrow. All of them could not believe what they were hearing.
“Each of them really killed an ancient dragon,” Swift Arrow balked. “Like.. by themselves?”
“Well the three known as the Dazzlings worked together but yes the others did so individually,” Twilight said.
“And you are sure Sunset Shimmer was with them,” Celestia pressed.
“About that, was she your student at one point,” Twilight asked meekly.
“Then yes, she was there,” Celestia ignored the question and fidgeted in her booster seat. Twilight didn’t follow up. “What are we to do sister?”
Luna looked Celestia directly in the eyes. “You know what we have to do. These… lesser humans are beyond us. We would have known what tactics they use had we been there but Twilight lacks the proper context and understanding. We have to use it.”
“Use what,” Hamza was getting a very bad vibe.
Celestia sighed. “The last time Sasuke summoned another of his kind, we were offered the ability to do the same.”
“Absolutely not,” Sweetie Drops pounded her hoof into the table and then realized where she was. “Respectfully, we can’t have yet another one of these overpowered, destructive monsters running around unchecked!”
“As far as we can tell, the summoning is temporary,” Luna argued. “And what would you propose we do instead?”
Sweetie Drops was silent but her face remained contorted in frustration.
“I say we do it,” Cadance spoke up. “At this point what do we have to lose? If even his followers are strong enough to fight and win against the strongest dragons, do we even have any other choices? Maybe we can summon a human that’ll see reason or at least be empathetic to our plight!”
“This feels incredibly dangerous,” Hamza said. “But it’s a human or Discord.”
Everyone in the room shivered. “So we are in agreement then?” Luna asked. Everyone nodded, if reluctantly. “Do it sister.”
Celestia took out the pocket watch.
I am the one who constructs and deconstructs, the partner and protector of the moon and sun, I aid the Innocent and protect the children, If you require aid, Call my name and I will come forth, The Crimson Sage
“I hope you will help us,” she whispered as she lit her horn and touched it to the totem.
A portal to the void opened in front of her and another human stepped out. The man was tall, a little over six feet. He had golden blonde hair that was typed back in a simple ponytail while he was wearing white gloves, black pants, and a black long sleeve silver trimmed top under a red hooded coat.
“We’ll need pickles, raisins, hot dogs and pineapple juice next…” he said aloud as his amber eyes never looked up from a sheet of paper in his gloved hand. “Tia, have you Star today?” He looked up and saw Celestia. “Wrong Celestia… Did I leave a random portal open again?” He scratched his head. “Easy enough fix,” he waved his hand and a new portal opened, shocking everyone. “Sorry for the intrusion!” He waved and started to walk for the new portal.
“Wait, don't go,” Celestia called out. “We summoned you intentionally but did not mean to inconvenience you in any way. I was given a token by an ‘anti-magic knight’. He said to call on you if we needed help.”
“You seem very powerful if you are able to cross into other worlds at will,” Luna said cautiously. “You clearly have nothing to fear from us so would you mind hearing us out?”
“Universe,” he corrected. “I can cross universes. And I really don’t care about what's happening here either. I’ve destroyed many other universes with beings with greater power than this one. You summoned me at the advice of my younger brother though so I’ll at least hear your plea,” he closed the portal with a snap of his fingers. “Why are you so small?” He looked at Celestia.
“It’s part of why we need your help,” Celestia explained. “Around a thousand years ago, a human named Sasuke Uchiha entered our world. At first he was an ally but circumstances pushed him into madness. We managed to imprison him in stone but he broke free and is trying to do… something. We are not sure what but the results so far have been disastrous.”
“You make it sound so accidental,” Luna scoffed. “Sasuke is a murderous psychopath with little concern for anyone not in his direct orbit. He has repeatedly clashed with my sister and I, and we can only just barely contain the damage. In our most recent battle my sister exhausted so much of her magic that she was forced into the diminished state you see before you.”
“That’s not entirely fair, Princess Luna,” Candance piped up. “It doesn’t seem like he’s directly targeting anypony.”
“Regardless, he causes destruction wherever he goes and we need to know what his long term goal is,” Luna explained. “I have fought a war at his side. His methods are brutal and efficient. I had never heard the term ‘acceptable losses’ before I met him.”
“All of this to say,” Celestia wrangled control of the conversation. “Sasuke uses a type of magic that my sister and I barely understand but can use and he’s training others to use it more effectively. He has attacked Equestria and the Griffin Republic and we could use any help or insight you could give us into figuring out how to stop him.”
“And also how his powers work, Mr Human,” Twilight squeaked in.
“My name is Edward, call me Ed,” he said. “So you summoned me because you want to know about the Sharingan and how to properly use it,” The man stated a sigh to the sisters, each giving a singular nod. “Tell me… how do you both plan to fight him using the same power when you're both partially blind already?” He glared, causing the older alicorns to flinch slightly. “Well?”
“We were hoping you might know how to fix that,” Celestia admitted, ashamed.
Twilight raised a hoof, “When I saw him in the Dragon Lands, I asked Sasuke about that. He said for you to swap. I have no idea what he meant but maybe you do?”
“Also while we’re making a wish list,” Cadance interjected. “Can you also see the future?” Luna glared at her and she withdrew into herself. “What? We know next to nothing about humans. He might…”
Luna sighed. “We know using the evolved form of the Sharingan causes one to lose their sight but we also know there is a way to restore lost sight as well. Sasuke once was completely blind but is now more powerful than ever.”
“Hmmmm….” Ed looked at Cadance who shrank back slightly. “Tell me little one, how long have you been speaking with that thing in your head?”
“What thing in my head?” Cadance tilted her head. “I don’t know what you mean?”
“She can’t possibly...” Celestia trailed off.
“Oh yes she has,” Ed claps, “ ID Create,” he said and everything in the room switched to a dual color. “This is a pocket space. No time will pass on the outside and now one can see or hear what we do on the inside,” he explained before turning back to Cadance. “The Sharingan is a most magnificent ocular power to have, but once awakened the price it exacts for its power starts to take effect right away. Like anything worn out it must be replaced. What Sasuke told you was the truth, little Twilight. In order to regain their sight they must get new eyes.” Ed pointed at his eye. “Even if you were to heal the eyes you have now with magic they’d still degrade. No, the only way to regain you light and to do so permanently is to get a new set
“So what we need to swap is… our eyeballs themselves?” Celestia blanched.
“Gross,” Swift Arrow murmured.
“As… unpleasant as the idea might be,” Luna said. “If it is required to use these abilities to their utmost, we shall persevere. Thank you, Ed. Is there anything you can tell us about chakra or,” Luna looked at Cadance’s pleading face and sighed, “the future Sasuke might have seen?”
“And details on the way his agents fought the dragons,” Twilight squeaked.
“Has everypony forgotten that he literally just said there was something in my head?” Cadance almost yelled.
