Raid on Shoggoth, On Your Mark
In another part of Shoggoth...
Four unicorns in plated armor stood before the official entrance to the Royal Tombs. Side by side, the stallions remained frozen in place, their spears levitating by their side. The quartet stared perpetually forward, their bodies still and stalwart.
Then—from the upper reaches of the Muddredge city—a loud commotion arose. The walls rang and echoed with stomping hooves as a wild, angry crowd galloped closer and closer.
For the first time in uncountable hours, the guards shifted. They craned their necks towards the bedlam, then twirled their staves at the ready.
At last, the crowd came surging to a stop, led by a angry-faced Boss Revan. The many thugs and henchstallions of the Syndicate shook and seethed behind the leader as he held his hoof up, silencing them. Brow furrowed, the illustrious mobster of Rust shuffled forward. He opened his mouth to speak—
“State your business!” boomed one of the four guards. “There is no passing beyond this point, by order of the Council of Shoggoth!”
“I know what you're here for, and I know who empowers you,” Revan said. “But you need to let us through regardless.” He fumed, speaking in a rigid tone: “The structural and financial stability of this city is at jeopardy, and we know that the ponies responsible are currently located beyond—”
“Nopony passes beyond this point,” one of the guards restated, his eyes piercing. “According to Muddredge Law, you must appeal to the Council of Shoggoth if you have any desire to—”
“Listen, ya tin can!” Revan spat. “There are three ponies who have already passed through your damn stupid 'blockade!' They're the ones who are here to tear apart Shoggoth from the inside! Are you telling me you're going to stand for that?”
“There is only one group of ponies posing as a threat this very moment,” the guard growled, levitating his polearm at the ready. “If you do not back down, then I am authorized by Princess Camellia of the Royal Family to ensure that you do—by force. These tombs are sacred, and no entry is allowed!”
By this point, the group behind Revan had grown loud and unruly, and the riotous leader was no exception. “You want authorization?! I'll show you authorization you sycophantic—”
“Gentlecolts! Gentlecolts!” Jeryn rushed in, waving his forelimbs. Once the mob had quieted just enough, he turned towards them and stammered, “Nopony cares more about the future stability of Shoggoth than I. The security forces of Her Highness and I are quite close, and have worked with one another for several decades. Please, let me take care of this...”
Revan sighed, rolling his eyes and stepping back.
With a clearing of his throat, Jeryn turned to face the guards. “My good fellow,” he spoke in an elegant voice. “Your defense of Her Majesty's interests are most admirable. But you must understand. A terrible coup is ahoof. The greatest threat to Her Highness' city and way of life is at work beneath us... beneath all of us! A group of conniving thugs seek to destroy Shoggoth from the inside out. They've already exploited the Syndicate, besmirched my name, and robbed my good associate here of his righteous standings in Rust. With the Syndicate so wrongly deprived of its power, a vacuum will consume the citizenry of Shoggoth. This will lead to chaos and civil unrest, both of which innately threaten the Princess you so dearly serve. If it's the paramount duty of your heart to protect the Royal Sirens' interest, then you will not only let us enter this sacred domain to dispense justice, but you will assist us in the process. For—as previously stated—three roguish individuals have found another way into the lower sepulchers and Verlaxion knows what terrible damage they might be wielding now!”
The guard nodded and nodded, his ears twitching beneath his helmet as he listened to Jeryn's entire tale. “This is a very grave concern indeed, and we appreciate your ardent worry. We shall diligently attend to the matter.”
“Oh!” Jeryn exhaled with relief, smiling. “Bless you! Bless you, good sir!” He shuffled forward. “Let us be swift about—”
Schiiing! A floating spear blocked the Syndicate Boss, forcing him to stop. “However, we shall deal with it from within.” The guard turned and nodded to one of his three associates. The guard saluted, about-faced, and marched firmly down the torch-lit corridor. “What transpires inside the tombs is Royal business. That has always been the case and shall always be so.”
“Wait... wh-what...?!” Jeryn gnashed his teeth. “But... but d-didn't you hear a word that I said?!”
