Chapter 14- Fear Is In Your Eyes [CO]
Chapter 14-
Fear Is In Your Eyes
Chris sat in his lab waiting for the 3D printer to finish as he typed up the last of his report from what the Resistance was calling the Battle of Scarlet Hill, after the name given to the area by the survivors. The report had taken nearly a week to complete due to the number of burials he had gone to and the amount of time he had spent on his memorial project.
A small ding sounded out and he pushed away from his computer, spinning around in his chair and coming to a stop in front of the printer. On it lay a red and light gray panel in the shape of a squared-off arrowhead. At the back end was hollow ‘U’ that rose up to form a sort of protective covering.
“The last piece of our puzzle,” Chris breathed, taking the sheet of metal off the table as he stood to his feet.
Eeyup, Sam replied with a chuckle. We’ll never be late again.
Chris gave a grim nod and turned to another table in the shop. On it lay a much more advanced version of the board he had been working before the battle within another red plate that seemed to match the one that had just finished printing. A set of thrusters fit on the tail end, one large one with two smaller ones to its sides, slightly lower than the first. The young man gave one last satisfied grin as he laid the part in his hands on top, fitting it into place just right, the big engine housed within the raised ‘U’. “Think the team will like it?” Chris asked as he reached for his welding tool.
After they figure out how to fly the thing without falling off, Sam replied as Chris got to work fusing the two halves together.
“Yeah, that would definitely make them reluctant to the idea,” Chris said with a short chuckle. The table slowly began to turn, allowing Chris to stand in place and continue the seal seamlessly. After a few minutes, he was finished and straightened up, a proud smile on his face. “Let’s switch’er on,” he said before doing just that.
The red craft floated off the table, and after several weeks of hard work, the first galaxy glider was completed. Chris put his hands on top of the hovercraft and pushed down on the board with all of his strength. The board gave slightly, no more than an inch, but pushed back against him after that and refused to budge. The ranger stopped his test and straightened up, his smile even wider than before.”Let’s take it to the team,” he stated before Gold Static danced over his form. With a little effort, the light bent around the glider, hiding it from the naked eye.
He switched to Green and used the air to start pushing the glider. He felt it come off the edge of the table and could hear the inner workings of the machine work to compensate for a lack of surface to push off of. The board didn’t lose any altitude and Chris had to put a hand on the board and give it a mental command to lower itself down to hover a few inches off the ground. He pushed it towards the door with his Static. He opened the door quickly and walked out into the training area to see Sweetie and Cobalt sparring in the cage while Firefly watched the match.
Chris came to a stop beside her, stopping the galaxy glider at his side. “Who’s winning?” He asked as Sweetie Belle swung an arc of energy from her staff at the bigger stallion.
“Not sure yet,” Fly replied as shadows surrounded Cobalt’s fists. He swung them together, large fists of shadows forming and slamming into the magical arc from either side, stopping it dead. The two energies detonated, blowing both fighters back. They both paused and took deep, even breaths.
Chris shot a look at Firefly, an eyebrow raised. She simply returned the gesture with a shrug. “They’ve been going at it like this for a while now,” the pegasus commented. “They started off with a normal sparring match, then it just turned into one big attack followed by a short break, then another attack.”
“Sounds like they’re running out of steam to me,” Chris stated before looking back at his two teammates. “Alright, you two, that’s enough. I’ve got something to show you.”
Both fighters looked up from their positions, still breathing heavily. They then shared a look and nodded to one another. “We could use the break,” Sweetie said with a shrug. Cobalt simply nodded again and they made their way to the gate in the arena. Chris flashed yellow and dashed to the refrigerator while the ponies exited the cage. By the time they were actually outside the fighting ring, the speedster had returned with two bottles of water.
“Thanks, cap,” Cobalt said, taking one of the offered bottles, a smirk coming to his face as Chris gave a false frown.
“You’re never going to stop addressing me like that, are you?” Chris questioned as he gave the second water to Sweetie, who took the cap off quickly and downed a good third of the life-giving liquid.
“So,” the off-white unicorn gasped as she brought the bottle down. “What did you have to show us?”
Chris let his faux-frown disappear and allowed a large smile to cover his face. “Ohhh, you’re going to like this one!” He said excitedly as he backed up and maneuvered around the hovercraft, looking like some kind of awkward dance to the others. Firefly joined the other two, all of them giving Chris an odd look.
”Uh, Chris?” Fly questioned. “You okay?”
“Wha?” Chris asked, a confused look coming to him before he looked down and around at his feet. “Oh… well, don’t I look stupid?” The young man asked rhetorically as he gave an embarrassed chuckle before he clapped his hands together. “Anyway, what I’ve got today is something I think you guys are going to have fun with. Now, feast your eyes on-” Chris’ arm buzzed with Gold Static as he waved his arm through the air over the craft, slowly revealing it. “The galaxy glider!”
Cobalt raised an eyebrow and shared a look with Fly before looking back at Chris. “The whos-a-whats-it?” He asked, gesturing to the craft with his open hand, palm up.
“The galaxy glider,” Chris said again, his smile taking only a small hit. “This puppy is going to get us from point A to point B in no time flat. There is literally no way we’re ever going to be late to a situation again!”
“Uh, Chris,” Fly spoke up, holding up a finger. “You do realize that two of us can fly-”
“-and I can teleport-” Sweetie added.
“-and you have super speed,” Cobalt finished.
“So, why do we need these ‘galaxy gliders’?” Fly questioned, glad that her logic was being followed by the other two.
“Because, my dear fellows,” Chris replied, his smile coming back in full force. “Can any of you travel from space to any location on Equis in a matter of minutes?”
This elicited silence and looks of surprise and shock from the team. “Are they seriously that fast?” The pink pegasus questioned, glancing at the board with hungry eyes.
“Well, they haven’t been field tested yet, but theoretically-” Chris was cut off as someone spoke within his mind.
Stranger, we know not who you are, but we are in dire need of assistance. A fiend who threatened our world long ago has returned, and we need all the allies we can muster. We call you to our side!
Chris paused for a moment as he processed the summons. He paused for such a long moment that Sweetie started to look at him with some concern. “Chris, are you alright?” She asked, coming over to put a hand on the young man’s arm.
