Pony Fantasy V: Exodus of the Void

by GMBlackjack

XXXIII - A Rift for the Ages

The City of Man appeared in a flash of black light inside the Interdimensional Rift - and the world around it was alien. On all sides snaking tendrils of earth warped and twisted in fractal patterns, entire ecosystems branching off into infinity. Forests, deserts, rivers, and mountains lined the tendrils, bringing the material of hundreds of planets close enough to jump back and forth between.

The City of Man wasted no time in deploying all ships and warriors who could survive in the air on their own power - but the Warriors of Light made no move, simply staring at the beautiful tendrils that spiraled off into the distance.

“…Okay, I can’t lie, this looks pretty awesome.” Rainbow Dash said.

<It does indeed. The Core is that direction - how far I cannot tell, no way to triangulate. It’s not close.>

Twilight shrugged. “Well, I suppose we need to get started-“

The entire area around them rumbled, vines shooting forth from the tendrils surrounding the city, attacking from all angles. The city itself glowed a bright blue and lit all the vines ablaze, preventing them from doing any damage. A few of the ships began firing around, keeping the other vines from advancing.

“That’s no fun!” A voice declared. “You need to let her attack you! AHAHAHAHAH!”

“They are trying to survive. We are trying to kill them. There’s no need for it to be fun.” Another declared.

Floating in the space between tendrils were two beings - one that looked somewhat like a blue mare crossed with a medusa. She hadn’t stopped laughing despite the annoyed looks she was getting form her humanoid companion with quite the forest-y getup.

They looked like they were about to introduce themselves to the armies.

“Yeah no.” Twilight said, reaching into her new powers and summoning two giant cannons between her wings, which she teleported right behind the two enemies.

“What the-“

They were vaporized in a blast of white energy. Twilight smiled. “This is going to be easy-“

Suddenly, hundreds of copies of the creatures appeared, controlling their “hair” and the organic material from the tendrils. They roared in anger, wanting to avenge the other versions of themselves, attacking the City and the armies with all they had.

Twilight recoiled at the sheer number of them. “And this is why we have armies.” Rarity said. “Begin the push!”

The City of Man opened all weapons and began firing, working in tangent with the dragons, changelings, griffons, and pony armies. More and more were deployed as people realized the atmosphere was breathable. Swarms of changelings attacked a living forest here, unicorns worked alongside an ancient human soul cannon to create an undodgeable laser attack, and dragons smashed and torched things left and right. The Phoenix flew across the battlefield, resurrecting all those fallen soldiers on its side.

One of the enemies screamed “HAX!!!”

The tendrils of land began to burn, and the City of Man accelerated towards the goal - the Crystal core. None could see it, but the sensors were picking it up. They just had to arrive.

And battle through who knew how many enemies…

—

The armies flew through a seemingly endless white expanse, battling against geometric shapes that flew at them from all angles, using their two-dimensional nature to their advantage, slicing the soldiers in half with ease. Their efforts were in vain, however, for Phoenix power of resurrection trumped all the killing that occurred - though some of the soldiers were starting to go a little crazy from all the dying and being revived. It wasn’t a pleasant experience, to say the least.

Amongst all this chaos, deep within the City of Man, the blue unicorn guardian Trixie stood in her cell, terrified out of her mind. She was an unwilling combatant! She had never asked to be dragged into this war! She was just supposed to guard Flare and that was it! There was nothing else to it! Oh why did these things happen to her?

She began to pace left and right, hyperventilating once again. She wondered what was attacking them this time. More plants? The Stars themselves? Powerful apes that ate children? A bug man that drank people?

Never in a million years would she have guessed a neon blue square. And as it just so happened, a rather large one was attacking the City of Man directly, spiraling towards it, avoiding all the attacks tossed at it somehow.

Rainbow Dash tried to hit it with a Flare, but the explosive spell somehow passed right through it. The square spiraled right towards the City of Man and gassed right into it before shattering.

The structural damage was minimal and repaired rather quickly - but an important power conduit had been severed. The magical locks on Trixie’s cell door vanished without the needed power.

Trixie blinked - then used her magic to open the door. There were no guards attending her cell right now. She was able to escape.

No matter that there was nowhere to escape to in this void, she just needed to get out of that cell. She dashed as fast as her legs would carry her, scrambling into the City of Man proper - and was alarmed to see dozens of small neon squares flying around the inside.

“What the heck?” She yelled. “We got boarded!?”

“They cut through the walls.” A dragon said, blasting one with fire. “Where have you been the last two hours? Under a rock?”

“Uh… Yes?” Trixie answered.

“Well okay then. Don’t die, trust me, it’s not a good feeling.”

Trixie blinked. “…What?”

But the dragon was already gone, leaving her alone. With a two dimensional square. She lit her horn and made it explode - a rather easy feat considering.

She blinked. Then smiled. It would be easy to blend in here… Just fight whatever got onto the City. Then soon as this was over make a break for it and never look back.

What could go wrong?

—

Twilight flew alongside the City of Man as the scenery changed form the white geometric plane to that of a gigantic cylindrical structure - which they were somehow inside.

