//------------------------------// // Part 7-2 // Story: A Blaze Brought Forth Again // by Tyler-the-Brony //------------------------------// The Battle Chapter 2: Casualties “You two seem different from most of the others here. Why is that?” Blaze Bringer questioned Shift and Breeze Rider, the two ponies directly before him. “I doubt you truly care Blaze Bringer. You’re just wondering whether we’d make better Sabrei than corpses.” Breeze Rider bit back at the alicorn. “Perhaps I am considering that possibility. Your tenacity is stronger than most I have encountered though, so you would not be made into Sabrei easily. Making you corpses will be far easier.” Blaze Bringer smiled as he levitated his Celestial Scythe in front of his body. Before Breeze Rider or Shift could do more than get into a battle stance, a shadow charged over them towards Blaze Bringer, malice and power in the voice that bore it. “You will not get past me Blaze Bringer! I fight for Equestria itself!” Rafiq bellowed at Blaze Bringer as he charged the evil alicorn with his shield held in front of his body. Blaze Bringer looked quizzically at the Captain before him, feeling certain he had somehow seen the colt before. As Blaze Bringer blocked Rafiq’s shield bashing by impaling his Celestial Scythe within it, he leaned closer to Rafiq’s face. “Tell me colt. Who was your father?” Blaze bringer questioned Rafiq, while the stallion freed himself from Blaze Bringer’s grip. “My father was named Blunt Blade, and he was a Captain under your rule 11 years ago! Though he served you, I serve Princess Celestia and Princess Luna! And you will do no harm to them this day!” Rafiq shouted back at Blaze Bringer as he charged again, this time with his mallet in hoof. Blaze Bringer smiled maliciously as Rafiq charged him yet again. In one swift movement of his magic, Blaze Bringer cut away a portion of Rafiq’s left side and Rafiq crashed to the ground beside him, in pain as he had never felt before. “It seems there are some truths to old sayings. You are truly like your father Rafiq.” Blaze Bringer laughed at Rafiq as he lay quivering on the ground from Blaze Bringer’s attack. As Blaze Bringer surveyed Rafiq one last time, three shadows appeared over his shoulders, signalling another incoming attack. Breeze Rider and Shift had seen Rafiq’s defeat as not only a great loss, but their chance to launch an attack on Blaze Bringer first. Shift had closed his eyes, claiming he could somehow hit Blaze Bringer better like that and had gone left and high, while Breeze Rider had unsheated the sword he had chosen as his weapon for this battle and gone right and low. Zuli had seen the opportunity to attack from above, and had taken to covering any blind-spots he observed in Shift and Breeze Rider’s assault. Blaze Bringer did not have enough time to avoid every attack, so he chose to simply dodge Breeze Rider’s while Shift’s punch and Zuli’s Arrows Connected and he was sent spiralling a distance away. While Blaze Bringer crashed into a few nearby tree’s, Breeze Rider, Shift, and Zuli rendezvoused so as to prepare to attack again. “Are you okay Breeze Rider? He didn’t counterattack you when he dodged did he?” Shift asked Breeze Rider. “No. I managed to escape that attack unscathed. Thanks to Zuli. What are you doing here anyway Zuli? What about the rooftop battle?” Breeze Rider asked the Archer, all the while wondering if Fluttershy was still okay. “We were attacked by a great number of fighters there. They were attempting to hold us there, so in a split second we decided it would be better if some of us escaped so that they couldn’t keep all of us on the rooftop. I left with Applejack and Diamond Bolt, though we separated quickly. I saw Rafiq fall as well as your incoming attack, so I joined in.” Zuli quickly explained. “Well, thanks for coming. But look alive. He’s back.” Shift added, directing his attention to the rising form of Blaze Bringer. Blaze Bringer rose quickly, and then disappeared in a flourish of flames, reappearing where he had been moments before the attack. After jokingly resetting his jaw, Blaze Bringer focused upon the three common ponies that were strongest in his sister’s army. “An impressive punch Shift. You certainly do have some sort of odd power about you. The same compliment to you Zuli. Though you’ll find my flames far harder to extinguish than those of my Sabrei.” Blaze Bringer smiled as he levitated his Scythe once more in front of him, before quickly disappearing into flames again. Breeze Rider quickly focused his Premonitions, hoping to gain a quick glimpse of how Blaze Bringer would attack them. As he at last saw the Vision he sought, Breeze Rider moved to quickly yell out to his comrades. “Move! Now!” Breeze Rider screamed as he shoved Shift aside slightly, just as Blaze Bringer appeared in front of them and swung