He walked and they ran. He rose higher and they screamed. He stepped forth into the mountain city and they swarmed him. With just a flick of his wrist, a piercing glare from his twisted and demented eyes, they stopped in their tracks and dropped their weapons.
All of them. All ten ponies clasped in golden armor.
He watched as each pony clutched their heads and screamed, their bodies hitting the demolished cement beneath, flakes of their sanity fading away to nothingness. Then they were silent. All around him, from the skies and the earth, his army raged on, endured the horrid climb and entered the city of Canterlot. Many flew in to land safely ahead of him, charging headlong into the fray of the burning city.
His sentries led the charge. He led the charge for the next wave. Yet he stood back and watched as they ran off to battle, to purify the unholy.
Every second of the fight he saw. All of Canterlot was in his vision, all of the foolish and damned ponies risking it all just to lose in the end. It was sad, really it was. Seeing such wonderful architecture which could have taken decades to accomplish just to come crumbling down in a burning, majestic glory, it pained and somewhat fueled him with the strength needed—the strength he knew he had just didn’t fully see it—to finish what must be done.
He walked and they ran. His army never stopped. But he did. He stared into the flames consuming Canterlot, feeling nothing.
Nothing but everlasting bliss.
He then heard a crumbling to his far left. Reaching out one of his right hands, he captured a guard rushing him with a sharpened spear, bringing her forth in his twisted entanglement. The pony struggled, but stopped once he flung her to his left, the unfortunate unicorn mare caught in the grasp of a certain centaur, hungry for power.
Tirek chuckled, each vibration of his throat reverberating throughout the mare’s body. She continued to struggle, stopping once more when his maw opened up, revealing rows of razor-sharp teeth. But even those weren’t what worried her. Her eyes widened, jaw falling as the magic was ripped right from her horn, and the color in her eyes fading as did her cutie mark.
Breathing with satisfaction, Tirek tossed the limp pony aside, stepping forth to join his ally for the siege. In his field of vision, he saw as Tirek approached. He had noticed how much the centaur had grown since their last stop. Knowing what lied ahead—knowing they could never fight back against such power—he lowered his gaze and nodded to him. To his ally.
“Feast, my friend. Grow strong and crush this city.”
His only response was slick, fluid smile, holding absolutely no goodwill behind it.
With a personal army of demons by his side, Tirek stomped into Canterlot, each hoof striking earth vibrating across the city. As if that made a difference. Canterlot was practically shaking from the constant bombardment above, from the unending waves of sentries and monsters sent at it.
It wouldn’t stand much of a chance.
Ultron knew this.
So that’s why he walked straight into the madness. He walked and they ran.
It was so dark.
Why was it so dark?
Is that what Tartarus was like? Never ending, pitch blackness that one could feel? Like an oily serpent, possibly thousands, wrapping around and coiling tighter and tighter until all the hope of seeing light again was just a memory? That the thought of never escaping, lost forever in the cold, unforgiving void was all that there was to look forward to?
Forever?
The sun had disappeared for no more than thirty minutes and Twilight had already begun to grow paranoid. The only chance she could see the hope of light again was when one of her spells cleared the road ahead of her, tearing apart any demon or sentry that grew near. Other than that, the light from the lampposts died, as if the dark simply consumed it.
It was no normal darkness that fell upon Canterlot. It was the kind of black that originated from Tartarus, from the hell that the creatures invading Canterlot were forged from, tortured and beaten into hating the world above. That enough made them attack and ignore the pain flooding through their bodies, the act of vengeance ripe in their spirits.
Other than the spells constantly casting through the darkness and heated wind—the glowing, fiendish eyes from the sentries and monsters—all that lit up Canterlot were the fires spreading from building to building. The Canterlot Gardens remained cloaked in shadow, the remaining Avengers and ponies holding their ground with all that they were.
Even then, they barely held. Just barely.
The remaining Avengers, consisting of Captain America, Hawkeye, Black Widow, Scarlet Witch, and Quicksilver, were pushed back deeper and deeper into the gardens, the streets filled with bodies, pony and invader alike. As for Stark, Thor, and Hulk, they were long gone, possibly off battling deeper into the city. No sign of Discord, either.
Despite the odds, Twilight and her friends still held their ground in the gardens. With Spike providing cover fire with the rifle Discord had given him, Fluttershy still with him, it left Twilight, Rainbow, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie, and Starlight Glimmer holding off the opposing waves constantly swarming the gardens. Shining Armor was helping too, but he was mostly focused on commanding his own troops.
Rainbow Dash was no coward, despite everything. She fought through the waves, rammed herself like a bullet from one sentry to another, and never slowed down. Not one second. Whenever Twilight managed to catch her, she had fight in her eyes, but even then it was just a blur.
