39- You won't believe who our trainer is...
Bound by Scales- You won’t believe who our trainer is…
Point of View: Ken
So… where do I start with this? Well, in the last few hours, we’ve been backstabbed by a cheating minotaur with a personality complex, Mr. Torgue has had Twilight question almost everything that he says whenever he’s speaking and just when I thought that things were going to get a little bit easier by getting some back up, that’s when I found out that a drunken dracolich and a crazy vampimorph that… has attachment issues towards Shayne for some reason, end up being the ones trying to help us. Sure, Asphyxious and Orendi can be able to be a big help sometimes, but in all honesty, they seemed to be playing more of the role for moral support than actual support.
A thought that Shayne likely agrees with me on. Yet, that wasn’t what we were talking about at the moment. Instead, it was something else. “So… What’s the plan? I mean… I know that both of us are going down here in order to find that kidnapped sponsor… but I’m going to take a guess that the pyro pony who runs the place isn’t going to just let us walk out of here with the sponsor.”
“That… sounds about right,” I told her as the lift we were on kept on descending downwards. “Besides, we’re number five on the leaderboards. Taking this guy down puts us at the next spot on the list and gets us a sponsor so we can still participate.”
“And if we screw up here, we’re all screwed basically…” We both heard Aurox speak up, causing us to look directly at him for a moment and saying one more thing before disappearing. “What? You know I’m right…” As painful as hearing that was, Aurox was right. The major difference between this Campaign of Carnage and the one from Borderlands 2 was the fact that there were no New-U Stations. Which not only served as savepoints in game, but also served as a respawn point if a group of Vault Hunters happened to fall in battle.
Meaning we only got one shot at this… and we can’t mess this up now. Yet… as we were heading down, it seemed like Pyro Pepper… sort of lost his motivation after Torgue stole his thunder. “So… yeah, the sponsor I kidnapped is in the bar. Go find her… This is not a trap. Um. Yeah.”
Shayne rolled her eyes at that… and I just deeply sighed. We both had a pretty good idea that he was going to attack us the moment that the lift reached a stopping point and we dropped into the underground arena. But, both of us decided to play along. After all… this pony had no idea who he was dealing with here.
“HERE WE GO FIGHT FANS!! THIS TIME, WE HAVE PYRO PEPPER VERSUS THIS DESTRUCTIVE DUO!! FIGHT!!!”
Note to self, once we meet our actual sponsor… we need to come up with a team name. Because this sh*t is getting ridiculous.
“Ohhhhh nooooo… It WAS a trap,” We heard the stallion say in person, though he said it very unenthusiastically. “That must come as an incredible shock to you. Buuuuuuurn in hell.”
“Yeah, no…” Shayne shook her head, before taking out her boomerang as she looked at me. “So, what’s the game plan?” That was a good question… If Pyro Pepper was anything like Pyro Pete, it would mean that I can’t use Norok, given that he’s resistant to any form of fire damage. Not to mention there was another important factor we were seeing.
The equipment on the earth pony consisted of a face mask, what looked like two small flamethrowers on his hooves and also what appeared to be a portable fuel pack on his back. The flames from the flamethrower could reach rather far… but it would require Pepper to be within close proximity to try and get a decent hit. That also is the same when it comes to him throwing fireballs too.
With that in mind, I then turned to Shayne. Asking her one question. “How good are you with that boomerang?”
“Pretty good if I do say so myself,” She said, as both of us notice him charging at us. “Why?”
“Well… If we tried fighting fire with fire, we won’t get be getting anywhere-” I told her, just before we both had to get out of the way as I felt the flames being extremely close to where my neck was. I brought out Hawkmoon as I fired two shots, but they did little help as they bounced off the tank and Pepper’s face mask.
I was only able to finish my sentence once the two of briefly regrouped for a mere moment on the opposite side of the ring. “-But that fuel pack is the source of what he’s doing. Can you cut off his fuel supply?”
Shayne looked to the stallion and then back to me. “That… I can do. Just distract him so that I can get a clean shot at it.” That seemed like it was easier said than done, if I were to be honest with you. But it doesn’t mean that I couldn’t try.
Heck, given the circumstances, this may be the right opportunity to try out some of the new arrows that Tina crafted for me sometime ago. Conjuring my bow, I begin to notch on the bolt arrows onto my bowstring as the arrowheads began to surge with electricity. All before firing as I drew Pepper’s attention away from Shayne and towards me instead. The arrows, even though they would graze him for a small bit, slowed down his movement and chipped away at whatever kind of shield he possibly had equipped.
Not to mention that I still can grapple backwards with my arm to stay out of his reach and keep moving. Whether it was to avoid his flames or the fireballs he threw towards me, I just kept on attacking and moving so I could have him focus on me. And allowing for Shayne to let her boomerang fly directly at his fuel supply. “Grr, quit running away, coward!! Come and fight me-!”
This time though, when he tried to use his flamethrowers, all he heard was a clicking sound instead. Surprising even him. “What!? How am I out of fuel already?!”
“You aren’t exactly ‘out’,” He heard from behind him, turning around to watch Shayne’s boomerang return to her. “Your supply was… depleted prematurely.”
“Why you!! I’m gonna burn you to ashes first, you little b*tch-!!!” Yeah no… Not on my watch he isn’t. Besides, I’m personally surprised that with the fuel lines for his pack being cut off, that he could not hear the hissing sound of propane gas directly behind him. Not to mention that the arrows I have been shooting… can ignite the gas.
So I couldn’t help but smirk as I knotched one more bolt arrow onto the bowstring as I aimed at his exposed backside. “Checkmate…”
When I released the arrow, the arrowhead soon caused a rather big explosion as pieces of the fuel tank flew everywhere like shrapnel. It forced me to have to temporarily use my dragon armor form as a way to protect myself. As for Shayne, Aurox came out at the time the explosion went off so he could make sure she wasn’t struck by any shrapnel.
“Wow… that was way too easy. Didn’t even put up much of a fight.” Shayne spoke up… almost sounding a bit disappointed that the fight was over so quickly. “Well, that’s what you get for saying that you’re all tough, but can’t back it up. I mean… he seemed really derailed after Torgue kind of stole his thunder a bit…” That I could definitely agree on.
Speaking of which… As if it was right on cue, we heard Torgue performing another air guitar solo again as he continued to commentate. “WITH PEPPER DEAD, THAT SPONSOR CHICK HE KIDNAPPED SHOULDN’T BE FAR!! GO FIND HER!”
That… finally caused somepony else who was watching to finally speak up. “Okay… um… I’m glad that you two are safe… but how are you going to get out of there? I don’t see a way out.” We heard Twilight ask shortly after that.
To which… I had to take a deep breath and think over what to say in my head before telling the Princess. “Twilight, do you see an open pipe with what looks like torches at the front? That’s… probably the exit.”
“Eughh… I may not be Rarity, but I think she can agree with me when I say that sounds completely unsanitary.” We heard the Alicorn reply. “Furthermore, how are you going to get up there? I mean… I know Ken can use his arm, but how are Shayne and Aurox going to get up there… along with Aaron for that matter.” Though, it was while she was speaking that I noticed Shayne walk over to some kind of lever nearby the edge of the arena and pulling it.
