Act IV: Climactic Collisions
Chapter 15: My Choice
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North Canterlot wasn’t as well-guarded as the other segments of the city, but it still held together decently without either Corey or Twilight there. Once Pinkie Pie rolled up in her behemoth, though, it was a whole different story. The first thing she had done when she got to the battlefield in question was to roll over several of the smaller creatures, causing them to crumble from the pressure and friction exerted on their bodies. Those “alert” enough to get out of the way tried to pounce on the tank the first opportunity they got. All they managed to do, though, was ineffectively pound on the outside, making lots of noise.
And to the tank’s driver, all that noise was to her was a catchy little tune, which she hummed to herself as she lined up another shot down the road. A large brutish one was hassling a group of guards, together with a few regular ones and a few winged ones. The tank launched another shell, this time up into the air. It struck with such timing that the winged creatures were slammed together and dropped onto the head of the brute. The flying creatures were destroyed, and the brutish creature reeled back, its head moderately cracked.
As the guards began to take the initiative generated by the attack, Pinkie could only smile. At least as far as the creatures were concerned, there was nothing they could do. Pinkie grabbed a slightly different radio, one that let her communicate with the “fuel compartment”, and began to speak into it.
“How are you holding up back there, Spike?” Pinkie asked.
“Just fine,” Spike said, shortly before the sound of munching filled Pinkie’s ears, “How’s it look out there?”
“I think we’re winning, so far,” Pinkie said, pulling out of block of wood she kept nearby to knock on it, “Not like I can tell, there’s so many of them…”
“I just hope these gems can last me a little longer…” Spike said, “I can only breathe so much fire on an empty stomach!”
“I know, I know—“
At that moment, Pinkie’s entire being overloaded. Synapses jolted, and her body spasmed in new and unique ways that usually accompanied a Pinkie Sense like this. Eventually, Pinkie’s body settled down, and she rested her elbows on the console, trying to process what that sensation was.
“Pinkie? Pinkie?” Spike asked, “You okay over there?”
Pinkie didn’t answer right away, and when she did, it wasn’t an answer to Spike’s question.
“What did that mean…” Pinkie whispered, feeling fear and concern rise in her heart.
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In the skies above East Canterlot, Fluttercruel started to look around. She was trying to figure out one question, and one question alone.
“Just where did he go off to in such a hurry?” she asked herself, looking all around the skies for a clue. Below her, she could see the thinning forces that were the creatures, but there was still more work to do with that. Her gaze eventually fell on a battle off in the distance, and for a few moments, she hovered there.
“That isn’t where he went,” her soft-hearted side spoke up.
“I know…” said Fluttercruel, “But where’d he go? This is the first time I’ve really gotten a look at this city…”
“I don’t know. He ran off so fast…” Fluttershy said, “I couldn’t tell you…”
“Give us all a scare, why don’t you, Corey…” Fluttercruel growled.
Below, Rarity’s horn glow finally faded away, and she collapsed to one knee. Her controlled brute cracked and crumbled as the influence of her magic left it.
“Are you okay, Miss?” asked one of the guards.
“I suppose I’ve favored the brutes too much,” Rarity said, “I’ll be fine in a few moments, darling, I just need to rest.”
“Alright then, we’ll cover you,” A guard said. He and a few others proceeded to play goalie, keeping the creatures away from the recovering Rarity.
Rarity, meanwhile, took the time to catch her breath. She was wondering just how much more they would have to do today before this would end. The number of creatures seemed to be steadily decreasing, but they still kept coming with no end in sight all the same…
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The building walls had fallen, the rubble and dust settling within minutes of it all crumbling down. At first, it was silent. There were no signs of life, but after a few minutes some movements could be seen. Pieces of rubble started to shift; first it was in one spot, but another spot soon began to shift as well.
The first to breach through the rubble was Kronos, who was injured; blood dripped down his face and to the ground. Even his body was sore; his armor had protected him from the bulk of the damage, however. Kronos threw off the rubble on his back as he let out a short grunt. He turned towards the other patch of movement, knowing full well who it was.
