Chapter 12: Wrath of the Reset Bomb
Celestia stood alone within her temple. A faint, almost imperceptible glow hovered around her horn, and a glimmer of light occasionally passed over her eyes. Every so often her eyes would move or she would blink, but apart from the steady movement of her chest as she breathed, she stood very still. This had become very familiar to her, something that she found herself doing more and more frequently in the past several weeks.
Using her magic, she scanned the earth below, as well as the heavens, looking for any activity from the Underworld or the Forces of Nature. Two days had passed since Luna dropped the Reset Bomb and declared war on the earth pony race. Luna had promised a subsequent attack, one involving another Reset Bomb, but there was no telling where or when she was going to strike next. Celestia was searching above and around every densely population region she could find, hoping to find any significant movement by Luna’s forces. Every once in a while, she even checked Skyworld, in case Luna was planning a preemptive strike against her and Fluttershy.
Meanwhile, Fluttershy wasn’t handling the situation very well. The day before, she came to Celestia’s temple several times, each time waiting to be sent on the next mission. She seemed very distracted during the day, even when she was caring for her animals. She was still outraged after seeing what Luna had done to that innocent earth pony, and unfortunately she couldn’t direct her anger toward its source. Unfortunately, Fluttershy wasn’t the only one affected by what happened to Big Macintosh. Looking over Big Macintosh's life, Celestia learned that he had been married to a schoolteacher and had two foals: a filly and a colt. He was abducted by Luna nearly a year ago, and to this day, his family still didn’t know where he was or what happened to him.
The last two missions Celestia sent Fluttershy on hung in her mind, both catastrophic failures and both with catastrophic consequences. If there was any solace to be gained, it was that Luna’s opening attack put an abrupt end to the wars earth ponies had been waging against each other. Amongst their race, there was no longer any talk or mention of the Wish Seed, and nations seemed to have ceased quarreling with one another. Apparently, there was something about two gods declaring war on them that made warring with each other seem less appealing. Unfortunately, Discord and the Underworld were still at war with them. With that in mind, Celestia was searching the skies above an earth pony city, one with numerous islands floating in the skies above it, for both Luna’s and Discord’s forces. Now that he and Luna shared a common goal, she was worried they would forge an alliance, at least until…
The glow around Celestia’s horn brightened as she focused on an additional spell. “Fluttershy!”
“What is it?” she heard Fluttershy say back.
“It’s time to start your next mission,” Celestia said. “We have an emergency on our hooves, and an opportunity to hit Luna where it hurts.”
“I’m on it!” Still maintaining the telepathy spell, Celestia watched as Fluttershy galloped toward her personal armory. She started to prepare two more spells, allowing one of them to complete, but keeping the other one on standby.
Meanwhile, Fluttershy stood inside her armory, looking over the weapons she had available for the mission. Her eyes eventually rested on a heavy golden polemace with a long handle. Bright yellow bands of light encircled the weapon end of the polemace, some forming symbols while others were just rings. Using her mouth, Fluttershy grabbed the weapon, known as the Halo Club, by the handle and pulled it down from its rack. She left the armory and turned toward an unlit hallway to her left, dragging the heavy club on the ground as she went.
The portal to Fluttershy’s mission opened as soon as she reached it. She jumped through the portal, the power of flight materializing around her wings, and transferred her club from her mouth to her hoof. Lakes and mountains, each suspended on individual islands, floated amidst the clouds around her. Ahead of her, she spotted a Blader and three Monoeyes.
“The Underworld Army and the Forces of Nature are engaged in battle,” Celestia said. No sooner did she say this than the Blader fire a beam at the Monoeyes, killing one of them. Three Komaytos swarmed the Blader in retaliation and latched onto it, but were all killed when a second Blader dove into them.
“What?” Fluttershy said. “Why are Discord and Luna fighting?” More Bladers and Monoeyes appeared and fired at one another, killing each other while ignoring Fluttershy.
“Isn’t it obvious?” Luna said.
“You again,” Fluttershy muttered.
“These brutes have a complete disregard for life,” Luna said. “They are worse than earth ponies!”
“You’re one to talk, little goddess,” Discord chuckled. “At least I give the ponies you kill peace after death.”
