Gilda’s head hurt.
She stumbled through the streets of Manehatten like a drunk, ponies scattering to keep out of her way. Gilda barely took notice. She had an apartment nearby; if she could get there she could collapse on the couch and sleep off whatever was making her head hurt so much.
Manehatten was right in the center of Equestria, just under a day’s travel from Canterlot, so a griffon wasn’t exactly a common sight. Gilda felt the stares of everypony on her as she stumbled past; she could practically taste their disapproval. She could swear she could even hear their thoughts. What’s a griffon doing here? Is she drunk? What does she want?
Stupid ponies. Why did she care what they thought? She was better than them. Cooler. Yeah. She was cool. Had to remember that. It was important, though she couldn’t remember why. She was finding it hard to think at all.
Stars above, her head was pounding.
Griffons should be in charge, anyway. What kind of messed up world was it when a country ruled by prey was the strongest nation in existence? Of course, ponies hadn’t been prey for thousands of years - having a patron goddess who took a very active hoof in affairs tended to help with that - but they should be. All those stupid little ponies running around, judging her...
She wanted to destroy them. All of them.
Even Rainbow Dash.
Especially Rainbow Dash, that traitorous, dorky, flip-flopping dweeb.
The more Gilda thought about it, the more attractive the idea became. It was high time she reminded all these lame ponies who the dominant species was. And she could do it, too. Ever since that flash of light a month ago, Gilda had been different. At first she’d thought she’d become some kinda freak, but now she knew better. She was better than them, and it was time to prove it.
Gilda got to her apartment and let herself in, struggling with the key for several moments before losing her patience and breaking the door down. Security just didn’t seem all that important right now.
In the center of the small one room apartment was a suit of armor. It was big and bulky, and it looked like it was designed to fit a gryphon. Gilda’s headache was getting worse, she could hardly even see straight now, much less think. Without even realizing what she was doing, Gilda began pulling the armor on, covering every inch of exposed hide with this metal armor. Normally it would’ve been too heavy for her to even consider flying in it, but that wasn’t an issue any more.
The instant she put on the large helmet that came with the armor, Gilda felt her head clear. Her headache vanished, replaced with a beautiful clarity. Ever since that debacle in Ponyville, her life had gone downhill. She couldn’t hold a job, nopony here wanted to even approach her, and she couldn’t go back home; she’d been associating with ponies for far too long. There was only one thing left to her now: revenge. Revenge on this whole stupid society of simpering little ponies.
It was all so obvious to her now. She wondered why she hadn’t thought of it before.
With a single powerful thrust from her hind legs, she launched herself at the nearest wall. The brick and plaster provided no barrier to her, crumbling as she passed through it like it was made of tissue paper. Gilda hit the open air, opened her massive, armored wings, and soared out to rain down terror on this idiotic city of dweebs.
Back in her apartment, Trixie dropped the invisibility enchantment that had hid her and watched her latest victim as she flew away. Griffons had a natural resistance to enchantment, unfortunately, but nothing she couldn’t handle. The beast was violent by nature anyway. It had been a long but relatively simple process; now all that was left was to wait.
Trixie allowed herself a small, triumphant laugh before she teleported back to meet her master. There was nopony but herself to gloat to, but that was okay. Trixie was the only one who could truly appreciate her brilliance anyway.
-----------------
The Princess had donated one of her finest chariots for the Avengers’ use, since the team had only two flight-capable members. After all, they could hardly be expected to walk everywhere they were needed. She did not, however, bother with assigning any of her pegasi guards to pull the chariot.
Thor made Rainbow Dash look like a snail. What did they need chauffeurs for?
As the chariot approached Manehatten at a speed just barely below the speed of sound, Firebird gave a shout and leaned out of the chariot, pointing a hoof up ahead. “There!” she shouted. A thick column of smoke was rising from the section of the city she was pointing at. “That’s the place I saw in my vision! Take us there, Thor! Hurry!”
