//------------------------------// // Accelerated // Story: Time Soldier // by Havelock //------------------------------// "Gabe, c'mon man, not now," Jack said. Tevin was still checking his vitals, trying to find the source of the problem. "Goddamn, we take three steps and there's another magic problem," Tevin said. Michael looked around hesitantly, watching ponies crowd around the downed soldier. "We can't keep him here, we'll risk exposing ourselves, we'll just have to bring him with and keep him out of trouble," Michael said. "If that's what you think," Tevin said, "Gabe, can you walk?" The soldier nodded, rising slowly and stumbling to the Humvee. He crawled into the back and collapsed inside, overcome with exhaustion. Tevin went and tended to Gabe, while Michael, armed with his pistol, acted as a gunner in the passenger seat for Jack. "Floor it, Jack, we've gotta find that signal before anyone else," Michael said. "You got it," Jack said. They sped off, kicking dust into the air from the wheels. They began to veer off into the Everfree, getting very close to the distress signal. "How's Gabe doing?" Michael asked. "Better," Tevin replied, "but still not good, he's sweating profusely," "Have you given him water?" "You have some? I already gave all of mine," Michael wrestled his canteen off his vest with his functioning arm and gave it to Tevin. "There should be a fair bit in there," Tevin issued Gabe the water, calming his heavy breathing and reducing the red in his skin. "How close are we to that signal?" Tevin asked. "We're right on top of it, but I don't see it," Jack said, slowing the Humvee, "God, I hope this wasn't a-" An RPG caught the vehicle in the side, sending the crew flying and the car itself tumbling towards them. "Tevin! Gabe! Look out!" Michael shouted. Another RPG came hurtling toward them, but stopped midair. Tevin looked at the missile, inches from his face. "What the..." he muttered. "Whew, that would've been messy," a voice said. Gabe struggled with himself to turn, seeing a figure in a black armor suit. Blade. Blade flung the rocket through the air with a small flick of his wrist, sending it with deadly accuracy towards a mech marching towards them. He drew a black katana-like sword from his back, twirling in his hand at extreme speeds. "Come out of hiding, you fuckers," he muttered, creating a vortex of air from his twirling blade. He held the blade right above his head, forcing violent winds to whip the overgrowth savagely, slowly pulling anything not rooted to the ground towards it. Tevin felt himself being lifted into it, and clinged onto a root to prevent himself from getting pulverized. Michael and Jack were wrapped around a tree, trying not to get sucked in as well. Tevin looked back at Blade, seeing a literal tornado being formed around him, while numerous other soldiers were unlucky enough to get pulled into the limb-tearing cyclone, getting shredded by the intense winds. Tevin looked around, trying to find Gabe. He found that he wasn't with Michael or Jack, and he was clearly too weak to be resisting winds like these. He continued looking around, panic slowly enveloping him, when Blade suddenly slammed his sword into the ground. Time was frozen. Gabe slowly rose from the ground, having passed out not long ago. He looked up, seeing the whole world around him standing still, as if a mere picture of reality. "Powerful magic, I know," Blade said. Gabe looked up, shaking from his unknown affliction. Blade offered his hand, helping off the ground and aiding him in standing. Gabe fired a question at him. "You have distortional sickness, happens if you don't know how to control your power," Blade replied, "it's time you finally learn your power Gabe," Gabe asked another question. "It's not just Nightmare's return, I'm tired of you being an absolute pussy," Gabe gave Blade a severe look shouting Really? Me a pussy? "Gabe, you've got a lot more to do, your work is far from done," Blade said. He cast a portal with his free hand and helped Gabe to it. "Welcome to the Nexus, Gabe," he said, going through it with Gabe. Almost instantly, Gabe felt cured of his ailment, feeling renewed strength rushing through his veins. He looked around, finding himself in a huge library, with books self organizing themselves, and perhaps hundreds of stories of floors to all these books. "I know what you're thinking, Twilight would love this, you could take her here for her birthday, y'know," Gabe nodded slowly, taking in the huge surroundings about him. A strange, sharp abject suddenly embedded itself near Gabe's foot. "Oh, yeah, you'll want to watch for monsters while you're here," Blade said casually. Gabe looked up, finding his attackers, a group of atypical, armored creatures rushing towards him with their weapons raised. Gabe drew his tactical bow, fastening an arrow to it and aiming towards the creatures. He let it loose, missing one's head and striking their shoulder instead. But that didn't even slow them. Each of the three were ready to cut up Gabe with their weapons when they simply froze before him. They fell onto the ground in two pieces each, and Blade landed next to Gabe with his sword drawn and bloody. "See, you should've been able to take those guys, so now, you'll learn your power and finally be able to fight like a real Chronomancer," Gabe let out panicked Korean. "Oh, suck it up, Gabe, you're still alive and in one piece, that's more than what can be said for me my first time," Gabe looked at Blade in shock. "Yeah... Wasn't pretty, anywho, let's get a move on," They ambled through the Nexus, keeping any invaders at bay with Blade nonchalantly slicing them up with his sword. "Kami!" Blade suddenly called, "Kami? Where are you?" "Oh, Askun