He Who Wields The Lightning

by Onomonopia

A New Beginning

"Are you sure that we should keep it here?" Celestia asked Black Adam, while he placed the Phantom Zone generator inside of the vault where Celestia kept the most dangerous weapons in Canterlot. Adam looked at the device for a moment before he nodded at Celestia.

"Yes. I do not want the ponies to look upon it and be afraid of being trapped within. We should only use it if needed," Adam said before he and Celestia turned and exited the vault, Adam sealing it once they were outside of it. He then looked over at Celestia's mane, which was less blue and purple and now more red and orange. "Are you trying a new manestyle, because in my opinion the old style worked better." Celestia blushed before quickly looking at her mane.

"No, it is a side effect of what I did back in Canterlot when Ares forced the ponies to fight," she explained. Adam nodded for her to go on. "They wouldn't listen to my words, no matter how hard I begged, so I...took a page from your book. I showed them my true power and told them that if they continued the pointless battle, that they would be facing me. It...actually worked and they stopped fighting, though my mane is stained red now." Adam smiled at Celestia before he placed a hand upon her shoulder. "I...kinda liked being powerful, being seen as a threat for once. It was...nice."

"Well, do not follow my example too often. Then you wouldn't be the great ruler that you are." Celestia hid her blushing face behind her mane, though she did give Adam a look that said "really."

"I mean it. When I first came to this land, I did believe that you were weak and not suited to be ruler, yet the more I learned about you...the more I came to realize that I had been the one who was a failure as a leader...that force and fear is no way to rule. That kindness and trust are key."

"Don't be too hard on yourself," Celestia responded as she gently bumped him with her shoulder. "You taught me that I can't afford to doubt my own strength, and that there is a time to use force when nothing else works. Luna was right about me in one regard, and that's that I have always been soft--too soft sometimes. Sometimes I have to be stern or even strong with others. I guess we've both learned a lot from each other." Adam nodded as the two silently walked the halls after that, neither of them speaking until they both walked out onto a balcony that overlooked Canterlot.

They both saw hundreds of ponies working hard to rebuild their homes, despite the scars of battle which were still evident in the city. "Do you think we should reattach Canterlot back to the mountain?" Celestia asked Black Adam, who placed a hand to his chin for a moment before he shook his head.

"If a force could bring it down before, then it is possible that it can be brought down again. And if I am not there to catch it, many would lose their lives. We should keep it on the ground," Adam said to her before a smirk crossed his face. "Besides, perhaps it is time that we stop ruling above everypony and instead rule down with them. Perhaps bringing Canterlot down to their level will help bring the ponies together again."

Celestia smiled at the idea. "Is that the wisdom of Zehuti talking?"

"No, it is the wisdom of a man who spent nearly all his life living above others. But there, Zehuti did give me an idea," Adam said as he snapped his fingers, creating images out of lightning in the air before Celestia. There were six majestic structures across Equis, each of them with a large tower in the center of them, a tower that shot out a beam of magic that helped to create a force field around Canterlot. "This may be a way to help others feel secure within Canterlot. A spell within the wizard's history came to me, and taught me that I can channel a small portion of my magic to help create a barrier that will not allow magic to enter the city without mine, or those whom I designate worthy, to enter."

"And that might be able to keep the silver one's powers from attacking us again," Celestia muttered as Adam nodded.

"Yes, but it is just a theory. Right now my biggest concern is getting the suits that Luthor promised me from him," Adam said as he turned and walked back inside of the castle, Celestia following him until the two of them were back in the throne room, where six stained glass images of the fallen Elements hung in the windows. Adam looked at them for a moment with sorrow in his eyes before he looked back to Celestia. "I will go see how the repairs are coming. If you have need of me, do not be afraid to call."

Celestia nodded as Adam turned to leave, her eyes looking over all of the stain glass images sadly. From the Elements freeing her sister to the day Adam called down the lightning for the first time, each of them reminded her of a day when her life changed forever. She had been so focused on the images that she didn't notice that Black Adam hadn't left yet.

