War Paint
As much as I enjoyed the time to spend with my friends, it was brief for good reason. I'm sure we all felt it, that chill that made the hair on everyone's neck seem to stand up. Even as resources and reinforcements flooded into the city the feeling did not fade. It had been a week since the night we shared relaxing and since then we had all been in the Crystal Spire training and practicing alongside King Ralen's personal guard. I only managed to train with them a little since the King insisted I sink most of my time into my artifact after he gave me all of the Spero crystal they could find. I could only hope that it would work when we needed it...
"Harder! Come on! Swing like the monster took everything you have away!" One of the guards shouted in Thunder Clap's ear as he struck ferociously at his target. It was a dummy with a metal shield planted firmly into it. The shield was becoming increasingly dented as Thunder Clap unleashed his rage at the dummy.
"Is that all you've got!? I've seen foals that could hit harder! This monster took away all of your family! All of your friends gone because of this monster! I need you to get angry!" Thunder Clap's trainer barked.
Thunder Clap cried out as he swung his mace at the target with truly devastating results. The shield caved inward and wide, the sturdy post behind it splintered into a million pieces as Thunder Clap destroyed it in an incredible display of strength. As Thunder Clap caught his breath the trainer let out a long whistle and and put a hoof on Thunder Clap.
"Damn...that was mighty impressive even by my standards. That was one of the strongest kinds of shields we can make and you bent that thing like a tin sheet."
"Thank you, sir."
"Shield up! Keep your head on a swivel! Lives are depending on you to do your job!" The shouting rang in Serenity's ears but she was intent on not letting it distract her as she threw a shield up in front of one of another dummy. In front of her were a trio of dummies each with a guard attempting to get swings in. It was her goal to make sure none of the guards hit any of the dummies but only where the point of impact would be so the defender would be able to strike back if they were real.
"Focus on your objective! There are going to be thousands fighting for this city and you can barely handle protecting three!? Prove that you can be counted on!"
Thus far she had deflected every single strike against the dummies but it was getting to the point where it almost felt second nature, which was the very goal of the training so she would have split-second reaction time. She barely caught the sight of a guard charging to her with a wooden sword in time to block it with another shield.
"You will need to protect yourself from any threats as well! You come first! If you fall in battle there will be no one else to protect your allies and they will fall soon after! Do I make myself clear!"
"Yes, sir." She responded confidently.
"The citizens of the empire have no reason to trust you! As far as they are concerned YOU are the enemy! Prove them wrong and kill every figure that approaches!" The trainer that was with Alsia shouted as several unicorns in a circle projected ghost-like figures charging towards her with swords and maces.
She danced through the air with her own sword and sliced through ghost after ghost while evading every possible hit herself. At best the ghosts would have made the occasional scratch but nothing that would have been life-threatening. She continued like this at a relentless and ever increasing pace for an hour until she was fending off dozens at once. At the end of it she had defeated the equivalent of hundreds of skeletal ponies while taking only minor flesh wounds herself. Even with magic she could only hope to hold them off for so long.
"Good work. Now do it again."
"Stay on the move! Keep each enemy distracted so your allies can finish them off!"
Ice Mist stayed in the air and kicked at several of the ghost-like figures beneath her to get their attention while the other guards training with her destroyed them as they focused their attention on her. She narrowly evaded their ethereal spear thrusts and sword jabs and kept the attention of a large number of the ghosts. The instructor pushed the number of ghosts further and further until it was nearly a hundred of the monsters and only her and a dozen of the guards. The guards would be out for the round if they were hit and Ice Mist as well. She was struggling to keep the attention of the ghosts while her allies destroyed them as fast as they could. There was an increasing number of near misses as she zoomed back and forth faster to keep the attention of as many ghost as she could so they wouldn't overwhelm her allies. The ghosts were eventually decimated at last, leaving the exhausted mare with a few moments to catch her breath.
"Good. Now. Hold them off as long as you can...on your own." Her instructor smiled as he passed her a sword and shield. The nearby unicorns created a dozen ghosts that she was to fend off on her own. The catch was that each one would be replaced as only a moment after it was destroyed.
"Begin."
"58! 61! 66!" The counter called out as Runa dashed through the countless ghosts being projected by the unicorns in attendance to help her train. "69! 72!" Rune was tearing into the would be skeletons with unmatched fury and power. Dragons would be one of the greatest assets available in the battle and although she wasn't anywhere near the size as some members of her race, she was no exception.
