The Awakening of a Tactician

by Mountainmanmad


Chapter 27 - Frosty Introductions

Since the events of the hospital I had been feeling incredibly... subdued. Trixie came to my bedside when she heard what had happened, and the poor mare was left in tears. Apparently I had left a bigger impression on her than I thought. I stayed in that hospital for another full day for recovery. My physical body was perfectly fine, but my mentality had taken a hard hit. Thoughts were fuzzy and I could no longer get myself motivated to do anything. When I eventually returned to my cabin with Trixie I would move around the house like a zombie, deadened to the world around me. I couldn't put my finger on it, but I felt no reason to continue anymore. It would seem my old depression had kicked in again.

It was only a week later when I was forced out of my brooding. For better or worse, I still don't know the answer to that...


I was outside on the porch reading a book when I felt an energy signal come from my token. I placed the book off to the side and withdrew my tome, the eye on the front cover glowing purple. It was most likely a message from Wade, but I had received other notes from Displaced before. With a heavy sigh I opened the tome to the page where the new text had been added. Upon reading the words, however, the hair on the nape of my neck stood rigid.

What an invitation, don't mind if I do come over. Don't worry, I'll be there in a few minutes... prepare.
-Black Frost.

Mere seconds after I had read the entry the page itself began to freeze over, the frost originating from the center of the page as it slowly expanded outward. In a moment of panic I ripped the page from the book and tossed it aside, watching as it shattered upon making contact with the ground.

I wasted no time in reacting to this new threat, and any sign of depression that had taken hold of me was now but a distant memory. I got up from my chair and called for Trixie, “Trixie, get out here, now!”

I listened to the sound of hoofs upon wood as my student made her way to me. In a few seconds she stood within the doorway of the cabin, looking rather puzzled. “Robin? Is something wrong?” She asked, perplexed by my sudden change in emotion.

I ignored her question and got down on one knee, allowing me to look into her eyes. “Listen to me very closely. I want you to go to Ponyville and stay there. You are not to return here until I come for you. Do you understand me?”

confusion gave way to concern as she listened to my request. She seemed torn between some unknown debate, but I couldn’t afford to waste any time. I grasped her shoulders and redirected her attention back to me. “I said, do you understand me!?”

She winced as I shouted, and a hint of fear could be seen in her eyes. She eventually nodded and I let go of her.

“Good. Now go, and remember, don’t return here until I come for you.”

“R-Right…”

With that she galloped off in the direction of Ponyville, the woods concealing her form. I continued to watch the spot where she ran off, making sure she didn’t get any stupid ideas of coming back halfway.

It was several minutes after when my unwanted guest finally arrived.

A loud noise, one much like the tearing of fabric and shattered glass filled the heavy atmosphere. The air itself crackled with energy, and a large opening began to appear before me. Lightning bolts of pure frost shot out from the abnormal sight, striking random trees in a blind rage. As the energy of the portal came to a peak it suddenly and completely shattered, revealing another human. The individual looked like a teenage boy, maybe around seventeen. He was wearing a black hoodie and light brown pants. His feet were bare and his hair dulled white. His skin had a sickly light gray tinge to it and his eyes were crimson red. He stood there holding a wooden staff that ended in an edged curve.

“Well, that certainly felt different,” he said. The teen took in his surroundings and his eyes landed upon me. “And you would be Robin, correct?” he asked me with a smile.

I examined the apparent teenager with guarded curiosity. He shouldn’t have been able to come to my universe. I specifically set the token to work only one way, from my world to others. The fact that he was able to trace the link was… disturbing. I returned his smile with one of my own, letting my hands brush against my side. I kept my fingers slightly curled, just within reach of my sword. “I would be. I must say, to what do I owe this unexpected visit?”

“Oh, mostly coincidence. I just happened to find your token and thought it might be fun to terrorize someone else’s Equestria before I go and do that in my own world. Practice makes perfect as they say.”

I pursed my lips together as I thought over what he said. Guess it was only a matter of time till I met a lunatic like him. “I see… well, I’m sorry to inform you that I rather enjoy terrorizing Equestria on my own. Perhaps you may have luck elsewhere?”

“And waste an opportunity like this? Don’t know, it took quite a lot of energy to traverse the void like I did. What do you say about a duel? Winner takes all? Equestria and the rest of this stupid universe?”

I bit the inside of my cheek as I considered my options. The last thing I wanted to do was duel with an unknown adversary. Too many random variables… too many unknowns. This individual was obviously demented in some way and obviously got his kicks through genocide. Regardless, it's not my place to interfere. My own safety and that of this universe take precedence. “Well, I would rather discuss this like adults instead of resorting to violence. You said that it took a lot of energy to get here, correct? I’d be willing to… refill your ‘tank’ for you so it wouldn’t have been a waste of time.”

“That is a rather generous offer I must say, but I’m not interested in just sitting down and talking. I’m more of an act first type of guy, let my actions speak for me, so to say. And it might have been a lot of energy for my trip here, but it’s nothing I can’t refill by killing an Alicorn or two. You do have Alicorns here don’t you?”

Well, it seems as if I won’t be able to get rid of him so easily. May as well keep him around so he doesn’t endanger any innocents. “I do, but they are quite busy during the day. Besides, you came all this way just to meet me. It would be rather rude to simply run off, don’t you think?”

“Well, to be frank, I don’t care. I know, if you’re up for that duel I’ll promise not to use my flying ability and I’ll even prepare the place where we’re going to fight. Which one sounds good to you? Canterlot, Cloudsdale, Ponyville, Manehattan, Griffonia, a random deserted spot, or the Moon?”

It's official. This guy is bat shit insane.

“It seems that you’re not giving me much of a choice in the matter. Very well, I accept your duel. I would also prefer to fight in a location far from civilization. Furthermore, I require a few minutes to gather my tools. Is that alright with you?”

