//------------------------------// // The Attack // Story: There's Nopony I'd Rather Be Than Me // by Tatsurou //------------------------------// It was a perfectly ordinary day at the arcade. The kids were playing eagerly. The games were running smoothly. Stan Litwak sat back in his office, glancing between the security camera feed and his browsing of the internet. With all the attention Nightmare Moon had brought the arcade, he had actually considered increasing hours the arcade was open just to tend all the people who wanted to play. This was a debate because he wasn't sure how much he wanted to cut in on the sprite's down time. Especially not after last week. With the news of how successful the arcade had gotten, a few thugs had broken in after hours with the intent of breaking into the safe and making off with the week's profits, which had become quite substantial by now. The thugs had been found hiding in the back room, huddled in a corner, screaming about how the Queen of the Night would eat them for trespassing on her sacred home ground. Nobody knew exactly what had happened, as the security cameras had shut themselves down the moment the lock had been picked. However, everyone agreed that the Nightmare Moon sprite looked unusually smug over the next few days, no matter what game she appeared in. Also, a few of the games had shifted position slightly, as had several less heavy objects, but that was attributed to the thugs. Even Litwak didn't want to entertain the possibility that the sprites - Nightmare Moon especially - could influence the world outside the games. As he browsed the net looking for new locks, new security systems, and exorcists just in case, he noticed a strange flicker to his screen. "Huh?" he asked in confusion. "Somebody in there up to something?" Moments later, the screen flashed, and lines of code streamed across the screen in a strange manner. "What the-?" Litwak banged the side of his computer, trying to figure out what just happened. Shouts of confusion from out in the arcade caught his attention. Turning, he saw that all the games' screens were flashing and glitching. "Oh no..." he moaned. He didn't know what was happening, but he had to figure out some way to fix it...or hope the sprites could fix it. Nightmare Moon was taking a break between games, sipping a root beer float made with ice cream from Sugar Rush and root beer from Tapper's through a twirly straw, relaxing her wings after a rather intense campaign in Soul Calibur. She knew she was technically still on the clock, but she wasn't part of the campaign mode unless she was selected as the player character, so she could afford a break. As a result, she was the first to see the wave coming in through the connection to Litwak's computer. It was unlike anything she had ever seen before. It resembled a giant worm surrounded by living code, and it seemed to be trying to take bites out of Game Central Station. She staggered back briefly, dropping her float. The crash of the glass hitting the floor snapped her out of her fear. If it came through Litwak's computer, then it came from the internet, and that meant it was her job to handle, hers and others. "Anti-viral Squad!" she bellowed in her Royal Voice. "Incursion! Repeat, full incursion! Squad members to me! Cybugs, prepare for backup!" The voice echoed through all the games, and the urgency was backed up as the worm took a bite out of the surge protector hologram, causing the power supply to all the games to flicker momentarily before he repaired himself. Cybugs poured out of Hero's Duty, their eyes black as the Beacon Hum filled the air. Members of the AVS - and every sprite with combat prowess - poured out of their game worlds, grabbing the weaponry that Wily pulled out of every cache hidden around Game Central Station and in several games. The worm turned, seeming confused. The living code around it took shape as it lashed out, taking the form of strange black bats. They flowed forward to attack. All sprites with long ranged weapons focused their attack on the worm. Those who were close range fighters focused on the bats. Sonic led that charge, dashing between the bats and confusing them as they tried to follow his movements, only to get struck in the back from the less speedy close range fighters. Nightmare Moon focused on the code the worm was generating, using her code damaging lightning to sheer chunks of it off, which Wily captured and contained for later study and disposal. Stan could only stare in amazement at his computer screen. Bits and pieces of the screen full of code had been sheared away, revealing the view of the battle going on he knew not where. He saw the sign reading 'Game Central Station', and realized this must be some sort of 'in-between' world for the games, somewhere that let the games connect to each other and interact. Seeing the worm, he began to realize what was going on. He'd heard the terms, but had never seen it expressed so literally. He had been hacked, and somehow the hacker was using his computer to access and attack the games. He had to figure out what the connection was and cut it off, to protect the sprites. As he watched, his mind racing, he noticed something about the gates. They all looked like power plugs... Hoping he was guessing right, he lunged for the power strip, seized his laptop's power plug, braced against the strip, and yanked it out. The gate to Litwak's computer closed quickly, cutting the worm off in the middle. It roared in pain, thrashing around as it slowly began to dissolve. There were cheers as the code around the worm began to break down and the bat creatures it had created dispersed. Nightmare Moon wasn't ready to cheer, though. She, along with the rest of the AVS, were moving forward to contain what was left. Just because it was no longer actively attacking didn't mean it was no longer dangerous. "Daddy, help!" The sound of that voice drew everyone's attention. A little blonde girl in overalls was a little too close to the worm, trying to dodge its thrashes and failing. "Tara!" Felix shouted in fear, started to rush towards her. He knew he wouldn't be fast enough to save her. He knew this would destroy him and Calhoun. Tara was their first chibi-custom. They couldn't lose her... Nightmare Moon was faster. A flash of light, and Nightmare was between Tara and the worm. With a sweep of her wing, the little girl was flung into Felix's arms, completely safe. "Moony! Watch out!" At that shout, Nightmare Moon spun, just in time to take the worm's last thrash right to her face. The last thing she saw was a smaller worm breaking off and diving into her horn. And then everything was black.