The door swung open, and they took a look at the room they just entered. They were standing on a balcony that overlooked the ground below. On the wall in front of them was a large screen that displayed the Arkham City logo on it. Directly underneath the screen were three inmates, dressed in blue, sitting with their hands behind their heads, facing three TYGER guards. Two of the guards had stun batons while the other had a gun.
Batman crouched and slowly approached the railing. Everypony followed close behind him. They all looked around at the room. It seemed familiar to them. Then Twilight realized it. This was the room they had all been in when they were incarcerated. She looked to the lower right of the giant screen and saw the door to the room they first awoke in.
“This is unit 42.” The guard with the gun said.
“Please! Don’t do it again!” One of the inmates pled.
The guard continued. “We have apprehended the three escaped new inmates. They were heading for the underground tunnel system.”
“Excellent work. Hold them in processing. We will let you know when we are ready to move them down to the execution chamber.” Strange replied on the radio.
“Affirmative, command.” The guard said.
They all did a quick survey of the room. Seven of them versus three guards would be no trouble at all. Batman vaulted over the railing and approached the closest guard. Everypony else quietly leapt down after him. Batman tripped the guard from behind and forced him into the ground. The other two guards turned around and wielded their stun batons at him. Batman threw a freeze grenade at the guard on the left and dove toward the one on the right. He threw himself up and over the guard and attacked him from behind. He fell to the ground and Batman quickly incapacitated him.
Meanwhile, the remaining guard quickly froze where he was in a huge block of ice. Batman walked over to him, grabbed his head, and threw him to the ground. Total cakewalk.
“Yee haw! Nice goin’!” Applejack cheered.
Suddenly, the large screen above the three terrified prisoners flicked to an image of Strange. He had a smirk on his face and a knife at the throat of another prisoner, ready to spill his blood and end his life.
“Stop right there, Batman!” He ordered. “We need to talk, and I know you wouldn’t be able to live with yourself if your actions caused this poor man to die.”
Batman stopped moving immediately and faced the screen. Everypony else went to Batman’s side, each of them looking at the screen with hate-filled eyes. They all stood perfectly still.
“I have a question for you.” Strange began. “Before my arrival, this city was drowning under a tide of filth.”
From their right, a large door opened. Rainbow looked to see five TYGER guards come out from behind the door and run to their location. She readied herself for anything, but they did not attack. They simply stood around them with their weapons drawn.
“Had you ever considered that all this is your fault?”
Everypony slowly looked at Batman. He continued to stare at Strange. The gears in Twilight’s head were turning as she thought about Strange’s statement. Had all this been really Batman’s fault? Not intentionally, of course, but could it have been possible?
“Your presence creates these animals; like germs, they spread. You created the environment that allowed the germ to mutate, to become stronger. Look at the Joker. Would he even exist if not for you?”
Fluttershy and Pinkie gasped at this. Everyponys minds were blown away.
“It must be depressing. All your sacrifices and yet, you are the one to blame.”
Rainbow, Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie and Twilight all exchanged nervous glances with one another as they realized that in a way, Strange was right. Joker wouldn’t exist if it weren’t for Batman. He was unintentionally responsible for nearly every bad thing that had happened to all of them.
“Oh, this is beautiful.” Strange chuckled. “We have at long last defeated the great Batman.”
The large door to their right opened up again and eight more TYGER guards emerged and approached them, weapons wielded. They formed a large circle around them, ready to attack.
Strange began walking around the room he was in, almost like he was lost in thought. “Soon, we will take our rightful place at our master’s side. We will rule over both this world, as well as yours, Twilight Sparkle.” He grinned evilly.
Twilight’s eyes widened in complete surprise at his declaration. It made her take a step back in shock.
“So thank you, Batman, for all your help. Now,” Strange approached the camera. “KILL THEM!”
The screen shut off and all the guards advanced in unison. Twilight couldn’t move for the longest moment. Her fear was too strong that she couldn’t bring herself to do so. A nearby TYGER guard took advantage of this and electrocuted her with a shock baton. She screamed loudly and fell to the floor and began to spasm.
Rainbow quickly lunged at the guard and yanked the stick from his grasp. She threw it to the side and began to attack him. He went down with a grunt. Rainbow sped over to Twilight, full of worry.
“Twilight! Are you okay?!” She asked.
Twilight shook violently as she got to her hooves. She did not feel okay in the slightest. She felt like she was about to throw up. All she could do was shake her head. Rainbow quickly dragged her over to the three prisoners nearby before taking off toward the skirmish once again.
“Hurt them!” Strange ordered from wherever he was.
Ignoring that, Rainbow landed beside Batman and Rarity as they were dealing with two guards. One of them had a baton, while the other had a gun. Rainbow flew into the air in circles to get the guard with the gun’s attention, while Batman lunged at him with all his might. He took him down and threw a freeze grenade at the guard with the shock baton. Rarity leapt into the air and kicked him in the face as hard as she could. He fell to the ground and Rainbow stomped onto his face.
Pinkie Pie had produced her Party Cannon once again, and fired it at two guards. She smiled, but she did not laugh. There was a time and a place, and this was not it. She quickly pointed it at three more guards. She took her hoof and wrapped it around nothing on the side of the cannon and moved it back. Somehow, the cannon made the sound of a gun cocking.
“I’m all for having fun with parties and cake, but sometimes the best kind of fun is kicking some bad guy butt!” She said with a wink before she fired the cannon again.
The guards flew backwards. Pinkie smiled and threw the cannon off to the side, putting it away. She was about to bounce off to the left, when she suddenly felt a shocking painful sensation on her neck. She screamed and dropped to the ground in a spasming fit like Twilight.
“Pinkie!” Fluttershy said from across the room. She took a hardened stance before charging the guard that had shocked Pinkie. “Don’t! Hurt! My! Friends!” She screamed as she ascended into the air. She crashed onto the guards face and took him down to the ground. He groaned for a moment before he fell unconscious.
Fluttershy landed next to Pinkie. “Pinkie! Get up! Oh, please! You have to!”
Pinkie coughed as she tried to sit up. She looked around the room as if she was disoriented. She looked back to Fluttershy. “F-Fluttershy?” She weakly asked.
Fluttershy nodded violently. “Yes, Pinkie! Are you alright?!”
