The Elements of Honor

by Flanagan

Prologue pt2: The Forging of Honor

“We must find a way to stop such evil…” Dante said, “If we don’t this land that so many peaceful creatures now call home and the creatures themselves will become nothing more than a forgotten memory.”

“If we become forgotten how in the world would we become a memory?.” Onus’s tone was, as always, sarcastic and condescending towards the dragons ’astute’ observation.

“Now is not the time for that kind of talk, Onus.” Dante growled at the draconequues. “If you remember, YOUR kind are in just as much danger of this as mine, and if you cannot take such a matter with any seriousness, I-”

“Oh, I KNOW of the threat that is at our doorstep, Dante, I just think continually restating that it will kill us all if we don’t do something is REALLY adding the ‘end of the world’ vibe going on here…” Onus interrupted throwing a small smirk and a raised eyebrow towards the now greatly angered dragon.

“You inconsiderate…!”

“ENOUGH!” Dante was halted mid-sentence but the now very vocal Omnipotent, who sat opposite of his two arguing counterparts. “Talk like this shall get us nowhere if we are to find a way to stop this thing that now begins to destroy my creation, and my Beloved Aurora’s ponies. I suggest that the both of you let bygones be bygones and aid me in this, our darkest hour. So that all that has been done not be undone, and that all the sacrifices made by the few will not go in vein.”

“Omnipotent, my friend,” Dante Began “I will stop at nothing to protect my new home, even if it means my life, this blackness can break my body, but it can never break my WILL to stop it.”

“I thank you for that, Dante” Omnipotent said “but we cannot just blindly charge in and attack such a thing and lose the most powerful of us in mere seconds,” he turned to the other in the room “Onus,” he began, “what do you think we should do to stop such a creature?”

“Well,” Onus began “if not for you I probably would have driven myself to madness centuries ago given the power of my chaotic spells,” Onus rubbed his bearded chin, “but I have sworn myself to you and the land that you have made, it is my DUTY to protect and serve this land and its inhabitants, I owe you that much, there is no doubt in my mind about that. Other than that, I have no idea.”

“I am fortunate to have friends like the two of you, despite your bickering, but words will not stop this thing, we need to find out something to stop it. Even if it means my own death, I am willing to make that SACRIFICE, just to insure that my dear daughters and my wife’s ponies continue on in everlasting peace.”
It was that moment that something clicked in Omnipotent’s head, all of the things they spoke of that the three held in such high regard, will, duty and sacrifice. Though they were just words could there be a way to make them into something more? Omnipotent rushed out of the room, leaving the now confused dragon and draconequues to wonder what the buck just happened.

Dante and Onus followed the path that Omnipotent had taken it, seemed to lead to the forge. Omnipotent never went there, except for official business, they knew that he had something in mind, something to stop the terrible blackness from destroying what they loved. When they arrived at the forge they saw pony workers hastily scrambling about, Dante nearly stepped on a few as they ran between his tree sized legs. They finally saw him, Omnipotent, manning the forge in all its furry, the flame erupting form its belly was near hot enough to match even Dante’s flame. Dante and Onus came to his side, wondering what the creator of this entire world was doing manning a forge, seemingly doing a peasants work.

“Omnipotent,” Dante began to speak “what are you doing down here in the pits of your home, this is no place for one such as yourself.”

“My place is with my creation, Dante” Omnipotent replied “and now my creation is in peril, so I came here to create the very things I believe we need to stop the destruction of what we all have grown to love.” Omnipotent finished still furiously working the forge to an unimaginable heat.

“What exactly are you making, friend?” Onus asked looking over Omnipotent’s shoulder, trying to sneak a peek at his friends work. “I think that armor and blade alike will just do what all the other things that it comes into contact with. You know, get destroyed and stuff.”

“These are going to be no ordinary armaments, Onus…” Omnipotent said still focused on the forge, “These will be the greatest weapons that anypony has ever seen, for they will be the embodiment of the most powerful thing in existence.” a small smile came across Omnipotent’s face, it was the first time he had smiled since Aurora had passed.

“Uh, Harmony?” Dante asked with both claws in the air.

“No,” Omnipotent quickly answered, “definitely not harmony, though strong it could not fight this blackness we face.”

“Oh please tell me that it is not love.” Onus begged an awkward look came across his face as he met Dante’s equally awkward gaze, “because I don’t play for that team…”

“Ha-ha-No,” Omnipotent chuckled a bit at the thought, “again very strong, but just not enough to stop the blackness.”

The fires continued to roar out of the forge, now, Omnipotent thought, the flames bellowed with the right intensity. Dante and Onus looked in awe as Omnipotent opened a large chest with his magic and lifted several mysterious metal bars from the trunk’s insides. The material was nether silver or gold though it shined like both and yet it had a rigid look about it as if they were made of diamond as well. Omnipotent carefully placed the bars in the forge, using magic and the tools of the forge master, he began to forge the metal into what he hoped would stop the blackness forever.

Hours passed and the flames of the forge still roared with the intensity of a dragon’s hellish flames as Omnipotent molded and shaped the mystery metal into various shapes. What he was forging was the one hope for his creation, for his daughters, for his love’s ponies. They had to be perfect to hold what they were going to hold, and Omnipotent didn’t want any mistakes, but time was running short, the blackness was ever approaching the castle, destroying everything and leaving nothingness, it would only be a few more days until it arrived at Omnipotent‘s castle.

Beads of sweat streamed down Omnipotent’s entire body, he was finally finished with his work, he knew not how long it had been since he started this task, nor did he know if his ‘one last hope’ would even work, but he and his allies had to try.

