//------------------------------// // Chapter 11: Outmaneuver // Story: My Little Pony: The Day Equestria Stood Still // by Thunderwing250 //------------------------------// As they went through the portal, chaos continued as Khaoios chased the Wonderbolts in every direction they were flying. Evading though tight spaces, Khaoios recognized he was wasting time, until his tolerance turned to no mercy. Reaching the point of exhaustion, he crashed into the Wonderbolt fliers, like a hurricane hitting a flock of birds. One by one, each member fell out of the sky, only to be caught by nearby pegasus ponies. Captain Spitfire, falling fast, was caught by a pegasus pony, with a cyan colored mane and tail, and a black body. “Gotcha!” he said, catching her. Spitfire, dizzy at the moment, turned her head and looked at the pegasus. “Thanks,” Spitfire said, trying to regain her strength. “You’re injured! Just hang on,” the pegasus said as Khaoios spotted him. The pegasus squinted and Khaoios soon backed off, realizing it wasn’t worth it. He then turned only to realize the last group of ponies escaped the city via the suspension bridge. Accepting his mistake, he looked and saw General StoneColt across the river. “Well played. General. Well played, indeed,” Khaoios thought to himself and returned to his post on top of the tower. The General looked and scoffed. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna waited behind him. “Personally, I have never expected such a... suicide plan, but turned out to be quite interesting,” Luna commented. General StoneColt grinned. “Believe me, Princess. In order to defeat your enemy, you must observe them. That’s exactly why he defeated the both of you. However, he cannot be in two places at once, which is why the Wonderbolts were the bait, while the guards evacuated the ponies from the city,” he replied. “Not all were evacuated,” Celestia said. “Spike is Khaoios hostage... and--” "And yes, Twilight Sparkle and her friends will go and rescue him,” StoneColt said. The Princesses worried for a moment, but had to agree with StoneColt. --- A few miles away, a portal opened, and Twilight, along with her companions hopped out. “Some shortcut that was.” Applejack commented. “No time. We gotta go now and rescue Spike,” Twilight said as she ran towards the base. There, Shining Armor stood only to realize it was Twilight coming in quickly. Hurriedly ordering his troops to stand down, the group came to him. “Twiley. You’re here.” Shining Armor spoke with relief. “I’m glad you’re okay.” He hugged her tightly. “We’re fine, Shining Armor. How are the Princesses?” Twilight replied. In that instant, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, Princess Cadance, and StoneColt stood behind Shining Armor. In tears, Twilight grabbed her mentor in a tight hug, happy that she was okay. However, with the small conversations on their adventure, they moved inside the tent, discussing the plan. The Archivist lifted head and locked her eyes on StoneColt. Knowing the facial expression, StoneColt recognized the response and turned to Twilight. “I understand you took a stroll looking for a way to defeat Khaoios. What is your plan, if I may ask?” StoneColt asked. Twilight cleared her throat as her friends and allies gathered around the table. “From what I read, that Torch he calls “The Artifact” is his most important weapon. It’s capability is to predict the future.” She paused. “He’s a strategist, however, what StoneColt planned out from what you told us, that’s one thing Khaoios cannot do. When he’s focused on one problem, he'd rather deal with that problem first. However, the evacuation he didn’t predict because he only predicted what was coming at him.” “Basically moves that involve him, he can predict. Anything that he’s not a victim to, he can’t. The Artifact can only do so much,” StoneColt commented. “If we can steal the Artifact, Khaoios is weak and thus vulnerable. However, with his power and intelligence, we must proceed cautiously,” The Architect added. Shining Armor sighed. “So how do you plan on getting this torch?” he asked. The Archivist turned. “Twilight Sparkle along with the Wielders of Harmony, will do so. They are the only ones who are capable of defeating him and rescuing Spike,” she said. The Princesses’ felt their hearts sink in fear. Shining Armor shook his head. “No more, Twily! You’ve saved the world enough times already! You and your friends are the only ponies that could unite Equestria again with Friendship. Without you, I don’t know how I can live with myself. Please, leave the rest of this to me and my guards, that’s an order!” Twilight put her head down. “I have no choice, Shiny. I have to do this. Please. Believe in me and my friends,” Twilight pleaded. Recording her words, StoneColt was quite surprised. He turned to the Archivist silently. The Archivist lifted her chin. “It’s the only way.” Twilight turned to the Princesses. They worried for their young Princess. Having no choice, they agreed, and Twilight smiled. “Thank you, Princesses. I promise. I will bring back Spike and defeat Khaoios. If we beat Tirek. We can beat Khaoios,” Twilight said. After the Princesses and Shining Armor agreed with Twilight’s decision, StoneColt stepped forward and turned to everypony. “Now. Once that is commenced, we need to keep Khaoios in one place, so we can use our magic and possibly, big buckets of water to drop on him”. He said. “Water?” Luna asked. “Since Khaoios magic are fire based, he’s vulnerable when he gets wet. If we can drop water on him and have Twilight and her friends use their Rainbow Power, they can stop him. Problem is... it will be difficult to lure him, but what would be a good spot,” StoneColt said. Everypony absorbed the info. Cadance lifted her head. “The bridge? It has cables right?” she asked. “Yes... the southern suspension bridge. If we could lure him to the bridge, Shining Armor and his guards can shoot the wires, snapping and hooking onto Khaoios securing him in place,” StoneColt responded. “What about the buckets of water?” Shining Armor asked. “I will lead the raid with the Wonderbolts by dropping water on him making him weak,” StoneColt replied. He turned to address Twilight. “Princess. I need you to listen carefully. Once you retrieve your friend and the Artifact, fly as fast as you can to the bridge,” he ordered. Twilight proudly stood up. “Of course,” she replied as she turned and walked out of the tent.