Pinkie looked around the room again almost like she was looking for something. Then she glanced at her front hooves. She wiggled them slightly before looking back at Fluttershy with tears in her eyes. “N-No. No I’m not.”
Fluttershy was confused. “What’s wrong? What hurts?”
Pinkie took a moment to find the right words. “I can’t see it anymore. I can’t… I don’t…” She started to breathe heavily. “I can’t make it work.”
Meanwhile, Batman, Rainbow, Applejack and Rarity were busy taking care of the last two guards. One of them struck Rarity with his shield. She wobbled backwards, putting a hoof to her cheek to see a small droplet of blood on it. She growled at the guards before Batman vaulted over the both of them and crashed their heads together. They both went down.
“A pointless effort, Dark Knight.” They all stood there panting as they looked at the unconscious bodies around them. Strange’s voice continued over the intercom. “You cannot stop the inevitable. I will rain down fire and brimstone on these animals.”
Applejack ran over to Twilight, who was just getting to her hooves. “You okay, Twi?”
Twilight nodded. “I think so. That shock felt a lot worse than the ones before, though. I still don’t feel 100% better.”
“Give it time. Ah’m sure it’ll all be okay in a bit.” Applejack assured.
They walked over to join Rarity, Rainbow and Fluttershy as she tried to make sense of what Pinkie was saying. “What do you mean? What cant you do?”
“Anything. I can’t do my usual, crazy things; I can’t be the normal Pinkie Pie anymore. I want to but I can’t. I can’t even see the fourth wall anymore! I don’t even know where it is!” Pinkie said.
“So, you’re saying that all the weird stuff that you do all the time, all the crazy things you do all the time, you cant do any of that anymore?” Rainbow clarified.
Tears started flowing down Pinkie’s cheeks as she nodded. She started sobbing and cried into Fluttershy’s shoulder.
“If you can walk, then come on. We need to keep moving or else more people will die.” Batman said.
Pinkie continued to cry, but she slowly got to her hooves. Everypony followed Batman toward the massive door that the guards had emerged from while Twilight, Rarity and Fluttershy looked to their left as they walked. There was the door that led to the room where they had first awoken in.
“That’s where this nightmare all began.” Rarity said. “I can’t even begin to describe how angry I feel right now at everything.”
“We all feel that way, Rarity.” Twilight said. “If you’re lucky, you might get to show Strange how angry you are in person.”
“For his sake, he better hope I don’t get a chance.” Rarity growled.
She stomped forward after Batman. He opened a manhole directly in front of the door. One by one, everypony entered and dropped inside. Once they landed, they looked around. They were inside the sewers again. They were in a wide tunnel that only led one way for a short ways. Once Batman entered the hole, he began walking forward. Everypony followed right behind him except for Fluttershy and Twilight.
Fluttershy gulped. “M-My goodness.”
“What is it?” Twilight asked.
“Well, it’s just that Rarity is so angry right now. I don’t think I’ve ever seen her this angry before. I’m really worried.” Fluttershy said.
“She won’t do anything rash, Fluttershy. She’s just angry. Getting angry is totally normal, and it’s a natural emotion. It’s when you lash out and do something you may regret because of that anger is when it becomes a bad thing. You see?”
Fluttershy thought for a moment. “I suppose so.” She admitted. “But, I don’t like getting angry. I feel mean.”
Twilight put a hoof around her. “I understand. You’re kind by nature, and getting angry makes you feel less kind. Just know that whenever you do get angry, we’ll understand and we’ll still love you just as much.”
Fluttershy gave a tiny smile. “Thank you, Twilight.”
Twilight returned the smile and they caught up to the rest of the group. On the floor was a large hole that led down quite a long way. He motioned for Rarity and Applejack to grab onto him before he jumped into the hole and floated down lightly. Rainbow and Fluttershy grabbed Pinkie Pie and flew her down. Twilight concentrated her magic to teleport herself down.
It didn’t work.
She tried harder and harder, but she produced no magic whatsoever. She started to breathe heavily. She looked around in a panic as she tried to make sense of her loss of magic. She tried again and again, but her horn didn’t even produce a single spark of magic.
“Hey! What’s the hold up there?” Rainbow called from below.
Twilight could hardly focus. She looked down the hole and screamed. “My magic isn’t working!”
“What?!” Applejack exclaimed.
“My magic! It isn’t working! I don’t know what to do!” Twilight screamed again.
She waited a moment before Rainbow and Fluttershy flew up out of the hole to meet her. “What do you mean your magic isn’t working?” Rainbow demanded.
“I-I-I-I don’t know! It just isn’t working!” Twilight stuttered.
Rainbow groaned. “Shoot! Darn it, darn it, darn it…” She scolded to herself.
“Rainbow! Fluttershy! Twilight!” Applejack called from below. “We’re gonna go on ahead for a bit! Rainbow, Pinkie wants to know if you remember the way!”
Rainbow called back. “I remember enough! We’ll meet up with you guys!”
“Okay!” Applejack called again.
Rainbow turned back to Twilight. “How could your magic not work anymore?”
“I have no idea! It was fine until the fight we just had, but then it stopped!” Twilight stammered.
Fluttershy stepped out from behind Rainbow. “Um, you were shocked by one of those batons, right?”
Twilight nodded.
“Well, Pinkie Pie was shocked by one of them too, and she said that she couldn’t do her… um… loud, crazy… thing… where-”
“She couldn’t be regular Pinkie Pie anymore.” Rainbow completed for her.
Fluttershy nodded. “Right. So, what if those shock batons did that same thing to you?”
Twilight thought for a moment. Rainbow took advantage of this pause and flew up and out of the manhole right behind Twilight.
“How could that even be possible?” Twilight asked.
“I don’t know, but it’s a possibility.” Fluttershy said.
A moment later, Rainbow Dash returned holding a stun baton in her mouth. She dropped it on the ground in front of Twilight. “It looked like a normal shock baton to me.” She said.
Fluttershy hated the fact that she had used the words “normal” and “shock baton” in the same sentence. They had been in here far too long.
Twilight took a closer look at it. “Weird…” She said. “It looks normal, but something isn’t right about it. I cant put my hoof on it, but something just doesn’t seem right.”
“What do you think it could be?” Rainbow asked.
Twilight shook her head. “I don’t know, but it feels… evil. Like, dark magic evil. The kind Spike and I encountered at the Crystal Empire.”
