//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: Dusty // Story: War on Equestria: Rise of the Slivers // by Uberdeathninja //------------------------------// It has been five years since the war began. The slivers took territory, and yielded none. Many nations fought the ancient menace, but none succeeded. In the end, the survivors flocked to pony territories, the last bastions of non-sliver sentient life. The ponies, with use of the leylines and the Arcanium they supplied, fought the slivers to the best of their abilities, using advanced magical weapons, but the slivers evolved too rapidly, and soon, none of their weapons could harm them. However, the ponies discovered something that gave them the upper hand: Slivers could not break Arcanium. With this knowledge, the ponies constructed massive walls with the metal, and lined the ground within their walls with it. Now completely defended, the few strongholds that remain live in relative ease, but travel and trade between the strongholds are near impossible, manageable only by powerful magic from the leylines, which the slivers also use to get into the strongholds sometimes. Now, this day, Celestia and Luna have tried every way to get rid of the slivers, but with no success, for their hive spans the whole planet itself, right beneath their hooves. With dwindling options and resources, The princesses have sent raiding party after raiding party, all armed with Arcanium armor and weapons. However, very few have returned, but the information they bring is quite valuable, as it gives the princesses a knowledge of the inner workings of this giant hive. With the war at it's peak point, fate has turned its hand to the Princesses and the surviving races: The expeditions have revealed a leader among the slivers: A hive mind of sorts. If they captured or killed it, the rest of the slivers would likely scatter and die out. This was too good an opportunity to pass up, so Celestia and Luna jumped on it, but they first needed a champion, a warrior who could fight the sliver horde without fear, and without failure, and they knew just how to find one. Now, this is his story. Not the champion's, but the young stallion about to become the champion. Let us begin... Naga's reach stronghold, 6:00 am, 3 days before the summer solstice. A young stallion woke up in his home in Naga's reach, a stronghold built around the east end of Neigh York. It was in a sorry state, his town, but people were happy. The slivers tended to avoid salt water, so this stronghold had the least sliver sightings in all of Equestria. The young stallion, named Dusty, walked outside, greeting the passerby as he walked to the market. Everyone knew and liked Dusty, for he was quite the hero. Because of this, he always was greeted as a friend as he walked, and got discounts whenever he bought from the local merchants. Dusty was the ripe age of 18, the perfect age to join Celestia's army. For as long as Dusty could remember, he had always admired the soldiers, and loved hearing about the exploits of the soldiers, like how many slivers they killed, or which cities they re-captured from the hyper-adaptive bastards. Dusty always wanted to be a part of that, and to take their world back from these monsters. He hated slivers with a great passion, ever since they murdered his mother during the emergence five years ago. He longed to explore the world, and find the Sliver that orphaned him and his sister, Neia, who was currently at home, bedridden with a nasty sliver parasite. The doctors said they could remove it, but it would take a few days to create the medicine that would force the parasitic sliver out of Neia's body. So now, Dusty did what any good older brother would do, and went out to make meals for his little sister. Finally, he reached a cozy little store by the harbor, which sold the best ingredients for his homemade soup. "Ey, Dusty!" Called the store owner, Bargain Brandon. He was a big minotaur, but he was pretty friendly, and was seen as the father of the town, due to the fact he kept every one fed and clothed. "Hey, Brandon. Got my usual ingredients?" Asked Dusty. "Yep, right here." Replied Bargain Brandon, handing Dusty a large bag of produce, herbs, and spices, and Dusty handed the minotaur a handful of coins. "So, how your sister doin'? Still got that bug inside her?" Asked Brandon. "Yeah, but the doctors say they'll have it dead by tomorrow." Replied Dusty cheerfully. "That's good news, if I've ever heard any. Well, better get back to Neia, she's probably starving." Said the jolly minotaur, and Dusty thanked him and left, running back home at full speed. It was a very sunny, warm day, and seagulls cluttered the docks, looking for crabs, fish, or bread bits. As Dusty was about to enter his home, however, the seagulls suddenly flew off, squawking in terror. Every citizen looked around in terror, as this meant a sliver invasion was imminent. Suddenly, the harbor surged with displacement as seven large, fish-like slivers jumped onto the docks, flashing their metallic scythes in the sunlight as they selected their targets. Dusty grabbed his weapon; a large sword, forged of arcanium, the last family heirloom he possessed. The sword belonged to his great-great-grandfather, A knight named sir Isaac Soot, and drew the blood of countless slivers, and was about to kill seven more. As Dusty yelled, charging the group of seven-foot-long TideDweller Slivers, He heard a familiar roar: Bargain Brandon had joined the fray, his trusty steel warhammer in his hands. The Slivers split up, opting to capture as many citizens as they could before vanishing into the harbor. Dusty didn't know why Slivers opted to capture, or what they did with the ones they did capture, and he didn't want to find out. Quickly, he decapitated one, while Brandon mashed another into green-and-silver pulp. The battle continued, and the two remaining TideDweller Slivers retreated, taking no one with them. "Damn, that's the third time this week..." Brandon Panted. "Don't these bastards know that no means no?" Dusty grimaced, gripping his