Chris jumped slightly, surprising the young mare, and his eyes refocused on her. He let out a slow breath and gave the off-white unicorn a soft smile. “Sorry, Sweetie,” he said, reaching over with his free hand and covering her’s gently before looking up at the rest of his team. “Sorry guys, it seems I’m being summoned by another displaced.” As he said this, a portal opened up a little over to the side of the group. The young man glanced at the portal before looking at the others. “I’ll be back as soon as I can,” he promised before turning to Sweetie… and giving her quick peck on the cheek. “Hold the fort down ‘til I get back.” With that and a cheeky grin, he walked into the portal, leaving Cobalt and Firefly to pick their jaws off the floor and Sweetie completely surprised.
Present Day
Equus
Celestia's visage was of the sternest stone, so clear was her displeasure. And why, was she displeased? Because just the day before, the greatest foe she, nay, the world, had faced, had been released from his stone prison. She could imagine him watching her at this very moment, and it sent chills down her spine. Even today, she had no idea how he worked. Indeed, the only certainty was that he wished for dominion over the world. And he had nearly achieved such a lofty goal, if it hadn't been stopped by her and her dear sister, Luna.
But now, he was back, and most certainly plotting and scheming against them. And who knows what he had planned this time. It gave her shivers just thinking about it. So, in response to his return, she had summoned the leaders of the various nations to discuss and figure out what to do.
So it was that she walked towards the meeting hall specially reserved for just such events. Her younger sister was right by her side, and they, in turn, were surrounded by a ring of guards. They couldn't be too careful with him on the loose. After a short walk, they made it to the doors of the meeting hall, where the sounds of loud voices shouting and arguing were emanating from. With a nod to the two guards, they opened the doors and the sisters walked in, the doors closing behind them.
"How many times must I say it!? This concerns all of us! If you're going to just sit it out again and abandon us once more then we will cease all trade with you!" bellowed King Iron Hoof, monarch of the Minotaurs.
“Indeed, he was no slouch. He was cunning, more so than any I have known,” King Blade Feather commented.
"He was defeated once without our intervention, he can be defeated again without our intervention," said the stoic King Thorax of the Changelings.
"Come now, let us not argue. This meeting is meant to be one of cooperation, not infighting," said the ever polite Queen Dryad of the Deer.
"This coming from the one who also didn't lend a hand when the rest of us were being slaughtered," said King Stone Maw of the Diamond Dogs.
"QUIET!" Luna yelled in the Royal Canterlot voice. And they did just that.
"Thank you, sister," Celestia said gratefully. Luna simply nodded. The two sisters walked over to their seats before Celestia spoke once more. "Now, it is my understanding that Herobrine brutally murdered our kin all those years ago, and I doubt he will not do the same again if given the chance. King Thorax, Queen Dryad, I know you all suffered as much as any of us during those troubling times. So, I ask, why do you not fight with us?"
"'As much?' We were decimated! It took us decades to reassemble a sizeable response team, but by that time the war was over!" King Thorax yelled.
"Indeed. And, famed as my people our for our unique magic, we still stood no chance. We also have had no reason to place more funds into the military thanks to this lasting peace. His unexpected return further hampers us," Queen Dryad noted.
"So you're going to simply sit back and let him take us by storm?" King Stone Maw asked.
"I seem to recall your people also not lending a hand when everything lay in ruins," King Thorax pointed out.
"We were fighting for our lives beneath your feet, bug," Stone Maw retorted.
"What did you just call me!?" King Thorax roared.
"Order!" Celestia called, stamping a hoof. The rulers slowly settled down.
"King Thorax, Queen Dryad, we need all the help we can get. We all know how inexhaustible His armies are, the more allies we have, the better the chances," Celestia pleaded. The two remained silent for a time. Thoughts raced through their heads; the lives that would be lost, the destruction that would be wrought, all were weighed in their minds. Finally, with a collective sigh, the two nodded.
"Very well. You have our support," King Thorax relented.
"As well as ours," Queen Dryad added.
"Wonderful!" Celestia smiled, before turning to the largest guest in the room.
"Lord Torch, you've been unusually quiet. Why do you not discuss your thoughts with us?" Celestia queried. The large, blue scaled and rough looking dragon was deep in thought, smoke pouring out of his nostrils. Finally, he opened his eyes and glanced down at the assembled leaders.
"You called me here, a dragon, for the first time since I was crowned Dragon Lord. You called me here for war against the Scale Splitter, the Weaver of Destruction, and I can say but one thing," he took a deep breath, before breaking out a sharp-toothed smile. "Count. Me. In."
"Wonderful. Now we can discuss our plan," Celestia said before her face turned serious. "We have no idea where He is hiding, but knowing Him, it is most likely someplace unexplored and remote."
"Indeed. But He also has a flair for the arts. He likes to flaunt his power," King Iron Hoof added.
"Which means His base of operations will be easily recognizable," Queen Dryad continued
"Yes, but He could also be in His own domain. And none of us know how to create one of those accursed portals," King Thorax noted.
"Hmm... This is troublesome indeed..." Luna mused.
"Sister, mayhaps it is time we resorted to The Vault," Celestia suggested to her sister.
"What was that?" Stone Maw queried, shooting a glance at the sisters.
"We... may have an idea. Though it is not guaranteed to work," Celestia began.
"Sister..." Luna warned.
"No, Luna. This time we must reveal our secret," Celestia said, before continuing. "During His imprisonment, many a strange object appeared at the foot of his prison. We don't know where they came from, and we haven't been able to find out anything about them, despite our many years of study. However, nearly every single object held a message. Most were those that offered help."
"And what, pray tell, does this have to do with anything?" Queen Dryad asked.
"We all know that it would take too much time to track Him down before he launched an assault. So, why not see what these objects' owners can offer?" Celestia proposed.
"You would have us place our hopes on some unknown variable?" King Stone Maw questioned, eyes narrowed
"It's better than sitting around, waiting for Him to strike us," King Thorax pointed out. "I say we go along with Celestia's plan."
"Feh, if that's what you want to do, then fine. But I want to be on the front lines when the action starts," Lord Torch conceded.
"Wait a moment, where is the Queen of the Zebras?" Queen Dryad queried. The others glanced around at this, finally noticing an empty seat where the Zebra Queen would have been.
"From what we’re told, she has been preoccupied with a sudden string of civil unrest," Celestia explained.
"Truly? That is most rare for the Zebras..." King Thorax noted.
"Indeed. The last time this happened was..." Blade Feather began before his eyes widened. "Oh, no..." The others quickly realized this as well.
"He has made his move. Now we must make ours, quickly," Luna urged. The other rulers glanced at each other before they all let out sighs.