Which… resulted in a crane lowering down a platform that could be able to lift us up to where the entrance of the pipe would be. “I think I solved that problem.”
“… Well, guess I stand corrected,” We heard Twilight speak up. “Aren’t you going to wait for Aaron and the others?”
“Come on, Twi. Stop trying to slow them down by asking dumb questions!” We heard Rainbow snapped, sounding annoyed. “That sponsor isn’t going to save itself, you know.” Well, even though we could wait for Aaron to catch up, it would mean that he would have Asphyxious and Orendi going right behind him. So right now, all I hope is that they’re at least doing something productive.
Five Minutes Earlier
“HEY, YOU THREE!! I NEED YOUR HELP!!”
“Uhh… What kind of ‘help’?”
“BIG HELP!! WE GOT BAD NEWS!! A DISEASED MIDGET FELL INTO THE BLACK LABEL BREWERY A FEW WEEKS BACK, WHICH MEANS ALL OF OUR BEER IS POISONED AS F*CK AND HAS TO BE RECALLED!! KILL ANYONE HOLDING A BEER AND BRING BACK ALL THE TAINTED BOTTLES YOU CAN FIND!!!”
“Um… Most of them are at Asphyxious’ feet…”
“WELL START GRABBING THOSE BOTTLES!! I AIN’T HAVING MY GLADIATORS DIE OF POISON!! THAT’S WUSSY SH*T!!!”
Ehh, with the way Torgue is running things, anything can happen at this rate. Besides, around now, we were just entering the sewer pipe as we followed it all the way to what looked like a huge hole that had been melted through the pipe, leading us to another room. From the looks of it, this place looked like some kind of stash room, because there were what appeared to be chests and lockers filled with any kind of weapons or explosives that they could get their hands on. Yet, that wasn’t exactly what I was focusing on though.
Instead, my attention was to the jail cell in the back of the room. Of course, it looked to be locked, but who needs a key when you got a dragon arm that can easily rip the door off? Though, who was waiting for us inside the cell… was something that I thought would happen… but I still wasn’t personally prepared for. “Nice way to make an entrance…”
“NOW INTRODUCING… THE BARBARIC. THE BEAUTIFUL. THE MOST BUXOM SPONSOR IN ALL OF EQUESTRIA… MAAAAAAAAD MOXXI!!!”
As she stepped out, I could definitely tell that my aunt here… meant business. If looks could kill, then her kill count would be extremely high up there. “Miss me sugar?”
“Oh you have got to be kidding me…” I heard Applejack mutter to herself. Shortly before both of her friends began ask her what was wrong. “That is Ken’s aunt. What in the world is she doing here of all places!?”
“Wait, THAT’S HIS AUNT-!” Before Rainbow could be able to finish what she was saying, that’s when I heard an all too familiar voice.
“Hey, can you three please keep it down! You’ll wake up the whole hollow if you keep that up!!” Well… leave it to them to get on Revaan’s bad side. Especially if you disturbed him from his sleep. Meanwhile, while that conversation was going on inside my head, I noticed that Shayne had struck up a conversation with Moxxi as I now redirected my focus to that.
“Are you alright? I gotta say… I honestly didn’t expect that you would be the freelance sponsor here, Miss Moxxi.”
“Just Moxxi is fine… ‘Miss’ makes me feel like I’m older than I actually am,” We heard her tell us. “Still, thanks for the save… I’m going to go out on a whim and guess that you two are here to get whatever’s in that vault?”
“Well, it’s more than just the two of us…” I corrected her on that. “We have a few other members, but I think they’re caught up in some hijinx back at the bar… Though, what exactly are you doing here?”
“Well, let me put it to you this way…” She told us while adjusting her hat. “With business booming, I want to provide some… entertainment, so to speak. So, this tournament here provides the one thing I would need for that. Torgue’s Colosseum. So, I believe it’s time that we became partners… with benefits.”
And now we’re getting somewhere… I think. “Alright… So what happens now?”
“I have an establishment back at the main crater that I will provide the coordinates for… and since your friends at the bar are part of the team, I’ll let them come back with me. Once we’re all present, we can then talk strategy.” Alright, guess we got a game plan then. Not only that, but there also happened to be a backdoor exit that Shayne and I came across on that lead us back towards the Beatdown. Which was a relief since I was not in the mood for retracing my steps after all that we’ve been through so far today.
What wasn’t a relief though… is being subjected to more BS rhetoric from Ironhide just as we finally stepped out to see a setting sun over the tournament stage. “Hmmph… so you found another sponsor. That’s sweet, baby. But let me tell you something-”
Nope. Not in the mood. Goodbye. I flicked the mute setting on my ECHO so that way I didn’t have to listen to his nonsense, or subjugate Shayne to the same thing for that matter. Besides, it allowed for us to focus on making our way back towards the crater.
And when I flipped the mute switch off, that was when we got a more… disruptive message. From Torgue once again. “WITH PYRO PEPPER DEAD, YOUR TEAM’S NOW THE NUMBER FOUR BADASS ON EQUESTRIA!! GRATS, MOTHERF*CKER!! ALSO, YOU SHOULD TREAT MOXXI NICE! NOTHING’S MORE BADASS THAN TREATING A WOMAN WITH RESPECT!!!”
Well, at least that was better than before. And it had some form of encouragement as we made our way to Moxxi’s coordinates. Turns out, the establishment that she had set up… turned out to be a restaurant and bar. One with a neon sign out front that immediately told us that we were in the right place.
As we walked in, we found out that this place was a lot bigger on the inside than we originally thought. In terms of space, of course. Moxxi herself was at the front counter for the bar area as we passed through some of the booths that ponies were sitting at. There was also a mini second floor in the restaurant, where we saw the same vending machines that we saw upon entering the Beatdown along with two sets of slot machines. One where you would pay bits for in order to play. The other where you would use Torgue Tokens, the currency that we have been receiving so far for all the tasks we have been completing.
It also looked like that on a bench on the second floor was a passed out Asphyxious with Orendi snuggling him like he was an overgrown teddy bear. To which… I wasn’t sure if I should call that cute or creepy. Though, the one thing that was missing right now was Aaron. I could not see him anywhere in here. Yet my focus was drawn away from that when I noticed Moxxi motioning one of her hands to get my attention as I walked on over.
“Hey darlin’. Glad to see that you were able to stop by.” Moxxi smiled for a moment as she poured a glass of water for me.
“Thanks… Say, did you happen to see Aaron on the way here?”
“Oh, you mean the cutie with the glasses and gauntlets?” She asked, causing me to nod in response. Though… that got a completely different reaction from Rainbow.
“If she dares try to make any advance on MY coltfriend, I’ll-!!”
“Rainbow, ah don’t believe she means it like that.”
“He got caught up in an errand that Torgue wanted for him to do back at the bar earlier… but after that, he needed to blow off some steam.”
That… had me confused for a minute. “Uh… what exactly was he doing?”
“YOU GOT ALL THE BOTTLES!!! THANKS FOR KILLING ALL THOSE BANDITS SO THE POISONED BEER COULDN’T KILL THEM-!! OH SH*T! I JUST REALIZED THAT MADE NO SENSE!! GODDAMNIT!!”
