//------------------------------//
// Strike 25- Family 
// Story: When lightning strikes... 
// by FrostTheWolf 
//------------------------------//


When Lightning Strikes- Family




The Clubhouse, Centrail City

        The sun had set along the horizon as the night sky covered the entire metropolis that was Centrail City. For Lance though, he was taken aback from something that was said to him earlier by one of the members of the Cutie Mark Crusaders named Dinky Hooves. It was her telling Lance that Derpy Hooves, the wife of Detective Whooves, was her mother. It was shocking at first and honestly, the Adept did not know how to handle the situation. The best he could do was calm her down and promise that she would get the chance to see her in person one day. He personally saw this as vague, but given the circumstances and him just rescuing Scootaloo not too long ago, he didn’t have a lot of knowledge on the pending situation.

        The thought of Derpy being a mother soon made him remember about Max. Last time he had seen her, she was an emotional trainwreck. Hopefully, she had gotten some time to rest and recover during the time that he had been gone. But still, he should check on her just in case.

        Taking off his wrist gauntlet, he set it on the dashboard of the Clubhouse’s Mainframe and pulled up the screen. “Hey Aurora, can I talk to you for a second?”

        The ghost like filly soon appeared on board the screen and her face lit up to having her name called. “Sure, what is it?”

        “I need to go check on Max and see if she’s doing okay. I’m still a little concerned for her and I want to do everything I can for her.” Lance explained. “Do you want to stay here with Scootaloo and her friends? I was thinking you would get bored if you stay with me, but the choice is up to you.”

        Aurora thought it over for a few minutes, but then faded out of Lance’s bracer into the main screen of the Clubhouse’s computer system. “I’ll stay here and help keep my friends company. Give Max my best wishes for me!”

        “Will do,” The Adept replied before he stepped outside the base, putting his bracer back on. Just as he grabbed Max’s token though, he noticed that he received a voicemail. Turns out, it was Filli-Second that was trying to reach him. Why though? He wasn’t sure.

        “Hey Lancie!” Pinkie cheerfully answered as soon as he opened his inbox messages. “I got someponies that want to say hi! Come on kids, say hi for Lancie!!”

        “Hi Daddy!!”

        “Hey, Dad!!”

        “Papa!!!”

        To Lance’s surprise, he was hearing the voices of his children. Soon, Pinkie was back and explained everything. “Maxie wanted me to watch the fillies for a while. Just call me back if you get this message okay?”

        The phone call ended with a small and subtle beep as Lance looked back at the communicator. He smiled. If the kids were with Pinkie, then they were in good hooves.



Equestria (Home of the Prophet)

        When the Adept walked into the room, he was greeted to an empty room that was mostly dark. The only light that was on was one that came from Max’s room. He couldn’t find Sol or Mun, so he did what came naturally to him and just walked to the door. Where he was greeted to hearing Max talk to herself.

        “I’ve put this off for a long time, so I need to do this now while I have a break.” 

        Hearing this got Lance to be a little… curious. So, cautiously, he knocked on the door to Max’s room. Softly, but enough for her to notice.

        She sighed and said, “Come in.”

        “Max, it’s me.” Lance spoke. He had a feeling that the words would catch her attention.

        The door was flung open and Lance was tackled, hitting the opposite wall just as a pair of lips met his. The Adept did not think that Max would try to throw herself onto him the moment that he came back. “Well, somepony excited to see me? I thought I came to check up on you. How are you feeling?” He asked as he got another kiss on the cheek.

        “Better now that Seph and I kissed and made out last night.” Max kissed him again and continued, “I was just about to call Kat, check up on her and let her know the situation has been handled.”

        “Well, that’s one way to fix a problem.” Lance chuckled, before asking his next question. “So, how is Seph now that you ‘fixed’ things?”

        “Well.... That can wait a bit to explain. I’ll need to summon her while I do so the two of you can get to know each other. First, though, I’d like to find Kat.”

        “Kat? You mean the mare from when you asked me about Bronze?” Lance asked, recalling when Max summoned him while the kids were with Uncle Fazbear.

        “Yeah, her,” Max said, raising the token up to where Lance could see it. “I promised her I’d bug her a lot until she found some happiness for herself.”

        “You sure that’s a good idea? I thought the best thing to do was to give her some space and check on her once in awhile. Not bug her consecutively.”

        Max’s face turned into a petulant pout as she said, “Kat would be an exception to that. She’s so stubborn it’ll take more than I can do alone to get through to her.”

        “Wasn’t this the same girl that could control gravity?” Lance wondered. “You probably don’t want yourself getting nailed to the floor with that kind of strength.”

        “Don’t worry, she won’t hurt me. Much.” She stood up from where we sat against the wall and said, “Hey Kat, you there?”

        There was a silence for a moment before, “Maxie?!” the diamond shouted. “This is not a good time!”

        “Oh, okay. Would you like me to call back in.... five seconds?” Max turned to look at Lance and shook her head. She was not going to hang up. All Lance could do was fold his arms and watch as Max pressed on.

        “No! I’m busy!”

        “You having some complications, Max?” The Adept asked, noticing the look of displeasure on his wife’s face.

        “No, just running into Kat’s huge stubbornness.” She started to walk back into her room.

        “Look, I don’t care what you and your boy-toy are up to because, in case you can’t hear in the putain background, I’M FIGHTING BUGS! Now go away!”

        “I HEARD THAT!!!” Lance reacted. “Plus, would you need backup?”

        “No! You’ll only get in the way!”

        “Hey, you better get used to us asking if you need help. We’re your family and we don’t want you dying.” Max sighed. She noticed Lance prepare both of his weapons, just in case for when things get… messy and teleported her own bag to her, checking to make sure her weapons were in there. “I know you can handle yourself, but don’t just brush us off like that.”

        “I don’t take help, I give help. Now leave me alone! I have bugs to kill!”

        “What kind of bugs? Giant ones like from Starship Troopers?”

        “None of your business!”

        “Sheesh, I try to make conversation and ya bite my head off.”

        “You know…” Lance retorted before getting closer and whispering to Max. “If I can get a reading on her energy, I can teleport us there with Instant Transmission if that works for you.”

        “That’ll take less time than following the convoluted path the signal’s taking,” Max whispered back.

        “If you two are done distracting me from my job, I’m gonna hang up now.”

        That was when Lance smirked. “Found her. You ready?” He asked, placing a hand on one of Max’s shoulders.

        Max smirked as well. “Yeah, just make sure we’re moving when we appear. I wanna take a page from Guy Sensei’s book.”

        Lance nodded his head. “Let’s roll then.” With that, he placed the first two fingers of his other hand on his forehead and channeled his energy while Max held her bag. Both of them soon disappeared, leaving no trace behind in Max’s room.



        Kat grumbled as she flipped her phone closed. “That girl,” she said, striking a changeling with her sword, stowing away her phone in the same motion, “She’s gonna be the death of me, I just know it.”

        Before she could take another swing all of the changelings in front of her were shoved aside as Max shouted, “DYNAMIC ENTRY!!!!” 

        In addition, after her entrance, the Adept that was with her landed and sent out multiple bolts of chain lightning out to strike her attackers. “You said you had this handled? I’d say otherwise.” Lance sighed, offering a hand to Kat, who was trying to get up off the ground. “Need a hand?”

        Kat smiled, taking Lance’s hand as he helped her up… only for her to throw him to the ground in the same motion. Max was about to question why when Kat’s fist suddenly struck her in the nose, sending her to the ground as well.

        “What on Earth were you two thinking, you putain de morons?! I told you, ‘No’! Now go home before you get in the way!” she screamed at them.