"Very well. Let us begin this plan of yours, Celestia," King Iron Hoof conceded, the other rulers nodding in agreement. "If we are to stop his advance, we must respond quickly."
"Good. Me and my sister shall head to the Vault immediately. In the meantime, I ask that you all send word to your commanders. This war has only just begun," Celestia advised before her and her sister trotted out of the room. They quickly navigated their way through the castle, and in good time made it to the Vault. It was a deceptively simple looking door, made of solid steel mixed with other trace metals and heavily enchanted. A simple hole sat in the center of the solid slab, and Celestia inserted her horn into it. With a click and the sound of arcane lightning, the door slid open, the sound of metal on tile echoing throughout the hall. Then, the sisters walked into the dimly lit room, piled high with artifact after artifact, some from their conquests over the years, and others from the many that appeared in front of Herobrine’s statue. They searched through many of the artifacts, glancing at them and listening to the messages displayed, before placing them back. Finally, they came across one they favored.
It was a simple medallion, a bronze oval with an upside down ‘M’ with sharp points and twisted angles. The message sounded out as such; I am the shadow the darkness fears, the malice that quails evil. Call my name if you fight for justice, but beware the wrath of darkness if you chose wrong, for it is you who will face the dark clone. I am Psycho Ranger.
They stared at it hard for a little while, before saying, “Stranger, we know not who you are, but we are in dire need of assistance. A fiend who threatened our world long ago has returned, and we need all the allies we can muster. We call you to our side!” Celestia chanted.
A portal opened up and a young man with reddish brown hair and hazel eyes stepped out, wearing a black leather jacket, baggy black cargo pants, combat boots and a green t-shirt with the medallion symbol imprinted on it. He raised an eyebrow when he saw the princesses. “This is unusual,” he stated. “Unless one of you is actually a displaced.”
“We knoweth not what a ‘displaced’ is, nor why thou wouldst find this unusual. But time is of the essence. We must make haste to our fellows if we wish to concoct a plan before He finds us,” Luna urged. Celestia nodded.
“Indeed. You can ask us what you will while we walk. For now, follow us, please,” Celestia said before the two began to walk out of the cluttered room.
The young man nodded his head to the side for a second with a strange grin before he followed them. “Things really must be crazy if you two aren’t even going to ask my name,” he said as he followed. “I’m surprised at you, especially you, Luna."
“Apologies, what is your name? And how do you know my sister’s?” Celestia queried as they turned a corner.
“Samson Jaeger, at your service,” Sam replied with a smile and small, flashy bow. “But you can call me Sam. My Luna does, or rather my Nightmare Moon, which is how I know both your names.”
“Nightmare Moon!? Thou know’st of her!?” Luna cried.
“How do you know about her? To our knowledge, she was defeated by the Elements a few years ago,” Celestia asked, a hint of worry in her tone.
“I do know her,” Sam answered with a nod. “It’d be kind of hard to fight a war without a commanding officer after all. In my world, Equis was attacked by an even worse foe than Nightmare Moon before the Elements could defeat her. Drove every race to come together and fight for their world… until recently, anyway….” He trailed off at the last part, a saddened look coming to his face.
“That sounds…rather close to what Starswirl told us of the many universes. Along with Smurfy, of course, who perfected the theory,” Celestia noted. ‘Still… To think that that monster is actually helping instead of destroying...It’s a mind-boggling thought.”
“Art thou certain tis not just a version of Ourself?” Luna queried as they drew nearer to the meeting room.
“In a way, she is,” Sam replied, rubbing the side of his chin with his knuckles. “You and Nightmare finally came to the conclusion that neither of you was strong enough to beat our enemies, so you fused your consciousnesses, creating who you are now, Artemus.”
“Us? Fuse with her? We can scarcely believe that,” Luna said, seeming disgusted with the idea.
“We have arrived,” Celestia announced, the three now standing in front of the double doors leading to the meeting hall. “Let us not keep them waiting.” With that, she opened the doors, and they walked in to see the many rulers conversing with their generals and advisers via crystals.
Sam’s eyes went wide. “This is what I imagine it would have looked like if my world got a forewarning…,” he breathed before he looked at Luna, eyes still wide. “What kind of shit have you guys stepped into?”
“Ah, is this the help you spoke of, Celestia?” asked King Thorax, his emerald robes looking like they were made for a Chinese emperor, and made of some kind of fiber.
“He looks a lot like Him. Can we really trust this one?” King Blade Feather queried, his fur cape and regal ceremonial armor showing his status well.
“Well, it’s good to see griffons don’t change from one dimension to another,” Sam said, a disgruntled look on his face before he waved it away. “But that’s neither here nor there. The answer is yes, you can trust me.” The conviction in his voice was hard to argue with as he leaned back a bit and crossed his arms. “Who is this ‘Him’ you all keep talking about, anyway?”
“He calls himself the King of the Void, Ravager of Lands, and holds many feared titles among the people of this world. His true name is not spoken, for fear it will draw his attention and presence,” Lord Torch explained, the colossal dragon barely fitting in the hall.
Sam raised an eyebrow. “Oookay,” he said slowly. “So he’s officially gotten under everyone’s skin. That makes me a bit worried, to be honest… especially seeing as I’m starting to think that I’m the secret weapon….”
“Peace, noble warrior. He was defeated once, He can be defeated again,” Queen Dryad assured, her long, flowing floral dress and exotic makeup adding considerably to her beauty.
“At the cost of nearly a fifth of the world’s populous,” Stone Maw pointed out, his spiky armor and chiseled jaw living up to his status and namesake.
Sam suddenly went very still and quiet, his head lowering and fists clenching. “...That many?” He questioned, his voice more a growl than an actual voice as a shadowy aura started to come off of him.
“Yes, unfortunately. It took us decades to regain our ground, but we were victorious. The problem now is that He is now aware of the Elements, and will be likely trying to dispose of them,” King Iron Hoof affirmed, his gilded harness showing all of his muscled glory.
“Then that’s where I’m going,” Sam said, looking up to show that black mist was starting to come out of the corners of his eyes. “Just point me in the right direction and I’ll wipe this bastard out.”
“Not so fast! We understand that you are angry, but running off to fight an army alone would be useless. And, we still haven’t any idea where He is residing,” Celestia said, grabbing hold of the man’s shoulder.
“Verily. He is as much an enigma as He hath always been. That is why thou’rt here. Allow us to show thee a sketch of the being we speak of,” Luna affirmed, before motioning to one of the guards, who produced a wanted poster of the being in question and handed it to Samson.
