//------------------------------// // Code Pink // Story: Power Through Deceit // by FrostyDawn //------------------------------// The Scout gagged under the Pyro's choke hold. He stared into the ghastly eyes of the Pyro's mask, which beamed their orange light of hatred and madness. The Pyro clenched his other hand, enveloping his knuckles in a fireball. He reared it back, ready to strike. But in a blur of cyan and orange, The Pyro was launched off the Scout and smashed into the building next to them. Scout hopped to his feet, to see Rainbow Dash infront of him, panting heavily. "Don't. Touch. Him!" She growled, taking a fighting stance. The Scout grabbed a lead pipe lying near a trash can, ready to face the corrupted Pyro. The Pyro stood after he collided with the wall, and stared at the two. "Fools. If the Queen can't have you, I'll burn you myself!" He roared, charging at them with fists ablaze. The Scout swung his pipe, which the Pyro caught in mid-swing, and pulled his other fist back. The Scout shot his knee right up to the Pyro's chin, causing him to let go of the pipe so Scout could easily hit the Pyro in the side of the head with a loud, hollow Boink! With the Pyro off balance, Rainbow Dash landed next to him and dropped on one knee, and spun with her other leg to sweep the Pyro off his feet. The Scout jumped over the Pyro, arcing the pipe over his head. The Pyro raised his hands, redirecting the Scout over him with a spherical burst of air. Surprised, the Scout tumbled over the Pyro, rolling onto the concrete. Rainbow Dash leaped into the air, using her wings to soar high above the Pyro, and rocketed down in an attempt to slam her feet down on the Pyro, who was already standing and shot out a streak of fire. Rainbow Dash swerved out of the way of the flame, the edge of her wing being barely singed. Undeterred, she rushed back at him, with the Scout behind the Pyro, readying an ambush. "Enough!" The Pyro shouted, grabbing Rainbow Dash by the throat, halting her momentum. The Pyro turned, and catching Scout by his neck with his other hand, making him drop the pipe. Strangely, the Pyro was strong enough to lift each of them in the air with a single had, and hold his grip enough to keep them restrained. "I will not have you stall any longer! The Queen wont need you anyway, she'll be strong enough. Now BURN!" He yelled, his hands glowing a searing orange. "AAaahh!" Rainbow Dash shrieked, her neck burning under the Pyro's grip. The rain falling on them didn't help at all, her throat kept blistering under the intense agony. Withstanding the pain was impossible. Screaming was horrible on its own accord, and staying conscious was an ordeal. She could see embers dripping from the Pyro's fingers, like molten metal. What really set her over the edge, was seeing Scout. His eyes were streaked with tears of pain and bloodshot from the smoke irritation. He was clawing at the Pyro's hands, like an animal's vain attempt to free itself from a trap. But the worst part was his screams. He kept yelling as his larynx was getting incinerated, each shout becoming more agonizing. The horror of hearing Scout under so much pain along with Rainbow Dash experiencing the same torture was just too much. Every second that passed was like an hour of non-stop torment She just wanted it all to stop. Finally, Rainbow Dash got her wish. The Pyro released his grip, sending both of them to the ground as they gasped and held their throats in pain. The reason for the Pyro's sudden release, was due to a burst of confetti and streamers blowing him far down the alley. The source of the blast was none other than the marvelous contraption known as Pinkie Pie's Party Cannon. "Nice try, Smokey!" The owner of the cannon bellowed. Pinkie Pie stood on the large barrel, admiring her handiwork. Twilight Sparkle, however, rushed up to Rainbow Dash. "Rainbow! What happened?! Are you okay!?" she cried. Rainbow dash only wheezed and sputtered as tears rolled from her eyes and she struggled to choke out a single audible word. The moment, however, was broken as the Pyro stood back up. "You are only delaying the inevitable. I'll make short work of you all." The Pyromaniac growled, his hands igniting once more. Twilight pulled Rainbow Dash and Scout back, as Pinkie readied another round of party ammunition. "I don't think so, mister! Now, Twilight!" Pinkie said, firing another, lighter shower of confetti. While the Pyro's vision was obscured with the colorful bits of paper, Twilight was able to form a cube of solid purple energy around the Pyro. Surprised, the fiery demon pounded his flaming fists against the cage. The only result was the container shrinking, and restricting the Pyro's space. "Damn you! Damn you all!" he shouted, pounding harder against the magic wall. Twilight smirked as she saw the Pyro was completely incapacitated. She sighed as she knew what this meant. "So, he's infected too, huh?" she muttered. The Scout winced as he nodded. "What are we gonna do with them? They look pretty hurt." Pinkie said, moving Rainbow Dash's hands to see her neck, a dark red color where the Pyro grasped them. "We'll take them back to Equestria. The nurses in Canterlot will fix them right up." Twilight said, then turned to the Pyro. "As for him, We'll keep him around for questioning." With four extra passengers, Twilight summoned whatever magic she could and transported them back to the archives. <><><><><><><> The Archives, Canterlot, Equestria Twilight dropped onto the floor of the archives, struggling not to let her magic drop and release the Pyro. Pinkie helped Scout and Rainbow Dash stand, who seemed to be faring better. "Are you guys alright?" Pinkie asked. The Scout opened his mouth to respond, but cringed as he let out a pained HHCCKK! "Oh. So I guess talking's out of the question." Pinkie said. "Take it easy, you guys." Twilight said. "We'll get this all sorted out." "Then start sorting." A voice said behind him. There were two people standing in the archive's doorway. One was a beautiful, winged woman wearing a pink dress and tiara. The other was a tall man wearing a red coat, with familiar purple hair. "Shining Armor! I'm so glad to see you again!" Twilight said. "We're in some deep trouble here." "We're well aware. You're friend Rarity explained everything." The woman said, then curiously looked at the Scout and Pyro. "Who's this? More of your friends?" "Actually, Candace, we gotta keep this one locked up." Pinkie said. "Be careful, he can get a little... hot-headed." She said, as Shining Armor created a new cube around the Pyro, letting Twilight relax. "Noted. I'll take care of this one." Shining Armor said, carrying the Pyro's prison out of the room. "Anyway, let's get you to your friends. They have something pretty important to tell you." Candace said, leading the other four out. <><><><><><><><> The woman glanced out the cave, smiling widely. "Now, we are ready." She said, chuckling. She turned to the five infected mercenaries. "You said there were nine of you, right?" "да. Does not matter. Scout is puny coward." The largest one rumbled. "The Engineer's useless without his bloody machines." Another said, blinking his single orange eye. "And that Soldier's daft in the head. We're all ya need." A third mercenarie muttered, plucking the string to his bow. "Maybe so." The Queen said to herself. "That still leaves one more. What was his name? The Pyromancer? I believe he's gotten himself caught by that meddlesome prince I hypnotized all those years ago. We'll start our attack, and free him in the process." She then turned to the mercenaries. "Ready yourselves with the drones. We've got a castle to storm." "Jawohl. Ve vill not fail you, mein queen." The Medic chuckled.