“… Then WHAT THE HELL WAS THE POINT OF ALL THIS!?!!”
Oh so that’s what he got himself caught up in. Now it’s starting to make sense. But I think at this point, we needed to get down to business. “So… Moxxi, you said that once we were here, we could discuss strategy?”
“Ah yes… Down to business,” She smirked as she took a deep breath. “Being rank four on the leaderboards is good and all, but it will be better once you get to third… base…” It stayed silent for a few moments, but I swear that in the back of my mind, I heard something happen simultaneously before Moxxi sighed. “It’s a sex thing.”
“Gah, dangnabit! Why are both of your wings standing up on end like that?! It’s embarrassing!” Okay, Applejack… I don’t really think I need to know those details. Now I just need to speak up so that way I can ignore what’s going on in my head.
“I… get it. Would you happen to know any information on who’s in the number three slot on the leaderboards?”
“Well, there is some good news and bad news about that,” Moxxi told me, making me feel rather uncertain about what she was going to say next. “The good news is that we at least know who the rank three badass is. She’s a cannibalistic diamond dog that goes by the name of ‘Coal Momma’. In fact, most of the scumbags that have been trying to kill you are part of her gang, known as Momma’s boys.”
Then, Shayne beat me to the punch on the next thing I wanted to ask. “And the bad news is?”
“Right now, she’s waiting out through the whole conflict. Letting a lot of the tougher customers take each other out first and then deal with whoever is left after,” My aunt explained to both of us. “I’m having a couple of my staff members here try to gain some intel on how to lure her out. But in the meantime though, I took the time to hire you a trainer.” Hold up? A trainer? Seriously, why would we need a trainer?
“Um… why would we need that? Haven’t you seen us fight before?”
“Personally, I didn’t think that you would generally need the help of a trainer,” She told the two of us while adjusting her hat. “But it would generally win over the crowds. And given the amount of spectators that are in the stands at his arena, there’s nothing more that the masses love more than a training sequence.” Okay, I get that… but seriously, how is a training montage like the one in Rocky going to help me win a fight to the death?
“Alright. So should the both of us go meet them?” I then asked.
“I think you can be able to handle this one solo. But before you go, I wanted to ask you something,” Wait… Moxxi… wanted to ask me something? Seriously? “Does your ragtag group of friends here have a team name? Once I put that in for the sponsorship work, Torgue can stop calling you by any demeaning group names that he comes up with.”
Well, that seemed easy. To an extent. “Let’s go with Chroma. It’s worked for us before, so why stop now?”
“Fair point… Oh and the trainer I hired is one of the best ones in the business. Once you’re done, you’ll be ready to lure her out. As long as nothing unexpected happens along the way~” And that was my cue to leave. Immediately. Not just because I needed to meet the trainer, but because the more that Moxxi kept up with those innuendos, the more I thought I was going to hear something that I would want to unhear from the three ponies who were watching me do this right now.
Yet… something about what Moxxi said as I left made me feel rather… uneasy. I don’t know if it’s because it felt like she was messing around… or if she was unknowingly jinxing me. Either way, I wouldn’t know for sure really. Though, when I got closer to where this ‘trainer’ was, that was when I was greeted by a rather… unnerving sight.
“Oh great… mines.” And not just normal mines. I was referring to active mines that you would see in the freaking ocean if you were to try and sink a submarine. Yet, how this was actually possible was a completely different story. And as I got closer, I even saw what looked like an armed rocket and… wait… is that a tea set? Oh no… don’t tell me-.
“LADIES AND GENTLECOLTS!!! GIVE IT UP FOR THE WILD CHILD!! THE QUEEN OF OBSCENE!! THE GIRL THAT WILL MAKE YOU HURL!!”
BOOM! “Ta-da!!”
“TINY TINA!!!”
Hunh… If the mines and rockets didn’t give any clues, than her trailer and tea set were a dead giveaway. But something… felt different. Especially when I looked back at her. “Tina? You’re… the trainer Moxxi hired?”
“That’s right, Kenny!! Right now, you’re like ‘pow!’ and when I’m done with you, you’re going to be like ‘piddy-POW!!’ Getcha butt to the arena-” Though… even though I was hearing Tina speak to me, I was more likely paying attention to what was inside her trailer. For a moment, I thought that it looked like some kind of rabbit… but then I began to think otherwise.
After all, Rabbits don’t have horns… or talk for that matter. “What the-?”
“What the hell?” I thought to myself. Unknowingly though, I caught the attention of the trio of ponies back at the hollow.
“Ken, are you alright? You look like you just saw a ghost.” I heard Applejack tell me.
“I… know that voice-” Yet, before I could explain to AJ and the spectators how I knew that voice, I watched Tina pick up this… creature like it was a cat that she had recently just given a bath and looked back at me.
“Why Syrup, perfect timing!! Syrup, this is my bestest badass of a cousin, Ken. Kenny, this is my new pet dragon, Syrup.” Wait, seriously?! That’s a dragon!? How come Tina would know about something like that?
Probably something that I should ask another time. Right now though, Tina’s… pet looked to be staring at me with the same amount of shock, just like I was staring at him. “Syrup, I would like for you to be with Kenny for a little while and make sure he sticks to the training regimen that I have made for him!! Now, both of you getcho butts to the arena and let’s do this shiz!!”
Personally… I’m not sure if I should feel annoyed because Tina is using her new… friend here to make sure that I do what she says… or if I should see this as a chance to figure out who this guy is. But, whatever the case, I took the chance to get out of there as fast as possible. Though, it was as we were getting to the entrance of the arena that I heard this… syrup figure speak up again.
“Excuse me but… Can I ask you something?” There it is again… I swear to god, I know that voice from somewhere, but I can’t put my finger on it right now. “I know Tina calls you Kenny… but what’s your actual name?”
“Um… Ken. Ken Ahkrin. Why do you ask-?” Around now was when his eyes almost widened to the point that they were the size of saucer plates and… Okay, hold up… Is this little guy almost on the verge of tears? Why would that happen just because I said my name?
“K-ken? I-is it really you?” Again with the voice!! Just who in the world is this guy!? “Son, y-you’re alive?”
Immediately, the brakes on my brains thought process stopped immediately. Now everything was coming back to me… and I now know who this person really was.
Though, three particular ponies could not seem to keep themselves under control. “Hold up… Son?! What the buck is happening?!”
“Girls, calm down…” I told them mentally, before actually speaking out loud and extending a hand for him to come up on. “Dad? How-?”
“Personally, I think I have just as many questions as you do,” He sighed, crawling onto my shoulder right now… and giving me the feeling of my own father acting like a parrot on a pirate’s shoulder. “How about every time you answer one of my questions, I answer one of yours? Like what happened to your arm?”
I sighed at that as we made our way into the back of the arena. “Well… Remember that class trip to Japan?” I watched him nod his head as I looked around the main room I came in at and examined my surroundings. “Well, on the day that our flight back home got delayed, I bought what looked to be a dragon armband and placed it on my right arm. However, when I got it, I wasn’t really told that I would wake up in Equestria, with a dragon arm and my soul being bound to that of a dragon.”
“Wait, you’re bound to a dragon?” He asked… to which I sighed for a minute and poked him on the forehead with a finger. “Hey! Not cool!”
