Interval 4.2: One Last Run
My Little Pony:
Versus Equestria
[The Mildly Interesting Marion Chapel]
Interval 4.2: One Last Run
Marion had almost fully comprehended that everything that had happened in Equestria for the past three months happened in the space of a few hours. How was it the Collector’s portals worked? Time and space? Time.
Discord must have sent the teenager not just back to his own world, but back in time too! It was the only thing that fitted logically. Either that or there was a Narnian time difference between Marion’s dimension and Equestria. But that just hurt his brain the more he thought about it.
“Marion, check this out!” Brian hissed waving the teenager over.
Tucking away his phone and rising to his feet, Marion crossed the control room and looked at what the scientist was looking at. The Collector’s portal collapsed in on itself and popped out of existence with a distinct pop. As the light faded and Marion blinked the multi-coloured spots out of his vision, he found himself staring at one particular figure standing in the midst of the atrium.
The Diamond Dog militants not watching their newly acquired hostages held their weapons stiffly by their sides and gave a formal salute, bowing their heads with a fist placed over their heart. The Collector mimicked the salute, even Discord and Nightmare Moon showed some respect by bowing elegantly. The hooded figure turned his head and waved them at ease so they could return to their tasks.
Marion soon realised he had both hands pressed against the pane of glass trying to peer under that hood. He wanted to know who that was. And soon his question was semi-answered.
With one claw, the individual pulled back his hood to reveal a gruff canine head. He was a Diamond Dog, though not like any Marion had ever seen before. The normal Diamond Dog would be Pitbull, or Bulldog in appearance with overly long muscular arms, broad barrel chests and little disproportionate legs.
This Diamond Dog had a much more feral, wolfen appearance. His steel coat was matted with streaks and patches of black, with a black eye-patch over the right eye. His silver fangs were clearly visible as his lips curled back in a scowl at the sight of the humans cowering in the corner, with his steel claws curling into fists.
“Rockbreaker team!” the cycloptic Diamond Dog commanded in a harsh, raspy voice. “Maintain atrium security. Scavenger team, raid the armouries and prepare to move out. Hunter team, you are responsible for securing the control room. I do not want any surprises!”
With multiple affirmative barks joined into one the respective teams of Diamond Dogs went about their tasks.
Meanwhile in the control room above the atrium Jennifer Chapel had heard the dog’s loud orders and was desperately trying to come up with some kind of plan to keep them all alive.
“Perkins, lock that door!” the colonel commanded one of the scientists as she followed him to the control room’s entrance. “Marion, where’s your taser?”
“Uh... in my bag. Battery’s low though.”
“That is why you need to-...” Jennifer stopped mid-sentence when Perkins was launched halfway across the room.
Not through his own fault mind you. Professor Perkins had done as Colonel Chapel instructed closing and bolting the door. Though it did very little when Perkins heard a thud against the wooden frame followed by some soft beeping.
“Oh, crap.” he had tried to say, but it only came out as a soft mneu, mneu, mneu kind of whimper. The man threw himself to one side and a moment later the doorway exploded, further propelling Perkins like a ridiculous looking action figure flung by a careless child.
Everyone bar Jennifer hit the deck. She merely twisted away, recoiling from the close proximity of the blast while shading her face with her arms. A moment later two Diamond Dogs charged into the control room. They swept right past Jennifer, almost ignoring her as they trained their guns on Marion and the others. Marion Chapel was of course not going to argue with the wrong end of a 7.62-caliber assault weapon and immediately put up his hands. Even Snoopy did the same.
Jennifer Chapel on the other hand wasn’t one to surrender. Straightening up she faces the backs of the two mutts as a third stepped through the smouldering ruin that had once been a door. It twisted around and practically shoved the barrel of an AK-47 down her throat. Which – might I add – was the mutt’s first mistake.
Marion’s mother moved faster than the boy could duck for cover. Seeing that flare of anger in her eye as she noted her son and boyfriend being held at gunpoint, Marion knew damn well what was going to happen next. Best be hugging the floor when it happened.
She snatched the weapon clean out of the Diamond Dog’s clutches. Swinging it around by the barrel, she let it revolve through the air once before catching it by the proper grips, leaving the Diamond Dog completely flustered and confused. Jennifer used that to her advantage and stepped closer, smashing the metal-riveted butt against the hound’s face.
As the first Diamond Dog fell with stars circling his head, Jennifer shouldered the weapon and fired two controlled bursts. The noise of the gunfire was enough to pop everybody’s ear drums. Three rounds flattened against one mutt’s back, throwing the creature off his feet. The second trio hit the back of the other’s armoured vest. He too fell completely winded and squirming in pain as Jennifer marched closer to make sure those two dogs were out of the fight. Clearly not wanting to provoke the woman’s wrath, the Diamond Dogs glanced up at her, then gave defeated sighs and stayed down.
