//------------------------------// // Chapter Two // Story: This Can Only End Well // by Remran //------------------------------// This Can Only End Well Chapter Two So, we've seen dragons in the show before. Yeah, they're massive. They probably would be scary in reality. But compared to this guy, they are goddamn PUPPIES. He gives fuckin' Alduin a run for his money as one of the most badass and terrifying dragons-if that's what BELIAMUT, as he calls himself even is- in the history of everything. And I hadn't even seen the rest of him. I looked at Glyph. Little guy was terrified, if his shrunken eye was any indication. I couldn't see her clearly enough to be sure, but Luna probably was as well. Me? I've seen some scary shit, nightmares usually being the worst (What your own mind can do to you). But nothing, NOTHING, could have prepared me for the sheer horror that was running through me at that very moment. You know the way we have an instinctual 'fight-or-flight' built into us? My body was in complete 'run the FUCK away from there right goddamn now' mode. But I couldn't. I was frozen in place. Then Luna uncloaked herself from the shadows and stepped back into the clearing. "HEAR US, BEAST FROM ANOTHER DIMENSION." Oh great, she was using the Royal Canterlot Voice. The head turned towards her, eyes filled with curiosity. Luna wavered slightly, the full force of its gaze upon her, before glaring back up at the monster. "WE ARE PRINCESS LUNA, GODDESS-PRINCESS OF THE NIGHT AND EQUESTRIA." I could only stare at her, completely stunned by what she was doing. Which was probably suicide. "Princess Luna? Leader of this world, I presume." I'm pretty sure that my ears were about to explode thanks to the combined loudness of Luna's RCV and the beasts incredibly loud voice. "We rule this land with our Elder Sister Celestia, Princess-Goddess of the Day." "Both Princesses. Both Goddesses. Immortal, would I be correct?" "You are. We are two of the most powerful beings in the land. We also like a modicum of respect, as we are sure you do, and request a formal introduction, rather than our eardrums being blasted out." I couldn't help but groan, at both Luna's hypocrisy and her bravado. Strangely though, the beast was, well, courteous. "Of course. I apologize. My name is Beliamut, God-Emperor of the Void Dragons." Luna turned to look at the tree Glyph and I were hiding behind."Well, human, have your people seen him in this... dimensional viewer of yours?" Dammit Luna, WHY did you have to draw his attention to us? "There is another here?" Oh, crap. I reluctantly stepped out from behind the tree, Glyph using me as cover. "Yes, and for gods sake Luna, I've already told you, my name is Zidane." I stood next to Luna and looked up at Beliamut, trying to hide the fear in my voice and body. "You do not look of the same species." Up close, his voice was powerful enough to blow my hair back. "We're not. We come from a completely different universe, or world, or dimension I'm not really sure. In fact, we came here through the same Vortex you are sticking out of right now." "Not of this world? How interesting. Tell me... Zidane, you only gave your name, no title like the Princess, and neither you nor that floating ball look as impressive as her. Would I be correct in assuming that you are of lower standing in your world?" Well, that was quite a rude question, but I was too scared to do anything about it. "Well, depending on how my government classes an underage common citizen, then I suppose you are." I figured that being as polite as possible to Beliamut was a smart move. Didn't exactly wanna piss him off. "How interesting. I am curious as to the little floating ball trying to hide behind you. What is it?" Glyph floated out from behind me, his single eye staring up at the Dragon-God. "As I have explained to Zidane and the Princess, I do not know what I am. In fact, Zidane gave me my name." "More and more curious. I must admit, it is nice to finally talk to other beings. I rarely get such conversation out of my own people." Okay, so maybe he wasn't as bad as I thought he would be. Hell, he was downright pleasant. I mean, if you can get over the whole 'Dragon-God-Emperor from another dimensional plane' thing. "I don't mean to offend, but I honestly thought this would turn out a lot worse. God only knows what could have come through that portal." "Yes, this has definitely been a most enlightening experience." Luna said, "It strengthens my opinion that not all frightening beings are overtly malevolent." She looked downcast while saying this. "I just wish it didn't take so long for my friends to realize that." Damn it Luna, why you so woobie? I really wanted to give her a hug. I didn't though, kinda would've ruined the moment. "Oh yes, I know for a fact that I am quite terrifying. But ask yourself this: Do you not think that to earn the title of God-Emperor of the Void Dragons, I would have to be antagonistic?" I did not like where this was going. Beliamut turned his head to me."Human, I know you recognize my name. I have seen your world. I took it from your mythology. Think." Then it hit me. Beliamut. Be. Lia. Mut. Behemoth. Leviathan. Bahamut. "Oh, shit." "Now you understand. I took my name after three of the most destructive beings in your mythology." He roared as he said the next words. "I AM BELIAMUT. GOD-EMPEROR OF THE VOID DRAGONS. ALL THAT I SEE, I. SHALL. CONQUER." Through the Vortex came two massive forelegs, each rippling with giant muscles, ending with four razor-sharp talons. And within an instant, Luna was wreathed in the white-hot flames blasting from his mouth. "LUNA!" I screamed. No. That can't be possible. SHE CAN'T BE DEAD. I couldn't move. I was frozen with shock and horror, hardly able to process what I had just seen. Beliamut turned towards me, and as I stared into his mouth I saw the glow of embers growing in his gullet. I probably would have been disintegrated if Glyph hadn't shoved into me, propelling us both towards the trees. We took cover a split-second before the flames roared past, incinerating dozens of trees in the direction we were running. "FUCKING HELL. WE'RE NOT GONNA LAST A MINUTE!" I decided to risk looking out from behind the tree. Beliamut was staring, seemingly confused, at the spot where he had blasted Luna. I was wondering what he was looking at, before I saw it: There was no corpse (thank god). Instead, in the clearing smoke I saw a purple fog of some