//------------------------------// // ... Monsters Come Out to Play // Story: Return of the Guardian // by Requiem17 //------------------------------// Ale meticulously climbed up the steep cliff, avoiding slick moss patches. After sprinting across flat plains he reached a jutting mountain range. Since his ship was pancaked and not in orbit any longer Ale did the next best thing; head for high ground. He needed to scope the situation and figure out what was going on and how best to deal with it. Ale flattened himself against the cliff, blending in with the shadows as a Lunar scout flew past meters away from him. Ale let out a breath as the batpony continued flying, oblivious to his presence. During the few hours since the crash it had been like this, a game of hide and seek. Ale did not reveal himself as something was obviously wrong. He had not seen hide nor hair of anybody he knew. He looked up and continued to haul himself up along the smooth rock face. He neared the edge and when his fingers clasped the edge he swiftly hauled himself up. He pulsed his promethean vision while checking his sectors, satisfied that he was alone. Ale looked out over the valley that spanned far below him. The Everfree forest occupied most of the valley before rolling green plains defied its dominance further on. In the distance Ale could see the dark form of a mountain on which Canterlot rested on. It was hard to make out but after zooming his vision as far as his HUD would allow Ale was able to make out the city. What greeted his sight shocked him. A large purple, almost black dome greeted his vision. It was opaque and covered the whole city. From what he could make out the buildings looked very gothic as well. Ale had expected some things to change over 300 years but this was something else entirely. Dark thoughts entered his mind and Ale shook his head, refusing to believe his gut instinct. ‘It can’t be. She’s gone, banished, and Luna is too strong.’ Ale noticed a dull light glowing on the horizon, a sense of relieve overcoming him as he waited for the inevitable sunrise. ‘Maybe Celestia just changed the times of day or my monochrome got rattled.’ After a few minutes with no change from the dull glow Ale investigated further. His suit pulled in some of the surrounding air and tested it with a simple onboard chemistry kit. Ale’s jaw dropped when a surprising amount of sulphur tested positive. He looked at the dull glow and realized just how similar it looked to an atomic strike. A powerful one. As far as Ale could tell the ground was razed, a rippling heat was rising into the atmosphere. Ale would have originally assumed that the MAC strike all that time ago could have destabilized the ground and caused volcanic activity but with how strange things were Ale had to debunk that theory. Ale’s shoulders slumped in defeat and he shook his head, accepting the inevitable. Ale stood still for a long time, staring at the ground as he struggled with his emotions. A thought ran through his head that caused him to laugh dryly. ‘Look at me. A Spartan, an angel of death bred for war and indubitably racing towards his death, feeling. It’s unnatural. I allowed myself to open up to those around me and look at what I’ve done. I’ve failed.’ Ale began to shake slightly, his body reacting the only way it could to these thoughts. His eyes stung as tears pushed themselves out, a soft sobbing sound emanating from the broken Spartan. The chemicals released in this state eventually calmed him. Ale stopped shaking and began breathing deeply, attempting to make sense of all the new feelings rushing through him. He looked up at the night sky, watching the gentle twinkling of the distant stars. His entire life flashed through his head, smiles, frowns, and several more tears gracing his face as it all rushed past. The empty space drew him in, giving him further clarity as all his surroundings faded out of his senses. He closed his eyes and listened to his heart. It beat steadily, filling him with his precious life fluid. He dug deeper and opened his mind further. A very distant warmth graced his soul, filling him with hope. It was at this point; this moment in time that Ale knew what he must do. His destiny called to him, pulling him onwards. Before Ale knew it his eyes opened and he began running. Within seconds he was over the edge and he began falling towards the distant ground. Ale had not felt like this in a very long time. His mind was clear, his body ready, and his will stronger than ever. ‘I will find you Luna!’ -------------------------------------------------------- Under the dark cover of the heavy forest Ale trudged along, sweeping the underbrush to the sides of him. None of the creatures that inhabited the Everfree challenged his path, the Spartan seeming too alien to them and an unknown. In the animal kingdom unknown’s were dangerous and better left alone. The flash of distant lights prompted the Spartan to crouch. He continued to walk forward until the underbrush and the trees around him began to thin out. Ale went prone and crawled quietly to the edge of the forest. Peering through a set of ferns Ale could see the town of Ponyville. The once erratic town was a far cry from what Ale was seeing. The buildings were a dull grey brick and were lined up in a strict utilitarian fashion. Hanging lanterns lit up the streets with a dull glow, the light seemed very depressing. Night guards walked in pairs as they patrolled the streets. With the fiery wreck of his ship blinking in the distance Ale knew better than to attempt to walk the darkened plains, guards no doubt scouting the surrounding and outlying areas for any survivors. With this in mind Ale decided he would have to take a more direct route. He backed away from the town, his form engulfed in shadows. With surprising swiftness and agility Ale quietly jogged through the forest, keeping the edge of it to his left and within sight. It didn’t take long for him to reach a babbling brook. Ensuring that his gear was strapped on him securely Ale slipped into the water and began to swim upstream towards Ponyville. The high banks kept his head hidden as he exited the forest and followed its curving path. Up ahead he saw a dimly lit cobblestone bridge. A batpony guard was standing on it, swiveling his head side to side every now and then. Ale submerged his head with a muted bubble sound and continued swimming. He headed to the very bottom, depending on the gloomy water to hide his large form. The gloom became brighter as he neared the bridge, the lantern lights struggling to penetrate the rivers depths. A dark shadow passed over him before the light returned, the Spartan confirming that he had passed under the bridge. Even though the light began to fade the further he swam Ale figured it would be safer to continue swimming completely submerged. A few more minutes of fighting the current brought Ale to the edge of the town. The water stayed fairly dark as the water ran through a channel sided by high cobblestone banks. Ale’s plan to swim through the entire town ground to a halt when he encountered a particularly troublesome obstacle. A very large steel grate greeted his vision in the murky water. Ale inspected it closely and investigated his position. Clinging onto the grate Ale breached the water’s surface carefully; the dark shadow in the water ensuring Ale that he was under a bridge. The grating reached all the way to the top of the low arch in the bridge. The ledge only provided Ale with minimal cover so Ale had to work quickly. He tugged on the steel and found it to be very stout; the metal was sealed into the cobblestone. Ale couldn’t risk breaking the metal as it would no doubt alert the guard to his presence. Thinking quickly he ducked back under the water and swam straight down along the grate. He reached the river bed and began digging in the sand next to the bars. Ale figured he would just dig his way under them and continue moving up river. He was disappointed when he encountered a cobblestone ledge lining the bottom of the steel. Risking discovery Ale mentally commanded his helmets lights to turn on and peered at the connection. There was no sign of rust or any kind of wear on either of the material. He turned off his lights and thought carefully. Who ever had built this was a genius and took many factors into account. ‘The steel must be enchanted.’ In a combat situation Ale would have taken one of his grenades and detonated it next to the grate. This was not an option now as it would send a plume of water into the air, sealing his discovery. Lacking practical options Ale carefully surfaced again. He had is back to the grate and attempted to see over the high banks along the edges. He immediately ducked when he saw two pairs of guards walking on either side in opposite directions. He listened to the loud clanks of armored hooves on stone approach, pressing himself further into the dark recess of the bridge. The footfalls stopped and Ale listened carefully as the guards began speaking. “Gold Eye and White Fang are late.” “I’m sure they will be here shortly. The meteorite has everyone on edge.” ‘Both males…’ “That was no meteorite. Nothing natural has straight lines and markings on it.” “Are trying to convince me that aliens exist?” “Maybe not aliens but instead an alien.” “What’s the difference?” “Haven’t you taken history?” There was a moment of silence, Ale taking this moment to move carefully out of the ledges cover and along the bank the guards had stopped on. “Yeah. Where are you going with this?” An irritated sigh was heard. “Remember the legend of…” There was a pregnant pause as Ale moved to the cover of a covered boat. “… The Armored Guardian?” Ale struggled to hear the guard’s whisper. “You know we’re not supposed to mention that!” the other guard hissed. “I’m well aware. But where else have you heard of strange events like this one occurring from?” Ale picked up a loose brick and hefted it in his hand, testing the weight. “You don’t mean…” “That’s exactly what I mean. Queen Moon is not going to be happy if the prophecy has come true.” Ale paused, thinking carefully. ‘Prophecy?’ He pushed this to the back of his mind as more important information had taken over. Ale slumped slightly as what he feared was solidified into his mind. Luna had succumbed to the darkness and was now corrupted. Ale shook his head; he couldn’t fail now. “I wouldn’t want to be her advisors about now.” “Agreed. Speaking of which where is our relief?” Ale pictured his mental map of the surrounding area he had gotten a glimpse of and, coiling his arm back, heaved the brick in a very high arch. After a few seconds a loud clattering was heard not too far away in a darkened alley. “Did you hear that?” “Yeah. Wait here; I’ll go check it out.” Ale waited patiently as one set of hooves faded away. Ale climbed up the bank and carefully peered over the edge. The other guard was standing right in front of him, thankfully facing the other way. Ale pulled himself out and stood straight up, his form towering over the guard. “Psst!” “Wha…” SMASH!!! Ale caught the guard before his unconscious form could clatter loudly to the ground. Ale quickly carried him over to a nearby pile of barrels and crammed the guard into one, the guards face swelling up rapidly. Ale patted the guard and secured a wooden lid over it. “Hey Crescent, I think it was just a cat!” Ale vaulted over the edge of the bank and clung to the wall. The hoof falls of the other guard echoed out onto the street. “Crescent?” A small piece of the brick wall Ale was digging into broke off and fell into the water and splashed loudly. The other guard approached the edge rapidly. “Crescent?!” Ale sprung straight up and clamped his hand over the batpony’s throat and dragged him over the edge with him. Ale pinned the guard to the wall with the hand that was choking him while his other arm held the both of them up out of the water. The guard frantically beat on Ale’s arm, making a terrible gagging sound while his hind legs kicked him, the golden flare of his shield holding steady. The guard’s eyes pleaded with Ale, the light beginning to fade away. When his eyelids closed Ale counted for a few seconds before easing the pressure on his throat. He slipped the unconsciousness guard into the boat and covered it with a tarp. With the guards out of the way and the promise of another group showing up Ale quickly moved into the streets, sticking to the deep shadows. As he passed by houses he couldn’t help but notice that nobody other than guards was walking about. He figured the ponies must have some sort of curfew. He had just crossed an intersection when a pair of guards rounded the corner up at the next intersection. Ale quickly ducked into an alley and crouched, pinning himself to the wall. After a few seconds Ale concluded that they hadn’t seen him. He waited patiently for the guards to pass him so that he could continue on his way. A shuffling next to him alerted Ale that he was not alone. With lightning speed he turned towards the source and had his combat knife at the ready. A pair of grey eyes peered fearfully out at him from a pile of garbage. The two stared at one another before Ale reached ever so slowly towards the eyes. He shifted some of the garbage and started when a filthy pegasus colt was revealed. The pony had a dark blue coat, or at least Ale thought it was dark blue as the pony didn’t seem to have had a bath in a long time. Ale held his palm vertically flat to him as he sheathed his knife, attempting to assure the pony that he meant no harm. The clanking of armored hooves in the street prompted Ale to place a finger to his visor, gesturing for the pony to be quiet. The two were silent and unmoving as the guards walked past, oblivious to the two in the dark alley. When the coast was clear Ale felt a light tapping on his arm. He turned around and saw the colt flinch. “Don’t worry. I’m not going to hurt you,” Ale whispered. The colt watched him carefully for a few moments before nodding. “What are you doing here?” A deep sadness filled the colts eyes, eyes that Ale could tell had seen far too much for his age. “Hiding.” “Where is your family?” The colt began to shake. “Th- they’re dead,” he all but whispered. “The queen’s guards came for them one day. My m- mother told me to run. Never stop running.” Ale looked upon the sadden colt and shook his head slowly, rubbing the colt on the back comfortingly. “Shh. It’s going to be alright.” The colt sniffled a bit before looking back up at Ale. The Spartan was surprised at the amount of hope radiating from the colts previously darkened eyes. “I know. Now that you’re here everything will be alright!” “Shh!” Ale peeked out of the alleyway, ensuring that no one had heard the colts outburst. He faced the colt and crouched to his level. “Stay quiet.” The colt nodded in understanding. “Now, what did you mean?” “You’re the Armored Guardian aren’t you? I saw a statue of you in an old history book my dad-,” the colt stopped and rubbed his eyes. Ale patted the colt, nodding at him in sympathy. The colt looked back up at him. “My dad told me about you. He said one of