“I thought the rule was ‘every time I answer one of your questions, you answer one of mine’?” I replied, using my father’s own words against him. “But yes… that happened. For my question though… how did you end up here?”
“Would you believe me if I told you that after you had been gone for six months that your mother, myself, Tina, your aunt and uncle all decided to go to a convention and I ended up turning into a doll that I bought in order to cheer up your cousin?” That… was a lot to take in, especially all at once. But that does explain a bit as to how he arrived, not to mention that it fits the same thing that Mom and the others said before.
“I would… most definitely.” For a moment, he looked at me with a rather… surprised expression. But before either of us could really say anything, that’s when I began to hear Tina come in through my ECHO device as I got it up.
“You made it to the arena? Alright! Now… Step one of my training regimen is food. You gotsta get those carbs, son!” Can that even be considered as proper grammar at this point? “The back of the arena’s got TONS of noms for the workers. Get some cookies so you eat them and grow up big and strong and kick Ironhide in the butt-butt!”
For a moment, dad looked at me with a raised eyebrow. But, then he spoke up on another subject. “So… can you explain to me what’s going on?”
“Remember when Aaron and I used to play Co-op on Borderlands 2 and you were watching us play through some of the DLC that was named after famous rock songs?” Now I was beginning to see some gears turning a bit as he looked back at me with a wide eyed expression.
“Wait… You don’t mean…” The only thing I could do was nod my head for a moment as I did what I could to bring him up to speed. Unfortunately though, while we were talking, it seemed as if the defenses for the Arena were digistructing several security bots. Which, had me summon my bow again along with the toxic arrows this time around. “Woah woah woah!! Since when can you do that?!”
I let the toxic arrows fly and hit the incoming mechanical constructs as the arrowheads began to corrode the metal. Destroying them internally. “Ever since I’ve come here, I’ve gotten a few abilities that I use along with weapons I can fight with. Tina’s also helped with creating special arrows for different occasions. Which has been all the more helpful here.”
“So… let me get this straight… that little guy… is Ken’s father?” I heard Applejack as. But in hearing that, I also noticed dad twitch a little.
“Um… Who was that? I just heard someone talking inside my head.”
“Wait… You can hear me?” I heard Applejack speak again, sounding even more confused.
“Dad, just ignore it for now… Let’s take care of what Tina wants us to do and then when we head back to Moxxi’s, we can bring you up to speed on everything, alright?” This was the least I could do. I mean, right now, I couldn’t exactly explain to him everything and fight at the same time. So I needed the chance in order to be able to explain everything once things have settled down.
Of course, if you’re doing something for Tina, there’s no such thing as ‘settling down’. Especially when she gets really excited with cookies. As we were about to find out firsthand once I took some from the vending machine, “Aw SNAP!! They got chocolate chip! As a connoisseur of tasty treats, I can assure you that these are ‘for realsies’.”
All dad did was stare at me for a moment with a even more baffled look as we left the small room. “Okay, I know that you said that you would bring me up to speed later… But seriously, why is Tina acting… you know…?”
“Like she is?” I asked, which was followed by a nod from the small dragon as I sighed. “Tina’s still the same, however, she’s taken on more of the personality of who she was originally dressed up as before ending up here. Which means… she’s still the thirteen year old girl you remember her to be… but now has a wild sense of imagination, is always hyper and random… and knows how to use explosives.”
“Oh… That’s… new…” I heard him say, but once we got past another few hurdles, that’s when he mentioned something that… I didn’t realize until now. “I’m just surprised that she couldn’t tell it was me… I mean, even because of this body, I still have my voice and such. It’s not like I did anything wrong to her…”
Around then… was when I realized something. Something that happened a long while ago that I almost forgot… but with dad being here, it now resurfaced in my head. Something that Tina said while we were close to finishing the end of Bunkers and Badasses. More specifically, while we were fighting the final boss of her story.
BECAUSE IT’S ALL HIS FAULT!!
“Um… Dad…” I stopped for a moment to look at him, who was now figuring out to use the small little wings on his back to fly. “I hate to break this to you… but in Tina’s eyes, she blames you for… well, a lot.”
“Me? What did I do?” He asked, sounding rather puzzled.
“A while back, when I was playing a tabletop game with her, she made the main villain based on you,” I explained. “When we tried to confront her on it, she broke down emotionally… Telling us that if you didn’t let me go to Japan on the day I disappeared, then she wouldn’t have lost me. Because in her eyes, I was more than just a family member. I was her only real friend… It’s been a while since that’s happened, but if we told her who you are, it might bring up bad memories.”
“Oh… damn, I…” Dad… definitely seemed shocked by all of this. Especially with what I just told him. “God, I knew that you disappearing her had an effect on her… but I didn’t know it had that much of an effect.”
“It’s okay dad… this was something that was out of your control-”
“No, it’s isn’t okay,” He quickly replied back. “No matter how you look at it, Tina’s my niece… as her uncle, I should’ve done more to help her cope… If only I knew what I know now…”
It took a little bit in order for things to sink in… but in the process, that’s when I got an idea. “Okay, how about this… After this is all over, we’ll go back to the hollow and try to come up with something so that way we can tell her who you are without any freakouts… In the meantime though, I think it would be best for you to stick with me.”
“Yeah, I agree on that… she tried giving me a bath and then put dresses on me earlier.” Oh god… I now cannot unsee that now.
“Hey!! What’s with the hold up!! Less chatting and more snacking!!” And that… is basically Tina’s way of telling us ‘Get your ass moving already!’. So we did, taking down more of Torgue’s security bots while also making sure to pick up the snacks that Tina asked us to get. All while she was commenting on how she wanted to tattoo the phrase ‘Real Badasses eat Chocolate Chip Cookies!!’ in old english font.
However, just as we thought we were done and reached the last snack machine… Tina came across a dramatic realization. “Wait a minute… those cookies aren’t chocolate chip. Those… are… raisins,” Oh no… It’s like what happened at carousel boutique all over again. “WHYYYY-HY-HYYY!?!?! SHAWTY!! DESTROY ALL THE FOOD DISPENSERS!! WIPE THOSE RAISIN ABOMINATIONS OFF THE MAP!!”
Doing what she said, I gathered some energy in my right hand and used it to blast the first machine. Which resulted in Tina continuing to cry. “I JUST ONLY WANTED CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES!! WHY DO BAD THINGS HAVE TO HAPPEN TO GOOD PEOPLE?!!”
“Um… would it be weird to say that I’m scared of Tina now?”
“Ehh, you get used to this… This is like the second time she went on this kind of tirade.” I said, though that was also when Dad decided to land on top of my head this time and act like a hat as I destroyed the second machine. Though, this was also when someone else happened to notice the Carnage going on up here.
“HOLY SKAGSUCK!! SOMEONE’S DESTROYING THE FOOD DISPENSERS!! IN A FEW MORE MONTHS, THE WORKERS WILL STARVE TO DEATH…… THAT IS AWESOME!!!”
“Uh… No, it isn’t.” I heard Twilight speak.
“Okay, who in the world’s talking in my head now?”
