Chapter 162: Wonderbolts Never Die (Arc 3 Finale Part 4: Bending the Rules)
MLP: FiM
Piercing the Heavens
By: Calm Wind
Chapter 162: Wonderbolts Never Die (Arc 3 Finale Part 4: Bending the Rules)
The glares chilled like the whistling winds.
Sombra and Discord had their eyes locked on one another, neither one of them paying a single thought or glance to those who had emerged and gotten caught in the intense pressure of their auras. Luna could barely stay upright as she was battered by the magical pressure, all those with her locked to the ground and unable to move.
But while their focus was equally unwavering, the control they had over themselves differed. Sombra was holding still, his aura and body calm as he glared up at Discord on the snow mound. Discord on the other hoof, looked like he was barely keeping his power under control. His glare was accompanied with gritted teeth and his lip pressing against his snaggletooth. Pops and crackles of purple light sparked and flashed subtly around him, reacting to his emotions as he looked down at Sombra… a position that was clearly planned.
“Hmph…” Sombra snorted, breaking the silence. “I was wondering when you’d finally show your face,” he spoke in a condescending tone despite being positioned below Discord. “So what is your scheme within all this madness, hm?”
Discord said nothing, his eyes twitching as Sombra’s words reached his mind. He was watching Soarin’s enhanced body, the lips were not moving as Sombra spoke, but there was no denying what he was feeling. It was Sombra, and nothing but Sombra.
A powerful shockwave of pressure suddenly burst outward from beneath Discord, the snow mound beneath him imploded and sent chunks of snow in every direction. Everypony around was blown backwards, sent tumbling along the ground. Luna was knocked right off her hooves and slid several yards back. But Sombra only winced as the snow chunks blew to pieces as they struck his aura and leaned back slightly as the burst struck him, barely phasing him as Luna grunted and struggled behind him. She eventually pushed herself back up, but it was an immense struggle.
Discord remained in the air for a few seconds, floating in place as if the snow mound were still there. He continued to glare and grit his teeth as he slowly lowered to the ground. Sombra did not move from his spot, he simply watched as Discord descended slowly and eventually landed right in front of him, now willingly standing in his shadow as he loomed at least a head taller than Discord.
The crackling of Discord’s aura became more intense, the blips and sparks of his aura colliding with the flowing waves of energy rising from Sombra. The howl of the wind and the snowfall grew more intense.
Luna blinked in surprise as her wobbling legs struggled to keep her upright, her eyes locked on what she could see of Discord behind Sombra’s massive bulk.
He was… facing Sombra directly? After the way he brushed them aside and after all of Discord’s talk about nothing mattering anymore? What was he doing?
“Was that supposed to scare me?” Sombra asked with a snide scoff as he narrowed his eyes down at Discord.
“Shut your trap, you abomination!” Discord snapped up at him, clenching his fists at his sides. Sombra easily noticed Discords arms shaking and the energy seeping from his closed hands.
“You mean to fight me?” Sombra asked, the same tone persisting.
“Why ELSE would I be out here?” Discord snarled. “As if anypony else could even scratch you in this state! I’m putting an end to this… and an end to you!”
“You?” Sombra lifted an eyebrow and snorted. “Put an end to me?” He shook his head and scoffed. “Feh… you are nothing. Have you already forgotten what happened last time? I doubt your magic is suddenly capable.”
“I took the wrong approach last time…” Discord’s glare hardened to the point where his eyelids and pupils twitched. “So what if my magic doesn’t work on you… I’m still the god of CHAOS!”
Discord threw his arms outward, his aura exploding from his body and expanding greatly until it completely encircled the gentler, more controlled flow of Sombra’s. The pressure in the air increased ten-fold, the swirling winds and snow growing stronger and turning into a full-blown blizzard. Luna and her followers were pelted by the thick flakes, all of them forced to shield themselves as if they were caught in the middle of a hurricane.
Large purple ribbons of light began to flow from Discord and flail about around him. They appeared to bounce off invisible surfaces in the air… but as they did, they left behind what looked like streaks or tears, as if pulling and clawing at the very fabric of reality around them.
Luna noticed immediately, and it alarmed her immensely.
“DISCORD! NO!” she yelled as she tried to force herself forward, but was only pushed backward and to the ground. “BE CAREFUL!” she demanded as she watched Discord willingly violate the golden rule of his freedom.
But Discord didn’t listen, the energy flow persisted as the ribbons of light continued to rip and tear at reality. Each rip was minor, closing up quickly, but Discord was clearly bending the universal existence around him.
And as he did… he began to enlarge. His body grew in size, growing larger and larger in scale until he stood a head taller than Sombra.
Sombra calmly looked about as the process unfolded. This wasn’t just a simple size increase. Discord didn’t need to pull at time and space just to do that.
“I CAN DO ANYTHING!!!!!” Discord yelled as his eyes glowed brightly, streams rising from his eyes similar to Sombra’s. "And if the magic approach didn’t work… then maybe a more physical one will!” He yelled as he pounded a fist into his palm, purple sparks erupting from his hands and shooting all about with loud crackles and pops. “It’s time to do what I should have done a long time ago!” he roared as the power increase ceased and the winds and snow lost some of their intensity. Luna quickly found the strength to stand again… barely, though the rest had no such luck as the pressure still persisted. But Sombra looked unimpressed.
“Bending dimensions to your will to relatively double your natural size and strength while everything else around you remains the same…” Sombra spoke as he put together what Discord had done. “And…?” he followed up, completely unfazed as who was looking at who from where was swapped once again.
“You’ve taken everything from me!” Discord’s voice boomed and echoed as if his pocket of warped dimension was distorting his voice. “You took what I cherished most away from me long ago… and now here you’ve done it all over again! I’ve let you get away with it both times! I have nothing… thanks to you! Nothing left!” Discord paused and snorted. “I’m done feeling sorry for myself, I’m done wondering why I couldn’t prevent it… I did the same thing a thousand years ago and it didn’t take long to remember how well that ended up working out for me!” He pointed harshly at Sombra. “You STILL exist! You STILL persist! So if it’s the last thing I do, I will make you PAY! I will make you regret it all!”
Sombra remained silent for a few moments as his head remained tipped up and his eyes focused on Discord. Slowly… his eyes began to narrow as everything Discord just said sunk in.
“I’ve… taken everything… from you?” Sombra said each word slowly, a low, angered growl surfacing from his throat. “Hypocrite… Hearing you say such words to me… is beyond despicable!” he said as the aura around his horn grew brighter, his sword and shield conjuring at his sides with several miscellaneous pieces of weaponry appearing behind him. “I had hoped to save this moment for later… I cannot give you the pain you deserve where I stand right now. But if you have the gall… the AUDACITY to make such claims of me, then I will spare a moment to make you eat those words right here and now!”
They glared fiercely at one another as Sombra’s magic aura began to swell, his output of magic power matching the emotion in his voice from his rebuke of Discord’s words. Soon the auras were actively pushing against one another, the swirling winds and snow picked up again slightly. Luna’s magic came alight, her auras rushing to her legs to help prop herself up as grunts and gasps of her followers behind her rang out, the pressure nearly pushing them into the ground as they tried to get up.
Luna could scarcely believe what she was seeing. She was witnessing power on proportions that not even she could comprehend, let alone generate. She could throw out powerful, destructive spells, but nothing she could do created such a feeling like the one forcing her and everypony else down. It was like the magic in the air itself was heavy, its power so strongly condensed into a small area that it was nearly solid and thick.
Was this… what she was capable of? What Discord meant when he spoke of her unwillingness to make the sacrifice for greater power as her sister and parents had? She had never seen Celestia do anything like this before… but could she…?
But as Luna stared, she suddenly noticed something.
Discord was twirling one of his fingers subtly as he kept his eyes locked on Sombra’s. There was no magic or build up with the motion… it was like he was trying to signal something?
Lulu.
Luna’s ears perked up as Discord’s voice suddenly echoed in her head.
This is our chance. I will keep this lummox distracted. Go find the Elements and get them within range.
Luna blinked. Discord was… putting on an act? He was helping with her plan?
Only you can do it, if I let up at all and free the rest, Sombra will get suspicious. Get your little moon-cheeks back into that mess in the forest and secure the Elements!
Luna stared, swallowed, and gave a single nod.
Good girl, now hurry! I don’t know how long I can fight him or hold this form before—
“WHAT THE—?!”
“LOOK OUT!”
“WHOOOOAAAAA!!!!!”
Luna looked behind her as the new voices came within range… and the moment she turned…
Rainbow Dash crashed to the ground right next to her, Fluttershy flinging from her back and landing with a tiny squeak. Further back Matteo and Squall hit the ground hard, flinging Applejack, Rarity, and Twilight from their backs and to the ground. Pinkie’s go kart zoomed in and stopped in front of them. She blinked and looked everypony over.
“Oh, right…” her go kart sank firmly into the snow and she fell face first to the ground with a loud whoopee cushion noise.
Right behind them, Descent and Spitfire crashed, followed by Starry, Lightning Dust, and the rest of the top tier Wonderbolts. Fleetfoot bounced off Spitfire and landed head first in the snow close by… then proceeded to grunt and squeak as the Streak twins… and then everypony else landed in a pile on top of her. Surprise was the last, bouncing off the top of the pile with a loud honk before landing on top of Pinkie Pie.
“Gotcha!” she yelled. “Wait, we’re stuck, aren’t we?”
“Yep.” Pinkie replied nonchalantly.
In an instant, all of them were caught in the same situation as the rest, none of them could get up, all locked to the ground as the pressure forced them down.
Luna’s jaw dropped.
Well… she found them.
But then Dash stood up as if nothing was touching her, or as if she was barely shouldering the same weight as the rest. She frantically looked around at her squad and her friends, legs wobbling as she wondered why they were being pushed down. She stared out towards Sombra and Discord. Sombra’s back was turned to her, but Discord blinked…
And took his eyes off Sombra, noticing all the Elements already there… all caught in the situation he created instead of at a safe distance like he wanted.
And that moment of hesitation…
“HRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!!!!” Sombra roared. Charging forward with his sword swinging right towards Discord’s neck.