sort. Of course! She can take Nightmare Moons form at will, who's to say she didn't retain any of her powers? Beliamut roared at the fog, trying to make it dissipate, but it simply split and reformed, floating above his head, before Princess Luna reappeared on top of it, her horn glowing and eyes burning with rage. "FOOLISH BEAST. DID YOU HONESTLY BELIEVE YOU COULD DISPATCH US THAT EASILY?!" A storm cloud formed above Beliamut, and Luna called down two bolts of lightning. They struck his head with a blinding flash, and when I could see again there were two charred areas, near his snout and his eyes. However, it did not look like they had burned through the thick armor plates. Beliamut shook his head, trying to force Luna off, but she simply flew up, before calling down another bolt. This time, it collided with the eyes on the right side of his head. I grimaced as I witnessed one of them burst while Beliamut roared in agony. Luna prepared to call down even more lightning bolts, but one of her wings was clipped as the dragon swung wildly. She went crashing to the ground, but was up in an instant, conjuring a protective barrier as flames washed over her. I turned to Glyph. "We have to help!" Glyph stared at me."Grab hold of me." I looked at him, confused."What? Why?" "Just do it." He was creeping me out, mainly because he sounded incredibly calm. I grabbed hold of him, and felt pain run through my mind, before seeing various images flash before my eyes. Different kinds of weapons. Swords, axes, warhammers, pistols, machine guns, shotguns, before finally settling on one. As my vision returned, I saw Glyph's 'skin' start to ripple, before he stretched out into a cylindrical shape. "Glyph! What the hell is going on?! What's happening to you?" "We. Are going. To help." The cylinder separated into six smaller ones, though they were still connected by rings surrounding them at the end. Where the cylinders began, a box started to form, with what looked like a stick emerging from it. Near the cylinders themselves a handle formed, this time going horizontal after starting vertical. On the stick a round button appeared, and finally on the box a familiar blue sphere appeared. "Uh, Glyph? Did you just do what I think you did? And if so, how in the hell did you do it?!" For lying on the ground directly in front of me was a goddamn minigun, proportioned so that I could carry it. "Instinct. I sensed danger, and a memory surfaced. A figure of some kind, telling me I could do this. And besides," The eye shone brightly. "You're in danger." I grinned, then picked up the minigun. I walked out into the clearing. Luna was still holding off against Beliamut, but I could tell that she was being worn down bit by bit, though the dragon himself didn't look to be in such a good shape either. A lot of his head plates had cracked and there were a lot of burn scars on his forearms. "Luna!" I yelled. Both of them turned towards me, and at the same time "You are still here?" I grinned at them. "Yeah, we're still here. Luna, I have a plan. I don't even know if it will work, but it involves magic and you're a goddamn Alicorn." "But first of all: Beliamut?" I set the barrel spinning. "DAKKA DAKKA DAKKA!" I held down the trigger and let lead fly, aiming for his arm. The bullets impacted, and although they didn't seem to penetrate his armor, it still stung enough for him to lift his arm away from the burst. "Luna! His other arm!" Bolts of lightning struck it, and he instinctively jerked it away. And without his forearms supporting him, his head crashed to the ground. He was dazed, but I could tell he would recover soon enough. Luna shouted at me, "What is your plan? And what is that device you are holding?" "I'll tell you later. Hopefully my plan is simple enough. Send him back through the portal, then close it. If that's even possible, I mean." "Very well. But how will we send him back? We are ants compared to him." "I'm not sure. Do you have some kind of magic that can push him through?" "I would think that a focused telekinetic blast would be enough, but I need a few moments to ready it." "Okay, but try to do it qui-" I was cut off as one of Beliamuts arms was forced back through the portal. "Huh, that didn't take you long at all." "Of course not. Now, how are going to close the portal?" "I'm not sure..." Then I remembered what I saw before I saw the actual portal. A heat wave of some kind. "It's a wild guess, but I think the portal is heat based. Do you have ice magic of any kind?" "I do," she forced the dragons other arm through the portal,"but this time I actually will need to ready it." "Fair enough. Now, we just need to send his head back." Beliamut lifted his head from the ground,"Human, Goddess, I will not be denied. I will rule this land. This I swear." "Luna, on the 'Dah', blast him." "Wait, wha-" "FUS RO DAH!" Luna managed to understand what I meant, and Beliamut was blasted back into his own dimension. "Now Luna! Close the portal!" Her horn flared, and I felt a sudden chill in the air. "Human, Goddess. You have attracted the attention of us, we who are infinitely your better. The time shall come for us to conquer this world. You will feel the wrath of the Void Dragons." "Luna, hurry it up." I was worried. I could feel the portal start to pulse again." He's trying to get back through!" "Hahaha, not at all. Simply, a ...parting gift." "Now what the hell does that mean?" Now I was puzzled. A 'parting gift'? It was incredibly cold now, and I could see my breath in the air. The portal started to waver, rippling slightly. It was then that I saw a smoky green orb emerge from the portal, quickly heading straight for Luna. She's focusing on the ice spell. I can't let that thing hit her, no matter what. Muttering an apology, I threw down the minigun/Glyph, who quickly reverted back to his original state, and ran to intercept the orb. It was still a few feet away, but I knew that by the time she had finished the ice spell, she wouldn't be able to react quickly enough. So I dived in front of it. It hit me in the chest. I stood up, feeling perfectly fine. "Huh. That went better than expected. I honestly thought something bad was going t- GAAAAAHHH!" I felt an intense pain rush through my entire body, like every cell was on fire. The pain was actually blinding me. I heard a faint *pop*, which was presumably the portal closing, and then two concerned voices, before I felt a rush of air. I blacked out.