Rainbow and Fluttershy stared at the baton for a little while longer. Eventually, they felt that something was off about it as well. They felt some sort of guilt inside them. Like they had each done something really bad and it was eating away at their very souls.
Fluttershy gulped. “I… I don’t like this. I d-don’t like this at all, Twilight.”
“Y-Yeah.” Rainbow’s voice cracked. “Me neither.”
Twilight remained fixated on the baton, however. Something inside her was telling her that what they wanted to do was wrong. She felt an evil presence within her telling her that she amounted to nothing and no one cared about what she did. She knew better however, which resulted in her feeling nothing but growing rage.
Somepony said something to her, but she didn’t acknowledge. She was too fixated on proving the voice within her wrong. She began to argue with the evil presence within her. Every time she would think of an argument, the voice inside her had another one prepared. Telling her she was wrong and it was right.
“Twilight!” Fluttershy said, clopping the ground in front of her.
Twilight shut her eyes and shook her head, snapping out of her trance. She looked up to Fluttershy’s concerned eyes. “Are you okay?”
“You wouldn’t stop staring at that thing for about three minutes.” Rainbow added.
“Wha…?” Twilight replied.
She looked back to the baton. The voice was gone, but the dark feeling remained. She shook her head again and placed the baton in her saddlebag. She would examine it earlier.
“Sorry, girls. I lost track of my head for a bit.” Twilight apologized.
Rainbow and Fluttershy breathed a sigh of relief. “Okay, good.” Rainbow said. “We were worried for a second there.”
“Come on. We need to help everypony else.” Fluttershy said.
Twilight nodded. “You got it. Rainbow, lead the way.”
---
Applejack turned back to Pinkie. “She said she could remember the way.”
Batman nodded. “Come on. We don’t have much time.”
Batman turned around. In front of him was a large gap in between two old buildings. The bottom of the gap was filled with water. There was another ledge just on the other side of it with a light and a wooden door. From here, they could see it was boarded shut.
Batman looked around. The tiny screens appeared in front of his eyes again, making them white. He looked left for a moment before he pulled out his line launcher.
“My goodness, what is this place?” Rarity asked.
Batman picked Pinkie up while Applejack and Rarity grabbed his legs. He shot his line launched at the other platform and they began to zip over to it.
“Well,” Pinkie began. “It turns out that the city that Batman lives in, Gotham, is build on top of another city called ‘Old Gotham’. This place is so old, and they didn’t get rid of any of this old stuff, so they just built on top of it.” She explained.
About halfway there, he flipped around in the air, shot another line at another platform to his left and continued.
“Batman, Dashie and I already were down here before when we went to see Ra’s Al Ghul. I overheard a group of inmates talking about it. It seems like a really interesting history.”
Batman flipped and shot again in air, this time to his right before immediately flipping again to his left. He zipped around the corner of a wall and headed for a hole in the wall directly in front of them.
“Oh shoot! Too bad Twilight isn’t here! She would’ve loved this! Oh well! Maybe Rainbow will remember the story and tell it to her if she wants!”
They landed on the new platform. They dismounted Batman and got ready for whatever was next. In front of them was a large antique clock. There was nothing too special about it, other than the fact that it was one of the only sources of light in the room. Batman looked down at the floor. He stomped it lightly with his foot before he pulled out his explosive gel.
“Stand back.” Batman said, crouching to the ground.
Everypony backed up a few steps as Batman sprayed the gel into the symbol of a bat on the ground. Once he finished, he took a step back, and pressed the button. The floor exploded with a loud boom and debris fell through the hole. Everypony had instinctively plugged their ears just before the blast.
They followed Batman down the new hole. Right in front of them was an old wooden door. Batman creaked open the door and motioned for the three ponies to stay quiet. They all nodded and walked through the door.
On the other side, they entered what looked like an old living room. On the right were a few chairs and a bookshelf. In front of them, a young woman was crouching down looking through a hole in the wall. Bright lights shone from beyond.
“Oh, this is where we rescued that doctor!” Pinkie whispered. “It was also where I discovered Dashie wasn’t doing so good.”
“She’s fine now, sugarcube.” Applejack said. “Don’t you worry, none.”
Batman approached the woman. She looked up to him. “Its you!”
“I told you I’d be back.” Batman said.
“Well you took your time! Its crazy back there! First, Joker’s men came down here and started setting up camp. I did what you said and hid, but-”
“What happened?” Batman asked, cutting her off.
“There were guards. You know, the ones that work for Strange? They came down and started killing everyone. It was a bloodbath.” She said solemnly.
“It sounds like Strange is trying to cover his tracks.” Batman said. “You seem to be good at hiding, doctor. Stay here and do it again. I’ll deal with the guards in that room.”
The doctor nodded and Batman turned back to the ponies. “You three stay here and hide. It’s too dangerous for you to go in there. I’ll be back.”
Hesitantly, they all nodded. Batman turned toward the hole and grappled up into the darkness. They all walked to the hole and looked around. Batman had vanished.
“That’s the last one. Area secure.” A TYGER guard said on the comm.
“TYGER 43 to tower. The room is secure. All new inmates are neutralized.” Another guard reported.
“Well done.” Replied Strange. “Protocol 10 is progressing beautifully.”
Rarity looked around the room. She counted at least five TYGER guards, but she was sure that there were more in this room. They all had guns, and they were all patrolling the room. One was on the balcony walking next to a pile of corpses. Two more were guarding the door at the base of the large structure in the center of the room. Judging by the design of the supports to the structure, she figured that they were directly below Wonder Tower.
“As we move into the final stage of Protocol 10, I would like to congratulate all TYGER forces on this wonderful achievement. As I look at the screen in front of me, I can see that we are rapidly approaching fatalities of 22%.” Strange said.
The door behind them opened and shut. Pinkie turned around to see Rainbow, Fluttershy and Twilight in the doorway. She motioned them to stay quiet and to quickly approach.
“What’s happening?” Rainbow asked.
“Strange’s guards came in and killed all of Joker’s guys a little while ago.” Pinkie explained.
“Batman’s in that room clearing ‘em out right now.” Applejack said.
“Does he need help?” Rainbow asked.
“No!” Rarity, Applejack and Pinkie whispered in unison.
“He said to stay here!” Pinkie said. “I’m not going to lose you again, Rainbow. Just stay here, and Batman will take care of everything.”