        “If that’s your way of saying ‘thank you’, then I’ll be fine with it.” The Azure Striker retorted as he hopped back on his feet. “Plus, when I saw you just now, you looked like you were in a corner and going to get yourself killed.”

        “What do you think we were thinking? I told you, I’m going to try my hardest to get you to have a bit of happiness and I can’t very well do that if you’re dead,” Max said, freezing the entire area around them.

        “I don’t have time for this,” Kat groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose. She turned away from them and pressed a two fingers to her ear. “Corporal, I’m sending you a package. I want it supervised and restricted…. Yes, that kind of package. Get the bands ready.” Kat looked over her shoulder, giving them an icy glare. “We’ll talk afterwards.”

        Before they could ask what she meant, Kat snapped her fingers and the couple were plunged into a portal. Upon exiting out of the portal, they were swarmed by several ponies in military uniforms, placing strange metal bands on their wrists.

        “Sorry ma’am, sir,” one of the ponies said. “But the general’s orders are to be followed to the letter considering your kind.”

        “You gotta be kidding me.” Lance groaned. “We at first saved Kat’s life and now we’re getting arrested? This sucks…”

        “Well, at least we aren’t going to be executed. No one’s heartless enough to execute someone that’s pregnant,” Max said, a slightly unsure smile on her face.

        “Don’t get ahead of yourself.” Lance told her, directing his attention to the ponies in front of him. Trying to inquire more information, he then asked “Excuse me sir, but what are the contents of this… letter that you speak of?”

        The stallion gave him a weird look. “Uh… it’s an expression, sonny.” He shook his head slightly. “Never mind that. As per orders, you two will be restricted to the base here. And don’t even try to get those bands off, only the general herself can unlock them.”

        “Sorry. Sometimes, I can’t understand expressions.” Lance said, turning to Max before looking back at the stallion. “Still though, could you be a little careful with my wife? She’s in her fourth month of pregnancy and I don’t want anything to happen to our son.”

        “Don’t worry your little heads,” the stallion nodded. “Long as you don’t cause any trouble, you’ll be treated like proper guests. See?” He pointed to where a nurse was currently bandaging Max’s broken nose.

        “You migh’ wanna make sure Kat doesn’ hi’ me while I have dese on. I won’ be able do survive da hi’,” Max said once the nurse was done. “She migh’ be mad s’ill ‘bou’ Seph.”

        “What I think she means is that she’ll be still mad at us for trying to save her life.” Lance interjected, looking back at the stallion who he assumed to be in charge while Kat was elsewhere. “Speaking of which, what the hell is going on anyways? Where are we?”

        “You’re in what was meant to be a town called ‘Appleloosa’,” said another woman’s voice. Lance and Max turned to see a human woman walking out of one of the tents, her black and red hair billowing slightly in the breeze. “You must be Max and Lance, Kat has told me much about you.”

        “Umm… I’m flattered, but who are you?” The Adept then asked.

        “I’m Lieutenant-General Raven Masters and I’m in charge of the combined Equestrian Military Forces.” She smirked at them. “Welcome to the war.”

        “We aren’ ‘ere do join, we’re jus’ sayin’ hi to Kat and telling her abou’ Seph,” Max said sticking her hand out anyways. “Nice do mee’ you ‘dough.”

        “Good thing,” Raven said, shaking Max’s hand. “You wouldn’t even be allowed to enlist. As if we’d allow aliens into our forces, ha! This isn’t ancient Earth. Though, it looks like my sister did quite the number on your nose. You must have really ticked her off coming here.”

        “Dat an’ she’s prob’ly mad abou’ wha’ happened between me and Seph.”

        “Right…” Lance sighed. “And just when I thought that dealing with Kaoru back in my world was a pain in the ass.”

        “Oh you’re from her world, huh? That was awhile back,” Raven smirked. “And it’s more than likely it’s because you got in her way. Rule one on this battlefield: don’t get in Kat’s way. It’s for your own safety.”

        “Actually, it was for a different reason. In order for a friend of mine to come back to his senses, she needed to control her Kagune and to do that, she had to dig her teeth into my arm. That was almost two months ago and since then, I haven’t seen her.” Lance explained, using his teeth to roll up his sleeve and show what used to be bite marks on his right arm. “But enough about that. What happened between Kat and Seph?”

        “Well, ‘parently I lef’ Kat’s token and Seph though’ it was a sort of payment. Seph summoned Kat and she helped Seph do ge’ do Nigh’mare do try do help me,” Max explained. Lance sighed a little.

        “Does anypony happen to have healing magic? I can only make out half of what she’s saying.”

        “This isn’t Canterlot, we only have field medics on hand. If you want to get her cured, you’ll have to wait for Kat to come back with some healing crystals. We used up the last of the stock on that last soldier that got wheeled in here.”

        “And that gives me another reason to wish I had my hands freed,” The Adept groaned. “I have a skill to heal her, but my energy was closed off once these restraints were put on me. Damn things.” Lance was finicking around with the handcuff like bracelet, trying to pull it off with no success. “Well, damn… Hopefully, plan B would work… Nah, too early to use it.”

        “Yeah, those aren’t comin’ off,” Raven shook her head. “Your kind can’t be trusted to use your powers so I’m not taking any chances. Half the world is dead so I’m not allowing people like you make it worse.”

        “You’re thinkin’ da wors’ of fam’ly? I know ya don’ know us, bu’ still. I don’ kill ‘less i’s someone tha’ hur’ a foal or my fam’ly,” Max said, giving Raven a slightly peeved look.

        Raven returned the look with a glare. “You may consider Kat family, and she considers you family, but that doesn’t apply to me. I actually know Kat because I grew up with her. She is my sister while you’re just someone she met on her whacky travels. I know her more than you will ever know. I even know her actual name. Don’t think you’re gonna get special treatment here. You’re… tourists,” she practically spat. “You’re here to look, see the sights, then get gone and stay gone. It’s not your world and that’s how it’s gonna stay.”

        Max glared right back as she answered, “I migh’ no’ know Kat like you do, bu’ fam’ly’s fam’ly and where fam’ly calls home is mine as well. Don’ ever think I’ll give up on fam’ly.”

        “Me neither.” Lance joined in. Unexpectedly though, he heard something come from the communicator on his left wrist. As he turned to look, what he found surprised him. A white seethrough wrist watch with a purple lightning strike on it. Aurora’s voice called out.

        “Lance! Scoots had to take care of a baddy and I’m bored!” The screen whined.

        “Holy sh*t. Aurora? How did you get here?” The Adept asked, a bit taken aback after seeing the filly unexpectedly show up.

        “I used soul search. It’s like that soul realm, but I can pull myself to you instead of taking your soul into my world.” The filly responded like it was the most obvious thing she’d said. “Through brick, void, or flesh I can appear where you are… Unless there is lead involved or something created by magic.”

        “Aurora… do you realize that we’re in another world right now?” Lance asked, turning the screen so she could show her. With that, Raven also got a glimpse of the filly as well.

        Raven barely paid her any mind. “Cute kid, now back to the issue at hand. Once Kat gives you the clear, you’re getting the f*ck out of here. It’s already hard enough explaining this sh*t to Celestia, so I’m not going to put up with more of it on this planet.”

        “Hey, watch your language. Aurora is just a filly. And we came to talk to Kat. Not to get bossed around by you.” Lance shot back. “Speaking of Kat, where is she?”

        “Attent hut!” a soldier sounded off, everyone, including Raven standing stock at attention.

        “At ease!” Kat’s voice echoed out, everypony going back to their tasks. She walked right up to Raven and the others. “You,” she pointed at Max. “My tent. Now.” She strode right off to the larger tent down the way.

        “Should I follow?” Lance asked.

