-Unknown POV-
I finally arrived at my mansion in the Everfree Forest. I swooped down to the trees below and landed roughly on the green lushes leaves of the dark tree. My Fire Strike wings instantly vanished in flames and ash, as he came out from my right arm plate. A small whistle escapes his beak as he admires the new house. “You weren’t kidding when you said Claw Leaf remodeled big.” He spoke in a deep tone while he admired the scenery around him.
“Told ya,” I replied. Looking around, I noticed a few Timberwolves around the house pacing and sleeping. “Claw Leaf, did you have some visitors?”
“Some pegasus guards flew overhead after they saw you flying away. ” Claw Leaf replied “I hid the mansion and put some security, just in case they decided to land”
I nodded, as Fire Strike looked around “Are you kidding me?”
“Not the time for this conversation. Nice to see you again, Strike. Although I can only feel you.”
Fire Strike looked at me. “Order of the Elements, isn’t it?” he asked.
I nodded.
“Fine.” Strike admitted, looking around. “Leaf, I hope you thought of adding a few rooms for each one of us.”
“Try the top floors.” Leaf replied towards Fire Strike, before directing his speech to me “By the way, another token arrived.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Another? What is it this time?”
“A amulet.”
I traded a glance with Fire Strike, before we both walked inside, directing ourselves towards the living room. There I noticed an amulet in the shape of a long sword, somehow similar to the one Zelda used to have, with Celestia’s and Lunas’ Cutie Mark embedded on each side of the blade. I calmly approached the blade and touched it. A message instantly sprung into my head.
Hi my name is Craig. If ever you are in danger, are scared, frightened or even just need an ally to stand by your side in your darkest hour. Call on me and I will come and do everything in my power to aid you.
I tilted my head “Somehow, I expected Link's’ name, but Craig?” I spoke out loud. I look at Fire Strike for a moment, then back at the sword.
“Should I call him?”
“You’re not in danger.” Claw Leaf started.
“Or scared.” Fire Strike added.
“Or frightened.” Leaf continued
“Or in your darkest hour.” Strike finished.
“You’re right. But I do need somebody to have a chat.” I then picked up the sword and raise it in a knights’ salute. “Hey there Craig, Mike Elemental here. I’m not in any peril right now, but I do miss another human to talk to. You’re available?”
-Craig’s POV-
As I slowly rose my head I began to rub my forehead as I feel a strange sensation all over my body. I then looked around me and see what looked to be my amulet glowing on the desk beside me. I slowly touched the hilt of the amulet and hear a voice as quiet as a whisper say “Hey there Craig, Mike Elemental here. I’m not in any peril right now, but I do miss another human to talk to. You’re avaliable?”
Yeah might as well, I could a bit of a wake-up call I thought.
I then quickly grabbed a piece of paper and the pen from a nearby draw then wrote “Got a call from a Displaced be back soon. see you later, Craig.” I then continued to walk downstairs and placed the note on a table.
Once I was sure Scootaloo would find it I continued to walk back upstairs to my room and grabbed my guitar from beside my bed and put the strap over my shoulder. I then grabbed my amulet, raised it above my head and then quickly slashed the amulet downwards in a vertical motion directly in front of me that created a portal that was large enough for me to walk through. I then placed the amulet back around my neck and walked through the portal and towards wherever this Mike was.
-Mike’s POV-
A few minutes after I made my call, a portal suddenly opened in the same place I was standing a few minutes before. Fire Strike jolted at the sudden appearance from his perch, as the entire tree shook when Claw Leaf felt a strange presence. “Easy guys” I spoke to both “I believe my call has been answered.” even so, I kept my left hand at the ready in Strikes’ view.
Seconds later a figure similar to mine began to walk out of the portal. Once he had passed through, he opened his eyes, looking around until he focused on me. With a smile, he said “You must be Mike” he extended his hand out “I’m Craig. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
I relaxed my left hand and raised my right, grabbing Craig’s and shaking it. “Nice to meet you too, Craig. And it’s good to meet someone new, even if they’re from an Alternate World.” I then point towards Strike “That’s Fire Strike, a phoenix and the Flame of Loyalty.”
