Chaotic Harmony: Do Over

by shirotora

Chapter 39: Rush into the Secret House

I had no idea what I was doing.

Sure, I was told to trust my instincts, and I really did feel like I was on the right track, but why was I going alone?

Did that ‘mare’ really know something I didn’t? Well, of course, she knew a lot of things I didn’t, but why couldn’t she tell me more than she did?

I shook my head. I felt like I was getting close.

The landscape had changed from grasslands and forests to savannah. If I kept going, I knew it would turn into dessert and then the lush rainforest. Though, I doubted I would have to go that far.

As the second day was drawing to a close, I noticed something out of the ordinary. There was a large stony outcropping in the middle of the plains. Large stone spires shot up hundreds of feet, almost forming a crown of earth.

Not far from it was a building with a tower, overlooking the geological anomaly.

“That must be the outpost,” I said to myself and started heading for it.

As I approached, I called out, “Hello up there! Anyone home?”

I heard the sound of shuffling from inside. A light green pony stuck his head out of a second story window. He looked around before his eyes landed on me.

I gave a friendly wave. “Hey, Ah was-”

He cut me off with a shriek of terror and ran back inside. There was the sound of crashing before I felt a burst of magic, and then silence.

“Uh... hello? Ah’m a friendly,” I called.

No response.

“Ah heard a lot of noise and felt magic, are you okay?” I called.

Still, no answer.

“Alright, Ah’m comin’ in,” I called as I opened the door. “Ah just want to make sure you’re okay.”

I looked around, trying to figure out where the guy went. This was obviously a guard outpost. There was a set of guard armor in one corner with a couple spears and some training equipment.

I found an office, as well as an explanation as to why the guard reacted the way he did. There were pictures of tigerians as well as documents explaining how dangerous they were and what to do if one appeared. Was this post meant to watch for tigerians? Apparently, it was believed this temple had something to do with them.

I also found the reason the guard seemed to vanish. There was a teleportation circle to one side of the room, mostly burned away by a built in scrubbing spell.

Based on the amount of magic I felt, it was meant for a quick escape. It wouldn’t have teleported him too far, but I was guessing he was on his way to Canterlot. At least that meant Celestia would know where I am, and likely what it means.

Hopefully she’ll tell Jynx where I am and why. Maybe Jynx’ll only divorce me when she finds out why I left without a word. I thought to myself. Unless she comes down here herself... I shuddered. Well, I guess this is as good a place to die as any.

I started making my way toward the ‘temple’ and froze.

“God damn it!” I groaned. “I could have brought my motorcycle! Why the hell didn’t I? Oh, right, because the crazy hermit not-a-pony said, ‘No, don’t go home first, just run, you’ll be fine.’ Next time I see her I’m cussing her out.”

I sighed. There was no reason to get worked up, now. It was too late, anyway. Besides, it wasn’t like I had thought of it before. Plus, she always seemed to know things she shouldn’t, so who knows. Maybe there was a reason she didn’t want me taking my bike.

Lamenting past choices was pointless, so I just grit my teeth and started for the ‘temple’.

I had to wonder how ancient the place was. Was it always buried in stone? Did it build up over time? He was the god of earth, so maybe it was made that way.

Regardless, the enemy was in there. I had to tread carefully. I pulled out a stealth spell that would quiet my movements and camouflage me slightly. It wasn’t the best camo, but it read my surroundings and changed to best fit. Anyone looking right at me would see me, but hopefully they wouldn’t be looking too hard.

Even with that spell, I had to move carefully. I had no idea how many of them were in there, so even with magical camouflage, I couldn’t be hasty. I had to tread carefully and take out anyone I safely could.

With that in mind, I drew a summoning circle for a nifty little weapon Bakura made for guards. It was a trudgeon imbued with stun spells. It had to make direct contact with the target, so hopefully they didn’t have too much armor or thick clothing.

If they did...

I felt at my necklace. Will I have to use this on ponies? No. I won’t sully Gaea’s gift with the blood of people, even if they’re evil.

I took a bit more time to summon a short sword. Anything long would be useless indoors.