        “The general said only her,” Raven said, indicating Max. “You don’t disobey orders, civilian.”

        “He comes. No arguing,” Max said, motioning for Lance to duck into the tent as well. Lance complied and hurried over before Raven had the chance to say anything back to her. As both of them were inside, they stood in front of Kat at full attention. 

        “I said only Max,” Kat said, sitting at her desk and looking over some papers. She never even glanced at either of them.

        “Max told me to come.” Lance said back. 

        Kat sighed, setting down the report she was reading. She clasped her hands together and took a deep breath. There was a quick silence before she spoke. “What in the great name of all that is good and holy were you two thinking in coming here?”

        “Max wanted to talk to you about something important.” The Adept said, turning to her.

        “I heard you help’d Seph get Nigh’mare back do normal. I just wan’d you do know tha’ she and I talked and... work’d t’rough what happened,” Max said from slightly behind Lance.

        Aurora popped out of Lance’s wrist communicator, “Who’s Seph, and who are you? I’m confused…”

        “Aurora…” Lance sighed. Before saying anything though, he was interrupted by the Shifter they were speaking to.

        “I’m Kat Shifter, General of the Combined Equestrian Military Force and the only hope this planet has right now of it’s people surviving.” With each word she spoke, her glare got darker at the couple. “I told you both not to come here and you directly went out of your way to disobey. I don’t care what your reasons were, but you pointlessly risked your lives by coming here. As for the Seph thing, that was over three years ago and I’ve moved on from what happened on that world.”

        “I know Seph told you wha’ I did, and I know you’re from da sou’h and a small down a’ tha’. Ev’ryone in small downs knows rape is wrong and I knew you’d wanna hear i’ from me tha’ I had been possessed ever since Celes’ia gave me her power.” Max sighed, shaking her head. “Please, we aren’ your soldiers, we’re your fam’ly. I don’ wan’ dere do be any’hing do force us apar’.”

        Kat just sat there, looking at them with her head leaning on her fist. She rolled her eyes and sighed before shoving a green crystal across the desk. “Fix your nose. Can barely understand a word you’re saying.”

        “That’s rich coming from the one who broke her nose.” Lance shot back, a little angered by Kat’s remark after what happened before.

        “Lance!” Max said, turning to him as she crushed the crystal in her hand. She pulled the bandage off her nose.

        “You shouldn’t have gotten in my way,” she said as if his anger meant nothing… which to  her it really did mean nothing. “You were in a place that you weren’t supposed to be and paid the price for it. That’s what happens in the real world, not your little fantasy lives.”

        “Would you say that about your situation?” Lance shot back. “I’ve had enough with the smack talk that you’re giving my wife and I.”

        “And I’ve had enough of getting life advice from a politician and a vigilante,” Kat spat both words as if they were vile to her tongue. “You’re in the middle of a war that has lasted for over a thousand years and has destroyed this planet.” Kat stood and pulled down a map of Equestria behind her, showing them the map. She pointed to a spot on the map. “The dragons. Extinct.” Another spot. “The minotaurs. Extinct.” Another. “The griffons. Less than a hundred are alive.” She continued listing off race by race, saying they were either dead or dying. “The only races truly left surviving are the ponies and the ones doing the killing: the changelings. This isn’t some mystical monster fight that can be won with a Deus ex machina. This is a war that will cost more lives than any should. You are not meant for something like this and you will not be allowed to. You are welcome to stay the night, but after that, you’re both going home and are never allowed to return. Do I make myself clear?”

        Lance looked at Kat, angered a little by her statement, but sighed. “Yes… General.”

        Max glared at Kat for a few more moments. “You could send the remnants to my universe or even Lance’s. Let the changelings starve!” She said before storming out of the tent.

        “They won’t starve. Not so long as she still lives,” Kat muttered to herself darkly.

        “She?” The Adept asked. “She who?”

        Kat eyed Lance for a moment. “Classified. Now get out of my tent. I have reports to go over.”

        Lance sighed. Before he left the tent though, he told something to Kat. “The Needs of the Many excel the needs of the few.” As he soon walked out of the tent, he began to scan the area for Max. Now, he had an idea in his head. One that might help them. If only he could find her first. He turned to see Raven nearby a group of Soldiers and approached her cautiously. “Excuse me, but did Max come through here by any chance?”

        Raven pointed off to the distance with her thumb. “She’s sulking. I was waiting for you before talking to her.”

        “No need. Kat upset her. She even offered to take in refugees, but Kat refused. She said that the changelings can’t starve while she is alive?” Lance told her. “I’m guessing these bands don’t come off until we have to leave?”

        Raven nodded. “Kat has the keys to your bands. She’s the only one strong enough to keep your ‘kind’ in check, so she keeps them on her person at all times. Now go find your girl, there’s someone you two should meet.”

        Taking her advice, Lance walked over to where she was and approached her cautiously. “You okay, Maxie?”

        Max sighed and shook her head. “I’m just a little frustrated at her stubbornness at us not helping at all.”

        “I am too. Come on, Raven says that there’s someone we should meet.” Lance insisted, having Max stand next to him as they walked back over towards Raven. “Lead the way, Madam Raven.”

        Raven motioned for them to follow as they walked through the camp. As they walked, Max and Lance got a chance to properly observe the ponies at work. Several were just minding themselves by playing cards or having contests of strengths. What stood out the most was that all of them were scarred or were missing limbs or other parts of their bodies. Not a single one was untouched by harm. Raven held open the entrance to a tent, motioning them in. “Careful not to touch anything, he’s rather finicky.”

        “Wait… He?”

        “You’ll see,” she said cryptically. As Lance and Max turned around, they now began to see what she meant. Inside the rather large tent, were stacks upon stacks of metallic scraps. A few ponies were moving about, putting the pieces together, while another voice was shouting.

        “...no no no! Part A connects to part C like this! If you put it in like that, you’ll break the entire structure! Do I have to draw you another picture?!”

        Raven led Max and Lance towards the voice, eventually a green pegasus wearing a pure white lab coat came into view. “Still screaming at my troops, Ben?”

        The pegasus groaned. “If they knew what they were doing, then I wouldn’t have to yell.” He caught sight of the other humans and groaned even louder. “Oh gods, not more Displaced.”

        “Nice to meet you too, Ben,” Max said with a slight smile. “Kat told me a bit about you on one of her visits.”

        “I believe this is the first time we’ve met.” Lance replied. “I’m Lance Walker and this is my fiance’ Max. I would introduce Aurora but… I think Kat’s yelling at us scared her.”

        Ben looked at them with a quirked eyebrow before looking at Raven. “Kat snapped on them for coming here during battle.”

        “Ah,” Ben said, understanding the situation. “Well, I’m not surprised, with all the stress that happens around here, it’s about time that she finally found an outlet to vent.” There was a green flash of light as the pegasus turned into a human man. “Figured since we’re all human here, might as well look the part.” He turned and headed towards a work desk and began fiddling with a few of the scraps. “I told you it was only a matter of time.”

        “I still doubt your little theory will come to pass,” Raven said back.

        “If I didn’t have this bracelet on I’d give her a real outlet. And if I wasn't pregnant,” Max said, just noticing that her stomach was larger than it had been.

        “Yeah, these are a real pain.” Lance groaned. “Can’t channel my Septima or Ki with this. Should I address you by your full name or just your first one, Mr. Tennyson?”

        “My last name is ‘TenX’. Not Tennyson, he’s a completely different person,” Ben waved off. “As for allowing Kat to vent, beating either of you senseless will do nothing. She has plenty of changelings to kill. The stress is more from that little witch who’s in charge of those bugs.”

        “I was going to ask about that,” Lance pointed out. “Kat said that was classified.”