“Sure, I’ll be setting it up somewhere between the edge of the Everfree and the badlands, you won’t be able to miss it. I’ll be waiting,” Black replied before flying off.

I watched him leave before I quickly entered my cabin. I needed to gather some tomes, and powerful ones at that. But… which aspect should I use? So far the only clue as to his powers was when my token started to freeze over. Perhaps he’s affiliated with snow and ice? Yes, there's also the incident with the bolts of ice that originated from his portal. He must be some kind of ice mage.

I made my way to the bookshelf and began tracing my finger along the spines of my tomes. I picked out two fire tomes; Arcfire and Valaflame. Valaflame... I couldn't believe I finally found a reason to use it. Now for some others. I skipped over to the Dark section and scanned through my list of options. Nosferatu was a must, but it wasn’t the strongest. I needed something else, something to be used as a last resort.

My eyes landed upon one such tome I had tucked away in the corner. I considered my options, wondering if I should risk using such a dangerous spell. I’d never tested it before, but I had a good idea as to what it would be capable of. Given the seriousness of the situation, however, I didn't have much of a choice. I took the tome from the shelf and tucked it inside my robe with the others.

On the way out I took Arcwind and held it under my arm. I would need to make my way to the battlefield and fast. I couldn’t afford to keep him waiting for me, so I would need to hurry. I looked in the direction that the boy flew off to and was taken aback by what I found. A massive pillar of ice towered over the surrounding landscape. It would also seem that Black had kept his word on the location. However, it would take me several hours to reach it. I sighed as I summoned a gust of wind and let it flow around me. I soon began running through the forest at top speed, dreading the eventual confrontation that was sure to come.


After hours of constant running I finally arrived at the base of the pillar. Up close the ice was rather beautiful, the semi-clear ice was almost transparent, something that couldn’t be achieved naturally. I looked upward, gauging the height of the construct. It appeared to be roughly a tenth of a mile high. Ledges surrounded the tower at multiple intervals, most likely to stop one from falling too far.

Now… how do I get up there?

“Ah, you’re here now. Want help getting up?” The voice of Black appeared from behind me, causing me to jump, “Just stand still and let me take care of it.”

A sudden burst of wind appeared, making me feel a lot lighter. The wind lifted me up as if I was a simple leaf and lunged me upwards. I was being lifted at a rather amazing speed before the wind slowed down and I gently landed atop of the pillar. I was rather nervous now. Despite the massive pillar of ice which I stood upon, Black had just demonstrated a use of Wind magic. Of course, the wind felt abnormally cold. Hopefully I’m correct in my assumption of his powers.

I placed Arcwind within my robe and exchanged it for Arcfire. Considering Black’s show of power he could prove to be quite an adversary. However, I don’t know the extent of his might. I’ll need to test his limits first before I go all out. I don’t necessarily want to kill him...

“So, I’m feeling generous today. I’ll give you the first shot,” Black said as he took up a space on the opposite side of the pillar, his staff dissolving into snowflakes which disappeared in the wind.

And here’s the perfect chance to test that.

I grunted in acknowledgement as I read a few words off my tome. Once bonded with the tome I began to cast the spell. As I siphoned magic from the book I directed the force towards Black. If he was so willing to take the first hit then I wasn’t going to disappoint him. Balls of fire began to appear around him as they slowly circled his form. As I poured more magic into the spell they grew and began to spin faster. After I had taken about a tenth of the tome's full power I stopped feeding the spell. With a flourish of my hand I released the stored magic.

A massive pillar of fire erupted from the ground at Black’s feet, completely encasing him in the inferno. The fire easily reached a height of about 30 feet and lasted several seconds before petering out.

But as the fire settled down, Black looked not much worse off than before. His hair was only slightly burnt, smoke coming of it as steam rose from his clothes and the ice around him. “That hurt quite a bit you know…” Black said as he took a step forward, “but you know what this means, right? Now it’s my turn!” Black said with an evil smile as a sphere of blue magic appeared in his hand. He quickly threw the ball of magic at me.

I acted fast and dodged to the sphere. It made contact with the area I was recently residing and I watched as a smooth layer of ice coated the floor. I didn’t have much time to examine it as Black continued to fire off more spheres of ice. Soon my side of the pillar was coated with a fine sheen of ice. Taking a wrong step I cursed as I lost my footing and fell on my back.

I felt my anger begin to surface as I rolled out of the way of a projectile. Black was hardly taking me serious, instead aiming at my feet.

And now I don’t feel so bad about possibly killing him.

With practiced ease I switched out Arcfire for Valflame. I quickly read over a few choice words, managing to dodge Black’s attacks in the meantime. Once I felt that invisible connection I went to work. I wouldn’t be using all of the power, but I would certainly give him a reason to take me seriously.

Summoning the spell I decided to use roughly a quarter of the tome’s magic. Acting quickly this time I drained the magic faster, creating the spell in my mind’s eyes. Once I felt it was ready, I cast it. A bright light slowly appeared from the heavens, seemingly originating from nowhere. The light encompassed Black, slowly growing in intensity with every passing second. The temperature began to quickly climb, reaching unhealthy levels within seconds. Realizing the spell was about to go off I rushed to the edge of the pillar, as far away from Black as possible. Drawing my sword I let the lightning travel through my blade before slamming it into the ice. I twisted the blade and held on tightly. A sudden explosion went off, Black at the center of it. Chips of ice flew outward, propelled by the force of the explosion. I closed my eyes and held the pommel of my sword tightly, not thinking about what would happen should I let go.

A scream filled with pain and surprise originated from the epicenter of the explosion. When the explosion cleared though, Black was still standing. Only his smile seemed to be missing. “IT. IS. ON!” Black screamed as he fired a bolt of ice at me. It’s speed clearly surpassed the one of his previous attack.

Apparently I made him angry.