“While we’re at it, how about he also trains the whole bucking task force,” Sweetie Drops mumbled, tracing circles with a hoof on the table. “Tell the human all your secrets and have him solve all your problems.”
Ed was immediately standing over the pony, no one else had even seen him move.
“You have no idea what I am or what I’m capable of, pony,” He glared down. “I’ve fought armies for the sake of protecting Equestria in my universe. I’ve destroyed immortals that would give you nightmares that would make you piss the bed for the rest of your extremely short life so do not question me!”
Power suddenly poured out of the being in front of everyone. The most telling sign he was pissed now was the eyes. They’d gone from golden amber to red with a six pointed black sun in the center.
“I can tell you the future, many futures in fact but it won’t help your cause,” he sighed and calmed down. “The future is not a singular line but a tree with branches. I can explore them and help stir towards desirable paths but ultimately I can not tell you how things will happen in detail, on a rough outcome of what may or may not,” he looked at Luna. “I’ll give the best and worst in writing but there’s no guarantees.”
He turned to Cadance, “What happened when you met Sasuke for the very first time?”
Cadance thought back. “He put me in some kind of dream, it was so peaceful.” She started losing herself to the music as soon as she started thinking about it but shook it off. “But Aunty said there was nothing left behind when she checked me. And we found the illusion he put in Shining Armor’s mind.”
“Perhaps I should perform your operations so you can actually see what he’s done to her,” Ed mused to the sisters.
Sweetie Drops wanted to snark back but thought better of it. She opened her mouth to say something… reasonable but Hamza cut her off. “I assure you I mean no disrespect sir, but this is the exact reason we summoned you. We don’t know what we’re up against. We don’t know what rules it operates on, what the requirements for using it are, or how to defend against it. I know we must seem like ants to your greatness but please if you know or see something, please help us.”
“We know that the sharingan can place time-activated illusions in minds,” Luna said. “But we don’t have much experience dealing with it. Shining Armor’s illusion was very overt and easy to detect. If Cadance has something more complex, there is no way for us to deal with it.”
“These are no mere illusions but true tricks of the mind that can cause the body to harm itself simply by making it think it’s happening,” Ed explained. “The only way to be free is to break it or have the caster undo the spell, which he won’t. Your eyes are masters of this skill and it’s second nature to them. Casting one in your awakened state is child’s play and undoing one would be just as easy in this case. Only if you’re actually fighting against another user would it put a strain on you, unless it’s just an extremely powerful jutsu. Shall I make you both a set of custom new eyes. I can use the DNA of my own girls as a base? Being closer to humans it would be leagues above your old ones.
Celestia and Luna looked at each other and nodded. “We’ll do it,” they said simultaneously.
Sweetie Drops wanted to say something, anything to stop her rulers from taking the deal at face value. But that thing in the shape of a human was holding all the cards. She bit her lip and held her tongue. Swift Arrow on the other hand thought this guy seemed pretty cool. Sure he was powerful enough to kill him with a thought but then again… wasn’t Princess Celestia? And he had a risque photo of her hidden in his stash along with the one of Princess Cadance he told the captain he got rid of. If this guy was just handing out superpowered eyes…
“Hey, what does one have to do to get on this super-eye train?”
“I would also like some super-eyes for study,” Twilight added quietly.
Hamza got up, walked behind Swift Arrow, and smacked him on the back of the head. “I am very sorry for this.” He dragged the pegasus out of the room.
“Do I have to go too?” Twilight asked.
“Please sit quietly, Twilight,” Celestia sighed.
“I am not against it but my contract is not with you little ones,” Ed pointed out as a set of himself walked in the area out of nowhere with two glass containers with a set of eyes in each suspended in a yellow fluid. “Shall I also correct the imbalance in your systems that cause you to burn away your physical forms when drawing on your true power?”
The two alicorns looked at each other and had a silent conversation. Cadance tried to be part of it but she had little experience with Luna and couldn’t intuit her responses.
“We’ll pass on correcting the imbalance,” Celestia finally said. “Our physical changes are related to our alicorn nature and though we trust that your changes would be for the best, we are not sure how our changed nature would interact with the rest of our world.”
“And our connection to Tartarus,” Luna added. “And no eyes for you, Twilight Sparkle. You only recently had an incident with reckless use of magic, did you not? A mishap with a want-it, need-it spell?” Twilight blushed and looked at the table.
“It’s simple really.” Ed removed his white gloves and threw off his coat and upper shirt to reveal a black muscle shirt to reveal a total metal right arm. Most in the room were confused but Twilight was even more intrigued by this human now.
“Like Sasuke, I didn't originally have access to magic in my world but I did have my abilities as an alchemist. Using my scientific knowledge of how to construct and deconstruct matter as a base, I developed my own magic. It took about a hundred and fifty years but I was able to cast using a medium such as fire rubies. Later with the help of my Starswirl, we were able to refine the practice and I was soon able to create an extremely powerful artifact I called a Mage Stone.”
A hinge opened on Ed’s arm and he reached in and pulled out a brightly glowing stone made entirely of magic.
“To answer your question, you wouldn’t be affected by your connection to Tartarus anymore because I would sever it,” Ed said. “And I would give you each one of these made of the purest of solar and lunar magics of this world. You would truly be immortal, even if your bodies were totally destroyed you could restore because your sources would endure.”
“Our connection to Tartarus is important,” Celestia explained. “We cannot give it up even for such a tempting offer.”
“But y’know,” Cadance interrupted. “It’s not every day a cosmically powerful being offers you fantastic power and true immortality.”
“Cadance,” Luna looked her dead in the eyes, “take it from a pony who spent a very long time alone: there are many fates far worse than death. An alicorn’s connection to Tartarus is the most important tool we have.”
“She speaks the truth, young one,” Ed placed the stones back in his arm. “I was alive for thirteen thousand years in my world before I spent nearly two thousand years utterly broken mentally in a stone prison because somepony I deeply trusted betrayed me and tried to misuse these artifacts. I was nearly halfway through with recovering my sanity at the time when I saw Celestia and Luna’s fight and saw Luna banished to the moon. At the time, she was… the only thing that helped my sanity. After that…. Let’s just say Discord became the only other being I could turn to.”
“It is disheartening to know my fall happens in every reality,” Luna sighed. “But it’s time. We are ready.” Celestia nodded in agreement.
“I will give you both the stones as well. Call it good will,” Ed clapped and the sister suddenly clasped onto beds that had just shown up next to them. “It is done.” He waved a hand. “Offer them some chocolate when they wake up in a few minutes. It will help with the hangover.”
He then walked over to Cadance. “Your turn dear,” Ed said as his eyes shifted again.
Cadance felt a rush come over here and deep inside her mind she felt as if she heard several windows break at once.
“How does your head feel now?” The Sage asked.
