//------------------------------// // Begin the Halloween That Never Ends (a.k.a. Enter Scream Fortress) // Story: Equestria Fortress 2 // by nightelf37 //------------------------------// Using the portal technology Tasic hadn't used since the first time the Equestrians got here, the EqU trailer drove through one of those, leaving DeGroot Keep (which has been taken by the BLUs) and entering a farmland named Harvest. It was nighttime and the moon looked really big "Wow, those BLUs have really stepped up their game!" Thenam said as they finally stopped at the RED side shed. "Looks like defending the keep isn't as easy as attacking," Chronicle agreed. "At least not without a lot of ranged weapons." "Where are we?" wondered Derpy Hooves as she and everyone else save Thenam exited the vehicle. Tasic stopped as he did a once-over. "Looks like we're at Harvest. It's a King of the Hill area." "Is that where you try and secure a central control point for a certain amount of time while preventing the enemy from doing the same?" Twilight Sparkle guessed. "Yes. For three minutes." "Hey, these pumpkins look a little creepy!" Pinkie commented, pointing at a few jack-o-lanterns, not that the Equestria natives knew what they were. "It's almost like they're meant for some kind of holiday themed around scaring. I'd say Nightmare Night, but it's different from that." "That would be the holiday here called Halloween," Jothicu answered as he and Tasic led the other nine inside the RED shed. "I can tell you that it did not start as the candy-gathering and scare-giving event it is today, but enough about that. Let me tell you a story. It's about Zepheniah Mann, the father of Redmond and Blutarch Mann. Come. Sit." As he and Tasic sat down in a manner they called Indian sitting, everypony else sat down as well, some on their legs and some on their rumps while Spike followed the humans' way. Seeing the medical researcher turn to him, he sighed and began to narrate. "Zepheniah Nieodemus Mann is a wealthy man from the nation of England, east of this country. He was convinced by his dimwitted sons to purchase large areas of land in frontier America, which is where we are now. He dreamed of turning the land into large pits of gravel for weapons manufacturing. On his journey over to see his newly purchased land, he was struck with almost every illness known to man." "What kinds of illnesses?" Fluttershy dared ask, much to the shock of everypony else. "Let's see…" Jothicu began to count them off. "Putrid fever, bilious fever, blackwater fever, green fever, spotted fever, womb fever, white plague, marasmus—" "Merasmus?" asked Pinkie. "Please do not interrupt, and no, not Merasmus the Magician. Continuing… he also got sweating sickness, deplumatious tumors of the eyelids, pleurisy, membranous croup, scarlet rash, falling sickness, walking sickness, stationary sickness, shingles, jaunoliced spine, skull bloat, scriveners palsy, and impetigo, the last two of which he contracted as he wrote his last will and testament…on his sloughed off skin." Once he was done, it was apparent that Fluttershy was deeply regretting asking in the first place and all the others were or creeped out at this in varying degrees. Finally, Twilight asked, "How is anypo—I mean, anybody able to contract so many diseases and survive long enough to have a will written?!" "We don't know. In any case, we learned this from a copy of that will, our methods of acquiring it we will not tell." Tasic produced a rolled-up sheet of paper, then unfurled it to reveal a photograph of the will. "Needless to say, Zepheniah was shocked to find his new land was an empty and useless desert." He also produced an old and faded photograph and passed it to the nearest pony, who soon passed it to the next and so on as he continued. "To his maidservant Elizabeth, the lady to the right, he left his estate, including all deeds, accounts, and debts, his tobacco plantation, and what was left of his fortune. To his aide and tracker Barnabus Hale—" "Ancestor of Saxton Hale…" pointed out Jothicu. "Who is at the leftmost part of the photo, he left complete control of what would eventually become Mann Co.," Tasic continued. "To his layabout 'brain defective sons' Blutarch and Redmond, the two in bowler hats, he left a partnership. All of the new land they had convinced him to buy was now to be