Fluttershy sat with her legs crossed and hands together on her lap, whilst her eyes were sealed shut. In total, an entire month had passed during the Main 6's training, during which Omega had been completely inactive. Probably for the best, as they wouldn't have been able to do much to stop her anyway. It had been a further week since they left Zecora's plateau, and she said they would always be welcome.
Fluttershy was meditating in front of her cottage, and had been for the past half hour, when she felt Omega's ki for the first time in weeks. It shocked her out of her relaxed state, and she jumped to her feet. She looked south, to the direction of Manehattan. A purple hemisphere lit up the sky suddenly, and a wave of wind came rushing past her. Fluttershy ran in quickly and dressed in her gi, making sure to remove the weights, as she would need all the extra battle power she could get. The new technique Zecora taught them would also be very useful, but very dangerous too: everypony was yet to use it in combat, but Zecora had made the limitations quite clear. Fluttershy remembered what she said.
'When you use it remember this too. Be sure to finish your opponent with it, or it may finish you.'
She finished getting ready, and headed back outside. She sensed her friends also heading toward Manehattan, but chose not to wait for them; if she did, Omega would just continue to act on her destructive habits. She was the closest to Omega, so she could help the quickest. Fluttershy subdued her fear, and threw herself out of her petrified state. She rose into the air, and flew quickly towards Manehattan.
The young colt snuck through the debris, looking for a place to hide. He knew the mare who somehow did all this was still close, he heard her talking to herself as though she was having a conversation. Something about the Royal Sisters. One thing became clear to him: she was no ordinary pony. No, she was a monster, a demon, and she would not spare his life just because he was young.
Spotlight was one of the lucky ones, he was at a safe distance when she commenced her spree of demolition. Massive spheres of hot energy lit up the city, killing thousands instantly. The shockwaves from the blasts were responsible for a lot of the destruction further away, decimating buildings like they were made of sand. Spotlight had considered in his head that maybe it was they who were better off. After all, they weren’t afraid when they died. Not like the rest. The mare descended into the ruins to admire her work, flying without her wings, and using some type of magic without a horn. Not one of the ponies who laid eyes on her lived. Now she was looking for survivors.
Spotlight heard footsteps and peeked from his hiding spot, an overturned wagon, to look. An injured mare was trying to escape with her life. The fabric of her trousers was shredded over her left leg, and was covered in blood from the knee down. Her face was a permanent grimace as she fought through the agony across her body, adrenaline being the only thing keeping her moving. She was going as fast as she physically could, but her injuries hindered her progress. If she was too slow, she'd inevitably be found, but if she wasn't quiet the mare would find and execute her on the spot. She was leaving in the general direction of Ponyville, and Spotlight wanted to help her because even if she did escape, she wouldn't make it before tiring out. Hypotheticals and questions didn't matter to this mare though, only her determination to live meant anything worthwhile. An unnoticed slab of rubble stopped the tenacious mare in her tracks, catching her foot. Her eyes widened as she realised it was too late. Gravity did its job and brought her crashing to the ground. She hit the rough surface hard, letting out a yelp as the edges of stone cut into the skin on her arm. She quickly brought her other hand to cover her mouth, but the sound had already escaped it. Tears filled her eyes as hope drained from her soul. Perhaps this really was it. She closed her eyes tightly, letting herself cry in silence, waiting for the end. Spotlight had froze when she fell, unsure what to do. If he left his cover to help her, he risked throwing his life away, but if he did nothing he could've been leaving her to die. His breathing steadied as seconds passed. The mare hadn't come yet. Spotlight and the injured mare made eye contact as she got to her feet. They stared at each other for a few seconds before the mare looked down at her leg. Her chest heaved from the exertion of getting up and she didn't waste anymore time, turning to head towards Ponyville. Spotlight couldn't help but smile, he almost let out a chuckle. The mare had ensured she would live for now, and he was still safe. But the monster had a different plan.
