//------------------------------// // Chapter 14 // Story: The Roman Pony // by Silver_Wolf //------------------------------// I heard a loud roar behind me, I began shaking as I stood up. I turned around, my heart sunk. I was looking at a gigantic creature just a few yards from me, it was blue and transparent, coded with starts, it looked a lot like a bare! "AH FUCK!" I shouted running away. I had never ran on all fours, or hooves for that matter. I kept running hearing the creature roar behind me. I was forced to stop, I was at a cliff... I knew I couldn't jump over to get to the other side, I looked down then back over, the creature was coming close. I turned right and went running, running as fast as my hooves would carry me. I was forced to stop again, looking at a gigantic castle in front of me... It was solid black, but it was in ruins. I ran to the door and began pounding on it, it didn't budge the least bit and the creature was coming closer... I had only one more option, to try out my new wings! It took me a minute, but once I got used to the new muscles, I soared in the air, going into a small window, I tumbled when I tried landing. I jumped back to my feet. "Who are you?" A faint voice asked. I turned around, a large alicorn was towering over me. She was dark blue, she wore a necklace around her neck with a crescent moon on it, her hair, transparent like that bear thing I had seen. "I'm... I'm Maximus Caeser..." I replied trying to sound formal. "How... How do your wings work?" She asked her eyes wide. I shrugged, having no idea. The sunlight glistened through the window, the light hit my hoof, the light reflected off my hoof in multiple colors. I lifted up my hoof, the shards from the Elements of Harmony were still in my hoof, though the ones I had picked up that didn't get into my skin were now stuck in them as well. Her eyes widened. "How did YOU get the Elements of Harmony!?" She asked astonished! "Oh well... See, me and Twi-" She cut me off. "There's no time, take the shards to their rightful owners!" She exclaimed. "Who?" I asked. "Just, take them to Twilight! She'll know what to do with them!" She said quickly, I nodded, flying out of the castle window again. Then, to my disbelief, I saw the bear creature again... I could feel my wings giving out, I needed a weapon... I flew back inside the castle, my wings sore from never using them before. "What are you doing!?" She asked angrily. "There's some bear thing down there!" I exclaimed. "An Ursa Minor..." She muttered. She took a deep inhale trying to think of a solution. "Okay, down stairs in my throne room there's armor and a spear, use that against it." She said. I nodded running out the door. I ran down the stairs as quickly as I could until I came into a gigantic room held by large pillars, it all had the same color scheme, a dark blue and black. There on the ground I saw it... A silver helmet, I struggled to pick it up with my hoof, It took me a few tries before I finally was able to hold onto it log enough to get it on my head. On the ground next to the helmet was a set of armor and a pole. I pretty much climbed into the armor, putting my hind legs in first. It was just a chest plate. I looked at the pole, it had no point, though there was a carved spot on the top that indicated it SHOULD have a spear tip in it, I looked around hoping to find it, finding nothing. I sighed picking up the pole it my mouth, thinking maybe it would help me a little bit, when I took a step towards the stair case, I dropped the pole to the ground. My hoof had a sharp pain in it, I lifted it up looking at it, the shards had gotten deeper into my skin, then I grinned looking at the large, pointed purple one. I bit onto it, pulling it from my hoof wincing a little bit as I did so. I held the spear in my hoof the best I could as I slid the purple shard into the place of the spear tip. It fit perfectly, I shook the spear a bit to assure it would stay in, and it did. I wasn't sure what it was, but all of a sudden, I was craving blood... Maybe it was Roman blood, maybe it's just my instinct. But all I know is I flung the door open with the spear in my mouth, running at the Ursa Minor, it roared at me with its mouth wide open, I stabbed the spear into his chin. It stood their for a moment looking at me blankly, but then when I pulled the spear out, its entire body began glowing a bright light... I was blinded for a moment, but once I regained my vision, there stood the stone Ursa Minor... I grinned, then went running. "Hurry Maximus!" A voice called out. It had been the alicorn in the castle top, I smiled weekly as I ran with the spear clenched in my mouth, a bit of blood dripping from the Ursa Minor. I wasn't sure were I was going, but something inside me told me were to go, and what to do. I glided across a cliff and ran past some type of hut, I paid no mind to it as I ran at my top speed. I ran until I walked onto a green brick road... I had never seen something so oddly colored, but just like my clothes, I didn't care! I following the winding path as the forest turned into a field, and the field turned into a city... My eyes widened when I saw the large multi animal creature walking about the city. "Twilight... I know you're here..." He called out grinning. I prepared to charge at him and stab the spear directly in his chest, but the moment before Discord could turn to look at me, someone pulled me into an alley. There was a purple hoof over my mouth, I looked over, looking