Suddenly her instructor came up with an idea for a real challenge. The other unicorns maintained the ghosts already up but he personally cast one of an enormous undead dragon that even she should have trouble with considering he was barely able to maintain the spell itself began of its power, though it wouldn't be able to actually hurt anyone.
"You are tough but not invincible! Avoid any swings from the big one!" Runa dodged and weaved as she avoided the ghosts on the ground and made her way to the bigger threat. She jumped over a swipe and leaped high into the air with the air of her wings and came down with enough force on the neck area to dispel the monster. It took some time but she was finally able to dispatch the rest of the ghosts in sight.
"Excellent. Now do it again but I will be personally in the mix. You are to make sure none of the ghosts so much as touches me. If I am hit, if you are, or if you hit me, you lose and we start again. Starting...now!"
"Ignore the small ones! You're hunting big game here! You'll dive from above cloud-cover and carve up and aerial units that you can see! If you are spotted retreat to cloud cover and repeat!" A guard shouted to Midnight Hope. "Your reflexes must be razor sharp!" He flung 3 clay discs straight at Midnight, whom dodged them with one smooth motion to the left, the discs sailing into the far wall.
"In a last ditch scenario you are to fly straight to the spire and report to King Ralen! Remember, take out the targets that are doing the most harm to our boys!" He slammed a hoof on the floor for emphasis.
"Sir yes sir!" Midnight snapped a crisp salute.
"It's finally finished..." I breathed tiredly. I stared at it in pride and wonder. I prayed that it would do as the crystal was meant to. When magic was cast strong emotions had the potential to amplify the raw power of a spell. Essentially the crystal caught and magnified the emotions of all those around it to destroy those that wielded black magic. As proud as I was of the crystal, I feared it just as much. If it worked right, then it could decimate an entire army of un-dead, whom needed black magic to bind their bodies together. The only issue was that I had cast black magic myself...
A hoof tapped me on the shoulder. "Good job, son. If this works I will ensure your name echoes throughout history." King Ralen told me in a proud tone. I offered a modest smile in return.
"If only we had a chance to test it. The only problem is that we don't know where the enemy is and if we tried to take it to them we would risk the crystal being captured in an ambush as well since it will need to be powered up first. Take it down to the point we've set up under the spire when you've caught your breath. You did good today."
"Thank you sir...but I can only guess as to how far this thing will reach. We need to prepare for the situation that it doesn't work as intended." I looked at the crystal in worry.
"We already have. But I've told troops about this thing, even just thinking it'll work is a real morale booster to everyone. It is the heart of all our hopes."
"The crystal heart...that's what we can call it. I'll do my best to make it work."
"Hmm...I like it. The Crystal Heart. Take a breather. You've earned it." He padded me once more on the shoulder before he turned to head elsewhere until a ragged looking scout burst through a nearby pair of double doors with the most soulless, drained expression I had ever seen.
"S-SIR! Massive army in the distance! Far larger than the last one! They have skeletal dragon units accompanied by gryphon and minotaur un-dead! They're in wide ranks and approaching slowly from the mountains!" The scout struggled to catch his breath after he finished.
"How long until they arrive and any estimate on the exact size?" King Ralen asked grimly.
"Twenty to twenty-four hours sir! Long distance scouts really came through on this one. Estimates range from 160,000 to 200,000 strong, all equipped with armor and weapons. Lead scout Dust Wind believed they're throwing everything they have this time."
King Ralen's face paled and it almost looked as though he shivered. "How in the world did they get that many...and arm them too...we'll be outnumbered three to one at best. Is that all, scout?"
"Yes, sir. Should I organize civilian evacuations?
"Not yet. Order the pegasi to start generating a snowstorm in all directions to cover the evacuation to Storm-Point. If we don't the enemy might go after them. We need to keep their focus on our forces here if we have an chance of surviving this. We're dug in deep so hopefully we can weather this. Notify me if siege engines appear and send our fastest to alert our allies of the attack. DIsmissed"
"Yes, sir!" The scout saluted before sprinting out of the room.
"Dear Celestia...even with the reinforcements we only number about 50,000. If we can stretch out the battle we can potentially double our forces if Equestria, The Gryphon Kingdoms, and the dragons come through in time. The changelings want to help but it'll take them time to get here. I don't think this battle will go like last time. If this is their final push they're not gonna risk a rush. We'll be looking at a siege most likely."
"How many dragons do we have?" I asked.