A Belunka flew below Fluttershy along with a platoon of Monoeyes and Wave Anglers. The Monoeyes and Wave Anglers flew ahead, not bothering to defend the Belunka when four Nutskis fired at it. The Nutskis turned their attention to Fluttershy next, but were killed when Fluttershy fired a charge shot, consisting of several rings surrounding a star-shaped projectile. As she soared over the lakes and mountains, several Monoeyes, Bladers and Nutskis flew ahead of her and fought one another.
“Fluttershy, we have an opportunity here,” Celestia whispered. “Let’s use this chaos to our advantage.”
“What’s my target,” Fluttershy said.
With the power of flight, Celestia led Fluttershy higher up, even as Syrens and Bladers appeared and fought each other. “Luna is planning to drop another Reset Bomb in this area,” she said.
“What? Where exactly?”
“I’m still not sure,” Celestia said.
“But with Discord’s army after them too, the earth ponies don’t stand a chance,” Fluttershy said. “We have to do something.” Ahead of her, several Parashooters and Bladers were being tongue lashed by a few Miks. Fluttershy fired a charge shot at them, killing two Parashooters, a Blader and a Mik. She flew past them and continued her ascent, using her club to bludgeon two Petribombers along the way. Three Parashooters floated down toward her and swung their bladed arms, sending blades of air spinning at her. Fluttershy deflected each projectile back at them with a swing of her club, killing two of them.
Fluttershy made it past the bulk of the clouds and was now flying above most of the floating islands. She could see the sun shining above her, as well as a few more clouds, but tried to look for any sign of the Reset Bomb. Nearly all of Discord’s and Luna’s troops were back down in the clouds, still battling each other, though there was still a huge mass of clouds floating at a higher altitude off to Fluttershy’s left. Scanning the skies around and above her, she eventually looked up at the mass of clouds. There was nothing else there at first, but after a few seconds, she saw a far off object falling from above the cloud mass.
“There’s the bomb,” Celestia said. “We’d better hurry!”
The aura around Fluttershy’s wings flared. She gripped the Halo Club tightly between her hoof and fetlock as she accelerated toward the bomb. “That bomb won’t be resetting anything when I’m done with it,” she said.
“What mischief are the two of thee planning now?” Luna said. “RISE, CHILDREN, AND LAY WASTE TO THAT PISSANT!”
Fluttershy responded only with a “hmph” as she continued in her rapid ascent. Four Trynamites detonated ahead of her, each one hurling three pieces of its core at her as shrapnel. Further above them, roughly a dozen crystalline objects fell from the cloud mass. After Fluttershy evaded the Trynamite shrapnel, she noticed the objects split in half. Each one generated an arc of energy between its two halves as they fell toward her. Fluttershy readied her club, gripping it more tightly as she flew toward the creatures, known as Badoots. As soon as she was in range, she swung her club, slamming it into both halves of a Badoot. Another swing took out only one half of another one, but it ended the arc of energy between the two. One by one, Fluttershy struck the Badoots with her weapon, destroying at least one half of each one.
As soon as Fluttershy flew past the last Badoot, she made it above the cloud mass. The Reset Bomb was still above the clouds, but was falling fast. Staring up at the bomb, she remembered seeing a large earth pony city back on the ground. The bomb roared past her, descended into the clouds and continued to plummet toward the earth.
“The Reset Bomb is going to wreak havoc if it hits the ground!” Fluttershy said. She felt Celestia’s magic take hold of her wings and angle her downward in pursuit of the bomb. “How do I stop it?”
“Be careful,” Celestia said. “The bomb could explode if you shoot at it indiscriminately.” With the power of flight, she guided Fluttershy next to the Reset Bomb and around its exterior. Together, the two mares studied the red, almost rust colored surface of the bomb, which closely resembled a seed. Large purple vines covered the seed coat, but offered no means of defusing the bomb. Celestia flew Fluttershy underneath the bomb and saw that this side of the seed coat was blue. It had a rougher texture than the red portion of the coat and had the same purple vines covering it. However, the vines all connected at the tip of the bomb and spread out equidistantly across the blue coating in five directions. Five large green nodes were embedded in the blue covering, each one where the vines met the red portion of the coat. “Oh, I know,” Celestia said. “Destroy those green nodes on the blasting cap to dislodge it from the bomb.”