“Very well. Sit down, and hold fast!” Thor ordered, pouring on the speed. The chariot shuddered at the sudden burst of speed; it was designed to be flown by normal pegasi, not lightning-swift gods. Luckily, Thor came in for a landing before the chariot could break itself apart.
The part of the city they landed in was in shambles. Buildings had collapsed left and right, the streets were torn apart, and the bodies of ponies lay scattered around haphazardly. It looked like some massive earthquake or hurricane had ripped through the town. Nopony spoke as Thor detached himself from the chariot, the rest of the team hopping out.
“By Celestia...” Firebird whispered. “We’re too late.”
“Not quite,” Captain Equestria said, his eyes closed as he ground his hooves into the pavement. “The damage is still small scale... not more then a block I think. I can still feel the rest of the city... most everything’s intact. We can still save most of it.”
Iron Pony was checking on a nearby pony, a small unicorn mare with a light blue coat and a mane that looked like toothpaste. “Alive,” he confirmed, looking up. “Most of these ponies are just injured, I think. Shock, some bruises... I think whatever did this was more focused on causing general destruction then actually hurting anypony.” He paused for a moment, his head cocked to the side. “There. I just sent a message via communications crystal to emergency services. Hopefully they can get some medical care out to these ponies.”
“Good,” Thor said, turning to the Captain. “Can you track whatever did this?”
“I... think so...” He said slowly, pressing his hooves down further into the pavement. He was actually cracking the stone beneath him, Thor noted. “Whatever it is, I think it’s airborne; I can’t feel it at all. But... there’s some kind of panic a few blocks northeast of here. I can feel a bunch of ponies running around... shouting... I think...” He jumped suddenly, his eyes flying open. “Somepony just collapsed a building! That’s it, definitely!” He took off at a run. “This way.”
“Avengers, follow the Captain!” Thor ordered, taking to the air behind Captain Equestria. Firebird followed suit as Iron Pony and the Captain galloped on the ground, the Captain leading the way.
They heard it before they saw it, a loud roar filling the air, like a manticore... or a griffon. That’s when the scene came into view. An griffon wearing an enormous suit of red armor was pinning a small grey pegasus to the ground, its’ beak inches from the poor pony’s face. A large, silver broadsword laid just beside her. “You think you’re tough?” The griffon roared. “I’ll tear your wings off!” The pegasus just twitched helplessly in the griffon’s grip.
“It’s got a prisoner!” Firebird exclaimed, launching herself towards the griffon.
“Firebird, wait!” Captain Equestria shouted, but it was took late. The pegasus shot like a burning arrow towards the griffon, who shot her an irritated glance.
“How many of you lame super-ponies are there?” She snapped, swinging a clawed fist at the fiery pegasus. Firebird went flying away, but she recovered quickly.
The trapped pegasus made the best of the griffon’s momentary distraction, closing her eyes tightly in concentration. The nearby sword glowed bright blue, as though controlled by unicorn telekinesis. Suddenly it launched off the ground, striking the griffon hard across the chest. It glanced off the larger creature’s armor, but the impact was enough to force the griffon to rear up. Like a flash, the captive pegasus was free, the sword following her like a loyal pet.
“Firebird, are you alright?” Captain Equestria asked, as the rest of the team caught up with the former Wonderbolt.
“Yeah, I’m fine. It was just a graze.” Firebird replied, shaking off her daze. “That griffon can sure throw a punch, though, watch out. Right now I’m more worried about that other pegasus.”
“I’m fine.” The small pegasus said, appearing suddenly amidst the group, startling the team. “I tried to hold her off, but she’s so strong... Don’t let her hit you straight on.”
“Thank you.” Thor said with a nod. “We’re the Avengers; the Princess sent us. We’ll handle this, you go find somewhere safe.” The pegasus nodded and shot off without another word.
“Hey, dorks!” The team turned their attention back to the armored griffon. “Don’t you dare ignore me!”