“I did, which is why I am sending a member of our guard into the catacombs to spread word, so that the entire Guard can act accordingly—”
“Let us in too, ya buffoon!” Jeryn snarled. “There are too few of you to wrangle these morons up! Let us assist you! I know for a fact that we have enough stallions here to—”
“It. Is. Our. Duty,” the guard spoke, glaring. “You have done yours. We appreciate the warning, now relocate yourselves to the Office of Shoggoth Security to await further information. A representative of the Royal House will be there to speak with you shortly—”
Around this time, Revan had looked across the crowd and made eye contact with Cold Stone. Once Cold Stone looked back, the Boss of Rust nodded his head. Cold Stone nodded back, took a deep breath, then fired a pulse of telekinetic magic at the three remaining guards.
The one speaking to Jeryn suddenly found himself being yanked forward by unicorn magic.
“Hrnnnnghh—!” Revan galloped forward, vaulted over Jeryn, and slammed all of his hooves into the guard's upper body.
The guard's armor rattled, and he teetered back a few feet. Just as he tried to recover, Revan came charging again, knocking two of the stallion's plated hooves out from underneath. Four more Syndicate thugs rushed in, shoving the guard to the ground and beating him mercilessly.
The other two guards twirled their staves and aimed the bladed tips. The serrated metal glowed with bright blue energy.
Revan saw it and rolled out of the way. The four thugs curb-stomping the first guard were less lucky. They levitated in place, choking, their eyes bleeding from the sockets.
“No! No!” Jeryn yelped, ears folded. “Gentlecolts, please—”
“Raaaaaugh!” Cold Stone galloped forward, lifting the first guard's staff and using it to smack the other two upside the helmet. CL-CLACKKK!
Both guards stumbled. The thugs that they had caught in their aquakinetic fields fell to the floor, wheezing and sputtering. Revan and the rest of the Syndicate charged the armored stallions, overwhelming them, plowing them to the ground and bludgeoning them. After getting several savage kicks in, Revan spat on their armor and spun to face the mob. “No more mercy!” he hollered, raising a hoof in the torchlit air. “Find the mercenaries and grind them to dust!”
“Revan! For Goddess' sake!” Jeryn pleaded in vain. “Please—!”
“They wanna take away our city?! Let's take out their hearts!” Revan bellowed. “Who's with me?!”
“Raaaaaaugh!” The stallions rushed forward, enraged.
The fourth guard spun around, eyes widening at the virtual stampede. With frantic speed, he rushed towards a lever and tried shutting the entrance to the tombs.
Cold Stone flung a helmet at the guard, staggering him. Revan reached him with the first wave, pummeling the guard senselessly before galloping down the narrow, sacred corridors.
From the rear, Jeryn winced as more and more Syndicate members galloped past him. Cussing under his breath, he gnashed his teeth and galloped along with the group, piercing the depths of the Royal Sirens' Sepulchers.
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He must be really stressed out.
So, obviously Jeryn doesn't want to be quite as aggressive about this. Although he seems just as evil as Revan, maybe his hesitation might just be our ticket free...
-Spirit (Yeast and Treacle)
I have the strangest feeling that Jeryn might just join the party...or at the very least, not be evil by the end of this.
Holy shit... Those spears don't mess around
Mob violence...can't deny it gets results. But it still seems a little excessive.
Are we going to end up with another battle in the machine world?
-Memories given light, ease a lonely flight. Ynanhluutr.
The Machine World, fortunately, lies between Dash and company and the Syndicate:
So they cannot stop Rainbow Dash from reaching the flame and releasing Pinkie Pie.
Afterwards, on the other hoof... Be nice if Camellia had a clue what was happening and sent reinforcements, but that wouldn't showcase Dash's awesomeness.
Was kinda hoping to see what was so shocking to Rainbow and Co. but this works too.
Gotta wonder how crazy the Syndicate is to think that attacking the Royal Guard would somehow get them back into everyone's good graces. Seems like they're just digging themselves a deeper grave.