        “She just doesn’t like admitting who’s at fault for the destruction of this world. I’m sure you’ll be seeing her before you leave. Something as odd as you will surely make waves among the changeling ranks. Especially since you were seen on the field. Oh yeah, she’ll take some interest in you.”

        “Again, who is she? Does she have a name?” Lance asked. He knew that things would only be easier if he actually knew the name of who this person was rather than referring it as “She”.

        “Why not just let us take the survivors and just let her destroy the planet, then?” Max asked. “Sure, it’ll be a loss, but-”

        “Max, hang on.” Lance interjected. “What if the opponent she is dealing with is another Displaced?”

        “Then let her kill them. They’re part of why the world is destroyed, Ben said so himself.”

        “Not entirely. Ben also said that she doesn’t like admitting who’s at fault… Wait…” Lance paused, thinking something through. He remembered when back home, he watched TRON Legacy and remembered how Flynn in the film created Clu, who later turned against him. But that just didn’t sound right. “Maybe we should just let Ben tell us what’s going on. He has more experience here than either you or I do.”

        Max sighed. “Fine. I don’t like seeing Kat like this, so let’s try to help a bit.”

        “Same here.” The Adept sighed, looking back at Ben. “Go ahead and continue, Ben. Sorry if we interrupted you.”

        Ben waved it off, still only focused on his desk. “I’m used to youngin’s interrupting my old man speeches. I’m cynical and I embrace it. Nothing wrong with that.”

        “Crystal,” Raven said.

        “Like that!”

        Raven shook her head. “Her name is Crystal Gravity, the queen of the changelings. She’s a gravity shifter like me and Kat, as well as another Displaced.”

        “Hmm… Crystal… Gravity…” He thought in his head, before looking at Max.  “Hey, Raven? Can I ask you something? For being a shifter, is it a genetic trait or something you just learn like magic?”

        “It’s gifted through the Void,” Ben answered. “From what I’ve learned from Kat, it takes the place of magic inside a pony’s body, removing both its and human’s potential for performing normal magic.”

        “I see.” The Adept answered. “I’m sorry. I just have a lot on my mind and everytime I think of when Kat mentioned her as she, that it had some sort of important meaning to it. It’s like trying to solve a rubik’s cube. Only ten times harder and somehow, the answer is right in my face.”

        “There’s a raw hatred between the two of them,” Ben replied. “You’ll probably find out why soon enough.”

        “Why don’t we just tell them?” Raven asked.

        “And where’s the fun and suspense in that?” Ben asked ruefully with a big ol’ smile. All that did was remind Lance of Discord.

        “Look, Kat’s already made me mad and I don’t want to go off on anyone, so please. Tell us what’s happening,” Max said, having been rubbing her temples for the past few minutes. “I hate being a buzzkill, but I don’t have the patience to deal with this.”

        Ben just smiled more. “And I’m a little troll who despises your existence. What do you think I’m gonna say?”

        “Ben,” Raven said warningly.

        He just waved off her anger. “Just leave me to my work for now so I can go home. You’ll be late for the show if you wait here any longer.”

        Lance was displeased by this outcome. All it lead to was more riddles. Then, something clicked inside his head as he looked at Max. Before looking back at Raven. “Raven, where is Bronze?”

        “He’s in Canterlot with his sisters and Kat’s marefriend,” Raven responded as she lead them towards the exit.

        “Kat has a marefriend?” Max asked confusedly.

        “Yeah, a pony from another world, if you can believe it. Her name is Sugar Belle.”

        “Huh, never thought she’d get with someone again after Typhon.”

        “Yeah, him,” Raven said, shaking away some stray thoughts. “By the way, what is up with that stupid looking feather?”

        Max reached up to the feather near her left ear and gave Raven a withering glare. “This ‘stupid’ feather is a gift from Sephiroth. I’ll forgive your ignorance just this on-” She stopped, feeling along the feather for a moment until she pulled it from where it was tied. Her eyes widened at how ragged it was. “What happened to her?” Max whispered before looking towards Lance. “We’re leaving. I have to make sure Seph isn’t-.... Make sure she’s okay.”

        Raven shook her head. “I can’t authorize the removal of your bands. Only Kat can get them removed and right now, she’ll be far too busy to unlock them. But…” She sighed, dragging her hand down her face. “I know I’m gonna regret this, but, you’re welcome to try and drag your friend here if you’re so concerned. Be warned, she will have to be cuffed as well.”

        “I don’t care what Kat is doing. I’m not going to drag Seph here because she’s sore about what Kat did to her universe.” Max placed the feather back in her hair and turned towards the exit of the tent, walking swiftly. “I might see her as a sister, but no one stands between me and one of my lovers.”

        “It’ll be easier to drag her here,” Raven called after her. “Kat’s the only one that can send you back to your own multiverse!”

        “Don’t care. She’s going to send us on our way.” Max flung the flap of the tent open and left. Lance himself was unsure by the turn of events that just happened. Most of it he couldn’t hear correctly due to the constant sounds of metalworking in the background. It wasn’t until Raven got his attention again that he noticed that Max was outside.

        “Yeah… I’m glad to hear that Bronze is safe, but I think we drifted a bit from the conversation… You said that Bronze has sisters right? How many?” The Adept was asking about this because there was a certain clue that he noticed involving this Crystal Gravity. Every time that she was referred to by her name or just mentioned by She, Lance noticed a change in the speaker's voice. It sounded as if this Crystal Gravity was once a friend, but betrayed them. He thought that, but then erased it from his mind when he remembered that Kat had previously stated that the war had been going on for thousands of years. Of course, he had one method to find out the reason why. It just required to get this stupid band off of him first.

        “He has two, but is that really important right now?” Raven replied. “Your wife just stormed off and is probably gonna get herself arrested by one of the mps.”

        “She just needs to calm down. From what she told me, Seph has been going through a lot of emotional turmoil and she’s just concerned for her.” Lance explained. “She was like that when I first met her. Celestia and Luna had only died two months prior and she just needed someone to talk to. Now, we’re together. I’m not saying that I’m ignoring her, I just know that sometimes, the best thing people want is some space.”

        Raven sighed and shook her head. “I’d better go stop her. If she gets arrested, that’s more paperwork than I wanna deal with.” She raced towards the exit, calling back, “Ben! Keep an eye on the other one.”

        “Yeah, yeah,” he waved off, not really bothering to answer her. Lance noticed this, smirking a little.

        “Need a hand?” He offered.

        “Not really.”

        “Well, with Raven having to handle Max and the fact that I rather not break any rules I don’t know about, I’m just gonna stay here.” He told him.

        “Then keep quiet and don’t touch anything,” Ben said back. “I’d rather not have to rework this stuff and be here any longer than I have to.” Lance did so. But as time passed, he was beginning to worry a bit about Max. So, he calmly left the tent and began to look for her. It was close to nightfall and the streets were being dimly lit by street lamps. 

        “Now, where could you be?” He thought to himself as he continued to look around. After asking a few guards, they told him that Max was asked to go to the room that Raven was graciously allowing them to stay in for the time being. But knowing Max and given her temper just a few moments ago, he highly doubted that she would be there and instead be on a one woman manhunt looking for the shifter.

        As he looked around, he noticed a few of the ponies walking into the remains of what appeared like an old bar and one of them talking about a “Show” being performed. He was curious to see what this was about, so he cautiously made his way inside. Despite the run down appearance outside, inside looked rather nice, almost like a classy restaurant out of the forties. The lighting was dark with only a few candles set up around the large central room, but Lance was able to make out a large stage at the far end of the room. Looking around, he was able to spot Raven sitting at one of the rear tables, though it was position on a higher platform than the rest, allowing her to overlook the entire area. Max was there too, but she didn’t look happier about it. As he approached, he saw why: she’d been handcuffed to her seat and was being forced to remain where she was.