“You are exceeding my expectations, dragon,” Kronos said as John finally breached through the rubble on top of him. Again, his scales had proven to be durable, but they still did not offer the same protection as Lyon’s hide. While John stood once more, his body was littered with cuts and scrapes, his own blood dripping off him. Kronos looked him over. Aside from the cuts, John seemed relatively unharmed; the fight was far from over.
“Shall we?” Kronos asked, his answer coming in the form of John charging towards him once more. Both locked hands as they pushed against one another, John eventually pulling away and throwing Kronos off-balance before landing a hard punch. Kronos lurched down but kept himself from losing balance. Able to keep his footing, Kronos came back up with a strong uppercut to John’s chin.
John stumbled back a few steps, but quickly recovered and closed in again. Again, he threw a punch, but Kronos was able to block it. But John pushed on and applied as much force as he could, pushing Kronos back a few feet in the process. John charged Kronos again, but Kronos was able to get an attack off. Kicking up a piece of rubble, Kronos launched it towards John. Though John was able to shatter it with a single punch, John couldn’t avoid what came behind it.
Having used the rubble as a distraction, Kronos was only moments behind it, and the moment John broke through it, Kronos took his chance. Getting past John’s guard, Kronos delivered a hard blow to his stomach, John coughing and gasping from the impact.
Shit, that one hurt! John noticed. While none of Kronos’ previous punches were lightweight, there was nothing but sheer force in the one he’d just been hit with.
Kronos pressed the attack and struck John on his side with the heel of his foot, John’s body spiraling across the ground before he landed on his stomach. John slammed his fist on the ground and swore, getting up only to feel a sharp, stabbing pain in his side.
“It seems my attacks are finally taking effect,” Kronos said, cracking the fingers on his hand, “I wonder, just how many more can you stand?” Kronos charged again.
John snarled and met Kronos’ charge, running in as fast as he could and throwing a punch. But just as he threw it, Kronos moved out of the way.
What?? John wondered before getting struck yet again. John grew annoyed, swinging out with another attack, but just like last time, Kronos was able to dodge it as well. Every time John swung out, Kronos was able to avoid it. Kronos then proceeded to land dozens of blows, knocking John back again with the last one.
John gasped for air, kneeling, looking up to Kronos with gritted teeth.
He’s getting faster…!? John thought to himself. Getting up again, he charged once more. But to his surprise, Kronos seemed to move even faster, closing the gap before John could take two steps. John clenched his fist, but Kronos struck him again before he could even react. As John saw one more strike closing in on his head, John finally realized what was happening.
He’s not getting faster… I’m starting to slow down!
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Twilight wished that the battle was going a bit better than it was, but for now, she was just lucky it hadn’t taken a fatal turn for the worse. She’d taken a few more injuries to her arms, and one cut to her side. Rainbow was similarly pressured as well. Hopping back to try to gain some distance, Twilight focused her magic as her horn shone with magenta light. If she could just get a shield up, she could at the very least try to figure out how she was going to figure out.
Storm Claw hammered Rainbow to the side with a forearm, before noticing the focusing Twilight. He then rushed her, Twilight bracing herself. Storm Claw’s hands—both armed with knives—moved, but to Twilight’s shock, the blades cut straight through the barrier. She barely avoided turning to the side to get another stab in the arm.
“You think a barrier’s going to work?” asked Storm Claw, “The blades are enchanted too, cutting through magical energy like anything else!”
He swung again at this, but Twilight had had enough of being his pincushion, and teleported out of the way, avoiding two knife slashes. When she reappeared, she was in a perfect position, and fired a laser shot, nailing Storm Claw between the wings, causing him to fall forward slightly from the strike.
In perfect sync, Rainbow managed to recover, and just as Storm Claw picked himself up, he found a shoe being smashed against the side of his head. Storm Claw staggered back a couple of steps, but turned, his left hand tightening around the weapon. He turned, Rainbow just recovering from the kick herself, and sliced. Rainbow immediately ducked, but was cut on the cheek for her efforts; these efforts, however, included a second kick that forced Storm Claw back. Storm Claw backed off a little, just to catch his breath slightly.
Twilight slowly descended as well, finding herself a bit short of breath. Both sides stared each other down for a moment, before Storm Claw made a declaration.