Fluttershy eyed one of the nodes on the blasting cap and launched a charge shot. The charge shot collided with the node, causing it to crack. Celestia guided her in a slow circle around the Reset Bomb as it plummeted, but Fluttershy didn’t fire at it. After a few seconds, the Halo Club was charged again and she fired at another node. Unfortunately, the charge shot missed and harmlessly struck the red portion of the coat.
Celestia continued to move Fluttershy around the blasting cap. However, Fluttershy’s weapon didn’t have any range attacks other than the charge shot, and she was stuck waiting for the weapon to charge up. Celestia noticed this and tried to move her closer to the bomb, hoping the bomb wouldn’t crash into her as it fell. Now within range, Fluttershy swung her club into one of the nodes. The node cracked on the first swing and shattered away on the second, crumbling away from the blasting cap. Another charge shot was ready and Fluttershy fired, but the shot missed and flew off into the sky.
“Hurry, Fluttershy!” Celestia said. “You’re running out of time!”
Fluttershy glanced down at the ground. She and the bomb had already fallen through most of the cloud cover, and she could already make out the roads and buildings in the pony city below, as well as a river that ran through it. Another charge shot was ready, and she used it to crack the next node on the blasting cap. However, she was still stuck waiting for the next charge shot. With most of the nodes in place and two of them still intact, Fluttershy began to think that she wouldn’t defuse the bomb in time. Panicking, she tried to think of some other way to stop the bomb.
“Celestia?” Fluttershy said. “You said something about a special attack during one of my other missions? How do I use that?”
“The Special Attack?” Celestia said. “Focus on the magic flowing through your wings! Let it flow into your weapon, and unleash it!”
Fluttershy did what Celestia told her. She felt the power of flight running through the muscles in her wings, all the way out into the tips of her feathers. She imagined a fraction of that magic being siphoned into her club. Tightening her grip, she swung the Halo Club around her. The skies darkened around her for a moment, and four twisters formed around the Reset Bomb, cracking the nodes around the blasting cap and shattering the ones that were already cracked.
For a moment, Fluttershy was in awe of the attack she had just unleashed. After a few precious seconds passed, she remembered what she still needed to do. Another charge shot was ready, and she fired it at one of the cracked nodes. She was flown toward the other node and slammed her club into it. With all five nodes destroyed, the blasting cap broke off, revealing the inside of the Reset Bomb. A glowing yellow orb sat in the center of the bomb, held in place by a thick collection of vines.
“The core’s exposed,” Celestia said. “Now break apart the secondary explosive in the center!” She brought Fluttershy directly underneath the bomb, giving her a clearer shot at the secondary explosive.
Fluttershy gripped the Halo Club tightly in her hoof again and focused on Celestia’s magic. She swung her club around, briefly generating four more twisters around the bomb’s core. The yellow orb cracked and started to come loose from the vines. Fluttershy fired another charge shot, causing further damage to the yellow orb. It would take a few more seconds for her weapon to charge up again. Fluttershy took the time to glance down at the earth below. By this point, she and the bomb had already fallen through the clouds. She couldn’t see any earth ponies on the ground, but she was certain that if any of them looked up, they could see the Reset Bomb falling toward them.
The Halo Club finished charging up, and Fluttershy launched a charge shot at the cracked yellow orb within the core. The attack broke apart the orb, completely dislodging it from the vines inside. Celestia pulled Fluttershy out from under the bomb, and the two of them watched as it flipped around in its descent. The broken pieces of the yellow orb spilled out of the core and exploded in midair as the bomb flipped upside-down. Now that they were no longer inside the bomb, the bomb couldn’t fully detonate, and the exploding fragments were no more dangerous than an afternoon fireworks display.
“I don’t believe this!” Luna said.
“I know, isn’t it wonderful?” Celestia said.
“Yes, now the only victims will be anyone unfortunate enough to be crushed by the bomb casing when it lands,” Discord added.
“Ever the optimist, Discord,” Celestia said. She turned Fluttershy back around and guided her back up through the clouds. “But we can’t rest yet, Fluttershy. Luna has a Reset Bomb factory that we need to shut down. Once it’s gone, that will be the end of these horrid things.”
Fluttershy soared up into the air, quickly shooting past the clouds again and reached the clear blue sky. As soon as she breached the cloud cover, she saw several Nutskis and Bladers flying above.
