"Look out!" Celestia shouted towards the creature, as all of the demons let out crazed screams and charged. The metal creature, either by insanity or ignorance, seemed to entirely ignore the warning. Celestia's eyes started to widen as half a dozen demons leaped into the air, their weapons held high as they seemed to have entrapped the new arrival.
Crouching down even further, the creature seemed to bend one of it's lower appendages with the other outstretched for leverage, as the shield held by an upper limb seemed to start glowing an hue of purple much brighter than before. Just as six weapons were mere feet from the creature's head, it pivoted around slamming the shield into each demon, shattering them into glowing purple embers.
"Are thee friend," Luna's eyes slightly narrow, "Or merely here to make claim for thy own."
Another demon rushes up, holding it's over sized bladed weapon with both upper appendages as it slammed the edge down onto the right shoulder plate of the metal creature. As if annoyed, the scene demanded silence as the metal creature slowly turned it's head towards the demon before side stepping, causing the weighted weapon to crash down into the marble flooring. It then proceeded to lunge forward and grip the demon by the throat, lifting it up before slamming it down alongside it's fallen weapon, following by the brutal slam of it's shield upon it's head.
"...tired." Cadance whispers, "It's so tired." she says so again, earning the ire of Luna.
"Princess Cadance," Luna addressed, never taking her eyes off the metal creature, "Tired would most assuredly not be the word we would use to describe what is taking place before us." she then continues, "Thee appears most...energized."
As a single tear falls from Cadance's muzzle, "Its not that kind of tired, Princess Luna".
The metal creature then proceeds to move towards a fallen guard bashing away demons as it goes. When it is within ten feet, the guard begins to glow a light red hue before opening it's eyes, crying out from shock. All three princesses and other ponies still behind the protective shielding gasp is fear as the creature picks up the creature and proceeds to give it a small heave towards the shield, seemingly trying to direct it to flee. All of the princesses watch in fear as the pony seems to started to run past demons who prior would have immediately attacked it, only to see them rush the metal creature in crazed abandonment.
"Princess Cadance," Princess Celestia addresses her with a tone of authority.
"Yes Princess Celestia?" Cadance answers quickly and a little shaken up.
"I need you to assist Luna in keeping the shield strengthened." Celestia asks, in a softer tone.
"What about...?" Cadance began to ask, before she matched Celestia's gaze as six mares were trying to look as brave as a pony could when surrounded by crazed demons while huddled together for support. "I will do my best" she then confirmed.
"Tia!" Princess Luna states, "While too crazed to be distracted from this metal creature by our little ponies," Luna then looks at the metal creature, "Thou's larger stature may not be able to pass by without drawing attention to thyself," she then looks towards the bearers, "and to thy destination!"
Luna tries to warn her sister, whom as Luna finishes is already in full gallop as she passes through the barrier. Luna watches with frayed nerves as Celestia gallops in between rushing waves passing between them and the bearers on their way towards a orange glow in the corner of her eye, if not so focused, she might of acknowledged.
"Keep going Tia!!" Luna calls out, only to shrink back slightly as she watched as a demon slow down just after Celestia passes them, and then another and another, as they slowly turn towards the bum rushing Alicorn.
"Tia thou has been discovered!!!" Luna tried to warn her sister just as a long line of demons all begin to rush after Celestia.
Perspective Shift : Sentinel
"You all should've..." Sentinel states as he cleaves the upper torso off another demon, his long blade igniting both sections of it's body with intense flames, "finished me off when" he then shoulder checks a demon into one behind it causing it to become skewered, "I was all that's left!"
Sentinel dashes backwards a few feet as a bladed weapon swishes down in front of him, bringing the demonic wielder into a kneeling position, "Instead you decided to play with your food" he proceeds to slam his shield down, leaving nothing above the shoulders, "with conceited abandonment!".
As Sentinel is given a moment reprieve, "For all that you have wrought in the wake of passing through my world, I shall lament their passing into the darkness with denying all of you the light of yet another." he grips his sword and shield tighter, "even if I must be dealt the same."
However Sentinel begins to look about as the lapse of attacking demons brings him concern. "Surely more made it through the portal..." he says to himself as he scans the area. His attention is then drawn towards the sound of "...a galloping horse?"
Sentinel takes note of the large horse like creature in full gallop towards the group of smaller quadruped that he had saved earlier. The sight started to tempted him a memory from many years back as he watched a nun desperately try and get to some children, but the pull wasn't enough to overpower the realization of what was starting to give chase behind her.
Perspective Shift : Ponies
"Almost there..." Celestia whispered to herself, catching the looks of all six bearers as they quickly went from fearful to utter joy to see one of their princesses galloping towards them, then quickly back to fright. The quick recession caused Celestia to crane her neck to look behind her as her eyes widened at the sight of a long line of demons rushing diagonally after her.