Looks like Jeryn has just realized what the path he was trotting leads to, and doesn't like it.
6366332
Pinkie Pie is just sitting there, reanimating an empty suit of armor and waving.
6366328
If so, then it's already a lost battle. RD could probably take them all out by herself (at least in a fit of chaos influence), but this time she has Goggles 'Gary Stu' McToothpick and Pega-Braeburn with her. On top of that, Camellia may give her heads up again, so they won't be taken by surprise.
Besides, it seem that the only true threat here is Revan.
It looks like Revan and the Syndicate are headed on a one-way trip down into the machine world.
I almost feel bad for Jeryn. Almost. I think he's figuring out that Revan is just a little too... uncontrollable at the moment, but like or not this is the bed he's made so he's kind of stuck laying in it. The time to cut and run was several chapters ago.
6366351 She'd have to grab Pinks first though, otherwise she'd be fighting blind due to how bright Yaerfaerda is.
If those goons grabbed the fallen guards spears then it could be trouble.
Hopefully Jeryn grabbed one and turns on Revan later.
Jeryn's convincing the guards would have made it at least very hard for Dash and the others to get through the exit if Revan hadn't gotten so crazy.
Looks like some guards will be in need of reequiping and training, and also a redesign of the front door.
then again, with what usually happens on activation of the Machine World, I highly suspect that the front door will be the least of their worries.
I really do not like Revan. At least with Shell, we could not only appreciate a well-crafted villain who was damn good at being an evil bastard, but he also felt very original, like most of the other villains in this story.
Revan feels recycled. On top of the fact that as a character, he feels like a watered-down Shell, the stories are very similar. The obviously evil, charismatic, and ruthless leader who murders innocent civilians crosses paths with Rainbow Dash. Rainbow quickly decides that this guy is bad news. When she breaks out of the villain's facility, he loses all credit to his name, with capturing Rainbow being his only means of restoring himself. He recruits a loyal crew of nameless thugs, and chases ruthlessly after Rainbow Dash, killing anyone who hints at standing in his way, and ignoring his partners/superiors who are trying to get him to slow down. Soon, many who work near this villain begin to get smart, realizing that this guy is getting far out of hand, and working with/for him is a bad idea.
I really don't like saying negative things about this story, but it has to be said. IC isn't perfect, as shown here (and if you read Appledashery, the Cider Princess arc is another example, although that was just horrible writing and this is just... meh). It could be better, but seeing as we haven't seen really noticeable bad writing since Pilate went all Daredevil in Stratopolis, it's easily excusable.
If they want into the crypts so badly maybe Rainbow can just leave them there.
I'm really looking forward to the fight scene.
6366499
I like the way you think.
Hmm... may have detected a plot hole here...
The only path between where Rainbow Dash is now and Shoggoth proper goes through the Machine World, which is impassible to everyone else. How would Revan know Dash could pass through it, and therefore would go to Shoggoth, that they had to go to Shoggoth because returning the way they came was not an option?
It's likely that when the other exit to the Machine World is opened, Revan and his thugs will be waiting, even though they could not know she was inside.
6366545
I believe that he doesn't and is working by presumption more than anything else. He didn't specify how they got in, but he believes that they must have gotten in somehow, otherwise they wouldn't be trying to escape through the water with not a single bar or platinum or gold or anything else contained in that vault.
You'd think Royal Guards would be more badass or something. But then again, they were outnumbered.
6366459
There is a primary difference between Shell and Revan, though I will agree that he does feel a bit like a watered down version.
Shell thought he was righteous, and that he was honestly doing a service by hunting down The Dash. Revan, on the other hand, is bad, knows it, and doesn't want to sacrifice his power base, which was corruptly created in the first place.
6366330 6366545 6366603 I think there's two entrances to this sacred chamber/tomb area, and the machine door is somewhere in the middle. I bet Camellia doesn't expect a giant gold spire to make a third exit to the crypt, and neither does anyone other than RD, Theanim, and Spookle.
6366707
Yeah, I've come to understand it as the entrance to the Machine World is beyond the tomb because only Dash can open it.