Discord frantically looked back at Sombra and threw his arms up in front of his face. His chaos magic erupted from his wrists just in time, Sombra’s sword slamming into it. Blue and purple sparks flew everywhere from the collision as the powerful magic clashed. A moment passed after the initial strike before an enormous invisible shockwave erupted from the impact. It blew everypony backwards, sending those on the ground tumbling and even knocking Luna to the ground. Dash was thrown back, luckily running into Matteo’s soft feathers to cushion her fall. Dash propped herself up against Matteo, her eyes widening. She had no idea why she was still able to move a little while everypony else wasn’t, but there was no way she was getting near Sombra if they kept emitting forces like that.
Discord dug his legs in, his wrists grinding together as the blade of pure magic pressed into his guard. He kept his eyes glued to the sword as Sombra pushed, noticing that the blade lacked complete sharpness, and had slight signs of instability.
“Heh… not completely in control, ARE YOU?!” Discord taunted as he pulled back an arm, straining himself to hold the sword at bay with his other arm as he wound up to throw a punch, his chaos magic swirling in his fist.
“Hmph!” Sombra swung his shield around and threw it up in front of him as Discord lunged forward, his fist crashed into Sombra’s shield, causing another powerful blast of wind that pulsed outwards from them and knocked everypony further back.
Dash blinked as Matteo was pushed away from her. She fell backwards and landed softly in the snow, looking up and around. Again… she wasn’t being affected the same way. She felt some pressure, but clearly not nearly as much as everypony else.
“HRRRGH!!!!!” Discord grunted as he pushed forward, Sombra’s shield straining and losing its form slowly, cracks appearing in its shape. Sombra narrowed his eyes and kicked his hooves at the ground, swinging his sword in front of him as he leapt back. Discord was forced to jumped back to avoid it, the two splitting apart and shifting simultaneously, moving until they were slightly further away from the rest with several yards of space between them.
They held their positions briefly, neither moving as they stared one another down. Discord briefly glanced towards the Elements of Harmony again, grinding his teeth beneath his lips as he looked for Luna. But for the moment, she wasn’t in his view. He quickly returned his eyes to Sombra to avoid being caught off-guard again, gathering his magic into his fists again as Sombra cracked a smile and pointed his sword towards Discord.
“Not half bad…” he said with a hint of gamesmanship in his voice. “I might enjoy this yet…” he added. Discord’s eyebrows twitched as he heard the sporty tone. His clear recognition of Sombra’s lack of full control didn’t seem to faze him one bit.
And that pissed him off.
Sombra didn’t hesitate another moment. He restored the form of his shield, twirled his sword to the left and right before placing it against his shield and breaking into a gallop towards Discord. As he closed in, Sombra’s horn glowed brightly, his shield rising up and floating around his head. He whipped his head around and lunged it forward, his shield slinging around and launching flat-face first right at Discord.
Discord crossed one of his fists across his body, keeping the other primed and ready. He roared as he swung the back of his hand around, smacking the shield right out of its path. He was ready to throw a heavy haymaker at Sombra with the other… but Sombra had sped up while Discord was distracted by the shield.
“HHRRRRAAAAAAAAH!” Sombra roared as he repeated the exact same attack as his first, only this time with much more muscle and momentum behind it. Discord didn’t have time to guard this time, one of his arms was at the end of a swinging follow-through, so instead he altered his poorly timed haymaker and opened his palm to grab the blade.
But the moment he did, his hand was forced right back into his chest.
“OOF!” Discord gasped as his body was bent backwards, but thanks to his snakelike body he was able to whip his legs around and back in time to straighten out his body and slam his hooves into the snow.
But it wasn’t enough. Discord’s legs shook and buckled as his hooves were pushed along the ground. Sombra just kept galloping as he pressed, picking up speed as he surged along. Discord swung his other arm up, grabbing the sword alongside his other hand, but he couldn’t stop Sombra’s force no matter how hard he pushed back.
Discord scowled, his horns lighting up. Sombra’s eyes went straight to Discord’s horns, widening slightly as large packs of snow shot along the ground to a point in their path and a mound exploded upward beneath him. Sombra grunted as the snow propelled him upward, his sword, shield, and his other miscellaneous magic weapons dropping to the ground as he flew up. Discord halted his slide and leaped up to take advantage of the situation, pulling back for a hard right hook.
Sombra’s horn lit up, streams quickly shooting down to his weapons and touching his shield. It flew up towards them… but didn’t make it in time.
Discord’s fist connected squarely to Sombra’s jaw, the force of the blow doubled by the ejection of chaos magic from his closed fist after the initial strike. A loud POW thundering like an explosion and a punch combined rang out, another burst of air rushing from the impact and slamming into all the spectators. Sombra was launched downward, spinning from the force of the strike, but before he could hit the ground, a burst of blue light erupted from his body, bouncing him up from the ground before he regained control of his body and landed on all four hooves. His body was facing Discord, but his head was still turned and his eye twitching above where he received the blow.
Discord slowly descended, landing softly in the snow as he cracked a small smirk at Sombra.
“Ohhhh that felt really good…” he said to himself, a sudden wave of euphoria rushing over him. “Sorry, did that hurt?” he taunted, his personal vendetta driving his emotions despite the real reason he was fighting.
Sombra remained still for a moment with his head still turned… but eventually snorted and slowly turned his head to Discord.
Discord blinked… there was no bruise, not even a blemish on Sombra’s face.
“Is that the best you’ve got?” Sombra said as he returned the smirk, verbally swatting the one right off Discord’s face as it was replaced with gritted teeth and a low growl. “I thought you said you were going to fight me with your fists… Yet you used magic to hit me with the snow?” Sombra asked smarmily as he cracked his neck.
“I never said I wouldn’t!” Discord snarled at him, Sombra’s unfazed confidence gnawing at him like an itch he couldn’t scratch. And it only got worse as Sombra held the same look towards him as his all of his weapons slowly returned to him.
Discord watched as his weapons moved, eyeing the bow, spear, mace, and axe that neatly grouped up behind Sombra as his sword and shield remained at his side.
“Are you even going to use those, or are you just trying to look cool?” Discord snapped, his fists clenched as his magic sparked from them.
“These?” Sombra asked while floating the four additional weapons in front of him briefly before replacing them behind. “Just in case I feel like beating your face in with one of them as we go.”
Discord’s eyes widened, fighting against his eyebrows forcing his expression into almost a deranged looking glare.
“But, I think my sword and shield are good enough for the likes of you,” he taunted.
“Oh… that DOES IT!” Discord fumed, his aura exploding around him. “I’m so sick of you thinking you’re better than me!”
“Thinking?” Sombra replied without missing a beat.
“RRRRGGGHHH!!!!!!” Discord growled and crouched to ready a charge. But he flinched and halted for a second, closing his lips over his gritted teeth and taking a long breath to keep his cool. One of his nostrils was twitching, but otherwise he managed to suppress all signs of anger. He knew what Sombra was doing… this was no different than it was a thousand years ago. But that thought alone was enough to burn him up.
Discord’s eyes shifted briefly as he caught a glimpse of Luna propping herself up on Captain P.L. He shifted his eyes the other direction and saw Rainbow Dash standing among the elements all locked to the ground. He took brief note of Spitfire and the Wonderbolts, but they couldn’t move just like everypony else.
He growled to himself and flipped a finger again, tipping his head slightly as Sombra slowly took a battle stance.
Lulu, you need to get the Elements away from here! He shot telepathically to Luna. Rainbow Dash is under the pressure of my aura, but not Sombra’s! Get her help to move the Elements, move them out of here, and get them charged to fire!
That’s easy for you to say! Luna shot back using the same wavelength. We can barely move as is and you keep knocking us over! You’re pushing your powers too far, the fabric of space and time are straining and you expect us to move five ponies stuck under the pressure?!
If I had known they were about to fly into my range I WOULDN’T have done this! It’s too late for me to back down, I have his focus, now you need to do your par—
Discord’s eyes widened as Sombra charged again.
“TCH!” Discord charged as well, but kept in mind what Luna had just said about the constant pressure. In this form, the ejection of magical pressure from his body were twice as strong, and mixed with Sombra’s ludicrously powerful aura in his current state, every clash would just get in the way of the plan.
They grew closer and closer, about to hit each other dead on. Sombra swung his sword around, and Discord pulled back his fist…
But Discord vanished in a bright flash the moment Sombra swung, leaving behind a large purple tear where he stood. Sombra’s sword slashed through it, sparks flying as it halted within the light.
“URGH!” Sombra grunted as he yanked the sword out, the purple light clinging to it like goo as if he was pulling it out of a vacuum. He turned his head quickly to the left and right, his shield swinging around to his right as Discord reappeared and tried to grab him by the neck. Discord’s hands slammed into the shield and he quickly bent his arms to apply pressure to its surface with his forearm. But despite the advantageous position, he couldn’t make Sombra budge.
“How utterly inept and careless,” Sombra growled as he looked through the translucent form of his shield towards Discord, glancing briefly at the dimensional tear again as it shuddered and closed up. “You would risk the very balance of reality so thoughtlessly?”
“I don’t care!” Discord snapped back as he continued to press to the shield. “If I have to bend a few rules to put you in your place then that’s the way it will be!”
“Bend a few rules?” Sombra snorted as he pushed his shield out.
“Rgh!” Discord grunted in discomfort as Sombra forced him backwards. His hooves slid through the snow as Sombra turned to face him directly.
“It is a wonder that anypony you gods look down upon can revere you,” Sombra growled.
“Revere? Don’t talk to me like I’m THEM! I could care less about mortals!” Discord hissed at him. “I act for myself! And right here and now, this is about YOU and ME!”
Sombra stopped pushing his shield. With Discord halted, he walked right up to him. The shield’s surface was the only thing separating the two of them as Discord glowered through the blurry surface… with Sombra only returning a flat, displeased look.
“Gods and goddesses… How can any of you call yourselves such things without your skin crawling with disgust?” His eyes narrowed. “You are the worst of them all, living with such a high and mighty opinion of yourself… yet you don’t even pretend to care.” He subtly shook his head. “A thousand years go by and you haven’t changed at all… But I have.”
Discord’s eyes shot up as Sombra’s sword came swinging down from overhead. He was forced to take his arms off Sombra’s shield and throw them up to avoid being struck right on the noggin. Discord grunted as the sword struck his for arms, forcing him down on a knee and putting him at eye level with Sombra. Sombra slowly floated his shield out of the way as his sword pressed down. He took a step forward and glared at Discord, whose eyes were shut tight as he strained against the magic blade.
