//------------------------------// // Act 2 Chapter 20 // Story: Collision Code // by SSJRandomMaster //------------------------------// Act II: Collision Course Chapter 20: The Human Spirit --------------- Lyon broke into a sprint towards Corey and John once more. As he drew closer, he lowered his hands, claws fully extended. John and Corey both fell back. Lyon tore past where they were, bringing his hands forward with great force.   Corey grunted—Lyon just threw dirt up, and he moved to shield his eyes before the dirt could get in them or on his glasses. His ears twitched as he registered movement, and he looked up and to his left, seeing Lyon rushing at him. Corey took a step back, just before runes appeared over his torso and arms. The exposed muscles on his arms gained bulk, and not a moment too soon. Lyon threw his forearm down, Corey catching the forearm with both hands.   Corey’s body bent downward, his legs bending at the knee to try to keep himself from losing his footing. Lyon’s forearm soon retracted. Corey looked up, and gave a sharp grunt of surprise as Lyon continued to attack.   Dammit, I’m not in a good spot… Corey thought, the repeated strikes slamming down on him.   “Watch out!” someone shouted from the sidelines. Corey looked up. Lyon was preparing to bring both fists down on him. His eyes had, just for a moment, left Corey. Quickly, Corey cancelled his strength buff. Runes began to write over his feet, glowing green in color.   Lyon brought his fists down, but Corey had backed up at immense speed. It was just for a second, however. Raising both of his hands, fingers spread apart, runes began to appear, traveling from his fingers to the center of his palms at incredible speeds. Green laser shots began to shoot out of his palms, no bigger than the palms they were being shot from.   “He’s firing the spell from his hands,” Shining observed, “But why? He already knew it before.”   “Maybe it’s easier for him to aim it this way,” Twilight said, “He seemed to be having trouble aiming it during the last fight.”   “Well, it ain’t doing squat,” Rainbow pointed out. It was true; Lyon had raised his own hands, and was batting the shots away one by one as they approached. The ones he couldn’t get to hit him, but it didn’t seem to do too much. Just then, a shape appeared behind him, causing Corey to stop firing. He rested his arms at his sides and appeared to be taking a small rest from the whole thing.   Lyon lowered his arms, only to be hit in the back of the head. With a snarl, he turned around, seeing John pull back his forearm from the hit he’d just administered. John began to give chase, Lyon blocking this hit. He returned with a punch, which hit home, John’s face pitching back. Using this momentum, John leaned back, raising one leg up, hitting Lyon’s stomach. John avoided Lyon’s counter-attack; Lyon blocked John’s punch.   The two continued to just trade hits, blocking and dodging whenever they could. Eventually, though, Lyon managed to one-up John. Lyon slashed at John with his claws. While John was slightly off-balance from avoiding this attack, Lyon quickly threw out a punch with one hand, smashing into John’s face. He staggered back, eventually managing to stop. John turned his head back, but kept it lowered.   “John…” Corey said, looking up from his brief rest.   “What a ridiculous fight,” Lyon scoffed, glaring at John as he got into a ready stance once again, “A mythical creature such as a dragon would fight like a pony…”   John said nothing, still facing the ground. Lyon registered the sound of movement, but he’d figured he’d swat that fly if it got too close.   “You’re pathetic, Dragon,” Lyon continued, “And that is why you, and the pony you insisted on fighting alongside, will end here—“   John suddenly looked up, taking a deep breath. Lyon’s eyes widened, but he barely had time to get them shut before John made his move. John exhaled with great force, and as he did so, a steady stream of orange flame flowed from his mouth, all over Lyon’s upper body.   This is something I had to learn to control to prepare for today, John thought, I’m going to make you eat your words!   Lyon continued to keep his eyes shut. He could feel the heat and knew if it got into his eyes, it would really be bad for him. He began to take steps towards John, slow, sure steps. Eventually, he stopped feeling a stream of heat. But, just as he opened his eyes and readied himself for an attack, he found he wasn’t looking down at a dragon, but straight ahead at a unicorn, one glowing fist pulled back.   