//------------------------------// // The Battle of Fillydelphia, Part One // Story: Sunset Eclipsed // by EldritchNexus //------------------------------// Craw was marching down the hallway, scattering students as he went. He was puffing about in his armor. He quickly reached the infirmary, where Corporal Ghost was standing guard over the catatonic Rainbow Dash. He quickly went inside, and marched up to the corporal, who was just putting his mask back on. "Sergeant, does Captain Umbriel have any new orders?" Ghost asked. "Ghost, we have business to discuss." said Sergeant Craw. "Let's go somewhere quiet." "Yes, sir." the corporal replied. Craw and Ghost went into an empty classroom, where the sergeant suddenly grabbed his subordinate and smashed the corporal's armored face into a blackboard. The corporal promptly slid to the floor, where Craw stood him back up. "Ghost, you no-good son of a--" Craw growled through his mask, before punctuating his own curse word with a loud punch of his ironclad fist against Ghost's plated torso, and then twisted his arm around his back. "I saw a recording of what you did with Sunset Shimmer on that night. You know the one! I gave you explicit orders not to hurt her until I got to you two!" "She was asking for it!" rasped Ghost. "That pony-girl kept going on and on! She wouldn't shut up!" "I will not have any excuses from you, you albino freak." said Craw. "I'm getting sick of you and your raunchy behavior. I wanted Sunset Shimmer to be kept unharmed until I could settle her punishments, and you treat her like a punching bag, and spout out death-threats! Not only that, but you needlessly picked a fight with those cops, and deliberately provoked them into attacking you! I didn't want that, either! If you screw up on following my orders again, I'll kill you where you stand!" Suddenly, Ghost swung his other arm back, striking Craw in the shoulder. He broke away from his officer's grasp, and grappled with him. He suddenly gripped Craw's mask and yanked it off. He then shoved Sergeant Craw against the closed door. He punched him in the chest three times, and forced the door open by kicking Craw in the stomach. "Corporal, what do you think you're doing?!" Craw breathed hard. "This is insubordination!" "You had feelings for her, Sarge." said Corporal Ghost. "Don't hide it from me! You loved that pony!" "No, I didn't!" stressed Craw, angrily. "But what you did to her was just vile!" "You don't know what 'vile' is!" retorted the corporal. He grabbed Craw by the neck, then threw him into a row of lockers. The green doors were crushed by Craw's armored body, and the collision made for a loud, echoing crash. Several students gasped, and ran aside to get away from the two brawling soldiers. Pinkie Pie and Rarity were in the hallway, and recognized the sergeant. "Hey, leave Craw alone!" Pinkie Pie shouted at Ghost. "How dare you hurt our friend!" said Rarity in support. "Whatever your problem is, I am certain we could talk this out!" Ghost then turned his masked head at the two girls, brandished a baton from his hip, and angrily chucked it at them. Pinkie and Rarity were able to duck just in time, as the blunt object hit a locker with a clang. "You two are next!" screeched the corporal. He slowly marched towards them, but Craw quickly got back to his feet and tackled Corporal Ghost. Rarity ran to the Principal's office, while Pinkie Pie shouted encouraging words to the sergeant. "Get 'em, Craw!" the pink-haired girl cheered on. "Show that meanie who's boss!" But Ghost suddenly wormed his way out of Craw's hold, and aimed a kick for his unarmored head. Luckily, most of the blow was absorbed by a pauldron on the sergeant's military armor. Craw cried out in pain, and then reached for Ghost's head, and ripped his headgear off. Ghost suddenly reached into his holster, and brandished a sub-machine gun. "I'm gonna enjoy this, you pony-loving sicko!" Ghost shouted, pointing the gun at Craw's face. Bang! Suddenly, Ghost's gun was shot out of his hands and shattered apart, while two Syndicate commandos spontaneously appeared and forced him back to his feet. Craw stood himself back up, and found himself being given a hug by Pinkie Pie and Rarity, who had just returned with Principal Celestia and Captain Umbriel in tow. The sergeant and the two teenage girls stayed together in the hall, while the others proceeded across the building. "Craw, you're not hurt, are you?" Pinkie asked. "Nah." said the sergeant. "Apart from a stiff neck, I think that I'm unharmed." "Oh, C-Craw!" Rarity said, whose voice was shaking. "I was s-so scared for you!" Craw paused to look at the purple-haired girl. "You were?" "Yes! Yes! A thousand times 'yes'!" she bawled. "I don't want to see bad things happen to my friends!" Craw was astonished. Even after all the things he'd gone through and done in the past few days, he still had friends at this school. "Hey, Rarity, it's okay." he patted the girl