“I once cast the thought of immortality aside. While those who stood around me laid down their swords and bowed at your hooves, I remained up… because to me, such a gesture is earned, not granted.”
“RGH!” Discord was forced to both knees and hunching down, with Sombra standing slightly over him.
“They all praised you for what you were, not what lay beneath. I cared not for your supposed divinity, I was not interested in such things, nor did they impress me.”
Discord suddenly released one of his arms from the sword and swung it around towards Sombra’s face, but his shield shifted quickly. Discord’s fist slammed into its surface and halted without Sombra batting an eye.
“But it was foolish of me to ignore…” Sombra went on as Discord struggled, his chaos aura flickering and popping as he tried to concentrate it. Discord opened his eyes wide as his teeth grinded together, meeting Sombra’s eyes right in front of his, the red pupils just barely visible beneath the rising blue fumes of magic. “Your power was great, greater than anything I could have imagined, yet I did not recognize this or the dangers. Not from Celes, not from Luna, nor from you. I rolled my eyes and scoffed at all of your attempts to put me in my place. I relished your attempts to fight me as if my strength alone was enough.” Sombra snorted, a puff of mist shooting from his nose, through the cold air, and right into Discord’s face. “How foolish of me… I did not know of your smitten loyalty. I did not know that you were keeping yourself in check for her. I let my guard down, and the moment a rift appeared between the naïve love I shared with the one you coveted… you cast your power upon me and it destroyed me in an instant. My aged body and broken spirit were not a factor, not even at my strongest could I have prevented it. You were capable all along.” Sombra’s expression scrunched into an enraged glare. “I have felt what you’re capable of… I am the only one who truly knows the danger you represent… and it is for that reason that I act. Celes kept my soul intact, clinging to it even though it was filled with hatred for all of you… as if everything that had been done to me would not matter and that I might ‘come around.’ But the only conclusion I’ve come to over these long years of confinement… is that you’re all a disease on this world. If this world needs gods… then you are NOT the ones to be them, your actions and irresponsible abuse of your powers prove that you are unfit for such a designation. The citizens of Equestria deserve better! If they are to have a god that watches over them, then that god must put them first! As King, this was directive… I thought I could not aim higher, but I see now that I was wrong. I am the only one who understands, the only one who has felt it all… it is I who will put an end to it, put an end to YOU! And then I’ll pursue a way to take on that role myself for the good of all!”
Discord’s aura suddenly flared up, sending a pulse of chaos magic surging outward with a BANG. Yelps and gasps rang out from the trapped spectators as they were all smacked by the force. He forced his body and up, keeping his fist on the shield as he pushed his other arm against the sword.
Sombra’s magic erupted around his horn and his aura exploded around his body as he tried to keep Discord down, but he couldn’t. His eyes darted about Discord, noticing the air around him was bending, distorting his view of the snow. Discord glared into Sombra’s eyes as he slowly rose up, eventually putting them at eye level again as he pushed back, clearly pushing against the fabric of reality itself for extra strength.
“SHUT UP!” Discord yelled into his face. “DON’T YOU DARE TALK DOWN TO ME! DON’T YOU DARE SPEAK OF HER EITHER! YOU ARE NOTHING! YOU ARE MORTAL! YOU ARE—”
Discord was abruptly cut off as Sombra slung his head forward and head butted Discord right in the face, loud cracks coming from Discord’s snout as Sombra’s horn smashed to his head between his own horns and slammed against the top of his head, the sharp jagged surface slicing his scalp and leaving a nasty wound.
“AAAAAAARRRGGHH!!!!” Discord yelped in pain. His aura floundered, and his strength once again buckled beneath Sombra’s force. Only this time he was pushed all the way down, his body coiling awkwardly as Sombra brought his shield overhead and slammed it against the blade of his sword, forcing Discord to the ground and into the snow.
Discord grunted and gasped in pain as Sombra held him down, pushing the weight of his body down upon his shield as well as he loomed over Discord. Discord was breathing heavily, his eyes opening into a defiant glare over his crooked snout as he remained pinned.
A trickle of blood rolled down from the cut between his horns, sliding between his eyes and over the side of his nose. Discord’s eyes shot open, his pupils shrinking as it dripped over his lips and he tasted his own blood.
“Hmph… “Sombra snorted. “Tell me… would a real god bleed?”
Discord’s eyelids began to shake, his shrunken pupils jittering as they focused on the trickle of blood splitting as it ran down his awkwardly bent snout.
Something in his head snapped. His ears started ringing loudly, drowning out all other noise as if he had gone deaf with only two things in his view as his eyes remained focused.
His own blood.
And Sombra standing over him.
His pupils began frantically darting about.
All eyes were on them. All eyes could see them. All eyes… could see him bleeding at the hooves of a mortal.
He had been injured… he never got injured, ever. He had taken licks, he had felt pain, he had taken the brunt of magic and even been sealed in stone… but he had never once received a real physical wound.
And to receive it from Sombra of all ponies? The history between the two of them and the implications of what Sombra just exposed to those around them were too much… and it set something within him ablaze.
Suddenly everything else disappeared, nothing else mattered.
All that was left…was rage.
Discord’s aura suddenly shone from his body, the color darkening and slowly building outward. Sombra blinked and looked at Discord’s aura as it began to reach up to him, an odd tingling rushing over his body as the aura touched him.
“HRM!” Sombra released his sword and shield from Discord and leapt backwards, quickly putting a comfortable amount of space between the two of them. Discord’s aura kept oozing outwards, its blurred, darkened color leaving no room to see through it as if it was taking a physical form. A crackling noise drew Sombra’s eyes down to his sword and shield. Bits of Discord’s aura were… stuck to them? Not only that, but the arms appeared to be shuddering and losing their consistency. Sombra flinched as he felt a slight burning sensation on his body, looking down and seeing similar bits of the aura crackling on his fur.
Sombra quickly detached the sword and shield, letting them vanish before he bent down and thrust his body up, a pulse of blue light shooting from his body and pushing the bits of Discord’s magic off of him. He looked down and watched as the pieces of magic hit the snow and burned right through it, sizzling and sending steam into the air.
Sombra scrunched his face as he returned his focus to Discord, re-conjuring his sword and shield. His shield lifted to his left and his sword twirled before hovering near his right shoulder and pointing towards Discord. He stood at the ready and watched Discord carefully.
Discord did not give any effort to push himself up, his body simply tipped upward and onto his hooves as the solid form of his aura grew even larger, resembling a roaring flame as it began to seep upward off of him while simultaneously dripping below. His teeth were grinding together, heavy, heaving breaths escaped from his mouth and nostrils, and his pupils had disappeared behind the thick purple light rising from his eyes.
To all those watching it was an eerie and horrifying sight, something strange was happening to the god of chaos and he almost looked ghostly in appearance with blood running down his face. But Sombra held firm and took in the odd sight without giving an inch.
Discord lifted his arms up, moving them outstretched to his sides and clenching his fists. His solid aura began to glow, distorted undulations of light and blurred waves pulsing within the aura’s frame. The air around him began to heavily distort, his aura reaching out to each distortion nearby and swallowing it whole, causing it to expand and grow unevenly. Then the wound on his head suddenly sealed up and his snout corrected its position with a loud, nerve-wrenching crack.
Sombra’s eyes darted about and around Discord, watching as the air continued to bend and the powerful flurries of snow danced in random directions around it. He tipped his nose up, feeling the course of the winds shift rapidly, sometimes flowing in several directions at once and causing his mane to flop all over his back and neck.
Discord began rising into the air, purple light oozing and dripping below him, loud pops and crackles filling the air as ribbons of magic began forcing itself from the thickened distorted aura surrounding him. They jettisoned in all directions and began tearing at the fabric of time and space, leaving tears that struggled to fix themselves this time as the output just kept going.
“DISCORD!!!!!!!!!” Luna yelled from behind them. Sombra’s ears turned, but he didn’t look at her. “STOP! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! YOU’LL DESTROY EVERYTHING!”
But Discord didn’t seem to hear… or maybe even care. The power surge just seemed to continue, as if he was letting everything go out of pure rage. His power was pouring free, his disdain for Sombra and the emotions they evoked destroying all sense of control and reason. All thoughts towards the plan faded, and he was focusing every bit of his wrath on Sombra.
Screams and yelps erupted from those near as the winds grew intense and continued to shoot in random directions. Blips of purple light began to flash all around. The ribbons of magic shooting from Discord were crashing to the ground, and bouncing off thin air. The very space around everypony felt like it was being tugged at and strained.
Luna continued to plead for Discord to get a hold of himself, but her words did not reach. She forced herself up against the building pressure and forced her magic through her body to flow and gather so quickly that it caused intense discomfort all over. Her horn came alight with her alicorn magic, the aura glowing brighter and brighter as the magic built.
She aimed and fired an immensely powerful beam that erupted from her horn, shooting right by Sombra and careening towards Discord.
But when the beam grew close, it suddenly wobbled, bent, and split in several directions, sent up down and all around in random patterns, some spiraling and swirling, others zigzagging like an out of control fireworks show. Ponies covered themselves, bracing themselves as Luna’s magic wildly flailed everywhere… and even struck her eventually too.
Luna was sent to the ground, falling on her side as she stared with her mouth agape. Her magic had no effect at all, she couldn’t stop him.
But Sombra was not fazed.
“Hrmph…” he grunted as he reached his sword forward and pointed it towards Discord. “Disgraceful… that you would throw caution into the wind and let your power rage freely. That you would care not for a single life that may be destroyed by your actions.” He shook his head as the rest of his arms floated up from behind him. His axe and bow moving up next to his shield and his spear and mace setting beside his sword. “Furthermore… you are tearing the very fabric of stable existence within the reach of MY kingdom… MY home…” All of the weapons sharply pointed towards Discord. “I won’t allow it!”
Sombra’s aura erupted outward, the forces of his magic pushing back against Discord’s. The pops and crackles of purple light that filled the air were forcibly moved, some shot back towards Discord while others fizzled out.
With a mighty roar, Sombra flung himself towards Discord, all of his weapons primed to hit him with everything he had.
Discord threw his arms forward, his magic building in his arms.