“CHILDREN!” Luna said. “WE MUST PROTECT THE RESET BOMB DEPOT!” Her troops started shooting at Fluttershy, and were soon joined by additional Nutskis and Bladers. Lasers fired down at Fluttershy, but wherever they were coming from, it was too high up for her to see. Celestia guided her through the laser fire while she swung her club, deflecting enemy shots back at the Forces of Nature.
“It won’t work, Luna,” Fluttershy said. “I’m going to shut down your bomb depot. Then I’m coming after you and making you pay for the destruction you’ve caused.”
“This is new,” Luna said. “A bit brazen for thee, little pony, but I think thou shall find thyself the destructive one.”
The laser fire quickly stopped, but in addition to Nutskis and Bladers, several Badoots fell toward Fluttershy from a floating island that came into view. Fluttershy deflected the projectiles of the Nutskis and Bladers and struck any enemies that came near her, especially the Badoots.
Before long, Fluttershy flew up the side of the floating island and rose above it. Several buildings were scattered across the island, as well as a few isolated groups of tall crystal structures. Many plants grew on the island, ranging from flowers, trees and grasses to vines, ivy and moss, making the terrain extremely diverse.
“We’re approaching the Reset Bomb Depot,” Celestia said. “I’ll look for a place to land.”
Celestia guided Fluttershy around the Reset Bomb Depot. Several Trynamites floated up from the island, hurling pieces of their cores at Fluttershy. Fluttershy evaded the shrapnel and flew around the island’s perimeter. The island had plenty of flat areas that she could land in, but Celestia had her pass over them, apparently looking for the best location to attack the depot from. Six Bladers moved to attack her, though two were struck with her club when they flew too close. Fluttershy fired a charge shot at another two, and the last two were killed by their own deflected shots.
Eventually, Celestia brought Fluttershy to an area above the island, about half a mile inland. Apart from the clusters of crystal and exotic flora, Fluttershy could also see a nearby lake. “Prepare for landing,” Celestia said. “It could get a little rough.” Celestia’s magic flared throughout Fluttershy’s wings, causing her to soar up into the air above the bomb depot, and then rapidly plummet back down.
* * * * * * * * * *
Fluttershy lay in the middle of a small landing platform on the surface of the Reset Bomb Depot. She brought her hooves underneath her and stood back up before placing a hoof on her aching head.
“Strolling in without reinforcements?” Luna said. “Brave, but foolish. RISE, CHILDREN! POLITELY DESTROY OUR GUEST!”
“Princess Celestia, why did you have to crash me into the ground like that?” Fluttershy said, still holding her hoof to her head. “You used to give me such smooth landings.” Her Halo Club lay on the ground next to her. She picked it up with her teeth and started along the platform, dragging the heavy weapon along the way. Three Nutskis rose from beneath the platform and floated ahead of her. Transferring the club from her mouth to her hoof, she swung the weapon, sending a charge shot at the three of them. The shot struck all three of them, and Fluttershy moved her club back to her teeth.
The path from the landing platform led to a small square terrace with a single tree in the center. As soon as Fluttershy walked into the terrace, a spherical bomb with two wheels and a faceplate dropped in. Fluttershy cocked an eyebrow at the object as it wheeled itself toward her, fuse already lit.
“What’s that?” Fluttershy asked.
“That’s a Bumpety Bomb,” Luna said.
“Cute name,” Celestia said. “It almost feels wrong to destroy it.”
Fluttershy continued to watch the Bumpety Bomb as it rolled toward her. As soon as it was within swinging range, she belted it with her club, tossing it into the tree in the middle of the terrace. The creature exploded on impact with the tree, but a second one dropped in before the smoke could even clear. Fluttershy then slammed her club into the ground, releasing a charge shot that knocked the Bumpety Bomb off of the terrace. She heard the Bumpety Bomb explode below the terrace and then moved on.
“I brought a Cherubot for you,” Celestia said. Fluttershy looked ahead and spotted the vehicle a little further down the path. She quickened her pace as much as the Halo Club would allow and jumped into the cockpit. She placed the club down in an empty space in the cockpit and placed her hooves on the controls. The Cherubot came to life immediately, standing upright and hovering an inch of the ground.
“I can’t imagine that pile of metal is very fuel efficient,” Luna said.
