It had been about two days since the 'snow chariot of the giants' had been unearthed from the now demolished ice hill. Twilight and her friends had just got of at the new train station at the southern boarder of the Crystal Empire. Instantly they where greeted by Shining Armour, Cadence, and several crystal guards outside a chariot.
"Twily!" Shining exclaimed, giving Twilight a bear hug whilst Cadenza went to the others. Cadence chatted with the others whilst Twilight and Shining where having conversations of their own.
"Shining!" Twilight exclaimed, "where in Equestria did you get those bandages?" The alicorn continued, looking at the bandages wrapped tightly around Shining's torso.
"Well I kinda had a fall earlier when I found the chariot and fractured a rib or two." Shining said, rubbing a hoof against his head, "a-anyway, I bet you want to miss the big reveal today? So let's go!" He said, signaling to the guards' that they are ready to go now.
"Come on everypony, the guards are ready to set off now!" Cadence said, trotting towards the chariot, "oh, and let me help you with those, Spike" she continued, the heap of bags instantly being lifted from Spike's small frame.
Five minutes later at the museum…
The large carriage stopped outside the Crystal Empire National History Museum. The museum was a large building made of… you guessed it, crystals. It had several wings each similar to the Crystal Library on the other side of the city. There where banners and signs everywhere about the 'snow carriage' revealing in half an hour.
As the group of ponies, and a drake entered the main hall they stared at the colossal sheet covering a large cuboid, their mouths agape.
"Impressive, isn't it?" Shining asked, smirking at their reactions, "now we've got around twenty-ish minutes left, so be free to explore, but be back in quarter of an hour" he finished.
"Sure thing BBBFF! So, shall we see the magic archives, or the history of the Crystal empire?" Twilight said, walking down the corridor with her friends whilst Cadence and Shining would see to the preparations for the grand reveal.
Quarter of an hour later…
It was one minute left until the curtains would be lifted and the 'snow chariot of the giants' would be revealed to Equestria. Above the curtains was a large balcony that was facing the grand staircase of the main hall with the beheaded statue of ex-king Sombra.
Where are they?" Shining Armour said impatiently, trotting in circles. Above the curtains was a large box which Cadence projected how much time was left with her horn.
10,
9,
8,
'Come on Twily!' Shining thought, anxiety creeping over him,
7,
6,
5,
4-
"Here we… are!" Twilight panted, her and her friends' galloping onto the balcony,
"Great Twi, you where really-
1!
All the ponies cheered, be they Crystal or not, and the red curtains with gold trims lifted, revealing the metal colossus. The ponies gasped, cheered and gawped as magic fireworks fired into the air. The circular platform span slowly, giving everypony a view of the sides of the vehicle:
The 'chariot' was a light blue with golden trims. It was covered with strange, almost alien runes covering the thick hull. The treds was as long as a pony and at the front was a large vertical door which had a strange symbol that was either a whips of magic with an eye, or some sort of fish with a large barrel with an eye symbol. On the sides where rusted chains, hooked, and on each side where strange barrels with some sort of dragon head on the end. They could have been some ornament, or some sort of propulsion device or an weapon of some kind.
Of the top of the vehicle was another on of twin-linked device in between two lamp-like objects. This one was different, and most likely was a weapon, with the shape and hanging chain-like things witch held a smaller, thinner version of bolts used for the crossbows which where rarely seen throughout even the richer cities. Maybe the thing on top was a ballista? Also on top where two strange hatches which where also somehow sealed tight like the front and side doors. They had strange runes and symbols on them as well. And the last detail you could see from just a glimpse where the spikes jutting out of the top. Only few remained, and even those where extremely weathered.
The fireworks lasted around only a minute, and when they stopped, the cheers stopped. Whilst during the show a clanking sound em instead from the 'chariot' and was only audible when the fireworks had ended. The clanks where followed by a low-pitched moan, and the front door was hit. The ponies backed up, and the ponies on the balcony wherever getting up from their seats and started running towards the vehicle.
"Stop!" Two guards said in unison, their spears overlapping each other, blocking off the path to the vehicle, "We are ordered to protect royals and elites I'd harm is a possibility!" They continued.
"Excuse me? I am you Prince and captain! I demand that we get close to the chariot!" Shining exclaimed, stomping a hoof for emphasis.
"Sorry sir, but this has been our duty for over a millennia and has been great fully enforced since the *ahem* …Sombra incident" they continued
"And do you know what changed in over a millennia? The authority of a royal! Your order has been over ruled! Now MOVE!!!" Shining exclaimed, the ponies around him looking a but nervous at his sudden outburst.