“Twilight Sparkle, Alicorn Princess, knows enough powerful spells in the known universe and is using a scrying spell in order to watch what I am doing and talk to us…” I tried to explain. Only to give me a look on his face that told me that he thought I was crazy. “Trust me… I told you I’ll-”
“WHY WOULD YOU EVER MAKE COOKIES THAT AREN’T CHOCOLATE CHIP?!! YOU BROUGHT THIS ON YOURSELF TORGUE!!!” Okay, Tina, did you have to cut us off and cause a lot screech to go off on my ECHO to try and kill my hearing? Because that seemed unnecessary. Yet… when I destroyed the last machine, that was when things… began to calm down a little bit more. “YESSSSS!! You did it… No one will ever have to fall for that oatmeal raisin evil ever again… Well, with that, I say that your training is complete my ho! Let me know if you want to learn from a masta!!”
That… even made dad blink twice upon hearing that. “Does she… even realize what that actually means?”
“Nope…” Well, at least with that, we can finally get back to Moxxi’s. By now, everything should have cleared up by now and Aaron would probably be back with Shayne, waiting for Asphyxious to get off his bony ass and help us out.
However, just when I reached the front of Moxxi’s bar… That was when sh*t officially hit the fan. Walking inside, I saw some very familiar people. It was Hunter and his brothers, along with some of their Night Sentinels. What’s worse was that Runner was drinking straight out of a whole damn barrel! His helmet was off, showing his face. Although the right half of it was covered by his hair.
“Bloody Hell, man. The first thing you do when we get here, is pay Moxxi to drink from a whole damn barrel.” Wait a minute, this Doom Marine is different. He sounds british and he carries a two-handed Warhammer, that was covered in glowing markings. Odd.
“F*ck you, I’m Irish.” Runner replied as he finished and gave out a loud burp. “Also, this sh*t is awesome! Thanks Moxxi!”
I just stared at them for a moment… trying to process this while also looking around the rest of the room. Though, what got their attention was when dad decided to speak up. “So… are these guys friends of yours or something…?”
“Oh, hey boys, the kid’s here.” One of the Night Sentinels said, from the sound and look of things, this one was female.
“Hey, Kenny!” Oh no, why did Runner have to call me that?
“Guys… Only Tina calls him that…” I then heard Shayne speak up from the second floor. “Anyone else does that and he feels as if he’s referred to Kenny from South Park.”
“Pfft! I’m surprised he hasn’t died yet.” Goddamn you, Runner! “Anyway, Ken, come on over and let us introduce to you our other brother, Pillar.” Oh so that’s who he is… Never really thought what he would be like to be honest. After running into Berserker the last time around, I was beginning to feel worried that his brothers were either similar… or drastically different.
“Greetings, Ken.” Pillar said, giving a little bow. “Sorry for dropping in like this, but hopefully your uncle’s tournament could help with… Berserker’s rage.” That… definitely did not sound good. Please tell me that this isn’t because of what I did… or else, karma is truly a b*tch.
That was when Hunter tapped me on the shoulder, so I pulled out my ECHO device and see what he texted me. “Relax. It isn’t exactly Chroma he’s mad with… not yet as least. It’s a family matter, Something that recently came to our attention.” He explained. “Let’s just say that he blew up the top of the mountain, the one that Canterlot was built on.”
That… surprised me… But also, the whole mention of ‘family’ seemed to wrap back around again. Especially when Shayne spoke up. “So… who’s the little pet on your shoulder?”
Dad… did not take that well. “Who are you calling a pet, you little-?!”
“Dad, calm down-!” Though, saying that… got someone’s attention. Most importantly, the one running the bar.
“Sugar, did I hear that correctly?” Moxxi asked, looking back at me and then at him. “Hunh… not honestly what I expected…”
“Tina’s already tried seeing me as her personal pet, given me a bath and tried to dress me up like one of her… damsels,” Dad groaned for a moment, before sitting on my head like a hat. “It’s been a weird day.”
“Sucks to be you, then.” Runner chuckled, making me and dad groan. “By the way, I think it might be time we told you lot about our Night Sentinels, like, what they truly are.”
Clearing my throat a bit, I drank some water that Moxxi got out for me before drinking it down in one swig. “I honestly don’t recall you mentioning anything about them… A lot has happened lately.”
“True. Although, we thought it best not to tell you that… they’re not exactly human in nature. They just look the part.” He told me, before looking to the female that spoke earlier before Shayne decided to interrupt. “Hey, Visi, why don’t you tell him?”
She let out a sigh before shrugging. “Alright. Also, kids, don’t freak out. Now, as for what we really are, we’re Demons.”
Shayne herself, was surprised to hear that. “Hold up… If Hunter and his brothers are seen as demon slayers… then why do you have demons as allies? Isn’t that… what’s the term?”
“Contradictory?” Dad stated.
“Yeah that. Thanks, little rabbit.” I… don’t think he would take that well. Especially since he hasn’t actually stated what we should call him by.
“It’s Hell we fought against. Not Tartarus. There’s a difference.” Runner stated. “Hell invaded Tartarus, in order to get to our Equestria and conquer it and the rest of the world.”
“Not to mention, we’re with the balance, not against it. We punish those guilty of sins.” Visi told us. “Besides, we owe it to the Doom Marines for saving us, and giving us the means to take back our home… though, at a unexpected, terrible price.” Uh-oh, this just got dark real quickly.
“In any case…” Oh thank god, someone else decided to intervene. “I think that since most of us are here now, we can properly bring everyone up to speed on current events.” That was when Moxxi looked at all of us and took a deep breath. “Unfortunately, your friend Asphyxious is still out like a light and… well Orendi has been talking in her sleep…”
“HEY SHAYNE, AUROX SUCKS!! TEAM UP WITH ME!!!”
“ … So yeah, like that,” Moxxi took a deep breath now. “Right now, your team is ranked fourth on the badass leaderboards, and the only way that we can possibly draw her out is by two possible methods… One would be to lay waste to some of her own crew down at the southern tracks. The second would… involve luring her out using the only thing that Diamond Dogs can’t resist more than anything.”
For a moment, I raised an eyebrow… only to hear the answer not be from Shayne this time… but Aurox as he decided to finally show himself. “You’re talking Gemstones, aren’t you?”
“I thought something was missing from the girl. Her partner.” Visi commented, seemingly not affected by how he appeared. Actually, none of them seem to bat an eye at that.
“Yeah, Aurox and I have been working on techniques to use so he can conceal his presence. That way, it not only allows me to move more freely, but catch unsuspecting foes by surprise.” Shayne replied back. “Though, back to Moxxi… why Gemstones?”
“They see Gems as what they consider as… precious~” She replied back. “Going as far as to take gems from people or force them to find gems for them. And the place she’s guarding is not just any set of train track, but those that lead to an old mine… If we steal some of her crystals, the theft can be used as a way to draw her out in the open.”
“So, where are the old mines?” Runner asked, a sly smile working its way on his lips. He’s up to something… And I’m not sure if I want to know.
“The mines are connected to the Southern Tracks south of here. Though, in theme of the Tournament, Torgue’s turned it to a raceway… Despite the lack of any vehicles here,” Moxxi sighed. “Would you care to inform us what sort of plan you had in mind, sugar~?”