Thor stepped forward. “Stand down, ma’am. If you surrender now, we can stop this before anypony else gets hurt.”
“Surrender?” The griffon snarled. “Surrender? To ponies? Not a chance!” She pawed the ground angrily, her wings flaring and beating at the air. “You think you can just show up and give me orders? Who the hay do you think I am?”
“I know not who you are.” Thor said evenly. The Avengers came up beside him, tensing for a fight. “But if you do not stand down, we will be forced to do battle. You cannot win this fight.”
“Can’t win?” This just seemed to infuriate the griffon. “Can’t win? I’m the Juggernaut, BITCH!” With that proclamation, the griffon launched herself forward, talons outstretched, wings beating the air.
“I’ve got her!” Iron Pony called, the booster crystals on his hooves propelling him forward.
“Wait, don’t-” Firebird called, but it was too late. Iron Pony flared his shields in an attempt to halt the oncoming Juggernaut, but the enormous mutant simply barreled through. His shields shattered in brilliant blue sparkles, and the griffon smashed into the armored pony like a train. Iron Pony went flying, the side of his armor dented in.
“Hey!” Firebird went next, launching forward in a burst of flame. “I may not like the colt, but only I get to smack him around!” She charged towards Juggernaut, only to zoom right past her. She banked sharply, curving back around the griffon until she formed a tight funnel of air around her. The fire from her mane set the whirling air alight, trapping the Juggernaut inside.
“You think this’ll stop me?” The Juggernaut roared, simply charging through the burning tornado. Firebird slammed into Juggernaut’s armored wing, which flicked her away like an annoying piece of dirt.
“Spitfire!” Juggernaut turned to face a furious Captain Equestria, just in time to see his shield spinning towards her. It caught her full in the face, but she merely shook it off as she met the charge from the powerful earth pony. She swatted him aside like a fly; he hit the wall of a ruined building with a thump.
“You!” Juggernaut cried, pointing towards Thor. “You’re that new Alicorn!” He beak twisted into a grin. “You’re going down!” She took to the air again, swooping down towards Thor.
Inside Thor’s mind, Big Mac was anxiously trying to figure out what had gone wrong. As Thor leaped into the sky, dodging the Juggernaut’s clumsy dive, Big Mac was desperately trying to think of a way to salvage the situation. Unfortunately, while Big Mac was clever, brave, and a darn good farmer, he was no warrior, and the part of his brain that contained Thor was busy trying to shake the monstrous griffon on his tail.
Thor shot straight up like lightning, hoping that Juggernaut’s heavy armor would make it difficult to follow. Sadly, she seemed not to feel fatigue at all, and while she lacked the godly speed of Thor she wasn’t going to get tired so easily. Thor switched up his tactics, pulling up hard and reversing into a dive.
Juggernaut gave a cry of joy as yet another opponent charged headlong towards her. Thor raised his hammer and brought it down on the rising Juggernaut with all the fury of a storm, counting on his own strength plus the power of gravity to overpower the Juggernaut.
The blow rattled the armored griffon’s helmet, sending her off course. She flapped her wings hard to regain her bearings, spinning around to face Thor. Thor, however, showed no intention of sticking around. He was already swooping back towards his teammates, hoping to regroup.
Juggernaut spat. “Loser. Not worth the effort.” She turned away and went to go wreck some more damage. She was bored of beating on these dweebs.
-----------------
“Is everypony well?” Thor asked as the Avengers regrouped.
“My armor has seen better days, but the self repair functions should have it operational in minutes,” Iron Pony said. “Luckily my regular body was protected from most of the blow.”
“I’ve been better.” Captain Equestria mumbled. Big Mac could read his expression perfectly; it was the same face he wore after losing the grass seeds, or breaking the plow, or some other screw-up. This had been his big chance and he blew it.
“Same here. Feel like I just crashed into a mountain.” Firebird said, flexing her wings. “That griffon is strong. I hate to say it but we may be out of our league here.” Captain Equestria looked like he almost agreed with her, and Iron Pony said nothing, his face hidden behind his helmet.