His breath caught in his throat. From behind the wagon above him, he heard a high pitched whirring sound. A beam of energy blasted through the injured mare's torso. Blood splattered from her mouth and chest. She collapsed forward, hitting the ground limp, silent. Dead. Spotlight stared at her bloodied face, unable to look away. Her eyes were blank and cold. She had died before she even hit the floor. The genocidal mare landed beside her latest kill, prodding the corpse with her foot to be sure. Spotlight held his breath, hoping to Celestia, and the God he was raised to believe in, that she would leave without finding him. He hoped that she would rise back into the air and continue her hunt elsewhere.
"Shit. Idiot, I told you, keep the next one you see alive just for a bit, listen to what they might say. But no, you're too much of a trigger-happy impulsive idiot with no restraint for that!" There she went, speaking with herself again. Now that Spotlight was closer to her, and could actually see her, he thought her appearance was familiar from somewhere. Where though? He couldn’t quite put his finger on it.
"They'll definitely be coming now, no way this hasn't drawn their attention. You have all this power just waiting to be tapped into, but you can't bring it out without fighting them? I don't know, that's kinda pathetic," She growled, and kicked the mare's corpse with enough strength to shatter one side of the rib cage. "You can't even kill them yet thanks to that! Okay... calm down. Once they're out of the way, there'll be nothing more to stop me from finally ravaging the world those two bitches call home." Wait a minute... Of course. Spotlight almost gasped, giving away his position. He remembered why the murderous mare was familiar. There was a story his grandmother told him once before she passed away: The legend of the Super Pony. He couldn't remember it word for word, but he remembered what he needed to. It was said that following a time of unbroken peace and prosperity, the ponies of Equis would face a terrifying, seemingly insurmountable evil, wielding a new & strange power far beyond that of even the Royal Sisters. Their only desire would apparently be to see everything destroyed by their own hand, as if they were a force of nature beyond reasoning. A warrior gifted with similar power, vengeful, brutal and fuelled by rage, would rise up to battle this monster and finally defeat them, defending everypony from their wrath. This selfless warrior was the Super Pony.
At least, that's how Spotlight's grandmother told it to him. Then again, she had reckoned the story was as old as Starswirl the Bearded too, but that was most likely an exaggeration; were it not for his current predicament, he would've loved to continue reminiscing about her. And besides, he couldn't rely on folklore and myths to save him, not when death was within a stone's throw from him. Or at least, it had been. He listened carefully. Footsteps, fading footsteps. She was walking away! The evil mare was walking slowly, whilst continuously mumbling to herself. Soon he'd be safe, just a minute more and she'd be out of earshot.
'No, I'll leave it a little longer just to be sure, then run.' He thought. Better to be paranoid than dead, right? Spotlight listened as her footsteps continued to get further and further away, and let out a sigh of relief. One last crunch of the ground and rubble. A loud one, as if she'd jumped back into the air. Was she gone? He didn't really know, and wasn't gonna risk looking. He waited in silence, receiving silence in return. He hadn't realised before just how much he was sweating. Adrenaline and stress probably. His body would calm itself after a couple minutes of not almost dying, or so he had hoped. Light filled his eyes as the wagon was ripped of the ground, leaving him exposed. The evil mare stood right over Spotlight, glaring into his eyes. Hers were full of malice and rage, whereas his were panicky and afraid.
"I knew I heard somepony else before... you hid pretty well, all things considered." He scrambled on the ground, moving away from the mare. She walked forward slowly, towering menacingly over him and keeping a constant distance between them.
"Oh, no no no. We aren't finshed yet, you and I." A wicked smile crept onto her face, filling Spotlight with dread.
"Anything to say? You a silent one or loud like some of the others I found? They were kind of annoying to be honest." Spotlight cleared his head for a second. He really was about to die. What did he want his last words to be? He had always been one for theatrics, so he thought he'd give her something to remember. He looked her in the eyes, no longer scared, but confident.