At the mention of his name, Fire Strike puffed out his chest, showing his regal self towards Craig.
Craig then smiled and said “Well, I might as well introduce you to my friends” seconds later a Liquid form began to appear from between his clothes and slowly covered his body, leaving what appeared to be a dark blue suit covering him. Once his body was completely covered he said “This is BiiSahSpaan or Bii for short” Seconds later I heard a voice chuckle and then Craig said “and as you can guess” he then pointed at him and continued to say "this is Discord.”
I blinked at the draconequus. “My world or his?” I asked Discord.
To this, he just smiled and said “Craig’s, I do owe him for the trouble I caused to him.”
“Good to know,” I said, turning to Craig. “I think Discord must have some kind of grudge towards me in here, after the prank, I managed to pull. Either way, what’s your timeline?”
Craig then looked at me and said “in my world, we are around three days after Discord was released from stone the first time.
“In other words, you got in the beginning of season two.”
To this Craig just smiled then said “Eyuup.”
“Okay,” I glanced at Discord “More than enough. But where are my manners?” I moved my hand towards a pair of couches “Get yourselves comfortable while I prepare a drink. Tea?”
To this Craig just shook his head and said “No thank you I'm fine”.
I then looked at Discord to see that he had already got himself a drink of lemonade. “Right.” I then walked towards a small couch, picked up a kettle with water before I put it at Strikes’ level, “Heat it up, please.”
Fire Strike arches his head, and a small stream of fire comes out of his beak towards the bottom of the kettle. Five seconds later, the kettle starts whistling. “So, can you tell me how you ended up in Equestria?” I asked, pouring the boiling water into a cup while thanking Fire Strike.
To this Craig looked at Discord then said “well Discord screwed with me for years before I arrived in Equestria before he was released from stone, but to how I got here… well, I don’t know.”
I blinked, turning to Discord. “You can do that?”
To this he smiles and says “Yes but it wasn’t easy but i’d had years of practice in breaking the fourth wall as you all like to call it. I then used my magic to find a being whose life had been destroyed by chaos.”
“Why?”
He then looked down to the ground and muttered something that I didn’t hear. Craig then said, “Someone threatened to destroy him whilst he was encased in stone, he hasn’t told me who but I believe him.”
I frowned for a moment, until I felt my couch tug my arm. Claw Leaf sending a message. “I see.” I started slowly. “And if Discord doesn’t want to tell, then that means he’s afraid of whoever threatened him. Even for a being of Chaos.”
To this Craig nodded his head then shut his eyes before I heard a voice in my head say “There's more to it than I'm willing to let everyone know. I’m pretty sure who it is but I don’t want to risk Discords safety until I have evidence to prove who it is.”
My eyes widened, and before I could speak, Claw Leaf beat me to it “Okay, now that we know that you can speak telepathically, let’s put a few rules: one, warn Mike beforehand, if you don’t want a sudden mind trap; two, never pull that unless in case of extreme emergencies; three, signal the next time you do it. I’m Claw Leaf, the Nature of Honesty, by the way.”
Craig then smiled and said “I wondered who it was I knew there was a third life source around here and duly noted. Oh and do yours and Fire Strikes personalities match your element counterparts?”
Fire Strike recoiled, as I tilted my head “Okay, I’ve been meaning to ask, but what kind of powers do you have?”
Craig then opened his eyes and said “I can manipulate anything from any computer game I've played. Up to yet, i’ve used things from Dragonball Z, Skyrim, Saint’s Row and Skills from Naruto.”
“A Reality Manipulator.” Fire Strike spoke up for the first time. “What he saw once can be replicated at will.”
Craig then smiled and said “I guess I can create things like this” He then closed his eyes and a black sword appears on his back. he then opens his eyes and quickly unsheathes the sword and holds it sideways and then said “as easy as that.”
I eyed the sword for a few moments, nodding “Quite the useful ability you have.”
He smiled “yeah, I pulled a similar trick on Discord and summoned a sword that hurt dragons more than normal.”
"So your abilities depend on your knowledge from games, anime and cartoons." I said, thoughtful "Gotta admit, that's one of the best, yet dangerous ability you have."