Applejack, on the other hoof, was a different story. She rarely moved from where she stood, instead choosing to buck the daylights out of whatever demon or sentry was dumb enough to actually try and fight her. Turns out, the creatures of Tartarus didn’t really have that much brain power to begin with, and Ultron had plenty of sentries to spare. They all went flying, Applejack’s grunts echoing alongside the sounds of hoof against bone or metal.
Most of Spike’s cover fire was trained around Rarity, but he did share. The unicorn remained untouched, using the bolts of energy soaring past her as well as her own magic to counterattack the approaching waves of enemies. Needless to say, the duo was completely effective. Not one enemy got close to them.
Pinkie Pie was another story. A whole other story that one had to dig deeper than they thought possible to understand. While she whipped out her party cannon on occasion, using its power to blow back several invading enemies, the mare held her own surprisingly well. She was present, then gone, then back again before her foes—and even her friends—could react. Whenever she would appear, a new weapon would be used on a demon, a new weapon for each sentry. Whether she picked them off the ground from Discord’s earlier shenanigans or she got them from who knows where, when it boiled down to her friends’ safety, Pinkie was an unstoppable power house.
The same could easily be said for Starlight Glimmer. Despite one eye being fully available to her, the other barely open and swollen black, Starlight casted spells that surprised even Twilight. They certainly weren’t rookie spells for beginners. No, the spells Starlight casted were some of the hardest a unicorn could fathom. Even Twilight had trouble casting them in the past. But she moved surprisingly well, dodging and weaving from enemy attacks and replying with her own. Very talented. Very powerful.
Twilight was glad to have her on her side, and not the other way around.
Out of the corner of her eye, Twilight could see Princess Celestia and Princess Luna still managing to fight back despite the overwhelming odds. The enemy still attacked in droves, and each time they were annihilated in clusters, vaporized from the combined powers of the Princess of the Sun and the Princess of the Moon.
They weren’t in trouble. They didn’t need help. But the ponies beneath her, the ones barely holding on, they needed her.
“Starlight, on your left!” Twilight screamed. It came too fast; she was too late.
Starlight’s eyes relaxed, her focus centered on the magical shield she created for herself blocking several repulsor blasts from a group of sentries. She spun according to the location Twilight had mentioned, nearly losing her breath at the sight of it. She brought up her shield just in time for the jagged sharp end of the spear to penetrate off.
The spear belonged to the black claws and hairy arms, all leading up to the snarling face of the satyr hidden behind the blackened helmet.
Its twisted horns curled outwards from the sides of its head, just as black as the helmet shielding its face. Behind the mask, Starlight could see the demented, red eyes glaring at her. The satyr bellowed, mixtures of screams and cries a goat would make, and then it swung at her with its spear. Instinctively, Starlight ducked, bringing up her magical shield once the satyr swung down for another strike at her head. This time, her shield cracked, the unicorn wincing in pain.
It broke apart with the second hit, leaving Starlight prone for attack. The satyr brought back its weapon and bellowed once more, evidently leaving itself open as well. A bolt of magic struck the creature right in the heart, blasting it back and skidding to a dead stop several yards away.
Twilight landed too, her hooves digging into the grass and dirt as she glared at the limp body of the satyr, daring it to get back up. It didn’t.
For a moment, the two just stared straight ahead, each mare breathing sporadically, taking what little time they had to rest and recollect. The battle continued around them, and they weren’t invulnerable to the threats constantly swarming.
“Thanks,” Starlight breathed, her eyes drawing away from the satyr and onto Twilight.
Following the unicorn’s actions, Twilight’s eyes slowly rested onto Starlight, seeing the unicorn in the midst of the chaos. Dirt was splattered against her coat and mane, mixtures of soot and ash conjoined as well. Beads of sweat built against her forehead and around her horn. She appeared winded, though her eyes were feral, on point, ready for action at any given moment.
But when her eyes met Starlight’s, that burning light Twilight had seen had begun to simmer. Just a little bit. Her mouth closed, remaining tight and lips in a straight line. It was rare to see Starlight so calm. Most of the time she appeared on edge, ready to lash out against anypony that thought differently than her.
In the midst of madness, lost like a foal from a mother, Starlight looked different. As if that small “thank you” actually held some pure, genuine weight to it. Did that change Twilight’s opinion of her? Again, she didn’t know yet. Perhaps once the battle was over, once she knew she and her friends would make it out of this insanity together, maybe then…
Out of the corner of her vision, far beyond the pale pink unicorn, something hovered right over the buildings, directly right of the gardens.
Maybe…
Her mind spoke, yet Twilight was already lost, eyes blinking in disbelief.
Maybe then she can be something more.
Starlight spun around, eyes growing wide as a sharp gasp escaped her.
Something more than the monster ponies make her out to be.
She didn’t believe it at first, neither of them did. From the constant shadow looming dangerously above Canterlot, it was hard to make anything out clearly. But once he came into focus, hovering just about fifty feet above ground and growing closer by the second, all the anger Twilight held before had diminished, her strength leaving her at the sight of him.