Rainbow nodded slowly and sat down beside Applejack and Rarity. They all watched the room for any signs of Batman.
“My projections show that within three hours, every single inmate of Arkham City will be dead, and Protocol 10 will move into stage two. By the end of the month, new camps in Keystone and Metropolis will open. Each modeled after Arkham City.”
Suddenly, they saw the familiar black silhouette descend from above and land behind the two guards in front of the door to the structure. He grabbed their heads and bashed them together before quickly zipping back up to the darkness.
“You should all be proud of your part in this. We are the solution this world needs. We are the future.”
“This isn’t good.” Applejack said. “This isn’t good, not one bit.”
“He plans to put more of these prisons in more cities?” Twilight asked.
“What kind of sick individual can possibly think like this?” Rarity asked.
The guards below ran to the upper balcony to examine the two unconscious guards. They looked around for a moment before continuing their individual patrols. Each of their weapons were drawn as they walked.
“Report, any contact?” A guard asked.
“Negative. Continuing patrol.” Another replied.
One guard walked slowly along the upper balcony. They saw Batman swing and land on the nearest gargoyle to the ponies. The guard walked right underneath him. Batman jumped off the gargoyle with a rope in his hands, right behind the guard. He wrapped his cape around the guard and lifted him up. His screams were muffled by Batman’s grip. He dropped the guard off the gargoyle and swung to another hiding place in the darkness, leaving the guard dangling by his ankles.
“Contact! Move!” Many other guards rushed to his position. Three of them looked up at the squirming guard for a moment before he stopped moving and simply hung there.
“He’s making you look like children.” Strange scolded.
The guards dispersed and continued walking. Applejack looked directly below her and noticed a sniper sweeping his rifle around the room. He was right there. She was worried that he’d look up to their hiding spot and see her.
Suddenly, they heard a noise. She looked up to see Batman kick a guard behind the head and tackle him to the ground. He punched him in the head a few times before the guard fell unconscious. The sniper below Applejack turned left and ran to get a view of Batman.
“Contact!” He shouted as he fired a round at Batman.
Batman dove out of the way toward another guard. He pointed his rifle at Batman, but before he could fire, Batman threw a freeze grenade at him, freezing him instantly. He quickly took care of him before grappling up to another gargoyle.
The sniper ran up the stairs to the higher balcony and met two more guards there. One had a sniper rifle while the other wielded an assault rifle. They all examined the bodies of their fallen comrades for a moment before dispersing. The sniper slowly walked along the balcony, keeping his weapon drawn. Suddenly, the mine he stepped over exploded from underneath him.
The remaining guards ran to his position. Once they arrived at the snipers location, a large cloud of smoke engulfed them. Applejack couldn’t see anything in the dense fog, but she could hear gunfire and what sounded like punching. Soon, the gunfire stopped and the smoke disappeared. The remaining guards were down and Batman now stood in plain sight.
“This is unacceptable. I taught you better than this. Oh Batman, this is not over.” Strange growled.
Applejack smiled. “Come on, girls! Lets get going!”
They all jumped through the opening and landed on the ground below. They ran and made their way up the stairs and toward the entrance to the elevator where Batman was busy cracking the security system. Once they arrived, he cracked it and went inside the elevator car that no doubt led to the top of the tower.
“Nice going, Batman! You totally kicked their butts!” Rainbow cheered.
“Its not over yet, Rainbow.” Twilight said. “We still have to get Strange and take back our elements.”
They all entered the car. It had a few windows that looked outside, as well as a few posters for Wonder City. Around the lower part of the walls were a series of seats lined with red leather. In a previous time, Wonder Tower must’ve been a tourist attraction of sorts.
Batman eyed a terminal to his right and brought out his cryptographic sequencer to begin hacking the system. After a few seconds, the terminal beeped and the elevator doors closed. The car began to rise.
“What do you think you are doing, Wayne? You cannot stop me. I have won.”
Strange’s voice came on the intercom. They all looked around in confusion, wondering if he could see hear them.
“Within the hour, every single piece of criminal scum will burn, and then I will turn my attention to your allies. I will march to Wayne Manor. I will drag your faithful butler through the streets, broken, and I will make him tell the world how you have failed.”
As they rose, the city came into view through the window. They saw Arkham City burning in multiple places, as well as numerous helicopters continuing their assault of the city and its residents. Everypony gasped in horror as they saw this act of mass murder take place.
“My Arkham City experiment is a success, and you; you will kneel before me, begging for your life.”
The car began to slow down. Batman faced the door and looked up for a moment with the screens in front of his eyes. “They’re waiting to ambush us.”
Twilight gasped. “What do we do?”
“Arriving at the observation deck!” A cheerful female voice announced.
Batman looked up. “There, through the maintenance access hole.”
Everypony followed his gaze. In the roof of the elevator was a square hole that was big enough for them to fit through. Rainbow flew up first, carrying Pinkie Pie. Fluttershy carried Rarity through the hole while Batman helped Twilight and Applejack through before climbing up himself.
“Elevator’s hot. Cover the door.” A muffled voice said from the other side.
“Yes sir!”
They were now on top of the car, in the elevator shaft. Directly in front of them was an opening. Batman walked through first and crouched on the glass that was directly above a croup of TYGER guards. Rainbow, Applejack and Pinkie followed behind him while Rarity, Twilight and Fluttershy waited on top of the car.
“When the door opens, kill anyone in the elevator.”
“What if its one of us?”
“Its not. Control says that it’s Batman.”
“Nice. Locked and loaded! Open the doors.”
The elevator dinged, and the doors slowly slid open.
“Fire!”
The elevator was now a whirlwind of bullets, smoke and noise. The three ponies that were on top of the car plugged their ears and stayed as silent as they could while the TYGER guards continued firing their weapons.
“Cease fire!”
The gunfire stopped, and the smoke cleared from within the elevator car. The guards looked at one another for a moment. Batman used this to his advantage and silently leapt off the glass ceiling. He landed behind two guards and bashed their heads together. They both went down. The five guards that remained shot their glances at Batman and proceeded to advance.
“Ah don’t think so!” Applejack yelled.
She smashed through the glass ceiling and landed on one of the armed guards, knocking him out instantly. Rainbow flew through the air to her left and pulled a 180. She careened back into the other armed guard and took him down. Applejack bucked the guard to her left. He stumbled back, but quickly recovered. He was wearing armor, but he was only armed with his fists.