Cadance thought about the genjutsu she had been in and didn’t feel that warm, lovely sensation she had gotten used to. In fact, she didn’t really feel anything about it at all. Well, the more she thought about it, the more concerned she was that her mind had been violated so easily. She was suddenly unsure how she felt about Sasuke in general. Before, she had thought he must be working towards some grand goal that must have justified attacking Caterlot and wounding her aunts but now… “I feel confused and angry but clear headed,” Cadance said with a frown. “Like I just woke up from a dream but can’t remember what happened in it.”
Twilight had not missed the opportunity to take notes on what little she understood. “Then it seems like you were under some sort of mind control.” She thought a little bit and tried to summon another notepad but nothing happened. She then remembered what Ed had said about the space and tried to remember her other notes. “The control in Shining Armor’s mind was to make him angry and distracted. What do you think the control in yours was for?”
Cadance tried but couldn’t come up with a real answer. “To make me like him a little bit? I can’t really tell.”
“It was to sway you to his side dear,” Ed pointed out. “It was also so you could do his work for him here in the castle without your aunts taking notice. Think along the lines of a double agent,” he said, catching another special agent's attention. “Yes, I hope you thoroughly check anything and everything Cadance has been involved with since Sasuke’s release.”
“Understood,” Sweetie Drops said and bit her lip. “Thank you.”
“They should be waking about now,” Ed turned to the princesses who were indeed starting to stir. “Agent,” he called out. “Shining Armor was under his influence at one point too, right?”
“Yes, he was,” Celestia said groggily, trying to rise from the bed.
“We should check him again,” Luna was having trouble finding her center of balance. “Sweetie Drops, please bring the captain here.”
The earth pony wanted to stay but a direct order from a princess was hard to ignore. “At once, your highness.” She quickly trotted out of the room.
“How are you both feeling?” Ed asked, “Can you both see without much blurriness at least?”
“Yes, it took a moment but everything is coming into focus,” Celestia said, her eyes following her hoof in a pattern.
“I don’t think my vision has ever been this… detailed,” Luna added. She activated her sharingan and looked around the room. “Very interesting. I can almost see the flow of energy you used to isolate this space. Although it is like trying to read a language I do not understand.” She activated her mangekyou and her body shifted into human form. “Even the pain of using it has been reduced. Very interesting. Thank you, Ed.”
“Flawless and instant transformation,” Ed held up a hand. “The chakra systems were originally intended for humans, though they aren’t the only beings with them. Dogs, toads, birds, and even fish have them in the world Sasuke’s origin comes from, but it's the humans who can utilize it the best. Since your new eyes were made with a sample of your humanoid counterpart from my world your networks were greatly strengthened making it nearly identical to that of a human from the origin world. It also means that you won’t lose any power after your transformation is used up. Try accessing your Lunar and Solar Sage stones.” He pointed. “You can’t miss them. They’re highly concentrated magics of your individual sources afterall. I tied them closely to your spiritual bodies so Sasuke can’t even see them or try to get them. If he does, a counter curse will bind him.”
Celestia shrugged and reached inward with her magic. An outpouring of magic filled her and her body grew to its full size. She shifted into human form and allowed herself to fully enter her Dawnbreaker state. “This is incredible!” She pulled back from her new internal well and shifted back into her alicorn form. “He won’t escape so easily next time.”
Luna shifted back into her alicorn form and nodded. “Indeed. I have a few ideas for making sure our agents can handle Sasuke’s.”
Cadance frowned as Twilight continued to scribble furiously. “Everypony gets a superpower makeover, and I get mind controlled.” She face planted on the table.
“When you stand on the front line of a battlefield, Cadance,” Luna said. “You will be trusted with great power as well.”
Cadance grunted.
“Cadance,” Celestia walked over to her and put a hoof around her shoulder. “Even if you were as powerful as us, it would be the height of foolishness for us to send you into battle against Sasuke. He is a trained combatant, as are we. You have never known the horrors of war. That in itself is a gift.”
“They’re right, young one,” Ed added. “I’ve seen and fought on so many battlefields I can’t count them all. Sasuke is not only a trained fighter and killer but I can see he’s a bit of a sadist as well. He has been whispering sweet nothings to you this whole time. I pray that you never see the horrors of war but in this world’s many futures I can see very few outcomes where you aren’t, and about half of them have you siding with him. Sasuke is even more dangerous for a singular fact as well.” He pointed at himself, “He’s one of my kind and that means he can have any number of powers or abilities that none of you have ever seen before with each new encounter with him. Or am I wrong Luna?”
Luna grunted. “I caught him completely unaware and he had somehow gained a new ability to ignore fatal blows.” She looked Cadance in the eyes. “He had the absolute gall to call this ability ‘Plot Armor’.” She pounded her hoof into the table. “I have never been so insulted in all my days!”
Cadance snorted out a laugh. “Really, plot armor?” She then came to a realization. “I was so distracted by the joke, I almost didn’t realize you said he invented a new magic that lets him ignore getting caught by surprise.”
“That is exactly what he wants,” Celestia nodded. “For his enemies to be distracted by humor or frustration enough for them to not realize or even outright ignore his true objectives. I suspect he is treading so cautiously because Luna and I are aware of that.”
“Saskue can invent new magic?” Twilight asked.
“You are to report to us every time Saskue enters your library, Twilight Sparkle,” Celestia commanded. “And detail every offer and offhoof remark he makes. Have I made myself clear?”
“Yes, Princess,” Twilight bowed her head.
“Calm down or you’ll need to replace that really expensive marble floor you're standing on,” Ed held up a finger, “Let me clarify something about his new magic as well. This is what I was referring to about unknown power with each new encounter. This Plot Armor Magic is his own personal magic given to him by my younger brother. You must understand we displaced have our own rules we must follow. A power exchange is the bargain we often settle on. The grimoire he now carries is not the key to this magic but greatly amplifies its effects. No one in this world but him will be able to read it either and his magic can’t be replicated unless he has children and even then it won’t be the exact same but either a weaker or stronger variant of it.”
Cadance looked up and tilted her head. “But there aren’t any other humans in Equestria, right? His magic will die with him if that’s the case.”
“That is irrelevant,” Celestia said. “If we manage to stop him we won’t have to worry about such a thing.”
“Kill him you mean,” Luna said calmly.
“Obviously.”
“So you are not holding onto any delusions that he can be redeemed?”
“No, of course not.”
“Enough,” Ed called out. “You can not kill him because if you do, this world dies. Not just a few thousand but everything, plants, animals, everything.” He held up a hand. “Sasuke is fighting a greater war than your own eyes can see, Celestia. I know you hate him with every fiber of your existence right now and he does need to answer for all he’s done but at the same time, he is also the closest thing you have to any form of defense you have to what's coming. Those things you fought in the Everfree weren’t even an advanced scouting party but a couple of kids looking for fun, Luna.”
“Ominous,” Swift Arrow whistled. He had reentered with Hamza.