I quickly dodged the bolt of ice which was en route with my face. The fact that Black was able to shrug off an attack like that was… terrifying. Normal individuals would have been nothing but a pile of ash after taking a hit like that. I needed more power, but Valflame might not have enough now. A quarter of the magic was already gone, and I couldn’t risk supplying my own life force to empower the spell. If it didn’t work, I would either die from the attempt, or Black would kill me off while I was weakened.

My mind turned towards the Dark tome I had taken with me. It would work, it would secure victory, but at a price. The landscape would be devastated and Black would perish for certain. I opened the book and quickly read over some the words. There was one word I saw constantly, reminding me of what spell I was about to cast.

Apocalypse.

I tucked the tome under my arm as Black continued his onslaught, his face set in a scowl. I managed to dodge his attacks, but only just. I called out to him, “Black, I’m warning you, you won’t be able to survive this next attack! Let’s both give in and go our separate ways!”

“Why would I? I still got a few icicles with your name on them,” Black replied as he sent a few more of his spikes of ice in my direction.

I sighed sadly as I began to drain the tome of its magic. I wouldn’t be using just a mere fraction of the power, I would be using all of it. I felt the dark energy travel through my body, the sheer power threatening to consume me. Once I had gathered every drop of magic, I released it with a shout.

At first it seemed nothing had happened, but I soon felt a small disturbance above me. Glancing upward I beheld an ancient symbol, one lost to the sands of time. The sigil seemed to be lying upon the sky, resting on an invisible surface. Runic symbols began to dance across the sky, moving too fast for me to read.

And then a blinding flash of light.

I was forced to close my eyes as the unnatural light intensified, threatening to take my vision. Once the glare had dimmed I opened my eyes to see if the spell worked. And much to my horror, it did. Where the symbols once were was now occupied by a massive black hole, a dimension to another universe. The pillar soon began to shake violently, causing me to stumble as I tried to regain my balance. The shaking got worse, my vision becoming blurry from the movement.

It was then I started to notice small objects being raised from the ground, small chunks of broken ice drifting towards the portal on it’s own. The small pieces soon became large chunks, and I watched as parts of the pillar itself began to break apart.

I searched wildly for something to hold onto. It was then I saw my sword, still embedded within the ice. I rushed over to it and took hold of the pommel just as I began to float in the air. I tried to remain calm despite my perilous situation, but for obvious reasons I was starting to panic. I glanced over towards Black, wondering how he was faring.

Black was ignoring the black hole, still trying to hit me with his attacks. That is until he noticed he was being dragged in. “What? I’m not supposed to be affected by gravity!” He complained as he was beginning to move closer and closer to the hole in the sky. “Whatever, I’ll just do this then.” He said as he froze his legs to the pillar beneath. “Now what?” He taunted, only to hear the newly created ice give out and him being flung into the portal which promptly closed behind him. Everything else being dragged towards the portal once again obeyed the superior laws of gravity and started falling back to the planet.

I noticed the ice falling back down to earth and I acted quickly. I wrenched my sword from the ice and returned it to my scabbard, just barely dodging a massive chunk of ice as it impacted the area I just was.

I continued to dodge a few smaller pieces, keeping my eyes on the sky. It was for this reason did I made the mistake of not watching where I was putting my feet. I slipped on a patch of ice and was sent tumbling to the ground.

As I tried to raise myself from the floor, a massive chunk of ice landed on my right leg. The sound of cracked bones filled the area and I screamed in agony. Trapped under the ice I was unable to freely move about. However, much to my luck, the last of the ice fell away from me, sparing me from a worse fate.

I breathed heavily as I listened to my surroundings. It was silent, terribly so. Despite my situation I started to laugh, a choking laughter as I registered my situation. I had won, but here I was high in the sky and with a worthless leg.

So… how do I get home?

My answer came in the worst way possible.

Over me appeared another portal, black tendrils escaping from the void. Black's face suddenly appeared and he was looking down at me, grinning from the other side. “I’m not that easy to get rid off,” He stated as he came through, the portal closing behind him. I looked up at him and saw that his eyes were full of evil intent. He floated in the air as he prepared for another attack, gathering massive amounts of energy into his hands.

I found myself gritting my teeth in agonizing anger. My ace in the hole had failed and I was trapped beneath a chunk of ice while Black looked no worse for wear. With a pained smirk I reached into my robe and took out Nosferatu. I may not be able to defeat Black, but I could certainly continue to cause him some grief with what little time I had.

I held out my hand and sent forth the black miasma that was the spell. As it circled around Black I began to steadily drain his life. It was at that point did I finally understand the depth of his power. His life pool was deep, far more so than my own or any individual I had come across so far. I could see it had been depleted somewhat during the battle, but not enough to cause any lasting damage.

As the collection of ice magic in Black’s hand reached a certain point it started pulsating, and Black’s smile grew. He was done charging his attack. He directed the orb of collected energy down towards me as he looked into my eyes.

“Sleep tight, baby boy.” Black said as he prepared to throw the massive collection of ice magic at me.

I continued to sap energy from Black, working the spell as hard as I could. The energy flowed into my body and I could feel my leg’s bone re-knitting itself. However, it wouldn’t be soon enough. I found myself strangely calm despite the situation.

I thought about every little quirk that occurred throughout my adventures here in Equestria. I thought about the first time I successfully used magic, the first time I found I wasn’t alone in this world, the first time I was forced to take another life. And then there were the more recent events. Escaping my stone prison in Canterlot. Taking Trixie under my wing and teaching her what she needed to know. Teaching Wade how to utilize his magic as well as my own. I’ve been through quite a bit and not once had I ever found someone as strong or even stronger than myself. This situation was surprisingly… refreshing.

I smirked and looked up at Black. I called out to him, “Hey Black!”

He returned my grin and watched me expectantly.

I let out a winded laugh and raised my free hand, giving him the finger. “Go fuck yourself!”

“Great last words,” Black replied, boredom evident in his voice, “but the words of a dead man mean nothing to me!” He shouted as he launched the orb at me, finally showing his anger, and having lost his evil grin.