“No just games the skills from Dragonball Z are from a game called XenoVerse. I haven’t tried anything from cartoons,” admitted Craig.
“Then don’t try it. You have Pinkie as the perfect example.” I told him before sipping some tea.
He just smiled and said “Yeah, she’s not that bad, though. She’s quite a good drummer as well, we are part of a band.”
I lowered my cup, looking at him. "Cool. Maybe one of these days you can summon me to one of your concerts." I put down the cup then got myself comfortable on the couch "Don't you have any questions? So far, I'm the only one doing them."
Craig rubbed his head and said “That's one thing about me I omit from all conversations I have the social side of Aspergers.” he then sighed and said “I’m terrible when it come to meeting new people.” He then looked to the side of him before he smiled and asked me “I do have one question? Why is Celestia and Luna hiding outside? You piss them off or something?”
My eyes widen at the question “What?” I instantly jumped off my couch, reaching the window beside the main entrance, and took a peek outside. “Claw Leaf.”
“I can’t feel them.” Leaf reported “They’re veiling themselves quite well.”
“Why didn’t you hide the mansion when we got in?” Strike asked, sliding towards the other window.
“The mansion is hidden.” Leaf retorted “Otherwise, we would already be surrounded by their guard.”
“I doubt it.” I turn towards Craig “Are you sure they’re hiding outside?” I asked.
To this he just nodded his head and tells me “I can sense their power levels.” He then shuts his eyes “they're using magic. Tracking magic.” he then opened his eyes “They're tracking you using a spell.” He then walked up to me, placed his hand and my chest and whispered “Spell Break” and said “There, they can’t track you anymore.”
I look at my chest for a second, thinking. How did they manage to follow me this far? And this is Leafs' territory. Surely they know the risks of an ambush from him by reaching me.
I blinked. "Craig, can you do the same to Fire Strike?" I ask, looking at Craig.
“No problem give me a second” He then moves his hand towards Fire Strike and repeats the same process as before. He then looked back at me and said “Let me deal with the Princesses.”
I shook my head. “No. Celestia and Luna are after me. Celestia especially.” I glance at Fire Strike, lifting my right arm. Strike nodded and spread his wings, before turning himself into fire and taking off towards the armplate on the arm, disappearing. The armplate changed color, becoming red with his insignia. “If they saw you, things could get even more complicated, and I don’t know how to remove a petrification spell from the outside.”
He then smiled and said “Yeah. But when are you not you? Besides, they can’t hit what they can’t see.”
I put my hands on his shoulders. “Let’s keep the surprise attacks for another time.” I look outside.
He once again smiled and closed his eyes and seconds later becomes a perfect copy of me. He then mimicked my voice perfectly “Like I said when are you not you?”
I stared at him for a moment, as an idea formed in my head. “I suppose pranking them a little wouldn’t hurt,” I said, grinning.
“Give me time to give you room to move.”
“Hmm… I have a better idea. Ever watched Tom and Jerry?”
-Third POV-
Mike calmly walked outside the mansion, noticing the door disappearing between the leaves of the tree. He stopped at the edge of the tree, looking around. No-one in sight.
“Showtime,” he muttered before taking a deep breath. “MARSHMALLOW! MOON PIE! COME OUT COME OUT WHEREVER YOU ARE.”
The reply came out instantly. “STOP CALLING ME THAT!”
No sooner Celestias’ voice was heard, both Princesses revealed themselves from the veil
that was covering them. No big surprise when they revealed the armour they wore the last time both sides fought two millennia ago. The only difference was that Celestia was red with rage and Luna was flushed with embarrassment.
“Those still fit?” Mike asked, eyeing the armour “Even after all this time?”
Celestia's’ glare was strong enough that it felt the entire forest was about to enter dry season. Luna looked at him. “It is not as if we’ve been getting ourselves out of shape after so long.”
Mike raised an eyebrow. “Maybe not you Luna, but my question was more directed towards Celestia.” Luna pursed her lips, looking unamused. “And Celestia, could you lower the temperature? There are living beings in the forest that don’t like that kind of heat. Especially when you’re drying the spring and putting the Everfree on the verge of a forest fire.”