“Everybody okay?” the colonel asked as she lowered the rifle and checked her surroundings.
Brian had been cowering in his chair with his hands covering his ears to protect himself form the noise of the gunfire. Marion and Snoopy had dived under one of the computer desks and bumped their heads. The other scientists in the room had dived for cover too, bumping head and scuffing knees. But other than that, everybody was unharmed. Stunned but unharmed. Slowly looking up, Brian glanced over Jennifer as she pulled a fresh magazine from the vest of one of the mutts she had disabled.
Holding it horizontally, she opened the magazine-release lever and flicked the partially spent cartridge out of the weapon. When the receiver was clear, she clicked the fresh mag in place before turning the weapon on its side and cycling the action. An unfired bullet pinged off into the corner of the room before the bolt snapped shut again, chambering the first of thirty new rounds.
“How is it you’re even sexier when you’re holding a high powered assault rifle?” the woman’s boyfriend commented plainly.
Jennifer didn’t quite have an answer for that one, so she just gave him a smile.
The calm didn’t last long though. It was about then a wee fella, ‘bout twenty pounds, three-foot-nine-inches with green skin and a nametag that read ‘Murphy’ showed up.
Another Diamond Dog stepped through the open doorway, the last of the squad sent to secure the control room. Letting out a bark, the mutt fired his rifle. Jennifer flinched, stepping to one side, but it seemed the round had missed everything and punched into a computer console behind her, leaving a gaping hole in the steel and plastic.
Turning her own weapon over she tried to raise it before the Diamond Dog corrected his aim, but was too slow. She was already staring down the barrel of the Kalashnikov...
BLAM!
This time the bullet went completely wide of everything, hitting the floor at the Diamond Dog’s own feet. Blinking, Jennifer noted a blur of black and white had shot across the room and latched itself to the hound’s forearm, pulling the weapon off-aim.
Snoopy growled venomously as she sank her teeth deeper into the Diamond Dog nearly pulling the creature off his feet. It was enough for the mutt to whimper in pain as he was quite literally turned into Snoopy’s bitch.
A second blur of black and white shot after the loyal canine. It took a moment for everyone to realise that second blur was Marion holding his skateboard by the nose high over one shoulder.
He swung it with both arms in a wide downward angled arch until the tail smashed into the Diamond Dog’s face. As the dog fell back a step, Marion quickly recovered from the swing and scythed the board upward again, catching the hound under the chin. The Diamond Dog literally left the ground before crumbling into an unconscious heap with the teenager standing over him.
“Holy shit, Marr!” Brian laughed disbelievingly.
Taking a breath, Marion flashed the adults a small grin, looking a little proud as he patted the ever loyal Snoopy on the head. “Hey, mom. You missed one.” He commented simply.
Jennifer chuckled. “That’s my boy... unfh!”
As his mother gasped in pain, Marion whirled around and dropped his board when he saw she was doubled over. Her hands lifted away from where she was holding her side to reveal a dark crimson liquid staining her pale skin, more of the stuff soaked up in her jacket.
“Oh, holy fucking shit! Mom, you’ve been fucking shot!”
Jennifer growled with a mixture of pain and irritation as she was helped into a chair by Brian and Professor Johnson. “Watch your mouth, young man.”
Brian set to work pulling off her jacket and unbuttoning her shirt. Normally speaking her son would have poured salt into his eyes at the sight of this. But there and then, he was stunned. All he could see was his own mother’s blood.
Marion liked to think he knew his mom really well. Really had a handle on the old lady. But of all the things he’s ever considered his mom; his bodyguard, his taxi-chauffeur, the superhero, the soldier... he’d never actually considered her to be just a normal person. She had ideas, opinions, fears, hopes and desires. She was flesh and bone, just like him.
Mortal, just like Marion. And seeing her sit there bleeding was all too overwhelming
“Clean puncture.” Brian reported as he inspected the ragged hole in Jennifer’s side. “In one end, out the other. Doesn’t look like you’ve lost any organs.”
“All meat, eh? Aren’t we lucky today?” Marion managed to say between taking shuddering breaths.
Jennifer flinched as Brian pressed his jacket around her waist to plug the holes. “Ugh... I can still bleed out.”
“Yeah, we noticed. Hold still. Marr, keep pressure there.” Brian ordered.
On a normal day Marion would have qualms about touching his own mom like that. But on that particular day his mom had been fucking shot and was bleeding. The teenager did exactly what Brian told him without hesitation, keeping the bloody jacket in place over the wounds while the professor helped his colleagues find a med-kit.
Noticing the cold sweat on her son’s forehead, Jennifer leaned over to get a better look at Marion’s face. “Hey, sweetheart.” She whispered softly. “You okay?”
Marion gulped hard, staring at the blood soaking up in the jacket and staining the palms of his hands. It was definitely slowing. He just wished it’d stop. “Uh... yeah. Yeah, I’m fine. Just... it’s a little weird having people shooting at me.”