Time slowed as I watched the attack fly towards me. I never once stopped smiling as I watched my death slowly approach. Perhaps I would finally be able to find peace in the afterlife. A small part of me realized I was leaving the inhabitants of this universe to their doom. The rational part of my mind quickly snuffed that thought out. Death by this maniac could be considered a blessing. With myself gone the inhabitants of this planet wouldn't have to experience the terror wrought by him.

So, it was much to my surprise and annoyance did the attack stop midway. And as it did the sound of a football whistle could be heard ringing through the air.

“Yellow card! Time out, five minutes recovery time for Robin,” A woman’s voice called out.

At this both Black and I turned to see who this new “referee” was. Hovering in mid air was a woman with long hair, colored both black and pink, reaching down to her knees. She was suited in a referee outfit, holding a yellow card in one hand and a football whistle in the other. That wasn’t the only new addition. Not too far away there were two “bars” marked HP, one had the name Jack Frost (Discorded version: Black Frost) written on it, the other had my name Robin (Prince of Plegia). Slightly lower between the two HP bars there were letters spelling out another word in big bold letters: PAUSED.

I blinked in surprise as I looked at the title given to me. Apparently when I became Robin I got more perks than I bargained for. Of course, being the prince of a non-existent nation was hardly going to do me any good. Besides, the last thing I would want would be to have to govern over a nation of idiots and cultists. I really hope me being royalty doesn’t come to haunt me later.

“W-What? What are you talking about?” Black asked, unable to comprehend what was happening. The woman sighed and pulled out a book. opening it up. As she did so she withdrew a pair of fake glasses with googly eyes on springs and started reading from the book, if that was even possible, “You said you wouldn’t be flying. Judging by the fact that you’re currently in the air, two meters over the ground determines that you have broken your promise. Therefore Robin over here gets a five minute recovery bonus while your position is unchanged.”

Black looked at her for a while before finally confronting her, “Wait a minute, I’m not flying! I’m hovering, there’s a difference!” Black argued, working himself up.

I felt my eye begin to twitch as I looked back and forth between the two beings. On one side I had a homicidal maniac that can't seem to sort out his priorities, and on the other I had a women who clearly had the power to stop Black and yet is doing nothing about it. It's official, I'm surrounded by idiots.

“Indeed there is a difference,” the woman continued as she began flipping pages in the book. She stopped at a page and read from the text, “Here we are, flying and hovering: Determining the difference. 'Both flying and hovering are actions of being suspended in the air above ground for a prolonged amount of time. However, hovering refers to a less taxing version of flying that lifts the user no farther than their actual height, while flying allows close to unlimited ascension',” She recited before closing the book and looking at Black with a smug grin. “And by the looks of it you’re currently over two meters above the closest area to what can be considered ground. Seeing as you’re not two meters high, you’re, by definition of the universal rule book, flying and have therefore broken the rules. Hence the yellow card. Now sit still, I’ve got to speak to Robin for a while,” She ordered, leaving Black confused and with his jaw swinging in the breeze.

“So, how are you holding up?” She asked as she flew down and landed beside me. “Does the leg still hurt?”

I eyed her critically as she made her way towards me. I took a moment to glance back at my broken leg. The energy I had drained from Black had healed it somewhat, but I wouldn’t be doing any leisurely walks around the forest anytime soon. I did, however, notice that it no longer hurt. I could feel the weight of the ice block, but not the pain.

I returned my attention to the mysterious woman and chuckled. “No, but I’m not exactly in the best of situations right now.”

“Yeah, sorry I didn’t get here any sooner. Fortunately I didn’t get here any later. These battles don’t auto assign any referees themselves so someone has to do it or the rules won’t be followed properly.” She looked down at me and frowned. “This is your recovery time, but you’re not recovering fast enough… here,” She said as she offered me some kind of bean.

I took it in my hand and inspected it closely. It seemed to be a normal green bean. I even failed to find any trace of magic within the starch. I looked back up at her and raised an eyebrow in question.

“Oh, don’t worry. It’s a bean meant to re-energize anyone who eats it. But it also happens to heal wounds. Apparently it can go as far as regrow whole muscles in less than a second, but I haven’t tried it myself to that extent yet, and I don’t plan to. They’re called Senzu beans if you’re wondering,” The woman explained.

Throughout her explanation I eyed the bean incredulously, questioning how such a small food item could hold so much potential… until she supplied the name of the food. My eyes widened as I examined the starch in a new light. I had watched enough anime back home to know what a Senzu bean was.

But… did I really want to waste it and eat the only one I’ve ever seen? Sure, I was currently useless in a fight, but I could always steal more energy from Black given the chance. If I could somehow grow these beans… life would be so much easier in the long run.

I glanced up at Black, his face contorted between rage and confusion. If I couldn’t survive this fight than it wouldn’t matter what my future would hold. With a sigh I placed the bean in my mouth and began to chew. Within moments I felt a surge of energy fill my body, most of it concentrating in my fractured leg. Seconds later and I felt good as new, if not better than I did before.

I withdrew Arcwind and began cutting at the ice which had trapped my leg. Chunks of it fell apart as the green blades of wind bit into the ice. I was soon able to push the rest off of me, allowing me to rise to my feet. I nodded at the woman in thanks before returning my attention to Black. With her help perhaps I had hope of taking him down.

“It is quite unfortunate I won’t be able to fight with you side by side, the rules don’t allow that… but they do allow tag in's. Just say my name followed by a gesture or phrase to signify that you’re tagging me in and I’ll be able to switch places with you,” The woman said, spawning a following question from me.

“Then, may I ask what to call you?”

“Oh, silly me. My name is Blood Cleaver. It's nice to meet you Robin,” Blood Cleaver said before walking over to some bleachers that most certainly were not there earlier on. “Don’t forget, you have to tag me in after the fight resumes!” She shouted back as she took a seat, but not before turning to Black, “And you, don’t forget, no flying! Or you’ll be awarding Robin here with freebies and that wouldn’t work to well for the story!” Blood managed to say before a loud buzzer could be heard and the word PAUSED disappeared from between the two HP bars, signifying the start of the fight. And if such a clear hint somehow would have managed to be misunderstood? Then the giant word FIGHT! Appeared between me and Black would be enough.

