Chapter 8: The Ballad of Enka Punk
Canterlot. The capital of Equestria, the city was constructed on the side of the Himarelayan Mountains. Though the city is home to many businesses and social gatherings, the most attractive, important, and famous building is the Canterlot Castle, “Minas Anor”. There, both the Princesses and their Parliament govern Equestria in relative peace, any uprisings quickly squashed by the Elements of Harmony. It served as a symbol of protection and hope for the citizens of the country. It also served as the final battleground for Mega Stallion’s war against the robots.
He teleported onto the streets of the city, finding it deserted, much like Ponyville. A large magical bubble surrounded the city, protecting its ponies from any threats attempting to enter the city through traditional means. They weren’t expecting a teleport system, were they? He began galloping towards the castle, ready to face his final opponents. The tall towers in the distance seemed to beckon for Mega Stallion, marking his destination.
Looking around as he ran, he noticed that a few ponies were on the streets or looking out windows. As soon as they saw him coming, they went for any kind of cover they could find. Closed their curtains, hid inside trash cans, or crawled under cardboard boxes. News travels fast. For a city so afraid of danger, it appears they haven’t seen it yet. Everything here is clean.
The gate for the castle loomed over him in an upright position, guards patrolling the front entrances. I’m going to need to find another way in. Using the bushes as cover, he snuck to the back end of the castle. Looking for any kind of secret entrance, he saw a rope hanging from an upper window, like it was still there from an earlier attempt to sneak in. He considered using the convenient setup, but dismissed the idea. “Too obvious. Most likely a trap. Need to find something better than that.”
His searches brought him to the castle garden, where the animals were surprisingly still outside, unprotected. Looks like somepony doesn’t care about the animals. A crowd of bushes caught his attention, where something looked off. Upon further investigation, the center bush looked quite different from the ones surrounding it, and it sat atop a stone plate. Pushing the stone plate revealed a hidden passageway into the castle basements. That’s what I call a secret entrance, he thought as he jumped down into the darkness.
After emerging from the murky basements through a hidden floor panel in a coat room, Mega Stallion found himself near the main entrance hall. Walking into the event room, the doors shut, curtains closed, and a voice began talking.
“So, you’ve finally come, blue robot. This shall be your final resting place, where you will pay for the crimes you’ve committed. Welcome to die!”
A second voice spoke up. “Scootaloo, what does that mean? ‘Welcome tah die’? That doesn’t sound right.”
The first voice replied. “It is right, Apple Bloom! I heard it from somewhere before, I’m sure of it! Right, Sweetie Belle?”
A third voice joined the conversation. “I don’t know, Scootaloo. It doesn’t sound grammatically correct.”
Voice one, Scootaloo, spoke back. “Of course, leave it to the dictionary to insult my talking.”
Voice three, Sweetie Belle, was starting to get angry, her voice cracking in a high pitch. “Well, it beats being a dodo like you!”
Voice two, Apple Bloom, decided to end the argument. “Alright you two! Break it up! We have a job to do, remember?”
Mega Stallion was getting bored of this bickering, and lit the room up with his magic, revealing three fillies standing on the stage, all dressed in armor. “I don’t want to fight fillies, okay? I’m just going to leave now.” He began to walk out of the room.
The three fillies all jumped in front of the door, and began to speak in unison. “Halt! You will not leave here alive! You will pay for the grave injustices you have committed! Prepare to face the wrath of…” Each one stepped forward as they introduced themselves.
“Enker,” said Apple Bloom.
“Punk,” said Scootaloo.
Sweetie Belle finished it off. “And Ballade! Together we are…”
Once again in unison, the three all yelled “THE CUTIE MARK CRUSADER MEGA STALLION KILLERS!”
Mega Stallion was less than impressed or worried. “How long did you have to rehearse that? I don’t have any business with you three, so move aside. I’ve got a job to do.”
Apple Bloom, in her shining gold armor, disagreed. “You gotta deal with us! It’s payback for fighting mah sister Applejack!”
Sweetie Belle, in her blue armor, joined her friend. “And for my sister, Rarity!”
Scootaloo, in her spiky red armor, just wanted to be part of the conversation. “For Rainbow Dash!”
Rainbow Dash? Oh, Quick Mare. She never did say her real name. “Your sister?”
“No, not my sister.” Scootaloo looked away and muttered under her breath, “Not yet, anyway.”
Mega Stallion shrugged their determination off. “Yes yes, that’s very cute and all, but you should really stay out of this, or you could get hurt. Just leave the fighting to the big ponies, alright? And where did you get those armors from, anyway?”
Apple Bloom made a pouting face. “Ah am a big pony! And Princess Celestia gave us these!”
“So now she’s letting kids do her fighting for her? What kind of coward is she?”
Scootaloo was getting tired of the conversation. She was a fast-paced pony, and wanted to get the excitement already. “Enough of this! You’ve committed your crimes, and now you must face your penalty! You will welcome die!” Nodding, all three fillies charged towards Mega Stallion.
“I don’t want to do this, but you’re not giving me a choice.” He began charging his buster, and began the fight.
Princess Celestia sat in her private study, watching over her country through the windows. She knew that her warriors had fallen at the hands of a robot, and would be coming for her soon. Based on what Twilight had written to her, she could tell that her guards would not be enough to stop this incredibly fighting machine. She couldn’t abandon her subjects during this grave time, so all she could do was wait.