The pulses of magic that shot outward from them both grew stronger and stronger as the distance between them closed, all those surrounding them powerless to get close, much less even move as the two clashed and the unimaginable power that filled the air weighed down on them like a thousand pounds.
But only one was able to stand, only one was able to move… because she was only feeling half of it.
Dash’s legs buckled and shook as she held herself steady. The winds were slamming into her from all directions and the heavy pressure from Discord’s magic and the bending reality around her battered and clawed at her.
But she felt nothing from Sombra, his magic passed right by her as if she wasn’t even there, as if she was immune. She felt so powerless despite being the only one who could hold herself steady. She could feel the power surging from Sombra, but she felt it within instead of without. He was drawing from Soarin’s spirit… Using Soarin’s body and soul to push his power to the max. Soarin was right there… he was right in front of her, but she couldn’t get near, she couldn’t reach out to him lest she step directly into the chaotic mess Discord was creating.
She could only watch as they clashed, as Sombra thrust himself headlong into the dangerous distortions, cutting through them as he and his weapons took on the powerful solid aura that seeped from Discord.
Her eyelids shuddered as they clashed again and again, each strike caused the surrounding forces to intensify. Yelps and cries rang out from all those around her, friend and adversary alike.
She felt like she was watching Soarin be sacrificed, his body being used to fight a battle that wasn’t even his. It didn’t matter that Sombra’s power was fighting back the dangerous aura, it still terrified her.
Her ears perked up.
She blinked twice.
What the hell was she standing around for? What the hell was she hesitating for? She didn’t have time to sit and spectate… she had a clear advantage in this situation and she had to use it!
She turned to look toward her friends and squad, but the moment she turned, a powerful burst of magic erupted from another clash. She yelped as the force pushed her forward, causing her to stumble and almost trip over herself. It took several steps to get control of her body, the gale force winds and the pressure from Discord doing everything in their power to force her down. But she eventually fought it all back and anchored herself, gritting her teeth as she stared at her hooves.
She had to fight it, she had to hold steady! If she could get her friends away from all this, they could focus the elements and—
As Dash looked up, she froze on the spot.
The force that struck her and caused her to stumble… had pushed her towards none other than Spitfire.
Dash’s eyes grew wide as she stared. Spitfire was on the ground and stuffed into the shallow snow cover just like everyone else, but she was trying… trying really hard to stand. Her teeth were jammed together, her eyes were shut tight, her body was shaking with her muscles twitching madly as she pushed with all her might. Right beside her, Fleetfoot was on her side, gasping in discomfort as the pressure forced itself down on her. Her goggles had been pulled off by the downward forces and her eyes were shut as she grimaced painfully.
Why? Why was she just standing there? Dash had no idea what had come over her. She was being chased by these two and the rest of the Wonderbolts. She didn’t have time to second guess her actions.
But the moment Fleetfoot struggled to turn her head and opened her eyes… Dash saw the emotions within them, the confusion and fear. At that moment she knew exactly why she was hesitating. Because regardless of what was happening and how messed up things had become…
They were still her friends… they ALL were.
“D… Dash…!” Fleetfoot suddenly called her name reaching a hoof out as if she was begging for help.
Dash flinched as Spitfire’s eyes shot open the moment she heard Fleetfoot speak. And the difference in her eyes compared to her wingmate was stunning. There was no fear, there was no pain. There was a terrifying volume of anger within them, and Dash could feel it rush upon her in an instant. Though there was something else too. And Dash didn’t look closer until she noticed Spitfire’s eyes were not completely focused on her.
Her eyes were shifting between her… and Sombra.
And all through her struggles to fight against the tremendous magical pressure, she never took her eyes off her two objectives. She was still fighting. Still fighting for Soarin. It didn’t matter how she was going about it or whether or not Dash agreed with it… because she knew she was fighting for him.
Dash’s heart sank. Seeing Fleetfoot struggling on the ground and Spitfire fighting so desperately tore at her from within.
She couldn’t hold herself back. She had more important things to worry about, but at the same time, she didn’t want to pass up the opportunity.
“Spitfire!” Dash suddenly hardened her gaze and pushed herself forward. She willingly trudged right up to her captain, not fearing any of the circumstances they were currently under. “Listen to me!” she went on, reaching up and placing her hooves on Spitfire’s shoulders.
Dash winced for a moment as Spitfire’s eyes suddenly hardened and focused entirely on her, a growl escaping her throat. But she was not deterred, and gripped Spitfire’s shoulders, feeling the intense vibrations coming from her as she pushed with all her might.
“You have to trust me!” Dash yelled, keeping her expression as serious as she could. “You have to understand why I’m doing what I’m doing!” she pleaded. They both winced and braced themselves as another pulse of magic slammed into them, Fleetfoot crying out beside them. “My friends and I have a plan! They aren’t doing this for Luna, they’re doing it for me!”
Spitfire’s eyes twitched as Dash spoke. Dash wasn’t sure if she was getting through to her or not.
“We’re going to use the Elements of Harmony!” Dash tried to explain while tapping the element of loyalty on her neck. “But we know more than one way to—”
“NO!” Spitfire suddenly retorted, Dash’s ears turning away and twitching at the volume of Spitfire’s voice. “How do you know they aren’t playing you?!” Spitfire suddenly started arguing, her voice straining as hard as her body. “How do you know they don’t have orders from Luna?!”
“Because—AH!” Dash yelped as loud explosions rang out, the clashing of magic growing more intense by the second. “Because they’re my FRIENDS! And they’ve earned my trust!” She sharply pointed at Fleetfoot. “Would you ever suspect Fleet of playing you?! What about Soarin?! They would never lie to you! And my friends would never lie to me!” Dash tried to argue back, but Spitfire angrily shook her head.
“Then you shouldn’t have gone behind my back!” Spitfire spat as she grunted and nearly fell. “You won’t get ANY trust from me after that stunt! They are compromised! YOU are compromised! I won’t… ARGH!” Spitfire slammed to the ground, but instantly forced her hooves down. “I WON’T… ALLOW IT! Not when so much is on the line! Not when we could lose Soarin forever!”
Dash pulled back and looked down. She gritted her teeth, but she didn’t growl nor show any signs of anger.
“Then I’m sorry…” Dash apologized and looked up at her.
Spitfire gasped. Looking directly into Dash’s eyes.
Because it was there again.
The same look she gave her while pinning her down. The familiar look that she couldn’t quite pinpoint.
“We have the same goal, Captain…” Dash said with a slight tone of disappointment. “But…” she looked towards Fleetfoot. She had her eyes glued to Dash, her pupils large as if Dash’s words were sinking in to her despite not sinking in to Spitfire. Dash exhaled and looked back at Spitfire. “But if you won’t help me or listen to me, then I’m just going to have to do it my way.” She turned away her side to Spitfire, but kept her eyes on her. “And maybe then… we’ll find out which of us is really compromised.”
Dash left it there, an uneasy look left in Spitfire’s eyes as Dash made her intentions clear. She held still for a moment, keeping her eyes locked in a hard glare for an additional second. Something wasn’t right with Spitfire. Her face was a mess, conflicting emotions rapidly shifting in and out. Dash could tell that her words stung, but the determination in Spitfire’s eyes refused to completely yield. Nothing was going to convince Spitfire to believe her… only the end result would. Dash turned away and readied to focus on her squad and friends…
But she had barely moved before a loud explosion rang out. Dash yelped in surprise as she was blown right off her hooves and crashed right into Spitfire, several yelps rang out as ponies nearby and all over were sent tumbling back. Dash bounced off of Spitfire and landed right between her and Fleetfoot, looking up to see Soarin’s body crash to the ground a few yards in front of them.
“GRH!” Sombra grunted as he skillfully turned the ungraceful landing into a roll that put him right back on his hooves, standing up as small magic streams shot from his horn and pulled all of his weapons back over to him. “Hmph…” he snorted as he looked towards Discord. The chaos magic still raging out of control around him, the magic ribbons still ejecting and shooting all over accompanied by the flashes of light as reality strained around him.
For a moment, Dash and Spitfire both completely forgot about each other as they focused their attention to Soarin… or Sombra.
It was a constant battle in their heads to view him in such a state… it was Soarin’s body… but it was enhanced to enormous proportions and it wasn’t in his control. The way he moved and carried himself didn’t look right either. They kept wanting to believe they were looking at Soarin, but they were really looking at Sombra.
“So… This is truly how dangerous you can be…” Sombra spoke, all of his weapons circling him as Discord panted and growled, his eyes empty as if his power had completely taken him over. Sombra set his hooves and snarled. “Then I have no choice… but to test the limits of this body!”
Sombra’s weapons halted, his sword and shield remaining fixed at his side as the rest of them continued to circle and float into the air. Sombra’s horn shone brightly, the aura encircling him swirling up and expanding as a bright glow surrounded his frame. His pupils vanished beneath the magic rising from his eyes as his magic built up, his power rushing forth as its output grew closer and closer to matching that of Discord’s. Though it was different, the power increase was smooth and the flow was graceful, the polar opposite of how Discord’s power was behaving.
“HRM!” Sombra grunted, throwing his head up. The subtle streams of magic that connected to his weapons overhead suddenly shuddered as Sombra pumped large amounts of magic through them. The streams grew large and bright as the flow traveled through them, and when they reached the weapons, each one of them shone brightly before duplicating multiple times until there was least six of each, spears, maces, axes, and bows.
Sombra whipped his head around, his mane flowing from one side of his head to the other as the motion caused the weapons to scatter and start encircling both him and Discord. The sudden rush of the weapons everywhere with Sombra’s power attached cause powerful winds that smashed into the already crazy gusts being blown everywhere by Discord.
Dash felt something. It felt like something within her was straining. It wasn’t just her heart… it felt like every inch of her was being tugged on as if she was pushing herself or working really hard. Sombra was letting his power grow flow fiercely, and she recalled Discord at one point mentioning that Sombra’s current state was a combination of his and Soarin’s collective willpower and strength. Was she feeling the strain on Soarin? That had to be it.
But something in the air had shifted as well. Dash still couldn’t feel any of the outward force from Sombra, but she could tell.