“Actually, it’s powered by my magic, which is completely renewable,” Celestia said.
Fluttershy piloted the Cherubot into a courtyard, where two Urgles stood on guard. The Urgles, mobile treelike creatures with gangly arms, noticed Fluttershy’s arrival, but before they could attack, one of them was shot from behind by a Skuttler Cannoneer. Two more Skuttlers stood by the cannoneer before running toward the Urgles.
“Discord!” Luna said. “Get thy filthy troops out of my bomb depot!”
“You’re awfully cute when you’re flustered, moondrop,” Discord said.
One of the Urgles rushed at the three Skuttlers and placed its arms underneath one of them. Cradling the Skuttler in its claws for a second, it then tossed its arms up, throwing the Skuttler into the air and over the courtyard’s walls. Fluttershy then fired at both the Urgle and the remaining Skuttlers, taking them out with the Cherubot’s gun. The second Urgle ran toward the Cherubot and placed its claws underneath it, but Fluttershy punched through the creature’s wooden body with the Cherubot’s other arm.
The path leading from the courtyard continued over a raised ledge. Unable to get the Cherubot to jump onto the ledge, Fluttershy took her Halo Club and climbed over herself, abandoning the vehicle. Continuing along, she eventually reached an electrified fence in the middle of road. The fence, made into an X shape, rotated about its center like a revolving door. Fluttershy approached the revolving fence, but stopped just outside its reach. The only way forward was to slip between the individual fences, but she was certain that the weight of the Halo Club would slow her down.
Taking a second to steel herself, Fluttershy picked up her club with her mouth and watched the fence rotate. One of the fence’s arms passed by her as she stared at it. She waited to properly time her run through, even as the next arm passed by. When the third arm passed in front of her, Fluttershy jumped in, dragging her weapon along. She started lagging behind the moment she ran into the trap, cutting a straight line through its section of the path. Quickly rushing ahead she reached the other side, even managing to pull her club away before the fence caught it.
Past the electrical trap, Fluttershy reached a wall surrounding the entrance to a building. A section of the wall opened for her, allowing her into a circular enclosure where two Skuttlers were fighting one of Luna’s soldiers, a Boom Stomper.
“More Underworld forces!” Luna said in exasperation.
The two Skuttlers ran toward the Boom Stomper, a tall rock with two stubby legs and a single leaf on its head. Fluttershy swung her club, sending a charge shot at the Boom Stomper while the Skuttlers attacked it with their bone clubs. “I get what Luna has against Discord,” she said. “He’s destructive and evil. But what does Discord have against Luna?”
“I think you answered your own question,” Celestia said. “This is fun for him.”
“Five points for the squares,” Discord said. “It’s true. This is just my idea of a good time. Not that you serious ladies would know anything about having a good time.”
The Boom Stomper deliberately fell onto the two Skuttlers, crushing them under its weight. It tried to stand back up, but Fluttershy fired a charge shot at it, finishing it off. “Don’t you dare compare Princess Celestia to that monster!” she said.
“That's 'Goddess of Nature' to thee,” Luna said with a scowl.
Fluttershy ignored Luna and stepped into the building nearby. Once inside, she stepped onto a small blue platform in the floor, which started taking her underground.
“You’d think the lord of the Underworld would be too busy to spread mayhem,” Celestia said.
“Oh, no,” Discord said. “Spreading mayhem is one of my principle responsibilities.”
After a few seconds, Fluttershy reached the bottom of the elevator shaft and found herself in the middle of a huge cavern within the Reset Bomb Depot. She stepped off the platform and found that she was standing on one of several stone walkways suspended in the air. Light shone through several holes in the cavern walls, dimly illuminating the walkways and walls with a blue hue. In the center of the cavern, an enormous stalactite extended from the ceiling down to the very bottom, above another large illuminated hole. She moved away from the elevator and started traveling down one of the walkways. Two Nutskis flew down to attack her, but were intercepted by the attacks of two Monoeyes that had also made their way inside the depot.
“We’re approaching the bottom of the fortress,” Celestia said.
“Everything seems to be made out of natural materials,” Fluttershy said, her eyes still scanning the underground caverns.
“Reset Bombs must grow like fruit,” Celestia said.
“Organic fruit,” Luna interjected.
“And when it’s ripe, it falls off the vine and just organically destroys everything in its path?” Discord said.