Paranoia seemed to creep its way back into her heart and soul. The moment Ultron moved forth into the light burning against the building sides, nearly everyone stopped in their tracks to gaze upon him. Even the enemy army halted accordingly directly beneath his feet, leaving a short moment for the Princesses, the Avengers, and the remaining ponies to catch their breath.
But only for so long.
Captain America ripped his shield out of the chest of a dead sentry, placing it over the electromagnet on his wrist. He, along with the remaining Avengers, cleared away what remained of Ultron’s forces, readying themselves for the next wave to hit. But it didn’t. Not yet, anyways. They turned to face each other, Barton with an arrow at the ready and Pietro finally slowing to a halt next to his sister, sweat gracing his body.
Aside from the constant cries of war and destruction raging across the city, it was fairly quiet on the battlefield around them. Captain America noticed this revelation first, and brought his attention back to the enemy armies. They stood at the entrance of the gardens where the streets of Canterlot were placed, eyeing them dangerously, demons licking their lips and sentries simply giving them that same, dead stare.
He didn’t know why they stopped, or how they stopped, but everyone’s eyes slowly began to rise higher and higher. He saw it first with the two Alicorn sisters ahead of him and his team, their heads gazing upwards and stopping. The Captain and the four Avengers behind him followed their actions, their eyes landing on him.
Him.
Him and him alone.
Ultron.
“That’s new,” Natasha muttered, reloading her pistol with a fresh magazine. Not many left.
What she observed and commented on, of course, would be the four extra arms electrically connected to Ultron’s body. That same electric current seemed to flow through the entirety of his from, spreading from his arms to his chest and even down to his legs. He shimmered in the darkness that consumed the city, his piercing, red gaze showering down upon the ones below him, a red haze slowly fading away from his eye sockets.
He definitely got an upgrade.
Even his voice sounded different. Barely though. It still held the same raw power as before, if not more intense now.
“Do you see the world as it is now?” Ultron began, each arm held out wide. “Burning, returning to the cinder it once was. You all started on the path to your own demise, and I just finished it for you. I’ve torn apart your prisons, released your demons upon you, brought down the heavens and here you stand still fighting, still willing to believe that you have a chance to survive. Now, please tell me, what else is there you can do? What more can you hope to accomplish from this?”
From below him, his army grew more impatient by the second, squirming where they stood. The sentries remained frozen. As for the very few still defending, they all stayed silent for the time being, waiting for one of them to speak up and speak loud. Shining Armor gripped his sword in his own aura, blood dripping from the side of his head as his helmet lay broken by his hooves. The remnants of the Equestrian Army waited for orders, turning their eyes from their captain to the princesses.
Princess Twilight was particularly silent, her speech lost just at the sight of the new and improved Ultron floating above them. Her friends, though fearful, stood as tall as they could; glaring at the mechanized beast with whatever bravery they had left. Starlight, especially, wasn’t backing down. Her upper lip quivered, a low snarl building in her throat.
Behind the barricade, Spike looked past the Avengers defending him and the wounded mare sitting by his side and poised his rifle right for the AI. Fluttershy winced in pain, hooves gently rubbing the fresh bandages applied to her abdomen before she too slowly adjusted herself to a weak standing position, eyes gazing at the floating machine.
The Avengers didn’t speak. None of them moved.
As for Celestia and Luna, the eldest raised her spear defiantly in Ultron’s direction, yelling, “We will not fall prey to your cowardly acts, Ultron! All we can hope to accomplish from this travesty you wrought is your demise! And we will see that through!”
“Celestia!”
Turning her eyes away from Ultron—his own piercing glare burning the back of her head—Celestia spotted Captain America and the four Avengers behind him hurrying forward to her. The Captain stopped, as did the ones behind him. He said, “You don’t have to fight this battle. Ultron is our concern, not yours. We need you and your sister to get everypony as far away as possible from him.”
Steve took another step forward, but was halted by Luna’s longsword held dangerously between the two. He looked from the tip over his heart to the Alicorn wielding the weapon. Luna stared into the soldier’s eyes, her own bearing no sympathy.
Luna said, “With all due respect, Captain, but the moment he fell into our lands he was our concern.” She lowered her sword to rest by her side, the magic around it cooling down. “We refuse to leave our friends to fend for themselves.”
Then she faced away, as did Celestia, as they turned and glared at Ultron.
Captain America looked down to their weapons. He could see the golden aura around Celestia’s spear grow brighter, the dark blue magic around Luna’s longsword doing the same. Their horns seemed to glow brighter, their bodies shimmering amongst the darkness.
“Captain,” Celestia stated in a near-whisper, still refusing to look back, “take them and retreat deeper into the city. We will hold him off long enough for you and your team to escape.”
“Will you now?” Ultron gloated.
Steve shot his eyes from the AI and back to the two sisters. “Please, you don’t have to do this,” he muttered. “We’ll face him together.”