split evenly between them. It may not sound bad, but for them it was. You see, as evidenced in the war we're in today, the Mann brothers never got along and were always at odds with each other, even since birth or so I heard. He also left Elizabeth, whom I theorize is the ancestor of the Administrator, the entirety of his "miracle" gravel cache, uncovered with Barnabus during a trip to Terra Australis now named Australia, to keep secret from his third and weakling son Gray, who had threatened to blackmail him for it." "Hold on a second!" interrupted Rainbow Dash. "Are you saying there's a third Mann?" "Yes, but presently he hasn't involved himself in this war as far as we know or in ways we can interfere. And lastly, to the 'fat-smelling, uneducated simpletons of the untamed Americas', he leaves only this curse—anybody who shoots over his grave will be delivered a haunting unlike any ever seen. I'm not sure whether or not ghosts are real in Equestria, but I can tell you they do exist here." Suddenly, there came a couple of familiar sounds. The battle cry of Mann Co. mercenaries. "Uh oh," gulped Tasic, then took out something from his pocket and talked through it. "Thenam, activate the trailer's cloaking device and evacuate the area. The BLUs are here." "So fast?!" the tech gasped. "Oh right. It looks like Merasmus brought them here." "Mission begins in sixty seconds!" the Administrator's voice came. "Uh-oh. The Customizers have been left in the trailer! We forgot to place them in the resupply cabinets!" gasped Tasic. "Let's hope your current weapons will work out." "We haven't changed our weapon loadouts since DeGroot Keep and the Saxton Hale fight before that," Chronicle said. "Damn. Looks like Jothicu and I should hide." "You're right." He then addressed Spike and the other ponies. "All right, let's gear up!" As one, they tapped onto their cards and in seconds and a flash of light they were now in their mercenary gear. "Twilight, looks like you'll have to fight up close. Just be more aware of the Pyro since the Bushwacka increases your vulnerability to fire for some reason." "Now that I look back, I think I should've stuck with the kukri. We still have yet to acquire the other blades." "Mission begins in thirty seconds!", came the Administrator. "Just great. We'll be entering a fight without optimal weapon loadouts. Could this night get any—" "Don't jinx it!" her bodyguard scolded. "Yeesh, to think you would've learned by now not to tempt fate like that." "Come on, do you really believe in such things?" "As much as I do the Pinkie Sense. This fate-tempting has happened way too many times to count to be mere coincidence. Just don't do it, okay?" "Fine." "I mean it!" "Mission begins in ten seconds!" The Administrator. "Jothicu, Tasic, you know where to hide?" "Not really," said the former. "I was thinking of staying here in the respawn area where the opposite team cannot enter for some reason." "I considered finding some hiding place out there, but the Spy or Sniper might locate us while looking for a place to hide and who knows what they'll do to us," said the latter. "Five!" The Admin's voice came. "Wish us luck," said Chronicle. "Four!" "Good luck!" Jothicu and Tasic moved to the two sides of the shed, next to the doors. "Three!" While the shed was covered by the Administrator's cameras, the humans had special gadgets on their persons that hide their presence to them while remaining visible to the unaided eye. "Two!" "Ready?!" "One!" As one, the nine made their way out of the shed (one had to be urged by another), entering yet another battle, but one that would prove to be significantly different, and not just because this is actually their first King of the Hill battle with BLU (having done one against RED in Badwater Basin). EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2 EqU Team Rainbow Dash's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Soda Popper 2° Weapon - Mad Milk Melee Weapon - Candy Cane Hat - Purely Polychromatic (no hat) Misc. Item 1 - None Misc. Item 2 - None Derpy Hooves's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Liberty Launcher 2° Weapon - Royal Canterlot Hallmark Melee Weapon - Pain Train Hat - Ditzy Blonde (no hat) Misc. Item 1 - None Misc. Item 2 - None Pinkie Pie's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Flame Thrower 2° Weapon - Shotgun