"You won't get far you know. They'll stop you!" The mare seemed to be confused. Either by the choice of words or what they implied. He couldn't possibly know about Rainbow Dash and her friends trying to stop her, so who the hell could this stupid little teenager be referring to?
"What? What are you on about?! Who in this world is gonna stop me? Huh?!" There was that look of confidence again. What the fuck was up with this guy? He was even smiling!
"The Super Pony. You won't stand a chance. They'll beat you easily, probably even kill you." The mare started visibly panicking now. Did this kid really know what he was talking about? He couldn't, could he? The mare raised one hand at him, and a ball of energy appeared in front of it, growing slowly. Spotlight was ready. He had said enough. The seed was planted in her mind, and would grow by her own thoughts.
'I missed you Granny, can't wait to see you.'
Fluttershy had been flying as fast as she could without revealing her ki. She could see smoke rising from the desolate ruin left by Omega long before she got there. Dusty rubble along with destroyed wagons and stands littered the silent streets of Manehattan. A few minutes ago the city would have been vibrant and lively, full of ponies going about their days... until Omega descended, having chosen this place as her next slaughter, in a bid to draw out the only ponies with a chance of stopping her. Fluttershy tried not to let the sadness she felt get to her as she descended into the chaotic remain. It was littered with corpses of all ages. She searched around for a bit, and eventually discovered Omega. What she laid her eyes upon sickened her very soul; she was slowly charging up a ki blast, aimed at a young colt. Fluttershy threw caution to the wind, abandoning her previous subtlety; she could still save one life today. She charged up her ki as she moved, ready to strike. She reappeared in the air beside Omega, taking her completely by surprise. She charged a masenko in one hand, and fired the attack at point blank range, sending Omega a considerable distance backwards. Fluttershy turned her attention to the scared colt on the ground. He seemed petrified, completely unable to move from shock. She couldn't tell if he was more scared of Omega or herself, but that didn't matter. She decided to bring out the stare, along with the voice she used when scolding one of her animals.
"Run to Ponyville now, and don't stop." He still sat there, amazed at her strength, and helpless in the situation.
"Now. Go!" The reinforced command, and Omega flying back toward Fluttershy prompted him to run as fast as his legs could carry him.
Her concentration shifted once again to Omega, more rage than focus though. Omega tried to surprise Fluttershy by vanishing behind her, but it was an all too familiar move; she simply kicked her effortlessly in the stomach and backed away to keep her distance. Omega stumbled back, winded from the hit.
"You... what do you want from the ponies of this planet?! We've done nothing to deserve this!!"
"I want a worthy opponent, a challenge." Omega replied.
"But why all the death and destruction?" Fluttershy retorted. "This world, and it's inhabitants are all kind, benevolent, loving, and peaceful ponies." She was close to breaking point.
"Don’t you see? That’s why it’s perfect. Damn it... I'm not explaining it very well am I? I didn’t just blink into existence when Rainbow Dash touched the dragon balls; I’ve been alive for... for a very long time, not here, some other place. A void almost, no physical body and nopony else, just... me. With all that time, I began to believe I was alone in the world. One day I discovered two others, just like me. Your rulers, Celestia and Luna. I wasn't sure if it was them at first, but once I was near them I was sure of it. They were born into powerful bodies, and I thought I would join them, but I waited for... I don’t know how long... for a dream that would never come." At some point, Omega began looking at the ground, clearly feeling something close to regret. Her expression wavered and was replaced by sudden anger.
"Those bastards left me behind! That's why I kill their citizens and ruin their lands, to destroy their pride, as they once did to me." Fluttershy almost felt bad for her, but would never forgive her for slaughtering an entire city. That type of transgression wasn’t forgotten just because somepony thought they were justified, even by as kind a pony as Fluttershy.
"It's possible to feel so much hatred, you stop feeling it at all. During those countless years I became extremely bored, more bored than you could possibly imagine with that feeble mind of yours, and this is my entertainment." Her face contorted to a wicked grin. "Oh, how I love the looks on their faces before I kill them... I haven't felt it in ages, but it's helped me to remember what joy feels like." She purposefully looked Fluttershy in the eye for the next part.