I thought about summoning my guns, but quickly dismissed that. They took power from my bracers and made it so I couldn’t use them. Ultimately, the bracers’ abilities would be more useful here. Besides, the using guns like those in an ancient stone temple would by a bad idea.

I didn’t approach directly. I wasn’t an idiot. I went to the side, sniffing the air to see if I could pick up the scent of magic. There was certainly magic, but it didn’t smell like it was held together in any spells, at least not close to the entrance. There was the scent of two griffins coming from right inside the entrance, though.

Griffins had excellent eyesight, but only straight ahead. That meant I had to be careful. If I peeked around the corner while they were looking in my direction, they’d spot me, even with my spell. That meant the best way to deal with them was to attack swiftly and take them out before they knew what was happening.

I had to be fast. Luckily, ‘fast’ was something I was prepared for. I grabbed a dash spell and readied my stun cudgel. I cast the spell and the world slowed for a tenth of a second, stretching it out to six.

As much as I would have loved to hit them at that speed, the spell didn’t protect the user’s body from impacts like that. As fast as I moved with that spell, it would shatter my arm if I tried. Instead I rushed past them and, as soon as the spell ended, bludgeoned one of them upside the head while kicking the other.

I had gotten very good at controlling the force of my kicks, so instead of crushing his ribs, I just cracked them and stunned him long enough to smack him with the stun club.

And that was the easy part. Now, I had to find a place to stash the bodies. They’d be out for a couple hours, so I wasn’t worried about them waking. I was worried someone would check on them and sound the alarm if they found them.

I picked them up and ran a good hundred yards to a bunch of bushes and dropped them inside in a compromising position. That way, if they were found, hopefully whoever found them would mistake them for having a bit of fun. It might buy a few more seconds.

Plus, it was fun.

With the door guard out of the way, I was able to enter without further trouble. The entrance wasn’t what one would think of as the entrance to a temple. It was just a stairway heading down, the only decoration, if it could be called that, was the occasional plain iron sconce holding a glowing crystal.

So, the temple is underground, I thought to myself. Makes sense for a god of earth.

I made my way down, keeping an ear and nose out for anyone approaching. Considering how they probably still think there’s a royal guard pony watching the place. It’s doubtful people are coming and going very often.

As I approached the end of the stairs, I started to hear voices. I sounded like chanting.

From what I had read about Kronos, he was a very practical and straightforward guy, so his temples were usually very utilitarian. As such, I wasn’t expecting much more than maybe a few rooms. I had certainly expected more than one, yet that was all there was. It was a big room, but still just one. There were no doors or anything other than the one I was hiding beside, peaking around the frame.

There were about a dozen people inside, mostly ponies. There were two griffins, a lycan, and about five ponies. Another four of them I couldn’t tell because they were wearing hoods, but at least two of them were probably unicorns if the horns sticking out meant anything.

The four hooded figures were chanting around a magic circle of some kind. If I had to guess, that was what I was sent here to stop.

And there was the pony I had to stop. The pale mare that bamboozled us in the Crystal Kingdom and attacked the orphanage. Thankfully, I didn’t see Blue Moon anywhere. If he were here, I didn’t think I could take him and everyone else. Hell, I wasn’t sure I could take him alone if he actually fought to kill.

The magic of the circle was still forming, so the cloak guys wouldn’t be a threat for at least a few minutes. There were four, including the griffins, talking in a group nearby. The pale mare was talking to the lycan at the other end. I couldn’t hear much, but I did hear Blue’s name... or they were talking about the color.

I wasn’t going to be able to avoid killing here. I mean, sure, it was possible, but it was far from practical. I had accepted that it was going to happen if I was going to be involved in this conflict, but that didn’t make it easy.

Forgive me for the blood I’m about to spill, I prayed.

I grabbed a lightning bolt spell and an amplification spell. I took a breath to steel my nerves, and leaped out, unleashing the lightning bolt on the group of four. The griffins, having better reflexes than ponies, reacted, but not fast enough. All four were fried in the blink of an eye.