Melee Weapon - Sharpened Volcano Fragment Hat - Madame Dixie Misc. Item 1 - Marxman (colored Pink As Hell) Misc. Item 2 - None Spike's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Ali Baba's Wee Booties 2° Weapon - Chargin' Targe Melee Weapon - Hero's Lance Hat - Standard Misc. Item 1 - Element of Loyalty Misc. Item 2 - None Chronicle's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Tomislav 2° Weapon - Sandvich Melee Weapon - Magic Horn Blade (Speedy Shoes) Hat - Standard Misc. Item 1 - None Misc. Item 2 - None Applejack's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Frontier Justice 2° Weapon - The Rodeo Wrangler Melee Weapon - Southern Hospitality Hat - Texas Ten Gallon (colored Muskelmannbraun) Misc. Item 1 - None Misc. Item 2 - None Fluttershy's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Crusader's Crossbow 2° Weapon - Medi Gun Melee Weapon - Amputator Hat - Standard Misc. Item 1 - None Misc. Item 2 - None Twilight Sparkle's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Huntsman 2° Weapon - Dragon Shield Melee Weapon - Bushwacka Hat - Standard Misc. Item 1 - Villain's Veil (colored A Deep Commitment to Purple) Misc. Item 2 - Triad Trinket (colored A Deep Commitment to Purple) Rarity's Loadout: 2° Weapon - L'Etranger 2° PDA - Dead Ringer Melee Weapon - Conniver's Kunai Hat - Standard Misc. Item 1 - None Misc. Item 2 - None BLU Team BLU Scout's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Shortstop 2° Weapon - Bonk! Atomic Drink Melee Weapon - Sandman Hat - Mildly Disturbing Halloween Mask Misc. Item 1 - None Misc. Item 2 - None BLU Soldier's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Rocket Launcher 2° Weapon - Buff Banner Melee Weapon - Escape Plan Hat - Ghastlier Gibus Misc. Item 1 - None Misc. Item 2 - None BLU Pyro's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Backburner 2° Weapon - Detonator Melee Weapon - Axtinguisher Hat - Ghastlier Gibus Misc. Item 1 - None Misc. Item 2 - None BLU Demoman's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Grenade Launcher 2° Weapon - Stickybomb Launcher Melee Weapon - Half-Zatoichi Hat - Mildly Disturbing Halloween Mask Misc. Item 1 - None Misc. Item 2 - None BLU Heavy's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Iron Curtain 2° Weapon - Sandvich Melee Weapon - Fists Hat - Mildly Disturbing Halloween Mask Misc. Item 1 - None Misc. Item 2 - None BLU Engineer's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Frontier Justice 2° Weapon - Wrangler Melee Weapon - Gunslinger Hat - Ghostly Gibus Misc. Item 1 - None Misc. Item 2 - None BLU Medic's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Blutsauger 2° Weapon - Kritzkrieg Melee Weapon - Übersaw Hat - Mildly Disturbing Halloween Mask Misc. Item 1 - None Misc. Item 2 - None BLU Sniper's Loadout: 1° Weapon - Sydney Sleeper 2° Weapon - Jarate Melee Weapon - Bushwacka Hat - Mildly Disturbing Halloween Mask Misc. Item 1 - None Misc. Item 2 - None BLU Spy's Loadout: 2° Weapon - Ambassador 2° PDA - Dead Ringer Melee Weapon - Spy-cicle Hat - Hat - Ghastly Gibus Misc. Item 1 - None Misc. Item 2 - None EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2 Midway into the fight… After an aggravating defense against two rocket-jumping Soldiers (both wearing different hats), Rainbow Dash was soon accompanied by a quickly called up Scout clone, who bore the same colors as her idolizer Scootaloo. Spike joined them as well on the central Control Point just as the (or a) BLU Demoman entered from the hole above. Over his head was an upside-down paper bag with a blue face painted on it depicting one eye and a sticking-out tongue. When inquired on it later, it turns out he was wearing a Mildly Disturbing Halloween Mask, which it was. The Heavy, Scout, Sniper, and Medic also wore similar masks, though they had different faces. The BLU Demoman also wielded what Tasic called a katana, which had a circular guard with rounded notches, and was adorned with brown hilt wrapping. The Half-Zatoichi. The split moment of surprise was enough for him to take her down and send her away. The Scout clone had been shooting at him with her Force-a-Nature and did not so much as faze upon seeing the Scotsman back to prime condition after his kill while Spike did for only a moment. Before the BLU could take down either of them, their combined efforts ended his assault. They