"Celestia." Celestia turned around to look at Black Adam, whose eyes told her that he was trying to make a very difficult decision. Then he took in a deep breath before he uttered the word, "Shazam." The lightning tore into the castle and Celestia covered her eyes as the blast struck Adam, but they were filled with disbelief when she looked at him again, seeing the human for the first time in years. "My power does not make me, not anymore. What I do with the power will define me," Teth Adam said to her. Celestia's eyes teared up for a moment before she ran over to him and tackled him with a hug, nearly knocking him over.

"I always believed that you would say that. I just didn't know when," she said to him as she wrapped him tight with her wings. Adam gently patted her on the back as well before he broke the hug, smiling at her as he backed up and called down the lightning again.

"Now I must go. There is much to be done." Celestia nodded as he shot off into the sky through the hole the lightning had made, with a smile on her face the entire time. And despite being surrounded by some of the most tragic events in Equestrian history, she felt happy--happy that Teth was the champion that she had always seen in him.

S=H=A=Z=A=M

On a solitary island in the middle of the ocean sat a single lighthouse, and at the top of the lighthouse rested a silver pony, who gazed out across the sea as an old lady next to her wrote into a book. The silver mare turned to ask her a question when she felt a strange wave of magic wash over her.

The silver mare shook her head while the world around her froze, causing her to look around with concern as she suddenly found herself surrounded by absolute whiteness. 'Tenebaum? What happened? Where are you?' she asked into the nothingness, but there was no reply. She turned around with a gasp to see that six massive thrones rested behind her, with a separate creature resting upon each of the thrones, six creatures that looked like her. An alicorn, a changeling, a griffon, a diamond dog, a dragon and a zebra. 'Who are you? What is going on?'

'We have decided to finally meet you,' the alicorn said to her in a voice that radiated with magic. 'We are aware of your plight and we wished to give you a bit of aid.' The silver mare looked at them with confusion through her mane, when the dragon snorted and gained her attention.

'You have spent the last year getting a better hold of your powers, yet you have made no real progress to finding what you need,' he said with a strong voice. 'The items that need re-forging are the Elements of Harmony.'

'But why would I need to do that? The Elements of Harmony are fine,' the silver mare replied before the dragon shook his head.

'No child, they are dead. They fell in combat with Black Adam.' The silver mare could feel her heart go cold at these words, but the dragon continued on. 'But the Elements you knew of will not be strong enough to defeat the oncoming darkness. The Elements that must be re-forged are our Elements, the Elements of the original wielders of Harmony. The Elements of every race and nation brought together.'

'You were given hints in your vision as to who you needed to seek out, but it will be hard to find them amongst the infinite realities,' the Diamond Dog said to her. 'But we will help you on your way whenever you are lost. We ourselves may not know for certain who can wield the Elements, but we can point you in the direction of a potential candidate.'

'There will be many dangers and trials for both the champion and you to overcome,' the changeling said to her lovingly, her words sounding like how the silver mare's mother used to speak to her. 'Yet if you believe in them and help them, they will overcome.'

'But without all of the Elements of old, the darkness will not only destroy the world, but all of the other worlds,' the griffon added. 'For only the Elements of old can harm that which is the embodiment of destruction. It will not matter how strong a being is or what power it possesses, it can't destroy destruction itself. Only Harmony can fight against destruction. Your mother believes that Black Adam can defeat any foe, but she is at the beginning of a dark path, one that if she travels down it will destroy both her and Black Adam.'

'And this destruction will not stop until it has hunted you down and destroyed you, for that sphere within you will be key,' the zebra said as she pointed to the silver mare's chest. 'The sphere of creation will lead to the creation of the most powerful Elements of Harmony and destruction will do everything in its power to stop you.'

'We managed to seal it away years ago, but at the cost of our physical forms,' the alicorn explained. 'And we have no power to combat it once again. We need your help.' The silver mare looked down at her hooves for a moment before she looked back up at them with fear in her eyes.

'Only answer me this one question. Did I kill my sister?'

'...Unintentionally, but yes, you created the portal that allowed those demented humans to enter your world and kill your sister,' the zebra answered, her words piercing through the silver pony. She collapsed to her knees and silently began to cry to herself, the original wielders of the Elements staying silent until she finished sobbing.

'I know that you must be feeling terrible, but we need to know now if you are willing to help,' the zebra said as she appeared next to the silver mare and placed a hoof on her shoulder, but the mare shrugged it off.