Sam inspected it whole-heartedly, wanting to know every detail of his enemy before a realization came to him. “Oh my god…,” he breathed. “So He’s the ‘Him’ you’re talking about….”
“So you know of him?” Blade Feather queried. “Do you by chance know of any of his weaknesses?”
Sam shrugged. “In my world, my first world,” he began to explain. “This guy was basically a campfire story from a game…. He could cheat the laws of the game, proclaiming himself a god. To my knowledge, a player could do nothing against him… but we aren’t in a game and I’m no ordinary player.”
“So, you can help us then? You know how to beat him?” Stone Maw queried. “I would very much like to see that smug grin of his cut off, for the pain he caused my predecessors.”
“Verily. Our weapons did naught but make him stronger, and, from what We recall, generate some kind of spiritual backlash,” Luna added.
Sam winced at that. “Yeah…,” he replied slowly. “That’s going to make things slightly difficult. Luckily, I’ve got a trump card for spiritual attacks.”
“Wonderful! Can you tell us anything else? Is there some kind of ‘achilles heel?’” Queen Dryad questioned.
Sam shook his head. “Like I said before,” the human replied. “He broke the laws of the game, the laws of nature. Besides that, he was a ghost story. The only weaknesses were fan created and likely do not exist in your world.”
“Curses! So our only hope is to send a team of our best with you and see what happens, then?” King Thorax said.
“A battalion would be better. But yes, it seems we must place all our faith on this lone… I’m sorry, we’ve been talking for so long and we didn’t even ask your name or what you even are,” Queen Dryad apologized. She smiled benevolently at the man, causing him to blush slightly. “I am Dryad, Queen of the Deer.”
Sam bowed a bit in her direction. “Samson Jaeger, human,” he stated, keeping his head down to hide his blush. “Psycho Ranger.”
Aw, never seen you get flustered, bro, a voice suddenly sounded out in the room.
“Who was that!?” Stone Maw cried, reaching for his ax.
“It didn’t sound like Him…” Celestia noted but stood at the ready nonetheless. The other monarchs and rulers, along with the guards, tensed as well, prepared to fight for their lives.
Sam looked up blinking in confusion. “Wait, you heard that?” He questioned.
They did what now? The voice asked, seemingly echoing from Sam.
“Show yourself! If you’re going to slay us, then at least do it like a bull!” King Iron Hoof challenged.
Slay you? The voice questioned. The only thing I’m interested in slaying is this self-proclaimed king.
Sam let out a sigh. “Ladies and gentlemen, Chris Scott,” he said in a dull tone. “My brother.”
“Your brother? He’s a spirit?” Queen Dryad queried, her antlers ceasing their green glow.
“Second personality,” Sam clarified, only to roll his eyes as Chris cleared his throat.
Actually, he’s the second personality, Chris explained. We just do a weird body switch when we go to different dimensions.
“Ah, I have heard of that disorder. Rare though it is nowadays,” Queen Dryad commented. “I wonder… Do you change appearances as well? Your brother has a certain...exotic handsomeness to him.” The doe giggled at this as the man blushed again.
Dawww, she likes yo-
“Yes,” Sam interrupted. “Chris is blond with gray eyes, unlike me…. Can we get back to the ass kicking?”
“Yes, please. This banter is making me bored,” Lord Torch commented.
“Right, we’ll have our men assembled here in a matter of days. Meanwhile, I would suggest you take a glance around. It’s not every day one visits a city as vibrant as Canterlot,” King Thorax suggested.
Sam looked slightly distraught at this and Chris fell silent. “I, uh,” he stuttered, looking away and scratching behind his right ear. “I think I’d be more comfortable in the woods….”
“Why don’t you join me in the Royal Acres, then? I hear they’re lovely this time of year, and it has been a while since I last visited them,” Queen Dryad offered.
Sam looked up at her, his eyes looking into the distance for a moment before he let out a breath. “...Yeah,” he said quietly. “I think I’ll join you.”
“Wonderful!” Queen Dryad said happily, clapping her hands together. “We will see you all later, have a good day.” With that, the queen began to walk out of the room, Samson in tow.
A surprised look spread itself over his face as his feet scurried to catch up with the rest of his body. “S-so,” he started. “There has to be more than me being ‘exotic’ that caught your attention…?”
“Hmm? Oh, well, I found your sense of righteousness admirable, as well as quite attractive,” Queen Dryad admitted without batting an eye.
Sam went silent at this before he cracked a small smile and let out a short breath of laughter. “Never thought I’d hear someone describe me as ‘righteous’,” the man said, glancing at her for a moment. “I’m the embodiment of all Chris’ rage and violence, after all.”
“Really? So you’re a bad boy then? Even more alluring,” Queen Dryad said with a playful giggle after seeing the man blush bright red for the third time.
Sam let a bit of a nervous smile touch his features as he touched lightly at the part of his face that was heating up. “I have to admit,” he said. “You’re the first to ever make me blush… then again I’ve only ever had my own body once before.”
“Oh? All the more fun for us, then,” Queen Dryad said with another giggle. They turned a corner and came upon an entrance to the Royal Gardens, a forest beyond it in the distance. “There it is, Royal Acres,” she said, pointing to the wood.
“Wow…,” he breathed, looking out over the trees. “It’s….”
“Amazing, right? It’s almost like Everglade City, where I live. The only thing it’s missing is the majesty of the Treeco,” Queen Dryad said with a wistful smile.
Sam gave her an odd look. “What’s a Treeco?” He asked.
“Oh, right, you’re from another world. Well, the Treeco are sentient trees, titanic creatures of bark, leaves, and moss. We’ve been coexisting with them since before the Ancient Era. They are our steadfast companions and allies, and it was their progenitor that granted us our unique magic,” Dryad explained.
“Hm,” Sam hummed. “They sound very… tranquil. By the way, what did you mean when you said ‘all the more fun for us’?” His face looked a little confused at this.
“Oh, you’ll see,” Dryad said with a smile. “Now, let’s continue, shall we?” She said, offering him her arm.
Sam hesitated a moment before he decided to enjoy his time in the driver’s seat. “We shall,” the human replied with a small smile, taking her arm. Dryad smiled brightly as the two maneuvered through the gardens, passing many an exotic plant and a number of gardeners doing their work. In time, they reached the entrance to the woods.
“Well, here we are. My, how these beauties have grown! It really has been too long since I’ve been here,” Dryad sighed in content and looked around blissfully.