        Lance then sighed. “I thought you were supposed to be blowing off steam. Now what the hell happened?”

        “I tried to get up near the stage so Kat could see me staring at her through the entire show, but some of the soldiers got in my way. I beat them to a pulp, but Ravi here got the drop on me,” Max said, glaring at the woman across from her.

        “Don’t give me nicknames,” Raven said nonchalantly as she took a sip of what looked like red wine.

        Lance facepalmed at what he had just heard. “Max, you’re just going to get yourself in deeper trouble like this. Night’s already fallen and something tells me that you’re just… tired.”

        “I’m not tired, just wanting to make sure Seph isn’t badly hurt.” Max turned to face the stage.

        “Might as well take a seat, kid,” Raven gestured to the third seat next to Max. “Sit down, enjoy the show, go home. Simple as that. She only ever does one song, anyway.”

        “Yeah why not?” Lance replied, taking up her offer. “However, I’m getting a weird feeling that this won’t exactly be… simple.” 

        Raven shushed him as the lights began to dim even more. From the top of the stage, a few gems began to glow and illuminate the stage itself in a soft light. Kat walked into the light in her pony form, wearing a black dress that sparkled brilliantly from the spot lights. She walked up to a microphone at the edge and tapped it a few times, sending a small bit of feedback through. She bowed gently as a the band began to play. The sound of a guitar echoed into the hall, Kat’s soft voice following it as she began to sing.

        The ponies in the audience gently bobbed their heads to the sound, smiling as the feeling of the song flowed over them. Even Raven was bobbing softly to the music, never tiring of Kat’s voice. The whole time, Kat put every fiber of her being into the music, letting her feelings wash over her audience.

        Lance himself was surprised by the amount of talent that the shifter had and, for a minute, was in tune with the song. However, something made him feel… uncomfortable. It started when he thought he saw a brief flash of green reflect off of Raven’s wine glass. But he wasn’t the only one who noticed it.

        Max stood, looking among the crowd. “Raven, get this handcuff off of me. We’ve got company.” Lance himself got out of his seat, scanning the crowd for anypony that seemed to not be part of the crowd. He even looked at the entrance, only to see the two guards at the door.

        “It was only a matter of time,” Raven said darkly as she stood. “Kat!” she called to the stage, getting the shifter’s attention as the music died down. “We got company!” Just as those words left her mouth, a pony walked into the center of the room and burst into green fire. Every soldier was instantly at arms, spears and swords directed at the now revealed changeling.

        “At ease!” Kat demanded, shouting the order across the room. “It’s only a messenger drone.” The fire died to reveal a very lanky changeling, looking like it might collapse any second. “Speak creature, before your time is out.”

        Raven shattered Max’s handcuff and lead her and Lance towards the stage, stopping just below Kat’s left side. “This should be good, and hopefully the drone can last long enough to give us something to work with this time. The last one’s barely lasted a couple minutes before the poison killed them.”

        Lance wanted to ask about what the poison that Raven mentioned was about, but did not. He had a strange feeling that the drone here was not the only thing amiss in the room. “Something about this isn’t right. Why would they send the weak one in as the messengers? They look like they’re about to die.”

        “He is,” Raven informed him. “Messenger drones are fatally poisoned before being sent out. That way they don’t spill any information from interrogations.”

        “Does the poison have an antidote or is it like radiation?” Lance then asked. “Because one would think that if you cured him, he would still be alive to give you more info when held in captivity.” All he got was a nudge in the chest, telling him to shut up as they tried to get something out of the drone.

        The drone wheezed for a moment before once again being consumed in green fire. This time, however, was not what Lance or Max were expecting. The fire revealed a human woman dressed in an elegant green gown that showed off a perfectly curved body. But that wasn’t what struck them. No, it was more that the person standing in front of them was Kat herself.

        The woman chuckled, a voice just like Kat’s coming out of her mouth. “So… these were the new Displaced my drones reported seeing earlier today. Not as impressive as I had hoped, but I suppose you need every advantage you could have, eh Kat?”

        “Crystal,” Kat seethed, turning into her human form and jumping down from the stage. If it weren’t for their clothes, one wouldn’t be able to tell the two apart. “Should have known you’d show your mug here.”

        “But of course. I like to know what’s happening on my world after all.”

        “This isn’t you world!” Kat shouted with fury.

        “More so than it is yours, Shifter.”

        “Okay, just what the actual hell is going on?” Lance demanded, tempted to make a move but restrained himself. “This doesn’t make any sense at all.”

        “Yes, it does. We aren’t in our multiverse, and neither is the Kat I know. That one that just appeared is this multiverse’s Kat,” Max said, pulling out her sniper rifle.

        “Great, this makes me think Stephen Hawking all over again.” Lance muttered to himself. “And just what the hell do you want?… Crystal.”

        Crystal looked at the couple, her red eyes looking right through them. She smirked smugly. “I wanted to see the new… meat. Hmm, oh yes I know you two. Maxine the time manipulator and Lance, the adept. Your worlds here were so, mmm, delicious.”

        “You have no right to speak our names, b*tch. You are part of the reason I can’t leave here right now, so you’re standing between me-” Max leveled the weapon at the woman. “- and my family.”

        “Oh put your toy away, girl,” Crystal said, waving her hand to the side and sending the rifle flying from Max’s hands. “I have come for no fight today. My children need their rest to claim this camp on the morrow. I simply came to see what the other multiverse could bring. I wanted to see if i-”

        “You would’ve been dead before you came into the camp if it wasn’t for this bracelet. I’m only holding back from breaking it because I don’t want to make Kat angry.”

        Crystal chuckled that smug little chuckle of hers. “Oh yes, I’ve heard of brother Ben’s little nullifier inventions.” Kat and Raven glared darkly. “Don’t give me such looks, sisters, we specialize in stealth, after all. It’s only a matter of time before your secrets reach my ears. And don’t flatter yourself, Maxie. I will admit that you’re a little bolder than your counterpart was, yet still, she fell and was consumed like every Displaced will be in this multiverse when I’m done.”

        “I’m more than just a bit bolder. I’m stronger, too. Sombra has proven a very good trainer, as well as a good lay.”

        There was a discomforting smile forming across Crystal’s lips. “Oh, yes. You’ll be an excellent claim when the moment comes. Putting an incessant little whelp like you in her place will be oh-so-much fun. I’ll have to make something special for you, my dear. Something exceptionally special. However, it will have to wait. The child forming this message is about to die, so I must bid you, adieu. But I want to leave you with a little memory of little old me.” She lifted a finger and pointed at Lance.

        Kat’s eyes widened. “No, Crystal, don’t you-”

        “Death Beam!” she fired a purple energy beam that pierced right through Max’s chest. Crystal hmmphed. “Sympathy for your mate. How pathetic.”

        “Maxie!” Kat shouted before looking at Crystal with eyes of pure hatred. “No more!” she reached out with her own hand and clenched. The image of Crystal disappeared with a smirk as the changeling underneath was crushed into dust. Kat immediately crouched down to Maxie while Lance was watching dumbstruck.

        “Get a medic!” Raven shouted, the soldiers scrambling to get the doctors.

        “N-no, just... Get this bracelet off me, it’s hindering my immortalities,” Max stammered out.

        Kat immediately brought out an odd looking key and touched the tip to the bracelet, causing it to separate and fall off. Kat’s eyes were full of fear the whole time.