“Well…” Twilight said. “Not as bad as Starswirl’s place… Still unnerving though.”

Rarity smirked. “It’s nothing dear, just a shift of scenery. Stars know we need it, all that boring whiteness and shapes was getting a little tiring.”

Twilight looked down at the armies. “You know… the fighting’s stopped down there. No enemies. Just this… large…”

“Pylon?” Discord offered.

“…I was going to say tunnel, but I suppose that works.” She turned to the hologram of the Earth Crystal. “How many have we lost?”

<A hundred and three could not be raised by Phoenix.> Twilight winced. <That’s a small number Twilight>

“She knows.” Fluttershy said. “It changes nothing… people have died. And we led them to their deaths.”

“Can’t let it be in vain.” Applejack said, returning from the ‘ground’ forces. “Forge on ahead. Any idea how far away we are?”

<Negative.>

“Great.” Applejack muttered. “…So what do we do when there aren’t any monsters?”

Rainbow Dash shrugged. “I have no idea. Seems like we just keep wandering until something happens…”

“Oho! That’s just tempting fate! How stupid!”

A strange doglike being stood before them - with eyes at the end of its snout and a hand for a tail. Rainbow Dash wasted no time - casting Flare on the creature, exploding him into nothing but smoke. A small golden device that looked vaguely like a heart with a gear inside it.

“…What is that?” Rarity asked.

Twilight levitated the heart with her magic, raising it into the air. “Funny… It’s giving off a strange magical signature…”

The heart shone a bright white and suddenly the dog creature was back, laughing. “Ah, the looks on all your faces - priceless.”

Discord glared, not liking this things bombastic personality. “And who do you think you are?”

“Oh, pardon me, I am known as Ahuizotl.” He turned to Applejack. “Ah, Daring Do’s kid, no? Where is the old girl now?”

Applejack blinked. “You knew my mother?”

“Yes, and I have a great desire for revenge - being sealed away in this Rift has not been good for my plots.”

“Well she’s dead. Sorry.” Applejack deadpanned.

“Aha, then I must take my revenge… On you! Though I was going to kill you anyway just because… Ah well. Die.”

Discord snapped his fingers and made Ahuizotl explode - leaving the golden heart artifact. Discord tried to destroy this - but his magics did nothing. “Oh great, one of these games is it? Why I oughta-“

Ahuizotl regenerated, then teleported away. At that moment, the entire cylinder they were inside began to shake and churn, the walls deploying dozens of gigantic ancient devices ready to tear the City of Man apart. “Ah!” Ahuizotl’s voice rang out through the arena. “You do not think I came unprepared did you? I have lived here for the past few decades - I know the tricks of the technical trade.”

The City of Man returned fire, holding the claws, rams, and giant plasma guns back. However, a few of the smaller ships began to explode in showers of energy. Fluttershy released Phoenix again, saving who she could. Then Discord teleported out of the city, deciding that now was the time to use his power. “FACE THE MIGHT OF A MILLION GALLONS OF DISCOUNT STORE SODA FIRED AT LIGHTSPEED!”

The cylinder filled with the scent of discount store soda - grape flavor - mere moments before all the large devices just exploded. Ahuizotl gulped. “Well then.. There goes plan A I suppose… And I lack my cat army so… PLAN O!”

Discord teleported to where Ahuizotl was standing. “And what exactly is Plan O?”

“…Plan Omega.” Ahuizotl said, pressing a button with his tail-hand. “You are doomed draconequus! You and your entire army will be-“

Discord teleported Ahuizotl into one of the City of Man’s power cores. He was vaporized instantly - and the energy kept the heart from reforming him. “That guy was soooooo annoying..”

Discord heard a strange clanking noise from behind himself. He turned, face to face with a gigantic robot with four legs - and a single slit for an eye. It menacingly walked towards him, eye beginning to glow.

“Aha, no, that’s not-“

>ENCIRCLE.EXE

Discord felt som´†˙ˆ˜©÷ ÷/˜¶ˇ°Á Óˆ∆

Twilight looked at the core schematics. “Okay, uh, how did we get his heart in there again?”

<Unknown.>

“Someone had to teleport him in there… But it took us several minutes to even get to the control room with all those turrets. What did that?”

<Perhaps another being of the Rift. It matters not, Ahuizotl is trapped within our energy core. I will determine how to destroy the golden heart momentarily. But be on guard for whatever did this.>

Rarity shook her head, something eating at the back of her mind. “I can’t help but feel that something’s off about this.”

Applejack shrugged. “We all do.”

“No, I mean, something’s really wrong.”

“You worry too much Rares.” Rainbow Dash said, chuckling.

“…Did you just call me Rares?”

“Yep.”

Rarity was silent. Then she shrugged. Maybe she was being a bit too nervous. She looked up out of the city- the scenery had changed again. It was a strange mismatched sky of night and day. “This looks a lot like the human village…”

“It is.” Fluttershy said, pointing down. “Right there, I see the buildings. Something’s off though.”

“Stop the City.” Twilight said. “We’re going to investigate this…”

The Warriors of Light descended down to the surface, discovering one thing - the town was frozen in time. The humans weren’t moving, the trees weren’t blowing, and there were leaves just suspended in midair.