I saw my HP bar instantly fill up to full from the senzu bean I had gotten from Blood Cleaver. As ridiculous as this all was, I was hardly in any shape to fight Black, let alone defeat him. Nothing short of full powered spells seemed to do any damage to him. Not only that, using all of the magic from a tome was risky as it took a few more seconds to cast. To top it all off, none of the tomes I had were fully charged. Apocalypse was entirely drained, Arcwind was more than half empty due to the trip here and Valflame was a quarter empty from its last use.

I looked behind me at Cleaver and waved her over. “Tag in! I need to sit this fight out for a bit!” If she could keep Black busy, it would give me enough time to recharge Valflame. It seemed to do the most damage to him out of all the tomes. A full powered version of it might be enough to end him.

Maybe…

Blood Cleaver clapped her hands together and I suddenly found myself having switched places with her. A moment of vertigo passed over me as I found myself seated in the bleachers.

A loud confounded “What?” could be heard from Black as he watched the bar displaying my name disappear, only to be replaced by a new one showing a blue health bar instead of a green one: Blood Cleaver (Previously known as Diane Pie.)

“Let’s do this!” Blood Cleaver shouted as she created a sphere of energy in her right hand.

“Whatever, I’ll take both of you down,” Black countered as he released numerous bolts of frost upon Cleaver. The woman effortlessly blasted them away with a beam of pure energy.

“Well, that’s not fair. Robin got the first shot and I don’t? Don’t you know how to treat a lady?” Blood Cleaver asked Black as she fired another beam at him.

“What?” was all Black managed to ask before the beam hit him, throwing him backwards from the sheer power of it. Before the adolescent could even recover Blood Cleaver was right in front of him, her punches start flying like bullets. It was then I took note of something else. The bars suddenly displayed something new: Levels.

Blood Cleaver (Previously known as Diane Pie.) Lvl: ??? (To high, level up to become visible.)

Jack Frost (Discorded version: Black Frost) Lvl: 126

I raised an eyebrow at that last bit. I understood that Black was much stronger than myself, but it would seem that this Blood Cleaver was on a whole different level. Not surprising, considering her choice of attacks. I can’t sense any magic emanating from the energy. Perhaps she’s using her own life force? I wouldn’t be surprised considering the bean she gave me not too long ago. Perhaps she’s from a displaced universe of Dragon Ball… ?

I shook my head and took out Valflame, placing it in my lap. As fascinating as Blood Cleaver’s powers were, I needed to focus on what was important at the moment. I kept one eye on the fight and another on the tome before me as I began to pour my magic into the book. At a steady pace I might be able to refill it within fifteen minutes. Possibly sooner if I pushed myself. I just hoped Blood Cleaver could hold Black back long enough until I could fight by her side.

Blood Cleaver retreated from punching Black as he covered himself in ice magic, effectively freezing Cleaver’s hands. As she retreated she melted the ice by creating a sphere of energy in each hand, turning the ice directly into water vapor. However, Black’s victory was short lived and Cleaver was once more back on the attack. Ever so slowly Black was being pushed into a corner, but his face did not show this. A sudden smirk found it’s way onto his face. Black’s eyes settled on something behind Blood Cleaver. I followed his gaze and there was only one thing in the sky that he could possibly be looking at: the Sun.

Suddenly, Black did the most unexpected action of all. He raised both his hands. “I give,” he declared with a neutral look.

I narrowed my eyes in suspicion. To go from a full blown smirk to a dead expression isn’t a natural transition. He was planning something. Of course, he also let his guard down, giving Blood Cleaver the perfect chance to-

“Huh?” Blood Cleaver stopped in surprise, giving Black an opening as he was no longer assaulted by beams and blasts.

“Gotcha!” Black exclaimed as a big sphere of ice magic appeared between his raised arms and became a beam fired off into the sky, directly towards the sun at incredible speed. The attack however fizzled out of existence as it hit an invisible barrier that seemed to have been placed around the arena. Yet, the attack had achieved its intended purpose, it had made Blood Cleaver look away from Black.

As soon as Cleaver’s sights had left him, Black once again summoned his staff. At the same time as Blood Cleaver realized her mistake and spun around back towards her opponent Black launched another attack. He was already crackling with with ice magic that suddenly seemed to condense and disappear.

A loud sound, not far from shattering glass could be heard as the apparent barrier around the arena and the HP bars shattered into a million pieces and dispersed into nothing. However, nothing else seemed to happen.

The noise caused my concentration to falter slightly and I accidentally pushed too much magic into the book. I winced slightly as I felt the magic flow from me at an alarming rate, pouring into the book. Thankfully, the tome was almost full at that point, so I didn’t expend too much energy. With my tome now full I returned my full focus to the fight ready, to jump in at a moments notice.

I noticed Blood Cleaver was standing still. The air around her started to ripple and a very subtle aura began to form around her. Small fragments of ice started to float upwards, and any pieces that lingered to close to her fractured under the power. If I had to guess, I would say she was powering up. And if she could feel power levels like in the series, then the only reason for such a power up would be that Black himself also has increased his powers.

Just as I was about to jump up from my seat, everything went black. Only the slight illumination from Blacks frost magic and Blood Cleaver’s aura could be seen. That is until stage lights came out of nowhere and suddenly lit up from the top of the bleachers, bathing the whole arena in light.


Celestia sat upon her throne as she listened to her subjects pleas. It was the middle of day court, and she still had several hours to go before she could finally take a brake. The monotony of the government drove her insane to no end, but she was diligent, knowing how important her role truly was. She only wished there would be a bit more excitement.

She got her wish.