“AH!” Fleetfoot suddenly yelped beside her. Dash quickly looked towards her to see Fleetfoot grabbing at the ground, her body slowly lifting up against her will but moving no higher than an inch. Dash looked to Spitfire to see her quickly dig her hooves into the snow to grab a hoof full of ground beneath her, preventing her from rising, but Dash could see her body inching upward a little.
Dash’s eyes darted about as audible reactions came from every direction. The downward pressure of the auras had shifted. The strong magical presence was now physically lifting everypony right off their hooves. And it was definitely being caused by Sombra because Dash was still grounded as if nothing had changed.
“HRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!” Sombra roared, launching himself at Discord again. As he did, his weapons began flying wildly everywhere, shooting around in all directions while turning to make passes towards Discord, effectively acting like a small army as Sombra charged wielding his sword and shield.
As everything picked up, so did the uplift. Ponies were flung into the air, flapping their wings to no avail as the powerful clashing winds began tossing them about.
Dash frantically looked towards her friends and her squad. Matteo had anchored himself to the ground, his talons digging into the earth underneath him. Star was stuffed into his feathers, Squall was braced against him, and Matteo had Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie tucked under his wings... where were Fluttershy and Twilight?!
Dash forced her wings out, fighting against the powerful winds as she readied to take to the air and search out her two friends caught in the growing mess of flailing ponies, but before she could…
“EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK!” Fleetfoot lost her grip and was flung into the air.
Dash’s body just moved. She didn’t even think about it. The moment Fleetfoot had left the ground and was whisked up into the air, Dash turned and launched after her. Only fighting against the winds and pulses from Discord, Dash cut right through the magic flinging everypony about, reaching Fleetfoot in seconds. She grabbed Fleetfoot around the stomach, holding on tight before doing a hard U-turn and shooting back to the ground. As she descended, she glanced back and forth quickly, looking for Twilight and Fluttershy, but she quickly noticed several other familiar faces caught in the typhoon. Surprise, Blaze, and Fire Streak were among those being hurled to and fro, yelps and cries of pain were ringing out as ponies collided roughly in midair. A familiar sounding grunt caught Dash’s attention, turning to see High Winds being tossed about as well, trying her hardest to move towards Blaze. She glanced to her left and saw Lightning Streak, Air Mach, and Misty Fly on the ground, all huddled together and holding themselves to the ground desperately.
Dash gritted her teeth.
Not on her watch… not while she had the means!
She slammed to the ground next to Spitfire, quickly pushing Fleetfoot towards her. She grabbed one of Spitfire’s arms and reached it over Fleetfoot before helping Spitfire find the ground again.
Dash looked up. Spitfire was glaring at her, but there was confusion as well.
But did she really need to explain herself? Spitfire was more messed up right now than she thought.
“HOLD ONTO HER!” Dash yelled right into Spitfire’s face while pointing at Fleetfoot. “I’LL SECURE THE OTHERS!”
Spitfire’s eyes widened, but Dash didn’t stick around to see it. She turned and launched again, locating Blaze and High Winds first as she kept her eyes peeled for her missing Ponyville friends. She dreaded the thought of Twilight and Fluttershy getting caught in all the collisions, but the Wonderbolts were stuck in this too. She wasn’t going to let them get hurt as long as she could do something about it!
She was forced into hard pitches and twists as bodies began flying everywhere in front of her and around her. Despite the constant bright flashes of light coming from the direction of Sombra and Discord, it was easy to stay on target. She just had to keep her eyes on the blue of High Wind’s flight suit as the guardsmen and thestrels blended together in their purple and sparkling armor. Though their armor was what made this dangerous. Dash avoided contact at all costs, a head on collision with solid metal was not an ideal outcome.
She eventually reached High Winds, quickly hooking her arms with hers. Winds looked up at Dash immediately, her eyes wider than Dash had ever seen them beneath her goggles.
“Hold on! We’re getting Blaze too!” Dash yelled to her, not asking for her to agree or acknowledge her.
High Winds was heavy, Dash felt like she had to try twice as hard to move her than she’d usually have to. She was bigger than Fleetfoot and carried some extra muscle weight from her large wings and strong back, but Dash felt like she was trying to lug Soarin around. It had to be the pull from Sombra’s magic. Dash was playing a game of tug-of-war with it as forces invisible to her yanked at Winds in her hooves.
But she persevered, turning them through the cacophony and lining up with Blaze. But she was far off, struggling and flailing at least twenty yards away with no clear path to her.
But High Winds took care of that for Dash.
“I’ve got this!” she yelled to Dash, opening her huge wings and keeping her eyes locked on Blaze. Dash blinked, quickly latching onto Winds as tightly as she could the moment she recognized the motion.
A loud POW rang out as High Winds thrust her wings forward, a blast of wind shooting in front of them and knocking aside a large number of the ponies flying in their way. Right after she finished the motion she did it again in the other direction, another loud BANG ringing out as the force propelled them in the direction of Blaze with perfect timing to match Blaze’s flight path. Dash squinted, the wind battering her face without her goggles, but the distance between them and Blaze closed immediately. Dash thrust her wings out to put on the brakes and turned them both in midair as High Winds reached out towards Blaze.
“Got you!” High Winds yelled out as she hooked her hoof with Blaze, instantly pulling her in and locking her arm around her tightly… and by the neck, unintentionally.
“GACK!” Blaze choked as High Winds put her in the headlock, her tongue sticking out as she kicked her back hooves about.
Dash didn’t pay her any mind, she quickly whipped them around with her, gritting her teeth and putting the strength of her wings to the test as she pulled two ponies along, both being tugged at by all the magical forces. She scanned the ground as quickly as she could, relocating the trio of Misty, Lightning, and Air Mach clamped together on the ground and holding on for dear life.
The moment Dash found them, she pitched down, throwing all of her weight into the movement as she tried to aim them towards the three on the ground.
But it was poorly timed. They were struck by a thestrel, the side plate of his armor jamming right into Dash’s side.
“GRGH!!!” Dash grunted painfully, but held on tightly to the two mares as they were sent into a spiral. They were still moving towards the group, but Dash tensed her body as a rough landing was imminent.
Dash squeezed her arms around High Winds with all her strength as they crashed. Dash yelped in pain as she hit the solid ground beneath the snow, landing on the same spot that was just hit by the thestrel and sending a numbing sting through her body. They slid and rolled to a stop, Dash on her back with High Winds on top of her, and presumably Blaze still in her grip since Dash could still hear the gagging noises from her.
“Rgggghhhhhhhhh…” Dash groaned and arched her neck back as her nerves flared in her side, but as she opened her eyes, she found herself staring right into the eyes of Misty less than a few inches away. Misty was blinking, looking startled. Dash opened her mouth to yell, but… right… Misty. She turned her head to Lightning instead. “You! Lover colt!” Dash yelled as she shifted and pulled herself out from beneath High Winds. “It’s your lucky day, hold onto these mares and don’t let go!” she yelled as she pulled High Winds in and hoofed them over to Lightning.
“Uh…?” Lightning slurred in reply, but Dash was already turning. Though she stopped for a moment to reach in and force High Wind’s arm off Blazes neck.
“FWOOO! FUCK ME!” Blaze swore as she gasped and took heavy breaths, but squeaked in surprise as Dash grabbed her and shoved her in between Lightning and High Winds. Dash forced her in until she was nestled so deep between them that her cheeks were smushed between their chests and her goggles were crooked. “I hate being small sometimes,” Blaze managed to mumble with her lips squished together.
“EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEthisiskindafunEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!” a shriek came from very close by.
Dash’s ears perked up and she turned around quickly, spotting Surprise passing by overhead. Without a word, Dash leapt up pounding her wings down hard to execute Matteo’s Air Burst maneuver the moment her hooves were off solid ground. She zipped right towards Surprise, but was blindsided by a flailing crystal guardsman, his swinging arm smacking her right across the face.
“OOF!” Dash grunted as she spun around, her momentum carrying her forward and right by Surprise. Dash shook her head out and quickly put a hoof to her nose. A light trickle of blood dripped from it. “The things I do for friends,” Dash said to herself as she pressed her other nostril shut and blew through her bleeding one, shooting a wad of blood out of it before she refocused and used Matteo’s move again, this time avoiding nearby soldiers as she reached and grabbed Surprise by the tail.
Surprise was extra small… so Dash decided to save some time. She pulled Surprise in and rolled her into a ball. As expected, her body literally rolled into a ball. She was no different than Pinkie. Dash gripped the Surprise ball firmly and turned her eyes back to the group on the ground.
Misty was still staring at her.
Without a moment of hesitation, Dash wound up and threw Surprise towards Misty. Surprise made a whistling noise as she shot through the air, Misty reaching up and catching her before stuffing her between herself and Lightning. Unlike Blaze, she actually fit since her body might as well be silly putty.
With only one Wonderbolt left in the air, Dash turned to track him down, but she was forced to shield her eyes, yelping as a blinding flash of light and ear piercing screech came from the incomprehensible duel going on in the center of the mess.
She squinted, holding herself steady among the gales as she spotted Sombra and Discord face to face, nearly all of Sombra’s weapons crossed in front of him and slamming them into Discord’s solid aura, they were winking into it slowly, blue sparks flying as Sombra roared and pushed onward. Dash yelped as the erratic streams of pink and purple magic began ejecting from Discord, tearing up the fabric of reality and shooting outwards towards all the ponies being whisked around.
But then suddenly, beams of blue light began shooting in all directions from Sombra’s horn. Each one was small, concentrated, and powerful, intercepting every beam that zigzagged outward from Discord before they could reach anypony. Sombra’s full aura was also extending outward, all the random flashes and dimensional distortions remaining inside and near the two of them.
He was protecting them all… from Discord?
“WHOOOAAAAA!!!!!”
Dash’s ears perked up and she turned towards the voice…
And was clocked right in the gut by Fire Streak’s back.
“OOF!!!!” Dash exhaled loudly, the air blowing out of her lungs as she found herself an unwilling passenger. She grabbed on to Fire and held on for dear life as she was suddenly whipped and flung around at the mercy of the forces affecting him. “FIRE! OW!” Dash tried to get his attention, but Fire was upside-down, and clearly in a panic with no real ideal way for him to gain any control. His wings were flapping madly and kept smacking Dash right in the face. “OW! OW! OW! STOP IT!” She yelled, her voice wheezing and short on breath as she tried to regain her air, but Fire wouldn’t stop flailing.