Sam looked around at the trees for a moment before a thought occurred to him. “I wonder…,” he murmured before he reached out and touched one of the trees, Pink Static going over his hand as he closed his eyes. After a few seconds, his eyes snapped open and he let out a gasp.
“What? What is it?” Dryad asked, curious.
Sam was silent for a moment as he looked at his hand before smiling. “I saw his history,” he breathed. “All of it….”
“‘His?’ You mean Dolly?” Dryad asked. “I’m surprised you have nature magic at your disposal. And Dolly isn’t the most open-minded of the trees here.”
Sam continued to grin before looking up at the tree. “Guess I just got lucky,” he said, before putting his hand back on the tree, no Static present this time. “Thanks, big guy.” Dryad smiled as well, before grabbing ahold of Samson’s hand.
“Follow me, I know a place,” she said cryptically. Samson blushed again as he felt her soft chest against his arm.
“I-I’ll follow you,” Sam said, giving a nervous smile as he looked at her. She smiled wide and dragged the man along, the two going past paths and landmarks with a brisk pace. The doe was smiling still as she led the man forward.
“I’m guessing I’m not going to get any hints if I ask for them am I?” Sam asked jokingly as he followed along.
“Nope!” Dryad chirped. In time, the two came upon a mass glade filled with flowers that emitted minuscule wisps of light, almost like fireflies, only it was day out. “Here we are, my favorite place in the Acres. What do you think?”
Sam was silent for a long moment. “...It’s gorgeous,” he said softly, looking around and drinking in every detail. “I never thought I'd get to see something like this with my own eyes.”
“Come, let’s sit. We can watch the sunset. The flower’s do something quite… interesting when dusk comes,” Dryad offered, sitting down herself and patting the spot next to her.
Sam did as she bid, sitting down beside her with a smile on his face. “Were these gardens always here?” He asked, leaning back on his hands to get a better look around. “Or did somebody plant them?”
“Oh yes, ever since my people first made contact with the ponies, this has been here,” Dryad explained. She sighed in content. “I’ve always loved coming here after a long conference. It soothes me.” The ruler smiled as she leaned against Samson.
“Yeah, I can see how it has that effect,” he replied as, for reasons unknown to him, he wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulders. “...Y’know, I've never felt this way… not physically anyway. The peace… the sounds of nature… the good company.” At this, he looked at her with a smile.
“Well, I’m glad to have been the first to show it to you,” Dryad replied back cheerily. She sighed again. “It’s sad to think that that monster is bent on burning all this to the ground.”
Sam gave a sad frown at this and looked around them. “...I'm not going to let that happen,” he said, his voice strong. “I came too late to save my world, and now it's in shambles… I won't let that happen here.”
“I’ll hold you to that,” Dryad said. She then gained a mischievous smile as she placed a hand on Samson’s chest. “By the way…”
Sam looked at her with a questioning gaze, his eyes going back and forth between her hand and her eyes. “Yes?” He asked, his voice slightly nervous.
She smiled and leaned into his face, before quickly kissing his cheek and retreating. “You’re really cute when you’re flustered,” she said with a giggle as she saw the man’s dumbfounded look and heavy blush.
“O-oh,” he stuttered, his face bright red. “Th-thanks…. You're beautiful, too.”
“Well, thank you!” She said with another giggle and a flirtatious wink, before going back to leaning against the man. “So...What’re your hobbies?”
“I dunno, honestly,” the young man replied. “This is only my second time being in control of our body like this, and when I'm playing passenger it's a lot of quiet time to practice magic manipulation.”
“Oh? What kind of magic?” Dryad queried, interested.
“Elemental,” Sam replied simply. “You know, fire, water, ice, things like that. Thanks to all my free time, I think I've almost got everything down pat, even a new power up that Chris can't even hit without an extreme amount of stress.”
“I see. That sounds quite handy,” Dryad commented. The two sat in silence for a long while after that, just enjoying one another’s company. And, in time, the hour they were waiting for arrived. And when it did, a low, almost melodious humming emanated from the flowers, which were emitting even more wisps and their petals were vibrating and glowing. “Beautiful, isn’t it? They call this Melody Wisp’s Glade for this very reason.”
Sam couldn't believe his ears at what he heard. The melody, along with the setting helped to relax some unseen tension in his body, his eyes closing as he listened, a peaceful look crossing his face. The doe giggled quietly and laid her head down on his lap.
“I’ll take that as a yes,” she answered.
Sam didn't speak or move for a few long moments. “...Hey, Dryad?” His voice was soft, almost unheard.
“Hmm?” she hummed in question, smiling up at him.
Sam opened his eyes and looked down at her. “Thank you,” he said, a smile on his face.
“Of course. I’m always happy to help,” she said happily. The two stayed like that in peace for a while, simply taking in the other’s presence. Then, it ended as they both heard the sound of a creature that they knew all too well. The sound of an Enderman.
“Dryad, stick close to me,” he said in an urgent tone. “Do not let it separate us. We'll be easier to grab that way.”
“Right,” she said with a nod as they both stood up, glancing around for wherever the Enderman was.
Then, suddenly, a pure black fist slammed into Sam’s face, knocking him back and drawing blood from the force. Dryad reacted quickly, raising her hands and summoning roots from the ground to trap the Enderman, only for it teleport away again.
Sam looked back after recovering from the punch, letting out an almost inhuman growl. “I’m going to make it pay for that,” he muttered before Navy Static started to dance around him. A ring of water surrounded the two. “Let’s see it get past that!”
The sound of it groaning in its tongue was their answer before it ripped a tree from the ground and tossed it at them.
“Not today, bitch!” Sam shouted, his Static changing from Navy to Black seamlessly, allowing him to catch the tree with no problem, Sam quickly putting it back to the ground, roots down as he flashed in Pink Static. “Do me a favor, big guy,” he said. The roots sank back into the ground and raced towards the Enderman, flying from the ground to skewer the monster.
The Enderman growled and teleported away before the sound of its teleportations simply disappeared. Dryad looked around, trying to find it, but with no luck. It had gone.
“Something’s not right… They don’t normally just leave their prey alone,” Dryad noted.
“That means two things could be happening right now,” Sam stated his eyes shifting constantly as he had Chris give him a constant feed of their surroundings. “One, it went to tell Him about me. Two… it’s going for reinforcements.”
“Either one of those would be bad enough. But I get the feeling it’s something more…” Dryad pondered for a moment before her eyes widened. “Oh no… It’s going to the castle!” she surmised before rushing out of the glade. “Come on!”