captured the point just as another BLU Soldier descended, but Derpy entered in time to help neutralize him. The EqU Scout clone exited the barn containing the point only to be gunned down by a Mini-Sentry. Back at the RED Spawn area, Rainbow just finished 'respawning' and was off as soon as she was able, seeing off an EqU Soldier clone on the way out. As she entered the farmhouse and went up to the second floor, she saw a blue silhouette form into Twilight Sparkle. Already knowing it's the BLU Spy, and seeing that he hasn't realized she was there, she followed him out the window and to the roof. Once they were outdoors, she took him down in two shots. As long as she didn't ascend under her own power (i.e. being blasted upward by an explosive or bullets won't remove the bonus and neither will climbing any inclines), she wouldn't lose the speed bonus she just got. Theoretically, she would have to be grounded just to maintain the bonus, but she found a loophole by maintaining her altitude in flight and carefully descending. Oh wait. That's for the Baby Face's Blaster., she remembered. The Soda Popper reloads and fires faster, but at the expense of no critical hits and two shots only before reloading, like the Force-a-Nature, which she had seen LUNA's Blue Diary (Chronicle's younger brother) use during the Saxton Hale fight. There was also a "Hype meter" that fills up as she moves about. Once it reaches full, she'll be able to deal mini-critical hits with all weapons for eight seconds, after which she'll have to fill the meter up all over again. With that in mind, she then made her way back to the Control Point, and confronted the BLU Demoman with the Half-Zatoichi, who was trying to capture it again. Just before they could engage each other in battle however, something appeared in the middle of the point. It seemed to be some sort of "bedsheet ghost" wearing a slightly damaged black gibus hat with the top nearly detached. Instantly, the Demoman shrieked and immediately fled, running out of the point and getting an arrow to the head before being "run over" by a charging Spike. Utterly surprised, Rainbow laughed at the sight of a battle-hardened (and most likely drunk) mercenary fleeing from something as simple as a bedsheet ghost. However, this ghost then approached her and shouted, "Boo!" By all rights, she shouldn't have been scared of that, but the ghost didn't simply attempt to spook her, it also cast a debilitating effect that disabled her weapons and near-paralyzed her. As the ghost phased through Rainbow, she backed away, her wings still working somehow, though her mech-arm seemed to be shaking and unresponsive. Suddenly, she was blazed from behind by the Pyro and—because the Backburner was used—was quickly sent away. "Drat!", Rainbow swore, then talked through the comms system. "Guys! You're not gonna believe this! We got a ghost around here! I saw it scare the BLU Demoman!" She wasn't about to admit that it got her too. "Oh no, I forgot to tell you!", gasped Tasic. "Harvest was where Zepheniah Mann was buried!" "What?!" EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2 "There's a ghost here?!", shrieked Fluttershy. "I'll keep you safe!", Chronicle assured as the two of them made their way to the BLU Team's spawn area, repelling all in their way. Just then, there was a voice from the comms system. "Guys!" It was Twilight. "I see something headed your way from behind! And it's not a BLU!" "The ghost…Fluttershy, stick with me!" The EqU Medic did as he asked as the BLU Sniper got him on the leg with a shot from the Sydney Sleeper, somehow covering him in Jarate. "Yuck!" Luckily, the Medi Gun made short work of the liquid as they continued forward. "Piece of piss!" he heard the Sniper cry out from somewhere. Just then, a rocket came flying in their direction, hitting the ground and knocking them back…towards the ghost. "Oh, f—" "Boo!" The effect was instantaneous; both were rendered stunned and one actually got scared. And then the Soldier who launched the rocket fired a couple more and took them both out and sent them to the limbo room. EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2 "We have lost the control point!" called Thenam through the comms system. "Reclaim it!" The EqU Scout clone made her way back to the control point to reclaim it, seeing the ghost as she passed by