Batman dove to his right and into one of the guards. This guard was using a shock baton. He expertly countered any and all attacks and turned them against the guard, ultimately electrocuting him. He then threw a freeze grenade at the guard facing off with Rainbow before using his cape to stun the armored guard on his left. He delivered a series of quick punches and attacks, causing the guard to stumble. Applejack charged at the guard from behind and leapt into the air to deliver the finishing blow to the guard’s head.
Rainbow took advantage of her opponent’s frozen state, and grabbed him around the waist. She then proceeded to fly into the air with him a few feet before flipping upside-down and crashing down to the ground. She smashed his head into the ground, shattering the ice and rendering him unconscious.
Applejack walked over to Rainbow, breathing heavily. “Nice going, Rainbow.”
“Thanks, AJ.” Rainbow grinned. She turned her attention to Pinkie who was still standing on the now shattered glass roof. “Tell everypony else that it’s all clear.”
“Okay!” Pinkie said, and disappeared behind the ceiling.
A moment later, Twilight and Rarity jumped through the hole in the elevator and walked toward them. Fluttershy flew out over the glass ceiling with Pinkie bouncing right beside her. Once they were all together again, they made a huddle.
“Okay, so what’s the plan?” Rainbow asked.
“We get to the top of the tower and stop Protocol 10.” Applejack said.
“Strange is going to be there as well.” Rarity said.
“Which means our elements will be there too.” Twilight added.
“Sounds good. Problem is, how are we all going to get up there?” Rainbow asked, pointing up.
Everypony looked up to the top of the tower. A series of ledges, wires, and poles crisscrossed each other along the tower’s face.
“Naturally, the easiest way to get to the top would be to fly, but making more than one trip could be risky.” Twilight said. “Strange knows we’re here and he knows we’ll be coming.”
“He’s probably going to use one of his helicopters to look around the tower for us.” Pinkie said.
“That’s true, he probably will have something like that up his sleeve.” Twilight mused.
“Can’t you teleport us there?” Rarity asked.
Twilight shook her head. “No, my magic still isn’t working. It’s like it’s blocked somehow. I feel it there, but it just won’t work no matter how hard I try.”
“We’ll have to think of something else then.” Rarity said.
Everypony nodded slowly and began to think. They knew they could climb up, but they didn’t think they could all make it.
“I figure that if we climbed up the face, we would have to do some walking on ledges, which will take balance.” Rainbow said. She turned to Applejack and Twilight. “No offense, but I don’t really think that either of you have the best balance. The odds of you two falling are very high, especially if Twilight cant use her magic.”
They looked a little insulted at her observation, but ultimately knew that she was correct. Rarity would have little to no trouble keeping her balance, and Pinkie could do literally anything, but Twilight and Applejack knew that they wouldn’t be very good at keeping their balance.
“Well, what do you think we should do?” Twilight asked.
“I don’t know.” Rainbow shook her head. “I’m sorry.”
Applejack and Twilight nodded. They understood.
“Well, um, what if Rainbow Dash and I fly right behind you and help you keep balance while you walk?” Fluttershy suggested.
Applejack thought for a moment. “That could work.”
“Yeah, um, like we could stay really close to each other and help each other cross as safely but quickly as we can.” Fluttershy continued. “And if somepony does fall, oh I hope nopony does, then Rainbow Dash can quickly swoop down to catch them.”
Everypony nodded in agreement. “Yeah, that sounds like a good plan. Nice thinking, Fluttershy.” Rainbow said.
Fluttershy blushed and gave a small smile. “Thanks.”
“Well alrighty then.” Applejack said. “Lets get on up there and lets get back home.”
---
Climbing the tower was much harder than they originally thought. Batman had gone ahead while the girls were talking. He always made sure that they could see him, but he was already scaling the tower at a quick rate.
Fluttershy’s plan was going very slow, but it was working. It almost took them five whole minutes just to get up to the next section. Like Rainbow predicted, Rarity and Pinkie had very little trouble walking along the edges. Twilight was doing okay, but she was still extremely nervous. Applejack was not having an easy time. Fluttershy and Rainbow hovered around her more than Twilight after she got the basic hang of it.
“H-H-How m-much further?” Applejack asked with a quaky voice.
“We’re getting closer. Come on. You can do it, Applejack.” Rainbow assured.
“Rainbow and I are right here for you.” Fluttershy added.
Applejack stopped walking and sunk her head into her hooves. “Ah c-c-cant do it. Ah just cant.”
“Jeez! What’s gotten into you? I’ve never seen you this afraid of anything!” Rainbow said.
“Never thought Ah’d have to let it slip that Ah was terrified of heights!” Applejack snapped. “Ah just wanna go home, Ah just wanna go home, Ah just wanna go home.”
She sounded on the verge of panic. Rainbow and Fluttershy looked to Twilight.
“Applejack, you need to trust us that we’ll be there for you every single step of the way. We wont let anything bad happen to you.” Twilight said.
Applejack continued chanting to herself quietly. “Ah just wanna go home, Ah just wanna go home, Ah just wanna go home…”
Twilight thought for a moment. Then an idea popped into her head. “Now listen, Applejack. What I’m telling you is the honest truth. Don’t worry, we’ll be right here.”
Applejack stopped and looked up to Twilight, her pupils the size of pinpricks. She stared at Twilight for a moment before a smile crept onto her face.
“Dangit, Twi. Usin’ my own words against me like that. Taint fair, sugarcube.” She grinned.
Twilight smiled back at her.
“We’re right here with ya!” Rainbow assured.
Applejack slowly nodded and got back to her hooves. “Ah’ll thank ya when we get up top, Twilight.”
Twilight chuckled. “Deal!”
---
“Talk to me.”
“Stage one has been completed, sir. Casualties are exceeding predictions at the primary locations.”
“Good. Refocus your attacks on the museum. I want Cobblepot’s fortress leveled.”
“Affirmative, Professor Strange.”
It took walking out along a metal pole to get a clear view of their next ledge, and Batman having to grapple up while holding Rarity and Pinkie, but they made it halfway up the tower. Strange was busy giving orders to his helicopters, which they heard every word of. Once they made it to the next ledge, they all heard a loud whooshing sound come from above. Their screens flashed ‘Missile Launch Detected’ in big red letters like it had a while ago on the ground. To their right, they saw the glowing red of a missile fly away toward the museum below. It quickly got closer until it impacted the front of the building and exploded in a massive fireball.