my great grandparents served with a warrior, a warrior so powerful that all of Equestria’s enemies fled at the mere presence of him. They say he stood over seven feet tall and had the strength of 1,000 earth ponies. His weapons had unimaginable power and were used to protect Equestria and everything we stood for.” The colt looked side to side before leaning closer to Ale. “My dad made me promise to never repeat this but they said his love was so great that you could hear his princess clear across Old Canterlot.” The colt leaned back and continued, “That part always confused me though.” Ale was stifling a chuckle at the last part of the colt’s explanation. He shook his head and placed a hand on the colt's withers. “Yes, I am the Armored Guardian you speak of.” “Then you’re here to over throw the queen right? Just like the prophecy says.” “I don’t know about the prophecy but I do intend on confronting the ones responsible for all that’s going on.” The colt smiled happily and hugged the Spartan. “Thank you!” the colt exclaimed, careful to keep his voice down. Loud shouting dragged Ale’s attention away as he let go of the colt and checked the street. A guard was flying along the street, yelling all the while. Four guards came careening from one of the intersections and hailed the flying guard. Ale listened carefully as the flying guard relayed his orders. The colt was tugging on his arm, claiming Ale’s attention once again. “What’s going on?” “The guards know I’m here.” Ale looked towards the colt. “They found some… evidence I left behind.” The colt looked at him in confusion. “Why would you leave something behind?” the colt stated, like it was obvious not to leave something that would make others aware of the object they were seeking. “It’s complicated.” Thunderous galloping prompted Ale to once again check the street. He saw a group of batpony guards running up the street with a panicked looking unicorn leading the way. “Where is he!?” The unicorn stopped and his horn lit up, a magical compass appearing in front of him. To Ale’s horror it pointed in his direction. The guards began running in the direction the needle pointed. “Oh no!” Ale looked down at the pegasus. The colt continued speaking, “That’s Search All! His special talent is finding things!” Ale patted the colt on the head. “Don’t worry.” He checked the guards position and saw them rapidly approaching. “Listen to me very carefully! You stay here and hide. I’ll run out when they get here okay?” Ale was peering around the corner while he spoke. He felt the colt touch his arm and looked down to see the colt smirking at him. “I’m afraid I can’t do that.” His statement confused Ale but he listened as the colt continued. “See the window ledge up there? Climb up there and wait. You need to stop Search All. Otherwise they will find you anywhere. I’ll be the distraction.” Ale looked down at the colt and shook his head. “There is no way th-,” “There’s no time! Don’t worry about me; I've fooled those guards before. You need to stop the queen!” The colt began pushing Ale towards a ladder on the wall. “Go! You’re our last hope!” Ale looked down at the colt sadly, seeing the tears in the pony’s eyes. Ale slowly nodded before climbing up the ladder. Before the pegasus turned Ale asked him a simple question. “What’s your name?” The colt smiled at him, “Evening Mist.” A long deceased guard was brought to Ale’s mind; one of the first pony guards he had met and the first to fall in Ale’s war against the changelings. He saluted the numerously great grandfoal. The colt was still smiling as Ale continued climbing. Within a few seconds Ale was in position and couldn’t find the colt anywhere. The group of guards ran in, the unicorn known as Search All looked around nervously, no doubt a civilian judging by the clothing he was wearing. “Well? Where did he go?!” a guard demanded. “Th- the spell said he was in here!” the rather pudgy unicorn responded. “Check again!” The unicorn’s horn lit up and the compass appeared again. The unicorn looked on in confusion when the dial began spinning rapidly. “I- I don’t understand!” With the guards distracted a sudden blue blur erupted from a pile of trash and bowled the guards over, Evening Mist flying out into the street. “Ha, ha, ha!” the colt was laughing madly as he rushed away. The guards stood up and began to give chase before the leader yelled, “Ignore him! The Warrior is the priority!” “Yes sir!” the guards chorused. “Your mother’s a whorse!” a distant voice called out from down the street. “…” “I should know! She had a nice pair of combat boots!” “That, that… He’s DEAD!!!” The guards yelled loudly and ran after the colt, the squad leader followed them, all the while yelling at them to get back in line. Meanwhile, the unicorn was staring at his spell in confusion. It was at this point that realization dawned upon Search All and he looked up ever so slowly. What he saw made his eyes widen in fear. “Hello.” CRACK!!! ‘I am the darkness…’ Ale dragged the unconscious unicorn into a pile of trash and continued on