The guards took several long seconds to look at each other, then back towards the imposing royal,
"As you wish, sir" they said flatly! moving their spears in a closer proximity to themselves. The ponies and dragon ran past the guards, across the corridor of paintings and busts of previous rulers, down the grand staircase, and towards the vehicle that was conveniently facing them. The spinning platform stopped, slightly shaking the tank, further aggravating the creature inside. With a frenzy-filled howl, a strong blow sent the front doors flying open, water pouring out of the vehicle. Sparks spewed out of machinery, making the shadowy figure look more imposing. Almost silently it spoke,
"…A-all is,… dust" the behemoth said, walking out of the 'snow chariot' towards the princesses, ponies, and dragon. The giant was around four meters tall, and covered entirely with blue armour with gold trimmings. But it was faded, with runes roughly etched into the armour. There was ragged chain mail and cloth hanging from the abdomen. It's eyes where dark with a faint, blue light, and every step it took made a sound like scratching the black board in a classroom. It had a strange mouthpiece and similar serpant symbols from the 'chariot'. And the back was a strange saddlepack with a large object with a balled end jutted out from the sides of each end.
"…All is… dust. A-all… is dust. All… is … Dust!" It shouted its strange chant, jumping down from the platform and picking up its pace, the gap between it a and Twilight, Spike, the other elements, and the royal couple.
"Stand aside!" Said several guards galloping past the group towards the colossus, spears at the ready.
The giant took this as a sign of aggression and reached towards his side, picking up a damp, slightly moss-covered object. It pulled some sort of trigger mechanism, causing a blue spark to flash form the cracked glass bit on top. The being howled an aggravated howl, and threw the weapon at his feet.
"I. Said. Stand aside you cur!" A guard yelled, thrust his spear several inches away from the gargantuan's stomach. The frustrated being walked into the spear, bending the steel tip of the weapon. The wood snapped as well, making the newly made kali stick (1) useless. The being then reached for a demonic looking scabbard, it tugged onto the handle, water poured from the sheath, and the handle snapped, and the blade crumpled. In a rage that most of its weapons where useless, it went full sprint into the guard, connecting its larger than normal fist with the cowering guard's face, inverting the side of the helmet, and sending it flying to the feet of princess Cadence. The beast's eyes flashed red for a moment before slowly turning its head towards the second of the five guards.
I am Varen Aquilarios, aspiring sorcerer of the Thousand Sons. In my position, I was not one of the mindless battle brothers I ordered on the battle field. I was human once. I was told that the sorcerers could not be like those Neanderthals bound to their armour. But there are millions of us, and only one Ahriman trying to cure us. I guess every so often an anomoley would occur. Damn lucky sods! Although my mind sometimes wandered into the minimalistic state my brethren are cursed with, I always awake myself back into reality and my vast mind. The last thing I remember was the thirteenth black crusade of our commander, the despoiler of words, Abbadon, notorious throughout the galaxy. Even those mindless Trynids feared him! Being the strongest of the regular infantry, we where one of the first squadrons sent to the Cadian gate of 'holy' Terra, home of the imperialist scum who cower with their cannibalistic emperor of man, brain-dead on his death bed.
It was our job to weaken the gate before the the daemons invaded real space, and the Khrone Berzerkers smashed the rest of the gate down. I cannot remember how close I got, but Terra shuck and then a flash. Then… nothing. It felt like I spent countless millennia gathering dust… pardon the pun. I heard nothing, I saw nothing, I felt nothing… except the feeling of being cold. It drove to the brink of insanity and back. In the end though, I waited. I did noting but sit on what I presumed was the seat I was sat on during the final assault on Terra. Perhaps the daemons invaded real space creating a shock that knocked the Land Raider off course into a ravine, chasm, or anything that could have formed with the sheer force of the Eye of Terro-
*thud*
I stopped my train of thought, and listened to the muffled sounds. There was both male and female talking, but it was too muffled through the thick tank armour of chaos marine genius. But as it came, it left, leaving me in the abyss of the Land Raider. A while later it felt like I was being lifted, what I assumed was a bolt pistol hit my chest plate, then slid off my harness to the presumed front of the tank. It was like this a good portion of my eternal free-time. Beings would shout, I'd listen to the mumbled talking, then hear the grinding of metals for a solid hour. Then the darkness again. I waited, hearing the faintest of humbles.
3
2
1
"YAY!!!" I shuddered, awakening myself. All around me I heard screams of laughter and the explosions of bomb shells. I reacted by standing up, forgetting about my metal harness which seemed to snap in several places like it where an Imperial Guard's skeleton. I also noticed it was harder to mobilize beneath my waist. I banged on the walls for my battle brothers, hope finally gleaming… until I stood on an empty helmet. I looked down, seeing my companions, rotting. Their armour was scattered throughout the Land Raider. Their former bodies where in in the lili pads sticking to my legs. I picked up a shoulder pad, it's markings unable to read, weathered away and covered in moss. In a fit of rage I threw it against the front door. I sighed to myself, the first sound I remember in ages. Then I plunged myself back into the Neanderthal-minded abyss.