“That wasn’t a request,” Luna growled, slowly hovering above ground, dirt particles floating across her hooves. “Back away, Captain,” she hissed through gritted teeth. “Now!”
He turned to the more reasonable of the two. “Celes—”
Her wings shot outwards, as did Luna’s, as a bright flash erupted from the duo. It was so bright, in fact, that Captain America had to shield his eyes, literally. Twilight and her friends flinched back, forelegs rising to block their vision and the intense amount of light burning from the two Alicorns. Once it simmered down, once it appeared that it was safe to finally be able to see, the Avengers, the lone, baby dragon, and the surrounding ponies all gawked at the sight of the Princesses.
How they glowed and tore away the darkness trying to consume them. How their eyes, pure, snowy white, centered on the evil that stood before them. How in just one blast they were all wiped away from existence.
Gone.
Just one flash of light.
Sentries stared into the light, the very light that consumed and eradicated every molecule that made them who they were. Demons shrieked in fear from the intensity of the heat, their skin melting as they clawed at the heaven’s glow, every shred of them fading away. Ultron could only watch as the blast radius consumed him.
And leave nothing left.
Still glowing, slowly fading away, the two sisters fell back to the grass, spent and weary. Smoke drifted from their horns, their weapons, and their own bodies. As the light died down at last, Captain America brought down his shield to gaze upon the two sisters, then to shift his attention to what they had done.
The entire army ahead of them was gone. Vanished. Nothing but charred bodies and smoke lined the burning grass and scorched cement road. The darkness that consumed Canterlot finally began to return as the light from the two sisters cooled, leaving everyone and everypony behind them silenced into amazement. Rarity made sure to close Pinkie’s jaw for her.
But it wasn’t over. Not yet, that is.
Captain America looked up once again before anyone else could. He stared into the smoke cloud rising higher and higher, narrowing his gaze. It didn’t feel right. It almost felt too easy. The others behind him felt the same, Natasha cocking her pistol.
Flinching at the sound, Celestia and Luna turned their noses up, each Alicorn squinting to see what had remained.
They never heard a body fall, or the remnants of a body for that matter.
All they heard was the sound of war. Constant, never-ending, all around them.
They narrowed their eyes. They didn’t speak. They couldn’t.
It was so quiet in the Canterlot Gardens. Twilight could hear herself gulp in anticipation.
And it was the last thing she heard for a while.
Out of the smoke, Celestia and Luna saw nothing but two red eyes.
Then they came rushing forward and tackled the Princess of the Night with such ferocity that it created a shockwave into the earth, flinging the Captain like a ragdoll. Dirt exploded as if a mortar had hit the ground, spraying past each Avenger and knocking them on their backs. The shockwave spread throughout the gardens, knocking ponies over, causing even more distress and chaos as before.
Because nopony saw it coming.
Because they were never prepared for what followed.
Shining Armor was pushed backwards from the force of the shockwave, but he held firm and stayed standing. The majority of his forces followed his actions, some screaming to one another, others turning their attention to the fight. Shining brought his attention off of his little sister and her friends lying in pain and twisted his neck over to see Ultron’s remaining army charge again, ready to take him and his troops by surprise.
He jutted his sword outwards, the hilt contained within his aura as he charged. Those ponies who managed to stay standing from the blast charged with him, fought by their captain, protected those who had fallen in pain, their hooves clutching their ears. It wasn’t some strange phenomenon. The blast from earlier was loud. Very loud. Even then, as his sword sliced the heads off of each demon he encountered, Shining Armor still heard a slight ringing in his ears, but that was it. Ponies like Shining Armor were lucky.
Other ponies like Twilight Sparkle…were not.
She lied on her back, staring up at the swirling black and red clouds as her hooves were pressed into her ears. She blinked several times, a painful ring bouncing from ear to ear, never leaving. Twilight opened her mouth and screamed. She screamed loud, as loud as she ever could, and heard nothing.
Turning over, hooves pressed against the dirt, Twilight watched as the remainder of her friends all slowly began to stand up. Rainbow Dash helped up Applejack, her jaw falling and veins bulging from her throat. Applejack stared at her blankly, an orange hoof rising to feel her ear. Pinkie Pie remained sitting, cringing in pain as her hooves dug into her ears. Rarity and Starlight fared no better. The two stared blankly at nothing, their mouths falling and words supposedly coming out.
Nothing did. Nothing heard, that is. All they heard was a ring from ear to ear.
Spike watched them fumble on the shattered dirt ground, screaming to one another but nopony responding. He looked past that, watching as more of Ultron’s army was quickly approaching. This time, however, nothing was stopping them.
“Twilight…” Spike mumbled fearfully. They grew closer, their claws digging into the cement and then the grass. “Twilight!” he screamed, flinging up his rifle and firing away. It kicked hard, but he fought back, gritting his jaw with each pull of the trigger.
Demons were vaporized left and right.
“Twilight!”
Sentries blew apart as the blasts hit them in the chest and arms.