“Freaky.” Rainbow Dash observed.

“This is probably why they’re stuck in the town…” Twilight mused. “Part of it is stuck in this Rift.”

“Could we free them from here?” Fluttershy asked.

“I don’t know…” Twilight said. “But we can try. Let’s look around, hour maximum. We can’t stay too long.”

Back in the City of Man, Trixie made her way to the edge. She looked at the peaceful frozen city - this looked like as good of a place to get off as any she had seen. She enveloped herself in magic and jumped.

…She had not mastered self levitation, and fell to the ground, though at a slow enough rate that she avoided breaking any of her bones. “Ow…” She muttered, picking herself up and trotting towards the town, being careful not to be seen. She crawled behind a building, making sure the Warriors of Light were far out of reach before she entered a building.

She found herself in a library, books lining all the shelves. She looked around, mildly curious, wondering what magics could be found in this human place…

She heard the door creak behind herself. She quickly ducked behind a bookshelf, trembling. She saw Twilight Sparkle enter the room. “Now let’s see… What have we here…”

Trixie took a step back, knocking over a pot. Twilight looked up in alarm. “Who’s there? Rainbow Dash?”

Trixie looked at the pot she knocked over with a death glare. Why did it- Woah. Behind the pot was a rather obvious secret passage. It was dark, ominous, and cramped. She would only go in there if her life depended on it…

“Who’s there?” Twilight called again.

Trixie leapt into the secret tunnel and began to crawl as fast as her hooves would carry her, scrambling and breathing heavy.

“Hey!” Twilight said from behind. “Get back here!”

Trixie started moving forwards faster, coming out the other end in a manner of seconds. She found herself in a windowless chamber, in the center of which was a book and a strange reddish black amulet. Entranced, she walked towards the two objects.

“The Alicorn Amulet…” She read, absent-mindedly putting it around her neck. She paid the rush of power no mind and kept reading the book.

It described the power of the amulet, but that part was largely scribbled out with some red substance. On the opposite page was a piece of writing titled “The greatest terrors…”

Trixie read aloud without thinking. “Beware Midnight and Omega, for they are the strongest of the Void’s inhabitants… One has the power of the Stars at her back… The other built to defy the Rules…” Trixie blinked. “What?”

“I’d like to know too.” Twilight said. Trixie screamed.

“Calm down, I’m not mad.” She smiled. “I’m just curious who you are.”

“Uh… Not anypony you’d know! Nope! Not me! I’m-“

A voice entered her mind from the amulet. BEWARE IT COMES!

“What comes-“ She said, her eyes flashing red, ready to use the power of darkness to overcome the enemy. She saw a flash of chrome and lit her horn, ready to destroy it with a powerful explosion.

“What the-“ Twilight began.

>ENCIRCLE.EXE

Trixie let loose an explosion and felt some´˜ø√ ∂ߘ„ˆØ¨ ¨ش ∆

Twilight landed in Rainbow Dash’s hooves. “Something… Exploded…” She said.

Rainbow Dash looked over at the ruined building. “No kidding. What happened?”

Twilight shook her head. “I… Have no idea. I was in the library and then I was here.” She bit her lip.

Rarity shuddered. “Something wrong…”

Applejack frowned. “We should get outta here. Enough of this, we’ve got a job to do.”

—

A realm made entirely of fish.

It was exactly what it sounded like.

“So…” Rarity said. “The fish are harmless.”

“Yes.” Twilight said.

“And they are nearly infinite.”

“Yes.”

“And they have just the perfect spacial frequenwhatever to pass right through the walls and hit us?”

Slap. “Yes.” Twilight said, peeling a fish off her face.

“I hate this place.”

“Same.” Twilight agreed.

Then the entire fish realm began to shake.

“NOOOOOTHING!!!!”

“Oh crap.” Rainbow Dash facehoved. “I can already tell this is going to be a fun fight…”

“CAAAAAN STOOOOOOOOP!!!!!”

Fluttershy sighed. “Maybe the loud booming voice will be friendly?”

“THE SMOOOOOOOOOZE!”

“Nope.” Applejack said. “Giant slime monster…”

The City of Man and the large purple girth of the Smooze collided in a battle the Smooze quickly regretted - as it turned out slime monsters were generally flammable.

From a distance, sitting atop a shark, Omega watched, observing, waiting. Analyzing. Preparing the perfect assault…

These invaders would fall.

And then they would never have existed in the first place.

Comments

[Bobbin]

I'm giving you a thumb-up like thingy, not because I've read this, but because I'm about to. And the only reason is because you've got nearly 100k words and 13 (now 14) likes. Dude/dudette, you deserve better than that from the community for that. I got you're back. You keep on bein' awesome. Whether I end up liking the story or not, you're keeping that thumbs up.

[GMBlackjack]

7758209

Thanks a lot! I hope you won't be disappointed when you do read it!

It's incomplete now, but lucky you I expect to complete it within a week. (Maybe two) So you likely won't have to wait for any chapters.

Again, thanks, that's just cool of you to do.

-GM, master of Freeza