“It’s nearly over for the two of you…” sneered Storm Claw as he straightened up, getting into a ready stance, “You’re both slowing down, running out of energy.”
“It’s not over yet,” Twilight said, “We’ve still got plenty of fight left in us.”
“Yeah, we’re not scared of you!” Rainbow said.
“You intend to fight until the very end, then…” Storm Claw shook his head, “Now that, is admirable… but foolish.”
Both sides slowly got ready to fight, but before the tension lead to the two charging back into battle, something else happened. There was a red flash that happened above them, behind Storm Claw, but it was enough to get his attention. A screen, rectangular in nature, showed up. And at the center of it all was the face of a pony that had long ago lost her sanity.
“Norma…” Twilight muttered, “So she did show up today…”
“This was meant to be the final battle,” said Storm Claw, “It’s only natural she’d want to be involved…”
“Greetings, everyone,” Norma said, “As much as I would hate to interrupt everyone’s battle, there is an important announcement I must share with all of you.”
Norma slowly shuffled to one side of the screen, backing away a bit as well. This revealed what was behind her. And the reveal shocked Twilight and Rainbow to their core.
“Now…that’s a surprise…” Storm Claw visibly shuddered, “To think she was capable of this…”
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It wasn’t just Rainbow and Twilight’s section of the city that had gone silent. All of Canterlot had stopped moving. All the battles, no matter how fierce they were, had come to a total halt at what was seen. Many could not believe their eyes. Norma’s projections had appeared all over the city, and they conveyed a message none could believe. Behind Norma were the petrified figures of Princesses Celestia and Luna. The strongest among them, the ones who they believed unrivaled when together… both had been defeated by one pony. And the longer they stared at this, the hollower their chests felt.
“If there are those who cannot comprehend what has happened, I shall explain it,” Norma’s voice echoed throughout the city, all ears at attention, “As you can see before you, your precious princesses are now my trophies. The same can be said for the spirit of chaos, Discord. And for those not in the know, the Elements of Harmony are no longer in the possession of their bearers.”
Norma went down the list, and as she did, the weight of dread went up.
“I want all present to take a moment to fully understand your position. Any and all hope you were foolish enough to believe, the half-witted notion that you had a chance of victory… all fabricated. Your strife, your struggle to fight back and survive this game that I created… nothing more than to serve as my entertainment before I took my rightful place!” Some began to believe her words, unable to shake the feeling that Norma may very well have been right. Even after everything everyone had done to prepare, it suddenly didn’t seem like it was enough.
“All that remains in my way are those who have gathered here today. Which means all of you now have a choice to make. You can choose to continue in your fruitless effort and fight back. I could always use a little more entertainment before day’s end. But let it be known that should I choose to join, the result will be far from pleasant.”
Many gulped at the thought. This pony defeated the princesses alone. What chance could any of them stand against her?
“But there may very well be a way for you to survive, and a simple one at that. You see, there are a few individuals in your ranks, those who are the original players of this game. Bring them to me and I may very well be merciful to you, perhaps even allow you to remain in your position as my guards…” At that, Norma let out a sinister laugh, a chilling wave sent down the spines of all who heard it.
“So tell me, what holds more value: the lives of the many, or the lives of the few?” It was a choice that should have had an easier answer. In this context, it was far more difficult than anyone could have expected. They weren’t just random ponies, not that it would have made it any better. Of the group Norma specified, six of them were the very ponies that saved the world countless times. They were the reason they had the choice to fight back. The other two had fought even when no one expected them to. They came forward and answered a call that was better off not being answered. As they had fought alongside everyone, all eight of them now had a price on their heads.
Many were silent, unable to speak, unable to act. The weight of their next action would follow them for the rest of their lives. Some looked away, others looked directly at them, but no one could decide what to do. The original pieces could only look in numb shock, not sure what would be their best course of action at the moment. All around, the time began to drag on, and fear began to rise. The offer was going to expire any moment now, and some were on the edge of falling into despair.
The silence was broken by one single thing: the sound of slow, deliberate clapping. Everyone began to look around, wondering where it was coming from. Even Norma was surprised, looking around in all directions. Then, all eyes in the city glued to the screens again when Norma fully turned around, seeing a unicorn enter the frame at the opposite end of the room Norma was in.