"After all... There's nothing I find more satisfying than watching a pony die slowly by my hand... and watching the light leave their eyes."
Unable to contain herself any longer, Fluttershy flew into a rage, and sucker punched her across the face. Omega shifted backwards from the hit. A small amount of blood splattered onto the rubble, and she wiped her mouth before smiling.
"So try not to bore me. Or you might end up like her." She said, pointing to a dead mare on the ground behind her with a gaping hole in her chest. She screamed quickly and spread her limbs outward, before a gigantic ki explosion engulfed her and Fluttershy.
Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Twilght, Applejack, and Rarity all flew at full speed toward Manehattan. They saw the yellow explosion coming from over the horizon. Rainbow Dash could feel Omega's and Fluttershy's ki, but they were both less than she remembered.
"Twilight, how long do you think it'll take us from here?" She asked. She knew there was no point, but she couldn't help her impatience.
"Maybe... 5 or 6 minutes at this pace."
"This feels like it could be a rather even fight, I know it's quite a bit early to be making predictions, but I think that Fluttershy might beat Omega." Rarity said what they all had been thinking, all except for Rainbow Dash.
"No, she won't." She stated with a deadpan voice.
"Oh come on Rainbow Dash!" Pinkie yelled spontaneously. "Fluttershy's at equal power with Omega already!!"
"Can't you tell?" Rainbow Dash asked. "Omega's still not at her full potential, and Fluttershy's holding back a bit too. She's probably still at like ten percent power, but Fluttershy's already at around seventy. If we don't hurry up... she's in way over her head." The mere implication of Rainbow Dash's warning was enough. With that thought embedded into their minds, they hoped Fluttershy would hold her own long enough for them to arrive.
The explosion cleared, and the dust settled. Fluttershy looked around as the blinding light and ringing in her ears subsided. Her and Omega were both at the bottom of a deep crater. Fluttershy had protected herself by creating a dense barrier of ki around her body. She charged up quickly, to make up for the ki she’d spent. Omega wanted to test her opponent's strength fully, so she let Fluttershy have the first hit, and she wasted no time with it. She charged a masenko and fired it quickly, but Omega swatted it upwards. They flew towards each other, and began trading a long series of blows. Eventually, Omega gained the advantage by moving slightly backwards, making Fluttershy lean into her punch too much. Omega hit her with a knee to the stomach, then followed with an uppercut to the chin. Fluttershy shot out of the crater and flew through the air. She realised she'd get nowhere if she held back any of her power, and charged up fully, making sure to use one hundred percent of it. She fired a volley of ki blasts down at Omega, who was still in the crater. Omega appeared in front of Fluttershy, easily dodging the futile attacks. Fluttershy reacted subconsciously, flipping over Omega's punch, and kicking her downward. It surprised them both, but neither showed a reaction. Fluttershy charged her ki again, but it suddenly dropped down to nothing, disappearing totally. A look of perplexity came across Omega's face as she tried to make sense of it. All of a sudden, Fluttershy's ki erupted well beyond its original level, and a violent red aura enveloped her.
"Kaioken!!" Fluttershy's body and clothes were tinted red from the dense aura, and she gained a fifty percent power increase. Omega was startled for just a moment too long. Fluttershy was in range almost instantly, an aura trail following her. She was so much faster now, and she made sure to abuse that advantage. She kicked Omega in the face, sending her flying. Fluttershy flew down fast, barely touching the ground before she took off once again! She came up from underneath Omega, and uppercut her in the back, making sure to hit a kidney. She wasted no time, flying into Omega's path once again, this time punching her hard in the face. Fluttershy would have continued, but she was beginning to feel the physical stress of the technique. She flew above Omega, and charged a masenko, firing it down into the ground. Omega had no time to recover from any of the attacks, and was caught off guard by every single one. The masenko pushed Omega downwards, eventually slamming her into the ground before dissipating, leaving her lying in a small crater. She came to her senses as Fluttershy regressed to her base form, and she crawled to her knees after a while before getting to her feet. She was off balance, and shaky. For some reason unknown to Fluttershy, she smiled.