“Simple: I’m gonna have Berserker go in there, f*ck up anyone guarding the goods, and steal them. While that’s happening, I’ll be the one to race.” He told us, and for some reason, him mentioning Berserker just gave me the chills. Big time. No idea why, though. “In a sense on my part, I’ll be distracting Big Momma by putting on a good show. She’d be none the wiser on what’s really happening under her nose. Also Ken? I’m gonna need you with me on this one.” Oh no, I know something bad is gonna happen.
Before any of us could say anything, something was happening outside. There was gunfire, screaming, roaring, and from the sound of things, a chainsaw. All of it creating a lot of commotion, even shaking up the place. A lot of voices were yelling out ‘Demon’ before dying. However, this feeling, it felt familiar, the fear was also growing. I don’t know why that’s happening all of a sudden.
After things had quiet down outside, Shayne was the first to speak up. “What the hell was that?”
“Please don’t tell me that’s your brother making quite a mess out there and being lost in a personal bloodrage…” Moxxi sighed.
“Don’t care, Moxxi. Berserker’s pissed and he needs a lot of something to kill.” Runner said, waving her off. “Anyway, maybe we should get going now.”
“Right… Just to be clear, I’m making sure to stay as far away as possible from Berserker so… yeah.” Shayne added. “Ken, I know that you have been practicing with those arrows of yours, but it might be just quicker for you to use your revolver. You know…”
“Yeah, I get what you mean… but I rather not try to go for the easy way out.” I told her in response.
“Whatever you say.” Shayne shrugged, before she and Aurox went out the door and disappeared shortly after.
“So, anything else you want to know?” Runner asked me. Personally, I would want to ask why they always make of habit of saying things at the last minute, but I decided to refrain myself. Instead, I took a moment to take a deep breath as I looked back at not him, but Moxxi this time.
“Yeah… Moxxi, is there anything that they might be overlooking here?”
“Well, there is one small tidbit…” Oh great, here we go. “Coal Momma has set up a few defenses at the gates to where she’s hiding out. You might want to disable the power to that first… unless you want your Berserker friend to be filled with whatever shocking surprise that’s in store for him.”
“We’ll handle that.” Pillar said. “Although, then again, Berserker can just plow his way through their defenses, but that would give rise of suspicion. We’ll disable the power, Berserker goes in and kill whoever is guarding the goods, and we’ll roll out with them.” He explained, though Moxxi raised an eyebrow at the part of Berserker ‘plowing’ his way through their defenses. Although that was when my father spoke up.
“Wouldn’t it be easier to have us split up? Ken and… What was your friends name again?” He asked me.
“Shayne...” She responded.
“Right… Why not have Ken and Shayne disable it for you two and then, it’ll be easier for you to go in without having any hiccups along the way. It would seem more effective since we have the manpower to do it.” That… actually made sense. It would be easier to just split up and spread out in order to handle the situation rather than just go in guns blazing. “Unless of course, if there’s anyone else that has a different plan, speak now…”
That… was met by silence… and also Asphyxious’ snores all across the board as he sighed. “Well, at least we got a plan now.”
“Looks like you do… Though, don’t try to plow into anything too hard now~. This is your first time here, so don’t do anything too brutal. Besides, we don’t have a doctor to patch things up if you do go overboard.” And there’s it is. I was wondering when Moxxi was going to say something like that.
“Oh yeah? Tell that to Berserker.” Runner snorted, earning a chuckle from Visi. “By the way, Ken, we got a couple of presents for you.” He told me, which caught me by surprise. “A couple of guns and a Chainsaw.”
That was when Hunter came up to me and presented the guns. Both were rifles, but the technology they were both made were different. One was human, while the other was alien. “A Halo 2 Anniversary UNSC Battle Rifle, and a Covenant Carbine.” He texted to me, letting me inspect them.
“I also added a little special feature to your Battle Rifle; an energised bayonet.” Runner told me, showing me how to activate it. Once it was, a blade made of energy protruded from the end of the rifle’s barrel, and it’s coloured black too. “And for your Carbine, select fire. Semi-auto, short burst, or full auto.”
I… did not know what to say. Though… I had a feeling that some of these weapons would make Torgue pissed. Probably because of the whole thing where he hates laser guns. Why? Because since they’re made of light, they don’t explode. The battle rifle he might be fine with though, since it’s not TOO daunting to comprehend how it works.
“Hey, let me take one of them,” Wait, seriously Shayne? Why? “Your Hawkmoon is synced with your arm and you already have a lot of weapons already. I just have a boomerang and a djinn on me. So it could be helpful.” That… actually made more sense now. It was true that she might need something more than me, but I’ll need to keep one on hand too. So I decided to keep the Battle Rifle and let Shayne hold onto the Carbine right now.
“Well, we’re ready when you are.” I said, looking back at Hunter.
“Alright then. Oh, by the way, Berserker is giving you his Chainsaw.” He texted me, which made my heart sink. “However, you will gain that after the tournament.” I sighed in relief, hopefully Berserker has calmed down enough to NOT strangle me out of rage.
“Oh, say Ken? Are Twilight, AJ and Rainbow watching us back from your home, through your eyes?” I froze up when Runner asked that question. “I’ll take that as a yes.” How the hell did he know that!? Even the girls were shocked by this. Oh god, has he somehow become a mind reader!?
“Let’s just go before you make his head explode.” Pillar said with a sigh.
“Aww, but I wanna see his head explode.” Runner whined, and I’m starting to regret my decision of bringing them here.
Soon enough though, we all headed outside, leaving the lich and that behind, since they were still out. Once we were outside though, we heard what sounded like engines, motorcycles to be specific. Unfortunately, my suspicions were confirmed when we saw a biker gang of Diamond Dogs coming our way. Those must be Coal Momma’s boys.
Before they could reach us, they got ambushed when...Berserker came out of nowhere. He really did look like a Demon; he was big, muscular, red, armored plated along his arms and legs, but not his torso or head. Letting out a war cry, he lunged himself at them, carrying a really big sword, that looked like a chainsaw. I was right about that, too, hearing the revving as the teeth started moving, they were even glowing hot to superheated temperatures as the screeching got louder. Once Berserker was on top of them, he swung his...Chainsword, cutting straight through a few of them in one go - including their bikes. Within a few seconds he’s already cut the biker gang’s numbers down halfway, so they changed tactics and started forming a circle, driving around him and opened fire.
Although, from the look of things, I don’t think there weapons, even if they are Torgue’s, are doing much damage as he’s just standing there, tanking them as they come. After a while he went at it again, only this time he charged at one of them and kicked their bike, sending that one over to us. Then he killed some more before the last remaining survivors decided to call it quits and ran away… Unfortunately, Berserker didn’t give them the chance and slaughtered them as well. All things considered, that was one of the most bloodiest fight I’ve ever seen…
Thankfully, the kids were not watching this happen. But… it did provide Shayne and I with a necessary distraction in order to handle the power to the gates. And when we did get the power knocked down and the gate taken care of, we heard Torgue begin to commentate. “WHAT’S THIS!? TEAM CHROMA IS GOING AFTER THE NUMBER THREE BADASS ON THE LEADERBOARDS!! I’M GLAD THAT SOMEONE IS AT LEAST DOING SOMETHING!! MOST OF YOU IDIOTS ARE JUST DRIVING AROUND HONKING YOUR HORNS AND WAITING FOR THEM TO COME TO YOU!!! P*SSIES!!!”