Sam suddenly scooped the doe up bridesmaid style and started running, Yellow Static sparking off him. “Forgive the suddenness of my actions, but we need to go fast!” Sam shouted over the rushing wind as he ran towards the castle. The doe blushed lightly but made no protest.
They arrived to see a significant chunk of the wall missing, most likely from an explosion. Guards were all over the place, fighting off black skeletons that Sam recognized as Wither Skeletons. The sound of further explosions echoed from within the castle.
“I’m going to set you down here, Dryad,” the young man said, setting her down gently. “Now if you’ll excuse me, it’s time to go to work.” With that, he turned to face the Wither Skeletons and took a few steps forward. “It’s morphin’ time,” he said, stepping back and bringing his right arm back, the index and middle fingers of his left hand pressed against a device on his wrist that had the same symbol as his shirt. “Go, Psycho!” He shouted, stepping forward and throwing his right fist forward.
Black energy surrounded Sam’s body, except his head, the energy shattering and leaving behind black body armor. Gray lightning shot from his wrists, feet, and torso and dragged white armor to his forearms and lower legs while gray armor fell over his chest and back. Gray energy lept from his hands as he rotated his arms over his face, gray grid lines covering his head before his gray helmet materialized. Black visors slid into place over his eyes, the entire transformation happening in the blink of an eye.
The skeletons took notice of him and shot their arrows, while the rest finished off their own opponents, the guard’s armor withering away to naught but dust.
Sam growled at this, the Psycho Scythe forming in his hand as he swung it to deflect the arrows away from himself and Dryad. “As much as I’d like to see you all suffer,” he said in a low tone, before crouching down and rushing forward, slashing the first skeleton in his path before he stopped on the other side of the group. “This needs to end quickly.” Shadows of himself suddenly rushed from his previous position, slashing all the others before disappearing.
The skeletons fell to the ground in a heap, and the remaining guards pressed their advantage, rushing into the castle to try and stop the onslaught. Dryad watched all this from a distance, worry clearly etched on her face.
Sam came back to her side. “You okay?” He asked, the visors and mouth piece sliding out of the way to reveal his face.
“Yes, but those inside won’t be. If this is anything like all those years ago, He will try to cause as much damage as possible before reaching His goal,” Dryad said, sadness painting her expression.
Sam put his free hand on her shoulder. “I’ll do everything I can to stop this guy,” he stated. “Will you be safe if I leave you here?”
“For now, yes. He’s not likely to come after me, not unless I get in His way,” Dryad assured. “But I think I’ll lay low anyway, just in case.”
“Good,” Sam said, his worry relaxing a small bit. “I’m going to sweep the castle. ...Stay safe.” He gave her a quick kiss on the forehead before the gray squares on his gauntlets and leg armor turned yellow and he ran into the castle to take care of any monsters he found.
“I will,” she promised. With that, two guards came up and escorted her to a safer location, while Sam turned to face the gaping hole in the castle walls. The sounds of screaming and the smell of smoke and dust filled his senses and fueled his rage.
Shadowy mist joined the yellow lightning flashing around him as he ran, bent on tearing down any monsters he came across. His progress was halted when a number of familiar green creatures greeted him in the hallway, and his heart sank as he saw the charred bodies of many a guard on the ground, most likely from previous Creepers.
The shadowy presence around him grew as he saw this, anger flaring as he banged the butt of his scythe on the ground to get their attention. When they turned, he lifted his scythe and brought it back before slashing it through the air. A wave of energy slashed through the air, decapitating every zombie in the hallway.
“Hmhmhmhm… Seems I’ve riled you up, young Ranger…” said a deep, reverberating and gravelly voice.
“So I finally get to meet the famous ‘Him’,” Sam said, seeming to relax his guard and rest his Scythe on his shoulder. “Why don’t you come out and fight me like a man, Herobrine?”
“Why waste my time on such a pest when I have armies to do that for me?” Herobrine chuckled darkly. “Speaking of which…” Sam was thrown across the hall by an explosion, and he swore he could feel his armor starting to shrivel up and wither away. Getting back up, he saw something he had hoped to never see in real life. A Wither. It’s three heads glared at him, while its ribs moved inwards and outwards, like it was breathing, but without lungs.
“I’d say ‘ow’, but I’m starting to get used to being thrown around,” Sam replied, demorphing as he faced his new opponent. “And this? Well, you’ve just given me a great sparring partner.” Black energy suddenly exploded from him as dark red and yellow Static jumped over him along with his usual green. Black, silvery energy swan in the whites of his eyes as his hair started to blow upwards. A new weapon materialized in his hand, looking like a trident except the two outer prongs curved out to either side while the middle prong extended out like a blade. The Wither shot three skulls from all its mouths, all three heading straight towards Samson.
Sam flashed out of sight, the heads detonating harmlessly. There was a sound of metal whistling through the air and the enraged Ranger appeared down the hallway, holding one of the Wither heads in his hand. “One down,” he said in an echoey voice before dropping the head and turning back to the boss monster. The monster screeched in pain, and Samson heard the sound of many a zombie groaning as they filed into the hallway, wearing familiar blue armor and wielding similar weapons and shields.
Samson let out a sigh before he shoved his hand forward, palm out. Air rushed to the zombies, and more importantly, inside them before expanding and tearing the monsters apart from the inside. When the last rotten body fell, he turned his attention back to the Wither. “Strike two,” he said before disappearing again and reappearing on the side of the skeletal being… in three different places. The three men swung their weapons and chopped off the second head before the one in front lifted a hand and detonated a ball of fire directly into the Wither’s chest, pushing them both back in opposite directions.
“Hm, so you have some skill after all…” came Herobrine’s voice as the Wither frantically fired off shots.
Sam dodged each shot and caught the ones he couldn’t with the curved prongs of his weapon, deflecting the shots back at the monster. “Or maybe your monsters just aren’t as terrifying as you think they are,” he replied in a growl before he stopped and unleashed a wave of wind that blew away the explosives, his eyes looking up into the Wither’s sockets. “Strike three.” He rushed forward, swinging his weapon blade down and splitting the monster in two. He landed on the other side, putting the weapon on his shoulder.
The sound of clapping greeted his success, and he turned to see the man himself walking casually towards him, no weapons, nothing but his signature shirt and pants. “Very good. I can feel your anger in the air. It’s intoxicating.”