“TWILIGHT! Please, get up!”
They just kept coming.
And coming.
And coming. Spike heard Fluttershy scream beneath him, but he didn’t even look down. He was far too busy protecting all six mares ahead of him. She was safe. In his peripheral vision, Spike saw nothing that could hurt Fluttershy. She was just scared. Hay, he was, too. And by the time they finally began to retrieve their senses, Spike’s confidence slowly began to rebuild knowing they were alright. They could still fight.
All simply vanishing as the earth trembled.
Ultron felt it, as well. With the Lunar Princess’ throat in his grasp, Ultron paused and smiled knowingly. A smile that knew all too well. A smile that didn’t last long. A cry came from behind him, causing Ultron to spin accordingly and be met with the end of a spear ramming into the side of his head, launching him into the dirt skidding and tumbling.
Celestia glared at her opponent, aiding her younger sister back to her feet. Luna coughed roughly, her armor dented and scratched beyond repair. Celestia could only watch as the cuts and wounds on her slowly healed, Luna’s horn growing dark.
A quick healing spell always helped, thought Celestia. She’ll need it. Handing Luna her longsword, Celestia quickly created a golden shield out of pure magic, blocking the strike intended for her. It was him. In an instant, Ultron was on top of her, swinging madly and punching her protective barrier with such power that the Princess of the Sun actually crumbled, her legs fumbling under each hit.
Ultron brought up his right fist, all three of them, and intended to bring them down on Celestia’s cracking shield. A dark blue blur rammed into his side instead, knocking the both of them straight into the waves of Ultron’s forces. Several demons and sentries were crushed underneath Luna and Ultron. However, Ultron countered and flung the princess off of him.
Luna skidded to a halt, her chest heaving, weapon drawn, and eyes on fire.
Ultron clenched all six of his fists. Then he charged, as did Luna. Once they struck—the top right of his arms impacting her blade—his army rushed right past the two, just as he ordered. The dark red blade accompanying Ultron’s upper right arm grew larger, longer, and sharper. He swung with precision, slicing low and high as Luna did her best to deflect his attacks.
She didn’t fight well. The strike from earlier had weakened her, and Ultron’s tackle had hurt her. Still, she held on and blocked Ultron’s attacks, barely getting off some strikes of her own. To her horror, as a pair of sentries flew above and shot a volley of repulsors at her, Luna shielded herself with her longsword, blocking each repulsor blast. However, Ultron grabbed her blade and ripped it away, punching her across the face with one of his free hands.
As Luna fell, Ultron stood above her with his own blade raised high, ready to finish it. Instead, a golden beam struck him in his upper right arm. He sneered. “Celestia!” Turning back towards the attack, Ultron shielded himself with his middle left palm, blocking the second beam of energy intended for his chest.
“You bother me!” he retorted with a few concussion blasts to the Solar Princess. Celestia dodged and weaved in the air, replying with more magical beams. Luna got back up, retrieved her sword in the dirt, and charged Ultron.
She swung madly, and Ultron blocked each attack as if he had trained her, knew her tactics, and fought back with much more fluid, powerful strikes, the kind Luna had trouble defending against. Celestia impacted the earth, spear at the ready, and charged Ultron. He swung at her with one of his left fists, but Celestia deflected the attack, and jammed her spear into his chest. He swung again, she dodged and struck him.
Ultron backed away slowly. Luna sliced down, hitting two of his three right arms. Celestia blasted him in the chest with a spell, knocking him onto one knee. With that moment of weakness, Celestia and Luna capitalized and brought down their weapons on the wounded AI, striking him down and blocking his attacks.
Luna swung and sliced Ultron’s palm intended for her. Her eyes burned white, a spell hitting Ultron in the chest. All three of his left palms lit up and aimed for Celestia, but she caught each concussion blast in her magic, enhancing the attacks and using them on him. She finished with another slice of her spear across his metallic face.
Ultron broke free. Despite everything, he broke free, all six of his hands glowing bright. Both sisters read each other’s mind, charging their weapons, their horns as well, and countering Ultron’s attack before he could even try it. A dark wave of energy expelled from Luna’s longsword, hitting Ultron square in the chest. A golden beam straight from the power of the sun was released from the tip of Celestia’s spear, joining her sister’s energy blast and striking Ultron.
They held still, their combined magic keeping Ultron at bay. She couldn’t see much, but Celestia could definitely make out Ultron’s body holding against the conjoined magic of the Royal Sisters. He was held in place. He couldn’t move.
It wouldn’t last forever.
Celestia turned her neck back, shouting, “Now, Captain! Get everypony away!”
A second tremor filled the gardens. And Captain America, once retrieving his shield after having tossed it a demon, turned to Celestia. He saw as she and Luna held Ultron still with their magic, but even then they were struggling, and Ultron wasn’t backing down. He slowly began to stand, moving closer and closer to Luna.