his way, moving rapidly as the patrolling guards were now aware of his presence. After slinking a few blocks Ale found the river again. Looking down the street he saw the edge of town within sight. Hearing guards moving into the area Ale ran and dove into the river. He kicked hard and began swimming out of town, intent on following the river through the plains and all the way to Canterlot. --------------------------------------------------------- An armored gauntlet broke through the surface of the raging water and clasped firmly onto the bank of river rock. A huge alien form lugged himself out of the water and lied down on the flat rock for a minute. ‘I may be a super soldier, but damn. They should make us swim almost 200 miles upriver for training. The Covenant wouldn’t have stood a chance then.’ Ale pulled himself up to his feet and looked around. He was standing in the mouth of an outcropping in the mountain, a waterfall gushing out from a hole near the ceiling. Ale wouldn’t be surprised if hundreds of thousands of gallons of water was pouring out every minute. He turned away from the clear falling water and headed out of the partial cave. Sticking to the rocky cliff he traversed along it for an hour. A very old NAV marker lit up his HUD and Ale headed towards it. Approaching the cliff he saw the old rusty NAV sticker. Running his hand along the cliff face he took a few steps along it before his hand lurched forward into empty space. Ale smiled as he stepped forward. Ale remembered discovering this natural optical allusion a few years after his marriage, climbing the mountain as he snuck away for a party. Luna had not been very happy about that. Ale continued to trek uphill on the ancient path, keeping an eye out for hostiles along the way. His form barely fit in the canyon, the walls on either side stretching far away above him. After a few minutes of walking Ale ran into a dead end. He approached the wall and searched for the first hand hold he had driven into the cliff side. He looked carefully and found that the first few spikes had rusted away completely. The rest above them looked to be in decent condition. Ale couldn’t use his jet pack as it would cause a very loud echo to emanate from the canyon, the sensitive looking ears on the batponies no doubt able to catch the sound. Ale sighed as his situation just got a little bit harder. The Spartan placed his back to one side of the canyon and his feet on the other. He extended his legs until he wedged himself firmly. Taking step after step he inched his way up the canyon, wincing as his armor made terrible squealing sounds against the rock. “Maybe using my jet pack would have been a quieter option.” Ale continued climbing up the wall, wishing he could just shoot himself, both embarrassed and desperate to stop the nails on chalkboard sound he was creating. After what seemed to be a century Ale finally was within reaching distance of the first handhold. He reached up and grasped it firmly. His other hand reached up and grabbed the next one in line. Ale eased his weight of the walls and placed it all in the two metal rods. Ale began to heave himself up when a low crunching noise reached his ears. He stopped and stared at the hand holds. The crunching sound started again when Ale shifted, only this time it didn’t stop. A large crack appeared on the rock, emanating from the first metal rod and zig-zagged up to the next one. Ale once again sighed as the cracking increased in volume. “Fuck me.” Ale moved quickly as he launched himself up, rapidly scaling the metal rods as the crack chased him up, the hand holds falling out as a massive rock slide began falling. Ale swore explosively as some of the rods broke instantly or were missing entirely from the cliff face ahead of him, prompting him to use his own momentum and monkey crawl upwards before gravity caught up with him. After a few more moments Ale hurled himself over an outcropping in the rock that emanated from a cave. Ale stood and panted, the crack stopping at the ledge. Ale sighed and took a step, only to stop as the whole outcropping shifted and dropped a few inches violently. “…” CRACK!!! Ale fell onto his belly and crawled as fast as he could as the rock fell, the Spartan struggling to keep up. With a mighty jump off the edge he was able to catch the ledge with one hand. Unfortunately, the rock slide had stirred up quite a bit of gravel and Ale’s hand slipped. With a glint of silver and a violent flash of sparks Ale’s descent stopped. He clung to his combat knife as it was buried deeply into the rock face. Pulling out his smaller security knife Ale began to stab his way up the cliff. He aimed his security knife over the edge and pulled; the steel biting into the loose gravel. Catching a hidden ledge Ale clawed his way onto the remains of the outcropping and shuffled away from the unstable surface. Ale carefully peeked over the edge and winced as he saw a large dust cloud at the bottom, distant flying specks flying towards it. Ale had to move and fast. Turning he became engulfed