“I haven’t even gotten started,” Sam said, his eyes narrowing as his aura faded, but the physical changes stayed behind. “Leave them be.” Herobrine quirked an eyebrow.
“Hmm? Now, why would I do that? These poor saps are the most entertaining bunch I’ve had yet! I can almost taste their fear. It’s quite nice, really,” Herobrine mused.
“Because now you’ve got to deal with me,” Sam replied, his voice becoming heavier. “And unlike them, I do not fear you.”
“Is that so? Well…” Herobrine snapped his fingers and a greatsword of diamond appeared in his off hand, while countless more created a circle around them, all ready to strike if Sam got close. “Why don’t you show me, Ranger?”
“Gladly,” Sam said, raising his morpher once up to the side of his face. “Go, Psycho.” In a flash, dark, steel colored armor that was iridescent in red and blue covered his body, his gauntlets and leg armor black instead of white while dark blue and red energy swam within the squares of his armors. The weapon changed as well, a longer scythe blade sprung from one of the prongs while two much smaller curved blades sprung from the other side. Sam settled into a fighting stance. “Let’s dance, phantom.”
Herobrine disappeared with amazing speed, coming up behind the Ranger and slashing at his back, causing sparks to fly as well as Samson himself, who barely stopped himself from being impaled by the ring of blades.
“That all you got?” Sam taunted as he sped back towards Herobrine, his scythe raised. He slashed down at his opponent, three more swings following his from every other direction. Herobrine suddenly grabbed the Rangers head, squeezing hard and even cracking the armor, before throwing him to the other side of the circle, where Samson stopped himself again. But he had no time to recover as Herobrine cut into the man’s arm, drawing blood.
“I believe that’s my question,” he responded smugly, licking the blood off the blade before raising his blade for another strike.
Sam was still for several moments… until he started laughing. The laughter racked his body until he threw his head back and was forced the lean on his weapon for support. “Really!?!” He suddenly asked, dropping his gaze down as all the damage done to him was reversed. Sam was suddenly beside him, gripping his face as green electricity flowed from his hand to Herobrine and back again, sending enormous pain through Herobrine’s skull.
But there was no screaming, no utterings of pain, only the sound of thousands of voices in Sam’s head, all crying out for his blood, for his heart, his flesh. Sam actually staggered back from the sheer intensity of it all, dropping Herobrine, who laughed as he stood back up, watching the man try to futilely shut out the voices.
“Well… I think I’ve played with you enough. My goal here has been achieved, anyway. But here’s a little gift before I go,” Herobrine snapped his fingers, dismissing the greatsword and summoning a spiked dagger, before brutally shoving it into Sam’s stomach. “There! Something to remember me by.” With that, Herobrine and all the blades disappeared, save for the one in Sam’s stomach.
Sam gasped as the blade pierced him, quickly reaching to it and yanking it out, his Obsidian form working overtime to seal the wound while Chris fought off the voices. After a few moments, it was done and Sam straightened up. “Well… that was a good field test,” he said, demorphing and beginning to walk back the way he'd come.
Hey, Sam? Chris questioned as they walked.
“Yeah?”
...Did you just do what I think you did?
Sam grinned widely as he lifted his hand, blue, brown, and white colored Static danced over it. A diamond sword appeared a second later. “Yeah,” the young man replied. “I did.” He dismissed the sword and continued walking.
Sam came upon a gruesome sight when he reached the end of the hallway. Many guards had arms or legs that were slowly withering away, while medics tried their best to tend to the wounds. The walls were crumbling as well, and the guards remaining were working on trying to stabilize the walls. Then, he saw something that made his heart sink. There, in the far corner, was a maid’s body, covering a filly who was still crying into the dead mare’s bosom, every now and again saying, “Wake up mommy, please!”
Sam stopped and his mind raced. He then raised his hand and it flashed with the Static again before a round bottle with purplish pink liquid in it appeared in his hand. He walked up to the first medic and got his attention. “Give them this,” he said, handing the medic the potion before moving on to the next and repeating the process. He did this until he had given each medic a potion, each guard receiving one. He then looked to the foal, his face falling to grief as he didn’t know what to do.
“Mommy...please...don’t leave me…” the filly sobbed. Sam’s heart fell even further into his stomach.
With a little hesitance, Sam made his way over to the foal before lowering himself down next to her. “Hey, kiddo,” he said in a soft voice to get her attention. The filly eeped and tried to hide in her dead mother’s skirt.
“Hey, it’s okay,” the young man said, softening his tone even more. “I’m not going to hurt you.” He held his hand out gingerly.
“Y-you’re not…?” she said between sniffles, slowly poking her head out from under the dead mare’s skirt.
Sam gave a kind smile. “Of course not,” he replied, keeping his tone.
“Wh-who are you?” she asked, finally coming out from under the skirt.
“My name is Sam Jaeger,” he replied. “What’s your name?”
“S-Silver Fray…” she said timidly, her mane living up to her name with its silvery color.
“That’s a pretty name,” Sam complimented, his smile still on his face before his face became concerned. “You’re not hurt, are you?” The filly shook her head.
“That’s good,” he replied, holding his hand out again. “Would you… come with me?”
“But… What about mommy?” Silver queried, looking back at the dead, cold gaze of her mother.
Sam’s face turned sad as he looked at the mare. “I’m sorry, Silver,” he said, his voice choking in his throat, tears building in his eyes. “But… I can’t help her….” The filly’s eyes welled with tears again and she rushed forward, burrowing her head into Sam’s stomach and crying her eyes out.
The young man wrapped his arms around Silver, rubbing her back a little. He stayed silent for several moments, letting the little filly cry a bit before he continued. “Where’s your father, Silver?” he asked.
“M-mommy said…” she began, before choking back a sob. “She said he didn’t want to...to see us a-again…” the filly said before she started to cry even harder.
Sam’s eyes fell, and he hugged the filly a little more, letting her cry a bit more. “Would you… come with me?” He asked, continuing to rub her back. The filly, after she started to recover, slowly nodded as she wiped her tears away.
“Alright, here we go,” Sam said, picking the filly up in his arms and standing up before turning them back to the medics and looking around for… something.
Dryad came down the hall, and when she saw Sam, she smiled wide and rushed over to him. “Samson! Oh, thank goodness you’re okay!” she cried, before noticing the filly in his arms. “Oh, who’s this little one?”
“Dryad, this is Silver Fray,” He said. “She, um….” The young man trailed off before motioning his hand behind him, out of the filly’s sight. Dryad gasped and tears brimmed in her eyes.