Another tremor. The Captain watched them for what felt like too long, his chest heaving. He saw the pain in Celestia’s eyes, the begging.
Now or never.
“Fall back!” Captain America shouted, spinning around and making a run for it. Barton and Natasha watched him run back, quickly joining him. Pietro saw them run. He quickly grabbed his sister and scooped her into his arms, taking off after them. The three leapt over barricades, Captain America waving over the Equestrian Army to his position.
“Come on! On me! We’re falling back!”
Shining Armor watched as he ran for their position, pausing only to stop by Twilight and her friends. As for the young Alicorn, fully standing but not yet fully recovered, she turned to the Captain to see him speaking to her, his mouth opening and closing but no words escaping. Twilight felt the presence of the rest of her friends joining her side, Starlight Glimmer twisting her neck over to the Captain, nodding in understanding.
Twilight still couldn’t hear right. The constant ringing had grown tiresome, a small migraine building against her forehead. However, the rest of her friends seemed to have their hearing return to them, their hooves digging into their ears and the actions they performed following giving light to that. All except for Twilight.
She stared blankly ahead, watching as Captain America mouthed the words “Got it” over and over again. He pointed at his ears, asking another question that she never would’ve caught. And as the remaining Avengers appeared behind him, Pietro Maximoff slowing to a halt to drop off his sister, Wanda looked to the ponies, then brought up her head the second the next tremor hit.
It shook the entire mountain.
It caused Twilight to nearly fall flat on her face.
It was directly behind her.
Twilight saw as Wanda screamed, hands rising up to cover her mouth. Though she didn’t hear a thing besides the constant ringing, she could imagine the horrified cries from any remaining pony still within the gardens, her friends included. Each Avenger turned towards the disturbance, each of their eyes widening as they slowly backpedaled and readied themselves.
That’s when she heard it.
Actually heard it.
“Princess Twilight!”
Thankful for her hearing back, though not so much after hearing the voice, Twilight spun around. All she saw was a ball of dark red and orange fire headed straight for her and her friends. She only had a split second to react.
She could only concoct a shield, one that managed to spread in front of the hooves of Applejack and Rainbow Dash, the ones who would’ve taken the blast first. But instead, the shield shattered in an instant, minimizing the blast and launching everypony back several feet. Twilight felt her back hit something soft, something that grunted heavily upon impact. Her eyes were shut tight as she flew backwards and finally hit ground, tumbling as did the rest of her friends.
“…Twilight!”
Groggily, groaning in pain, Twilight opened her eyes.
She saw Spike and Fluttershy shaking her awake, tears in each of their eyes. She flinched as a roaring pain echoed throughout her bones, but she still sighed in relief, thankful for her hearing to have returned in full. However, a part of her wished it hadn’t. What she heard next gave truth to that thought.
“Not as resilient as you once were?! I see… Which means…”
She struggled to stand, every muscle screaming in agony. Her face contorted to several layers of pain, clearly noticeable. Fluttershy and Spike helped her stand, the Pegasus moving back to check on the Captain’s injuries. Twilight rubbed the back of her head, turning around to see Captain America lying on his side, cringing as Fluttershy gently prodded his chest.
The rest of her friends were beginning to stand back up, the four other Avengers joining them. Knowing they were alright, Twilight turned back to Spike, the two sharing a quick glance before leaning over the barricade. Across the gardens, both Twilight and Spike could only watch…
The tremors grew more sporadic, stronger with each passing one. Celestia and Luna paid them no heed. They were far too preoccupied holding Ultron, but even then they were faltering, slipping away from their power. He moved closer, more tremors growing from behind the two sisters.
“Hold…strong, Luna!” Celestia cried, mixtures of sweat and painful tears rolling down her face.
“Sister!” Luna screamed, her eyes shutting tight. A metal claw wrapped around Luna’s longsword, completely snapping the weapon as if it was nothing. The Princess of the Night yelped in pain, that same metal claw smacking her across the face. Luna crouched low, watching as the hand came back and punched her with such ferocity that the side of her head went straight down into the dirt, the rest of her body following.
Ultron didn’t stop despite defeating the younger sister. He heard a valiant cry, a pain-filled one, and spun towards the approaching Alicorn. She jabbed and swung with her spear, but Ultron blocked them. Even then, to his own surprise, Celestia rammed the butt of her spear into his forehead, spinning it around and firing a single blast into one of his arms.
The blast singed his upper right arm, completely breaking off the connection between it and his body. Ultron turned to his flying appendage, watching as it hit the dirt and disappeared under the feet of his army.
He spun back to the princess. She growled fiercely, spear at the ready. Another tremor, the strongest one yet. Ultron smiled.
“Eh, I’ve got five more,” he croaked, punching Celestia in the chest with his lower left fist. She skidded backwards, hooves digging into the earth. Once she stopped, eyes slowly opening, she eyed the AI carefully, watched as he smiled wickedly, knowingly.
Mockingly.