So Dash reached an arm out and grabbed his wing, pinning it down to his body before giving him a rough jab in the sensitive joint right beneath it.
“YEOW!” Fire yelped, finally looking in Dash’s direction. He barely had time to realize it was her before Dash got right in his face, nearly pressing her forehead to his upside-down nose.
“GET A HOLD OF YOURSELF! I’M TRYING TO EVEN YOU OUT!” Dash yelled. Fire instantly froze all movement, earning a flat look from Dash. “Sheesh!” she grunted as she grabbed his body and spread her wings flapping them down to try and get some lift while keeping a hold of Fire. She eventually managed to push them over, getting Fire upright before making sure she didn’t turn upside-down herself.
But the moment she tried to direct their flight, Dash was lurched and yanked along with him again. She held on tight and kept trying to get control with her wings, but Fire was too heavy, she couldn’t kill his momentum. He tried to help, but every time he opened his wings, they got batted awkwardly by the magical forces. It didn’t take long for Dash to realize she was fighting a losing battle.
And then it got worse.
Dash looked up in between her attempt to force Fire along with her, her ears turned to a new noise. LOTS of new noises.
It sounded like hundreds and hundreds of ponies were suddenly being hit… and she wasn’t far off.
All of the Wonderbolts, the Renegades, the additional Crystal Guard soldiers including the earth ponies and unicorns, and the straggling thestrels… everypony that had been fighting in one giant cluster that they left in the dust during their chase through the forest…
They were beginning to emerge, shooting out from the forest, most still engaged with one another with so many loyalties strung about that it almost resembled a free for all. The groups emerging were large, the count easily reaching over a hundred in seconds.
And every single one of them was being sucked right into the typhoon being generated by Sombra and Discord.
“LOOK OUT!” Dash yelled to Fire, the two of them tucking themselves into one another as the swarm approached, all visible space disappearing as everypony was cluttered in, the grunts and cries of pain and collisions never ending.
Dash and Fire were immediately bounced all over the place, completely defenseless and helpless in the air for at least twenty seconds before something collided with them from an upward angle. They were sent spiraling downward, neither willing to let go in fear of putting their head and neck in danger of a hard landing.
They both grunted painfully as they hit, Fire taking most of the impact on his back as the jolt pressed Dash into his chest. They tumbled and rolled, the uneven forces that pulled on them causing an awkward imbalance in the way they bounced and slid. Dash forced herself to focus, knowing full well that Fire would be yanked right back up if she didn’t anchor them down soon.
With a hard effort she let go of Fire, rolled onto her hooves and slammed them to the ground, pushing herself up quickly before reaching a wing out over fire.
“GRGH!!!” She grunted uncomfortably as Fire pressed into her wing, the magical forces trying to yank him right back into the air. Her wing wasn’t strong enough to hold him by itself, so as soon as she had her bearings, she reached up both hooves and pressed down on his back, forcing him face first to the ground and digging his nose into the snow.
A muffled noise came from in the snow as Fire audibly voiced his slight mix of frustration and confusion, but Dash got low and braced herself, getting right into his ear.
“Grab hold of the ground! I can’t do this by myself, you’re too fat!” she yelled, disregarding choice of words in the heat of the moment.
“Fwah!” Fire exhaled as he pulled his face out of the snow, but clasped the ground with his hooves. “Fat?” he said to himself in a confused tone, but said no more as Dash started forcing him along the two moving gingerly as the wind and magic tugged at Fire.
They slowly made their way along, Dash doing her best to move him towards the rest of the huddled Wonderbolts. She could see Misty staring at them, her eyes wide and locked on Fire as Dash pulled him towards them.
But despite being close, despite having nearly all the top tiers out of danger…
Dash could hardly bear it. She was gritting her teeth and her eyes were twitching. The air was now filled with hundreds and hundreds of helpless ponies… many of which were Wonderbolts and reserves. Her instincts that kicked in to help the Wonderbolts that had made an impact on her life was growing into a desire to help ALL of them.
But how the hell was she going to do that? She couldn’t and she knew it, but it hurt. She didn’t care what the current orders were, and she didn’t care that Spitfire had her head up her ass. The Wonderbolts were part of her.
They were family.
Hearing their cries among the tremendous mess above was tugging at her heart.
But as she stared up into the chaotic mess of ponies above her. She realized she wasn’t the only one fighting it.
She spotted Descent trying with all his might to stay in control. He had Lightning Dust tucked in one of his arms and was frantically looking around, probably looking for Starry.
She also noticed Bomber. He was easy to see due to his size, but he was holding onto at least six Renegades. Valkyrie was close by, fighting her way through the forces with Cannon Ball and Comet in literal choke-holds as she looked for others.
Luna had herself encased in a shield, but was shooting her magic in all directions towards every thestrel and guard she could see with P.L. desperately trying to get to her as he was battered and hit from all directions.
Shining Armor was anchored to the ground, struggling to keep a shield stable around him and Cadence as she tried to make use of her Alicorn magic in a similar manner to Luna.
Dash couldn’t beat herself up… because everypony was caught in this. If anything, the true side of everypony was showing through in this moment of chaos.
She would do her part. She would get Fire to safety, she wouldn’t let the desperate look in Misty’s eyes remain. Once she did that she would…
Dash’s eyes widened.
Twilight and Fluttershy! They were somewhere up in that mess!
With a sudden dread setting in Dash pulled Fire along, nearly dragging him through the snow until he reached the Wonderbolts. Misty eagerly reached out, tugging Fire into their group. With him taken care of, Dash quickly turned to take flight.
But she stopped when she felt a tug on her tail. She blinked and looked over her shoulder.
She was staring right into the eyes of Misty. She had taken her goggles off and had one arm clinging to Fire.
Dash blinked and noticed that they were all looking at her.
Misty reached a hoof to her lips, held it for a second, and then lowered it down towards Dash while smiling.
Thank you.
Dash felt her throat tighten. It was such a simple gesture, but it hit her very hard. Despite the current situation and what had happened only a few minutes prior at the forest lake…
They were still the Wonderbolts. They were still her friends.
Dash smiled back at Misty, glancing towards Spitfire and Fleetfoot nearby. Spitfire had her eyes locked on Soarin and Sombra still, but Fleetfoot was staring right at her.
Dash’s began to quiver, she bit her lip and turned away.
She was glad they were safe… all of them.
And now it was time to find Fluttershy and—
“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!”
Dash took a hard step back as something pink, clear, and round bounced off the ground right in front of her. Dash shook her head out and watched as whatever the hell the thing was shot right back up like a super ball. Right before it got swallowed up in the swarm above, Dash saw something within it.
Twilight and Fluttershy?! They were both in a shield generated by Twilight, but by the looks of things, they had no control of it. They were being punted around the cacophony overhead like an out of control pinball.
Target locked. Dash didn’t wait another second. She spread her wings and shot up into the air… but then gritted her teeth as she realized this wasn’t going to be easy. Ponies were everywhere, the little space she had to maneuver earlier was completely gone. How was she going to…?
“HRRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!!!” A loud battle cry came from Sombra, followed by another loud BANG and screeching as flickering lights danced all about. A pulse so strong that it visibly distorted the air shot outward. Dash braced herself, but it passed right by her…
“OH SHI—” Dash quickly took evasive maneuvers as bodies began flying at her, the pulse from Sombra hadn’t touched her, but it pushed the swarm of ponies in all directions. She was instantly forced to shift from wondering how she was going to get through it to doing it. But the sudden burst had given her a chance. For a moment everything was spread further out and she had her two encased friends in her sight. It was time for less thinking and more fancy hoofwork.
Using the ponies being tossed around as hoofholds, she began using Storm Front’s Surface Tap maneuver, tapping and bouncing off the ponies in an erratic zig-zag path to maneuver through as quickly as possible before the window closed up.
“Sorry! Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!” Dash repeated as the grunts and gasps of those she used as literal platforms followed each bounce and quickly closed the distance as the amount of room around her slowly closed up again.
With one last tap off some poor thestrel sap, she reached out, extending her arms out towards the shield. Fluttershy was curled up in Twilight’s chest, and the shield was just big enough to encircle them both in that position, so the shield was about the size of a large exercise ball. Dash would have no problem grabbing it and—
The shield suddenly bounced off a pony flinging by, and Dash barely turned her head in time before the shield smacked her right in the side of her face. She immediately latched her arms around it, but her cheek and half her face were smushed against the surface. Twilight looked up immediately as the hollow THUNK reverberated through her shield. She turned her head towards Dash and reclined back as she saw Dash’s face pressed to the shield surface with her lips pursed and her eye open wide.
“BLAH!” Dash pulled her face back and shook her head out.
“Dash?!” Twilight’s muffled voice come from within, but Dash cut her off.
“Don’t drop the shield!” she yelled, and didn’t even wait for Twilight to respond before she dove down with them firmly in her grip. Fluttershy shrieked again, Twilight holding onto her tight as Dash slammed to the ground and placed them in front of her. Without thinking about whether or not they were tethered in place inside of it, Dash began rolling them along the ground, taking care to make sure they weren’t picked back up by the magic. But the two began to shriek and yelp because… they were flipping within the shield as it rolled along.
Dash ignored them, reluctantly. She was more focused on getting them back together. There was no telling how much longer this mess was going to continue. Pulses from the clashes between Sombra and Discord just kept flaring outward, in fact they had become more constant. She still had a window to get them all away and get positioned for the elements! She just had to hurry!
She glanced towards the center as she rolled them towards Matteo, the quickened pace of the pulses catching her attention.
It looked like Discord was still seeping with power, his magic still running wild, but Sombra was absolutely wailing on him. His weapons were cutting deep into Discord’s solid aura, beating it back every time it tried to lash out, his multiple weapons shooting about and making passes as the multiple bows kept up a barrage of arrow fire.
She was going to put an end to this. The longer the fight between the two went on, the longer everypony was in danger of getting hurt.
She rolled the two all the way up to Matteo, her squad and her Ponyville friends all looking up as she arrived.
“That’s everypony right?!” She asked frantically as she quickly looked about at all of them.