Celestia kept glaring at Mike for a couple of seconds before realizing he was telling the truth. The lake that surrounded the tree was turning into steam, and the column of trees that surrounded it were starting to have dry leaves. She took a deep breath, closing her eyes. After a full minute, the temperature was back to normal and the Sun Princess had regained her regal posture. Her glare, however, didn’t waver. “You should know by now that I’m being very patient towards your insults and provocations.” she spoke, keeping her voice leveled.
“Yet, your actions have been proving otherwise.” I replied “Sending spies after me towards the Badlands was also a bad move, considering the group of dragons that showed up after I reunited with Fire Strike.”
Both Princesses stared at him, wide-eyed. “You got Fire Strike back?” Luna asked suddenly.
Mike tilted his head towards them, raising an eyebrow. “Oh yeah. How do you think I figured you were close enough for me to throw an insult?” he smirked. “Even after two millennia, those necklaces can still be used.”
Celestia winced at the answer, but quickly recovered “It doesn’t matter. We can still defeat you, even if you have only one Elemental Spirit.” she said, lowering her horn.
Mike frowned “I’ve told you already. I’m not going to fight you.”
Luna took position besides her sister “It matters not if you either want to fight or not. You better surrender and return to your stone prison.” her horn lit up.
“Otherwise, be ready to face us at full strength!” Celestia finished, her horn also lighting up.
Mike sighed. “Fine. I’ll take the chance to try something new then.”
Taking a stance, he took a deep breath and let out a shout, and two arms suddenly popped into view. Both princesses stared in shock at the sudden appearance of the new arms. Mike then shouted again, and another pair of legs popped into view, side-by-side with the first pair. He looked at both Princesses with a maniac grin, and with one more shout, another head popped beside the first one.
Celestia and Luna just stared in horror, their eyes complete pinpricks, as each pair of heads focused on each one of them. Both heads changed a brief glance, before turning back and asking at the same time, hands twitching “Do you know what time it is?”
Both Princesses stared at the sudden transformation, unable to talk. Both gave a slow, small shake of their heads.
Mike's’ grin widened “It’s HORROR TICKLING TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” both heads yelled, their voices echoing through the Everfree as red wings sprouted from his back. Without giving them any time to react, Mike charged towards the Princesses cackling crazily, four arms stretched and fingers moving in wiggling motions.
As if that triggered an old memory from the Princesses, both screamed and disappeared in two flashes of light, moments before Mike could reach them. He stopped in midair, looking around. “Are they gone?” the left head asked the right.
Before coming out of the mansion, Mike and Craig had come to a plan. Something both remember from a show in their Worlds. With that in mind, Craig hid behind Mike and Bii camouflaged him in order to hide his presence until the right time.
The second head shook “No.” he whispered. Suddenly, he pulled to the side, as a dazzling white light passes by where both were just standing. Mike looks up.
“I believe your senses are a little off in this World,” Mike spoke.
Out of the sky came a light blue chariot, pulled by a pair of pegasus wearing armor of the same color as the chariot. Both armors covered their bodies completely, only revealing the feathers of their wings, telling the color of their coats: dark blue and lemon yellow. On the chariot, a unicorn wearing the same kind of armor looked down at them.
“Elementalist!” the Unicorn called. A Mare by the voice. “Surrender yourself to the Order!”
Mike landed on the top of the tree, allowing Craig to detach from him, still looking at the chariot.
Craig then shouted, “Who on Earth is that?!”
Mike's’ eyes narrow “Trouble.” he looks at Craig “You asked me what I did to piss off Celestia and Luna. My answer lies in my past here, since I was a stone statue for two thousand years.” he explained hurriedly, then passed Craig a small, glowing marble “This is my token, in case you need to summon me.”
Craig then nodded his head before he said “thank you” after that he tell Mike “If you're telling me to leave you’ve got no chance. Besides it looks like you are in danger and I don’t leave my friends behind; ever.”
Mike tilts his head, as a small smile appears on his lips “Craig, I admire your trust, and you can expect mine in return.” he turns towards the chariot “You better get ready for battle.”