on her shoulder, assuming his high school student persona, even though he was still wearing his armor. "I'm a tough guy! I can handle stuff like this!" "Sorry, Craw." said Rarity, who was now calming herself down and regaining her composure. "I'm just so shocked by all of these recent events. First, you disappear for more than a week, then Sunset Shimmer's being hunted like a common animal by some government task force or whatever, and then Rainbow Dash is nearly kidnapped and hospitalized, and now you show up again, brawling with one of those soldiers...Wait a minute. Darling, whatever are you doing wearing their armor?" "That doesn't matter right now." said Craw. "What were you two doing, anyway?" "We were going to see Rainbow Dash." said Pinkie. "Someone tried kidnapping her, and now she looks like a zombie or something." She stomped around, making weird vocalizations. "Sounds serious." said Craw. "Let's go check up on her." Meanwhile on the pony side of the portal, Sunset Shimmer finally led the Night Guard to the outskirts of Fillydelphia. They had arrived just in time, as they could see and hear the signs of a battle on the streets of the ramshackle city. There were screams, rumbling noises, and bright flashes of light rising out of the gloom. "I just hope we're not too late." said Captain Star Shield, witnessing the fighting. He turned to his fellow guards. "I want everypony to maintain a solid perimeter around the city." said the captain. "You shall circle the area, and then close in on the attackers, once you have your sights set on them." "And what about me?" questioned Sunset Shimmer. "Fillydelphia's my mission, after all." "Indeed." nodded Star Shield. "I shall have a division of my task force escort you to your destination, wherever it may be." "That won't be necessary. I can handle myself." "As you wish." said Star Shield, reluctantly. "But as Captain of Princess Luna's guard, you are by extension, my responsibility out on the battlefield, as long as you are her student." "Captain, I'm twenty years old." stressed Sunset. "I don't need a foal-sitter." "And what about me?" asked Radiant Dawn. "Surely, you could use some help from your own family." "No, Red." Sunset shook her head. "This is my mission. You have yours. Having you dog me around would just mean that we'd be getting in each other's way." Radiant bowed his head, with a bitter expression on his face. "But thanks, anyway." said Sunset. The amber mare approached the large orange-red stallion, and wrapped her front hooves around his. "It's great to have you back, bro." she smiled. "Same here." nodded Radiant. "Good luck, Sunny." Sunset Shimmer turned away from Radiant Dawn and the Night Guard, and galloped down the path to the city. Captain Star Shield turned to Radiant. "Lieutenant, I would be honored if you were to assist me." said the pegasus captain. "Yes, captain." said Radiant, turning to his superior. "And I will need the bat-ponies to follow us." said Star to the rest of the Night Guard. "The rest of you, disperse yourselves across the city." Several pegasi guards took off towards the city, while their earth pony and unicorn counterparts followed behind. Star Shield and Radiant Dawn went down the path that Sunset Shimmer took, followed closely by the bat-pony guards. Sunset Shimmer made it to the paved roads of the city, when she suddenly heard a loud roar overhead. She looked up, and saw the large winged shape of a dragon flying over one of the larger buildings. She felt herself shaking all over, but quickly maintained self-control. She took a left turn, and found herself in the middle of a battle between three unicorns, two pegasi, and fourteen Changelings. The insect-like attackers had the ponies routed, but the mare lifted her head to cast a spell. Boom! A bluish-green energy field erupted from the amber unicorn's horn, and expanded forwards. The Changelings were blind-sided and scattered by the attack, but a few were able to regroup. They turned towards the newcomer, and prepared to circle her. Their wings were buzzing furiously as they quickly closed in on her. Two of them dive-bombed down on the lone unicorn from opposite directions. Sunset quickly teleported away, and the two Changelings violently collided with each other in mid-air. "Are you ready to rock?!" Sunset shouted at the others, as she reappeared. The other Changelings glared furiously at the unicorn, who was standing in front of a battered brick wall. They sped towards her, beating their clear wings. Suddenly, Sunset teleported away again, and the Changelings smacked themselves against the wall. Suddenly, the wall rocked back and forth, before being pulled down on the Changelings by Sunset's telekinesis. There was a series of nauseating crunching noises as the insect-like pony-creatures were flattened. The other ponies cheered loudly. "Wow, that was so amazing!" said a familiar voice. Sunset looked down, and saw the same filly that