“I assume since you have not detailed this threat, it is not yet necessary for us to know about it,” Hamza said. “If that is the case, our primary objective has not changed. We will find Sasuke, detain him and his conspirators, and question him about this greater evil.”
“I will enter Tartarus and see what I can find,” Luna said. “Twilight, since my sister and I are healed, you will return to Ponyville. Sasuke had a fascination with you a millennium ago. Do what you can to tease information out of him.”
“Yes, Princess,” Twilight responded.
“Cadance and I will stay here,” Celestia said. “Luna before you go, share your plans for the task force with me so I can fulfill them in your absence.”
“What should I do?” Cadance asked, excited.
“Go about your life as usual,” Celestia replied. Cadance deflated. “You have important duties, Cadance. Not to mention your wedding is coming up soon.”
“But, I’m a princess too,” Cadance argued. “I should be helping. Doing something… I don’t know, important?”
“Maintaining normalcy in a time of crisis is important,” Celestia stressed.
Ed walked over and placed a hand on Cadance’s head. “She’s only worried about you, dear, but at the same time she is right but I have a suggestion if you are willing to hear me out.”
“Sure, anything beats doing nothing,” Cadance mumbled.
“Celestia, Luna,” Ed looked at them both. “Allow me to go and meet with him. You summoned me all this way for a bit of information but I have yet to state what I get in exchange,” he smiled. “Until now, he has always had the power and backing to do as he pleases but now I am here and on your side for the most part. I don’t want needless death but at the same time I can’t needlessly interfere with a world’s balance. I will help you as I see fit after I leave. This may be my first time in this universe but that doesn’t mean I haven’t been watching it.”
“As soon as I break the barrier he’ll sense my presence. I've exerted too much magic power with the reveal of the sage stone in this space. I invite all of you here to witness a small skirmish between us,” he pointed at Cadance. “I also want you to see what a real battle for life and death looks like even on the sidelines. Do we have a deal?”
Celestia and Luna desperately wanted to shake their heads and shout ‘ABSOLUTELY NOT!’ as loudly as they could but the thought of going back on a deal with a being this powerful promised far worse. They could only hope that Cadance was mature enough to decline such an offer.
“Absolutely I do!” Cadance squealed excitedly.
So much for that.
“Will she be safe?” Celestia said more as a plea and less of a question.
“I didn’t make myself clear,” Ed rubbed his chin. “You will all be coming and yes, I can guarantee all parties will be inside a void barrier to keep you from harm's way.” he held up a hand and a rediesh-black energy appeared above. “This is void energy also now at the beginning and end of all things. The purest Darkness that gives birth to light and consumes it when it dies out. Neither good nor evil, it is simply existence itself.” He retracted his hand and the energy dispersed. “The barrier is made of it. Do you trust me?”
The elder alicorns looked at each other. “Yes, absolutely, 100%,” Luna said with a frown.
“What she means is: yes we trust you,” Celestia quickly followed up. She turned to her sister. “I mean why wouldn’t we trust the cosmically powerful super being who has until now been very patient even when disrespected.”
“Calm your minds,” Ed hushed them with a laugh. “I’m not going to let anything happen to anyone here, most of all you two, Cadance or Twilight. You both remind me of my own Celestia and Luna when they were around five or six hundred,” he laughed. “I guess I should've led with this but in my world you are my wives and mothers of our children. Cadance of course would be my nieces and Twilight is something of a student slash granddaughter-in-law. You have nothing to fear from me.”
“I understand,” Celestia said. “We accept this as payment for your assistance. We are ready. You may begin whenever you want.”
Ed snapped and the dullness faded causing all of the pent up magical power to rush out of the room. It was almost like being born again to those deeply intubated with the world’s mana network while everyone else felt it a lot either to breathe.
“You said he was last seen in the Dragonlands?” Ed asked Twilight.
Twilight nodded. “His team was injured so I expect he took time for them to recover. It’s only been a day so they should still be there.”
“Which means his floating city is still in the immediate area,” Ed smirked, the sisters both caught onto the word, floating base. “I doubt he’ll want to fight in that area as then he’d risk losing the support of the dragons. What do you two think?” he looked at the solar and lunar diarchs.
“Floating- no not now,” Celestia shook her head. “He loves to showboat, so I think having an audience of dragons would force him to show more of his cards.”
“But if,” Luna took a moment to examine Ed. “No, when he realizes victory is out of his grasp, he will certainly use the dragons as fodder in an attempt to distract you. Can you ensure their safety?”
“I can,” Ed shrugged. “Void barriers can be self-sustaining if set that way while also encompassing an entire area. I had to collaborate on one for Asta’s arena in his city after he and another displaced fought. He lost but was still on his feet but she fainted right after that. A displaced Twilight if I’m remembering right,” he scratched his head. “Ah yea, Ayumi the Goddess of Balance that was her name. Quite a background on thought ones bloodlines.”
“We should’ve gotten popcorn while we were out,” Swift Arrow whispered to Hamza. “Do you think he can make some or nah?”
Hamza wanted to smack the pegasus again but refrained. “Pay attention to this fight, and record everything you see, no matter how small.”
“Oooh, this is going to be great for my human research,” Twilight squealed.
“There’s only one human in this world, dear Twilight, and that’s Sasuke,” Ed corrected.
“The me in front of you isn’t even my real body but a flesh puppet that was wandering around near the kitchen in my world’s Canterlot Castle when your teacher called out to summon me. I have several similar bodies exploring the void as we speak,” He walked over to the doors leading to the balcony, “Come along with me now my little ponies. We have a train to catch as well as places to be and ponies to retrieve!”
As soon as he said that line a set of transparent rainbow train tracks appeared. Soon they all heard the loud whistle of the train and felt its rumble as a large red and silver locomotive pulled and let out a hiss as it stopped.
“Sasuke's domain can’t be reached by normal means and I don’t want to raise alarms by just popping over,” Ed turned as the doors opened to reveal a rainbow Ninetails, the Pokémon, sitting there waiting on them magic pouring off her like a fountain. “And I’d rather like to make a grandstanding entrance to announce our arrival.”
“This is my mother-in-law Faust,” Ed motioned. “Former Queen of old Equestria as well as Former alicorn.”
“Nice to meet all of you!” Faust raised a paw with a fanged smirk.
“Is that God?” Swift Arrow whispered, more loudly than he intended.
Celestia almost scolded him, meeting a being called Faust had thrown her. However she quickly composed herself and chose to ignore the pegasus. If he was somehow able to offend these powerful beings, there was little she could do to protect him.
“I believe our Faust is different,” Luna said. She, on the other hand, didn’t care. If these beings wanted to kill them all, they wouldn’t waste time taking them on a field trip. Swift Arrow nodded and prepared to say something else but found his mouth held shut by a blue glow. “Regardless, whatever you are about to say should be considered carefully.” The pegasus nodded and stayed quiet. Luna released his mouth.