Too caught off-guard to react, Lyon found himself being struck dead-on in the face. A second later, that blasted spell generated a second, much more powerful force, and Lyon’s head pitched back hard, his body following suit. He flew back several yards before sliding on his back. Lyon got up, rubbing the back of his neck.   I can not believe it… Lyon looked up, seeing Corey and John side-by-side in front of him once again, awaiting his next move. How are they able to match me? Why is the pony able to stand against me like this? And when did the dragon learn to fight??   “Enough!” Lyon roared, bringing both his hands above his head, “You will not defeat me!”   Neither Corey nor John could get a retort in. Lyon brought both his hands down on the ground with tremendous force, enough to cause it to break and kick up a large amount of smoke. Corey and John took a few steps to the side, away from each other.   “What’s he…” Corey began, but before he could finish his thought, a tremendous roar was heard. Not two seconds later, they could hear several voices shouting a warning. Though all of them said it differently, they all said the same thing in the end.   “Look up!” John shouted. Corey did so, and recoiled just a bit: bearing down on them was Lyon, both hands raised in preparation for an attack. Both Corey and John began to try to move away, but it was clear that Lyon wasn’t aiming for them anyway.   Lyon slammed into the ground hard, leaving a crater. The sheer force of his ground pound also released a tremendous shockwave as the remaining force shot out. John managed to hold his ground, but Corey found himself staggering back uncontrollably.   “Corey! You okay!?” John shouted, though Corey couldn’t see him through the dust.   “I think so!” Corey said, managing to right himself.   “Not for long…” came the snarl of an angry Lyon, as he rushed out of the smoke, straight at Corey. Corey readied himself, cocking his right fist back. Lyon cocked his left fist, and swung down towards Corey. Corey swung up, impact spell at the ready.   Their fists met, Corey’s spell cushioning the impact of Lyon’s fist. Then, the extra force exploded outward, knocking Lyon’s fist away. However, Lyon wasn’t done. Spreading his arms out, Lyon began to attack again. Corey raised both his arms in front of him, runes appearing over his arms and torso.   Just as Corey’s muscles gained mass, he felt a dull pain shoot through his arms. Lyon had extended his legs out, kicking him back. Though he had managed to block the attack, Corey was still lifted from his feet, sharply grunting as he landed flat on his rear. Corey’s muscles contracted as he stood, a bead of sweat running down the side of his head.   If I didn’t bulk up my arms, Corey thought, That would have been the end of them!   Flinging his arms about to try to get them to feel better, Corey kept one eye on Lyon. Lyon began to rush him again. Gritting his teeth, Corey lifted his left arm, his hand glowing with runes. Lyon was almost on him when Corey slammed his impact spell into the ground. The force kicked up a large amount of dust, and left a crater that was equally as impressive as the one Lyon left behind. Lyon held his ground against the force, but his vision was blocked.   Taking advantage of this, Corey quickly gave Lyon the slip. John stood outside the smoke, arms crossed.   “Take a knee for a sec,” John said, “I’ll take it from here…”   John began to dash into the smoke. It wasn’t long before all present could hear Lyon roaring in anger once again.   “Come now,” he shouted, the dust from Corey’s attack finally starting to clear, “I said for you to stop running!”   “Making space is part of battle too, Lyon,” John said, causing him to turn. Just as he did, John had inhaled, and began to breathe more flames in Lyon’s direction. This time, Lyon was prepared, and raised his arms to block the fire. John began to walk toward Lyon, sustaining his flames all the while.   