“NO!” Thor rumbled. “If we cannot defeat this foe, that what chance have we against the likes of Loki? We can defeat this Juggernaut, but we have to work as a team. When we charge ahead singly we cannot hope to stand against a foe like the Juggernaut, but if we join our strengths into one, then no force on Equestria can stand against us!”
Captain Equestria nodded slowly. “The first thing we need to do is get Juggernaut out of the city,” he said, a thoughtful look on his face. “It’s hard for us to fight when we have to worry about civilians getting caught in the crossfire.”
“I think I can immobilize her, or at least slow her down.” Iron Pony said, his horn lighting up. A panel on his left shoulder opened. “A few adjustments to my emitter crystals and I think I can project an inertial-dampening field. I’ll only get one shot, though, before the crystals burn out, and she’ll need to be weakened first...”
“OH!” Firebird leapt into the air. “I’ve got it!” She very nearly took off after Juggernaut right then, but Thor stopped her.
“Firebird!” The commanding voice made her turn back. “Recall the simulation at the mansion! You must communicate your plan to us or we will be unable to assist.”
“Right, right.” She took a deep breath. “Okay, I think I’ve got a plan, but like Thor said, we all need to work together. Now, listen to this and tell me what you think...”
-----------------
Gilda smashed straight through another building, the walls not even slowing her down as she ripped a hole straight through the entire structure. Between her mutant power and her new armor, she didn’t even feel the impact. “This is the coolest thing ever!” She cheered, laughing joyously as another building collapsed in her wake.
“I dunno, looks pretty lame to me.” Gilda snapped her head around to see that fire pegasus she’d beaten up earlier hovering behind her. “I mean, just knocking over buildings? Is that it? You’re like a foal throwing a tantrum.”
Gilda growled as she turned to face the annoying little freak. “You stupid or something? That last beating should’a taught you not to mess with me.”
“Beating? Is that what it was?” the pegasus asked nonchalantly. “I thought it was a massage.”
“That’s it. You’re dead!” Gilda launched herself at the flying pony.
“Gonna have to catch me first!” The pegasus spun about and flew away like a coward. Gilda gave chase, her huge wings pumping furiously to keep up. Up ahead, the pegasus turned back for a moment and shot a burst of flame at Gilda; she just ignored it. Did that idiot really think a little fire would slow her down?
Gilda continued to give chase, flapping her wings frantically to keep up with the much faster pegasus. The only reason she hadn’t lost her yet was because the idiot kept turning around to hit her with those stupid fire blasts. It didn’t hurt, but her armor was getting uncomfortably hot.
“Hold still, you little dork!” Gilda snarled, trying to swipe at the infuriating pegasus. She simply spun out of the way, laughing as she dove down towards the street. Gilda followed, furiously trying to land a hit.
“Not a chance!” The pegasus stuck her tongue out teasingly. “Now, Cap!”
Before Gilda could figure out what she meant, she felt a weight on her back.
-----------------
“Okay, Caramel, deep breath.” Caramel said quietly. He was hidden in a small room in a tall office building that had, so far, been spared the destruction that was spreading through downtown Manehatten.
Firebird - Spitfire - hadn’t wanted to give him this job. It was dangerous. It was likely to get him hurt. It was way outside his comfort zone.
Caramel had insisted. Or rather, Captain Equestria had insisted. He wasn’t weak little Caramel anymore, the little foal who screwed up everything he tried and needed somepony to hold his hoof for everything. He was Captain Equestria, the brave and powerful hero of Equestria, and it was time he got off his flank and proved it!
Trying to impress Spitfire may have factored into his decision slightly.
Caramel stiffened as he felt them coming. Spitfire - no, Firebird, call her Firebird while on duty - maneuvered Juggernaut close to the ground, and he could feel her powerful wingbeats pushing against the ground. Caramel forced himself to relax...