"If you think I fear you..." she yelled, unfurling her wings as she shifted her weight and bore down on her gold clad hoof adornments, going into a half turn skid, "then let me show you the meaning of consequence," she angles her wings to help her skid to a stop right before the bearers, her horn ablaze with a golden hue, "for harming my subjects!" she screams as she lets forth a wide golden beam.
Celestia does not smile, even as all of the bearers rush up to her crying out for joy and excitement for being saved and surely impressed by her feat. She does not even blink even as the bearers,out of instinct, purposely make body contact with her through her fore and hind legs. She can only gasp as every single demon rushing them kept right on coming, regardless of their new superficial wounds.
"Hurry and get underneath me!" she commands the bearers, who while shorter, had somewhat of a rough time complying. Celestia began concentrate as her horn glowed once more, the faint shimmer of a golden hue bubble slowly expanding around her to do mass teleport. Yet in the span of her initial attack and brief warmup of this one, some of the demons had thrown small debris her way in an desperate attempt to wound her.
"Argh!!!" Celestia cried out in pain as something ricocheted off her horn, both causing her immense pain and loss of magical control, as the thin veil around them suddenly popped prematurely. She opened one of her eyes just in time to come to that realization that she no longer hadn't the time to do another warmup, only instant self teleportation, as the demons were almost within striking distance.
"I...I can't.." she softly whispered over the frightful gasps underneath her as they all clung to her legs, tears beginning to form in the corners of her eyes as she faintly heard the screaming of her sister from behind the incoming wave of death. Just as the first endpoint was about to reaching striking range, Celestia clamped her one open eye as the glow of her horn suddenly stopped once more.
"I won't!" she screamed as her eyes flung open, and almost immediately shut again from sheer shock. A mere two feet away stood a crouched down, shield forward and seemingly smoking hot metal all over, was the metal creature. For those brief seconds, which in actuality were not even one, total silence enveloped the area.
Then, like the striking of a heavy hammer to an anvil, loud bangs equal to the number of encroaching demons rung out as it got impossibly louder when it finally reached the demon just before her as each one shattered like balloons in sequence.
"Are..what are.." Celestia tried to get out, but gave a gasp when her eyes took in his entire figure. Or rather, focused in on the blood oozing out over the metal where the bend was on it's lower appendages, "You're wounded!" she called out, causing several underneath her to gasp as Fluttershy tried to squeeze herself out from the entombed ball of fur.
"Oh, oh no!" Fluttershy gasped out, both from the sight of what had saved her and her friends bleeding so much and also from being half scrunched between Celestia and her friends.
"Fluttershy get back here!" Twilight yelled out as Fluttershy was just one entangled hind leg from being free.
The only thing that heard was the sound of something rather large traveling very fast through the air directly above them, and had they had the time, they would of screamed at the sight just about the largest sword anypony had ever seen almost silently cutting through the wind down at them.
"eek!" Fluttershy screamed out as she closed her eyes, feeling something splash all over her as a loud clash made her fall to the ground as other screams were all heard behind her. Peeking open her eyes as no other sounds were being heard, she was shocked into further silence and tears as she looked up towards the metal creature standing over her, protecting her.
It was holding it's shield, nearly gouged in half, up against the massive blade now dug deeply into it's shoulder as blood had shot over her and the others behind. It then lifted it's head and looked over the backside of Princess Celestia who in turn tried to do the same before the sickening sound of grinding metal emitted from the blade now being yanked out of the creature, pulling her attention back as the full severity of the wound became apparent.
"Hold on!" Celestia tried to communicate with it, "I'm getting us out of here!" she stated as her horn began to glow. But was once more she was interrupted as the creature moved forward and pushed her head down just as a massive tail slamming into it where Celestia's head would of been intercepted, sending it crashing into a nearby buildling.
"Noo!" Celestia cried out, having instinctively accepted this creature as an ally for all that it's done for her and her ponies. She also couldn't help but acknowledge that the bearers under her, still clinging to her legs, called out as well in the same manner. She quickly resumed her concentration as she craned her neck down and grasped Fluttershy by the scuff of her neck, eliciting another eek, as she finally caught a glimpse of the new assailant.
Celestia's eyes widened as she noted that this one stood at least twice as tall as all the others, and it was staring right at her with pure black eyes, it's blade lifting once more for a killing blow.
"I'm sorry..." Celestia muffled out over Fluttershy's extra skin in her mouth, as she teleported herself and all of the bearers away just as the weapon crashed down, creating a deep indention in the marble.
Perspective Shift : Sentinel
"What utter trash," the elite demon muttered as it side glanced towards the brightly colored shield where it's escaped prey had fled. Giving a uplifting heave, it uprooted the wedged blade from the marble causing debris to kick up. Lifting the blade, it pointed towards the shield as the quadrupedal animals within reared back and gave pitiful scowls it's way.