“May we enter,” Celestia asked Ed, trying to stay on track.
“That's why the door was opened!” Faust snarked with a motion of her paw. “And no dear, I’m not a god. I’m just a reincarnated alicorn. In our world we can physically die but not spiritually. After a certain number of years after the world has finished redistributing the alicorn magic from our supposed death we reincarnate into another form able to handle our powers.”
Celestia led the others into the train, listening to this former alicorn explain. Of the ponies (and zebra) that entered the mystical train, only Swift Arrow and Twilight couldn’t contain their curiosity. Twilight scribbled furiously on a notepad held in her magic as Swift Arrow quickly memorized the layout and position of everyone around him.
“We are ready,” Celestia said once everyone was situated. Cadance resisted the urge to squee. She was riding a magic train going towards a secret hideout to watch a hero fight a villain! This was every filly’s fantasy!
“If you don’t mind my asking,” Twilight looked towards the fox. “Why didn’t you turn into an alicorn again?”
“We can’t assume the same form twice in a row,” Faust stated. “There are very few creatures on the planet, let alone in Equestria, that can handle the power of an alicorn, little one. Even on the spiritual level we are extremely powerful beings of magic. Normally if I wanted to assume my alicorn form again, I’d have had to wait another three or four millennia. If I had, I would've missed the births of my grandchildren.”
“My niece stayed an extended period of time in my world and it affected the balance of displacement causing creatures called Pokémon to start appearing in my world. Faust took advantage of the phenomenon to craft herself a suitable body based on one of them that could handle her spirit,” Ed added. “She was always a bit impatient when it came to her family.”
“Where do you think you get it from Celestia?” The magic fox asked as the train lurched forward.
Luna looked at Celestia in shock. “We are descended from Faust?”
Cadance, Twilight, and Swift Arrow’s jaw dropped. Hamza froze.
Celestia waved her hooves in denial. “No, no, no! I assure you we are normal alicorns! Faust, I think things may be different in your world!”
“Of course it is dear,” Faust let out a hard laugh. “I’m just messing with you. All ponies are descended from the Faust of your world in some manner, or that’s what your religions or history books will say. But I am the mother of Celestia and Luna in my world. Well… former biological mother anyways.”
Celestia coughed into her hoof with a blush. “I appreciate a good prank as much as the next pony but making such claims while having access to near omniscience is a bit much.”
Luna laughed heartily. “You are just upset that you have been bested so easily!”
“I’m not a god!” Faust said sternly. “Far from it. I had a husband once and gave birth to two of the sweetest fillies. I didn’t get to spend a lot of time with my Luna after she was born due to the strain I put my body through. I am nowhere near omniscient!”
“Calm down,” Ed placed a hand on his family member's head. “I think you should get back to the others. Chryssy can’t handle them for more than an hour since they’ve started to fly.”
“I’m sorry for snapping,” Faust bowed, then popped away in a rainbow cloud of smoke.
“It was just a bit of harmless fun,” Celestia tried to say before Faust vanished.
Hamza turned from looking out the window to Ed. “How long will it take for us to arrive, and will you allow us to know the location of Sasuke’s lair?”
“Should be there about now,” Ed said as a display popped up in front of them showing a floating island in the distance. “This is why you can never find him. A mobile base and training area in one.”
“Incredible,” Twilight said aloud. “What kind of spell could allow an entire castle to float in the sky?”
“I don’t even see any engines,” Cadance added. “So it’s not using any airship magic.”
“How high are we, Swift,” Hamza asked.
“Hard to say from here,” Swift Arrow responded. “But judging from the clouds, higher than I can fly.”
Luna’s face was impassive. Celestia’s expression was anxious.
“What now?” The elder alicorn asked.
“How about a song?” Ed chuckled as a violin materialized in his hand. Everyone just stared, “I’m one hundred percent going to do this,” Ed nods before poofing away
With his disappearance everypony looked at each other until they heard music coming from outside.
***Laputa - Interior
I was having a pretty normal breakfast. Gilda and I were enjoying some bacon and eggs, Ember was destroying a plate of the rarest looking steak I had ever seen anyone eat, and Starlight was doing her best to ignore us while she drank her coffee when all of a sudden I heard music.
I looked up from my meal. “Why do I hear boss music?” Then I felt it. “Oh shit, Code Void!”
Everyone stopped what they were doing and ran to spread the message. I teleported to the castle courtyard and looked up to see a train in midair. Even my mangekyou told me nothing about it other than it was covered in and/or made out of some sort of energy I didn’t recognize. “Welp. That’s not a great sign. Fuck it, might as well…” I activated the newest power in my arsenal, one that I had been hiding as carefully as I could, my rinnegan. I learned nothing.
Then there was a loud roar. Looked out and saw a silver dragon headed straight for us. The damn thing was fast cause it landed right outside in no time.
“Knock knock!” It tapped the exterior wall.
I looked at the dragon carefully. It obviously wasn’t native to this world so the bloodstone scepter was out. “Over here,” I called out to it. “And unless someone ordered an interdimensional pizza, you’re trespassing.”
“Oh you mean like the pizza that’s in your hands,” it chuckled as the train pulled up behind it.
I looked down and I was holding an extra large stuffed crust pepperoni pizza.
“That’ll be 15.98,” the dragon held out a claw.
I frowned. “Fuck, a reality warper. Look, I’m not super liquid right now. You take I.O.U.’s?”
“No,” it’s gaze turned stern as the train opened to reveal my current worst nightmare. “And neither do they!” He motioned as his form shifted to a rather tall blonde in a red coat. “Edward Elric, the Crimson Sage,” he bowed.
Well, this was a fine clusterfuck. “Well, this is a fine clusterfuck,” I sighed. Celestia and Luna seemed content to just watch and I could see Cadance and Twilight behind them. There was a zebra I didn’t recognize and a pegasus that seemed oddly familiar. First tactic: stall for time. “And what brings, and I’m just assuming here, a post-game level displaced to my simple, normal, nothing to worry about flying castle? With my enemies in tow, no less.”
“No stalling,” he chuckled. “Asta did warn you to summon me before they did, did he not?” He glared. He clapped and all my forces were behind me. “Don’t toy with me kid cause I can easily destroy every trace of this place with one finger as well as any scraps of data you have about it so it will never exist again.”
“Oh put your ego away for a minute and have a sense of humor,” I grinned. “You think you’re the first person I’ve met that can end my existence on a conceptual level? If you wanted to destroy me you would’ve done it already. So that begs the question: what do you want? And what’s preventing you from just taking it?”
“I have no need for anything in this universe,” Ed smiled. “I’m here cause they summoned me while I was on my way to the kitchen for one of my wives,” he thumbed over his shoulder. “And like you said, I can easily end you along with this universe as I’ve done with so many before you but I don't like needless death and murder. So you guess my oh so young and garish you rogue? Why did I come all the way out here to your little Castle in the Sky? Ps, Studio Ghibli did it first.”