“It’s time to show them what we can do.” Seconds later his disguise disappeared and he flexes his hand as his guitar came to him. he then flipped the guitar onto his back and places his hand on a strange symbol on the back. Seconds later a sheathed sword appears at his side along with a dark blue chestplate he then shouts “Come and get me if you think you're hard enough.”
Mike clenches his right hand, and the armplate where Fire Strike resides starts to glow. The glow spreads through the white stripes until they touch all the armor, changing it to match the same color of the right armplate. A second later, the black suit bursts into flames, disappearing right after, leaving Mike with a set of a red suit and light armor. A japanese sword materializes from the flames in front of Mike, allowing him to grab the handle. With a swift move, Burning Edge gleams at the sunlight, as Mike points it towards the Chariot.
“I remember leaving a message to the previous members of your order!” Mike shouted “This is the third attempt you try at me and the Elements!” Burning Edge erupts into flames, as the entire armor also fire up “You really are hard at hearing, aren’t you?”
The ponies in the air smirked. “We do not fear you or your Elements!” the unicorn shouted, “Your attacks will not affect us, and your Elements are useless against us!”
Craig then shouted “It’s not just the elements you need to deal with this time. Leave now or you won’t leave at all!” he then began to levitate off the ground and then stopped level with the chariot.
The group of ponies looked at the newcomer Displaced, surprised that he was flying without any wings, and the mare lowered her horn, preparing to shoot him.
“I would think twice before doing that,” Mike called, still from below.
Everypony glanced down, as Mike takes off, stopping on the other side of the chariot, hovering. “You know, the order really has an awful sense of timing.” he starts, leaning the sword on his shoulder “Honestly, attacking me on my home turf? And right when I have visitors, not knowing what they can do? Not to mention that the entire forest is being watched, and thanks to recovering Fire Strike, this place is about to get livelier with a band of migrating phoenixes that will probably start scanning the skies.” he frowns at the unicorn “I don’t need to hit you with the Elements. I can simply break that chariot, forcing your guards to carry you. And all I need to do to deal with you three is forcing you to be low enough for Claw Leaf to be in reach. After that, he can decide if you’re going to be the next meal of the Everfree” Mike smiles, revealing all of his teeth “or if he’ll share the meal with me and my guest.” he looks towards Craig “Ever tasted pony?”
He then smiled sadistically and said “No but maybe Bii would like to give one a try?”
“Tastes like lamb, I assure you.” Mike said, licking his lips towards the mare, then at the pegasus “All meat, no fat. Pegasus have a slight taste of turkey in there, near the region of their wings.”
Everypony present was tense enough at what Mike said. All three swallowed loudly.
“Take my friends’ advice.” Mike pointed the sword towards the edge of the Everfree, his face neutral “Leave. Before I decide what kind of meat I should cook later for dinner.”
The pegasus didn’t wait a second. They bolted in fear, moving as fast as they could while wearing the armor and pulling the chariot. Mike heard another rhythmic flapping and looked up in time to see another chariot flying fast in the same direction of the first group, carrying two ponies.
Craig then smirked and closed his eyes as a small pistol appears in his hands he the point it above his head and shoots three bullets straight towards the sky then shouted “and don’t come back!” Second, later he flew over to Mike and said “Sorry I couldn’t resist.”
Mike looked at him and smiles, shaking his head “It’s okay, after all I couldn’t resist in pulling that prank towards the princesses too.” he looks towards the two chariots leaving the Everfree, then back at the tree, his eyes narrowing. “Two chariots, one pulling a pair, other pulling one…” he muttered.
Craig looked at Mike. “What do you think the purpose of this attack was and when do you think Celestia tagged you?”
“Celestia never tagged me. It was a charm I gave her twenty five hundred years ago.” Mike replied, still looking at the distance “A way for me to know if she was ever in danger. It seems that she managed to reverse the location spell on the charm.” he turned towards the top of the tree, his eyes narrowing “And this attack was aimed at taking me out to obtain the Elements.”