He said, “And you’ve just run out of time, Princess.”
Before she could react, a fist ten times her size crushed the Princess of the Sun.
“CELESTIA!”
Twilight didn’t know who screamed louder, her or Spike. It hardly mattered who did. They, as well as the rest of Twilight’s closest friends stepped forward, each of them showing some form of horror or terror rippling in their eyes, coursing through their expressions. Every breath that Twilight managed to take ended in short, uncontrolled whimpers, tears welling up in her eyes.
They watched—all seven mares and one baby dragon—as Lord Tirek’s massive fist slowly rose out of the earth. There, lying in a crumpled heap of her own armor, Princess Celestia slowly gaze upwards to her oppressor, just to see those yellow dots glare at her from above, the twin horns jutting out from the beast’s head.
It pained her to breathe, but as she did her eyes slowly shifted to Ultron. It pained her even more to see him levitate her younger sister above her, Luna’s battered and broken body completely at his mercy. Her eyes opened, the cyan in her irises gazing down to see her older sister lying defeated. Each lowered their gazes in defeat, each one too injured to speak.
Ultron looked up. He released his grasp around Princess Luna, only to watch as an orange aura surrounded her body. The same thing happened for Celestia, and together to the two sisters slowly rose up higher and higher.
Twilight let the tears fall freely down her cheeks, each hoof covering her mouth.
They stopped. Both sisters opened their eyes, broken and beaten, and stared into the face of evil itself.
The face of evil smiled.
And it said, “Now, I shall take what it is rightfully mine. As it always should be!”
Tirek opened his maw, rows of teeth shimmering against the flames consuming Canterlot. And like that, Celestia and Luna screamed in agony as the magic that kept them strong simply vanished, flowing from their horns and leaving their bodies. The power of the Royal Sisters left them, consumed so easily by Lord Tirek. Their cutie marks, as well, were gone.
Once that was done, Tirek roared as the new power flowed through him, causing his back to haunch over and his attention on the sisters to break. Twilight cried out as Celestia and Luna fell to the earth, completely drained of their magic. Spike placed his claws on his own head, digging into his scales as he shook his head in disbelief.
Everything seemed to slow down, the events previously still haunting Twilight’s mind, more tears falling. Her friends shared the same fate, screaming and crying out to the two princesses.
They paid no attention to the swarming army of demons rushing for them, or the sentries raining from the sky. They didn’t even see Captain America running forward and ramming his shield into the head of the nearest demon, causing it to perform a backflip before falling dead. Hawkeye rolled forward behind him, firing off an arrow that struck a sentry in the forehead. It fell to the ground and died. Natasha hopped right over the dead sentry and charged straight into the battle, batons at the ready. The twins followed, tearing the enemy army to shreds.
They fought with everything they were, with all the strength in their muscles. Captain America screamed each time his shield hit an enemy. Barton had run out of room, instead choosing to wield his bow and smack any foe that drew near. Natasha was with him, wasting clip after clip, swapping out magazines, and doing it again. Wanda’s hands danced as she kneeled into the dirt, waves of her dark magic tearing sentries apart. Pietro was everywhere.
Everywhere.
Steve gazed upwards for split second, then continued to fight. The massive centaur grew even larger, slowly turning its attention over to the lone Avengers in the middle of the battle. Ultron hovered in the air, capturing the Captain’s eyes once he raised all five of his arms into the air at once, bringing forth even more sentries hiding behind the dark clouds.
It was too much.
Steve spun around, saw Twilight and her friends just standing there, and screamed, “Twilight!”
She looked at him, momentarily stunned. He fought on, tossing his shield over to Pietro, who caught it mid-sprint and rammed it into several charging demons before throwing it back. Steve yelled, “Get you and your friends out of here now!”
Twilight didn’t speak. She couldn’t speak. She could only watch as the floods of monsters continued to rage on, the Avengers barely holding on.
“Steve!”
Twilight twisted her neck around, seeing Rainbow Dash spread her wings.
“No, I want you to run!” the Captain shouted, spinning around and catching a demon that lunged for him. It snapped at the soldier, jagged teeth growing closer with each bite. His eyes shifted from the demon in his grasp to Ultron and the massive centaur. They began to make their approach, more and more waves of their army rushing below them.
It wouldn’t be long. Steve could see Barton get swarmed, several demons leaping onto his back. Natasha screamed and ran for him, a sentry tackling her. Wanda and Pietro centered on the two fallen Avengers, completely ignoring Ultron and Tirek, especially Tirek. An orb of dark red and orange energy began to form between his towering horns, a deep chuckle vibrating through the air.
Captain America saw it. He roared and lifted the demon above him, smashing the creature into the dirt and ramming his shield right into its skull.
The creature squirmed, then stopped, blood oozing from its wound and painting the shield. Slowly, everypony brought their eyes onto the Captain. He looked up, resting on one knee as the army of evil raced right for him, his back turned to them.