"Hundreds. If we can keep them properly shielded from archers and mages they could lay waste to large numbers of hostiles."
"Understood."
"And don't worry, we've got some of our best that are going to shield your friend. The dragons are going to be the key to our defensive strategy. They'll all be well protected."
"Thank you. Do you know about my other friends?"
"Actually I do. Your unicorn friends will help shield the troops and your pegasi friends will likely be reassigned to help escort the civilians out to Storm-Point or help generate the storm itself."
"Thank you. It at least helps to know where they'll be." I sighed.
"Now, with that said. Unless enemy forces are fighting for control of the area below the spire I need you putting every ounce of your energy into powering the heart. Can you charge it preemptively?"
"Yes but only for about five minutes or so. If we wait too long it will probably need to charge again. Although I don't think it'll reach very far past the edge of the city."
"Is there a limit to how often we can use it? Can anyone activate it?"
"It'll need time to cool down. If everyone's energy was simultaneously poured into it and activated it would take about an hour or so to cool down again before it could be repeated. We could essentially have fewer large blasts or more small blasts. Any magic user should be able to activate The Crystal Heart." I explained.
"Very well. If the front lines break I'll give the order for our troops to retreat to the secondary line of defense and you'll be given the order to charge it and fire once their forces are in the city." King Ralen closed his eyes for a moment and slowly exhaled. "Wow...I'm king and I'm leading the defense of a city that's going to be attacked by undead. Again. Want to know a secret, Sombra?"
"Um...sure?" I asked hesitantly. He smiled just a little.
"I just wanted to be a dancer when I was little. My father agreed to pay my dancing lessons while I was in college if I took a couple classes in politics and military strategy, being the old veteran he was. Apparently my teachers thought I had a real talent for that sort of thing. I kept taking the dancing lessons but my teachers talked me into taking more classes and eventually some of the current king's advisers came to talk to me. I ended up meeting the King himself and we became friends and he mentored me in some aspects of politics and leadership himself. Years later, on his death bed. He asked me to take the crown in his place." He let out a small chuckle.
"Wow...that's amazing." I said in astonishment.
"Yeah, not as amazing as you think. Those classes would have put you to sleep. But anyway, here I am. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to rehearse a speech to boost morale. One last thing, good luck out there, Sombra. Farewell."
"Thank you, sir."
"Just Ralen is fine when it's me and you." He remarked as he adjusted his crown and turned to leave.
"Thank you K-Ralen...take care yourself."
He nodded and added a final goodbye as he departed.
Now I was left to myself with just The Crystal Heart before me. I stared into its depths and saw myself looking back. It's strange, I barely recognized myself. I looked so different. So much changing in so little time.
Then I saw something in the crystal change. It flashed in the crystal. I jumped back initially but then I looked back at it. It was me...donned in metal armor and with a red, curved horn. My eyes...looked simply evil...they radiated some kind of ethereal glow and held no trace of love or mercy. I stumbled away from my seat and looked away from the image. When I looked back it was gone... as if it had never existed.
I settled back into my seat and let out a long yawn. I hadn't slept in almost three days and the constant work over that time was finally taking its toll. The monster in my reflection was only a bad hallucination, I was certain. Before I could think any further on the matter the fatigue gradually forced me to fall asleep despite however hard I tried to resist.
As I fell asleep I glimpsed soldiers turning every house and street corner into a fortress all its own. I even saw the candy shop I used to go to as a foal turned into an armory. The same place I used to grab candy was where soldiers now grabbed spears. Childhood was officially over...peace was officially over...now there would only be war...
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here I am
Only thing that I noticed so good on you for being thorough with your work!
5528354 Ah, thanks for catching that, already fixed. Hope you liked it!
aw come on! theres gotta be more than four of us, right?......right? well, i still love it
continue good sir! so excited for sombra's change!
5529500 Lol I hope so. I'd publish more if I knew more people enjoyed it compared to say Playing The Heartstrings but I still personally love updating this one. Get ready for the super huge frickin battle as well.
5530872 yass!!!
Well I just read this whole thing in like two days. Slow start but got interesting fast.
5542854 Awesome, that's kinda what I was aiming for. You're in good time too. I'm writing the climax of the story now as well. Everyone will just have to wait and see if there will be a sequel or not...
5602556 Thanks! Glad ya liked it. Also not as many (Even though it's my longest story) because no one's doing the pants off dance off in it.
Odd, just got an update telling me this had updated.