“Oog…” Twilight groaned as she dropped her shield, her eyes spinning as Dash grabbed her and Fluttershy. “I think I’m gonna…”
“SWALLOW IT!” Dash yelled at her as she stuffed her two remaining friends into Matteo’s grip. She quickly shared a glance with Squall and Star before focusing on Matteo. “Listen to me, Matty! I need you to hold onto them as tight as you can!” She aggressively turned to Star and Squall. “You two! Get out here, hang onto me, and help me support Matty! We need to get me and the rest of the Elements out of this mess so we can—”
Before she could finish, there was an incredibly bright flash of light followed by an ear piercing explosion. Dash’s ears were filled with a shrill ringing shock as she lurched forward and fell flat on her face. She would’ve hit Matteo if it weren’t for him being forced backwards. He remained on the ground, his strong talons anchoring him and all those clinging to him, but the unbelievable force caused his talons to dig through the dirt beneath the snow and slide several yards back.
Knowing that she only felt half of it, Dash rolled over onto her back quickly, her ears still numbly ringing as she looked around at ponies falling from the sky and being flung in all directions. She yelped and curled up, protecting her face and body as several Wonderbolts, Renegades, thestrels, and crystal soldiers bounced off the ground around her.
Luck was on her side, she was not struck by anypony that fell near her, but as she slowly uncovered herself, the first thing she noticed was that the hurricane forces? The intense pressure?
They were gone. Only the natural snowfall that was there from the start remained, the mist that blurred the view of the Crystal empire fading, its image appearing in the distance between the thick flakes of snow.
Her hearing slowly returned, the groans and wails of pain of all those who were finally free from the chaos rolling around and shakily propping themselves up.
Dash frantically looked about. The top Wonderbolts were still relatively near where she left them. Her squad and friends were still nearby. Luna had been tossed away from them, but she could see her further back… Where did Sombra and Discord go?
Dash yelped loudly as something suddenly shot in from the left of her vision, crashing hard to the ground no more than ten yards away from her. Snow and dirt shot up into the air, the ground rumbled as whatever had crashed dug deep into the ground and left a trench in its wake as if it was being pushed along.
And eventually… it came to a halt. And once the mist, dirt, and snow had cleared, at the end of the carved path... Was Sombra.
But he was standing upright, looking down at the ground beneath him. Dash blinked as the rest of the debris and clutter had cleared from view… and revealed Discord underneath, Sombra’s hoof pressed to his chest as he stood over him. Discord was on his back and covered with scuff marks and bruises, gasping and wheezing as blood trickled from his nose. His aura no longer had its solid form and was nothing but a dim flicker. Pink steam began to rise from his body along with a loud whooshing hiss as his body slowly shrank and reverted to its normal size beneath Sombra’s hoof.
“GRK!” Discord suddenly grunted in pain, slamming his eyes shut and gritting his teeth as Sombra moved the hoof from his chest to his neck and applied the same hard pressure. Pointing the tip of his sword at Discord’s face as he bent his neck down and leaned his face towards his.
“Krk…grk…rgh…” Discord continued to choke, his body jittering under the strength of Sombra’s hoof.
“Now answer my question,” Sombra spoke down to him as he cast a shadow over Discord, his eyes locked on the blood dripping from Discord’s nose. “Would a real god bleed?” he asked again, his tone sounding a little more condescending than before.
Discord just lay there, twitching.
“ANSWER ME!” Sombra roared down at him as he inched his sword closer, pointing it right between Discord’s eyes. “AND SAY IT LOUD ENOUGH FOR EVERYPONY TO HEAR!” he demanded.
Everypony surrounding them was still in the process of finding their hooves. Bodies were numb and heads were spinning, but nearly every pair of eyes that had managed to turn were focused on Sombra and Discord.
“Grk…” Discord sputtered, his left arm twitching. Sombra glanced at the arm as it slowly lifted up, but rose no more than an inch from the ground. Discord’s arm twitched, his hand and fingers jittering as if he could barely move it.
But then he suddenly clenched his fist, extended a finger forward, and sharply pointed it towards Sombra.
“Wha…?!” Dash yelped as some invisible force picked her up off the ground. And before she could say or do anything, she found herself shooting through the air towards Sombra.
Her eyes opened wide.
Her wings were being held down.
She could only stare as a collision with the side of Sombra’s head was imminent.
But mere inches away from contact, Sombra’s eyes shot open and shifted to her.
Sombra reacted swiftly, tilting back while lifting his head up. Dash shot right beneath his chin, the strands of her mane coming so close to touching him that it couldn’t be visually measured.
The moment Dash was past him, Sombra slammed his shield down over Discord’s hand.
“AHHHHH!!!” Discord cried out as his hand was smashed into the ground, a second cry of pain following shortly after as Sombra swung the sword around and pinned his other hand as well.
But Sombra was jittering… shaking. His eyes were stuck on Rainbow Dash as she hit the ground and tumbled through the snow just a few paces away from them.
Dash grunted as she came to a halt, shook the snow out of her face and mane, and rolled over onto her back to prop herself up.
She and Sombra locked eyes, silence filling the air between them as they stared at one another.
Dash couldn’t take her eyes away. She knew she wasn’t looking into Soarin’s eyes, but she kept looking anyway. Sombra’s red pupils were showing right through the magic vapors, but they were shrinking and shaking, the whites of his eyes nearly swallowing them whole. He looked spooked, terrified, as if he had had a brush with death.
“W…why…?” Sombra’s voice suddenly met Dash’s ears. “WHY?!” he repeated as he gritted his teeth, but the look of shock refused to fade. “Why can’t I sense you?! It’s like you’re not even there yet my eyes are not deceiving me!”
Dash remained still, as did everypony else as they tried to figure out what was happening. But then Sombra began frantically looking back and forth between Discord and Dash. He turned his head at least six times, a low, frustrated growl escaping his throat until he whipped his head around and stared in the direction of the Crystal Empire, now completely visible in the distance without the artificial snow storm in the way.
“Dammit!” he cursed before glaring down at Discord. “I’ll get back to you later!” he snarled before pulling all his weapons back and turning towards the Empire…
But not before pausing one more time to glance at Dash.
Without another moment of hesitation Sombra broke into a gallop. Throwing his head into the air and releasing a burst of magic skyward. The beam splintered and flew backwards, raining down over the struggling ponies.
Yelps and grunts rang out as everypony shielded themselves, the small beams peppering them from above and exploding on and around them with small POOFS and POPS.
Dash didn’t move a muscle. The magic landed around her, but everything that touched her passed right through. She kept her eyes on Sombra as he galloped away, but soon reality slapped her in the face. She didn’t have time to wonder or daydream, the surprise of being tossed at him had faded several seconds ago and now she was just wasting time. She turned to look towards her squad and friends, but…
“GO!” Luna suddenly yelled at the top of her lungs as she moved as quickly as she could towards Discord and slid down onto her haunches. “GO AFTER HIM! STOP HIM!” she yelled to all the thestrels and Crystal Soldiers as she used her magic to prop up Discord. Dash frantically looked around as those loyal to goddesses began moving, helping comrades up and charging after Sombra by land and air. Several unicorns held their ground and began firing magic in Sombra’s direction, but shields popped up behind him and deflected each blast that managed to reach him. Shining Armor quickly ordered them to hold their fire and give chase instead, pegasi among the soldiers lifting them up to pursue.
But they weren’t the only ones who had sprung into action. While no orders were spoken, a wide majority of the Wonderbolts and Renegades were up and trying to stop the soldiers and thestrels, some taking off after those who were already giving chase, others engaging before they could follow Luna’s order. They were acting on the only directions they had been given so far, but mass confusion was wedged in between all of it.
Some of the Renegades were helping the Wonderbolts… Some of the Renegades were fighting the Wonderbolts… and some of the Renegades were fighting each other! With the Renegades split between veteran Wonderbolts and Descent’s followers some ponies had no idea who to direct their ire towards.
Before Dash knew it, chaos had erupted around her all over again… and this time it had nothing to do with a duo of super powerful magic users. Ponies were everywhere, some were following after Sombra, some were locked in combat where they were, but now it was so hard to tell who was fighting who that it looked like everypony was fighting everypony. Some of the Wonderbolts eventually figured out which Renegades to go after, but the mass bulk of the force comprised of the reserves had no idea what was happening.
But under all the madness, Dash had to move. She quickly focused on her goal and started galloping towards her group as Matteo, Star, and Squall did their best to try and move the Elements of Harmony away from the fighting.
“GUYS! COME ON!” Dash yelled to them, preemptively spreading her wings to take flight the moment she reached them and scooped up Fluttershy. “WE CAN STILL—”
She was suddenly and abruptly cut off as something struck her HARD from the side with so much force that her body stiffened momentarily as she hit the ground and rolled to a stop.
“Ah! Ghgggghaaaaa!” She grabbed her side as pain slowly crept into her ribs. Her eyes slammed shut as a large amount of discomfort spread through her body, cringing as simply taking breaths sent sharp pains through her side. She rolled over on her back as the pain stabbed at her, her eyes going wide as two yellow hooves slammed into the snow on both sides of her.
She was staring up, directly into the eyes of Spitfire, who glared down at her with her face scrunched up in anger.
“You aren’t going ANYWHERE!” she yelled into Dash’s face.
But before she could say another word, her eyes widened and she looked up. Her hooves immediately left the ground from around Dash.
Dash yelped in surprise as Descent suddenly appeared over her as well, slamming right into Spitfire. The two locked arms and began grappling, growling at one another as Descent tried to force her off Dash, but Spitfire held her ground.
“GIVE IT UP, SPITFIRE! YOU HAVE NO PLAN!” Descent barked at her.
“NOT LOSING SOARIN IS MY PLAN!” she barked right back. “WHAT THE HELL DO YOU CARE ANYWAY?!”
Dash remained still with no real avenue to get out of the situation, she was stuck beneath them and at risk of being stomped on until one of them moved the other.
But then she blinked, her eyes opening wide as she stared past them into the sky.
“Uh… guys?”
“SOARIN IS A WARRIOR AND RIVAL! I HAVE PLENTY REASON!” Descent yelled.
“Guys?”
“BIG WHOOP! YOU JUST WANT TO FIGHT HIM AGAIN! THAT’S ALL YOU CARE ABOUT!” Spitfire yelled back.
“Guys?!”
“IF YOU WON’T LISTEN TO ME THEN I’M NOT GOING TO BOTHER EXPLAINING MYSELF! Descent roared.