she had saved from Long Rim. "Kid, I think you need to get out of here." said the unicorn. "This isn't the place for a little filly like you." "Don't worry, I won't be out here for long. I'm just here to deliver a message." said the young pony. "What kind of message?" "It's from the mayor." said the filly. "He's my uncle. He wants every able-bodied pony in the city to meet at the city hall. Could you go and meet him?" "I'm here to help." said Sunset. "Could you lead me to the city hall?" "Sure can!" said the filly. "The name's Posey, by the way." "That's a nice name." said Sunset, with a little smile. "Okay, now. Time to go!" Sunset Shimmer and Posey sped down the road, followed by a few brave ponies. The city had been plunged into chaos by the invading army of Changelings and other creatures that were now running rampant throughout the streets. Every now and again, they would hear a shriek of terror, the sound of a building crumbling, or a Changeling or unicorn's spell going off in the distance. Luckily, they were still able to navigate through the streets without engaging in any of the larger battles, since the Night Guard had already entered the fray, and were fighting off the more dangerous creatures. After some tricky maneuvering, Sunset Shimmer and Posey eventually came within sight of the city hall. Fillydelphia's City Hall was built atop a large hill surrounded by towers. It was lined with columns along the front, and was accessed from the rest of the city by a long flight of marble stairs. The stairs to the city hall were flooded with ponies and Changelings fighting each other. There were flashes of green light, and ponies were sent hurdling up or down the stairs. The black insect-ponies slowly advanced up the stairs, relentlessly pushing back the defenders. Posey started to panic, and hid behind Sunset Shimmer. "Sunset!" shouted the voice of Trixie. Sunset Shimmer turned her head, and saw Trixie and Lightning Dust rushing towards her. "We've been looking everywhere for you!" said Lightning Dust. "You had us worried sick!" "Yeah, and now we've got an invasion on our hands!" Trixie exclaimed. "What are we going to do now?" Sunset looked at her two friends. "Simple: We fight them off." said Sunset. "Lightning, do you remember that move that you practiced with at the farm?" "Yep!" said Lightning Dust. "The Thunderball, right?" "I want you to use it on that Changeling army ascending the stairs to the city hall." said Sunset Shimmer. "I need you to clear a path, so that Trixie and I can meet up with the mayor." "Roger that, ma'am." said the blonde pegasus with a salute. She took off into the air, and performed a series of somersaults as she flew. She spun about across the sky, and her body became a cyan tornado. She began to glow with a golden light, dropped down hard on the Changeling army, and scattered the army in a white-hot electrified explosion. Several Changelings fell down the stairs, their comatose black bodies crackling with electricity. Lightning Dust herself stood triumphantly in the middle of the stairs, and received applause from the remaining defenders. "Now's our cue!" Sunset told Trixie and Posey. "Head upstairs, immediately!" The three galloped up the stairs, and were joined by Lightning Dust and the rest of the militia-ponies. They hurried through the main entrance, and worked their way through the building until they reached the door to the mayor's office. "Mr. Mayor?" Lightning knocked on the door. "We're here for your meeting!" There was no response from the other side of the door. Sunset knocked her own hoof against the door. "Sir, it's Sunset Shimmer!" called the reddish-blonde unicorn. "Remember? I'm Princess Luna's student! I'm here with my friends and your niece! I even have the Night Guard out in the city, fighting the creatures!" "C'mon, uncle!" said Posey. "Please open the door!" Suddenly, there was a low growling on the other side of the door, followed by a pained shout. "Help me!" said the voice of the mayor. "Get this monster away from me!" A blood-curdling screech exploded from inside the mayor's office. Sunset, Trixie, and Lightning gasped, Posey's eyes widened with fear, several other ponies backed away in surprise. Lightning Dust tried to open the door, but it was welded shut. Sunset Shimmer went outside, and came back in while levitating a broken column with her telekinesis. She rammed it into the door five times, and knocked it off its hinges. Sunset, her friends, and a few militia-ponies went in through the door. "That's close enough!" said a strange, raspy voice, which caused the rescuers to involuntarily halt in their tracks. Sunset gasped, as she beheld a tall creature that appeared to be a Changeling looming over the injured Mayor of Fillydelphia. His red eyes were glaring furiously at the other ponies in the office. Eventually, he stopped at Sunset Shimmer. "Ah, yes." the Changeling's voice boomed. "Just the pony...that I need."