Without warning, Mike turned towards the tree, lifting Burning Edge as if it were a spear, and threw it. The sword blurred through the air until it hit the top of the tree. A short cry was heard, before a pony appeared right in front of the blade, fumbling back. He looked at the blade in shock, before reaching his head with a hoof.
Mike landed loudly right beside the blade. “Consider yourself lucky.” he spoke coldly “I wasn’t aiming for your horn.”
Craig then walked up to the now hornless unicorn and said “are you okay?”before he sighed “okay stupid question, Second and third question, Do you have a name and what are you doing here. Oh and just so you know think of this as good cop bad cop, you do as I ask and my friend here won’t hurt you any more.”
The pony stared at both of them, before assuming a defiant stance. “You get nothing from me.” he snarled.
Craig then looked to Mike and said “go ahead” He then whispered to him “Don’t kill him just rough him up a bit.”
Mike cracks his knuckles, grinning “Oh, I’m going to enjoy this.” he then starts rubbing his hands. “Craig, there’s a full body armor under his cloak, protected with paralysing poison for those who touch it.” he then flex his fingers, making them crack “Can Bii remove them without any risk?”
Craig shrugged and said “Most Symbiotes are, the only poison that they weren’t immune to what specially made to kill them” Craig then walked over to the unicorn as Bii forms a sharp blade and quickly slices some leather straps that are holding the armour to the unicorn's body. As it begins to come off Craig said “if you tell us your name I promise I will make sure my friend here doesn’t kill you.”
The pony laughed. “Please. I’ve been trained to withstand any kind of pain. Do you really believe hitting me will do you any good?”
“Who said anything about hitting?” Mike spoke, approaching the pony, now revealing his coat. pale orange. “I’m not gonna beat you to a pulp. I’m not going to kill you.” Mike blinked, and his eyes flashed blue for a few seconds “But I wonder if the treatment I’m going to give you will make you reconsider.”
The pony glared at me, keeping his stance, but his hinder legs were quivering. “I know all of your treatments. No matter what you do, you’ll never break me.”
Mike's’ grin widened. “Challenge accepted.”
Without warning, Mike dashed towards the unicorn, his hands flexed like claws. “Here’s a funny fact about pressure points.” he started, hitting the unicorn under the muzzle with two fingers “If hit in the right order with the right strength and precision, any kind of pent up stress can be relieved. But what happens if we hit them in the wrong order or miss the pressure point or don’t apply the right strength?”
Craig then smiled and said “you can cause complete paralysis to the target's body. leaving them immobile until a time you decide to let them move.” He then walks up the side of the unicorn and whispered “Imagine what we could do to you in that time.”
Mike raised a hand towards him. “Don’t get in my range, or the treatment will hit you,” he spoke without slowing down the hits.
Craig then said “you still have time to tell us what we want” and then proceeded to walk away.
“Or not.” Mike stopped “What you said was partially right, Craig. But my treatments have a funny side effect.”
“Like what?” Craig asked.
Mike shook his hands, sighing in relief “I have three treatments that I consider forbidden to ponies. But against dangerous creatures or prisoners, they’re the most lethal.” he smiles at the Unicorn “Purgatory, Hell and Reaper. Guess which one you got?”
The unicorn stood still, eyes wide at Mike's’ question. Mike approached him and flicked his forehead.
The reaction was instant.
The unicorn fell to the ground, twitching and spasming violently, unable to scream.
Craig then looks at Mike before he said “release him.”
“Just because he cannot scream, doesn’t mean he cannot speak.” Mike told Craig, kneeling on front of the pony’s face. “Hell is one heck of a treatment, you know? All the nerves in your body just became sensitive spots from the accumulated stress, becoming too much unbearable to withstand.” the pony gasped for air, his legs twitching “It won’t kill you, but the pain you’re feeling is going to put you into an eternal agony.”
Craig then said “tell us what we want to know and i’ll make him stop”
The unicorn stared at them both, clenching his teeth. “N...nnnn...”
“Don’t make me use the Truth treatment on you. And believe me, that one is even more painful.” Mike added as a matter of fact.
Craig then walked up to Mike and said “let me try something.”