But he didn’t notice it. All he did was stare at the seven mares, breathing in and breathing out.
“Go…”
Rainbow shook her head. Twilight didn’t move. The rest of her friends didn’t either. Starlight followed them.
“You have to,” Steve muttered. The army was closing in, Tirek’s eyes landing on the soldier in a kneeling position. He growled, the orb growing larger in-between his horns.
Twilight caught her breath.
Rainbow gritted her teeth.
Everypony else just stared.
Steve Rogers did the same.
“You have to—”
And then time stopped.
Or, it seemed that way.
A new light shined from above, prompting everyone’s attention up to the sky. Everyone’s attention. The army of demons and sentries stopped in their tracks, skidding to a halt just feet behind Captain America to stare up.
To stare up.
Even Tirek couldn’t resist, Ultron falling prey just the same.
Each of the mares, Spike as well, once frozen in their own fear and contemplation, stopped to gaze up to the sky that was once infected with the plague of darkness. Now, to their own stunned astonishment, a warm, alien, blue light broke through the evil that consumed all of Canterlot.
The light was bright. So very bright.
Captain America gazed upwards at long last, squinting just to see clearly what kind of anomaly had arrived. He saw as the clouds broke apart to let something through, something that couldn’t be contained or stopped. That bright, blue light that had showered upon the Super Soldier suddenly exploded outwards, creating a circle in the heavens.
A blue circle, bright enough to light all of Canterlot, tore apart the swirling clouds, letting through little light. Very little.
The presence of actual sunlight did little for the Captain.
But the blue vortex above, one that appeared all-too-familiar to him, struck the Captain speechless. And he smiled. For the first time in a long time, he smiled.
Smiled as the single, flying, mechanized war beast slowly entered Canterlot’s airspace through the alien portal. The four massive engines roared louder than any of the creatures below could’ve hoped to as it descended into the madness, shining brighter than the portal it escaped from.
Captain America couldn’t stop smiling.
“Son of a bitch.”
Lying in the dirt, Natasha tore her eyes away from the Helicarrier and looked over to Rogers, surprise in her eyes.
Thor couldn’t even stare at it for long.
He flinched back, still standing on the edge of Canterlot, and spun around to witness a tower of golden light impact the earth at the bottom of the mountain. His breathing increased, his palm nearly dropping Mjølnir into the shattered cement.
He wanted to drop to his knees. He wanted to cry out and scream a righteous roar to the heavens above him and hold out his hammer, his hammer being the weapon that led to his victory. But he didn’t. He only smiled. That smile turned into a chuckle, then into laughter.
The golden tower remained, standing between Canterlot and the armies of Tartarus.
Thor laughed.
“All-seeing eye! I am victorious once again, Stark!”
He shot out his arm and raised Mjølnir to the sky, roaring a powerful and righteous cry. He couldn’t help himself.
The armies of Tartarus slowed to a halt once the tower of light impacted the ground ahead. It crashed with such ferocity and power that rock spewed outwards from its impact, the clouds above being torn apart upon its entry.
Demons of all shapes and sizes, titans and harpies, gorgons and chimeras, satyrs and cyclopes all stared in anticipation, waited and watched as something emerged from the golden light and stepped into the world. The first foot crunched a stone, followed by a golden spear being jammed into the dirt as a declaration.
A declaration of their presence to the world.
A warning to those foolish enough to stand against them.
The first few steps into a new world, led by the King of Asgard.
As he emerged out of the light, more followed him. The first was a large individual wielding a double headed axe, his beard resting on his mighty chest. Next, a slim woman with armor that suited her, holding a sword and shield respectively in a hand each. Her dark flowed against the wind, the fire in her eyes almost being concealed.
Following the woman was an Asian man, his dark beard flowing with his long, luscious hair. In his hand he gripped a spiked mace, his eyes narrowing on the demon army before him. Next to the warrior, another emerged from the golden light, this one with slim, blonde hair resting on his head, upper lips, and chin. From behind his green cape, he unsheathed a dagger and a longsword, swinging them with precision and accuracy, but mostly for show.
Following him…
…were reinforcements.
Men of Asgard, men forged from warriors, sons of heroes, all of them stepped out from the light and lined the ground they stepped upon. Their golden armor shimmered against the tower’s light behind them, their spears, swords, and shields doing just the same. They came out as fifty strong, then as a hundred, then more. Even more.
The armies of Tartarus screamed their war cry, charging ahead as one.
The earth trembled under the force of the creatures from the Underworld. Despite this, seeing the staggering numbers against his own, Odin pointed his spear forward.
And he yelled, “Stand your ground!”
They kept coming. Lady Sif, the Warriors Three, and the golden army all readied themselves for the first wave. The golden army lifted up their shields, their swords and spears jutted forward.
“For Asgard!”
They waited until the enemy army drew near, and then they charged. The sound of 10,000 Asgardian blades struck the air like thunder and lightning.