His mother gave a small smile. “You’ll get used to it.”
“I certainly hope not.”
***[]***
It had been quiet for about a dozen or so minutes. Marion was sitting up against a console, arms folded across his chest wondering when the cavalry would arrive. Heck, it didn’t have to be the cavalry riding flying chariots of steel and fire, he’d settle for some marines, or the National Guard even.
There had been no more attempts on the control room. Two scientists with guns requisitioned from the Diamond Dogs sat by the door keeping a lookout. The Diamond Dogs were tied up with several lengths of discarded cables, under the watchful eye of Snoopy.
Brian and Johnson had finished patching up his mother, and she lay snoozing in the chair with her jacket pulled up over her shoulders. The bleeding had been stopped and she didn’t go into shock, but Brian had given her something to take the edge off the pain.
The atrium had been quiet. The hostages under Nightmare Moon’s watch hadn’t thrown up a fuss, more out of bafflement they were being restrained by a magical mare of the night. Discord had been lazily swaying in a hammock made out of jelly-beans – for some strange reason – while the Collector and the one-eyed Diamond Dog badass explored the Zee-PEC chamber. They seemed particularly interested in one of the server stacks near the main power conduit.
“Marr!” Brian whispered getting the teenager’s attention. “Movement!”
Whirling around, Marion dropped to one knee and slid into cover beside the scientist. They were keeping a low profile, so while spying over the atrium they made sure to keep their heads down. With Jennifer incapacitated they wouldn’t last long against a horde of angry militant canines.
Slowly straightening up, the two peeked over the console and down into the atrium to get a mild fright.
The Diamond Dogs of Scavenger team had returned. And with them they towed several motorised dollies. Stainless steel trucks with three pairs of all-terrain wheels, they were stacked high with chrome and olive green boxes with re-enforced steel bands across the sleek surfaces. All of them had unique warning messages printed along their spines. Some explosive, some indicated live-ammunition. Others had the profiles of M16 carbines printed on the main face.
They had three dollies in total, all stacked high with ammunition, guns and explosives raided from the facility’s armoury. The leader of Scavenger team marched to where the cycloptic Diamond Dog was fidgeting with the electronics of the Zee-PEC and delivered his report.
“Excellent work, beta.” The top-dog announced loudly. “Secure the cargo, we return to Equestria immediately.”
Marion frowned as the Diamond Dog announced that as he pointed into the Zee-PEC portal.
What was it Brian had said? The atmosphere of the world on the other side of that portal was buzzing with energy? And Marion remembered how his phone had been on an endless charging cycle while he was in Equestria. There was no doubt left in his mind.
That portal led directly to Equestria! That was his ticket back-...
Marion stopped himself and looked over his shoulder to where his mother sat. Was it right to head back though? What if he was missed? But he did want to see Trixie again...
With a sigh he pushed those issues to the back of his mind. One problem at a time.
“They’re shipping out with a fuck-tonne of weapons.” Marion narrated softly. “How do we stop them?”
Brian shook his head. “I honestly don’t know.”
“Oh, some scientist you are.” The younger human hissed.
“Hey, I’m doing my best!”
“Your best?” Marion scoffed. “Losers whine about their best. Winners go home and fuck the prom-queen!”
“Jennifer was the prom-queen.” Brian noted with a smirk.
Marion managed to not retch... barely. “And that was completely unnecessary for me to know. Gross, dude.”
Looking back down through the window they saw the one-eyed Diamond Dog rip an access panel off one of the stacks of computers. Revealed within were two crystals and a plethora of computer chips. As he took hold of the glowing pink cylindrical crystals, the Scavenger team corporal plucked a foam padded case from a nearby dolly and held it open.
The leader gave the crystals a sharp twist, then removed them from the console, placing both gently in the case for it to be snapped shut.
“Did...” Marion gaped a little oblivious to how bad things were going. He wasn’t sure though, but ripping something shiny out of very complicated machinery simply had to be bad. “Did he just-...”
“Oh, crap.” Brian whispered, confirming Marion’s fears that things had gone from bad to worse. “He just pocketed the control crystals!”
Marion dug his nails into the plastic computer console. “Great. How long ‘till our black-holey fate?”
“Matter of hours.” Professor Johnson responded hoarsely. And he wasn’t the only scientist in the room to turn very pale.
“What do we do about it?” Marion snapped.
“Let me think.” Brian quickly pulled up a chair and started going through his computer. Feeling a little useless again as the scientists set to work on a solution to their predicament, Marion looked back down into the atrium.
Nightmare Moon had left the hostages in the care of a squad of Diamond Dogs and joined Discord as he floated over to where the one-eyed Diamond Dog was inspecting the weapons cache his militants had retrieved.
Discord landed gently by his side, nudging the mutt to get his attention. “Your dogs in the control room haven’t reported in.” he said a little worried.