Mike looks at him and nods “Go ahead. But be warned, touching him will worsen the torture he’s feeling right now.”
Craig then nodded his head and knelt down next to the unicorn and said “I don’t like to see creatures suffer. Please let me help you.”
The unicorn then looks at Craig and says “I don’t fear your threats!” he managed to growl between clenched teeth.
Craig then sighed before he drew his sword and the unicorn then begins to flinch in fear. Craig then rotates the blade and shows the unicorn the side of the sword with Celestia’s Cutie Mark on it and says “You know I am a Canterlot knight and do want to protect the innocent but I can’t help you unless you tell us your name, I swear on my parents memory that I won’t kill you but if you don’t tell us not only will I make sure you feel more pain but I will start scanning your mind to get the answers I want. I imagine that there wouldn’t be much of a brain left from the mess I could leave it in.” he then walked up to the side of the unicorn and said “I can’t imagine your family would like to see you as a broken, slobbering mess. I wonder what I could do to them, I bet the everfree would love to see what your family tastes like. One click and I can have them all here in cages and feed them one by one to the Timberwolves, And you know the best thing I could do is force you to watch them being devoured. It’s your choice.”
Mike looked at Craig with a raised eyebrow “Wow. Dude, you can be quite a nightmare when you want.” he said before turning around “I’m gonna call the pack. They sure would love some ponies for dinner.”
Craig then smiled “The balls in your court, little Unicorn. The information we want or your family’s lives are forfeit. Do you want to risk it?”
The Unicorn stared his eyes pinpricks. As Mike reached the limits of the tree and prepared to give a sharp whistle, he gasped “Wait!” both Mike and Craig looked at him “Camouflage. That’s my name.”
Craig then smiled and said, “Thank you Camouflage, now why are you here?”
Camouflage gasped and groaned, trying to hold the torture of the treatment. Mike approached him, kneeling in front of him. “Camouflage, we’re both being patient with you. Claw Leaf is holding back at my order, and Fire Strike sometimes has a really short fuse when either my life or his are at risk. I didn’t call the timberwolves, but your order knows very damn well who’s the one controlling them.” his eyes narrowed “Last call, Camouflage. Three questions: What is the order of the Void, what’s your mission here and why?”
Camouflage stared at Mike, trembling. He gulped visibly, still trying to hold on against the torture, until he saw Fire Strike materializing from Mike's’ right armplate, red eyes glowing towards him.
“T-the order of the V-Void…” Camouflage stammered “w-was created two thousand years ago, after the Week of Darkness. I-Its objective is the capture and destruction of the Elements. M-My mission was to infiltrate your house and capture the Element of Fire and Nature when they were at their weakest moment.”
“Tough luck with that.” Claw Leafs’ voice was heard “I admit, you managed to hide your presence on top of the tree, but the moment you entered the mansion, your talent would become useless.”
Mike kept looking at Camouflage for a few seconds more after his confession. He then sighed and pressed a spot behind his head. Camouflage tensed and went limp.
Craig then looked at Mike and said “is he going to be okay?”
“Yeah, don’t worry.” Mike replied “I released him of the treatment.” with a snap of his fingers, a trio of timberwolves appeared between the foliage of the trees “Take him to the outskirts and leave him there. Make sure he’s not touched by any predator.” he then thought for a moment. “Your kind included.”
The Timberwolves nodded, but before they took him away Craig shouted “What one minute.” Craig then walks up and whispered “I swore I'd never use this” he careful opens Camouflages’ mouth and points his fingers at his tongue then says “Cursed Tongue Eradication Technique” seconds later a small black mark appears on the back of his tongue, he then whispers to Camouflage “I’m sorry but I have to ensure you never tell anybody about us if you ever do from now on you will be paralyzed. May Celestia have mercy on my soul.” he then nodded to the Timberwolves and said “take him away”
Two of the wolves disassembled themselves, forming a larger version of themselves. the third one then picks up the Unicorn and gently lowers him on the back of the combined. Once he’s strapped, Mike goes into his mansion and comes out writing a message on a piece of paper.
Marshmallow,
Start looking for secret organisations bent on hunting me and the Elements. Otherwise, I might start hunting them.