“No sh*t, Torgue.” We heard Berserker spoke, which send chills up and down my spines, as he walked over to us, a heavy thump made the ground tremble with each step he took.
“These Bandits could’ve at least put up a better fight. Or be more stronger. Honestly, these pathetic mongrels can’t even last a minute.” We heard another demonic voice spoke up, but we couldn’t tell where it was coming from.
“Kid, if you’re wondering, that would be the bro’s two-handed, Long Chainsword talking, which is possessed by one of Khornes’ Daemons.” Runner told me, which was alarming to say the least.
“What’s the plan?” Berserker shouted, his glowing green eyes looking down on us. God, it looked as if he’s glaring down at us for no reason, just to show how pissed he really is. “How should we deal with that fat b*tch?”
“Ease up, Berserker, dear. You’re scaring the kids.” Visi spoke up to him, as he kneeled down to her. “I know what happened was bad, but save that anger when the time comes.” She told him, reaching a hand out and touched him on his cheek. I blinked at the sight, in total disbelief as to how casual she’s being towards Berserker, and how Berserker seemed to be calming down a bit from Visi’s show of affection.
Wait a minute… No… No way... They can’t be-?
“I can’t help it, Visilia.” Berserker growled, using her full name. “Either way, I’m beating their faces into the f*cking bloody red, if and when, I get the chance.” He vowed, clenching his left hand into a fist.
“Let’s just focus on the here and now. Anyway, we’ll tell you about the plan along the way.” She told him, as we moved towards the mines. Still though, her and him? An item? How and when?
“Ken… Could you please explain what is going on to us. Because right now, when Twilight was seeing all the bloodshed, she got sick and had to hurl.” I heard Applejack speak up.
“Remember Berserker?”
“Yeah, why-.” Wait for it… “Oh… Oooh… Wait… So is that lady his-?” I let that sink in a little bit, so that way she could be able to understand before filling her in on the situation.
As for Shayne though… “Well, the entrance to the mines and where she’s at looks to be like an arena… so she’ll probably come out once one of us steps in… Again, this is just a theory-”
“I don’t care if she comes out or not. We’ll leave the fat b*tch for last.” Berserker said with a scoff, cutting Shayne off. “Just as long as we get to kill something worth killing, until then, I’ll wait.”
“Sheesh. Still as angry as ever.” Applejack commented, until Rainbow spoke up next.
“Wait… this is… normal for him?”
“Ah would think that this is more than just ‘normal’, Rainbow.” AJ told her. “Someone or something hurt one of his family members, and he’s out for blood.” After that was when we reached the mines. And already we were under attack.
This was when Pillar and a Night Sentinel, who also carried a Warhammer that resembled his, except it didn’t had any markings, got in front of us and created a green barrier. Protecting us from the gunfire as the explosive rounds hit the barrier with zero damage done. Of course, Berserker growled and charged out there, going in for the kill.
“Alright, let’s finish this quickly and get a move on! Gunners, lay down suppressive fire!” Visilia ordered, as two Night Sentinels that were carrying big machine guns, that had nine barrels on it, that soon changed into three tri-barrels, and started firing upon Momma’s Boys. The fire rate on these things was insane, spitting out more lead that anyone unfortunate enough to get caught on the receiving end of it was ripped to shreds. “Alright, split up and flank them!” She said next as the rest were already off on their way.
Soon she looked towards us. “You three are with me. Keep up, heads down, and kill these stupid mutts!” She told us as we followed her, going around the right side of the enemies position. Luckily enough Hunter and his Night Sentinel partner were watching over us, wherever they might be, sniping off those who spotted us before they could warn the rest, as we managed to get right behind them. “Okay, you ready to put your new weapons to good use?” She asked us, whipping out what looked like to be a compacted light machine gun, adding something to it on the left side.
“Why won’t that Demon die!?” We heard one of Momma’s Boys yell out, as most of them seem to focus on Berserker, who was dealing with the bikers again.
“We’ve been outflanked!” Another yelled out, as we saw Runner and his Night sentinel partner attacking from the other side. Of course, while the Night Sentinel was using a rifle shooting out red bolts of energy, Runner himself got up close and personal with them, using his Chainsaw to cut his way through. Doing all of that while laughing like a complete lunatic.
This still presented us with the element of surprise, seeing as they were too distracted, Shayne took this opportunity and put her new weapon to good use. Aiming for the head, she pulled the trigger and shot the first of many dead. However, in doing so, alerted the rest of them to our presence. So Visi and I got into the action as well, using my Battle Rifle, which I soon found out was a short burst weapon, easily picking them off from our high vantage point. That was when we also discovered that little gizmo Visi attached to her gun, as the top popped up, revealing six cylinders, that fired a barrage of mini missiles.
After a few moments, we’ve already dealt with them all, leaving behind quite the mess. A bloody, gory mess. It was then that I heard Twilight talking again, and from the sound of her voice, she wasn’t too happy.
“So… can somepony tell me WHAT THE BUCK IS GOING ON!?!”
“They just killed a bunch of Diamond Dogs that ambushed them at the entrance.” Rainbow answered her. “I mean, okay, that was pretty gory, even for me. But, nonetheless, so awesome!”
Twilight didn’t seem to share the same feelings as Rainbow. And this is the same pony who was present when we first ran into Hunter a long time back. “Personally… I know this is called the ‘Campaign of Carnage’, but I think what they’re doing is kind of… excessive.”
“And that Ironhide creep shooting a reporter that was just asking him an honest question wasn’t?” Applejack noted.
“Well… it is… but I mean excessive for a displaced…”
“Twilight, these guys are ten thousand or so years old.” Applejack told her, to which surprised Twilight and Rainbow Dash beyond belief. “And for the record, Ken, didn’t Guardian told us that when we first met Hunter.” She said and I remembered Guardian did stated that. At least, when they caught up to this point in time.
“They’re ten thousand years old!?” Rainbow shouted. “How is that possible!?”
“Alright, that’s all of them.” Visi said as we regrouped. “So, we all know what we must do?”
“No. You pricks haven’t exactly explained jack sh*t to me, on what we must do, yet. All Shayne ever talked about was where the fat b*tch might be hiding.” Berserker growled out, so my father started explaining the objectives we had to do here. Albeit he was a little frightened of the big guy himself… though, I didn’t mind.
Only question now though… was why were Shayne and everyone else waiting outside… and Berserker and I were the only ones in the ‘arena’ this was taking place in… Oh bloody hell, I have a bad feeling about this.
“Ken, behind you-!!”
Immediately after hearing Applejack shout, I turned around to find myself directly in the path of the Diamond Dog that we were looking for. Though, I was forced to activate my dragon armor so that way I actually did not get hurt from this. “Uh… Ken… That wasn’t the best choice to go with.”
“Applejack, I don’t really have a lot of options. Why isn’t this my best choice?” I asked.
“You forgot about who’s with you…” Oh… Ooooh…… Well, sh*t.
Looking back at Berserker, he was giving me the death glare, barring his razor sharp fangs at me, snarling, and gripping his Chainsword tightly. However, even though I was expecting him to lash out at me, he didn’t seem to do it. Leaning down to me, he looked me straight in the eyes, as if to find something wrong with me. He let out a snort and straighten up.