“Leave them. This world has served its purpose.” The top-dog growled. “Collector! Ensure this portal overloads and destroys this world.”
The Collector bowed. “Certainly, Alpha Bedlam.” He closed the Zee-PEC chamber, locking himself in as the final dolly with weapons rolled onto the metal ramp.
Hearing them over the live intercom up in the control room, Marion narrowed his eyes. Alpha Bedlam. There was a name he had to remember.
Watching helplessly, Marion stared at Bedlam, Nightmare Moon and Discord as they disappeared through the Zee-PEC portal along with the Diamond Dogs operating the dollies stacked with weapons, tac-gear and ordinance. Left behind was the Collector who sealed himself in the Zee-PEC chamber and the Diamond Dogs
So that was his plan. Steal the control crystals from the Zero Point Energy Converter and bring a shit-tonne of guns and ammo back with him into Equestria. Already, those were the first ingredients for a recipe of disaster, leaving Marion’s world to be destroyed by a de-stabilising Zee-PEC notwithstanding.
“Brian,” Marion growled. “I want to inflict some pain upon that Bedlam guy.”
“We’ll get him, Marr. One thing at a time. First we need to power down the Zee-PEC or we might not get that far.” Brian responded. “Johnson, I need you down there to initiate an emergency shutdown.”
“There are a lot of guys with guns down there.” Professor Johnson noted with a grimace.
“I’ll go.” Marion quickly interjected causing Brian to choke and cough.
“What? Not a chance. Didn’t you hear the man? Those guys down there have guns!”
“Yeah? And what’s Cave gonna do to ‘em? Throw some combustible lemons?” Marion snapped.
Professor Johnson scowled, flipping him the bird.
“Seriously though. I’ll do it.” Marion insisted. “If something goes wrong we’ll need smart people to come up with a remedy. I’ll get in there and push the big red button.”
And he wasn’t just going to risk his life for his own world’s sake. God only knew what kind of anarchy that Diamond Dog was planning to unleash upon Equestria. He needed to warn someone.
Or more specifically, somepony.
Three stage plan. Stage one, take down Collector. Stage two, disable portal. Stage three, force the Collector to spill the beans on what Bedlam and his squad of assholes was up to. That little bastard could generate magical portals through space and time, so he could always transport Marion to Princess Celestia’s doorstep to deliver a warning.
“Y’know,” a woman’s voice piped up in the midst of their plotting. “I trained you so you could defend yourself. Not to go throwing yourself into danger.”
Turning on the spot, Marion spotted his mother. She was sat up, clutching her side, but awake. She looked tired. Her groomed hair was a mess, her shirt soaked with blood. At least it was buttoned up enough so Marion didn’t have to look at her bra anymore.
Realising she was okay, Marion grinned. “Coming from the lady who wants me to join the army.”
She grinned back. “Point taken.”
Rising to his feet the teenager moved closer. “This is the only way, mom... look, I’m sorry I never finished in my application forms, and I’m sorry I don’t want to enter military service like the rest of the family. I want you to be proud of me, I really do-...”
Jennifer held up a hand to cut him off as he knelt beside her. “You don’t have to join the army for me to be proud of you, Marion. You’ve always fought for what you believed in... and for that I’ve always been proud of you.” widening her tired smile, she gently ran her hand over the boy’s face. “Oh, Marr. Look at you. Saving the universe all on your own. You’ve grown up so fast.”
They both chortled at the same time. Shaking off her pain and fatigue, Jennifer shifted in her seat and managed to stand. A little unevenly, but she was on her feet at least. With a groan she stooped and snatched up the assault rifle perched up against her chair.
“I’ll cover you from up here.” the colonel announced, cradling the rifle high across her chest.
“What? We’re sending Marion in there!?” Brian almost exclaimed as he jumped to his feet. “Jenny, are you sure?”
“He’s in better condition to get it done than the rest of us.” Jennifer assured with a proud grin before turning to her son. “Keep your head down and move fast.”
Marion smirked. “Oh, I’ll be moving fast alright.” And before he left the control room, he patted his leg for Snoopy to regroup and snatched up his skateboard...
Bar the hum of energy piercing the transparent containment wall separating the Zero Point Energy Converter from the rest of the atrium, the chamber was silent. Every now and then there was a slight shift in gear or a click of a rifle as the Diamond Dogs made their rounds between the doors and the hostages huddled in an enclosure of tables. The humans were keeping their heads down, avoiding the piercing gazes of the mutts.
The Collector waited in the Zee-PEC chamber alone, the door at the base of the ramp sealed behind him as he gazed into the blue liquid-like surface of the portal, comparing it’s comparatively brutal methods of opening compared to his own magical means. None of them were prepared for what happened next.