omiticaya, oh Askun omiticaya, oh Askun omiticaya," "There's the old thing," Blade said. He rushed to a corner, looking over it. Gabe followed, looking over the corner as well, finding just a wisp of smoke vanishing as he turned. "Where'd he go?" Blade asked, "He was right frickin' here!" "Blade..." the two heard. They turned quickly, drawing their weapons for a fight. What they found was a rather ghastly looking creature. "Oh, Bellus, it's you, I thought you were Nightmare for a moment," Blade said. The creature was floating above the ground, being unlike any Gabe had ever seen. Two huge, beady eyes stared right at him, with an atypical mouth with pronged teeth at it's ends. Its skin was a sick gray, and it was wrapped in a black, swirling cloak. "You know I don't like it when you shout," she said. Gabe still had his weapon pointed at the creature, his sights aligned with it's head. "Be calm, Gabriel Kim, I mean you no harm," Bellus said to Gabe. He was dumbstruck, this creature knew his name and all. He asked Blade a question. "She is actually among the first Chronomancers ever born, thus she also makes other beings Chronomacers, she's the reason I am a Chronomancer," "Yes," she said, "we choose who we deem worthy of the power of a Chronomancer, and you, Gabriel Kim, are worthy of such power," Blade looked back at Gabe, "Don't think this makes you a Gary Stu, there are many others who are Chronomancers, so you're nothing special in this realm," Bellus took a closer look at Gabe, closing the distance between them. Gabe backed up slightly, intimidated by such an alien creature. "Come close, let me in," she said. Gabe shook his head, taking another step back. "Very well," she said, also backing up, "but at least allow me to gift you the knowledge of the Chronomancers," Gabe raised an eyebrow, still retaining his distance from fear. "Please, let me teach you," she said. Blade went to Gabe and placed a hand on his shoulder, "Gabe, it's all right, you need to do this to defeat Nightmare," Processing this, Gabe nodded. "Okay, you ready for this? All kinds of things will happen, some things... well... you won't be able to let go of them," Blade said. Gabe tightened his fist slightly, fears flooding into his mind, "You'll have to be strong for this, Gabe, I wasn't... and now I can't even hope to defeat Nightmare," Gabe bit his lip, struggling with the decision. He didn't know what he'd lose if he accepted, but he knew he'd lose everything if he refused. He thought about what he had, what he loved. He loved Michael, his cousin who acted as a brother to him, he loved his two friends Jack and Tevin, and he loved the new, peaceful home he could have. Gabe folded up and returned his tactical bow, approaching Bellus, ready to obtain the knowledge of the Chronomancers. He bowed to show that he was prepared, and Bellus came closer to him. "Let me in, so I may sow the seeds of might..." she said, placing her hand on Gabe's head, having the flame of gods fill his body to the brim. He was flying through the cosmos, feeling waves of something surging past and through him. Space and time was at his will, he could go wherever he wanted, see everything no one else could adore. "To control the greatest of things, you must first realize their beauty," He heard. He had everything at his command, imagination was not a realm of impossibility anymore, merely a test of creativity. He was beyond everything, he was soaring like an unchained hawk. He knew something great, he now held the very flame of gods! "Return, Promethean Chronomancer, your task awaits you," Bellus said, pulling Gabe from his vision. Gabe's vision slowly faded into blackness, as he awoke on the floor of the Nexus. "How you feeling, Gabe?" Blade asked. In response, Gabe rose to his feet and summoned a blue fireball, as bright as the sun, within his palm, then flicked it down the long hallways, creating the equivalent of a nuclear exlposion on the far side of the Nexus. "That's what I'm talking about, Gabe, now let's get you home and into the fight with Nightmare," Gabe nodded readily, feeling the great power and knowledge of the Chronomancers flowing freely within his body. "Great, oh, and I can see that you have a sort of connection with that suit of yours," Gabe looked down, seeing his old standard armor replaced with the ARX suit. The suit itself was somewhat altered and had a different feel to it, as if it worked with his powers as a Chronomancer. "Time to go home, Gabe, you're needed," Blade said. He nodded, then opened up a portal, pumped with energy both natural and supernatural. Both he and Blade practically leaped through, being brought back to the time period of the present. "Gabe, RPG!" Blade shouted. Gabe stopped the missile mid flight, returning it to its sender with a flick of his wrist. He immediately drew his rifle, then returned fire to his attackers, Chinese soldiers. He and Blade were back to back, fending off the hostile humans while stopping their rounds mid flight. Gabe downed a soldier, forcing the others around him to flee, he concluded that he hit the highest ranking officer there. Gabe fired at a few more, intentionally missing to keep them running. He looked back at his team, staring at him as if he were an alien. Gabe went and offered his hand to his cousin, helping him up while the others got up on their own. They looked around, seeing carnage and blood everywhere, and Blade missing from it all. "Gabe..." Tevin began, "we are in some deep shit," Gabe looked at his arm, a realization slowly coming to him. Ponies had mastered magical warfare, humans, technological warfare, and as for Chronomancers? They needed a balance of man, magic, and machine, the warrior man was not far from becoming a god man.