John couldn’t see in front of him while breathing fire too well due to the wall of flames. He didn’t notice straight away when Lyon moved, and by the time it registered, it was too late. A fist swung, and nailed John in the stomach. John’s mouth snapped shut for just a moment as he emitted a grunt, pain exploding from the point of impact. When his mouth went ajar again, black smoke began to come out. However, John wasn’t completely knocked stupid.   Lyon went for another attack, aiming to knee John in the chin as he fell, but John threw out his arms, catching the knee. Opening his wings, John pushed Lyon’s knee back in tandem with one strong flap. John flew back away from Lyon, while Lyon stumbled, momentarily off-balance. Hearing movement, Lyon turned his body and kicked out. Corey ducked underneath this kick.   The kick, however, wasn’t really meant to hit Corey; it was more an effort to regain his balance. Lyon punched out at Corey once again, only to find Corey catching his punch with both of his hands, his muscles bulked up. Yet, Corey felt his heels dig backward as Lyon’s fist pushed in.   More runes drew themselves over Corey’s body, and his muscles increased again. This was only for a moment, but it was enough to toss Lyon’s hand off, the sudden strength catching Lyon by surprise. Corey’s muscles contracted down one size, as runes began to appear over his left hand.   “Let’s see how a joint spell works!” Corey shouted, angling his fist up, uppercutting Lyon straight in the solar plexus. Half a moment later, a tremendous shockwave slammed into his stomach as well, lifting Lyon off his feet with a painful roar. Lyon landed on the ground hard enough to crater it somewhat, eyes closed. He didn’t appear to be able to move.   Corey finally released his spell. Pain shot through his punching arm when he ended the buff, and he looked to his left. His arm slowly went limp, and Corey stared at it as if it weren’t his arm anymore, but a sock that had been grafted on in its place. Corey tried to raise it up again, but all his arm did was twitch. Clicking his tongue, Corey realized what had happened.   Guess I’m not ready to combine the two spells just yet… Corey thought, But it looks like it worked…   John flew high above. Seeing Lyon laid out on the ground, John changed his directions, and aimed himself for Lyon’s chest. One second later, he dove directly towards it.   “Almost there,” John observed to himself, the wind deafening him as he began his crash course, both arms extended, hands clenched into fists, “Just one more…!”   John continued on his downward trajectory. Five hundred yards. Three hundred yards. Three hundred feet. One hundred feet. Fifty feet. Twenty feet…   Suddenly, he felt his body stop all movement, and his eyes went wide with horror at what he saw. Lyon wasn’t out, or at least, wasn’t hurt enough to be out. His hands grabbed on to John’s arms, right around his forearms. Though John’s attack still hit, the force behind it had been lessened down to Lyon’s technique. Corey’s eyes went wide as Lyon stood up, still holding on to John’s arms.   “No…” Corey said, stunned, “Is he even hurt…?”   John struggled with the grip, trying to flap his wings to get enough force to break free. But Lyon wasn’t letting go. Lyon eventually moved, unbalancing John by yanking his arms out. Unable to collect himself, John received a heavy, freight-train force kick to his chest. John coughed, eventually landing with a thud next to the limp-armed Corey. Lyon slowly cracked his neck afterward, brushing his chest.   “Dammit,” John coughed, “I thought we had him there…”   “So did I…” Corey panted, flinching as his arm flared up. His free hand went to his bicep, applying pressure in a futile attempt to relieve the pain. --------------- They had done well so far. They actually seemed to have the upper hand at a couple of points. Yet, no matter what they did, Lyon got right back up, only getting angrier and angrier as the fight dragged on. Worse, Corey and John were now showing signs of fatigue.   “They can’t hurt him,” Shining finally said, breaking the silence.   “But that guy’s reacting to all their hits!” Rainbow protested, “He’s clearly feeling it!”   “Yes,” Twilight said, looking to Corey and John, “But even though their attacks, their technique, has improved greatly…Lyon’s natural durability isn’t anything to scoff at. Just look! After every spell Corey landed, even after taking blows from John, Lyon’s still moving around as if nothing happened! He doesn’t even seem winded…”   “Not to mention,” Shining continued, “I think Corey’s last attack may have taken a toll on him. He must have been hoping it would have done the trick…”   “So how are we supposed to beat someone like that, if their attacks can’t really leave a mark?” Pinkie asked, “I mean…”   “I don’t know,” Shining said, “But one thing is for sure, if Corey and John are to win, they’re going to need to find some way to get around his defense.” --------------- Corey grimaced, increasing the pressure on his arm. That last spell really did do a number on Lyon. At least, that’s what it looked like. Yet here they were now. John had just gotten the wind knocked out of him, and Corey was now short an arm…   “So what now…?” John asked, just before coughing again.   “You fought him before,” Corey said, “Don’t you know?”   “I managed to get him in a headlock,” John said, “Cut off his air…”   “I see…” Corey said, something beginning to form in his mind, “So then, what do you think we should do?”   “He won’t fall for it again…” John groaned. Just then, Lyon gave a savage roar, getting their attention.   “All you creatures are is talk!” Lyon began to charge them again, “I will shut you up once and for all!”   John grunted, “We need to come up with something…”   With that, John took off running, trying to repel John’s attack.   “John!” Corey called out in concern.   John didn’t listen to Lyon, already within five feet. The two locked hands once again, but this time, John couldn’t dig his claws into the dirt hard enough. He scraped back several yards before Lyon threw his arms up. Lyon then nailed John with the back of one fist, knocking him to the side. Then, his glare was focused on the pony who had given him more trouble than he could accept.   Corey looked up, his gaze slightly unfocused. His left arm twitched again as he tried to move it. He moved his right arm into place at his side. Lyon sneered.   “Whatever you’ve been doing has taken its toll,” Lyon declared, rushing Corey, “Just another weak pony with a few tricks up his sleeve!”   Time slowed down from Corey’s perspective. He began to think hard about what was going on.   If memory serves, John got him in a headlock, Corey thought, He had to breathe like everyone else, and that’s how they ran him off last time. We can’t scratch him on the outside, but…   Corey watched as Lyon got close to him, and leapt out of the way of the running clothesline, to his left, his arm trailing limply behind him. Runes appeared over his leg, the strength in that boosting. Lyon turned to him as he tried to jump-kick into him, but his efforts were blocked by a huge forearm. Corey landed, only to immediately have to hop back as Lyon’s massive clawed hand slammed down. Corey landed awkwardly, and grit his teeth.   Dammit, not now! Corey thought, It’s sink or swim right now…   Corey looked up. Lyon bared his teeth and snarled. Corey’s horn lit up, erecting a shield. He didn’t have the time to complete the spell. Lyon’s foot smashed through the shield, then into Corey’s chest. Though the shield had cushioned the force of the lion’s paw, it didn’t completely protect him from all of it. Corey felt all the wind leave him as he coughed, not sure if his ribs survived the hit. Corey went flying for yards before landing flat on his back hard enough to bounce once before landing on the ground.   “Corey!” Twilight screamed. Everyone tensed up.   “This ain’t lookin’ good…” Applejack said.   Corey struggled to his feet, rubbing the back of his head and neck with his good arm. He coughed roughly a few more times. Lyon slowly began to advance, raising one clawed hand. Just then, there was a roar. This time, it wasn’t Lyon’s.   Lyon paused for a moment, but before he could do anything, he felt something wrap around his neck and constrict. John’s head peeked out from behind Lyon’s shoulder for a moment. From what Corey could see, his pupils were slitted. Lyon choked again, and fell to one knee.   “He’s got him!” Pinkie cheered. Several long seconds passed. For that time, it seemed like John had him. Just then, Lyon’s eyes opened, wide with rage. He managed to choke out two words.   “Not again!” Lyon suddenly stood up, wrestling John’s arm off of him. Turning his back to Corey again, Lyon tossed John over his shoulder, causing the dragon to flip through the air once before landing flat on his back.   “You thought the same thing would work on me twice?” Lyon asked.   “Can’t blame a guy for trying, right…?” John said.   “Well, now it’s over for you,” Lyon said, raising one clawed hand, extending it outward.   “That’s it, we have to get in there!” Shining said, “At this rate…”   “Hah!!” Corey shouted from a now-standing position, his good hand raised. A single bolt of energy, larger than what he’d conjured before, shot at Lyon. Lyon turned, but this time caught the blast in his hands and crushed it between them with sheer strength. His teeth bared in annoyance and rage as he stared at Corey, who was panting.   “You…” Lyon snarled, his brows twitching in complete rage, “You…”   “What’s wrong?” Corey asked, one brow raised, his good arm now in a shrugging position, “You’re having trouble managing just one pony and a dragon?”   Lyon roared once more. Corey took a step back, but remained in virtually the same position.   “That’s the last thing you’ll ever say!” Lyon shouted, the claws on his feet digging trenches into the ground.   “Corey…what are you doing?” John asked, slowly rolling over onto his forearms.   “I’ll make sure you won’t rise again!” Lyon began to rush Corey, murderous intent in his eyes.   “What’s he doing!?” Shining asked. His horn stopped glowing, and his shield around the group had just started to fade, when someone pointed out.   “Wait, Corey’s—“ Twilight started, analyzing it. Lyon was closing the distance fast. John was staring at Corey for a moment longer, visibly confused. Corey’s good hand was now raised to his face, fingers splayed out over his cheek. Runes were writing right in front of him. They were green, like usual, but as soon as they changed color to a white-yellow color, Twilight understood what was happening.   “Everypony, don’t look! That spell is…!” Twilight said, turning her head and closing her eyes, just as John started to do the same. Seeing the signs, everyone immediately moved to shield their eyes.   Lyon was just in front of Corey. Blinded by rage, Lyon didn’t immediately move to attack Corey until it was too late. Corey cast his spell, and the runes converted into a flash of light, intense enough to blind anyone who dared to look at it. Lyon’s eyes were wide open with rage when it happened, and he roared in complete agony as the light burned his eyes. He shut them tightly, but the damage was done.   “What have you done, pony!?” Lyon demanded, his voice intensely angry. Corey scrambled away, Lyon blindly slamming one open palm into the ground. Corey had already vacated the immediate area, falling back a safe distance away from the raging Lyon. Turning to John, who was staring at the blinded Lyon with wonder, Corey gave a shout.   “John!” Corey shouted. John looked, still puzzled, “The outside…he’s durable on the outside!”   John heard Corey’s words, but he wasn’t immediately aware of what Corey was getting at. Then, he remembered the epiphany he had last time…   But inside’s a different story… John winced, realizing what he was being asked—no, needed—to do. This is gonna suck…   Quickly, John began to move. At the same time, Lyon turned towards him, his eyes still tightly shut. John lifted off so he could get a better angle, just as Lyon began to lift his torso, and bellowed the most angry roar yet.   Now or never! John thought, launching forth.   “You will pa—“ Lyon’s roar was cut off by two draconic hands prying his jaws apart and holding them there. John hovered there, took a deep breath and lowered his head.   “What’s he—“ The pony who asked never finished their question, turning away as fire began to spew from John’s mouth, directly into Lyon’s throat. It only lasted a few seconds, but for Lyon, time stood still as, for the first time, he felt true pain as the fire filled his torso with a searing, creeping pain. It was almost enough to make him pass out, but Lyon somehow managed to hang on.   Roaring in agony, smoke now spilling out from his ears and mouth, Lyon grabbed John again and threw him away. Lyon roared again, much more raspy and hurt-sounding than before.   “You…will…”   Lyon didn’t get to finish the vow of vengeance. Corey blurred right in front of him, preparing his right arm. His fist glowed and he let out another jab at Lyon’s solar plexus, and for the second time in less than a minute, time stood still. Where before, the second, much more powerful impact would send a shockwave through his system that would at least cause him some minor pain here and there, this time, when the shockwave rippled through his insides, Lyon felt every single Newton of force ripple through his hide. His hide was thick, almost insurmountable, but the force that made it past, combined with the internal injuries, caused Lyon to gurgle. Lifted from his feet one final time, Lyon landed flat on his back.   This time, Lyon didn’t move, letting out a gurgle as his body twitched in a feeble attempt to rise. Eventually, Lyon let out something that could be recognized as speech.   “I…lost…?” Lyon wondered aloud, his voice raspy from the sudden influx of pain and damage he’d suffered. --------------- There was stunned silence throughout the clearing for several long seconds, followed by the sounds of cheering. With all this over, the cage was opened, allowing the ponies inside to run free, the danger passed. Most began to run back towards town, not wanting to hang around much longer. A few hung around, feeling somewhat safe. As Corey’s attention turned to the hostages, he heard a voice he’d heard before.   “Hey,” As Corey turned his head to the source, he could see a familiar face. A red unicorn pony in a closed jacket—Maudlin, “Corey!”   “Eh? Maudlin!?” Corey stood up, having been sitting since the end of the fight, staggering a bit since he couldn’t use one of his arms, “You were caught too?!”   “Was working on something when that lion attacked,” Maudlin said, shortly before shivering, “He really gave me a scare…”   Corey’s good hand tightened for a moment before relaxing, “Yeah, well…the point is it’s over now. You’re safe, and so’s everyone else he caught…”   “You were amazing out there!” Maudlin peeked around Corey for a moment, “Both of you were! Wish I could have done some of that!”   “It took a while to get some of that down…” Corey said, just before his left arm flared again, “Ow…! Yeah, wasn’t a good idea to use those two spells together yet…”   John remained close to Lyon, if only to make sure he wasn’t going to get up again. There was some commotion back towards town. All heads turned towards it, but when everyone saw what was going on, they all breathed a sigh of relief. Five plainclothes guards, similar to the unit from the park the day before, were running up to the group.   Briefly acknowledging Princess Twilight, they moved over to Lyon. He was still flat on his back, staring almost blankly up at the sky, in complete shock.   “Is he dead?” asked one of the guards, crouching down next to him.   “I don’t think so,” John said, feeling a little concern worm its way into his voice nonetheless.   Another one of the guards crouched down next to Lyon, reaching out for his neck area.   “Careful,” warned a third guard.   The second guard continued to try to feel around on Lyon’s neck, searching for a pulse. Suddenly, Lyon rattled, and his head barely turned. Instinctively, everyone tensed up.   “Get your hands off me…” Lyon rasped with a grunt. His arms twitched, as if he was trying desperately to reach out to make his wish a reality, but they wouldn’t move.   “He’s alive,” Shining observed, “But it seems like he can’t fight anymore now. Get ready to capture him. Maybe we can get some information out of him…”   Lyon gave a disturbing, raspy laugh, “You think you ponies can get anything out of me? I can assure you that even if I have been bested, you won’t be getting anything from me…”   Corey sighed, clutching his arm once again. It really seemed like he was going to be defiant right up until he got stuffed back in Tartarus. He supposed he should have expected as—   A feeling of intense cold suddenly seized him. It was as if pure evil had just passed him, leaving nothing but frigid air in its wake. The feeling only lasted maybe a second, but before Maudlin or anyone could ask what had him so chilled, Lyon suddenly arched—his back lifting off the ground.   Lyon’s eyes had gone wide with what could have been fear, or anything. Lyon’s mouth opened, and he gave a hideous, choking cough. Twilight and a couple of the guards stepped back—Lyon had just hacked up blood. His body soon hit the ground once more. The guard who had tried to feel for a pulse before managed to recover quickly. He knelt down, trying to find a pulse. Failing that, he listened for breathing. Eventually, the guard stood up.   “…He’s dead…”