//------------------------------// // Is this Earthend? // Story: Pata Pon Don Chaka // by Lord Guffington //------------------------------// Queen Karma steadily flaps her wings at the end of the ocean, her single red eye watching over the horizon. Slowly, she heard a steady drum beat far behind her. Two very special drums, beating to the heartbeat of the earth. It's volume at a quiet hum. Pata Pata Pata Pon This is it, she told herself. The foolish Patapons will soon find that their precious IT is only the rising sun. She slowly descended into the brush behind her, her wings flapping slower than the beat of the drum. Pata Pata Pata Pon The beats slowly get louder, the footsteps getting louder. Past the bushes, she spots many Patapons, a specific one with an iron helm and holding a flag, the others with a different assortment of weapons, like spears, bows, and swords. Some of their weapons were specially enchanted, like the large spear with a glow of red had fire capabilities. Pata Pata Pata Pon In the sky, she saw two large glowing eyes, most likely the Mighty Patapon and his great drums of which he strikes. She fought the Pataoons before, but they were somehow able to defeat her. In fact, they were even able to defeat the mighty Gorl! The eater of the world. She does not understand, but she knows the Patapons have become stronger of many years, their numbers and strength by tenfold. Even she, the mighty Zigaton Queen Kharma, was defeated by the simple minded Patapons, using all of her powers. Pata Pata Pata Pon Her eye opened wider as a realization hit her. No. Not everything. She waited as the Patapons moved closer to shore, the horizon slowly growing brighter. The heartbeat of the earth quickly died off, leaving the Patapons standing still. The one with the flag, Hatapon, took his flag and dug it in the earth, the flag at an angle. Many of the other Patapons rushed to the shore, some falling onto their rears, some standing to watch. "Yippee!" one cheered. "We did it!" another shouted. The only one of the group not cheering was Hatapon, his gaze set on the Mighty Patapon. "Mighty Patapon. May I set my eye upon IT?" Hatapon asked. The eyes in the sky slowly closed and opened, a silent meaning of yes. Hatapon bowed slightly before turning his attention the the horizon. The ocean's edge slowly grew brighter, a bright shape slowly rising. "This is it!" a Tatepon said, clearly excited as he held his steel axe and iron shield. Slowly did they realize that the shape was too bright, their eyes metaphorically frying. "Even if it hurts, it will be worth it to see IT!" A Yumipon said, his fire bow resting at his side. The shape continued rising, it's form much like a circle with small hills. "My eyes. MY EYES!" A Yaripon yelled in pain as he dropped his special spear, Dokaknel's fang, as he tried to cover his eyes. Even from the bush, Queen Kharma was blinded by the rising of the bright object. The bright circle showed the bottom part of it, showing its ending of rising. A face could be clearly seen on the circle, which quickly smiled and dulled its light a bit. "It's... beautiful." another Patapon stated. Indeed, the sight was one of pure beauty. "... Is that it?" one of the Yaripons asked. The whole group turned to the Mighty Patapon, who seemed unaffected by the source of light. He turned to his loyal servants, wonder in his eyes of what they meant. Queen Kharma decided now was a perfect time to reveal herself. She began flapping her wings again, her body quickly being lifted into the air. The Patapons heard her wing laps and quickly retrieved their weapons, ready to strike when the Mighty Patapon played the song to fight. However, he didn't seem as he wanted to fight the Zigaton Queen at the moment. "Yes, it seems that the so-called legendary IT is only the morning sun. Now it seems our little adventure is over." Kharma said, her voice filled with fake despair. Some of the Patapons looked confused, others relieved. Then, Queen Kharma's single eye turned to one of mischief, her mind set to destroy the puny one-eyed creatures. "Or is it?" The Zigaton quickly angled her body upwards, her powers calling forth whatever magic she had in store for the Patapons. The Mighty Patapon quickly gathered his four drums, ready to fight her, while the Patapons raised their shields, notched their arrows, and aimed their spears. Pon Pon Pata- He never gets to finish, for Queen Kharma had already used her powers to open a rift gate, leading to some dark abyss. The rift starts pulling anything in, it's power strong enough to rip out some of the trees. Some of the caps of the Patapons fly off their heads, the Wind helms nearly stabbing of their comrades. "So long, fools!" The Zigaton shouted. The Patapns, tried grabbing on to anything they could: dirt, rocks, trees, even other Patapons. But, their effort was futile, for the rift was too strong, pulling everything with one eye in, except for Kharma. As the last Patapon, Hatapon as he was holding on to his flag, was sucked in, she started closing the gate. Hatapon gave Kharma a glare before closing his eyes and accepting fate. "It seems that your Patapons were too weak to defeat me once again, oh great one." Kharma said to the Might Patapon. She looked up to see the eyes giving her an evil look before closing, the lines indicating his closed eyes disappearing as well. Queen Kharma began flying back to her kingdom, ready to tell the story of how she defeated the once great Patapons. Too bad neither Beetleton nor Gong were here to listen to the story. May their soul rest in peace, wherever they go. ------------------------------------- Hatapon clutched on to his flag, not wanting to separate from the one object he was sworn to carry for his life. His eye was still closed, in fear and anger. Fear for death; anger against Queen Kharma and her wicked powers. He risked opening his eye, knowing it would most likely burn from the rush of air. What he saw was not expected. He saw rows upon rows of trees, all neatly lined up. Thankfully, he was somehow not falling anymore. He looked around and saw his fellow Patapons, some passed out, others finding their equipment. He turned back to his flag and picked it up. He turned to the sky, hoping to find the Mighty Patapon. "Oh Mighty Patapon. If you can hear me, please guide us, for we are lost." The wind blow softly, signaling that there was a presence. "If you can hear me, Mighty Patapon, please beat the holy drum." After a few seconds, Hatapon was rewarded with a pleasant sound. Pon Pon Pon Pon Pon Pon Hatapon, now filled with relief, turned back to the army was told to lead. Many of the other Patapons were now awake or excited. He looked back to the sky, this time finding two large eyes watching over him. "Mighty Patapon. Please guide us through this place we are now left in." Pata Pata Pata Pon The Patapons start marching in hopes to find a way back to Patapolis so they may talk to Priestess Meiden and get some rest. Pata Pata Pata Pon ------------------------------------- THUD! A cascade of apples fall into the buckets waiting below. The pony responsible for knocking the apples down puts a basket on her back and starts carrying it to the awaiting cart. Applejack, the orange earth pony we know and love, is now almost done with apple bucking today. She trots back over to the next basket and outs it on her back. However, before she gets to the cart, she hears a distant drum beat, along with some singing. Her ears flick to the sound quickly, hoping to find out what it is. "What in tarnation?" AJ asks as she looks around for the sound. Pata Pata Pata Pon "Hey! What do ya'll think you're doing singi-" she spots the noise, but is greatly disturbed by what she sees. Walking eyeballs. With weapons.