The observation windows on the control room shattered. Glass shards rained down in a fine mist of miniscule daggers and grains. Flashes of light lit up the dark control room, muzzles from assault rifles flaring angrily with each thunderous gunshot. Empty brass shells rolled over the floor of the room as 7.62 millimetre diameter assault rifle bullets seared down from above, blanketing the atrium in a rain of death.
One of the Diamond Dogs was caught in the fray immediately, and fell clutching his chest and shoulder. Several rounds peppered his armour, flattening against the chest-piece but leaving their bruises. Only one had pierced, cutting through fur and flesh, eliciting a loud yelp from the mutt.
The other Diamond Dogs immediately dove for cover, kicking up tables and scrambling under chairs to avoid the incoming rain of hot lead... well, actually the most common form of 7,62mm ammunition on the market at the time happened to be consistent of a copper-plated steel jacket containing a mostly steel core. In all, there was actually very little lead in the round compared to the ratio of steel... but semantics.
The point here is that there was plenty of ammo flying about the place, enough for someone to practically walk on. As Jennifer Chapel and a few armed scientists laid down some suppressing fire, drawing some Diamond Dog fire in return, a door on the edge of the atrium swung open.
At first nothing emerged. But the moment the Diamond Dogs scattered, a shadow blurred from the doorway. Hunched down on all fours, Snoopy sprinted with all her might, mouth hanging open and tongue rolling out the side. Her harness was pulled tight with the lead attached to the ring between her shoulder-blades. The lead was pulled taught too, and hanging on to the loop at the end was a human hand.
Marion’s hand to be exact.
As Snoopy sprinted across the atrium like a laser guided missile, Marion held on with his feet firmly planted on his skateboard. Under the cacophony of gunfire ripping through the air the rumble of the wheels over the polished floor was unheard. And with their swift pace the Diamond Dogs barely noticed any more than a black and white blur shooting past them.
One mutt did fully notice though and stopped firing. Lifting his rifle high as he swivelled so he wouldn’t take the head off his buddy, the Diamond Dog aimed in Marion’s direction and let loose a long sustained burst.
Bullets smashed into the ground at the tail of Marion’s board as he leaned from side to side, carving out of the path of incoming projectiles. Sensing the danger too, Snoopy quickly altered her trajectory and darted to one side.
Marion swung to one side, nearly tugged off his board. Balancing on the rear wheels he managed to swipe the nose towards Snoopy’s tail and match the sudden change of direction. Landing with a silent tchock he crouched down a little lower to make his profile even smaller. The snap and crackle of rounds piercing the air close behind him was growing more audible now his ears were adjusting to the thunderous roar of the gunfire.
Snoopy changed direction a few more times before darting under a table. Still hanging on to the dog-lead, Marion grabbed his skateboard by the edge and threw himself off to one side.
Landing on his hip, he slid under the table after Snoopy with his board cradled over his chest.
A moment later they emerged out the other side. Rolling to his feet, Marion quickly kicked back and his heel caught the table, flipping it over and forming a barrier between him and the shooter. As he jumped back on his board for Snoopy to tow him rapidly the final leg across the atrium, a distinct series of cracks could be heard as the Diamond Dog tried to shoot through the table. Luckily to no avail.
Nosing her way towards the door separating them from the Zee-PEC chamber, Snoopy hopped clean over the next table. Marion followed with a rushed, shoddy, but adequate ‘ollie.’ As he jumped up, he kicked back with his right foot on the tail of the board. The curved end slammed into the ground, bouncing the board into the air as he dragged his left foot up as high as he could along the grip-tape. The result was the board being lifted clean into the air and into his hand.
He caught the board mid-jump knowing damn well he wasn’t going to clear the jump. And luckily he let go of Snoopy’s lead too. With board in hand he crashed into the surface of the table and slid across, disappearing over the other side. He dragged with him a portion of tablecloth, sending a series of cupcakes and other snacks spraying over the floor. One of the buffet ice-sculptures nearby caught a bullet and quite literally exploded into a shower of little crystals.
Hitting the deck with a distinct thud didn’t slow the teenager. He still had bullets whizzing around his ears and needed to keep moving. Sliding his board into the makeshift holster of bungie-chords on his backpack, Marion quickly ran up to the door leading into the Zee-PEC chamber. He slid open the bolt and was about to wrench it open when several sparks exploded beside his face. Bullets flattened against the impenetrable glass, crushing the cores and sending tiny slivers of copper-coated steel scattering everywhere.
One of the shrapnel flechettes stung Marion in the cheek, and with a cry he gripped the lightning bolt of pain stinging his skin as he dove back into the cover of the table he’d jumped over. Snoopy followed immediately, hitting the deck by her master’s side. With gritted teeth the teenager lifted his fingers from his cheek to see some blood attenuate his fingerprints. He imagined the shrapnel had left a badass looking cut in his cheek, but he didn’t care. It fucking hurt!