It was as if all the warmth in her body had left her simultaneously. The sudden heavy toll on her body was too much for her to bear, and she collapsed, falling forward off her throne. The noble that was speaking to her cried out in alarm as guards rushed forward to aid their princess. As the guards attempted to lift their ruler off the floor, Celestia gazed out of the window, looking up at the large ball of fire. It was only by the cry of her sister did she tear her gaze away from the star.

"Sister! What happened, are you alright!?"

Celestia turned her head to look up into the face of Luna, brow etched in worry. "It's gone... I can't feel it..."

"The Sun is dead..."

And then the world went dark.


At this Black starts laughing. “Have fun with your sun, or rather your lack of one!” He taunted before collecting further power.

“Robin, your turn. I’ll get the sun back!” Blood Clever shouted, looking at me for confirmation. Her aura once again flared and she started to charge her powers up once more.

I held the tome Valflame close, summoning the magic from within the book. Before I had only used a mere fraction of it’s full power, but now… I planned on unleashing everything it held. I pulled all of the magic the tome held and let it flow through my body. I grit my teeth as I felt the heat from the spell burning my insides. But, it might not be enough.

Adding some of my own life force to the spell I eventually released it, casting the spell in Black’s direction. The spell appeared above the arena, a miniature sun that began to fall towards the ice. The fire crackled with power, the light emanating from it possibly powerful enough to be seen all the way from Canterlot. But, one thing that was barely visible in the shadows produced by the light that was melting the ice and burned everything with an unhealthy amount of heat was the smug grin on Black’s face.

“So long, suckers!” He said as he swung his staff, creating a sheet of ice that hovered within the air. He hit the frost with his staff, shattering the delicate creation. But instead of showing the regular air that was placed behind it, it revealed a black void. He had made another portal. Once the portal was large enough Black jumped into the hole and looked back.

“Have fun with your little inferno, and remember: Never wound what you can’t kill,” He called before before the portal closed. Leaving me alone with Blood Cleaver in the devastating light that was melting the ice we stood on, reduced the pillar of ice into nothing but hot skin burning steam.

“Hey, Robin. I hope you’re able to stop that thing. I’d rather get tanned the old fashioned way!” Blood Cleaver complained standing next to me.

“I can’t, once a spell is cast it needs to go off! I also can’t redirect it since I used all of my magic on one attack!” I yelled, the sound of falling ice almost drowning out my voice, “We have less than thirty seconds before we’re caught in the explosion!”

“Grab on, we’re getting out of here!” Blood Cleaver shouted as she stretched out an arm for me to grab on to. As soon as I had grabbed it we both found ourselves at the edge of the tower in freefall.

As the ground neared we slowed down and landed neatly on the ground, only to be assaulted by a barrage of ice that had followed us down the side of the tower. Dodging out of the way we got farther away from the tower as the attack hit.

Ice, boiling water and burning steam flew everywhere as the last of the tower was obliterated, forcing us to once again dodge the oncoming barrage of H2O trying to claim our lives.

“Well, I certainly didn’t see this coming,” Blood Cleaver said as they stood on the ground, looking at where the ice pillar once stood, the ground all around being scorched and covered in melting ice and water. The sky filled with steam and clouds as a result of all the water vapor cooling of in the atmosphere, barely visible in the sunless sky.

I took in a shaky breath as I steadied my nerves. I glared at Blood Cleaver. “‘Didn’t see this coming’? You and your icy friend are both insane!”

Blood Cleaver sighed. “Please, don’t call me insane. Brings up bad memories. And he’s not my friend. I’m just helping his world’s Twilight to bring him back so he won’t destroy other Equestrias. He was discorded by Discord and went batshit insane. I have to bring him back so that Discord can undo it, that is if Discord has recovered enough and is no longer on the edge of the afterlife. So yeah, I kinda have to follow him. But don’t worry, I still got some time to help out here. The multiverse tends to work in my favor when it concerns time, I’ll catch up to him,” She said, waving her hand slightly as to wave away my concerns.

I looked at her incredulously as she explained the situation. When she finished, I frowned at her. “So let me understand this. You know he’s currently unpredictable and he’s powerful enough to travel the void, yet you didn’t fight at your full power?!”

“Well… You see. I kinda thought it would be a good Idea not to show off all my power at once. Have a little something up my sleeve. Besides, I’m uncertain how much damage it would be if I sent a Galick Gun and hit the landscape instead. Some of my attacks are rather powerful and require delicacy when being handled. So I went with an easier approach.” Cleaver said as she looked to the sky as if searching for the sun that was no longer anywhere to be seen.

“Okay, get ready for this one.” She suddenly said, before putting her hands together and started gathering energy in between them as she took a steadier stance with her legs. “Kame- hame-HA!” She exclaimed as the blue ball of energy quickly expanded and shot of as a beam towards the non visible sun. The beam continuing to become longer and longer as it reached out into space. “Well, this will take a while.” She stated as the beam reached the outer atmosphere.

Unfortunately it was quickly becoming colder and colder. Not so fast as to reach a dangerous level, but enough to become uncomfortable.

My right eye twitched as I watched the spectacle. For someone who was worried about destroying the landscape she had an incredible amount of control over her life force. I grumbled to myself as I pulled out Arcfire. Quickly reading it over, I tucked it under my arm and summoned a small pillar of fire nearby. The sudden warmth was a nice change from the increasing cold, but it wouldn’t last long.

“Thanks. As many different attacks I know and how good I am at manipulating my ki, I can’t do it delicately enough to do simple stuff as making some heat. It’s like, as I open the floodgates it all comes pouring out and I have to use highly effective destructive beams that don’t produce heat. Really stupid in one way, effective in another.” Blood Cleaver thanked me as she still kept up the kamehameha wave she was firing.

I grunted as I stared into the fire. It wasn’t terribly cold, and it wasn’t getting much colder any faster. Not surprising since the sun only just went out. I took the time to consider her words. Didn’t the characters from Dragon Ball have complete control over how much force they used? Still looking at the flickering flames I asked her, “Tell me, how did you learn to control your own life energy?”