And Captain Equestria leapt from the tenth-floor window directly onto the back of the enraged super-strong mutant griffon wearing red-hot armor.
Yeah, Caramel wasn’t too thrilled with that part of the plan.
He was surprised at how easy it was. His enhanced reflexes made grabbing hold of Juggernaut a simple task, and it took but a moment to wrap his forelegs around the massive mutants neck to keep from falling off. The red-hot armor burned him, but Captain Equestria ignored it. A lifetime of misfortune had made him more thea accustomed to pain, and that was before he became Captain Equestria. Some burning was a small price to pay to take this villain down.
“What the-” The griffon bucked underneath him. “Get offa me, dweeb!” She tried to throw him off, spinning about violently trying to shake him loose.
Caramel hung on grimly, raising his shield. “Not happening.” He growled, as he brought the shield down on the clasp connecting the helmet to the rest of the armor. While the armor was strong enough to resist even Thor’s incredible strength, the extreme heat had weakened the seams and joints to the point that a few good hits from the Captain’s shield knocked the helmet loose.
“The hay you think you’re doing, loser?” Juggernaut asked, turning her freed head around to glare at her unwanted passenger. “You think you’re tough because you knocked my helmet off?”
“I don’t need to prove I’m tough. I just need to take you down.” Captain Equestria replied, raising his shield. “Pucker up.”
Juggernaut was monstrously strong, even withstanding Thor’s mighty hammer strike. Without her helmet, however, she had the same weakness as any living creature: the neck joints. He smashed the enchanted shield into her face, disorienting her long enough for him to drive the edge of the shield down into the enormous mutant’s unprotected neck with all his might. Juggernaut screamed, her wings flailing about wildly. With her wings out of commission, she dropped out of the sky like a stone. Just before impact, Captain Equestria leapt clear.
“Now, Iron Pony!” he cried as he landed solidly on the pavement. Already Juggernaut was rising to her feet.
A high-pitched whine came from a nearby pile of rubble...
-----------------
Prince Blueblood sat very still, hidden by the convenient pile of rubble Firebird had found for him. He resisted the urge to fiddle with his armor again. The inertial dampening field was as close to operational as it was going to get without a visit to his lab and access to his tools. After this, he thought, he was definitely going to add the field to his arsenal properly.
He needed to ACT. He’d spent his entire life doing nothing, just sort of cruising along. Now, his mind raced constantly, and his body felt compelled to do the same or it would get left behind. Not to mention, every time he stopped acting, he was afraid his old sloth would catch up with him...
There! There was the griffon; he could see her flying into view. Automatically, he nearly fired the I-D field at her, but he stopped himself at the last second. He only had one shot, he had to make it count. If he fired now, while she was barreling along at top speed, she’d shatter the makeshift forcefield in seconds. Had to wait, give Captain Equestria a chance to do his job and get clear.
There! The Captain dealt what looked like a painful blow on the griffon, sending her tumbling to the ground. The second the Captain leapt clear, Iron Pony was already charging the I-D field. There was a high-pitched whine as the energy collected in the shoulder-mounted emitter, before a brilliant beam of blue energy leapt from the gem.
Juggernaut was already struggling to her feet when the blast reached her. When it collided with her armored body, it spread around her like some kind of fast-growing moss, covering her in a blue field of energy. Automatically, she tried to turn towards the source of the attack, but her movements were sluggish, muted. “What... did... you... do...?” She ground out, barely able to move her beak.
Iron Pony emerged from his hiding place, his triumphant grin hidden behind his helmet. “Once you have some momentum, you’re very difficult to stop. My inertial dampening field will ensure you cannot build that momentum. You’re trapped, my dear. And I believe somepony would like a word with you.” He paused to activate his communications crystal. Thor? You’re up.
At first, there was no indication that the God of Thunder had heard the telepathic broadcast. Then, in the distance, a long way down the street, came a golden streak, rushing towards Juggernaut at blistering speed. Juggernaut’s eyes widened - slowly - as she realized what was about to happen. She tried to get out of the way, but the blue energy surrounding her continued to hamper her movements. She barely managed to move an inch before her unprotected face was met by a mighty swing of Mjolnir.