Twisting around the boy slowly lifted his head over his makeshift cover to see if whoever was shooting at him was still at it. Unfortunately they were and another ice-sculpture nearby exploded as an overabundance of rounds passed through it.
Marion ducked, but not completely, so he could keep a good view of what was going on. There were two Diamond Dogs making their way over to him. Their guns were held at hip height and they were firing in maniacal sweeps. They weren’t very accurate, but at that range with such an open target, they didn’t need to be. Never before was spraying-and-praying so damn effective.
But that’s when a shadow loomed behind the Diamond Dog on the right... or was that the left? No, it was on Marion’s left. A figure ducked out from behind a cluster of upturned chairs grabbed the nearest Diamond Dog. The way the figure moved, Marion could barely believe it was old General John Zimmer moving like he was a guy barely out of his twenties.
The general grabbed the dog’s Kalashnikov by the foregrip and stock as he twisted the barrel downward. He drove a knee under the hound’s belt, literally lifting the mutt off his feet. Judging by the bulging eyeballs, that seriously hurt. And then to finish him off, Zimmer pulled the rifle from the Diamond Dog’s claws and smashed the stock into his chin. The hound went down without trouble.
The second was stunned for a moment, enough time for General Zimmer to swing his newly acquired rifle like a club and beat the mutt in the face. The Diamond Dog was on the ground by the time Zimmer had turned the AK-47 over and shouldered it as his own.
Dayumn! Marion through to himself. “Pretty spry for an old guy, general!” he called out.
Zimmer responded with a quick salute before plucking up a new magazine from one of the fallen Diamond Dogs. “Do what you have to, son! I got this!” he bellowed before turning to the remaining Diamond Dogs firing up at the control room windows and unleashing the fury of an old fashioned ass-kicking upon them.
Marion mimicked the salute before returning to the task at hand.
Darting back out of cover, the teenager threw his shoulder against the chamber’s door and forced his way through. The door swung open with surprising ease and he fell through, dangling awkwardly from one hand clutching the handle tightly. Snoopy followed him inside, jumping over the teenager and landing smoothly between him and where the Collector stood. The loyal hound immediately lowered her head, growling protectively as the hairs on her neck stood up, eliciting a backwards step from the Collector.
Managing to right himself, Marion slammed the door shut and bolted it again before turning to face the Zero Point Energy Converter, and the demon-monkey standing between him and it.
The Collector wasn’t all too different from when Marion last saw him in a dingy cave under what he’d originally through to be Meghan’s Temple. He was clad in a steel-grey chainmail shirt with a wide leather belt wrapped around his waist. For some reason the squat little demon-monkey forgot to put on pants that morning, pulling off something of a Donald Duck. All shirt, no pants. Weird.
Standing ready as if to take a speeding freight train to the face, the Collector curled his thick hands into fists. “Are you ready for round two, little man? This time you don’t have anyone to help you.”
Marion shrugged as he and Snoopy readied themselves to meet his challenge. “True. That’s why I brought this.”
His right hand darted into the back of his belt before he tore something free. His fingers were tight around the pistol grip, and the muzzle angled directly at the demon-monkey, causing the Collector to recoil and scream with surprise at the same time. Marion’s trigger finger jerked and there was a distinct gas-propelled pop. Two metal diodes made contact with the Collector, dead centre, just below the belt buckle.
What followed was the rapid-fire click-click-click along with the monkey’s even higher pitched scream as the dying amps of a fifty-thousand volts unloaded into the Collector’s balls. At least, the relative area where his balls should have been.
Needless to say his eyes crossed and the demon-monkey was twitching and squirming on the ground in less than a second.
With a smirk, Marion fished a zip-tie out of his pocket and wrapped it around the trigger. Tightening up the tie to keep the trigger depressed, the boy dropped the taser at the Collector’s twitching body to let the bastard absorb the last of the battery pack.
Stepping over the Collector, Marion slyly held up a hand, fingers tight together and only separating with a V-shape between his middle and ring-finger. “Live long and prosper...” he twisted his hand around and presented the back of his middle finger to the twitching monkey. “Bitch!”
Moving further up the wide ramp, Marion paused by the access panel that had once housed the control crystals. Unless he got some layman instructions from Brian soon he’d have to resort to pulling out random cables. Truth be told, he didn’t even know where to start on the damn thing.
“Okay, Marr. Can you hear me?” Brian’s voice crackled over the intercom and Marion responded with a thumbs-up to the control room’s observation window. “Good. Directly underneath where that Bedlam thing pulled out the control crystals, that’s where you’ll find the emergency shut-off cylinder. It’s basically the fuse that runs power into the ring maintaining the portal. Twist the cylinder clockwise, then pull it out of the housing completely. Be careful, it’s heavy.”
The name certainly gave away what he was looking for. The teenager found the failsafe in question just underneath the access panel Bedlam had ripped open. It was a slightly angled cylinder, housed within another larger cylinder, handle in the centre with the whole device mounted on the side of the metal ramp.