into a set of purple eyes. The unicorn moved her hoof away, her mane was short and white, but there were spots of purple... The paint was coming off, and I grinned once I realized it was Twilight... I picked the spear back up in my mouth. "What are you doing!?" Twilight exclaimed. "I'm gonna take him out." I muffled. "ARE YOU CRAZY!?" She exclaimed. "No... I'm Maximus!" I ran out of the alley sliding on the ground with the spear in my mouth looking Discord in eye eye. He grinned, knowing exactly what I was about to do. I charged at him with everything I had. My hooves beating on the ground, I jumped into the air flapping my wings, right before the spear tip could smash into his face, I was stuck... He took two claws and pulled the shard from the spear smiling. "Goodbye." I was sure I was going to die, I thought he was going to dig his claws in my eye sockets! But he just snapped his lion claws... My eyes lit up, I could move, I was looking into a set of emerald eyes. "You okay sugar cube?" The orange pony asked me, having a strong southern accent. She lifted me off my back with her hoof. I looked around, we were surrounded by apple trees. There were ponies every were hanging their heads down leaning against the trees. The orange pony readjusted her cowboy hat on her ponytail blonde hair. "Yeah... I'm fine." I replied amazed by the amount of ponies around us. "So what's yer name?" She asked. "I'm Maximus Ceaser... Were am I?" I asked her. "I'm Apple Jack, you're on sweet apple acres!" She exclaimed smiling. "This place doesn't look to sweet..." I said noticing how depressed the ponies looked. "Well as of right now, this place is a bit of a jail cell..." She said with a sigh. "So none of these ponies are going to try and break free!?" I asked quickly. "Ain't none of them up to it! I tried gettin em' to fight back, but they only gonna listen to the princesses, so unless you know some kinda royalty, none of em' gonna help ya." She said. My eyes widened, though I never thought about it to much, technically I was royalty! One of my great great great (Lots of greats there) grandfathers was Julius Ceaser, and his wife was Cleopatra, I had the right to two thrones, but Rome had fallen a long time ago were I came from, and I doubted any Egyptian was going to bow down to me, but it was worth a shot... I assured my armor was on tight before speaking aloud trying to sound as proper as possible. "PONIES! CAN I GET YOUR ATTENTION!" I shouted at the top of my lungs. They all looked over to me. "I AM MAXIMUS CEASER! I AM THE RIGHTFUL ERA TO TWO THRONES, I AM A PHARAOH OF EGYPT AND THE EMPEROR OF ROME! I WILL LEAD YOU ALL TO VICTORY IF YOU JUST LISTEN TO ME!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, they all began whispering to each other, and after just a minute, they all grinned and cheered! "Uh sugar cube... Ya' know we ain't got no weapons right?" She asked. I still had the wooden pole at my hooves, but I knew that wasn't enough... Before I could say anything, a squirell ran across a tree and a branch fell down, then I had an idea. "ANYONE WHO WANTS TO LIVE! GRAB A THICK STICK AND COME TO ME MY WARRIORS!" I commanded like a general. The ponies did just as I said, they ripped thick sticks off of the trees, Applejack seemed crushed that her trees were being torn apart, but knew it had to be done. They all now had thick branches, but that was a terrible weapon... "Grab a rock and smash it into your branches!" I demanded, they all did so. "Sugar cube, ya know that spears ain't gonna stop Discord right?" She asked. I nodded smiling, a few minutes pasted, all the ponies had their spears. "Now come over here!" They all lined up in front of me. I pulled out small, tiny, baby sized shards of the Elements of Harmony attaching them to the tip of each rocks. It took an entire hour, I still had quite a few large pieces of the elements left seeing as I broke the small shards to make sure I had enough pieces for each of them. I knew that the small shards wouldn't be as powerful as the spear I had used to turn the Ursa Minor to stone, but it would still hurt Discord a lot more then just stone. I thought maybe we were ready, but when I turned around Applejack was looking at me, she had an old rusty sword in her mouth and dropped it to the ground smiling. "All yours..." I pulled out the large shards dropping them to the ground. I picked up the rusty sword in my mouth, and smashed it down hard onto the ground, the iron blade shattered, while the handle was still perfectly in tact. I picked up all of the large shards piecing them together to form a blade, I had two left once I was near its peak. I picked up my last purple shard, and put it on the very top carefully. Surprising, the sword began glowing, blinding me and Applejack, I dropped it from my mouth. Once our vision returned, the diamonds had forged together, the entire blade perfectly together. I grinned and picked it up in my hoof this time... The ponies with spears in their mouths gathered around me. I looked down seeing one, last shard. I dropped the sword and pulled my helmet off, I put the shard on the very top, and smashed my hoof onto it. Now the silver helmet had a green emerald in it, I smiled placing it back on my head. "TODAY PONIES! WE WILL DEFEAT DISCORD! WITH TEAM WORK! OUR FORCES COMBINED WILL GIVE US ENOUGH POWER TO OVERWHELM THAT UGLY BEAST!" I picked up the sword holding it over my head! "CHARGE!!!!!!!" I shouted out. We stampeded through the apple field.