        Max coughed once as she laid a glowing hand on the wound. “I’m lucky that wasn’t an actual curse. Damn that b*tch! If I wasn’t pregnant I’d go show her my full power and crush her for trying to kill Lance.” Suddenly, Max felt arms wrap around her head and tears falling onto her hair. She looked up to see that it was Kat who was crying. She smiled and wrapped her own arms around Kat. “You know how I am, Kat. And you know I’d do the same for you.”

        “This is why I didn’t want you to come,” Kat whispered, Raven making sure none of the soldiers were watching and minding their own business. “It’s too dangerous for more of us here. She’s too powerful and I can’t risk losing any more family than I have. Please… please Maxie, for once just listen to me and go home. I can’t go through losing another sister because of my own faults.”

        “You won’t lose me. Not to that clone, not to anything. Besides, I was trying to find you for the past half hour to tell you that I wanted to go make sure Seph was alright.”

        Kat wiped away a few tears. “Alright. I’ll send you home and you can go to see Sephiroth. But promise me you won’t ever come back here. If I need you, I’ll call, but you can’t come here again. Promise me that.”

        Max shook her head. “I can’t. While that clone is loose, you’re in danger. I don’t-”

        “I’m serious here!” Kat said, shaking her slightly. “You can’t come back. Crystal is my responsibility now and no one else’s. Especially not yours. But for me to beat her, I need to know that you’ll be safe away from here. I can’t fight here knowing you’ll just pop up here again out of nowhere. Now, promise me, Maxie. Pinkie promise me you’ll stay away.”

        Her eyes closed and she turned her face away from Kat. “I-I can’t. I already let two family members die right in front of me, I don’t want to hear of a third when I can take steps to avoid it.”

        Kat sighed deeply. “I understand.” She stood up and backed away slightly. “Then you leave me no choice.” She took a deep breath. “Maxine and Lance, our contract is finished, you are banished from this world.” A portal opened behind the couple and began to suck them into it.

        Max stood and looked right at Kat, shaking her head. “I don’t care if you eventually come to hate me, but I won’t let you keep pushing everyone you care about away. Please, I know you’re hurting about everything that’s happened to you. You can deny it all you want, but I can see it in your entire being that you’re in constant agony. Just let someone help, that’s all I ask.”

        “I have Raven,” Kat said, not even bothering to look in Max’s eyes. “She’s all I need for now….. I’m sorry.”

        Raven picked up Max’s sniper and threw it into the portal just before Max herself and Lance were sucked into its oblivion.



        Upon arriving back in Max’s room, Lance just looked at her with shock. A lot of things had just recently happened and right now, he was really concerned for her. He was going to have a look at her injuries, until he realized that he still had the metal band on his wrist. “Max? Do you have the key for this?”

        Max sighed. “Yeah, Kat slipped me the key when she thought I wouldn’t notice.” Max tossed Lance the key, pulling Seph’s feather out of her hair once more. Lance took a moment to unlock it and take the band off. But instead of breaking it, he actually kept it in one piece. The Adept was thinking that something like this may be useful later. But then he turned to Max again. 

        “We should have a doctor look at you. I’m a little concerned about you getting hurt just now.” He told her.

        Max turned to him and looked at the left side of her chest and the scar that could barely be seen there. “I already healed it.”

        “That isn’t my concern.” Lance said as she fixed herself up. “I’m concerned for the child. Do you think being in Kat’s world affected his development?”

        She rested a hand on her enlarged stomach, noting that it was larger than before. “Let’s go see Home Remedy then.”

        “Lead the way, Maxie.” Lance replied, kissing her on the forehead before helping her up.

        “After we see Seph, though. I think the trip just advanced my pregnancy, so there shouldn’t be anything to worry about.” Max cleared her throat and said, “Seph, you alright? I have someone I’d like you to meet.”

        A translucent green drop appeared out of thin air and hit the ground, only to somehow cause it to form waves as if being a liquid itself. Small wisps of green began to rise from the point of impact, circling and waving around each other until they reached beyond his own height. Slowly they split down the middle and drifted apart to form an oval shape while seeming to gently lift the veil of reality itself, revealing the vast void behind it. A few seconds later a tall woman with the body of an amazon’s wet dream emerged from it. Toned in all the right places but not overly so. Her hair cascaded down her shoulders and back like rivers of liquid silver. She was clad in a long, form fitting, black coat, open on the front even lower than her belly button, only held together by two straps crossing over her breasts. There were metal guards on her shoulders and a pair of pants, that left little to imagination, completed the attire, ending in two heavy boots, that almost reached her knees.

        A small smile graced her lips and her teal eyes lit up when they fell on Max. “You called?”

        Max marched right over to the other woman with a glare and slapped her, sending her out the window. Her hand glowed white and ‘Seph’ appeared back in front of Max, crashing into her. Max stood her ground and wrapped her arms around the other woman, pressing her face into her breasts as she said, “I knew I should’ve gone with you!”

        The silver haired woman struggled to get out of Max’s grasp. “What the f*ck, Max. That hurt.”

        “It should’ve. It scared me when I noticed your feather had wilted.” Max’s grip tightened a bit before loosening to where Seph could escape.

        Which the woman did, standing to her full height again and rubbing her cheek, where a red mark showed. She frowned down on Max, but more in confusion. “My feather did what?”

        “Wilted; aged; got roughed up. I thought you were dying when I saw it.”

        Seph flinched and averted her gaze, mumbling under her breath, before looking back at Max once more. “Sorry… I kind of got beaten up by Celestia pretty bad.”

        “You need to be more careful!” Max pulled Seph in for another hug. “I don’t want you to die before you can have your child.”

        The latter of the two hesitated before reciprocating the hug and sighing. “In my defense… it wouldn’t have been so bad if this blue pegasus from the elements hadn’t barged in on our fight. She distracted me long enough for Celestia to land a few blows…” Her voice faded to a whisper. “Shattering the bones in my arms…” The appendages in question twitched at that.

        “Don’t. You’re still alive, so don’t tell me what happened.” Max let go of Seph and gestured to Lance. “This is Lance.”

        Seph’s eyes widened slightly and a faint, but still visible, blush appeared on her cheeks when she looked at him. “Erm… hi. Max told me about you.” She straightened her posture and walked over to him, the red on her face somehow deepening with every step, until she stopped and held a hand out for him to take. “My name is Sephiroth, nice to meet you.”

        “Same here.” Lance replied, shaking her hand. “It’s nice to be able to meet you in person, Sephiroth. Are you fine with me just calling you Seph?”

        Shrugging, she retracted her hand after the shake, but despite looking relaxed, she seemed to struggle with something. “Sure, why not? Max and Kat called me this several times now so it’s alright.” Finally losing whatever inner conflict had befallen her, she averted her gaze and coughed awkwardly into a fist. “Has Max asked you, yet?”

        “Nope. I was gonna tell him what all happened before asking him,” Max said, putting an arm around the taller woman’s shoulders.

        Sephiroth nodded and crossed her arms in front of her chest. “That makes sense. So how much does he know already?”

        Lance just raised an eyebrow and folded his arms for a minute. “Know about what?”

        “What happened when she summoned me,” Max explained. “You know the main thing about that.”

        “Yeah, I get that. But I have a feeling this is about something… Else.” The Adept replied back. “You did tell me that the two of you had forgiven one another, but I think there’s a little bit more.”

        Seph nodded again. “Yes. After we parted ways, I accidently assumed that Max had left a black diamond behind, as some kind of payment. I was really mad and tried to blast it to pieces, which led to the summoning of Kat. She dragged me out of the hole I fell into after what happened and when I was able to think clearly again, I noticed that something about Max’s behavior was very wrong. So very not Max.” She paused shortly. “If I’m being honest I may have been in denial about that Max could have been the one responsible. The thought that she was somehow influenced or even possessed hurt way less than the alternative.” The silver haired woman shuddered and bowed her head enough for her hair to hide her eyes.