“Oh my gosh.” Pinkie breathed.
“I can’t even believe it.” Twilight said.
Fluttershy and Rarity were covering her mouths with their hooves as they watched the fireball vanish and the flames start to consume the museum.
“Sir, initial bombardment of the museum has been completed. Target is not destroyed.”
“How very disappointing. Prepare to fire again. I want that museum gone, captain.”
Rainbow continued to stare at the museum for a moment longer before she shook her head. “Come on. We need to get moving.”
Everypony snapped out of it and continued along the ledge. Once they turned the corner, they saw Batman waiting there for them at the bottom of a ladder. Once Pinkie turned the corner, he began to climb the ladder up to the next ledge.
Pinkie and Rarity walked toward the ladder and followed Batman. Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow, and Fluttershy followed them shortly after.
“You’re running out of time. Strange is killing everyone in that place.” Oracle said.
“We’re nearly at the top. We’ll stop him.” Batman said.
“I know. How did he ever manage all this? He’s killed hundreds of people and he’s got full authorization from the city. Its insane.” Oracle said.
“He’s working with someone. I intend to find out who the moment I stop Protocol 10.” Batman assured.
The ledge they were on led into the elevator shaft. The elevator could go all the way to the top of the tower, but Strange had clearly stopped it from going all the way. It slowed them down, but it didn’t stop them.
Batman glided to the ledge on the other side of the shaft and turned the corner. Rainbow and Fluttershy took turns flying everypony else across the gap and over to the next ledge. This area had bars along the edge, preventing anyone from falling. Applejack took a deep sigh of relief and a moment to rest.
She looked out the bars to see Batman walking along the pole to her right. Then, he started walking on a long metal wire that stretched from the end of that pole to another point somewhere to her left. Like he was walking on a tightrope at the circus. Applejack gulped as she quickly realized that if she were to continue, she would have to walk along that wire.
---
“Just don’t look down, Applejack. You’re doing really great.” Fluttershy said.
“She hasn’t even stepped onto the wire yet!” Rainbow said.
Applejack was hugging the end pole as tight as her hooves would allow her to. Rarity, Twilight, and Pinkie were standing on the ledge behind her, trying to be as supportive as they could. Applejack was in horrified shock as she stared blankly in front of her, shaking violently.
“Applejack? Can you start moving please?” Fluttershy asked.
“Nn-nn-nnnope!” Applejack replied. “No way, no how! Ah’m not g-g-gonna be able to move along this thing!”
“Applejack, come on! You need to get moving!” Rainbow ordered.
“Nope! Can’t move!” Applejack quickly replied.
“But, um, we need you to!” Fluttershy said.
“No! Ah can’t!” Applejack quickly replied again.
From behind her, Rainbow heard an audible groan. She turned around to see Batman leap off the other pole that was connected to the wire and dive down below them. He pulled up behind Applejack and grappled right beside her, startling her and causing her to yelp.
“We don’t have time for this!” Batman growled as he got behind Applejack.
“What the hay do you think you’re doiiaaAAAH!” She screamed.
Batman grabbed Applejack around her torso and leapt off the pole again. He opened his cape and glided over to the ledge that the other pole was sticking out of. Everypony else quickly walked out along the pole and carefully followed each other out along the wire.
Screaming as loud as she could, Applejack clung to Batman as tight as she could. Her hat flew off, but she didn’t care. She continued screaming until Batman grappled up to the next ledge. He put her down and she curled up into a tiny ball, taking in deep, erratic breaths as she shook with fear.
“Applejack!” Everypony called.
They were all carefully walking off the wire and onto the pole right beside Applejack. They quickly made it over to her. Applejack was inhaling deeply and wheezing as she stared daggers at Batman.
“Well, I got you over here in one piece.” Batman said, giving a slight smirk.
Applejack thought that this was the most appropriate moment to use a few of the words she had learned in here.
She wheezed in a deep breath. “YOU GO TO HELL!”
Everypony else gasped at Applejack’s language.
She took in another deep breath before she started laughing erratically. “AH’M GONNA KICK YOUR ASS!” She laughed.
She fell onto the ground and began laughing as hard as she could. Her adrenaline was pumping through her at incredible speed and force, causing her to shake with both terror and excitement.
“Applejack!” Fluttershy scolded.
“What the hay, Applejack?” Rainbow demanded.
Applejack laughed some more before wiping a tear away. “Ah’m sorry, girls! Ah’m so, so, sorry!”
She laughed for a moment longer before taking a few breaths to calm down.
Rainbow flew over to her. “Here’s this for ya.” She said, throwing her hat in front of her.
“Heh, thanks Rainbow.” Applejack said, picking it up.
Everypony was giving her a look of disappointment. Applejack blushed and giggled nervously. “Sorry ‘bout my potty mouth. Don’t worry, it wont be anything Ah’ll take home with me.”
Everypony looked at her a moment longer before they all nodded. “Its okay, we understand.” Rarity said. “Just please don’t say things like that again, alright?”
Applejack nodded. She put her hat back on and walked over to Batman. “Sorry ‘bout that.”
Batman chuckled. “Its fine. Now, come on.”
They all recovered themselves and continued along the edge of the building.
Eventually, they came to another opening in the wall face and lifted themselves up. This had to have been the maintenance area. There was a small computer to the left. Once everypony was on the ledge, Batman walked over to the terminal.
“TYGER command, we’re at the tower. No sign of Batman.”
Batman motioned for them to hide before ducking behind a wall himself. Everypony spread out and hid behind the nearest wall, just as a TYGER helicopter came into view. Its spotlight was on and it was searching the tower.
“Continue your search.”
“Affirmative. Sweeping the tower.”
The helicopter began to fly around the tower with its spotlight shining the inside of the room they were now in, as well as the ledges and crevices above and below them. The helicopter slowly made its way around the entire building face until it was where it was when it started.
“No sign of Batman on the tower, sir.”
“Good! Perhaps he has fallen. Move your search to the lower sections.”
“Affirmative, command.”
The helicopter descended until it was out of sight. Everypony took a deep breath of relief and relaxed. Batman made his way over to the computer terminal and began to hack it. He moved the knobs around on his cryptographic sequencer for a few moments before the device beeped. Above them, a maintenance hatch opened up, revealing their next objective.