“That’s not exactly right.”
“But I’m in the ballpark, aren’t I?”
“Nature dictates that all life must eventually break down,” Luna said. “This is but an accelerated version of the process.”
Fluttershy continued exploring the inside of the bomb depot. Along the way, a Dibble Dop tried to intercept her, but was attacked by an Underworld Daphne. Fluttershy didn’t seem to pay it much mind. She was here to destroy the Reset Bomb Depot and strike a painful blow to the Goddess of Nature. As long as it made her mission easier, she didn’t care what the Underworld forces were doing.
Celestia, however, noticed a pattern to the Underworld’s activity around this depot, and her interest was piqued. Though her attention was partially divided, as she was also observing the skies while watching Fluttershy’s progress, she couldn’t help but notice that the Underworld troops were distracting the Forces of Nature. Whenever any of Luna’s troops tried to converge on Fluttershy, Discord’s forces would appear, drawing them away from her if they couldn’t kill them. ‘Odd, why would Discord throw the weight of his army behind this mission?’ Celestia thought.
Fluttershy reached the end of the walkway and found a glowing blue strip of hard light leading away from it. She hopped onto it from the walkway, and as soon as her hooves touched the hard light surface, they started moving along it. Magical energy spread from the surface to her hooves and carried her along in the same way that a grind rail would. Fluttershy continued forward without saying a word, traveling across much of the cavern. Eventually she reached the end of the strip of hard light and landed on a second walkway.
Meanwhile, Luna was also tracking Fluttershy’s progress through the depot, and despite her frustration, something about what she was seeing was a bit peculiar. “Celestia,” she said. “A word?”
“I’m listening,” Celestia said distractedly.
“Dost thou not find thy pegasus’ demeanor a bit strange?” Luna asked. “Two days ago, she was this frightened little pony, and now she acts like she’s out for blood.”
“Luna, you didn’t really think that you could attempt genocide on an entire race without making any enemies, did you?” Celestia said.
“It seems that our dear Loony has brought out the foaming-at-the-mouth side of Fluttershy,” Discord chimed in. “Good luck with that one!”
Before long, Fluttershy reached the end the second walkway, where she found a large platform and a Boom Stomper. Before either one of them could attack the other, the Boom Stomper was pelted by attacks from three Monoeyes. Fluttershy added to the assault by firing a charge shot at the Boom Stomper.
“CHILDREN, FOCUS ON THE PEGASUS!” Luna shouted nervously. “IF THIS FORTRESS FALLS, IT WILL BE THE END OF ALL RESET BOMBS!”
“That’s right,” Celestia said. “Ready yourself, goddess of nature.”
Fluttershy sidestepped the Boom Stomper as it tried to fall on her and finished it off with a swing of her club. Two of the Monoeyes still remained, one of the three having been shot down by a stray charge shot from the Halo Club. Rather than leaving, they both fired at Fluttershy. Fluttershy dodged both of their attacks and launched a charge shot at them.
With the platform clear of all enemies, Fluttershy began to hear a humming sound. Seeing an elevator descend toward the platform, she initially thought it was coming from there. However, she could also hear the same sound coming from behind her. Turning around, she noticed a second elevator appear from below the platform. Cautiously, she approached the second elevator, which brought her down as soon as she stepped on it. The elevator brought her to a platform next to the large stalactite she had seen earlier. Looking at it more closely, Fluttershy realized that the stalactite was actually a plant structure, possibly a root, vine or branch. In addition, an alcove had been carved into the structure, where she saw the entrance to another Zodiac Chamber.
“Why did an elevator in Luna’s bomb depot lead me to this?” Fluttershy asked.
“Probably to delay us,” Celestia said. “This shouldn’t take us too far out of our way, so go ahead and claim the weapon.” Once inside the Zodiac Chamber, Fluttershy found the Virgo Palm, a blue orb with a green design on it floating above the ground. Celestia used her magic to secure the palm, and Fluttershy left the Zodiac Chamber. “While we’re on the subject of weapons, it looks like you’ve finally brought a club into battle. What do you think of it?”
Fluttershy dragged the Halo Club back to the elevator, which took her back up to the higher platform. “It’s very different,” Fluttershy said.