On one side were a mess of cables leading to the various server stacks and buffers. On the other side of the cylinder was a particularly thick cable running into the actual ring. Leaning down, Marion grasped the handle and gave it a clockwise twist as Brian had instructed.
With a distinct thunk the locks let go. All Marion had to do was pull the cylinder out completely... easier said than done. The damn thing was heavy... much heavier than Brian had indicated.
With a jolt, the cylinder sank deeper out of reach, dragging Marion with it. The boy let out a surprised cry. That was until Snoopy darted in and bit down on the teenager’s backpack strap. Steadying herself on all fours, the dog managed to keep her master from slipping away.
Gritting his teeth, the duo pulled at the same time. Millimetre by millimetre the cylinder rose, slowly coming free. Though it didn’t get any easier. Stepping forward at the halfway point, Marion planted a foot on the edge of the cylinder, locked his other hand around the handle and heaved harder than he’d ever heaved before.
“Marion, we’re kinda running out of time here.” came Brian’s nervous voice on the intercom. “Put your back into it, man.”
“You get your ass down here and lift this fuckin’ thing then.” Marion retorted.
Still, he did lower his stance and put his back into it.
The final inch slid free with a distinct scrape of metal on metal and the cylinder finally came free. Both the teenager and his loyal hound crashed into the deck as the impossibly heavy cylinder cratered into the ramp beside them.
“Power dissipating. You did it! The portal is powering down. It’s unstable at the moment, but its closing! Just make sure to stand clear.”
“Fu-huuck!” Marion coughed as he slowly climbed to his feet. “Finally some good news.”
Looking up at the portal being generated by the Zee-PEC, Marion noticed a definite dullness about it. It wasn’t as bright or vibrant as before. And it was definitely flickering, struggling to stay open. That was it. Marion’s world was saved. Equestria next.
On that note, Marion turned around to see how the Collector was enjoying his shock-therapy. The teenager’s expression went visibly glum when he saw the demon-monkey was on his feet.
“Well done.” The Collector snarkily praised. “You’ve gone and done it. Saved this world. Captured me. And for what. To save your dying world?”
“Well this world is where I keep all my stuff.” Marion retorted smartly. “But it’s not just for my world.”
“Oh? For who then? The little ponies?” The Collector snapped in a teasing tone. “You’re going to save Princess Celestia and her herd of mindless subjects next, are you?
“Not all of them.” there was only one azure unicorn surfacing in the teenager’s mind at that very point. “Just the one.”
“How precious.” The Collector’s eyes flashed a vicious shade of red. The taser lay on the ground, no longer clicking, but the red battery indicator letting Marion know the Collector’s balls were now sufficiently fried. With a twitching eye, the monkey reached back and there was a distinct noise of metal on metal. With a smooth action he drew free what looked like an elegant dagger. It was as long as the average kitchen knife, with a thick, razor edged blade ending in a perfect point. The grip was gilded with leather and gold with a distinct pommel in the shape of a pony’s skull.
Though the fanciful nature of the knife was irrelevant, since it disappeared a second later at Snoopy’s will...
She was a blur of black and white, acting without thought or hesitation. As she had before in the control room when her other master had been shot at, Snoopy identified a threatening posture along with a dangerous weapon. Like an ankle biter pouncing on a fallen chocolate bar, she darted forward with speed and grace, sinking her sharp teeth deep enough into the monkey’s wrist to draw blood. The knife fell; clattering to the deck and sliding out of reach as the Collector grabbed Snoopy by the scruff of her neck and tore her off.
With a lazy wave he threw the dog to one side, sending her crashing into a server stack with a loud yelp. Marion immediately took a step to the demon-monkey.
“Hey, lay off my dog!” the boy cried angrily.
The Collector ignored him, running directly at the teenager. The two collided as the monkey tried to grasp Marion’s throat. Marion recoiled, demon-monkey by the wrists. Neither of them were paying attention to where they fell and they stumbled into the eye of the Zee-PEC’s ring. A moment later the glistening blue light in the chamber faded. The portal vanished and the equipment powered down with a hum strangely akin to Marion’s Xbox shutting off.
...
“Marr?” Jennifer’s voice echoed over the intercoms as silence filled the portal-chamber. “Marion, can you hear me? Marion...!?”
The only sound in the chamber were Snoopy’s claws on the floor as she wandered about and whimpered while searching for Marion. But there was no reply to his mother’s calls...
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Aww shit
Hmm, I think this pic describes the action perfectly...
ironmanmode.com/wp-content/uploads/Engaged-in-Combat.jpg
Oh, and if he dies his mom is gonna kill him...
i.chzbgr.com/completestore/2012/3/11/fc1e1f9a-5e2a-430c-9cc1-63a72c1976c8.jpg
I have only one thing to say:
"I fucking love this shit!"