“Okay. Strange is directly above us. Are you ready?” Batman asked the ponies.
Everypony nodded in unison. “We’re ready.” Twilight said.
---
Pretty soon, they were all crawling through the ventilation shaft directly beneath the security control center at the top of Wonder Tower. Metal bars had blocked off the door that connected the maintenance hallway and the control center, but an air vent was right next to it. Batman pried it off with ease, and began to crawl through the shafts with everypony following right behind him.
They made a few lefts and rights in the shafts, moving as quickly and quietly as they could. Upon turning a right corner, the only thing separating them from the underside of a TYGER guard’s boot was an inch-thick metal grate. Fluttershy almost yelped in fear when she saw his silhouette standing there against the moonlight outside. Rainbow and Twilight quickly covered her mouth to prevent her from making any noise. After a moment or two, Fluttershy calmed down and they continued moving through the air ducts.
“This is the dawn of a new age for Gotham City.” Strange said over the intercom.
Batman continued down the shaft until he came to a fork. He turned back to the ponies and motioned for them to go right while he went left. Everypony nodded in acknowledgement and Batman proceeded down the left side. Twilight used the sonar in her computer to get a view of either direction. The left route that Batman took led to another small room, while the right led back outside onto a platform hidden underneath the command center.
Twilight led everypony down the right shaft until they reached the exit. A thick metal vent prevented them from continuing any further. Twilight cursed to herself. If her magic were working, she could have easily twisted the screws loose. Applejack saw her expression and squeezed past Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash to get to the grate. Twilight stepped back to give her some room.
Lying on her back, Applejack set both her back hooves on the grate and began to push hard. Years of applebucking experience proved to be more than a match for the metal grate as it slowly began to bend outward until one of the screws popped loose. Applejack took another breath and applied more pressure to another part of the grate. Eventually, two more screws popped out, leaving the left bottom screw still attached. Applejack lightly tapped the vent and it fell out of its frame, dangling by the remaining screw.
One by one, they all popped out of the vent and landed on the small platform directly below. The platform was hanging by a pulley system made for raising and lowering. Most likely used for repairs or other kinds of maintenance. The only way they could get inside was via the ventilation shaft they just exited.
“Okay, so what’s the plan?” Applejack asked.
“Strange will most likely have a small group of TYGER guards patrolling that room and watching everything.” Twilight said. “Batman probably went another way to begin clearing them out one by one.”
Rainbow looked up at the night sky. A few dark clouds were looming a little ways away. They were well above the perimeter’s machine guns’ range. “I have an idea.” She said. “Those machine guns below wont be able to get us all the way up here. What if me and Fluttershy grab a few of those clouds, and bring them over here to prevent them from seeing us?”
“Batman’s in there too.” Rarity said.
“True, but he’s able to see in dense fog.” Twilight said.
“Wow. Really?” Pinkie asked.
“He has to. How else would he be able to do everything he does?” Rainbow asked.
“Oracle mentioned something he uses called ‘Detective Mode’. I’m guessing that’s how he does it.” Twilight said.
Everypony nodded in agreement. It seemed like a good plan.
“Okay. You and Fluttershy go and get a nice thick cloud and wait for our signal.” Applejack said.
“Got it! Come on, Fluttershy!” Rainbow said, grabbing her timid friend.
Fluttershy tried to protest, but she reluctantly followed Rainbow. “Why does this always happen to me?” She wondered aloud.
Once they began to fly toward the nearest cloud, Rarity turned to the rest of the ponies. “Now, I say we wait until Batman makes the first move before we take out Strange’s eyes.”
“I agree. Lets just be patient.” Twilight said. “Applejack and Pinkie Pie, you two go back in the shaft and go the route that Batman went. Let us know when you get there.”
“Okie dokie lokie!” Pinkie said.
Applejack and Pinkie crawled back into the ventilation shaft and turned a corner. Twilight turned back to face Rainbow and Fluttershy in the distance. They sat and waited for Twilight’s mark. They didn’t have to wait very long. After a moment, they heard a light beeping sound coming from the upper levels of the command center, followed by quick scuffling footsteps.
They waited in silence for a moment longer.
“Batman is here! Do not underestimate him.” Strange warned.
That was their mark. Twilight waved a hoof in the air at Rainbow and Fluttershy. The two pegasi nodded in agreement and quickly began to push the massive cloud toward the tower.
Meanwhile, Applejack and Pinkie made it to the tiny room that Batman had entered. To noponys surprise, he was no longer in the room. The only thing separating them from the rest of the room was a chain-link fence on their right. There were a few wooden boxes stacked on the outside of the fence that they decided to use as cover from the TYGER guards.
Applejack though it best to scan the room with her sonar. It took her a while to find the right setting on her computer, but eventually she found it and began to scan the entire room.
Pinkie scanned with her computer as well. They counted six guards in the room; one was unconscious. Batman was hiding above the central platform overlooking two guards. Inside the central room was none other than Hugo Strange. Applejack and Pinkie Pie sent this reading to everypony else.
“Thanks, girls.” Twilight replied over the comm. “Rainbow and Fluttershy are going to drop in with some fog in a few seconds. Be ready.”
“Thanks, Twi.” Applejack replied.
At the end of the room was an open window that led to the ledge outside. Pinkie walked over to it and took a look. The ledge was very narrow, but it led to the balcony that overlooked the city on the other side of the fence. She didn’t think Applejack would be too keen on going out on a ledge again, so she decided that she would go out alone when they got their cloud cover.
After about thirty seconds, a large gust of wind came in through the back of the tower carrying a large cloud. It swept inside and reduced everyone’s visibility significantly.
“Target is using smoke.” One of the TYGER guards reported.
“The Batman is a worthy foe. He is dangerous, but not unbeatable.” Strange replied.
“Thanks for the cloud cover, girls.” Pinkie said on the comm.
“No problem!” Rainbow replied.
Pinkie began to shimmy along the edge of the tower toward the balcony. She almost lost her balance, but she quickly recovered and continued toward the railing. She vaulted over it and quickly stepped inside the foggy room. She hugged the walls and stayed in the shadows. She glanced at her computer. It still showed a moving picture of the room’s interior. Applejack was still scanning the room. Which was good, because she could hardly see anything directly in front of her.