Canellia sees.
Camellia knows.
6366459
Yeah, but that may be the point of Revan, especially since there's a good chance he's only temporary.
Shell's character was extended over a span of 3 books, giving him enough time to grow immensely as a character and have us witness him become much more sadistic and unstable as time went on. He's so memorable as a villain because of this, and you could tell from the beginning, he was going to be more than just a pain in the flank. Shell would be a tough character to top, and if IC does have a villain in mind for such a thing, and while there are similarities, I don't think it's Revan. If you were seriously expecting him to become the next Shell, then I can see why you're disappointed.
It seems that Jeryn has seen a lttle of his own syndicate's madness reflected in Revan's. He strikes me as a guy who is used to issuing orders from behind a desk, detached from the consequences of his decisions. Hopefully seeing the violence firsthand will lead to a crises of conscience and not him doubling down with Revan in the hopes of getting out of the situation he's in.
Unlike some others here, I doubt Jeryn will be redeemed. Not that it couldn't still happen, but it seems to me like Jeryn's apprehension in this chapter is not so much about him regretting being part of the Syndicate as it is him preferring to do things the slimy, faux-diplomatic-and-righteous way, as opposed to Revan's brute-strength approach.
FOUR GUARDS NOOOO!
6366377 Plus, we have seen the massive power surges she goes through after drinking of the Ruby Flame. If anyone tries to get her after she's done with that, good luck to them.
so Dash is going to activat the seed and then pass out from dizzy spell just as Revan turns the corner, right?
6366707
From the description this is what I see, don't know if it's right though, maybe Dashie et al can escape via the seapony barrier ?
Seapony Barrier
|
| |
| |
| |__________________
| ___________________ Shoggoth Tomb Entrance (and Revan)
| |
__________ | |________
| |
|Verlaxion's Shrine |
|_________ ________|
| |
| |
|
| |
Underwater entrance
Oh, poor move, you could have at least come out of this with your life and maybe a job Jeryn... For shame.
Live angry and die young, Revan.
6367247 You're right. I forgot those lines. Though, I still want a giant gold spire to scare the crap out of Revan.
6367595 A scare isn't good enough for Revan. What I want for him cannot be spoken of outside a darkened basement.
Shell was a psychopath but Revan is merely a brute.
I, in this situation, would combine the 'brute-force' with cunning, guile, and genius.
Well they're bucked now...
Uh, Revan, how exactly is a forced entry going to help your status? Or are you just for revenge?
Ugh, I cant wait till this Shoggoth is over, we have reached the apex of suck brand guards and evil organizations that are trying to outdo captain planet villains. Seriously, the syndicate's goals make no sense at all and they seem to have absolutely no foresight at all, the only person worse is Camellia. She knows the syndicate is doing things she doesnt like but she lets them run her city? How does that work? Shes in an underwater city, its not like they could invade or anything if she just kicked them out.
I think it would have worked much better if the syndicate wasn't stupidly evil and Rainbow had to get them to help her get into the sepulcher when Camellia wouldn't allow her access. It would make much more sense.
Not just some thugs, but a mob.
6425241 the syndicate wants to take control in order to rake in the profits. Camellia had no definitive proof to take them down, and she couldn't oust the southern hoof while the northern was still intact.
Wow. Just assaulted royal guards AND violently entered a royal tomb which by law are not allowed to enter. (at least in that passage apparently)
PLUS the current accusation. You guys are so boned. At this point it's probably more about just denying the enemy there goals out of spit.
Revan is apparently desperate to catch up to Shell on the villain scale, but he'd have to flood the whole city to get there.
... Shit, I don't want to give him ideas.
Revan is becoming more and more like Shell.
8181266
Erect an anti magic tower and it'll do just that
At this point I'm expecting that Revan actually will manage to get into the Machine World behind Rainbow and co and then get royally screwed trying to make his way past the various test obstacles.
HAHAHAHA, SCREW YOU MORONS. AHAHAHAHA!
This is not going to end well for you guys.