sword tightly. "No, they don't know. And they never will, until someone demonstrates it to them." Spat Dusty. "Well, those two worms got the message. Let's hope it stays that way." Sighed Brandon. "Yeah... Thanks for the help, by the way." Said Dusty. "My pleasure. Couldn't let you have all the fun, after all! Someone's gotta keep that reckless nature of yours in check!" Brandon Laughed, and Dusty laughed with him, before gong inside to feed himself and his sister. Hive Heart, much later Chae-Surr of Gamma Brood gazed in disappointment at the two TideDweller Slivers before him. They had failed a simple task, and he ought to have sentenced them to death. However, they brought him an interesting story: A hero lived there, and he was quite powerful. Chae-Surr heard tales of this hero, and how he pulled a Parasitic Sliver from his own body, and somehow gained sliver strength from it. He dismissed the two TideDwellers, and returned to his thoughts. This hero, he possessed such strength, strength that would serve a better purpose aimed at the other ponies. If not that, he had to at least find a way to destroy this hero, lest he become a problem. Chae-Surr sat upon his throne of surface-dweller bones, thinking of his next course of action. Naga's Reach stronghold, the next day. Dusty awoke to a knocking at his door, which also woke his sister. "Uh? Dusty, who's at the door?" Asked Neia tiredly. "I'm checking, sister, go back to sleep." Called Dusty, as he opened the door, revealing a griffon in a trench coat and a beak-like plague mask. "Eh, can I help you?" Asked Dusty nervously, intimidated by the griffon's cold, emotionless aura. "Hmm? Oh, sorry, quite hard to hear with this mask. Here, let me get this cursed thing off." Replied the griffon, who then removed his plague mask, revealing an elderly, but wise-looking griffon. "Much better, Now, I am Doctor Allswell, child. Is your sister home? I've caught wind that she has a nasty little bug inside her, and I have the medecine ready to remove the blighter." Explained the Griffon as he stroked his beard. "Um, yeah, Neia's upstairs. Come in, Doctor, I'll show you the way." Said Dusty, confused by the odd doctor. "Good lad. Now, let's proceed, I would like to take the specimen back with me, for learning purposes." Explained Doctor Allswell. "If I may inquire, doctor, why were you wearing a plague mask?" Asked Dusty. "Ah, yes, well, You can never be too careful when visiting a patient's house, Now, the patient... ah! here she is! Okay, lad, you may want to leave, the procedure's going to get bit... ugly." Doctor Allswell explained as he snapped on his plague mask and a rubber glove. Dusty nodded and left the room, and waited. Three hours passed, and Doctor Allswell finally walked back out of the room, carrying a small, struggling, shrimp-like creature, but with a tapered head, and tentacles on its back. "Eugh, what is that?" Asked Dusty. "Huh? Oh, this is the little guy that's been giving you two so much grief. Took me three hours to get him out, but here he is. Hmm... Celestia's scientists have always wanted a live specimen for study. I think I'll sell the little guy and make a fortune!" Explained the doctor. "I'm not going to ask how you got that thing out of Neia..." Dusty said softly, feeling sick looking at the filthy creature that had been feeding off of his sister. "Well good, because that's my personal secret. You know, Celestia has been wanting a lot of things lately... A champion, in particular. Believe it or not, I heard about your little brawl with those seven TideDweller Slivers. You have some real potential, lad." Allswell told Dusty. "Uh... Thanks?" Replied Dusty. This was too good to be true. Celestia was looking for a champion, and a complete stranger says he might have what it took to achieve that end? "No problem, lad. Your sister is unconscious, by the way, turns out the little bugger latched to a major artery, and the medicine knocked her out. She'll be fine in a few hours." Allswell said, grabbing his coat and heading out. "Wait! Don't I need to pay you, or something?" Called Dusty. "Nah, boy, this little sliver will pay the bill for you. Until next time, Dusty!" Called the doctor before he flew off, leaving Damien with his thoughts. A few hours passed, and Neia stumbled down the stairs, healthy, but still so dizzy, she was tripping on her nightgown. "Well, look who's just in time for dinner." Said Dusty, a hint of smugness in his voice. "Good, I'm starving. More soup, I take it?" Asked Neia. "Nope, veggie burgers." Replied Dusty. Neia almost tripped in surprise. "What? How'd you manage the money for the bread?" Asked Neia, shocked. Dusty laughed. "Well, the good doctor Allswell saw it fit to make his procedure free, and I thought that, with the extra money, I'd buy something nice." Dusty explained. "Why? What's the occasion?" Asked Neia, confused. "What, can't a brother make his sister a nice dinner every so often?" Asked Dusty. "... You're leaving, aren't you?" Asked Neia somberly. "Sister, stop using that damned scrying spell!" Said Dusty. "I have to! You wouldn't ever tell me otherwise..." Retorted Neia as she bit into her burger. "Neia, I have to do this, for us, for the world." Said Dusty. "No, you only want to do this because of mom! You keep thinking about the world, but what about the community you've protected? What about our friends? What about me?" Asked Neia fiercely. Dusty looked down, unable to respond. "Dusty, we need you here, with us. I'd rather have you here, alive, than out there, where the slivers are guaranteed to eat you alive." Finished Neia, and Dusty gave her a happy look. "Okay, Neia, I'll stay." Said Dusty. Neia gave Dusty a relieved look, and they ate in peace. Then they finished, washed their dishes, and headed to bed. Night fell over Naga's reach, and Dusty awoke at midnight, gathering his stuff, then climbing through a window, into the cold, windy night. "I'm sorry, Neia... But I have to do this, If not for the world, then for you." Dusty thought as he slipped into the night, Determined to reach Canterlot Stronghold.