“Ah, I had a teacher named Pan. She helped me get my powers under control. I trained under her for two years and learned quite a lot from her. Apparently most stuff she taught me comes from some anime called Dragonball. We didn’t have that in my universe…” Blood explained while still keeping up her wave.

“I should be close by now. Hopefully I get this first try.” Blood said as her beam thinned out and began to die off.

“Well if you don’t get this on your first try then you may as well give up. This planet will freeze to death otherwise.”

“Nope. I got it. Should be blue skies from here on.” She said with a smile before it went back towards a neutral one. “But you might experience a few extra solar flares.” Cleaver said as her beam cut off completely.

I sighed and waved off her worries, “It’s fine, not really concerned about that. What I’m concerned about is a certain grinning psychopath that’s currently on a rampage through the multiverse.”

“You shouldn’t be. He’s severely weakened right now and I have a tracker on him. He shouldn’t be a problem once I catch him again.” She said looking at the sky. “We should probably warn the rest of the population before the sunlight suddenly returns. People could get blinded if they looked up at that moment.”

I deadpanned at her. “And how exactly do we warn an entire civilization within the span of several minutes? Furthermore, It’s not just Equestria that will be effected. On top of all that, if I tried to warn everyone, Celestia would most likely place the blame on me for this entire fiasco!”

“Hmm, let’s see here.” Blood Cleaver scratched her head while trying to come up with a solution. “Maybe if we use a really HUGE projector to project upon the atmosphere with a countdown, people, I mean ponies and other creatures everywhere will be able to see it and then no one will be blinded.” She suggested, looking at me with a slight smile.

I groaned and resisted the urge to facepalm. I responded to her in exasperation, “Sure, fine, that sounds like a great plan! Now, please tell me how you plan on achieving such a feat?!”

Blood Cleaver smiled towards me with a genuine innocent smile, apparently not getting my sarcasm about how great of an idea I thought it was. “Good, I’ll have to order the stuff first.” She says as she pulls out a flip phone and dials a number on it. She then speaks about many different components and numbers that I have a little trouble following and then ends it by giving what she referred to as “Void Coordinates”. “Thank you. No, the pleasure’s mine.” She said as she hung up. “The stuff should be here in five seconds.” She said as she turned around towards a portal that had already started opening up.

Out of the portal came what looked like giant metal beams, giant concrete blocks, cranes, excavators and a lot more stuff necessary for constructions. As I was about to ask her what was going on, I noticed she was now wearing a construction force uniform and was shouting orders with a megaphone. Some form of building being built right there and then.

The construction of the building lasted a full four minutes. Before us stood what looked like a modern Earth observatory. Right in the middle of nowhere. Blood Clever was standing there with a proud smile as she signed something and gave it to one of the workers. Somehow, I couldn’t for the life of me remember what they looked like.

“And now, to see if it works. Want to do the honors?” Blood Cleaver asked me, handing me a small remote with only one button labeled start.

I stared at the remote impassively as my mind caught up with what I had witnessed. I wasn’t sure whether to be curious or annoyed with how she was handling the situation. With a final sigh I decided to go along with her and press the button.

As I did the construct came to life. Many different noises could be heard from the inside of the building and soon the instrument that looked like a telescope sticking out from the dome lit up and illuminated the sky with a rainbow of colors, painting up in big, easy to read letters. “Sunshine back in: 1:41. Please avoid looking at the sky.” counting down the seconds. Underneath, the same message was written in several different languages.

I barely gave the garish lettering a second glance before I focused my attention back to Blood Cleaver. Enough of all this nonsense, there is a much dire situation at hand. “We need to have a little talk,” I said in a commanding tone.

“Huh? sure. But can it wait until the sun is back? I gotta get this stuff back before five, or I’ll get fined.” Blood Cleaver said before taking out two pairs of sunglasses and handed a pair to me. “Make sure to put these on, this will be one hell of a flash.” She said as she put on her own pair.

I continued to glare at her as I took the sunglasses, fitting them upon the bridge of my nose. I crossed my arms behind my back as I waited for the Sun’s rays to reach the planet.

In a sudden flash of light the skies were suddenly blue and the sun was just… there again. No dramatic sound, no messages declaring mission complete or anything of the sort. “Well, that was rather anticlimactic.” Blood Cleaver said as she took off her glasses and let her eyes once again adjust to the sunlight. She then went of to the side and began disassembling the “observatory”. She quickly returned holding all the parts, quite a few times smaller than their original size.

I grunted and removed the sunglasses. “Now are you ready to talk?”

“Sure. What is it about?” Blood Cleaver asked, sounding a bit more serious as she put down the miniature parts of the observatory.

“For starters, perhaps you can tell me how you plan on apprehending Black? Considering your less than stellar battle performance I’m assuming you don’t have one.”

“May I ask you something? Have you ever had any experience with reprogramming anyones mind?” Blood rebuked.

I looked at her in confusion as she changed the topic. What does programming minds have to do with any of this? Regardless, I nodded my head in confirmation. I did have some experience...

“Good, then you know that if you don’t wish to turn someone’s brain into whipped cream, you first got to scan their mind and familiarize yourself so that you don’t make anything worse than it already is. The problem with this is that when a new personality is created like it has been in this case, it adds to the time it takes to completely scan the mind of the individual correctly. Now add on about sixteen thousand years of memories and experiences to the mix… Done? Yeah, that’s what I’m dealing with. Not only is he trying to ward me off, I had to do this while fighting him. I’ve been doing this for a while and unless I stall for time by not going full on out from the start, then things will take a turn for the worse before I’m done with his mind. After that I will also have to actually break the spells hold of him. I don’t know how much you know about your Discord’s magic, but it sometimes tends to be different in between worlds.”