"You are not prepared!" It hissed in it's demonic tongue, right before twisting the blade's edge sideways and giving a wide swing back around just in time to catch a much smaller blade's fiery slash, making said wielder to be pushed back into a small skid as it's feet dug into the crumbling marble.
"But I am," Sentinel roared as he shifted his knees allowing him to better leverage both his hands on his sword, one on the hilt as the other midway up on the dull side in order to hold ground. "You should of killed me before you left!" Sentinel defiantly yelled.
"We did." coldly stated the demon, it's black eyes staring at Sentinel's one exposed eye through a partially broken faceplate.
The demon let out a sickly chuckle before speaking once more, “We covered your sky with ash. We burned the land. We even poisoned water! We culled not only your fittest, but the elderly, sick, and young!" it said before applying a bit more pressure on it's weapon before continuing, "You're all that's left of a dying breed belonging of a dead race!”.
The demon then sneers,“What can you do now that would even matter..." as it leans closer, "human."
Sentinel's Flashback
"Was this..." Sentinel muttered with a blank expression, "Also part of the plan, Father?"
He was kneeling on the barren dirt with his legs folded underneath him, his rear resting on his heels. Both of his arms laid stretched to the ground with his opened hands palm up. Behind him was a crumbling concrete wall that had had been heavily stained in the bloody silhouette of a anchored human. His breastplate and helmet were removed and strung to his side next to his battered kite shield.
Before him laid his signature long sword. Stabbed into the ground right where the demon had left it before leaving in the red portal just before Sentinel. Surrounding where Sentinel knelt as far as the eye could of seen, red portals had appeared and then started to fade away, each signaling the invasion of another world.
"Are we satisfied, now?" He then lowers his head to set his gaze upon the sword, a gift from his father. "You were placed in my hand, like a shackle, in the beginning," His hands begin to form into fists, "and through all these years we've not been able to accomplish anything aside from killing to survive as everything else died." his face then constricts.
"So I've been thinking, Father" Sentinel slowly starts reattaching his breastplate, "Maybe that was where we got it all wrong." He starts clicking all of the buckles in place, "We tried to win." lifting himself up to kneels up to put one leg onto the ground, "and in turn our people didn't." he says rather coldly as he reaches for his helmet just as the red portal started to show deterioration.
As he slides on his helmet, the cross upon it's front starts to glow, as does thin lines traveling all over his armor. "We tried it your way." Sentinel picks up his shield, anchoring it over his forearm, before yanking the sword from the ground as he starts walking towards the roaring red portal as it starts to collapse.
"Now we're going to try it mine."
End Flashback
Sentinel then starts to grin under his faceplate, "I'm going to help you."
"What?!" the demon yelled rather surprised, failing to notice where the edges touched both swords were starting to glow, with only one being designed to do so. "In what manner could a remnant such as yourself help ones such as our own?"
"That every beginning must have an ending," Sentinel pushes his blade harder against the demons as crackling and sparks begin to fly from the edges as the demon begins to falter his pressure as he starts to grunt in an effort to not lose ground.
"But don't worry!" Sentinel assures, "I'll be with you every step of the way!" he screams out as his sword breaks through the demon's, letting Sentinel's blade to cut into the demon's lower abdomen. However the demon steps back just enough to make the wound superficial as it returns fire in the form of an uppercut from the boney tip of a wing, launching Sentinel into the air, followed by a devastating downward tail whip sending Sentinel into a water fountain.
Sentinel picks himself up out of the fountain, reaching to the opposite thigh with each of his hands. A high pitched squeal is heard right before he tears off a hunk of metal from each thigh area. Pointing the metal objects at the demon, he fires two shots of highly concentrated red and purple energy. The demon is able to entirely dodge both shots by leaping to the side, but is caught in the explosions that go off right behind it, causing little damage.
Dashing forward, the demon waits until the last moment to slink left, bypassing another paired blast from Sentinel. However a low sliding tail is able to strike Sentinel dead in the stomach, sending him skidding back, knees bending to try and keep balance. However before Sentinel can recover, the demon leaps high into the air, wings giving it flight, before slamming those wings upwards and then aloft, causing a high speed downward spiral.
Sentinel is unable to move away as one of the demon's legs comes down on his shoulder, causing him to become off balanced. He then feels terrible pressure as the demon's tail wraps around his midsection, lifting him up and forward the demon begins to chuckle the it brings Sentinel up face to face.
It thinks back, to how many times it's brought a victim up, to get once last look at the fear in it's face, its very aura, before devouring it. Yet, like with the other of the same caste that it destroyed, this one exhibits no such trembling or fear.
Infuriated, the demon begins to speak, “Once again, human. What can you do that would even matter now?!"
The answer comes in the form of two high pitched screeches under both of their faces. The demon is allowed enough time to widen it's black eyes, before a massive explosion erupted between them, sending both Sentinel and demon backwards with skin, scale, and plate metal flying from both just as another blast erupts from behind them.