“You…” Norma said, not sure at all what to make of this development.
“Corey,” said Twilight, “What are you doing?”
There was an uneasy silence, save for the sound of applause, for several more seconds. Only when Corey finally stop, letting his arms relax at his sides, did Norma finally find words to describe what this meant.
“You see?” Norma asked, “At least one of you knows when to fold—“
“Wrong!” Corey barked, and Norma halted again.
“Don’t tell me you think you have a chance against me?” Norma turned back to him, “Do you not see the statues in front of you?”
“I see them right in front of me,” Corey said, “I can tell they fought as hard as they could against you, and didn’t succeed for whatever reason. But don’t think for a second I don’t know what you’re up to here.
“This isn’t just to gloat. You want to ensure that we feel as weak as possible, to make sure we’re firmly in the depths of despair. You’ve defeated Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. You have proven you’re better than them, so there’s no point in trying anymore. Is that right?” Corey asked.
“You’re forgetting someone else…” Norma said, “But nonetheless, there is no point in you, or anyone else, trying anymore. I even have this country’s secret weapon out of the reach of the only ones capable of using it. So what makes you think—“
“Because this isn’t the first time this has been done,” Corey said, “I’ve heard a lot of stories since coming here. Defeating the princesses, stealing the Elements—that’s been done before.”
A smaller voice piped in, seemingly coming from Norma’s body. “That’s about the scale of it… Even I did it—“
“Hush, you!” Norma shouted.
“Furthermore, if you want to talk about bringing someone to the depths of despair… I can’t speak for everyone else, but I have been there already during the course of your game,” Corey said, “But all that did was motivate me to finally get better. That, of course, I can say for everyone else. Every prisoner and battle that’s come along has only inspired us to push back harder!
“No matter how hopeless things seemed, no matter how much despair we felt, it ended the same. We had become stronger—physically and mentally—for the entire experience. We’ve all grown far beyond who we were at the start of this. This, what you’ve done here? It’s just one more challenge you’ve put in front of us! I’m certainly not going to stop here!”
Norma’s back was to her audience, but her body seemed to tremble a little.
“And sure, I may be the only one standing in front of you now. But it won’t be for long. The others… I know they’re going to finish with what’s keeping them, and join me. They know they’re stronger now, and certainly they know how much stronger we’ll all be when fighting together! In the end, you’ll receive all of it!”
“Enough!” Norma said, swiping her hand, “Your words are nothing more than the ramblings of someone who has yet to learn their place! But if you wish to die so badly, I will humor you, but not in this room! I wouldn’t want anything to happen to my trophies…”
With that, Norma snapped her fingers, and the screens all throughout Canterlot vanished. All was silent once again for a moment. Then, there was a rumbling among the city.
A collective roar—not of defeat, not of despair, but of resolve.
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Twilight and Rainbow watched the screen vanish. Their attention refocused on Storm Claw, just as his attention returned to them.
“Foolish foal,” scoffed Storm Claw, “I think all his time in this game of ours has driven him mad.”
“No,” Rainbow smirked, “I think it’s the most sense he’s made since he got here!”
Storm Claw chuckled a bit more. “I guess it must be contagious. Now I think it’s time I put you out of your misery!”
As Storm Claw took a moment to prepare himself, Twilight turned to Rainbow.
“I have an idea, but it’ll take me a bit…” Twilight said, already closing her eyes “Think you can give me the time I need?”
“How long?” Rainbow asked yet again.
“Guard’s down!” Storm Claw shouted, rushing forward. It seemed like he would be able to land an attack on Twilight, but Rainbow managed to get in his way, taking in a deep breath. When she released it, her hands were tightly closed around Storm Claw’s wrists, and her wings were pumping max force to stop Storm Claw’s approach.
“What the—“ asked Storm Claw, trying to push a bit further. However, Rainbow was ready for his subsequent speed increase, and whirled, using his momentum against him. As a result, instead of continuing to fly towards Twilight, he instead was sent flying through the air. After taking a moment to catch her breath, Rainbow was up after him.