in the dark cave. His night vision sufficed for most of the journey, guiding him through the twists and turns of the cave. A dull glow far ahead of him caught his attention. Ale turned off his night vision and investigated. He reached a small cavern and was shocked at the dazzling display in front of him. Large crystals protruded from the walls and ceiling of the cavern. The shone with an unnatural light, magic no doubt the cause of it. The last time the Spartan had walked through here the crystals were incredibly small, only just beginning their growth cycle. The space was damp, very much so. That and magic must have accelerated their growth. Ale found them rather beautiful and vowed to come back one day. Pushing onwards he exited the cavern and reached his objective. A hole in the wall to his left opened up to a rather disgusting sight. A dark, sludgy river oozed along a natural channel in the cave floor. Ale followed the rock until he reached the tail end of the Canterlot sewage system. Thankful that his air was only recycled throughout his suit and not the horrendous stench of the sewage Ale traversed the cobblestone maze. Checking street grates every now and again he eventually made his way to the castles edge. The sewage tunnel had a large steel grate blocking his path. Knowing that breaking through it by force was still not an option Ale turned towards a street grate. He peered through it for a few minutes, waiting for a guard patrol to go past so that he knew he could safely get out without being spotted. When almost 30 minutes passed Ale became confused. Surely there were patrols in the capital city of Equestria? Deciding to take a gamble Ale grabbed the grate and pushed it upwards, sliding it out of place and along the curb. Ale reached through and attempted to pull himself through. He was able to twist his head through before his flared back armor wedged itself. Ale once again sighed as he pulled with all his strength, crumbling the cobblestone around him. Ale slipped out of his newly made hole and didn’t bother trying to cover it up, instead deciding to sprint for the nearest alley way. He slid into cover and checked his surrounding vectors. Again, every direction was clear. ‘Who the hell runs this place?’ Ale ran across the street and dived into the bushes lining the castle wall. He slinked along them until he reached the guard house and castle gate. He peered out from the bushes and observed the lone guard standing in the entrance. He pulled out a laser mount for a rifle and aimed it out of the bush and near the guard’s feet. He turned it on and jiggled the pointer around, causing the red dot on the ground to move about erratically. This caught the guard’s attention and he stared at it in confusion. Ale moved it forward and watched as the guard followed it, attempting to stomp on it. Ale almost laughed out loud at how stupid the guard was, reminding the Spartan of a cat or dog. He messed with the guard for a few more seconds, placing the dot on the guard’s body. The stallion shrieked and began punching himself. “…” Ale was literally flexing his muscles painfully to prevent himself from laughing, causing some painful cramps throughout his body. If Ale had enough time he probably could have made the stallion beat himself unconscious. Deciding to cut to the chase Ale brought the dot to the edge of his bush. The stallion glared at the dot with an unmasked rage. He charged at the dot, galloping with everything he was made of. Ale yawned as he simply extended his arm through the bush. The stallion yelped as he as he struggled to stop; only to fail and run head first into Ale’s stationary fist of doom. Ale cursed and shook his hand. The stallion was pretty thick headed. Ale put the laser mount away and made his way into the courtyard. Moving along bushes, stone walls, and fountains Ale kept himself hidden from the sentries of the castle. He found himself under a dark balcony, Ale looking side to side before leaping up to it. He pulled himself over the edge and walked quietly though the darkened room. He opened the wooden door on the other side and peered into the bright hallway. There were sentries posted throughout the hallway, shooting down the idea of traveling through it. Ale closed the door and looked around the room. It was an unused maid room by the looks of it. Ale found a small door on the other side of a large dresser. Ale opened it and found the numerous hallways the castle staff used to get around. Ale glumly noted that it was just as narrow as the canyon he had encountered. Shaking his head he squeezed himself in and began walking. After getting lost numerous times and surprisingly encountering no one Ale finally reached what he believed to be Luna’s room. He cracked the door open an inch, not knowing what he would find on the other side. He opened it further when he discovered it to be dark and empty of occupants. Ale stepped through and found dusty white sheets covering the furniture. Ale glanced around the room carefully, looking for any sign or clue of Celestia’s