A few feet to her right was a TYGER guard, facing away from her. Pinkie took a deep breath and snuck up behind him. She eventually got close enough that she could see him without the use of the computer. She leapt up and wrapped her hooves around his mouth and nose. He dropped his gun and began to flail around. She kicked his legs out from under him and lay on her back. She wrapped her back legs around his to prevent him from flailing any more. After a moment, he quit squirming and fell limp.
Pinkie released him and set him off to the side. She got to her hooves and brushed herself off. Before she walked away, she took one last look at the guard.
“Double tap!” She quietly said to herself as she picked the guard’s head up off the floor and smashed it on the ground.
He groaned once more before going silent again. Pinkie grinned and snuck away from him, positive that the others would be there soon. A few seconds later however, she heard another smash come from the opposite side of the room.
Pinkie looked at her computer and saw that three more guards were running over to the balcony just above the maintenance platform where she had left Twilight and Rarity. Luckily, the platform was directly underneath the balcony. The only way they’d be able to see them is if they hung off the edge and looked toward the tower.
After they moved the cloud cover inside, Rainbow instructed Fluttershy to keep the cloud condensed inside the tower by flying around the windows and pushing wind inside the building. Rainbow told her that she would be inside scanning for enemies near each window so Fluttershy would know which window to go to.
Rainbow flew inside the building and hid in the rafters above the central room where Strange was walking around in. He was surrounded by computers, graphs, schematics, and terminals that he could use to see every part of Arkham City with. Rainbow clenched her teeth at him angrily. She would’ve gone inside and ended it right there, but windows prevented her any direct access.
On the outside wall, she spotted a computer terminal beside a glass door. She guessed that it was her ticket inside. They would first have to get rid of all these guards though.
Rainbow began scanning the room in search of the guards. This fog proved to be very effective, but also a huge pain. Luckily, they had technology on their side. She studied the computer and saw that it was also scanning from another point in the room. She studied the outline of the pony for a moment before she realized it was Applejack. Pinkie was right in front of her, sneaking away from an unconscious guard.
Suddenly, on the ground in front of her came a loud noise followed by the sound of Batman’s grapple hook. It connected with the ground beside Rainbow and he ascended from the fog. He landed next to Rainbow.
“I like the fog idea.” Batman commented.
“Thanks.” Rainbow whispered with a grin.
Batman produced a freeze grenade. He held it in his hand for a moment before throwing it into the fog. Rainbow heard the familiar sound of ice freezing over a guard. Batman snuck away as quickly as he could with Rainbow right on his tail.
She glanced at her computer and noticed that the guard that was frozen was standing over an unconscious guard directly in front of a ladder. Another guard was climbing the ladder as quick as he could to reach his comrade. Batman pulled out his explosive gel and waited. Just when the guard reached the very top of the ladder, he pressed the button and the ground beneath the guards’ feet exploded, taking them both out in one blow.
“One to go.” Rainbow whispered to herself.
Rainbow turned around and walked over to where the balcony overlooked the glass ceiling. Making sure that the remaining guard was on the other side of the room, she flew down and began to push the cloud cover out the nearest window.
“They are here! Help me!” Strange exclaimed.
Pinkie saw the last guard running over to the other side of the room on her screen. The room was beginning to clear, which meant that this was almost over. She licked her lips and proceeded after the guard. Just before she reached him, he turned around to spot her.
He raised his gun and got ready to fire, but something from above smacked him in the head. He fell down to the ground and grasped the sides of his head. Pinkie took advantage of this, and kicked the guard as hard as she could into the wall, knocking him out.
“Room’s clear! Everypony get up here!” Pinkie said.
Applejack nodded and crawled back through the vents. Rainbow flew down next to Pinkie and blew the last of the clouds out. Fluttershy flew in from outside. Once Applejack, Twilight and Rarity popped out from underneath the floor grate behind them, they all ran toward the glass door on the upper level.
“Can you hear me, Mr. Wayne? Of course you can.” Strange said from his room. “Understand this, you cannot defeat me. I am untouchable.”
Rainbow flew ahead and met Strange on the opposite side of the glass. “Oh yeah? Just wait until we get in there and prove how wrong you are!” She threatened.
Batman floated down behind her and immediately went to work on unlocking the door. Once he began hacking the terminal, an alarm began to sound. No one seemed to pay it any heed, however. Everypony else joined Rainbow Dash in front of the glass doorway and stared hatred into Strange’s eyes; Strange simply looked back at them with a smirk on his face.
Finally, Batman cracked the security code. The alarm stopped and the door opened. Batman put away his device and got to his feet. The six ponies walked behind him in an orderly fashion as he entered the tiny room. Strange made no attempt to flee or fight.
“You have not won.” Strange said.
Batman did not reply. He continued to march forward until he was nose to nose with Strange.
Strange continued. “You cannot win. I, Hugo Strange am your successor. I have saved Gotham.”
Rainbow snorted and flew into the air at Strange. “You shut up!” She screamed.
Just before she came in contact with his face, she immediately stopped in mid-air, frozen. She looked around in surprise for a moment. She was surrounded by a black aura of evil magic. She was instantly thrown against one of the windows to her right, shattering it to pieces. She landed in a heap on the floor just outside.
Everypony looked at Strange in shock as he grinned. Batman continued to stand right in front of Strange, but he looked like he was straining against nothingness.
“Get… out of… here.” He growled.
“What’s wrong?” Twilight asked with growing concern.
“I… can’t… move…” Batman said.
Just then, he was thrown against the ceiling by an invisible force. The same invisible force grabbed the ponies and flung them back against the outer wall of the tower. Everypony screamed in terror and surprise as the dark magic hurled them around like rag dolls.
Twilight caught a glimpse of Strange and saw a pitch-black cloud of smoke appear behind him. Strange bared his teeth in a wicked smile as the ponies continued to be thrown around.
“At long last. The Elements of Harmony have arrived.”
Twilight opened her eyes in horror at the sound of that voice. They all stopped moving and were dropped on the ground. They all looked up to Strange as the dark cloud of smoke twisted and contorted into the familiar shape they all feared. As it finally took shape, it came out behind Strange, staring at the ponies with evil green eyes and bearing its sharp fangs.
“No… way….” Rainbow breathed in shock.
“That’s… that’s impossible!” Rarity exclaimed, backing away.
“You? You’re behind this?!” Twilight asked shakily as she also began backing away.
“King S-Sombra?”