'I don't care about any of the worlds! All I want is my sister back! To be with my mom again! I don't want to be this...freak!' she screamed as she backed away from the zebra, who sighed softly before pulling the mare into a hug despite her resistance.

"Child, you are no freak. But what you are is the only one we can communicate with to help start this task. Only creation, the power that you wield within you now, will be able to create a group that can fight back against destruction.' The Diamond Dog snickered at this statement and got a harsh look from the zebra before she went back to comforting the mare.

'We are not asking you to be fearless. We are asking you to be strong despite your fears,' the zebra comforted. 'But time is running short, for those who wish to unleash the destruction are already on the move. We need you to gather the six before destruction is freed. To stop it before it is freed.'

'I...' the silver mare sobbed, trying to think of a way to say no. 'Can't Teth stop it? He is powerful now.'

'As we have said, Teth does not wield the power that can defeat destruction. For you cannot fight destruction with destruction, Child. We need the Elements once again. Please, aid us and help to do what we failed to achieve all those years ago.' The silver mare pulled herself into the fetal position one last time as she thought about it, before looking up at the kindness in the zebra's glowing eyes and slightly feeling a strength she had never felt before.

'I will try. That is all I will say.'

S=H=A=Z=A=M

"More armor? Put it over there with the rest," Luna instructed the built pony that delivered the shipment of armor to her. The pony nodded and headed off to where she had pointed, Luna sighing as she looked down at the clipboard which she held with her magic. 'All of the armor in the world won't mean a thing to someone like Black Adam. We need some kind of 'ace in the hole', something.' She turned her attention away from that, when another pony told her that the new recruits were here. She nodded as she walked down the underground tunnels to the main cavern, where at least a hundred ponies looked towards her with eager eyes.

"Thank you all for coming. You all know why you are here," she said to them in a her royal voice, all of them standing proud. "My sister may believe that Black Adam is the key to the future of Equestria, but we all know the truth, that he will be the downfall of it!" The ponies all let out their cheers of agreement, Luna nodding at them with a smile. "That is why I asked you to join me here. We will be the force that brings down Black Adam and show all of Equestria that we do not need a god's help to save us! And then Celestia will know what a true ruler does for their people!"

Another wave of cheers went off from the ponies and Luna asked the soldiers that she already had to help them to their quarters and to show them around. She looked upon all those who were willing to fight with pride, but her heart ached when she thought of how futile their sacrifices would be if they did not have some way to hurt Adam. She lost herself in thought as she walked through the tunnels back to her room, where she sat down at a desk and looked over the known list of powers that Adam had.

"Luna?" a mare asked from her door. Luna turned to see that it was her informant. "We have received news from Canterlot. It seems that the ponies there have deemed Black Adam their champion, because he brought down another god-like being that threatened to kill all of them."

"And pray tell me, Oracle, why was a being like Adam in our land anyway?" she snarled, the pony smirking bitterly at her before she answered.

"According to our allies within the castle, Ares had a score to settle with Adam and their "settling" of that score knocked Canterlot off of the mountain on which it had once rested, and resulted in the deaths of over two hundred ponies," Oracle said to Luna, the unicorn's smile fading as she looked at the floor. "Many good lives were lost."

"And once again it is because of Adam," Luna snarled as she slammed her fist into her desk, dismissing the informant a moment later." Luna racked her brain with all of the artifacts and items that might help her against the dark god, but there was nothing that she could think of that could hurt him. Then she felt another presence in her room. "Who is...okay, let me rephrase. What are you?" she asked a silver pony behind her.

'I...am nopony important,' the silver one answered before looking at Luna with saddened and desperate eyes. 'But I am here to help. You seek for a way to stop Black Adam and I seek for a way...to return everything back to the way it was. I may have a way to stop him.' Luna narrowed her eyes suspiciously, but motioned for the mare to continue. 'I am gathering six champions who may be able to match Adam in power...and with their help we can stop the oncoming darkness. Please, trust me.'

Luna narrowed her eyes once again, but she felt that there was something that she could trust about this pony, like it was almost somepony she knew. Her hardened gaze softened and she nodded to the silver mare. "Very well, silver one, if you can gather me these champions, I will help you return Equestria to the way it used to be. I promise on my life." The mare nodded before she vanished into nothingness, leaving Luna to herself.