“Guys?! Guys! Guys!!!!!” Dash pointed.
“AND IF YOU’RE GOING TO PUT ANY TRUST IN PONIES ALIGNED WITH THE GODDESSES THEN YOU CAN GO FU—”
“GUYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” Dash yelled as loud as she could.
Both of them suddenly stopped pushing and looked down at her.
Dash was pointing in the air towards the sky.
They both looked up.
“Oh…” Spitfire blinked before her face scrunched up and she growled loudly. “Just… fan-TASTIC!”
Shadowbolts.
They were pouring out from the clouds above… with Nightshade in the lead.
---To Be Continued---
Art in this chapter by: Foxenawolf
Oh GOODY! As if this wasn't already crazy enough, our good old Shadowbolt buddies finally drop in. What the hell took them so long anyway? They certainly aren't going to help calm the situation down at all.
Quite the supernatural battle we had going on there... the power was so immense that everything around them was punted and tossed about like little specs of dust in a wind storm. Discord let his power run rampant... seemingly out of anger and rage. So much for rules, though perhaps it gave us a glimpse into how powerful the gods are supposed to be... and how much Luna is not meeting her full potential. After all, Discord has chastised her for it.
But in the end, Sombra still proved to be more powerful, despite Discord letting it all go. It would seem that combining his power, mind, strength and will with Soarin's own body, strength, and will has indeed created a terrifyingly powerful being... but it sure did seem like he was trying to protect the rest from Discord, or if nothing else stop him from damaging his home.
At this point it looks like Dash is the only one whom he is truly afraid of... and speaking of Dash... somepony is filling the hooves of a certain missing veteran, but is Spitfire too out of her mind to notice?
And where is Sombra going? Where can he run? The crystal empire is being protected by a shield and he's surrounded by several armies that are fighting over what to do about him, and he does not seem to interested in fighting or hurting any of them, besides Discord and Luna at least.
I guess we'll find out, won't we?
Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed!
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Why did you make the chapters so long?
Oooooo that was sooooo good!
I’ve been rereading and eagerly awaiting more of the story that keeps dragging me back into this fandom and got me writing in others
Great job! I can’t wait for the next’
*off to the theory and planning voids I go*
Okay I'm going to murder Spitfire!
Last time I was this early Discord was still stone. Nightshade just go tf away no one wants you here there is enough shit going on right now as it is. And omg Spitfire I don’t even know what to think anymore with you just give it UP girl. Also I’m still curious what Dash and Storms relationship will be after all this shit is done ( I know he wasn’t in the chapter butttttt)
YEAH, and DAMMITT, IT"S NEVER ENOUGH, HOW MUCH LONGER MUST WE ENDURE THIS CRAZY TRAIN
Uuummmm, yeah. I guess I should take some time to let this one to sink in, because I don't want to make any unnecessary critiques here, but I'll just say it.
This chapeter...it felt like a lot happened, but very little happened at the same time. Yes, I know it's weird but that's how I feel. With that, It's most likely due to the pacing. Like I was in it and ready at the beginning, specifically the interaction between Sombra and Discord, which I loved, I was totally in. Then we went to Rainbow, I thought her and her friends were FINALLY going to take action here, but then Discord's magic went haywire, which caused her and most of everyone she knew to get caught up in that magic storm. And because of this, she had to rescue all of her "family," re solidifying the closeness of her comrades. WHICH I TOTALLY UNDERSTAND! Don't get me wrong.
I guess my problem is that THAT part went on a bit too long than I would've preferred.
Huh, I just criticized your work Calm. What will you do now?
I liked the ending though
When the gods do battle, no one wins.
Figured the Shadowbolts were going to show up soon. I am interested into seeing why they took so long. No way this wasn't noticed.
Wow, this chapter was crazy. I feel bad that Dash had to recurse her family and friends. The part with Twilight and Fluttershy being inside a shield ball was very entertaining. The picture of Dash slamming onto the ball was very funny, that and Twilight's reaction to it. I can't wait to see what the Shadowbolts plan on doing in the next chapter!
Epic battle...
Filler chapter.
Spitfire is DEFINITELY compromised, that much is clear. She's gone berserk. She has no plan, and has clearly gone insane with rage and mistrust.
JUST when I thought this couldn't get MORE complicated!!!
This was SO good, though. SO GOOD!
Also, that 'thank you' gesture from Misty? Cried right there. Seems like Spitfire is the only one who can't see Dash is not the bad guy in this story.
And there's not a single chapter you don't make me laugh, seriously. Between the "fat" Fire Streak and the smushed Dash I had enough
Frankly I'm getting tired of Spitfire's thinking. She needs to go sit in the corner for a good long while... After dealing with the Shadowbolts who are gonna stir the pot even more.
I'm just gonna leave this here
The relationship between Dash and Spitfire will never be the same after this
Sombra grew a hand, then smashed it.
But seriously, good lord a lot happened here. Discord went nuts, Sombra still acting like a cool cucumber till the end, and we still have just as many questions. Called the Shadowbolts dropping in, things always get worse on the most inconvenient of times. I'd like to see how a Nightshade v. Sombra would turn out, probably with Nightshade having another existential crisis. (I also need a refresher for everything that's happened so far, dear lord so much has happened in just the last couple months)
Oh Mah Gashhhhhhhhh!!!!
It's rare for me to ever comment on stories, but I don't think I could ever live with myself if I didn't tell you how amazing this story is! I'm hooked! I've read this whole story two times and PTH another time. I just can't get enough!
This better not end right after the arc. I need to see a whole other sequel!
Wow this was an intense chapter! This chapter in particular reminds me of how cool this story would look like in a movie
HOLD IT! THIS IS BULLSHIT!
I OBJECT TO THIS ENDING
9584367
9584407
Just to make you ask that
9584417
Glad you're enjoying it!
9584438
She needs a hell of a reality check, eh?
9584441
Makes you wonder how in the world anypony is going to pull out of this with their sanity intact (assuming they even manage to)
9584455
9584489
Remember... im not in the business of doing things without a reason
I DISOWN YOU. Just kidding, im a writer, criticism is part of the gig
9584538
Indeed, metaphorical to the situation, isnt it?
9584564
i amused myself a little to much having Dash go splat
9584612
Ohhhh ho ho i wouldn't be too sure about that...
i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/001/290/493/8ea.gif
9584619
Gotta keep the charm going through all the chaotic mess. Spitfire might be losing her mind, but the rest of the Wonderbolts are caught in this just as much as the rest.
9584642
You gotta wonder how much longer it's going to go on before she gets a hell of a reality check
9584650
KA KA KA KA KACHI DAZE
9584710
it's certainly been thrown for a twist
9584856
oh jeez, fixed. thanks for pointing that out.
summary: They got to the crystal empire and everyone has lost their mind except for Dash and apparently Descent.
9584972
Oh not, PTH has a 4th arc coming after this sequence ends, we're far from done wit this story
Glad you've been enjoying it!
9585012
Oh if only...
9585419
It's only a matter of time before one of the 'Bolts decides to finally grow a pair and challenge her authority as a whole. And by that I mean going for the leadership position and keeping it.
9585240
You forgot to mention awesome
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i.ytimg.com/vi/mBwvRBPbPwQ/hqdefault.jpg
9585424
Honestly, this can beat the Harry Potter series. 
Thank goodness! This story is too awesome to end.
I just wish it could be made into a movie!
How cool would that be?
9585411
I can see that. Those moments are always funny.
I don't know Calm, I feel like we can add in more choas still. Any other faction out there we haven't added to the battle yet hahaha!
But damn is everything heading to hell really fast. I'd wonder how it could get worse, but something tells me the elements aren't gonna work as planned...
9585495
Twister is the embodiment of the randomness in my brain, but even he has an origin... just giving the readers a hell of a time trying to figure it out
9585537
We're on a roller coaster of chaos and the ride never ends
I can't help but feel that Sombra is seriously trying to project himself onto the gods. Okay, they're not perfect, but he's been perceiving them as perfect, selfish pricks who just revel in the revery and worship of the common folk and beat down anyone who tries to rise up.
Yet here's the thing: Sombra wasn't exactly Mr. Perfect himself and he pretty much committed crimes against ponykind in his ascension attempts and he thinks himself not at fault for that. By his logic, the gods committed such sins themselves and they should pay for that. Only they didn't. They either earned their position through more moderate means and they were a tad more above his moral character than he thinks. And while he's been pointing out hypocrisies left and right everywhere, he doesn't have much room to speak. Because so what? EVERYONE's a hypocrite, one way or another. It's about how you respond when called out on it that matters. Celestia kept his soul around even though it was a mistake, but that's because she honestly believes in redemption. People can change. People are very capable of change.
That's what eludes Sombra here. He doesn't grasp the concept that it's not the past that matters. It's the here-and-now and the future that matter. And if he's going to continue on his route to becoming a god himself... well he's just asking for a big dose of reality check right on the fucking weak spot of his skull.
Come ON SPitfire. You already lost controll over situation, don't dig yourself any fur... Aaand you still continue being an absoulute cretin. You would lose a friend. Rainbow stands to lose a lover and her own life, should things go bad. She has more at stake than you. Godamnit, my stomach has been turning into itself for a while...
9585414
Hmmm. As I recall, Tom got his stuff handed to him, after he locked that door. Might be remembering wrong, though. X))
9585556
Promise?
Almost 2 million mark and this is the longest story I ever read and I still like it
maybe put a comma after snorted.
from
Get rid of the comma after swung.
bent, straighten
struck, whose
lest
forced
Not when we
accompanied
maybe put a comma after up, sentence is a bit of a run-on.
from the incomprehensible
erratic streams of pink and purple magic
cries
it
its
revealed
side of
comma after backwards
Feeling a sudden urge to watch the Twilight vs Tirek battle scene again for the millionth time. Have you watched the season 9 opener yet? When Sombra said he was going to take back the crystal empire my brain immediately went to "you can't do that without Soarin's body!" And they showed Soarin posessed by Sombra when the mane 6 are storming the castle, so PTH is canon now.
9585714
Spitfire ain't exactly in a right state of mind right now. Having everything you care about start slipping from ya as well as having those you thought you could trust time and time again betray said trust will do that to ya.
Gonna be a fun time when she comes back to reality and finds out how deep the hole is that she dug.