“Subtlety and originality are boring,” I ran through all of my possible options in my mind. “I would assume you’re here to kill me but I’m still alive. You’ve brought some of my enemies, two of which I’m married to, and forced my forces out into the open. Do you want to fight me? Seems kind of pointless for someone on your level.”
Celestia and Luna bristled at being called my wives. Cadance and Twilight took a step away from them and the zebra frowned. The pegasus’ eyes were wildly surveying everything. Hm… I’d need to move the castle if I made it out of this alive.
“Fighting is pointless you say?” Ed chuckled as he stroked his chin. “Not really. You’ve met my younger brother, he always enjoys a fight no matter how minor, usually,” he shrugged as Celestia scrunched her face slightly. “The concept of death is always a good teacher to those who don’t know it or for those who have never actually witnessed it after all.”
I looked at Cadance and Twilight. I then turned around and looked at my own crew. Celestia and Luna must have asked for some kind of exhibition match. They probably couldn’t afford an assassination and settled for him squeezing out all my secrets. That line about not knowing death definitely refers to either Cadance or Twilight, possibly both. He’s probably untouchable and also powerful enough to warp space-time on a whim. “Fine,” I stretched out my spine. There were a few pops and I focused on him with my rinnegan. “Exhibition match it is.”
He clapped his hands with a big smirk, “Splendid!” He raises his hands and everything starts to rumble and shake. “But of course, we’ll need as large of an audience as possible!”
We were soon surrounded by stands filled with every creature of this planet from dragons to griffins and many more.
“Oh and there will be no fighting amongst each other for any of you,” Ed pointed, particularly looking at Sunset, whose mangekou was activated and looking at Celestia.
I looked around and whistled. “You don’t do half measures do you?” I scanned as much of the crowd as I could but it seemed like anyone who wasn’t directly related to me was obscured from my vision. If he was out there, there was no way I could reveal my whole hand. I looked at Ed. Just how much would satisfy his contract? “So you have a bell or is Shao Kahn going to yell ‘Fight’?”
“I still need my strawberry break thank you,” His gaze narrowed as he started eating said fruit from a popcorn bucket. “And if you're thinking this was Celestia and Luna’s idea, don’t.” He threw the bucket over his shoulder. “This was all my idea. I’ve been watching this world for a long time now and have to say, I absolutely can not stand how you do things here!”
He yelled and pressure felled the area, “oops!” He snapped and everyone behind us was suddenly gone. “That could choke someone to death, hehe,” he cracked his knuckles. “I can tell you this. If Asta knew your mentality and what you’ve done, he would split you in two before he left.”
“Are you judging me? We don’t all have the benefit of cosmic awareness and unlimited power,” I spat, feeling real anger for the first time in a while. “It’s easy to judge when you can just rewrite reality whenever you want. I worked with the tools I had.” I smirked. “What do you know about the struggle? I have a powerset hyper specialized for combat! I didn’t come into this world with even above average intelligence! Is it easy to solve problems with alchemy? With whatever other op bullshit every displaced I’ve met can pull out their ass? Get off your high horse. The dirt fucking sucks. Why don't you come down here and see for yourself?”
“You have no idea the wars I’ve fought in to keep my home safe,” Ed glared and his eyes shifted to a golden Sharrinnegan. “I lived for over fifteen millennia fighting to keep it all safe. I’ve fought other immortals to keep them from taking even an inch closer to power. I can’t count the number of times I’ve had my head cut off over it. I hear it constantly…. Heheh hehehe!” He grabbed his face. “The screams of the souls! Ehehehehehe! It never stops!“ he looked at me now, the face of utter madness staring at me. “Tell me Sasuke, do you ever sleep with the background noise of screaming living soul inside you constantly wanting to be set free?!”
I let out a joyless laugh. “Seems like you should already know the answer!” I formed a fully armored Susanoo’s top half and launched an arrow of amaterasu’s black fire.
A red flaming aura erupted over Ed before he knocked the arrow into the sky with his left hand. With a simple flex he dispersed the black flames on his hand causing new flesh to grow.
“DBS, God Ki,” He smirked.
"Proving my point!"
The aura died down or more like changed form as Ed called forth his own Susanoo. “You and I are more alike than you know. Come to Equestria with no one, only the abilities of our characters. I did get a better deal with being a walking philosopher stone but the price for using that power is life itself. That’s why I want to beat the ever loving shit out of you kid. I understand using what you have on hand but that doesn’t give you the right to use random innocents in your experiments. Like that grave keeper and that mare you caused to explode!”
“Tell me, “ Ed glared as his Susanoo rose into the air as legs formed underneath the torso. “Can you fully manifest it yet, or are those eyes that Discord gave nothing more than imitations?”
All that Edward had done had already thrown the other Sharingan users for a loop with a total humanoid manifestation of his own Susanoo. What really got Celestia and Luna’s attention was the information he just let everyone know about how I regained my powers.
“That sounds about right,” Luna mumbled.
Since he was just going to keep putting my business out there, I didn’t feel a need to hide it any longer. I pulled as much out of me as I could and fully allowed my Susanoo to form. Flapping its wings, I joined Ed in the air. “Oh boo hoo,” I yelled. “One death is such a tragedy and a million is just a statistic. I don’t hear any complaints about all those griffins I killed!” Trying, likely unsuccessfully, to catch him by surprise, I tried using Tengai Shinsei to pull a few meteors down into the stadium. My Susanoo readied another amaterasu arrow and I forced my arms into a mechanical state to fire missiles.
“Death is acceptable if it means triumph but not at the loss of an innocent!” Ed raised his metal handover his head. “I hate humans with every fiber of my being for their arrogance and what I had to go through in my home world but that doesn’t give me the right to use their souls taps fuel for my power,” he raised his left hand, “Bankai!”
As soon as he said that, a decently sized katana with a ring hilt appeared in his hand with what looked like black wisps flowing from said ring. As soon as he had the sword in hand the Susanoo gained one of equal portions.
“Have you ever encountered shinigami or hollows?” Ed madly grinned as he swished his metal hand down causing a skull-like helmet with a singular pink eye in the center of the face to appear on the alchemist’s head.
He shot at me with no warning. I barely had time to dodge.
“What’s the matter boy?” Ed laughed in a multi toned voice. “Running away?!” He slashed behind him into the sky, sending a wave of red energy out that collided with my meteors. But there was no explosion, the simple stopped.
I fired a few arrows that he lazily dogged as I weaved as hard as I could through his attacks. Pieces of my Susanoo broke off and vanished with each near miss. “Ya know, maybe a fantasy German shouldn’t be calling people ‘boy’ so casually,” I yelled. I doubted he’d fall for this provocation any more than the others but I needed just a little more time. “And who says that mare was innocent? Maybe she was a serial-killing cannibal pedophile! What do you have to say about that?”