Why do I have a bad feeling that he’s going to just rip and tear through who we came here to fight… just to get to me?
“I… have so many questions to ask…” Not helping me here, Dad!!
“Enough! It’s time to fight!” Berserker snapped. “And Chroma, I know you can hear me, so I’m only gonna say this once. Don’t f*ck Ken over.” He growled out his warning.
Care to comment on this, big guy?
And the only thing that greeted me there was silence. Fantastic…
“Seriously though, can someone actually explain to me what are you talking about?”
“Long story, lots of fighting and anger involved. Will tell you later- WOAH!!” Okay, that’s it. I really gotta do something about that bike now. It’s just pissing me off. Not to mention that… wait, how the hell is that bike firing freaking rockets at us?!
Immediately, my focus became that of two things. One… trying to not get myself blown up… and two, looking for something that I can use to get that diamond dog off of her bike. At least then, it would be easier to take her down when she has nowhere to go. “Berserker, I got a plan!” I shouted, disabling my dragon form for a moment so I could try to communicate with him. “Try to find a way to get that bike of hers to break down! Without it, she’ll have nowhere to run off too!!”
“Done.” He said, shielding me and my father from her rockets. Once she backed off, he found big enough chains just lying off to the side, luckily and conveniently enough, with a hook at the end. Soon he rush at her, while she drives straight towards him, firing rockets at him. However, once he got close to her, he hooked her bike and gain some distance, before giving a yank, pulling her bike straight out from under her and destroying it entirely in one punch. Good, now she can’t keep driving around us in circles.
Though… before I can really do anything… Berserker got to her first… Why do I feel the need to cover dad’s eyes now?
“GET OVER HERE YOU FAT B*TCH!!!!” He roared out, using the chains like Scorpion from Mortal Kombat, bringing her over to him and started to really rip and tear her apart limb from limb, before punching the remains of her into a bloody red paste, splattering everywhere. Now most, if not all, of the arena was covered in blood and guts.
What was more inappropriate… was the commentary afterwards. “HOLY F*CKSH*T!!! TEAM CHROMA JUST RIPPED AND TORE THEIR WAY UP TO NUMBER THREE ON THE BADASS LEADERBOARDS!!! BOOYAH!!!!”
“Really Ken… You named your group the one thing that might anger Berserker the most?” Applejack asked.
“Well, we didn’t quite exactly have any other ideas at the time… Plus, when I did name the team, this was before we even knew that Berserker was coming here-” I told her… wait, why is Berserker still staring at me?
“... ARE YOU F*CKING SERIOUS, YA LITTLE C*NT!?”
“Oh, I’ve bucked up now… hard…” I groaned mentally “Heh, that’s what she said…” Dammit, Rainbow! Not helping!!!
Before Berserker could say anything… I just bolted it out of the mines, with a raging demon following closely behind me, as I heard his Chainsword revving its teeth. “KEN! GET YOUR DUMB ASS BACK HERE!!!!!” He roared.
Yet, as I was out in the open now… with a raging mad-demon man behind me, I found one problem. The gate was still closed… with everyone else on the other side. With no way to get out, I was really beginning to think that- Wait, why am I feeling something warm on my shoulder-? Dad?
“Leave my SON ALONE!!!!!” In an instant, a bright flash went off… and the small dragon that was on my shoulder now towered above both Berserker and I. Holy sh*t, he was bigger than Revaan of all dragons! With a loud roar, he blasted Berserker with what looked like a huge pillar of light as it scorched the ground… causing Berserker to collapse and slowly return to normal.
As for dad… well… he shrank and passed out.
“Holy sh*t, did your dad just digivolve or something?” I heard Shayne ask, realizing that because of what just happened, the gate was now open. Though, that was also when Aurox tapped Shayne on the head… and made her say something else. “Oh… right… are you alright?”
“I’m… okay. But I honestly have no idea what the hell just happened.” I told her in response, going over to where dad was. He was breathing… which was a good thing. But he was also out like a light.
As for our companions, I heard groaning coming from Berserker, as Visilia and Hunter went over to him. “That was a Divine being your father turned into just now.” One of the Night Sentinels told me, wearing a cloak that covered his left arm, while wearing a hood over his helmet.
“Wait… how does that make sense?” I asked this new person. “I mean… I only just met him several hours ago and I had no idea that he could do anything like this.”
“You forget, we’re Demons in human form. We can tell the difference. However, we didn’t realise it until it happened. Whatever manner of being he is Displaced as, it would seem he has some connection to this… Deity.” He told me.
That… was when Shayne decided to raise a hand. “Um… may I guess something? What if… well… what he did was based on more of a personal connection. After all, this is your father we’re talking about here…” That… seemed valid. But there wasn’t really enough evidence to support that claim. “In any case, I think we should go back to Moxxi’s and regroup. We all need some rest after what just happened.”
“Agreed.” I said in response. Before walking over to where Hunter and the others were to check on Berserker. “Hey, is everything okay? We’re thinking about regrouping back at Moxxi’s.”
“Sure…” I heard Berserker groaned out, struggling to sit up on his own. “Sorry Ken… for losing it back there.” Oh my god… Did he just… Apologize? That… seemed like something that would happen… like never.
“Hey, it’s fine… We all make mistakes.” I replied back, offering him a hand to help him up. “Right now, I think we all deserve a break from the action.”
He nodded in agreement and took my hand, pulling him up. “Yeah. But listen, once your father wakes up, we’re telling him why I lost my sh*t over that damned name. He deserves that much to know.” He told me.
“Oh trust me…” I said before looking back over to where Dad was as Shayne was holding onto him for the moment. “There’s a lot that I still need to catch him up to speed on.”
“That’s true.” He snorted as we all made our way back to Moxxi’s place. “I might even order me a couple of drinks.”
Wait… Berserker… Drinks…? I looked to Hunter after that with a face of concern. Because I was unsure if a drunk Berserker would be either good or bad at this rate.
“If you’re worried about him getting drunk, don’t worry. I’ll keep an eye on my tempered boyfriend.” Visilia told me.
“Aww, but I wanna have a drinking competition with him.” Goddamn you Runner… Why do you love causing mayhem?
“The last guy on our team that was drinking is still out like a light…” Shayne added, “Let’s just hope that count doesn’t rise to three.”
“The only thing Moxxi should hope for from them, is that they don’t drink everything on the shelf.” Piller stated. “Trust me, with how we are Displaced… Those two Irish bastards could possibly drink that Lich friend of yours under the table… Maybe.” He added with a shrug, earning him the middle finger from the both of them.
Maybe? That… isn’t helping your case here. But whatever… let’s just get going before we attract more attention to ourselves than we already have.
End Chapter 39
Stats
Page generated in 0.046 seconds
Total duration
951 users online
153,775 hits today, 2,782,760 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Asphyxious with Orendi is cute as hell lol. Just one question, where did Orendi go?
8727222
What are you talking about? She didn’t go anywhere. She’s snuggled up against big A.
...that was intense
8727400
How so, and which parts?
8728295
Most of it
Dear Lord such crossing over with others stories man