Here was Mega Stallion. The ultimate combat robot created by Doctor Light. He had defeated the eight Robot Masters personally sent by the Princess to defend her country. He had proven that he was the best there was. And right now, he was getting his flank kicked by three little fillies.
Any time he tried to fire at one of them, Enker would jump in front of the blast and absorb it into her spear. Once fully absorbed, she would swing the spear forward, sending an energy wave towards Mega Stallion. No matter how he dodged it, Punk would barrel into him using a spin attack, sending him flying into one of Ballade’s bombs. Much more of this, and I won’t last long. There needs to be some kind of strategy I haven’t thought of yet.
He got knocked into the wall, looked up, and noticed a decoration above him. It was made to represent the warrior history that Equestria had. But more importantly, the purely for decoration sword was a real, very sharp sword. This should do nicely. Now, he had a plan.
He shot at Enker, knowing what was going to happen next. Sure enough, the shot came back to him, where he rolled to the side, standing back up to see Punk coming towards him. He held the sword in front of him, holding Punk’s spin back as she grinded against the blade. A simple upwards fling of the sword was enough to get her out of the way.
Ballade, now unsure of what to do, began to panic. Just like her sister before her. She fired one of her bombs, which he batted back using the flat side of the sword. Enker, now the only one standing, swung her spear. He blocked, and the two entered a power struggle. While Enker had her strength enhanced by the armor, it was still no match for a grown robot stallion. He threw her off balance and swung his sword, calling out “What a pain!”
“That’s enough, fillies. Retreat. I’ll handle him.”
The self-proclaimed Mega Stallion Killers wanted to protest, but their general difficulty in moving put those ideas to rest. The three were enveloped in a flash of light as they were teleported out of the room. That was most certainly not their magic. Who’s the other one here? He could tell it was a stallion, ruling out the possibility that this was his final duel.
A white unicorn walked into the room, wearing purple colored armor designating him as the Captain of the Royal Guard. Though it was difficult to see under his helmet, his mane was the same shades of blue as Mega Stallion’s coat. He was brandishing a sword of his own.
“My name is Shining Armor. I’m the Captain of the Guard here, and as such, it is my sworn duty to protect the Princess from invaders like you. I’m giving you one chance to surrender yourself, and you will be put on trial for your crimes. Refuse, and I’ll have to kill you.”
“Funny enough, I could give you that same bargain. I’m on a mission here, so I’d really appreciate it if you would just stand aside and let me past. I’ve beaten eleven before you, all with armor better than yours. You don’t stand a chance.”
Shining Armor was starting to get angry. “This isn’t just a matter of duty. This is personal. You already fought my sister. Twilight Sparkle, do you remember her? Or do you just fight without care?”
Mega Stallion let out a sigh of frustration. “Seriously, did I fight everypony’s sister at this point? Twilight Sparkle, yes, I remember. I make a point to learn the names of everypony I fight. I at least try to have some honor in what I’m doing.”
“As do I. My honor is the reason I come before you with nothing but the armor I was given when I took up my position. It is also the reason I was willing to offer a more peaceful option to you, as much as you don’t deserve it.”
“So please! Let me through. Haven’t you seen what it’s like down there in Ponyville? It’s chaos! It’s my job to stop it, and I won’t let anypony stand in my way. If you want to fight, I’m willing to.”
“So, you’re going to either fight or die? I’m willing to take that offer. But let’s keep this fair. Only swords. May the better stallion win.”
Their two swords collided and pressed against each other, grinding the sharp metals. Both fought with precision, each swing perfectly dealt and blocked. Power struggles meant nothing, as both were of equal strength. He’s got to be strong, able to stand up to the push of a combat robot.
Shining Armor also understood that this battle was going nowhere. “Alright, all rules are off. Magic…allowed!” As soon as the words left his mouth, he held his sword back and charged his horn, filling the blade with magical energy. Releasing it, the sword carried Shining Armor forward in a lunge attack, which Mega Stallion discovered he could not block.
He laid on the ground, looking at the two pieces of metal that were once his sword, sliced through the middle. Well, let’s see how well his sword stands up to plasma blasts. He began rapid firing shots, which Shining Armor blocked using a personal bubble shield, same color and magical energy as the one surrounding the city, which was now beginning to weaken.
No matter how good the shield, a well placed attack will always get through. Mega Stallion lunged forward with a punch, colliding with the shield. It shattered, and his hoof met Shining Armor’s face, sending him to the floor. In a distinct position to end the Captain of the Guard right there, he used his magic to grab the sword and the sheath that had held it.
Shining Armor closed his eyes, knowing exactly what would come next. His next thought, he figured, would be his final act of life. Cadence, I’m sorry. I failed. But nothing came. He opened his eyes to see Mega Stallion strapping the sheath to his body and putting away the sword. “What are you doing? I’m here, I’m defenseless, I accept my defeat.”
“No. I’m not like that. I will not kill an opponent. You put up a good fight against nearly impossible odds. For that, I respect you. Now, I’ve got to put an end to this war by stopping the Princess, and I’m taking your sword. If both it and I survive, you’ll get it back.” He then left the room before Shining Armor could tell him who the real enemy was.