'Yes, I will gather the champions, but not to bring down Black Adam. To save him. And my mother,' the silver mare thought to herself as she looked at Luna one last time from the shadows. 'And we'll save you as well. I promise that we'll all be a family again.'

S=H=A=Z=A=M

"Sir, we've done it!" The hooded unicorn shot up at this news and ran into the room where the sphere of destruction sat, the electric magic that had once bonded it weakened to the point where the sphere once again glowed with its dark power. He smiled widely at the sight of it while the ponies around him bowed as he walked by. The moment he got close to the sphere it let loose a wave of dark magic, shattering the bonds that held it and allowed the unicorn to take it.

"Finally, we have the power to destroy this world and remake it for us," he chuckled softly as he felt its destructive power flood into him, almost too much for him to handle. "All we need now is a way to free you from the sphere that holds the destructive force within and we shall rule! No more unity, no more false equality! Unicorns shall rule over all!" The cloaked ponies around him all cheered in agreement. Then the sphere began to hum and it floated above the unicorns, turning towards the leader as if it was looking at him.

'Star-Swirl. You shall be my vessel.'

"Yes, I shall obey your command!" the unicorn said with a laugh as the sphere created dark tendrils that began to snake around the unicorn. "I shall be your vessel to destroy the sphere of creation! I will be your instrument of destruction for all who are not superior!"

S=H=A=Z=A=M

The courtyard was filled to its maximum capacity as thousands of ponies from all over Equestria had gathered to hear the announcement that Celestia had for all of them. There were many rumors floating around among the ponies, but the one item that had everypony talking was the strange cylinder on the center of the stage that rested before them, a cylinder that looked alien in origin. Backstage, Adam and Celestia were speaking with the pony that had volunteered to try out the equipment first, a pony that Adam would never had predicted.

"This is the last chance that you will have to back out of this," Adam said to the azure pony, who responded by smirking at him from underneath of her white mane. He responded with a scowl before asking, "Why do you even wish to do this? Last time I saw you, all you were was a pony who was concerned with being the center of attention...and, criminal scum, I will not forget that."

"Let it go Adam, that was a long time ago," Celestia said as she smiled down at the volunteer." But he is right in saying that this is your last chance to back out, Miss Trixie, so if you wish to-"

"The great and powerful Trixie is not afraid of your demonstration," she cut off Celestia with a smile. "I am tired of living the life of a criminal, one that has to threaten ponies to gain their admiration. From today on I will be admired not because of my power, but because I will fight for them! That is what this armor is said to do, correct?" Celestia nodded as Adam looked up at the sun, figuring it was time to go out. He nodded to the others before throwing back the curtains and floating out onto center stage, smirking as he heard just as many boos for him as he did cheers.

'I have still not been forgiven. I cannot blame them.' Then Celestia and Trixie walked onto the stage, Celestia gaining a large number of cheers while most ponies had no idea who Trixie was. Celestia walked to the pedestal at the center of the stage and the crowd went quiet, waiting to hear what she had to say.

"Ponies of Equestria, I thank you for coming here today, especially after the hardships that we have had to face over the past few days," she said bitterly, hanging her head for a moment for the lives that had been lost. "But today is a new beginning and we will be stronger than we were before. I have asked you all here today to show you the newest technology that we possess, but first there is something of which I wish to inform you." All of the ponies, including Black Adam, looked at Celestia with surprise.

"For my rule as leader, I have tried to be as 'hooves off' as I could be, allowing you to settle disputes and allow you to lead your own lives, but in light of all of the attacks we have had and...other reasons, I can no longer rule in that kind of way," she said with strength, knowing that what she was about to say would upset the crowd. "That is why from now on I am no longer Princess Celestia...I am QUEEN Celestia!" The crowd went dead silent as she said this and though she held her head high, all were silent.

"All hail the queen!" Those three words broke the silence, but they seemed to have a powerful effect on the crowd, who all began to start chanting those words while stomping on the ground. Celestia looked at all of them with disbelief, not believing for an instance that they would take this news so well.