Storm Claw recovered easily enough, just in time to see Rainbow flying past him. He sneered. “It’s useless, I told you!”
He then flared his wings, opening them to their full span before rushing after her, easily clearing ahead of her, readying two knives to throw. When he chucked them, however, Rainbow rotated her body, and Storm Claw couldn’t quite correct his knives’ trajectory in time. He tried to punch at her, but Rainbow tucked into a ball for a moment, avoiding the attack before landing a kick of her own to the back of his head. Dazed, Storm Claw once again felt himself being sent back to the ground, but managed to right himself, eyes firmly on Rainbow.
“So you’ve found a second wind, huh?” asked Storm Claw, preparing to take out knives once again, “No matter, you still can’t hope to beat me as things are—“
Twilight suddenly let out a yell, and Storm Claw turned, seeing a net of magenta magic reaching out hungrily for him. It closed around him so abruptly he didn’t have time to cut a way out of it. Quickly, Storm Claw raised a knife, trying to start hacking away at the magic, when, not only did it touch his skin, but it quickly absorbed through his skin.
“W-what did you--!?” Storm Claw grunted, and his body felt heavier, as though it were made not of flesh and bones, but of stone and lead. Caught off-guard by the sudden change, Storm Claw plummeted hard to the ground, hard enough that a small crater was left in the street he landed on. Grunting, Storm Claw quickly got to his feet, turning to Twilight.
“With that, the pull of gravity on you has been quadrupled,” Twilight said, “I’m sure you must weigh at least as much as you did with your armor; maybe heavier.”
“Nice one, Twilight!” Rainbow yelled, turning her attention back to Storm Claw shortly after, “Who’s slowin’ down now??”
Storm Claw grunted in pain, rising to his full height and spreading his wings.
“But if I kill the caster, it won’t matter!” Storm Claw snarled, “All you’ve done is make yourself even more of a priority, Princess!”
Storm Claw flapped his wings and began to charge again, but his body felt heavier now; he dragged enough now that Rainbow was able to intercept his charge quite easily, kicking him hard in the head. It was enough to knock him off balance completely, making him land on his back. Storm Claw struggled to recover, face now twisted in fury and enjoyment.
“All you’ve done is make your deaths that much sweeter!” Storm Claw said, “With your injuries, certainly you won’t be in much better condition against me! Even if this does work, you won’t be in any condition to back him up! This is useless!”
“We’ll see about that,” Twilight said. She and Rainbow began to get ready again as Storm Claw slowly got to his feet, hampered by Twilight’s spell…
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The battle between Kronos and John had stopped as well while Norma’s projection was active. Not that there was much choice in the matter. Kronos was standing on his own two feet, but John was not. Throughout the speech, he was leaning heavily on a wall for support, one hand to the opposite shoulder, which itself was dislocated. It was clear who had taken the lead in the battle.
John had gone completely silent. When Norma appeared and showed off what she had accomplished, John didn’t even utter a word. Even Corey’s appearance and speech did not draw a noticeable reaction from John. When it was finally over, Kronos turned to John, seeing that John was still immobile.
“Come now, are you telling me that your spirit is broken already?” Kronos asked. John finally made a noise, something Kronos took as a low sob, “Your ally seems to have confidence in you. Yet, here you are, broken and—“
Kronos stopped, John doing something that took him by surprise. The sound John was making became louder, and Kronos heard it for what it really was; it was not the sound of crying.
John was laughing, the sound of which started off as a sensible chuckle before escalating to an outright manic laugh. John finally looked up to Kronos, a smile spread across his face as he began to rise once more.
“After everything you’ve endured, this is what makes you break?” Kronos asked, a small look of disappointment on his face as he shook his head.
“Just the opposite!” John said as he finally contained himself, “From the moment this game started, it’s always been serious business—everyone had to change themselves so they could meet the demand, and I was no different. But that speech, it reminded me of something. What I heard just now was the Corey I remembered—the one before his change to anger and hate. The Corey I knew before even that, before we came to this world.
“And this Corey, he beat your Slayer, and he’s got the balls to tell off your boss to her face. It makes me wonder if I even needed to change to rise to the occasion…” John’s eyes sharpened as he stared towards Kronos. John’s hand clamped down hard on his shoulder and gave it a strong tug. A loud crack sounded out as John’s arm went back into its socket.