        Max’s grip tightened a bit and her face turned to shame. “Even though that was caused by the Nightmare, I realized that... I might’ve actually ended up like that, given a few years. I was... for lack of a better way to say it - focused on sex and lust so much that I was constantly thinking of who I might sleep with next.

        “I... I wouldn’t have forced myself on you, but... I-I don’t know how I would react to you in a year or two.” Max buried her face in Seph’s shoulder, trying to hold back her tears.

        Lance himself during the scenario felt like he was a relationship counselor after hearing all of this. “So… I guess you two have apologized to one another, but I may ask… What does that have to do with what Max needed to ask me?”

        “Sorry, got carried away. After I convinced myself that Max was possessed, I wanted to free her but the only one I know of, that has any expertise with the inner workings of a mind and ethereal beings is Nightmare Moon, who was at that moment a brainwashed husk of her former self in captivity by Celestia. Kat helped me with that, though. We infiltrated the castle and managed to get pretty far until we encountered Chetyre, the new god of chaos in my universe.” Seph sighed deeply. “Because I’m immune to chaos magic, I told Kat to head on without me, while I would take care of Chetyre, but he tricked me.”

        The woman shrunk a bit in on herself before continuing. “He took the form of Discord and caught me by surprise. I just remember seeing him move towards me and something about green flashing eyes. The next thing I remember is waking up in a dungeon, chained to the wall…” She shuddered again. “I’ll spare you the details, but Celestia and Chetyre tortured me for almost 24 hours. Kat was the one who saved me. She had restored Nightmare to her former self and then left, only leaving behind a short letter and instructions how to travel through the Void with the help of a token. So I grabbed Nightmare and came here to free Max, only to break down under the weight of my memories from the torture…” Her voice faded and she was visibly shivering now. When Lance saw that, he put his hand on her shoulder to comfort her.

        “It’s okay. You don’t need to share everything if you don’t want to.” He assured her.

        “I think I should tell the next part, though,” Max said. “When Seph collapsed Nightmare took a glance at Seph’s memories and saw what they had done to her and... well, tried attacking me because of it. I got her to calm down and let me join her in Seph’s memories, but...” Max shook her head, trying to stay calm if her white knuckles were anything to go by. “They used her fear of losing a child and the fact that she didn’t know I prevented a pregnancy against her. Nightmare and I managed to calm those memories, though, and once it was-”

        That was the moment where the taller woman broke free of Max’s arm and rushed over to a nearby trashcan only to throw up.

        “I think that was a little too soon.” Lance mentioned. “So to summarize, you tried cleaning out what is fake, you two made up and now were here?”

        Max’s eyes gained a glimmer of her usual impishness and she turned to Lance. “We did more than just make up.” Her hand glowed and she touched a finger to her temple, pulling a pink-ish wisp of something out that formed a small crystal ball. “Here, I’ll let you experience it first hand.”

        Seph shot to her feet and glared daggers at Max. “Don’t! Just don’t!”

        Max smiled at her as she tossed it towards Lance, only for a black gloved hand to snatch it right out of the air. “I said no, Max!” And before anyone could question what was going on the silver haired woman absorbed the sphere into her. For a moment her eyes went out of focus before she suddenly reared back and roared. “FFUUUUUUUU!!!!”

        “Something she didn’t want to see?”

        Max giggled and produced another pink sphere. “Nope, I planned on her trying to stop me and gave her my first time with Celestia.” This time though, instead of tossing it, Max just handed it to Lance. For a brief moment, he was taken aback by the memories stored inside. After seeing it, he looked back at both women, one of which had her whole face encompassed by a raging blush and was panting slightly. Surprised, but quite relaxed.

        “Well… That was interesting… Say, do you want to wait on seeing Home Remedy til tomorrow?” Lance asked, sitting down on the bed in the back of the room. “I think that after everything we’ve been through, we need to let off some steam.”

        “Maybe in a little, but first, I still need to ask you something.”

        “Okay, what is it?” The Adept asked, unaware of what was to be said to him at all.

        “Well, during Seph’s stay she asked me if I could give her a child. Because of that I resolved to let you decide if she could join us. Like for good.”

        “You mean… as a second partner?” Lance asked, getting a look from Max that he saw as a ‘yes’. “Sure. I’m all for it. Since Max is okay with it, so am I.”

        Sephiroth just stared dumbfounded, still red as a tomato. The Adept chuckled a little when he looked back at Sephiroth. “I think Seph is a bit surprised by my answer.”

        Max leaned in and gave him a kiss. “I kinda knew you wouldn’t say no.”

        “I don’t want to sound unappreciative but don’t I get to decide if I want him as a partner?” The silver haired woman had crossed her arms in front of her chest again. Lance himself just sighed.

        “Are you saying that I need to prove myself to you somehow?” He asked, raising an eyebrow.

        Max clapped her hands together and said, “I know! A small duel right here. First to down their opponent, or make them unable to fight wins. No drawing blood, though, it’ll be hard to clean that out of the carpet even with magic.”

        “So a friendly bout? Hmm… Are you sure? We could end up destroying your room.” The Azure Striker mentioned, looking at Seph for a minute, only to notice her pleased grin.

        Max’s hand lit and he heard her speak in his ear, “Don’t worry, just remember to use your body against her.”

        “That could mean a lot of things,” He whispered back. “Any weak points?”

        Max’s hand met her face. “... Just use what I gave you and try to make her too… distracted to fight.”

        Lance himself now deeply sighed. “You seriously want us to do it now, do you?”

        “She has a huge strength fetish. If you avoid her attacks and just pleasure her, she’ll fold like a house of cards.”

        Lance grinned a little. Speed and Agility were two qualities of his that had worked out well for him in the long run. “Okay, if we’re doing this, is it with or without weapons?” He asked Seph. “My guess would be without, but I don’t want it to be ‘unfair’ for you.”

        “Max said no drawing blood, so I can not use my weapon.”

        Lance sighed a little, taking off his jacket and setting it on the coatrack. The jacket contained both of his guns and his Energy blade in the pockets, so he wouldn’t need to use them. For added measure, he took off his gloves as well, revealing the light colored bare palms of his hands. “Ladies first?”

        Seph, for her part, set her gloves taut and clenched her fists. “You will regret that.” Her whole body was enveloped in a red aura before she simply vanished from sight only to appear right in front of him with her fist already buried into his stomach. However, to her surprise, Lance barely budged as he used his right arm to graze her lower chest. Seph felt a little bit of tingling there and noticed the small amounts of electricity dancing around his fingers as he loosened himself from Seph’s strike and got behind her, adding a small shock around her upper legs.

        With an involuntary grunt she stumbled forward to get away from him, the blush on her face renewed. But instead of trying to punch him again, she swiveled on one foot, while kicking the other one in the direction of his face. The Adept saw this coming and moved his head to the left, followed by another shock around her knees and inner thigh. As she fell forward, a third shock occurred, but this time around the back of Seph’s neck. Lance made sure to be careful around this area though because he didn’t want her to get hurt accidently.

        This chain of actions caused her to actually moan. She jumped away from him and shot him an irritated glare. “What the f*ck are you doing?!”

        “No weapons, but it was never clarified whether powers were to be used. Plus, I learned that certain pressure points can affect a fighter’s performance.” Lance calmly replied, a spark of electricity coursing through his open left palm. “Back in my world, I don’t kill targets. I knock them out and capture them. It’s part of my training.”

        Shaking her head, she actually looked relieved. “For a second there I thought… nevermind.” Her hands began to glow with a black, swirling aura. “Kat brought something to my attention. I almost forgot about this.” In the next moment the air around them grew literally heavy as gravity itself seemed to decide that it was time to drag them down with ten times its usual pull.