AWW SHIIIIEEEEET!
Professor Johnson followed by what is cave gonna do was enough. The lemons were taking it too far. Subtler is better.
“Yeah? Cave isn't fast enough for this. I'm the best man for the job here.”
back in action, bitches!
Woohoo back to equestria!
to be fair with the diamond dog bit at the start any idiot who puts a gun in someones mouth or that close deserves to have their gun snatched off them its a ranged weapon for a reason
1634184
... I'm totally going to use that in a future chapter.
we all learned something today:
Charge your tasers, people.
and, because I have to get it out of my system:
That was FUN!
Yay hes back in Equestria now!
that demon monkeys fried
now Rabbit needs to get some powers out of this
What, no manbearpig?
ΔΓ
I honestly wanted to see more pain and blood, but only because I'm a bit of a psycho.
1634210 I tell ya, against me, Discord would have surrendered the chaos game after Round 1.
NO ONE DEFEATS TEH TROLL KING!!
Aw, I thought the dog got to go with him.
I can just imagine during the final epic battle for Equestria with Rabbit and the villains locked in an epic struggle... Marions mom shows up and saves the day, while snarking at his taste in women
wonder what Andrew is up to right now
lolololololol
thank you, THANK YOU for reminding me how awesome Noisia is.
1634833
DAMMIT! I knew I forgot something!
I was expecting him to jump into the portal first, find Trixie there, and then use the time differential to get back just in time to save Earth. But this is an even better plan!
This could very easily be original fiction at this point. It isn't strongly tied to MLP at all right now. That's not good or bad, just an observation.
Poor Snoopy
Well done, lad, that's a heck of a return-to-Equestria spin, I'm impressed.
Shame it could have done with a little more foreshadowing earlier on, but that's easily passed by the way your guy doesn't talk much, if ever, about his life before going to Equestria, even changing his name, so I say that's a good job.
Keep going! I'm hungry for more.
1636258
yeah, I do have to wonder.
Sigh... a Stargate... and a zpm and then... well anyway you capitalize National Guard but not Marines!? Nor do you capitalize General or Colonel.... bah a fun story but needs a little more editing. Hurry with the next chapter.
You know... the one thing I noticed at the end... was that there was no info if the Collecter removed the taser... Was it sent to Equestria with them? If so, then monkey-butt has a shocking surprise waiting for him.
)
(I doubt that this will actually happen.
Looks like he's deep in the rabbit hole now!
1641941
I see what you did there...since electronics get charged....and it's a taser....
1643118
I find that it will make for quite a hilarious and an effective way for
MarionRabbit to safely get away. I see a problem though... What is on the other side of the portal?1641763
ZPMs draw energy from an artificially-created subspace, not alternate universes
The matter bridge created by McKay ("McKay and Mrs. Miller") was a modified form of Project Arcturus (created by the Ancients to try and draw subspace energy from our universe -- much more energy than what's available in the artificial subspace of a ZPM), which was meant to draw energy from the subspace of another universe.
An alternate universe version of Samantha Carter also created a project to do basically the same thing as McKay ("The Road Not Taken"), but it took a small amount of energy from many universes, not just one. Unfortunately, it accessed the "prime" universe at the same time Samantha Carter was messing with one of Merlin's devices. Prime!Carter got transported to the alternate universe, and alternate!Carter blew up.
OH MY GOD. THIS CHAPTER WAS BETTER THAN THE LAST.
I don't care that this story suddenly went full-on action movie, this part certainly deserved it. Can't wait to see Rabbit kick Diamond Dog ass all the way back to Trixie.
Huh... so I see the government sprung for some badass, 1/4 inch thick hardened ballistic steel tables for their offices, but not for an automatic fail safe shutdown for their black-hole device in the event the one, singular, non-redundant control system is removed or fails...
gifsoup.com/download.php?id=143332&d=animatedgifs&n=nc-genius&s=o
P.S. This is not a criticism of the craft of the narrative, as the story itself is incredibly entertaining and I'm loving it so far... I'm just amused by the chunks of incredibly silly action movie logic that pop up every so often. Of course, this is coming from someone that absolutely loves cheesy action movies, so...
1650263 I think it's just because 'dat flank' sounds better than 'dat buttock', and 'dat plot' sounds somewhat less odd than 'dat dock'... cause, you know, 'docking' has all sorts of connotations and innuendo attached to it. Plus, when you use 'plot', then you can make all sorts of jokes about authors 'plotting' stories and can say things like 'That story has a deep plot!' and 'Time to fill a bunch of gaping plot holes!' and get all sorts of snickering and so forth.
You must learn the Troll Way, young one. I am from the ages of trolling before the Internet. One of the Ancient Ones, when all we had were political cartoons and editorial pieces.
Well, at least he's back in Equestria!!
1639849 2'nd Poor Snoopy
Cave Johnson from portal. Very good, very good