“I know,” He glared at me as pressure flooded the area. “I know because I’ve seen this world's past and seen its many futures!” He yelled out as he dispelled his powers and merely floated in the area. “Which is why I’m not going to kill you, because I reeeeaaaaaallllly want to but if this world has any hope of survival it’s with you alive and breathing in it.”
He looked up into the sky, “It’s time…” he said as it grew dark.
I looked up and the moon had eclipsed the sun. I looked over at the sisters but they were just as shocked as everyone.
“I needed to borrow them for my next trick,” Ed shrugged. “It’s hard to manifest a fragment of my real self with a mere puppet,” he motioned to himself as he raised his hands.
“Without further ado,” he clapped his hands together and red electricity flowed out of his palms, “allow me to show you a portion of the real me!”
He separated his hand and the electricity arc out and formed a massive marble door.
“Tell me lad,” He looked at me. “How do you find land on a plant of only water?” He asked as the doors flung open and he stepped backwards inside till he was no longer visible.
It was at that moment, I remembered his base power must have been alchemy. It was Edward Elric, after all. “Well I‘m sure we’re all super jazzed to get a lesson from Sir Edgelord McProtagonist-kun but I’m pretty sure even if I say ‘that’s dumb’ you’re going to tell me anyway. So monologue away, oh superior one.” Did he get angry about anything ever? Goddamn, this was my best material! And another human of all people should understand enough of my references to be at least a little insulted. But just a few more seconds and maybe I could at least give him a small cut or something.
“See you still think I’m a human ,” His voice rang out from everywhere. “I told you, I hate humans. More like an utterly despise more former race with every fiber of my being and the universe would be all the much quieter a place without them in it!”
I knew Celestia and Luna both felt it the same as I did when the waves of negativity and power washed out of the gate, pure malice.
A massive golden sharingan with an ouroboros for a pupil opened in the darkness. One by one, four massive black hands with writhing faces, eyes, hands grabbed a hold of the gate and pulled a mass of those same eyes and amounts front the gate. The figure was now out in this world and started to extend to its full height, over even my Susanoo. Tha same skull from earlier looking right at me had a massive hole in the left side of this thing's chest with bone and metal plates scattered about its body. On it back we’re four wings, one set silver and red tipped feathers and the other bat-like and tattered.
“Smack!” He laughed as he backhanded me clear across the stadium he built.
“Piece of fucking shit,” I spat through blood coughs. “Your powers are bullshit.” I could feel my shattered ribs and I was pretty sure my spine was broken too. “Fuck it, everybody dies.” I reached into the deepest part of my chakra and pulled it out. My body quickly healed itself as I felt every second of bone and muscle forcing themselves back into the right spot. The last remnants of my shattered Susano faded as the incompatible power I was now accessing forced my chakra to recede. I felt the wings grow in first, poking holes first through my skin and then through my shirt as the feathers followed. The much greater pain was when the horn grew in, cutting through the skin on my forehead. The tail didn’t hurt so much as it grew in which was a huge relief. As the not-quite-chakra and not-quite-magic flowed through my body, I could see the steam rise off my skin as the transformation cooked me from the inside. I was likely going to die if I kept this up. But pride, as they say, is a hell of a drug.
“Open,” I said. A hole in the stadium opened up and Tartarus’ eye looked through it. I pointed to the eldritch abomination Ed had… created? Summoned? Transformed into? “He said you touch your daughters.” I’m not sure Tartarus understood what I was saying or even my intent but I knew for a fact it did not like dimensional interlopers. It started exerting force, trying to push the thing into the void and out of the world.
“MmmmmhmhmhmjahahahahaAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” It laughed. “You really think that petiole thing has any grasp on me!” He grabbed on to the air itself and slammed it hard, closing the portal as if simply slamming a door.
“You severely underestimate me!” He roared, shaking the air itself. “How about I remove those alicorn powers from everyone of you little subordinates and place a curse that prevents them from gaining them back?!”
I figured something like that might happen but I was rapidly running out of life force and was really caring less and less about everything. “How about you eat a bag of dicks?” I flipped him off.
“Flick,” he said as he flicked me across the yard with his middle finger. “I’ve had my fun and you’re on death's door,” the creature snickered before shattering into ash to reveal the alchemist standing in its place. “It looks like your own transformation is still highly underdeveloped and not to mention a waste of space.”
I glared up at him from my crater. “Your powers of observation are truly astounding. Did you also know water is wet,” is what I wanted to say but it came out as more of a gurgle. I was pretty sure he got my meaning anyway. There was no way I was getting up. My imperfect alicorn transformation had cooked my body and forced it to revert back. I was pretty close to death but I had a sneaking suspicion the other displaced wouldn’t let me off that easily. Regardless, I had lost his fight.
“I’m going to remake that body of yours just enough to where you’ll be able to walk with a cane,” Ed raised his hand as red lighting crackled from it and shot out at me.
I cried out. It felt like an acid trip paired with a pcp freak out as my body was literally rebuilt down to the very atoms it was made of.
“That alicorn form is useless to you if it drains you of life essence,” Ed said as he continued on with my ‘operation’. “I’m not going to change it, though I'll be tweaking your biology to be more accepting of it as well as extending your time limit to double what it currently is.”
He stopped. “There, now you won’t die.”
I sat up, drenched with sweat. “How truly magnanimous of you,” I said as I rolled my eyes. “Should I bow down to show my eternal gratitude?” My voice dripped with sarcasm. “Is that it? When are you leaving?” My body ached and wanted nothing more than to leave this void stadium and ease myself into a magic pool before readjusting every plan I had.
“Why?” He created a cigar and lit it. “Want to make a deal?”
I let out my first genuine laugh since I met him. “I don’t make deals with beings that I can’t force consequences on.” I smirked. “Helps keep my soul in my body. Surely you understand?”
“Believe what you will, I don't take souls as payment nor can I bend the fabric of realities,” he scowled. “I already have all of your research anyway. Oh and your undead aren’t undead anymore either. I had a clone cast the Rinne Rebirth along with a curse to bind the souls. If they die, they stay dead this time.”
He snapped and we were all back in the courtyard of my castle again.
“I want you to know that whenI say this I mean it with all of my heart: you fucking suck,” I stumbled to my feet and Smoke Puff ran over to help me walk. “Well, you still aren’t welcome here but it's not like I can make you leave. When you do find it in that oh so non human heart of yours to get your train off my garden, make sure to tell those alicorns that I owe them one for this.”
“No you don’t,” Ed shot in my face. “This was my choice to come here. They had no say in the matter and I will make good on what I said about removing every last ounce of that alicorn power from this little group here if so much as try to blame,” he reached up and pulled on something with his finger.