        “Increasing the gravitational pull? I thought that could be learned from someone like Kat.” Lance sighed, only shaking a little bit at the knees as he stood his ground. “Too bad we were banished from her realm.”

        Suddenly the gravity returned to normal and Seph blinked confused at him. “What?”

        “Care to explain, Max?”

        “Kat isn’t in our multiverse and she’s fighting an evil version of herself,” Max said, showing them the scar. “I got this when the evil clone tried to hurt Lance.”

        To Seph’s surprise, Lance wasn’t paying attention to Max and instead used the opportunity to shock her one last time around the neck. “Sorry Max, but I couldn’t help taking advantage of a distraction.” He spoke with a chuckle in his voice.

        Sephiroth actually and truly squealed when he did and jumped away again. When she glared at him this time, she was blushing like mad and panting slightly. “You… you are doing this on purpose.”

        “Purpose? You really need to think again. I was just following some advice Max gave me. That’s all.” He sighed. 

        The silver haired woman growled aggressively turning to face Max, only to see a halo of Max’s magic above the other woman’s head as she whistled nonchalantly. “You. Why am I not surprised in the least?” Then her gaze snapped back to Lance. “Are you aware, that she deliberately made you tickle me in… intimately sensitive places?”

        “Hey, I knew you were in no shape to actually fight anyone,” Max said, glaring at Seph. “You might not be for the next month or so. So, I told Lance to not actually fight you fairly so you wouldn’t exacerbate the wounds you already have.”

        “Right.” Lance replied, sitting on the bed again. “I didn't want to hurt you on top of what you have already been going through.” For a moment, he noticed that his shirt was soaked in sweat and slowly took it off, exposing his chest and upper body. “God, why is it so warm in here-?”

        He was interrupted by a low whine, that turned into a growl. When he looked up to discern the source he was tackled to the bed by Sephiroth. Max herself just looked at them, intrigued a little as she got up to close and lock the door to her room. Putting up a sign that read “Do Not Disturb”.



Next morning

        When Lance got up, he found himself in Max’s room. Both Max and Seph were sound asleep as he slowly crawled out of bed to get his clothes off of the floor, working his way to the bathroom. The Adept was covered in sweat and really needed to take a good shower to get himself cleaned up before returning back to Centrail City. This wasn’t that hard to do, but things began to get a little more complicated as he was drying off. He could hear some noises in the other room and can clearly distinguish some of them being Max and the kids once he got his shirt and pants back on. But around the time where he got the water out of his ears was when he realized that he forgot his jacket. Slowly, he walked back in, trying the best to be calm.

        “Morning Max. Morning Seph-.” Lance couldn’t help but stare at both of them, surprised by what he was seeing. The kids were nestling in the bed with both of them as Max looked back at him.

        “Morning Lancie,” She said, putting her arm around Seph, who was covered in Fillies. “Just letting Seph bond with Golden and Light.”

        Seph just inclined her head in a greeting, not really looking back at the Adept while she watched the two foals she was nursing before speaking. “Good morning.”

        Lance just looked back at Max and sighed. “Yeah… Bonding… Hang on, if the kids are here… then that means-.”

        “Hiya Lancie!!”

        “Gah!” Lance reacted, caught by surprise as he fell to the floor. “Pinkie!!”

        All Max did was chuckle as she looked back at the mare that had entered the room. “Hello Pinkie.”

        “Hi there, Maxie! The fillies were really behaving themselves-.” She said before noticing Seph in the back of the room. “OOH!! Who’s the new pony?” This actually got Seph to look up from her downward gaze earlier and notice the earth pony. 

        “And who would you be? It’s quite rude not to introduce yourself first if you want to know who I am.”

        “Oooh!! I’m Sorry!! I’m Pinkie Pie!! Super Duper Party Planner and Filli-Second of the Power ponies!!” The Earth Pony answered Seph’s question. However, her behavior caused Seph to frown a little. She wasn’t exactly a fan of it.

        “I’m Sephiroth. And since you seem to like titles, I’ll share a few of mine. Angel of Destruction, Dragonslayer and - my favorite - Godmother to all Children. I’d like to ask you to turn down the shouting a little bit, if possible.”

        Max gave her best apologetic smile as she glanced back at them. “Yeah, we just woke up and Seph is obviously not a morning person,” Max told the two of them. “Besides, she isn’t really a fan of your usual attitude.”

        “Right,” Lance sighed, getting his coat off of the coat rack. “Well, Pinkie and I should get going. I still got some work to wrap up in Centrail City and also some members of a Suicide Squad to track down-.”

        “Ooh! Ooh!! You mean the group that has your father be part of it!?”

        Max though, did not take the news of that kindly. “Wait, father? Your father is in your universe? How come this is the first I’ve heard of him?” Seph herself just stayed out of the conversation and continued to focus on the kids while Lance got out an image of McCree to hand to her. 

        “That’s the thing. It’s the first I’ve heard of him too. I thought he was dead because he committed suicide. Now he has a mechanical arm, is a bounty hunter, and is known as McCree.” 

        “Huh, I wondered if I’d ever meet a Displaced from that game.” Max handed the photo back to Lance and continued, “What’s he done to get on something called a ‘suicide squad?’”

        “Bounty Hunting. Seven years of it. Anything he could to make a living. I don’t know all the details though. This is the only thing we have on him.”

        “Then it might not be hard to get Celestia to pardon him and send him here.”

        “Actually, the only info we have is on a flash drive from a mole we uncovered at the police station. An assassin shot him between the eyes before we could question him.” The Adept explained to her.

        Sephiroth’s voice chimed in. “If I’m understanding this right, you’ll have to leave, soon?”

        “Unfortunately, yes,” Lance explained. “Centrail City and the Cutie Mark Crusaders need my help in catching a group of Vigilantes. It’s all in a day's work.”

        Max seemed to be a little intrigued as to why Sephiroth had interrupted the two of them as she turned slightly to look at her. Her gaze was fixed on Lance and without any warning whatsoever, her black wing flared into existence out of nowhere, missing Max in the process, so that it was spanned behind her back. “Max? Would you do me a favor and select one for Lance? My hands are a little occupied at the moment.”

        It took a bit of time for her to select the right feather as she had to remove a few broken ones off of her singular wing. After a while, Max soon took one and handed it over to the Adept as Sephiroth began to speak. “It’s directly bound to my life, and as you saw, I gifted one to Max, so I’m offering you the same. If you ever need my help or just want to see me you can use it to summon me, as it doubles as a token. But it is also my promise to the both of you, that there will always be a deeper connection between us.”

        Taking the token, Lance decided to add it as an accessory to the hilt of his energy blade as he looked back at them. “Thank you. Now, it would be kind enough for me to provide you with the same thing.” The Azure Striker told her as he formed one of his tokens in the palm of his hand. “Use it to call on me or just for any purpose you see fit. Max uses it as a Hairpin to keep her hair tied down so maybe you can do the same thing.” With that, he left the room with Pinkie Pie so he could leave the two of them in peace.

        “Now we just need to check on Aurora before we head back.”

        Not long after he said that did he hear a brief series of giggles and as they rounded around the corner, Lance and Pinkie soon saw the young ghost filly with Sol and Mun. “There you are. I was wondering where you were, Aurora.”

        Aurora Spirit immediately stopped, “Uh, I got bored and found Sol and Mun. They’re fun!”

        “I’m glad you like them, but we should get back to Centrail City before Scoot begins to worry about you… again.” Lance sighed, preparing his bracer so the ghost filly could slip in. “It’s time we catch some puppets.”




End Strike 25