“They do require a different skill set from other weapon types,” Celestia said. “Though they can’t fire continuously, their charged attacks can pass through solid objects, and it’s easier to deflect enemy projectiles by swinging a club compared to other weapons.”
“I always forget how big clubs are,” Luna said, chiming in on the conversation.
“But they’re not as heavy as they look,” Celestia said.
Fluttershy had the handle of the Halo Club in her mouth as she dragged it to the other elevator. “I disagree,” she said, dropping the handle momentarily to speak. She picked up the club again and hauled it to the other elevator, which carried her up from the platform.
“Bigger isn’t always better,” Luna said.
“Small things please small minds,” Celestia said.
“The best things come in small packages!”
“So do small potatoes.”
“Great oaks from little acorns grow!”
“Speak softly and carry a big stick.”
“Are you two still talking about clubs?” Fluttershy asked.
“Not now, Fluttershy,” Celestia said dismissively. “We’re having a sibling rivalry moment.”
“Oh,” Fluttershy said. “Okay then.” The elevator finally stopped its ascent, bringing Fluttershy to a small circular room. Fluttershy opened the door, and her eyes were immediately strained by the light that poured in from the other side of the door. She brought her foreleg to her eyes, shielding them from the harsh yellowish light.
A few moments later, after her eyes adjusted to the light, she looked out at the circular platform that lay on the other side of the door. Various exotic plants grew around the platform and beyond it, and when she looked up, she saw a cloudless blue sky above.
“I’m outside now?” Fluttershy said, sounding a little irritated.
“The path ahead will take you to the heart of the depot,” Celestia said.
“Then why didn’t you land me here?” Fluttershy said. “We could have skipped the entire land battle section.”
“I assure you that there’s a perfectly good reason for that, one that I’m not yet ready to divulge,” Celestia said. “But if it makes you feel any better, I moved the Cherubot to your location.”
Fluttershy noticed the Cherubot off to the side of the circular platform. She jumped into the vehicle, put her club down on the side of the cockpit, and placed her hooves on the controls. Several Nutskis and Dibble Dops rose up from the sides of the platform and surrounded her, but she used the Cherubot’s weaponry to eliminate all of them.
After clearing the platform of enemies, Fluttershy piloted the Cherubot along a winding path. The path ended in front of a tower in the middle of the depot. When she reached the tower, a large enemy in the shape of a fish skeleton floated off to the side. The enemy was a Lurchthorn, and each segment of its skeletal body had a brittle covering with a cannon embedded into it. The cannons started shooting at Fluttershy, some of their attacks pelting the Cherubot she was in while others exploded on impact. Aiming the Cherubot’s gun arm, Fluttershy returned fire, breaking three of the Lurchthorn’s cannons. She then moved to the creature’s head, and after a few seconds of fire, the Lurchthorn was quickly destroyed.
Since the Cherubot was too big to fit through the door, Fluttershy left it behind and entered the tower on her own. Despite being the tallest structure in the depot, the only thing inside the tower was an elevator, which took her underground when she stepped on it. When the elevator stopped, Fluttershy walked through a door in front of her.
* * * * * * * * * *
Fluttershy walked into the energy generator room for the entire Reset Bomb Depot. Large flowers grew along the walls, and a single pod rested in the center of the room. The pod was attached to a much larger orange flower growing on the ceiling, keeping it suspended above a hole in the floor. Yellow light shone from the hole, illuminating the pod and providing the rest of the room with light.
“Fluttershy, destroy the Reset Bomb Pod to shut down the entire depot!” Celestia said.
Fluttershy transferred the handle of her Halo Club from her mouth to her right hoof.
“Not so fast!” Luna said. “GUARDS! AWAKEN AND REPORT FOR DUTY!”
A howl echoed throughout the generator room. Fluttershy looked around the room, hearing the sound of wood striking against the ground. Four creatures ran around the hole in the ground, stopping just in front of the Reset Bomb Pod. They appeared to be wolves, but instead of being flesh-and-blood creatures, they’re bodies were made of twigs and various pieces of wood. They’re eyes glowed green, and they snarled at Fluttershy.
“Thou should not have gotten a filly involved in a war with the gods, Celestia,” Luna said. “Perhaps thou should extract her before she is torn limb from limb by my Timber…” She stopped in midsentence and did a double take at what was happening inside the generator room.