Juggernaut slumped to the ground, unconscious, as Thor came for a landing behind her. “Good work, Avengers,” he said with a smile. “If we continue like this, Loki won’t stand a chance.”
-----------------
“How went your mission, Apprentice?” Loki looked to be in especially good humor today. His plans were coming along nicely.
Trixie looked exhausted, but triumphant. “The griffon was time-consuming, but not especially difficult. It helped that she had her own power; it saved Trixie having to empower her like that foolish pegasus Heavy Weight. The Armor of Cyttorak helped as well; it made her formidable, but not unbeatable.”
“And Thor? And this team of, hah, ‘Avengers’?” Loki asked eagerly, turning to face Trixie. “How did they fare?”
“Exactly as you predicted, Master.” Trixie said with a smile. “They defeated the griffon with ‘teamwork’ and went to a party after to celebrate. Truly, the affection they displayed sickened Trixie; I think they are quite ready for the next phase of our - er, your plan, Master.”
Loki chuckled at the mention of a party, thinking of his many-times-great-granddaughter. What an asset she was, even if she didn’t realize it... “Excellent... how go the other preparations.”
Trixie gave a small, aggravated sigh. “It took many hours, teleporting all over Equestria to track down candidates... but I think I found three ponies who will be perfect. None of them have any love for Celestia or her sister, and they seemed quite eager when I gave them the opportunity to serve you. I think they will fit the roles quite nicely.”
“Perfect.” Loki bent down and gave his apprentice an affectionate nuzzle; Trixie tried not to gag. “You have done well, my apprentice. There is but one more task for you to perform, and then you may rest.” He noticed the face he made, and simply laughed. “Oh, you needn’t worry. This task will only take a moment, and I think you’ll be happy with it. I need you to retrieve a little... insurance for me, just in case our powers alone cannot stand against Mjolnir. It never hurts to be too careful.”
“Insurance, master?” Trixie asked, keeping her face carefully neutral. Implying that the Great and Powerful Trixie couldn’t handle herself...
“A powerful artifact, from before the fall of Asgard.” Loki replied. “You may keep it, if you like... think of it as a reward.” He touched his horn to hers, giving her the coordinates. “It should be a simple matter for you to unravel its’ protections, and now that Mjolnir is awake you should be able to use it with little difficulty. Now go.”
“Yes, Master.” Trixie said, vanishing in a flash of green light.
Loki grinned broadly. “Soon.” He whispered. “The pieces are moving into place... soon, Mjolnir will be mine... and with it... all of Equestria!” He raised his face to the sky, and let loose a loud, cackling laugh that echoed throughout the Everfree forest.
-----------------
A/N: The Juggernaut displayed here differs quite significantly from the Jugs we all know and love (aside from the whole being-a-griffon thing, obviously). This was intentional, to make it fit better within the setting. For one, The real Jugs got his power from the Crimson Gem of Cyttorak, an ancient artifact created by a really powerful dude named Cyttorak. However, in one of the animated X-Men series (can’t remember which one, sadly), Juggernaut was claimed to be a ‘latent mutant’, so I went with that. This Juggernaut is a mutant with a toned-down version of the real Jug’s powers. The Armor of Cyttorak was an artifact Loki had lying around that enhanced Gilda’s powers and provided near-invulnerability. I tried writing it with the Gem, but it just wasn’t working for me. Hope that clears everything up for you guys!
Oh, also, that pegasus with the floating sword? That was Saintspirit, an OC created by the artist of the same name. She’s a loose analouge to X-Men’s Angel, with a sword that obeys her mental commands and a special talent for protecting people. Saintspirit is the one responsible for all that lovely fanart you can see on the EQD page for this fic, and including Pony!Saintspirit was something of a thank-you for that. So thanks, Saint!