"Why do you look surprised?" Adam asked her with a smirk. "Who could not love you as a queen?" She allowed the crowd to continue cheering for a few moments more before she silenced them by clearing her throat, nodding to Adam before she looked back to the crowd.

"As for the other reason I have called you all here...with all of the recent attacks on my nation, I have decided that the armor and weaponry with which we normally equip our guards will no longer suffice," she said before nodding to Adam again, who placed his hand on the cylinder and ran his power into it, causing it to glow with a blue light as it came online. "That is why, thanks to Teth, we will now outfit the Royal Guard with new armor. Trixie, if you would." Trixie nodded before she hesitantly walked over to the machine.

She summoned all of her courage before she stepped into the machine, looking around for a moment before the doors shut behind her. The crowd held their breaths as a blue light ran up the center of the doors while a strange sound could be heard, a breath that turned into a gasp when they saw the doors open and Trixie step out of the machine.

She was covered in armor that fitted her perfectly, but what drew the ponies' eyes was the helmet and the fire arm that rested upon her shoulder. The helmet had an armored forehead, and two blue lines were upon the helmet's face. The firearm had three barrels and shined four blue lights wherever she aimed. The crowd looked at the armor in disbelief before the helmet collapsed into the back of the suit, revealing a smiling Trixie.

"Tada," she said with a bow, the crowd cheering wildly at the display.

"We call these new suits the Equalizers," Celestia said as Black Adam picked up some stones and tossed them into the air, where Trixie took aim with the gun and blasted the stones into powder. Adam then hurled an even larger rock, but this time Trixie fired a bluish fireball at the rock which suspended it in midair when it hit. "They come with extreme firepower, telekinesis and the ability to temporarily slow down a target. With these suits, it matters not what threats attack, it can be dealt with without Black Adam. Pegasi will be able to battle with unicorn criminals, earth ponies will be able to combat pegasi! No criminal stands a chance against these forces! These will be the guards of the future!"

The crowd went wild as Trixie bowed again and began to show off, while Black Adam walked over to Celestia, who looked across the crowd with a nervous smile on her face. "I am almost scared of how easily they are accepting these new weapons and armor. It's almost as if they have forgotten who has died because of it."

"They simply trust you," Adam replied as he placed a hand on her shoulder. "And we will never forget who died because of these weapons. But while my race has given these kind of tools a bad name, maybe the ponies will be able to put the suits to good use. And we will be there to make sure that they will not make the same mistakes." Celestia nodded as she and Adam looked out across the ponies, all those that they had both sworn to protect. And they both knew that they would do so, to the bitter end. But then a few words were spoken, words that Adam never heard even though they were within his own mind

'And I shall be here, my fallen champion, to make sure that you never make those mistakes again.'

Author's Note:

And that's the end of this tale (for now) and I thank all who have read it. I don't need to tell you what story is coming next, but I will give you a few hints for old times sakes. A boy in a god's body, the two monsters who make up one hero, the dark pony, the misfit mare, the daddy and...

Until next time, see ya.

Comments

[La Barata]

"Yes! We do not need a god to save us! Just a god, me!"

[The Hat Mann]

Then the sphere began to hum and it floated above the unicorns, turning towards the leader as if it was looking at him.
'Star-Swirl. You shall be my vessel.'

Well that was unexpected.

[seeker of truth n]

I can't say this enough I love it so much

[JDPrime22]

Damn, this is such an incredible story, and a perfect setting for your next big title coming up!

[Onomonopia]

5431453
Why thank you.

[Nuclear Grenade]

Tenebaum? So Sunny was in the Bioshock universe.

[light snow]

Wooooo! This has been a great story :D I love how teth is actually being a fully blown good guy now :3

[Husky Wang]

Nice ending, I wonder if this is the downfall or rise of Equestria? Probably is the downfall, because the Elements and the Vision stated that the destruction is coming for the multiverse.

[Autistic Retard]

'You were given hints in your vision as to who you needed to seek out, but it will be hard to find them amongst the infinite realities,' the Diamond Dog said to her. 'But we will help you on your way whenever you are lost. We ourselves may not know for certain who can wield the Elements, but we can point you in the direction of a potential candidate.'

Yeah and that one story where Superman was worthy of all the elements