whereabouts. He would need her help to change Nightmare Moon and get Luna back. Ale walked around the room and began pulling the sheets off of the objects they were hiding. The bed was unmade on Luna’s side of the bed while Ale’s side was untouched. It looked like it hadn’t been touched since he left judging by the amount of dust on it. Ale investigated Luna’s writing desk and discovered a cluttered mess. Many of the documents were messily written and some of the ink was blotched. Ale frowned sadly as he guessed why it was blotched. The fire place had ashes several hundred years old and there was a peculiar mirror he had never seen before tucked against the far wall. There was one more sheet pinned on the wall. Ale remembered it to be a portrait of Luna and the soldier cuddling by a lake. Ale reached up and yanked it off. The square frame was still there but instead of a painted picture a swirling black mass filled his vision. Ale backed up quickly and reached for his rifle as the black mass jumped from the picture and swirled around Ale. The Spartan lashed out with the butt of his rifle but only passed through it harmlessly. His shields began draining rapidly as the energy was consumed. Ale was caught off guard as his over shield popped quickly and attempted to roll way. … His body was refusing to move. Ale panicked and fought with all his strength to move. A painful cold flooded in through his Neural Interface. The biting cold ripped through his body, Ale wanting to scream on the outside but unable to. ‘Hmm… You are quite a piece of work.’ Ale heard a voice in his head, causing Ale to begin struggling mentally and will the intruder away. ‘Be still!’ Ale roared mentally as his body felt like it was being burnt by plasma on the inside, the pain literally eating its way outwards. ‘You will listen, or I will kill you this very instant.’ Ale continued to struggle, managing to unclench his hands and drop his rifle. He attempted to reach up and yank off his helmet to manually pull out the NI core. It would be very painful but it would stop the invader. His arm froze and Ale began to scream out loud as he felt muscles begin tearing and internal organs twisting. ‘You are strong, but not strong enough.’ Darkness began creeping in on Ale’s vision, red spots flaring everywhere and white flashes appearing with his heartbeat. ‘I can make this stop. All you have to do is accept my proposition. I promise that you’ll find it very tempting.’ ‘NO!’ Ale realized that he was choking on his own blood, his cough reflex failing. ‘You seek Luna. I can give her to you. But you must cease struggling and listen!’ Ale literally felt his heartbeat slow and lacked the will and strength to fight anymore. Releasing his fight he crumbled to his knees. The cold disappeared and Ale breathed heavily, coughing blood up. After a moment he slowly looked up. Luna, or what used to be Luna was standing in front of him. She looked down at him with a cruel smile. Ale slowly reached for his combat knife, his muscles screaming in protest. “Ah, ah, ah!” Ale froze when he began feeling the onset of paralysis again. “I thought you promised to play nice?” Ale looked at the dark alicorn and spoke lowly. “What do you want?” “It’s not about what I want, but more about what you want.” Ale looked at her in confusion, his silence causing Queen Moon to huff irritably. “Luna. You want Luna.” “What are you talking about? You are Luna. She’s a part of you.” “Hmm, I think not. You see I kind of got my own body. Luna is far from here.” Ale lurched forward, attempting to get up from his knees. “What did you do to her!? Where is she!?” “Stop.” Ale once again froze, his rage burning deeply within him. The Nightmare walked up to him and peered into his visor. “I’ll give her to you. I don’t need anything from you in return.” Ale stared right back at her, disbelieving every word she had to say. “I don’t believe you.” “What does your heart say?” Ale recoiled at her response. ‘My heart?’ Even though Ale didn’t trust her past the tip of his nose he couldn’t help but draw attention to his heart. It was beating rapidly, longing for its partner. Ale watched a smile worm its way onto Nightmare’s face. She stepped away from him and her horn lit up, sending a beam of darkness into the mirror by the wall. It became a swirling portal, the cosmos clearly visible in the swirling mass. “She is there along with her sister. You may go to them.” Ale stood painfully, his body creaking slightly. He picked up his rifle and held it on standby. “Kill me and the portal closes, locking your loved one away forever. Ale’s heart was pulling towards the portal, feeling his partner’s soul licking at his. The Spartan stepped towards the portal and looked at the alicorn. “Wherever I end up, I will return from. Know this, no matter where you hide or where you run I will find you, and I will kill you.” The alicorn looked at him smartly before replying, “I look forward to it.” With those parting words Ale stepped into the portal, intent on finding Luna. He had a promise to keep.