The four Timber Wolves Luna had stationed to defend the Reset Bomb Pod were sitting obediently around Fluttershy. Two of them had their wooden tongues hanging out, and a third one was being petted by Fluttershy.
“Fluttershy has an uncanny way of taming even the most feral creatures,” Celestia said. “Did I neglect to mention that?”
“Rrgh, I should have sent more soldiers!” Luna said. “More competent soldiers!”
“Sorry about that,” Discord said. “I’m afraid they’re busy fighting my guys.”
“Now would be a good time for you to look away, Luna,” Celestia said. “I don’t think you’ll like what’s about to happen.”
Fluttershy pulled her hoof away from the Timber Wolves and reached down for the Halo Club. “Quick Charge,” she said. Blue light flashed over her body for a split second. One of the Timber Wolves started to look up, only to be struck when Fluttershy swung her weapon. A few pieces of wood came loose from it, but the bulk of its body was thrown into the Reset Bomb Pod. The Timber Wolf slammed harmlessly against the pod’s hard, metallic shell and then fell into the hole underneath the pod.
An explosion was triggered within the hole underneath the Reset Bomb Pod, causing the metallic shell over it to pull back. With the shell gone, the soft, glowing pink pod was exposed. The other three Timber Wolves were taken aback, but none of them acted quickly enough to stop Fluttershy from firing a charge shot at them. The charge shot threw one of them off the ground and into the Reset Bomb Pod, driving pieces of wood into the pod and spreading cracks through it. Fluttershy slammed her club into the third Timber Wolf, and then the fourth one.
The Halo Club’s next charge shot was immediately ready, and Fluttershy launched it directly at the pod. With numerous cracks and fragments of wood already embedded into its surface, the pod broke apart after Fluttershy’s charge shot, causing fragments of it to fall into the hole underneath. The ground underneath Fluttershy’s hooves shook violently, causing her to stumble for a moment. Yellow light shone down on her, and within a few seconds, Celestia’s magic extracted her from the depot.
Back outside, an explosion rocked the base of the tower, causing it to tip over. Large chunks of rock and crystal crumbled away from the island, and the Reset Bomb Depot began to fall from the sky.
“My depot!” Luna said. “Celestia, this is not over!”
“I know, Luna,” Celestia said. “Just like I know about your second Reset Bomb Depot, floating approximately 732 miles southeast of the one Fluttershy just destroyed.”
“What? How dost thou know about my other…” Luna froze in midsentence when she used her magic to find her second bomb depot. What she saw instead was a floating island crumbling in midair, crystal spires shattering due to extreme heat, and a massive fire consuming every single plant on the surface of the island. “What happened to my other bomb depot?!”
“That was my Solar Flare spell,” Celestia said. “I knew you couldn’t have a second Reset Bomb ready so soon after detonating the first one, not unless you had more than one factory to grow them in. So by sending Fluttershy to attack one of your Reset Bomb Depots, I distracted you long enough to search for the second one myself.”
“Bravo, Celestia, bravo,” Discord said. “Except that there’s one detail you overlooked. You see, Luna has a third Reset Bomb Depot.”
Before either Celestia or Luna could respond, a fourth voice rang out through the telepathic connection. “Oh, the horror! The horror! I can't even bear to watch!”
“Wait!” Celestia said. “Was that…”
“Oh, my mistake,” Discord said. “She had a third one.”
“That doesn’t make any sense,” Celestia said. “Why would you help me attack Luna?”
“Were you expecting me to ally with her?” Discord said. “Just because she and I have a common goal and a common enemy? I thought about it, and some of Luna’s toys do look fun. Unfortunately, her Reset Bombs stopped the earth pony war I worked so hard to create, and as much as it pains me to say, the earth ponies are much better at killing each other than Luna and her army. As you can see, I just can’t have that.”
‘And if it means harvesting a few thousand souls from the Forces of Nature, it’s fine by me,’ Discord thought. He chose to keep that last musing to himself.
“Forget the earth ponies!” Luna said. “I have three new enemies to kill now! And once I find out who destroyed my third bomb depot, I’ll hunt him down too!”
Celestia cut off her connection to the telepathic call. Today’s mission had ended successfully, but stopping now would waste a valuable opportunity to further weaken Luna’s forces. Tonight, she and Fluttershy would proceed with the next phase of her plan.