For the Sake of Progress

by Lucaro

Chapter 8: Royal Intervention

Author's Note:

You guys wanted a demonstration of Sombra's power.

Well, here you go.

Celestia flew as fast as she could, the wind roaring in her ears. Luna flew a distance ahead, scouting ahead. She had to get to Ponyville with all haste. The devastation had spread far and wide and was reaching further still....

Celestia looked down at the forested hills she was flying above. Like the blood-laden veins underneath her skin, the scarlet rivers were etched into the landscape. All the plant life close to the contaminated river was becoming sick, dying, and becoming crystallized. Celestia blinked. She could feel the immense power drain, like some terrible, malignant force was sucking the life out of anything that was exposed to the contaminated water.

She could feel the life force of millions of plants being leeched and all sent to one source. Sombra. He was the one she had seen in her dream.

Celestia shuddered. The fish in the streams, the trees and shrubs, the animals who drunk from the river…They were all under Sombra’s subjugation. They were all slowly being sapped of their life force and being crystallized.

How much power had Sombra harvested? Surely he was much deadlier now than the last time he had shown his face. Celestia felt a sharp spike of concern for all the towns and villages who used this river as a water source. They all now belonged to Sombra.

Celestia stopped and called out for Luna. They were about an hour away from Ponyville, and she had no idea what they were going to encounter. What if all her subjects attacked her? Would she have the heart to kill them?

She thought of her student then. I hope you and all your friends are alright, Twilight.

Luna flew close to her, hovering. “Sister, there is no time to waste.”

Celestia sighed. “Perhaps we should make a plan. Sombra is drawing power from every living thing exposed to the contamination. I cannot fathom how powerful he has become. Every plant, every animal, are energy reserves for him. His magic will be devastating.” Celestia looked down. “Also, if there are ponies who have been subjugated…” she felt tears in her eyes. “I can’t bring myself to put down Twilight, or anyone else who has been contaminated.”

Luna embraced her sister. “Do not worry, sister. If culling the infected makes you uncomfortable, I shall be the one who sends them to the eternal night.” Luna pointed at herself. “I’ll take care of the infected, you take care of Sombra. Agreed?”

Celestia was about to agree when Luna screamed. Celestia reflexively dove down, and she felt the tip of her horn scrape a giant crystallized boulder the size of a house. Celestia flipped around, and a giant Crystal Monolith shrieked at them. It towered above the trees, as tall as the skyscrapers in Manehattan. Its body was made out of crystallized tree bark and the leaves of a thousand trees. What was this horrific creation!?

The Crystal Monolith picked up another boulder and hurled it at them. The boulder flew above Celestia’s head and Luna barely dodged it. The earth shook as the boulder shattered against the ground, a crater forming at the impact site.

She stared in horror as she saw a dozen more Crystal Monoliths on the horizon, lumbering around. This forest, it provided unlimited raw materials for Sombra’s constructs….

These things could easily destroy a city. The Crystal Monolith shrieked, raising its arm and shooting red crystal fragments at them. Celestia created a heat shield, and all the crystal projectiles turned to dust. Luna fired a bolt of energy at the construct’s head, and it’s head was blown off, but it still leaned down and picked up another boulder. Luna hissed. “They just won’t die, will they?”

Celestia shouted. “We don’t have time to deal with them! We have to stop this at its source!”

Luna shook her head. “What if these giants come across a city? They will kill everyone!”

“We don’t have time!” Celestia felt a concussive blast, knocking her out of the sky. Luna screamed in pain. A giant boulder crashed somewhere near her as she lay on the ground. She shook her head, dizzied by the blow. She took off into the air, beckoning her sister. “Come!”

They sped to Ponyville, seeing other Crystal Monoliths as they flew past. They were strong and durable, but they could not give chase.

Soon, they spotted the outskirts of Ponyville. It smelled like it had rain recently. Puddles of the scarlet water were in the streets, and that’s when she saw the first one. A mare shambled around in the street, disoriented and slowly being consumed by the crystals. Oh no, has everyone been exposed?

Boards and planks of wood had been nailed on the doorways, and soon she saw more of the crystal infested ponies. The streets were filled with them, and they all shrieked when they saw her flying above. The pegasi ponies gave pursuit, but Luna easily knocked them out of the sky with her magic. Her heart broke as she watched them shatter on the ground, smashed to pieces as if they were made out of glass.

Luna yelled to her. “I will purge these ponies, and you go look for Sombra! Check at the Rich Chemical Plant upstream!”

Luna dove downwards, slamming into the ground and sending a shockwave that killed hundreds of ponies. They all charged after her, throwing pieces of their own crystal bodies at her. Celestia heard a dark voice addressing them through an intercom somewhere. “Flee now, little princesses. Three towns and an entire forest are in my control! Flee now…” a red mist rose up from the stinking bowels of the sewers and erupted from the storm drains, the contamination sweeping through the streets and rising up in the air. Celestia stared in horror as the tidal wave of mist approached where Luna was. Celestia screamed at Luna. “Fly! Death approaches!”

Luna saw the mist reaching out towards her, her eyes wide. She took wing, but the crystal ponies were slinging jagged projectiles at her, and Celestia gasped as she saw blood dripping from her wing. She was knocked back down, and the wall of mist was approaching her from both ends of the street.

Celestia screamed, charging down to save her sister. She felt Luna’s hoof in hers, and created a bubble with a pocket of air for her. They settled down together, the mist washing over the bubble of air. “Thank you,” Luna whispered.

Outside of their bubble, all they could see was the scarlet mist shrouding them. Large figures began to appear, and Celestia gasped. Horrendous looking aberrations lumbered towards her, and she noticed that its body was made out of still living ponies. They all moaned in pain, the crystals protrusions interlocked, holding them in place to form the creature.

“We’re going to have to fight!” Celestia said, helping Luna up. “We have to destroy that chemical plant!”

Luna nodded, joining her side. “Let’s kill these things.”

They took a fighting stance, flank to flank, staring down all the aberrations that were surrounding them and reaching in towards them. There was an explosion of light.