Suddenly the whole area lit up with shining threads. “This is magic. I break even one of these little things and poof goes that power, never to come back. Got it!”
I looked at Celestia and Luna, unable to read their faces and looked back at Ed. I smiled maliciously. “For someone who hates the ‘darkness, arrogance, and evil of humanity’ you sure have more than your fair share, don’t you? Fine, I’ll let this one go. Feel like vacating my property, yet?”
“Sure,” Ed smiled and he let go of the thread and everything went back to how it was.
“One last thing though,” he slammed his hand on the ground and red electricity surged out and we all felt an explosion below. “I blew out one of your engines just enough to leave you puddling along like a snail. You won’t be going anywhere that fast for about a month. Chow!“
He waved and he alongside his group and train just vanished.
I turned to Sunset Shimmer. “And that is why we have a Code Void.”
***Canterlot Castle
As the natives exited the train, they had mixed feelings about what had just transpired. Out of all of them Cadance was the most changed. She no longer wanted to take part in battles of any kind and was more than content to help her aunts by planning her wedding.
“Aunty-” she started.
“It’s ok, I know,” Celestia said with a tired smile. “It’s not something you ever get used to.”
“Indeed,” Luna added.
“I never imagined it could be so..” Cadance shivered. “I’ll… go find Shiny.”
“I’m sorry about what you saw little one,” Ed called out. “But you must understand, we showed you that situation so you can understand why you shouldn’t go looking for it.”
Cadance nodded at him and left, drooping a bit as she walked. Hamza faced Swift Arrow.
“What have you learned?” he asked.
“I’ll need to do some research but I have a very good idea where the castle is,” Swift Arrow replied. The pegasus and zebra quickly left for the castle’s library.
Twilight looked at the remaining creatures in the room. She gulped. “I can help with that!” she bolted out of the room, leaving the diarchs and Ed alone.
“That was… enlightening,” Celestia struggled to find the right word.
“I think you mean horrifying,” Ed looked at her. “That creature you saw was not made overnight. It is the collective negativity of the souls that fuel my power coupled with my own negativity given form. Malice is the entity’s name.” He blew smoke, “I wasn’t lying when I said I despise my own kind and neither was Sasuke wrong when he said I’m not against using humanity’s darkness. You must understand, I love my home and the creatures there so I will do whatever I can to keep them and it safe but at the same time, I’m not a god or some entity that can bend reality on a whim. I do have my fair share of powers yes but there's only so much I can do. That’s why I try to help you folks where I can. I was hoping to try and get him to actually think about what victims he uses but I don't think it held any real concept for him.”
“I could have told you that was not going to work,” Luna sighed. “It is not a problem of understanding for Sasuke. He understands very well the harm he causes. He does not care.”
“He weighs life differently,” Celestia said to Luna. “He does not disregard it entirely.”
“There is no meaningful difference,” Luna stamped her hoof. She shook her head to clear her mind. “Thank you for your assistance, Edward Elric. Is there anything more you require?”
“Mmmmm…..” Ed thought as he put the cigar out in his palm. “Perhaps I shall let this fragment of my being travel this world for a time. There are many other resources here that I’ve not come across in others and would like to take stock of them and see others that have yet to be found. Leaving this piece of me here would also serve as a bit of a deterrent for our black haired friend. At least for a while. But ultimately I leave the choice to you two. You are the contract holders after all.”
The alicorns looked at each other. Having an ally directly opposed to Sasuke, especially one that was so much more powerful than him, was something worth considering. But that same appeal was the source of their hesitation. This was a being that eclipsed even Tartarus’ power. A being that had, in a duel, called forth an embodiment of malice powerful enough to open and close tears in reality.
“We mean no disrespect, Ed,” Celestia said carefully. “But we would prefer you not remain.”
“I already know,” Ed laughed. “You don’t need to walk on eggshells with me Celestia. I forgot to tell you both but was hoping you’d have figured it out. Whether you didn’t want to say or not. I would never hurt either of you because you’re both my darling wives and mothers of our children in my world. I was your teacher for a number of years and helped your father in my world raise you both. Neither of you have anything to fear from me, a bit late I know but I do sincerely mean that with the utmost love and respect.”
“We thank you for your help Edward Elric,” Luna said. “But Sasuke is our problem. We must deal with him ourselves.”
“We truly appreciate what you’ve done for-” Celestia frowned. “How many humans, or former humans, married my sister and I in other worlds?”
“I can’t give an exact number but I would go with many,” Ed chuckled. “Though most of them go with Luna, or start out with her.” Luna puffed out her chest and smirked. “Asta didn’t though. You tried to kidnap him in his world and the sleeping spell hit Fluttershy instead. That’s why he wasn’t all that receptive of you when he was here last but trust me when I say his relationship with you in his world is much better now. With the founding of his kingdom and marriages to Applejack, Twilight, and Fluttershy also later giving him a daughter things have greatly improved. He wanted to say he was sorry for what he did,” he looked at Celestia. “The trip here nearly caused Fluttershy to be raped in his absence. He still beats himself up over it.”
“I am now uncomfortable with you being here for entirely new reasons,” Celestia stared off into space. “I need to go think about life and infinity.” She absentmindedly walked out of the room.
“So,” Luna prodded. “I am empirically the best princess. Tis a strange win but a win nonetheless. If you’ll excuse me, I have to go rub this in her face. Celestia!” Luna ran out of the room leaving Ed alone.
“I’ll be keeping a very watchful eye on you two,” Ed laughed. “It’s a good thing I can show myself the door. Shit I still need to get the pickles and hot sauce for Amore!”
He panicked and immediately ran through a portal leaving a lone cricket to chirp in the empty room.
***Outside the Griffin Republic
The centaur sat at a campsite not far from the Equestrian Griffin border. With several wraiths at his side, he gazed into the campfire wrapped up in his own thoughts.
“Who could have imagined he had such power,” he mused to himself as he remembered the fight he had just witnessed. He looked at his palm as he strained to force his own chakra to the surface. “And the other one, I wonder…” He shook his head. “One at a time. Sasuke, we will have our rematch. But first,” He looked off into the distance.
“Lord Tirek,” a scarred minotaur interrupted his train of thought.
“What is it?”
“We’ve finished the first set of voidrock weapons,” the minotaur informed him.
The centaur grinned. “Excellent. How many casualties?”
“Twenty dead,” the minotaur reported. “Although, you were right. Had we not taken the plans first there would have been more.”
“You should never question my orders,” Tirek said and forced himself to assume a human form. His eyes glowed with the red light of the sharingan. “Now get back to work.”
The minotaur’s eyes took on the same pattern. “Yes, my lord,” he said in monotone and went back towards the sound of clanking metal.
Tirek was forced back into his centaur form and grunted from exhaustion. “Not yet, I need more.” He took a deep breath. “But patience is key. Isn’t that right, Sasuke?”