"What is this thing made of?!" A guard said, striking the back of the helmet, only for the wood to snap in two. It turned around and kicked the guard in the leg, inverting it entirely, bones spewing out of the back of the leg. The guard screamed as his artery was torn opened, blood gushing like a fountain. Even though the guards thought aimlessly, they held their spirits high, only ceasing their resistance when either their body, or spirit where broken, like in training. In their minds they kept reminding themselves that there has been worse times… times what they try to hide.
Spike, Twilight, Cadenza, Shining, and the rest stood speechless, utterly speechless to the event. But they where jolted back to reality when a guard was swung by his third metacarpal, into the broken railings of the spinning platforms.
"What should we do?" Twilight shouted, trying not to look at the guard who had his spear thrusted through his eye socket so hard that the steel shattered.
"Shining Armour stepped forwards, his horn glaringly bright.
"Over here!" He shouted, gathering the attention of the giant.
His head turned 180* and the rest of his body turned after. It trudged forwards, dragging the screaming upper torso of a guard in his larger hand. It clenched its gigantic fist, crushing the rip cage of the soldier, his vital organs being punctured by the snapped metal. It's eyes flashed red and it span around, hurling the body at the Prince. Shining Armour reacted by creating a barrier around his front, them blasting it into the body, sending it hurling back at the colossus. The body slammed onto its head, a shard of metal lodging itself into the strange, stipped objects on the top of its head.
The being stopped its assult, looking at the Prince. It dropped the contents of a guards leg, and walked slowly towards the group of ponies, it's glowing eyes focused on Shining.
"A-ar… arcane" It said deeply, stopping two metres from the group. Shining stepped forwards slightly,
"I-I think it's talking to me?" He said, his horn glowing, just in case he needs it.
"A-arc… arcane… Ar-cane… Arcane!" He chanted, his smaller hand reaching for Shining Armour, the slightly faded runes on his arm beginning to glow a faint blue.
After what seemed like an eternity, it's index finger touched the royal's horn.
"Don't worry, I think its harmless no-" Shining tried to say as it's whole hand grabbed onto his horn, jerking his head to the right.
"Enough!" Twilight said, an unrelenting force blasting itself from her horn, sending the giant topping backwards several meters, it's Back slamming onto the tread of its vehicle, it's head toppling off.
"I-is it over now?" Shining asked, rubbing his neck his hoof, finally looking around. Dead, or injured guards where littered in this half of the room, ponies of all races where at the entrance, their eyes transfixed on either the colossus, or him.
"Look! It's empty!!!" A pony shouted, alerting all other ponies in the room. Twilight, Cadence, and Shining ran up to the presumedly defeated warrior.
As this happened, the armour 's large hand reached for its head.
"How is this possible!?" One of the ponies and an injured guards said, hobbling on his spear.
"It's enchanted!" Twilight mumbled to herself, "dose anypony else know how to make an immobility circle?" She shouted, drawing the attention of many ponies.
"We do!" Said two unicorns galloping towards the purple princess. One was a grey with a scruffy mane and tail and a piano cutie mark. The other was as tall as Cadence with a light grey coat, and had a blond mane and tail with a white streak, and a cutie mark of a pencil.
"Only us three? Guess we have to do a triangle then." She said, arranging themselves in a triangle around the giant that was still connecting its head to its torso. They then put their horns' on the ground, changing the frequencies of their magic until they where synced. They then formed a triangle around the armour that was now standing up, still looking disoriented. Their magic waved through each other forming a repeating pattern around the armour, it's feet glowing red along with the now-finished immobility triangle. The colossus third moving his feet, only barley moving three inches before several chains jutted out of the arcane triangle, wrapping itself around the giant.
After it was just about immobile, the crowd cheered, applauding the two unicorns and the alicorn,
"How did you know how to do that?" Spike whispered into Twilights ear,
"Simple, it's enchanted! And with Starswirls second law of the arcane arts, 'the more magical the subject, the harder it is to escape!' So I don't expect it to escape for a long time!" Twilight repaid, looking sired of herself.
"…E-enchanted… n-no. Cured, yes, xenos" an all-too similar deep voice said. Twilight looked back, seeing the empty suit freely moving it's smaller arm, snapping one of the many chains covering his chest.
"H-how?" Twilight stuttered, hardly comprehending the sight before. The armour reacted by scratching his somehow mobile leg over one of the thickest magic lines, shutting down the spell.
"To answer your question, horse, I will introduce myself first. I am Varen Aquilarios, one of the strongest of the Aspiring Sorcerers of the Thousand Sons of the Chaos Space Marines, cursed living as the armour we battle in, whilst our former bodies collect the dust it has became. I was going to bring down the pitiful Cadian Gate, brining Terra to its knees! And the only reason I am telling you this now is because I was reawakened to my full potential… by you" Varen finished, everypony in the room now silent, all of them looking directly at princess Twilight. "Now, dose anyone know where the Cadian Gate is?"