his Scythe in a manner that would have certainly bifurcated Shift had he not been moved by Breeze Rider. As it was, Breeze Rider caught most of the Scythe’s slash, causing him to feel the same pain he had felt when he lost his wings. Shift caught the edge of Blaze Bringer’s first attack, and keeled over as he felt indescribable pain spread throughout his body. Zuli attempted to summon an arrow in time to stop Blaze Bringer, but Blaze Bringer quickly shifted his Scythe and caught Zuli shallowly across his chest and left wing as Zuli had attempted to take to the air. Within a single fluid attack, Blaze Bringer had brought down all three stallions. “Let us see who else dares defy me.” Blaze Bringer spoke aloud as he trotted past Zuli and towards the remainder of Canterlot’s fighting force. Zuli attempted to stand upon his hooves again quickly, but the Scythe’s slash had stripped him of much of his strength. Zuli slowly crawled instead over to Shift, the only other currently conscious pony. “Shift…We need to help Breeze Rider…and Rafiq.” Zuli breathed heavily to Shift, his strength returning extremely slowly. “How…can we help him? That Scythe…it cut us to our souls right?” Shift asked Zuli, his strength still mostly gone too. “Breeze Rider….took the brunt of the attack….our souls are healing…because they were simply grazed. Breeze Rider’s soul….is destroyed…and Rafiq’s…is slowly fading away entirely. We must….awaken Breeze Rider a new soul….and heal Rafiq’s.” Zuli explained to Shift, hoping he would understand. “How can we do that?” Shift asked, secretly already knowing the answer to his own question thanks to Discord. “You must will it to happen. If we can find Cream, she can heal our physical wounds, but you are the only pony with the power to distort reality to his will. You are the only one….that can heal their souls. I know you can.” Zuli stated quietly to Shift, knowing that he was not the first to tell Shift of this power he possessed. *** “It appears as though I truly have already faced the best the commoners can offer me.” Blaze Bringer spoke to the group of ponies before him, all of them extremely fatigued from fighting so many Sabrei before his own arrival. Before Blaze Bringer, there lay Nova Fusion, Quick-Fix, Clockwork, Diamond Bolt, Cream, and Bam. Most of their Crossbows was destroyed beyond repair, and Nova and Quick-Fix were both already unconscious from their wounds and exhaustion. Cream and Clockwork lay struggling to breath properly on the ground. Diamond Bolt stood very shakily upon his hooves, partially in front of Clockwork in a subconscious attempt to keep her safe. Bam was the only pony who remained fully on her hooves. “Your arrogance for thinking you could defeat me is great, but you ignorance of your own limitations is greater than even that. I commend you, but I advise you simply lay down and fade away as I conquer the remainder of Canterlot.” Blaze Bringer spoke mostly to Bam and Diamond Bolt, but his words held impact for everypony present. “You…won’t win.” Diamond Bolt weakly told Blaze Bringer, issuing a laugh from the alicorn. “I doubt that very much. I have not even had to use my Scythe against you, and you were an entire division of my sister’s forces. I will not have to try hard to finish what I began.” Blaze Bringer taunted Diamond Bolt. “You can’t beat our spirits down! We’ll outlast you!” Bam screamed at Blaze Bringer as she charged him with the last of the energy. Bam never heard the yells of those behind her, or the sounds of battle around her once she began to charge. Bam simply saw Blaze Bringer in front of her and slowly watched as he prepared to stop her. As soon as Bam’s last charge had begun, it had ended. Bam lay on the ground in front of Blaze Bringer, devoid of life. The Celestial Scythe had now taken its second full victim. “Foalish child. Spirit alone is no match for overwhelming power. I hope she speaks as an example to the rest of you. I have dallied enough about this battle. It is time I meet my sister’s.” Blaze Bringer slowly spoke as he walked away from Bam’s body for a short time, before disappearing into his dark flames once more. Cream, Clockwork, and Diamond Bolt forced themselves onto their hooves and galloped over to Bam, hoping more than anything that Blaze Bringer had miscalculated his attack. As Cream examined Bam’s eyes though, it became fully apparent that she was gone. As Diamond Bolt screamed at this news, Octavia and Pinkie both somehow seemed to hear him over all the other sounds of battle. *** “How’ve you been little Spike?” Garble leered at the small dragon and his three fellow hiding citizens. Garble had easily torn through Canterlot Castle with his new power, homing in on the faint traces of Spike’s scent to eventually locate him in the lowest level of the Castle. “You! Why are you here? Why do you look like