"That's quite a technique you have up your sleeve Fluttershy."
"It's called the kaioken." Fluttershy added. "It's a power multiplier." Omega knew she would have her work cut out for her now.
"You know what? Let's try bringing out some more of my power, shall we?! I think I feel a lot more ready to use!" Fluttershy's heart jumped at that thought. Omega's power was still growing? That couldn't be true, it couldn't!
"Y-you're bluffing." Fluttershy accused, which only made her opponent’s smile grow, revealing blood stained teeth.
"Am I?" She raised her hands to her sides. "Am I really?!" She growled, tensed her muscles, and let out a short scream. A blast of wind rushed past Fluttershy, forcing her to shield her eyes from dust. As the wind settled down, she regained her composure, and her heart sank. She could feel it. Omega’s power has grown by just over double. Fluttershy was left astounded, her fear returning to her. Omega closed the distance between them in an instant, and punched her hard in the stomach, making her cough up blood. She followed up quickly with another punch to the face, sending her back. Fluttershy rolled across the ground, beaten. Omega charged a ki beam with the intention of killing her opponent. Her victory was short lived, as the rest of the main six arrived. While the rest of them had landed near Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash appeared in front of Omega and hit her in the face with all the strength she could manage. Despite her normal - almost courteous - attitude to fighting, anypony who tried to kill her friends was unworthy of mercy. Omega jumped back, ready to fight, but she was heavily outnumbered. She knew there was no point starting a fight she couldn’t win, and that the odds were stacked against her. She flew up into the sky, so that they all had to glare into the sun to see her. Omega raised her hands to her temples.
"Solar Flare!!" There was a blinding flash of light, leaving them impeded and effectively sightless. Omega used the gap to escape. She suppressed her ki once again, and flew off into the distance.
"Hey Fluttershy, you alright now?" Applejack asked. Although she was still injured, she managed a quaint smile, and a little laugh.
"Now that you're all here, yes." The remark made everypony a bit happier, despite the temporary blindness.
"You'll be ok, I'll get you healed up." Twilight reassured her friend. They all waited for their sight to return, and flew back to Ponyville, with Rainbow Dash aiding Fluttershy.
Ponyville - Three days later:
Twilight had worked around the clock to heal Fluttershy, using both magic and medicines she was given from Zecora, but she still needed to rest. Fluttershy was able to move around and walk, but her right arm was in a sling made of magic infused cloth - it still pained her to move it, so training wasn't an option. Zecora had warned them about the physical backlash of the kaioken, but nopony thought it would be anywhere near as bad; maybe it was because Fluttershy was using it for the first time?
She had been under house arrest in the Castle of Friendship, enforced by her friends for the past two days, and although she enjoyed her own company more than most she was starting to get bored. Omega’s ki had been concealed since their battle, and she hadn’t attacked anywhere else yet either. Nopony at all had the slightest clue where she could have been hiding, not even the Royal Sisters or Zecora. Thankfully for her, Fluttershy was still able to fly. She had spent a few hours up in the clouds, with the countless avian and insect species. She was laying on a cloud high up in the stratosphere, staring up at the mesmerising daytime stars, when the purple glow of her sling faded, and it disintegrated mostly. Fluttershy brushed the remaining fibres and fragments off, cautious of her arm. She dared to move it, and to her own surprise there was no pain! She needed to be sure. She punched the air and still, nothing; lastly she shot a ki beam into the sky, parting the cloud she laid on, but still no pain. She couldn’t help but smile, and let herself fall down to the ground. She focused her ki again, stopping just a metre above it, then walked back into the Castle. She listened out for a couple seconds and searched around, and was surprised to find nopony there. She concentrated, and felt them all at Canterlot Castle. She laughed quietly to herself.