The others in the room were already moving by the time I pulled my short sword. The nearest pony didn’t have much time, though, before I stabbed him through the shoulder and cut off his horn. He’d survive, but he’d never recover his horn or his ability to use that leg.

The remaining three had come together and attacked as one. The earth pony charged at me, but a swift kick broke his neck, paralyzing him.

I had to dodge a bolt of magic just as the lycan reached me, putting me in a bad position as she swung a mace at my chest. I stuck out my paw and activated my bracer, putting a plain of magical energy between us. The impact still hit hard, sending me to the ground and forcing me to drop my sword.

I summoned the energy sword from my right bracer and scored a blow on her hip. Unfortunately, the near-massless blade just didn’t have the weight to do more than give her a shallow gash. Still, It was better than nothing.

As soon as she pulled her mace back again, I cast an ice spike spell, impaling her in the chest.

I turned back to the pale mare just in time to see the magic of the circle coalesce far sooner than it should have. That was why she didn’t cast any other spells after the first. She helped finish the spell.

I rushed toward them, hoping I could still interrupt it somehow. I snatched up the lycan’s mace and crushed the nearest caster’s skull.

The spell persisted.

I watched as something I hadn’t noticed before rose into the air. It was the dagger she had taken from Sombra’s personal chambers. Alongside it, blood rose up, likely Midnight’s, and started to glow as it seeped into the dagger.

As I prepared to leap at her, to try to take the dagger before she could, pain bloomed in my back and chest. I looked down at the thin silver blade protruding from me.

“So sorry, my friend,” Said the familiar voice of Blue Moon. “We can’t let you interfere. Hurry up and finish the ritual.”

The piece of metal was yanked free and I fell to my knees. “No... Ah... Ah won’t...”

“You won’t do anything,” Blue moon said, stabbing me again, this time in the other lung.

I tried to muster up the strength to lunge at him, but I only managed to fall.

I tried crawling toward them, desperate to stop whatever they were doing.

The pale mare walked past, she glanced down at me and smirked as she swung the dagger down, slicing clean through my throat.

As I laid there, my vision fading, I could have sworn I saw Poe, perched atop a door at the back of the room.

Was that door always there? I thought as it slowly opened.

---

Jynx was furious.

How could he have just left like that? she thought as she looked out over the countryside as it passed swiftly underneath.

She was terrified when she didn’t see him the day after he went hunting. Then Fluttershy said he never came by and she feared the worst.

She waited three days for any sign that he was alive, fearing the worst, until Twilight came to her telling her that he had been spotted by some outpost in the middle of nowhere.

She had practically hijacked a carriage from the guard that had been dispatched to investigate. Apparently there was some temple out there that had something to do with Kronos.

How he knew about it, she didn’t know. Why he would just run off for it made even less sense. She knew he had to have a good reason, but that didn’t cool her anger any. He could have at least said something.

When they finally landed, there were already a few guards there. She was surprised to see them bringing a couple bodies out from the temple.

Did Shiro do this? she wondered. It must have been big if he did.

As she approached, she asked, “Where’s Shiro? I’m his wife, and he needs a good yelling.”

The looks they gave her were not what she expected. They weren’t looks of annoyance, amusement, or discomfort. They were... sad... pitying... They were the kind of looks you’d give...

An icy pit opened in her gut.

She ran into the temple, ignoring the calls of the guards.

She entered the main chamber, looking around. It was carnage. Several more bodies laid scattered around. Several ponies, what she thought might have been griffins, and even a werewolf.

And, surrounded by royal investigators, all of whom were giving her the same, sorrowful looks...

“Sh-Shiro...?”

Author's Note:

This scene was actually one of the first changes from the original I decided on. As such, the next two chapters are finished and I'll be posting them much quicker than I usually do. I may get some cruel satisfaction from leaving you guys hanging on that cliff, but even I'm not cruel enough to do that with a cliffhanger like this.

For longer than a week or two, anyway

Of course, if enough people subscribe to my Patreon I might just be convinced to release the next chapter early

Comments

[Comet_Chaser]

Well......... fuck.