it in the farmhouse, keeping her distance from it. As she reached the central Control Point with caution, she entered and found herself seeing the back of a BLU Demoman, who was about to leave the point. Just as he did however, the ghost came up to him and spooked him, giving her the chance to finish him off, only for it to approach her and do the same to her. Technically, that wasn't supposed to be possible, since she was just a construct, but it forced her to back away as it made its way to the point, leaving it partly captured. Thankfully, even as another BLU Demoman entered from the other side, Derpy went in and took him out with two rockets, both of which passed through the ghost. As the Scout clone circled around the barn housing the point, Derpy flew well over the ghost before landing on the point to capture it. Rarity joined her and the point was soon theirs again. However, a few seconds later, the BLU Pyro went in and ousted them with his Backburner, later joined by the BLU Engineer as he set up a Mini-Sentry, which gunned the EqU Scout down as she returned from fighting off other BLUs. EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2 As the BLU Scout respawned after getting torched down by the EqU Pyro Pinkie Pie, he exited the spawn room. Upon reaching the control point, he found that it has been reclaimed by his teammates. Already, he could see some of those pesky ponies fighting to get it back, but with the defenders being two Soldiers, he decided to let them handle it. He was not fond of being tossed around by explosions, which the Friendly Fire Protection System didn't protect him when they explode even if the firer was his ally. Making his way across the rooftops, he caught sight of his counterpart in EqU; Rainbow Dash. Unlike his RED counterpart, he hasn't managed to get over his crying over rainbows as much yet. And so he faltered during a jump and ended up slamming into an outer wall. She hadn't notice him however, as she was busy dodging shots from the BLU Heavy and taunting him. He quickly came to, turned to his right, and saw an EqU Engineer (but not Applejack) hauling something on her back and headed to the point, which was now under EqU's control. He had to admit that she had excellent balance for it not to tip over, but he figured she wouldn't be able to do so with her skull bashed in. Peeling himself off, he sped at her from the side and bonked her on the head multiple times before she disappeared in white lights. As for the load, it fell apart. "Pop quiz: how long's it take to beat a moron to death?" he said to where she once was. Before he could imitate a buzzer, he was cut off by a body-shot from Twilight Sparkle, who stood on a rooftop. Thanks to her purple garbs and coat, the dark sky proved to be somewhat adequate camouflage. "It all depends on the weapon," she replied to herself before nocking another arrow. However, the Scout was already on the move, knowing where she was and trying to reach her. She considered trying to get at him, but then she heard an alert from Tasic; they lost the control point. Making certain nobody was watching, she teleported… just as the Scout made it to her location and witnessed the entire thing. "Ah crap!" he gasped. "The Sniper can teleport without a teleporter!" EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2 At the central control point, the BLU Engineer managed to set up a Mini-Sentry Gun and a Dispenser, being protected by the BLU Pyro. The Medic and a Soldier made their way to them as they warded off the incoming ponies. Only twenty seconds and they'll secure victory from EqU for a second time. "LET'S PARTY!" a voice suddenly came. From behind them came the EqU Pyro and Medic, coated with a standard Medi Gun ÜberCharge. The one called Pinkie Pie, gleaming in a color true to her name, was ready to blaze away. "Ah, good night, Irene!" gasped the Engineer as he hoped his team's Medic can counter them without a Medi Gun ÜberCharge and switched to the Wrangler. "Hit it, Doc!" cried out the Soldier, and the Medic complied. his Rocket Launcher began to crackle with power. "Attaaack!" He then fired rockets at the ÜberCharge duo, but Pinkie drove those back with a few airblasts. The Medic kept him healed up though. The Pyro joined in with a few airblasts of his own only to be forced back by the shotgun. The pair continued to