"Well, you've all certainly been busy..." She flew in the general direction of Canterlot, leaving a normal, greyish aura.
The Main 6 was in the Canterlot Royal Gardens when Fluttershy arrived. Her friends welcomed her back, some congratulating - others scolding - her battle with Omega. She asked what they were all doing together, and that was when Princess Luna gestured toward the seven dragon balls. They laid on the ground, glowing regularly every second or so. Celestia cleared her throat, drawing everypony's attention.
"Now, from what Rainbow Dash and Zecora told me, I think I know how this should work. Are we all ready?" Everypony nodded in response, watching with bated breath. "Perfect, let’s begin..."
"We summon you forth, so that you may aid us in our pursuit of peace. Eternal dragon!!" The dragon balls glowed extremely brightly, and a yellow beam erupted upwards from them. It coiled around itself before revealing the form of a dragon, at least 300 metres long with blue scales, a light brown underbelly, and green eyes. It also had sharp teeth, four limbs and antlers that looked like branches. The sky darkened ominously, accompanied by flashes of lightning and crashing thunder. The dragon spoke with a commanding, somewhat feminine voice.
"I AM THE ETERNAL DRAGON, RHEAGAL. I SHALL GRANT YOU ANY TWO WISHES THAT ARE WITHIN MY POWER, AFTER WHICH THE DRAGON BALLS WILL NOT FUNCTION FOR ONE FULL YEAR. CHOOSE YOUR WORDS CAREFULLY..."
"Wait, you give us two? I had expected it would only be one." Princess Celestia muttered then paused for a few seconds, before continuing to speak.
"Rheagal, please, if it is within your power, we need you to create another moon for this planet, a quarter the size of the current one and with five times the gravity of our world, so these warriors may train efficiently to defend us. And make it so its mass doesn’t effect any other celestial bodies." A few seconds of silence passed before the dragon's eyes glowed, and she spoke again.
"IT HAS BEEN DONE. YOU HAVE ONE WISH REMAINING."
"We'd like to use the second wish to create an atmosphere for the moon." The dragon's eyes glowed once again, and it spoke for a final time.
"YOUR WISHES HAVE BEEN GRANTED. I BID YOU ALL FAREWELL… AND GOOD LUCK." The dragon dispersed into the balls, and they shot up into the sky, scattering back across the planet. The clouds cleared, and light covered everything once more. Twilight broke the silence.
"So… how are we gonna get there?" Her question was answered quickly by Princess Celestia.
"Oh that won't be a problem, I can just teleport all of you up there, and I recommend you start training as soon as possible." Her horn glowed, and its aura enveloped the group. They were lifted off the ground slowly, then in an engulfing flash of light, were transported to the newly formed moon. The sky was a reddish pink, and there were a few clouds floating up there. There was a small house, and inside it were six beds and a bathroom area. The moon was tiny compared to Equis, but still had five times its gravity. The Sun appeared smaller and more orange from the surface of this new moon, as if stuck in a perpetual dusk. Six loud crashed rang out as the gravity of the moon made itself known, slamming them hard into its surface.
"Well… seems we got what we asked for… f-feels like it too!" Applejack exclaimed in a strained tone, barely staying on her feet. The others weren’t fairing too well either, Rainbow Dash being in a similar position, Pinkie and Rarity on both hands and knees, and Fluttershy and Twilight on one knee, supporting each other’s weight as they were close together.
"I know, it’s great! Rhaegal really did a great job… even if it is kinda painful." Rainbow Dash chuckled through gritted teeth, already trying to walk around and adjust to the environment. Rarity laughed at that remark, looking over at her tenacious friend while trying to stand herself.
"E-Ever the optimist aren’t you dear, you’re lucky I’m under too much stress to be cynical right now."
"Well, this’ll help us catch up to Omega’s current level pretty fast, but that doesn’t mean we can take it easy. We got work to do everypony, starting now! It’s baby steps for now though… literally."