that? Go away!” Spike screamed at Garble, trying to gather the Cutie Mark Crusaders directly behind him with his claws. “No can do Spike. I’m part of Blaze Bringer’s Sabrei army now, and he taxed me with eliminating the Element of Magic. I can practically smell its power from you as well as that purple pony on the roof, so destroying you should wreck it as well.” Garble laughed as the fear in Spike’s eyes only grew larger at his words. As Garble moved to strike Spike down with one of his claws, a beam of magic caught him full in the back. Even with his enhanced defenses as a Sabrei, the magic sent Garble flying. Spike looked for the source of the magic that had saved him and the Cutie Mark Crusaders, and was honestly surprised to see Twilight as its caster. “Twilight!” Spike cried as he, Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo ran over to her and hugged her tightly. Garble’s roar shot up from the rubble where Twilight had buried him, and the Spike and the fillies quickly fully hid behind Twilight. Garble emerged from the rubble shortly thereafter, only a little worse for wear, but far angrier. “You think you can take me alone do you?” Garble challenged Twilight, tensing his claws as he did so. “She ain’t alone no more!” Applejack called out from the staircase situated behind Twilight, shocking everypony, with both Rarity and Hay Bale alongside her. “Three Elements of Harmony are no different to me than one!” Garble screamed as he charged Twilight. Hay Bale charged faster though, and caught Garble full on in the stomach just as both reached their top charging speed. Hay Bale continued to push Garble back, right until they were against the far wall of the basement of the Castle. “I’m no Element of Harmony, but you’ve got to deal with me too pal!” Hay Bale shouted as he punched Garble, attempting to hold him where he was as long as he could. “Hay Bale!” Applejack cried out as she and Rarity at last reached Twilight and the others location in the Basement. “I’ll hold him for a bit! Try to think of some way to stop him!” Hay Bale called back just as Garble roared and slashed his stomach twice. “Twilight! What can we do with the Elements we have?” Rarity quickly questioned Twilight, hoping her most logical friend had some idea of what to do. “We can seal him in Crystalized magic! Focus on you Elements girls!” Twilight quickly answered, focusing on her Element of magic immediately as she finished. Rarity and Applejack quickly followed Twilight’s example. Soon after, Red, Purple, and White beams of Magic were being aimed at garble just as he succeeded in pushing the now limp Hay Bale off of him. Garble charged at Twilight and Spike again even through the Elements of Magic, Honesty, and Generosity’s influence, though their magic was slowly affecting him. Just as Garble reached a place in the Basement only a few feet away from the others, he finally froze, fully encased in what could only be called a Magical Diamond the size of a house in Ponyville. As Garble at last no longer became a threat, Applejack charged down the hall to check on Hay Bale’s condition. Hay Bale was injured and bleeding slightly, but he assured Applejack he’d be fine. “I’m glad to have my war marks AJ. Besides, I have to stick around for you and the foal. I won’t clock out yet.” Hay Bale assured Applejack, taking her hoof in his own as he did. Twilight smiled at the love between Hay Bale and Applejack as Rarity hugged Sweetie Belle and Spike climbed up on her back. Just as Apple Bloom prepared to run down the hall and join Applejack and Hay Bale, a tremendous force shook the entirety of the Castle, causing everypony in the Basement to turn towards its source, and hurriedly wonder what could be happening now. *** Rainbow Dash quickly looped around and hit Gilda a good few times as she at last achieved a Sonic Rainboom. Gilda had definitely been faster than her before now, but like Sky Wing had told her, only Rainbow Dash could go Sonic Rainboom speed. After about the 10th pass, Gilda at last was knocked unconscious and started to fall towards the ground. Sabrei or not, Gilda had once been Rainbow’s friend, so she quickly passed under her and rested her on the closest cloud. Rainbow then looped the entirety of the battlefield, knocking out any remaining and conscious Sabrei that got in her way while she did it. Eventually, Rainbow came to rest on the Rooftop of the Castle once more, just as Crackle at last fell from Skeptic’s punches, shortly after Shred and Scale had fallen before Vinyl, Octavia, Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Violet. “Pinkie. Octavia. You need to come to the Ground Battlefield now. There’s something the both of you need to see, though you won’t like it.” Rainbow dejectedly told her friends, both their faces portraying the worry Rainbow had been certain her words would create.