I ground my teeth together in frustration as she lectured me about the mind. I could see purple mist at the edge of my vision as my rage steadily grew. The area around us started to violently shake as I began to leak some of my power. Who the hell does she think she is?

She’s nothing…

She’s just as strong as Black too. She could prove to be so much trouble for me in the future.

Kill her…

Through the anger I noticed that Blood Cleaver’s face showed concern. I soon realized that I was starting to lose control of my temper once more and I forced myself to calm down. The ground stopped shaking and the specks of purple slowly vanished. I sighed and ran my hand through my hair, my entire body shaking. “So… you haven’t actually answered my question. Do you have a plan?”

“Woah, I’m going to assume you had your reasons not to use that power I just felt against Black. And I just told you. I’m going to tire Black out while I chase him through the multiverse, and scan his mind. I will use my knowledge to break the spell in his mind and then bring him back to his universe where he most likely will turn into an emotional wreck after learning what kind of monster he became because of Discord. That is about it for my plan.”

I shook my head. “It needs more than just that. You seem to have quite an arsenal at your disposal. Use it to your advantage against your opponent. Do you have any way of constraining his movements or actions?”

“Several, as a last resort I’ll use the evil containment wave, but it’s always such a hassle and is far from fail safe.”

“If you have a means of claiming victory then you're a fool for not using it. The longer you wait the more time you give him to cause some real destruction. Since you seem to be so in tune with Dragon Ball, let me tell you in a way you might understand. Don’t pull a Vegeta. This time you were able to negate his actions, but what about next time?”

Blood Cleaver seemed to deflate a little at that. “You are completely right. I made a mistake and assumed he was already at his maximum. I didn’t really consider the possibility that he would be able to break the arena spell I placed. And that cost me 675 bits too.” Blood Cleaver admitted.

I softened my gaze as I watched her shoulders slump. She might have been an air head, but she still saved me, and by extension this universe. “And now you know how strong he is. And even then, assume he can become even stronger, possibly more so than you. Always assume the worst in a fight so you can plan for it.”

“Ah, the good old: Hope for the best, prepare for the worst. I really shouldn’t forget words like that.” Cleaver said as she perked up again. “Thanks. I needed that. Also, sorry for going all Pinkie Pie in here, haven’t vented in a while and it built up, so I kinda lost control with the whole thing. Hopefully I won’t get chewed out by any of the sys admins for borrowing one of their construction teams. They can get pretty scary.” She said as she shuddered.

I chuckled as I looked up at the blue sky, careful not to look directly into the Sun. I didn't know who these 'System Admins' were, but I got the idea all the same. “Well, should they come calling I can certainly vouch for you. Despite your unorthodox methods, you still saved this planet. And for that, I thank you.”

Blood Cleaver suddenly seemed to have thought of something as she turned towards me with a big smile. “Hey, you’re a bit farther back than in my timeline. Want any spoilers you could use to get on the Princesses good side?” She asked me.

I snorted. “I already know what’s going to happen in the future. And I hardly care about what the princesses think of me.”

“Oh, how do you know about the future? And how far do you know, If you don’t mind me asking?” Blood Cleaver asked.

Robin looked at her in confusion. “The My Little Pony TV show? It seems to be the way most learn of it.”

“Wait, there’s a show about the ponies of Equestria? Huh, didn’t know that.” She said, shrugging her shoulder and seemingly thinking about something.

“Yes, there is, but we’re going off topic. You need to hunt down Black before he causes anymore damage. I would also feel a lot safer knowing he’s taken care of and not a threat to me any longer.”

“Ah, right. I better sync myself into the same time stream he’s in. But one more thing first. In the show, how far does it go? There is a certain event I that I want to prevent in as many universes as possible and I want to know if it’s a part of the show. Just tell me the last event you know of from the show.”

I scratched the back of my head as I thought about that. It’s been a long time since I’ve watched an episode of the show. Gathering my thoughts, I eventually gave her an answer, “Well… the last thing I remember is the battle with Tirek. I believe that is how the fourth season ended. After that, who knows?”

“I see. Hmm… how does the first season start? I’m just curious, but the show won’t help me. The event I’m trying to prevent is later on. But thanks anyway."

Well… that’s something I couldn’t forget. After all, I’m mostly to blame for Luna’s transformation. “Nightmare moon returns after her millennia long banishment. That very night she is defeated by the Elements of Harmony and restored to her original self, Luna.”

“Oh, so the day I first met Twilight. That makes sense. Hmm... four seasons, transferred into about a year… Wow, the show really didn’t cover much. But I guess it’s time for me to leave. You take care.” Blood Cleaver said as she got up and prepared to leave, before turning around. “I almost forgot, here’s my token for if you ever need any more help.” She said as she threw me a small black blade with a red edge and crimson runes on either side of the blade. “You might also want to have this.” She said as she handed me a small folder. “It contains all Discord needs to know for Displaced proofing your universe without tokens.”

I took both the token and the folder, feeling less than excited about the latter. After an event like this I’ll need to set this up as soon as possible. But… “So I’ll require Discord’s power if I want to keep individual’s like Black from invading this world? Great…”

“Well, you could try and replicate the effect yourself, but I’m not sure how that would go…”

I waved her off and placed the folder and token within my robe. “It’s fine, I’d rather just not deal with him is all.”

“Okay, I’ll be off following Black now. He seems to have jumped quite far from here and has yet to enter any universes. But it’s only a question of time I suppose. Thank you for making me see my mistake. And good luck with… whatever you’re doing. I also left a present back at your house. Bye!” She called as she jumped into a portal that came out of nowhere, then used a zipper to close it from the inside. The zipper disappeared after the portal closed.

I blinked in surprise as I stared at the empty space Cleaver previously occupied. Shaking my head in amusement I began to make my way towards the Everfree forest, turning my back on the battle-torn land.

It’ll take me a while to get home, but…

I glanced at the insignia on the back of my hand.

… It’ll also give me time to think about some things.