“It is finished,” Omnipotent said giving a long exasperated sigh “behold my friends, the one thing they may yet save our world.” He placed in front of Onus a shield, in front of Dante a ring and in front of himself, a set of armor similar to what he already wore but more exposed, leaving several vital parts open.

“Touch them,” Omnipotent said, gesturing at his friends then to the items placed before them. “They’re quite cool.” he said in a reassuring voice.

After several moments of staring at the great alicorn in confusion, Onus was the first to speak. “How are these going to help stop the blackness?” he questioned, “and why would we touch them right after it came out of that blazing inferno of yours?”

“Trust me,” Omnipotent said trying to reassure his confounded friend “it’s very easy, I’ll show you.”

Omnipotent then removed his normal armor with his magic and began to place the new set on himself. Dante and Onus winced expecting screams of pure agony and pain, but instead they saw an amazing, glowing set of armor with Omnipotent levitating in midair without using his wings or magic. Then they noticed he was saying something under his breath, they mouthed it out to themselves, ‘sacrifice!’
Then an explosion of royal blue erupted throughout the forge, the worker ponies all stopped and stared in awe with Dante and Onus as the armor mystically separated itself then readjusted around Omnipotent’s body. He opened his eyes now glowing in the same shade of blue as the previous explosion. He finally came to the ground and stood before Dante and Onus, and then he spoke.

“BEHOLD FRIENDS!” Omnipotent’s voice carried across the entire castle and beyond “WHAT YOU GAZE UPON NOW IS OUR LAST HOPE, CAST IN MYTH STEEL!”

“What IS it?” Onus said his mouth still agape in disbelief of what he just saw.

“My friend,” Omnipotent said as the shine in his eyes faded, showing his natural silver and golden eyes “I carry upon my shoulders the first, and the strongest elements of what I hope will save us, I carry SACRIFICE!” his eyes began to glow again as he started to levitate again. “NOW, TAKE YOUR ARMAMENTS, MY BRETHREN,” he continued “FOR WE HAVE FEW ALLIES, AND TIME IS NOT ONE OF THEM!”

Dante and Onus looked at each other unsure of what was going on. Then they looked at the items at their feet still looking white hot, carefully Dante reached for the ring that Omnipotent placed before him. To his surprise it was not hot at all; again carefully he placed the ring around one of his front right claws. Just as Omnipotent before him, an explosion, but not blue, instead a very deep emerald green surrounded him, he heard a small voice, one like a whisper in his ear, it sounded like it said ‘and what do you stand for?’. Without second thought he whispered back “will.” upon saying that his eyes shot open glowing in the deep green that had encompassed him before.

Dante spoke with the same volume as Omnipotent “LOOK UPON ME, FOR I AM DANTE OF THE INFERNO, THE VERY EMBODIMENT OF WILL ITSELF!”

“This is just too weird,” the gawking Onus said “even for me…”

“ONUS,” Omnipotent said gazing upon his counterpart, “TAKE THY SHIELD AND STAND WITH US!” he pointed his hoof at Onus’s feet.

Onus looked down upon the shield that lay before him. “Well,” he began “you only live once…” he gathered the shield in his left, eagle-like claw. Again with what happened to Dante and Omnipotent, an explosion but of a golden color covered him, the whisper came to him and asked him what it had asked the others before him and with no hesitation he said “duty”. His eyes glowed with a golden glaze as he bellowed “CAST THINE EYES UPON ME, FOR I AM ONUS, THE ELEMENT OF DUTY!”

The three of them hovered over the forge; all the working ponies had been long gone terrified of what had just taken place. They all landed, near simultaneously all breathing heavily for the events that just took place only moments ago. A silence fell on them, one that lasted only a few moments before Onus broke it.

“Well,” he began “that was surely something, and unlike most other things that do that to me, I won’t have a hangover in the morning… I think.”

“When Onus spoke, he called himself the ‘element of duty’,” Dante said to Omnipotent “and before you returned to your bizarre state you said you carried ‘the element of sacrifice’, explain this to me, friend.”

“Dear Dante,” Omnipotent said with a smile on his face, “we represent the three smaller elements that make up the one major element that we all represent,” he paused to breathe, then his eyes shown blue again “ WE ARE THE ELEMENTS OF HONOR, THE MOST POWERFUL THING IN CREATION!”

“Omnipotent, my dear friend,” Onus began, after tapping him on his side to get him out of his trance “I do, I mean I REALLY do beg your pardon here, but why make three separate pieces when you could just make one with ALL of these ‘elements’ in it, it would have been much, MUCH easier.”

Omnipotent only smiled and replied “Because SHE would have wanted me to do it this way,” a small tear started to run down his cheek “I try to honor her memory anyway I can now.” Omnipotent whipped his face with his hoof and continued. “Aurora made ponykind the way they are so they could work together, making them stronger, and though alone we are more than capable of accomplishing this task, together we are far stronger than we are on our own, in short, we stand together or die alone.”

The three of them looked at one another they knew that Omnipotent was right, after all, the name has to stand for something, but now was not time for idle chat. The blackness was within sight of the castle and the elements of honor had to be off to protect the land that they loved, it was a long shot, but a shot none the less. They at least had to try, try for their friends, try for their homes, and try for their children.

Comments

[dormagio]

"Omnipotent, manning the forge in all its furry," is there something else going on here?

[ForgottenBackgroundPony]

“Well,” he began “you only live once…”

The first YOLO...

[Carnation83]

I love Onus! He's hilarious!