This is one of their members. They call themselves the Order of the Void.
Lay off the cake you’re eating in frustration and start searching.
Mike
The wolves waited patiently as Mike finished the letter. With it finished, he rolls it and ties it around Camouflages’ neck. With a nod, the timberwolves depart at a fast jog towards the edge of the Everfree.
“Let me guess: that was from Naruto.” he finally spoke towards Craig.
Craig then sighed “yeah. I learned it from the first Displaced I ever met. He was sent to Equestria as Sasuke Uchiha and when I met him he had just hospitalised Celestia. He then used that technique to prevent his assistant from saying anything about me.”
“Each World with its problems, it seems.” Mike said “Thanks for the assist back there.”
Craig then said “No problem nobody hurts my friends”
“That wasn’t the only assist I was talking about.” Mike added with a grin.
Craig then smiled, rubbed his head before he said, “you mean the threat to harm his family don’t you.”
Mike chuckles “I was talking about the prank we did to the princesses.”
“Oh yeah. I’ll admit that was brilliant,” Craig chuckled.
Both burst into laughter as the memory of the prank came to their heads. “I think Celly is going to have some nightmares after what she saw. And Luna… I don’t even know how she’ll react!”
“That's something I was wondering. Why did that scare them so much?” asked Craig.
“I used to tickle them nonstop when they were fillies. Every. Single. Time.” Mike explained with a wide smile.
“Seriously that’s what terrified them. Oh my God that's hilarious.”
“Try growing up while getting tickled for any reason.” Mike explained “They were so adorable I couldn’t resist spoiling them each time I saw them.” his smile faded “Until they hit their teens. After that, I simply tickled them each time they did something wrong or got into trouble.”
“So in essence you see them as your children,” asked Craig.
“More like little sisters.” Mike said “I saved them from a pack of Manticores when I came to Equestria. Nice way to discover my powers and the Elements.”
Craig then smiled at Mike before he asked him “want to see them when they can’t see you?”
Mike shook his head “No, let them be. It would be rude to spy on them. Also, I have other plans for the future.”
“Okay then” he then looked at the sky and “I better head back soon my daughter will probably be worried about me.”
Mike nodded. “Okay then.” Mike looks at Fire Strike “Can you get his sword?”
Fire Strike nods and prepared to take off, but Craig said “there’s no need” he then reached under his top and pulls out a perfect copy of the blade and says “I have my own copy”
Fire Strike stares at the sword “Always prepared to go back, it seems.” he spoke.
“Wouldn’t say I'm ever prepared for anything, but I am prepared for most of the unexpected.”
Mike smiled and approached Craig “Then I guess this is goodbye.” he pulled out a pair of bracelets. In each there were three feathers, each one a different color, one leaf and one dragon scale “This charm is meant to protect you against enemies. If you’re attacked while wearing it, it will trigger a defensive barrier from one Element. If ever in danger, it will provide protection.” he passed both to Craig. “Be warned that it only has energy for one defense from each Element. Good for escaping dangerous situations.”
Craig then smiled and said “Let's hope I never need to use it.” Craig them smiled and said “If the order ever give you trouble again, or Celestia and Luna don’t hesitate to give me a call.” he then rubbed his head and said “one good turn deserves another, do you remember Dragonball’s potential unlocking do you want to to boost your power as thanks?”
Mike shook his head. “I’ll pass.” he raises his right arm, touching the white stripes. “In comparison to Goku, I also have my own training gear, ready to jump out in case I need to fight seriously. And I don’t want to get too much overpowered. But I’ll keep your token at the ready, just in case.”
“It has been a pleasure to meet you Mike.” he then laughed and said “If you had took my offer you could have been Mystic Mike.”
Mike smiled wryly “I already have two titles, don’t need another one.” he said, “May the Elements protect you from future dangers.”
Craig then smiled and saids “Same to you” he then raised one hand to his head then salutes Mike. He then takes his amulet off his neck and quickly slashes the blade of the downwards creating a large hole similar to the one he appeared from originally. He then placed the amulet back over his head and begins to walk through the portal and disappeared from view.