advance, with Pinkie deftly switching her weapons (it helps when both were technically held) to drive back the defenses, and Fluttershy staying on the ground and bracing her friend from the knockbacks. As the EqU Medic had learned, it was easier to be knocked back while flying. In less than ten seconds, the BLU Pyro went down, followed by the Soldier, and then it was down to the Engineer sticking behind his Mini-Sentry while his Medic healed him while it was being burnt down—then hacked away—by the pink pony. And then the Medic went down from a backstab by Rarity, who immediately did in the Engineer before he could react just as the EqU ÜberCharge faded. "Thanks a lot!" Pinkie said as she finished wrecking the BLU Engineer's Mini-Sentry, which stopped firing upon its owner's death. "We wouldn't have succeeded without your timely arrival." "My pleasure," replied Rarity as the three of them stood on the point, hoping they could capture it before BLU's timer runs out. Unfortunately for them, there was seven seconds left for the BLUs the instant their Engineer died. Their defeat began to dawn on them when they heard the Administrator say, "Victory!" Immediately, by some strange rule affecting the area, the ponies' weapons disappeared and they automatically got down on their haunches and looked down solemnly. Unlike the RED and BLU mercenaries, who generally flee, cower, or be thoroughly disappointed (as the Pyro and Spy do) while they get chased down by the victors, the EqU ones usually just slump over in defeat, except for Spike (who cowers and flees like the others) and Rainbow Dash (who just fumes and flies around, tackling any human in her way). Also, they are rendered invulnerable unlike the mercenaries until they are teleported back to the spawn room for another round or into the trailer, ready to flee, also using a special teleport failsafe to recall the Customizers so that they would not fall into the enemy's clutches. Given the temporary invulnerability EqU had, the BLUs decided not to waste their ammunition and heckle the losers with taunts. The respawned BLU Medic was chasing Spike with a manic grin like he wanted to dissect him despite his tools not being able to penetrate the scales. The BLU Scout was pestering Rainbow in an attempt to get used to her and not cry at the sight of her mane. Of course, she wasn't impressed and kept trying to ram into him, but with little success for some reason. Just as the usual Humiliation period ended, something unexpected happened. First, any duplicates of any of the mercenaries were instantly taken out. Second, the eighteen remaining combatants were caught in a strange green aura, then teleported around the shed housing the control point. Third, there was a green glowing light twenty feet above the point. When it faded… "It's Merasmus!" Twilight gasped. Merasmus raised his staff into the air, ready to cast a spell. "My spell begins henceforth, my friends! The Halloween That Never Ends!" From his staff, he launched a bolt of green magic into the heavens. It seemed to stop at a certain altitude, upon which it began to emit shockwaves that expanded all the way to the horizon. "Halloween? Forever?!" the BLU Scout cried out. "Yes! For all foreigners to America and all who work for Mann Co., it will be October 31st for all eternity! Or until I get bored, whichever goes first." Somebody—no one could remember if it was a Soldier, Demoman, or Sniper—attacked the wizard, who waved his staff and deflected the projectile. "Last Halloween and the Halloween before that has been getting old lately, so I've decided to play a little game. Fight in the areas Mann Manor, Eyeaduct, and Ghost Fort. You know the last two as Viaduct and Lakeside. For the visiting non-humans…" He emphasized on EqU. "You will find Mann Manor in the city of Manne-upon-Thames! I will only lift this spell if one team scores a victory on those three places in order without a loss in between. May the best team win!" And then he was gone in a flash of green light. EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2—EF2 To be honest, I don't really know if the Ghost appears at this time or not and so I apologize for this chapter being weak. I don't play the game, and so I also don't know how to effectively characterize Merasmus. This Halloween Arc will continue in the next chapter. See ya on Third!