“One way to find out!” John became a blur; able to match or even surpass his top speed as he closed in on Kronos. Kronos should have been surprised; no, he was. But at that moment, he couldn’t help but smile.
“Then show me!” Kronos put up his guard just as John struck, his arms rattling from the impact. After feeling the new vigor in John’s punch, Kronos couldn’t help but meet it head on. Pushing back, he managed to parry John’s punch aside and leaned in for his retaliation. He clenched his fist and swung upwards, aiming for John’s abdomen. He could feel his fist made impact, but quickly noticed it missed its mark.
With a smirk, John pulled on the attack he’d caught and decided to show Kronos how it was done. John brought his fist up and landed right where he wanted, Kronos’ body lurching from the attack. But that wasn’t all—there was a surge of pain that Kronos felt on impact. Even though he was wearing Lyon’s hide, the hide John could not overcome on his own months ago. Yet, this time, Kronos felt the strike and the strength behind it.
Holding his breath, Kronos jumped away, his arms clenching his stomach as he tried to breathe in again.
That strike was on a whole different level! It’s like he’s a different dragon… he thought to himself. For some reason, that fact alone brought him a different level of joy.
“Ready for the final round, Kronos?” John asked, cracking his knuckles. The pain in Kronos stomach finally subsided and he stood up straight again.
Win or lose, this battle would be his grandest yet. That was all Kronos could have asked for.
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Norma walked slowly out of the room, leading Corey through the castle until they were out of the trophy room. She picked a room that was a few floors up from her so-called “trophies”, and a little ways down the hall. Corey found himself wondering why she had picked this area.
“How’s this?” asked Norma, “Now neither of us have to worry. Although, I’m not worried either way…”
“How so?” asked Corey.
“I highly doubt someone of your level could push me much further than the likes of those who fell before you did,” Norma said, “You’re out of your league, and I’m about to show you why.”
Corey slowly got into a ready position, trying to figure out what he was going to do.
I’m not sure how I can do this. She’s beaten three people who were all stronger than me, even with that power I gained. But I have to make a stand here. I can’t let her win…
“Do not…give in to despair now…” a voice answered, deep within Corey’s mind. Corey recognized the voice after a moment, and his eyes widened in confusion.
“E-Esper…!?” Corey stuttered, talking back to him mentally, “H-how are you…?”
“Do you recall…the seal I left in your mind…before I left?” Esper said, and Corey realized how badly winded Esper sounded. “Even though ‘we’ are being actively used…I’m able to telepathically communicate with you easier…”
“You don’t sound good, even for telepathy…” Corey thought.
“It seems Para Norma overestimated how much magic… she could get out of us. Listen to me now…Corey. She used up a lot of magic taking down Discord and the princesses in rapid succession! If ever there were a time you could take her down, it’d be right now!” Esper urged.
“But if I fight her, and she uses more of the magic she stole from you all—“
“Do not worry about us! We’d rather die than see our magic be used for her ends! Look carefully at her!” Esper advised.
Corey looked up, focusing on Norma. One of her hands looked patchy, as though some of the fur had been shaved off. In addition, aside from the tattered robes she bore, she was breathing hard, despite her bravado. She couldn’t hide her fatigue any longer…
“I will leave it to you… Don’t let her win!” Esper said.
“Right!” Corey thought.
“I think I’ll be giving you plenty of stress, at the very least!” Corey shouted, taking in a deep breath. When he released it, he was once again cloaked in an aura of radiating light, just as he had done against Slayer, “You’ve bitten off more than you can chew!”
“I think not…” Norma smirked, snapping her fingers yet again. Corey looked around the room as several screens appeared around them. One contained an injured Twilight and Rainbow up against the griffin. Another contained John and Kronos going at it. The rest were focused on the others who weren’t tied up with a prisoner.
Corey looked around for a moment. “So what are you trying to do here?”
“I’m showing you that no matter what you may say,” Norma said, “Your words mean nothing! They will fall, and so will you. You seem to have forgotten the feeling of despair that you felt… Allow me to remind you what it feels like!”