“Oh, you poor thing…” Dryad said sympathetically.
“Who are you?” the filly asked. Dryad forced a smile.
“I’m Dryad, it’s nice to meet you,” she said politely. Dryad glanced up at Sam, seeming to ask him for an idea.
“Is...Is mommy gonna be okay?” Dryad and Sam tried to look anywhere but the filly at those words.
Sam looked toward Dryad, trying to ask for advice with his eyes. She glanced back sadly.
“Your mother is…” she stopped for a moment as she saw the foal's eyes, before trying to quell her own tears. “...She’s gone, Silver.” Dryad finished morosely. The filly’s eyes welled with tears again, and she burrowed her muzzle into Sam’s chest once more. Dryad came up and wrapped both of them in her arms, and Sam and Dryad stood and waited for the filly’s wails to end. They were scarcely able to hold back their own tears.
Sam finally stopped trying and let a few tears fall from his eyes. “...I’m so sorry, Silver,” he said softly, leaning his head down a little towards the filly. Dryad gave up as well, and the three let out their sorrows to the world.
Sam and Dryad had just dropped Silver off with a maid, the little filly having fallen asleep after tiring herself out from crying so hard. The two adults were standing in front of the door to her room, both unsure what to say. After a little bit of time, Dryad spoke up.
“What should we do?” she asked softly.
Sam was silent for a moment before he looked at her with a sad look. “I honestly don’t know,” he answered, his voice almost empty. “Eventually I’m going to have to leave this world and go back to my own… and what can I do from a literal world away?” If Dryad had an answer, she didn’t speak it.
Sam sighed before glancing at the door. “...Don’t leave her alone,” he said suddenly. “It’s the biggest thing that could break her.”
“Right,” she said simply with a nod. She glanced back at the door, then to Samson. “What will you do? Are you going after Him?”
Sam thought for a moment. “I’m not sure I have a choice,” the young man replied. “He won’t stop until he’s brought down… or convinced otherwise.”
“Him? Convinced? You do realize who we’re talking about, right?” Dryad asked in surprise.
“I do,” Sam replied with a nod. “I also know what’s going on inside his head, and I’m not sure how he’s made it this far.”
“What do you mean?” Dryad asked, tilting her head to the side in an inquiry. “To my knowledge, he only thinks about destruction.”
“When we were fighting,” Sam began to explain, turning to face further down the hallway as his eyes went out of focus. “I used a technique that copied his skills, abilities and even memories. It put me in his mind for a few moments and in that time I was assaulted by voices yelling at me to murder, kill and destroy….”
“Are you sure that wasn’t just Him? It could have been his regular thoughts,” Dryad pointed out.
“It could have been,” he admitted with a shrug, looking back to her. “But I can’t afford to rule out any possibilities… especially not with you and Silver here.” Dryad went silent. Then, a guard came up to the two.
“Queen Dryad, Mister Samson, the Princesses wish to see you,” the guard announced.
Samson nodded before glancing at Dryad and offered her an arm. “Shall we?” He asked.She nodded as well and took his offered arm.
“Right this way,” the guard said as he led the two to the Princesses.
Sam followed the guard, his mind slipping into itself as he started to think over his next course of action. His face actually contorted to a point of looking like he was worried.
“Are you alright?” Dryad asked him, noticing his facial expression.
“Yeah, I’m fine,” he replied turning to look at her. “Just thinking over what comes next.”
“What comes next is we fight that creep,” Dryad asserted.
“No offense, but I don’t want you anywhere near him,” Sam said, looking at her. “I know it sounds cliche, but he’s on a level far beyond what I’ve fought before.”
“But those families-!” she tried to say.
“Have lost many loved ones,” he finished. “It’s horrible and sad and they deserve revenge… but you have a people that care about you and look up to you. Neither they nor I can afford to lose you….”
“...Alright, fine. But I want you to promise to be careful, okay? You’re the first to treat me as a regular doe than a stuffy old Queen,” Dryad pleaded.
Sam smiled at her, a little sparkle coming to his eyes. “I promise,” he said, reaching over and giving her arm a soft, reassuring squeeze. With that, the two arrived in the same room from earlier in the day. Inside were the royals of the many nations, as well one new one that Sam hadn’t seen before. It was a zebra, with simple fur wrappings made of leopard hide. She bore a spear along with a number of other javelins strapped to her back. Gold rings, with exotic engravings on them, covered her neck.
“Ah, Samson, Dryad, good, you’re here. I’m afraid we have grave news,” Celestia began.
Samson frowned. “What would that be?” He asked.
“The Vault has been raided. Nearly every artifact is gone,” Celestia said sadly.
“All but this, that is,” Luna said, placing a shimmering, greenish yellowish star-shaped crystal on the table in the middle of the room.
Sam walked forward and gave it a closer look. “That’s got to be His,” he said, not really wanting to pick it up.
“How do you know?” King Iron Hoof asked.
“Because that’s a Nether Star,” Sam said, looking up at the Minotaur. “Nothing screams Him more than that.”
“What’s a ‘Nether Star?’” Blade Feather queried.
“The Nether Star is a drop that one gets from killing a Wither, the second biggest, baddest thing in the Nether,” Sam began to explain. “It can be used to craft beacons, basically monuments that boost a player’s abilities.”
“That’s...interesting. Even more so when you consider how it was found,” Celestia mused.
“Indeed. Lock Stone was a hero through and through,” King Thorax agreed.
“I’m almost afraid to ask what happened to him,” Sam said, looking between the alicorn and changeling.
“He was a half-breed of Changeling and Pony, among the first. But he was the first to actually get a cutie mark. At a late age, but still. How he gained it is what makes it all the more remarkable,” King Thorax began.
“He created a device that effectively shut off the flow of energy created by the portals to His realm. Sadly, Lock Stone was the only one who knew how to make them, and His armies quickly disposed of any remains of the device. He was killed in the assault, but he bought us valuable time,” Celestia finished.
Sam raised a hand to his chin. “Do you remember what the device looked like?” He finally asked. The rulers shook their heads. “Well, crap,” he muttered. “I was thinking it might have been a beacon, but I can’t be sure.”
“Regardless, we have another matter to attend to,” King Stone Maw announced. “Namely, our late guest.” All eyes turned to the zebra at this.
Sam turned to look at the zebra, staying respectively silent.
“My home is torn asunder by an ancient blunder, and the days we have are few in number,” the zebra explained.
“From what you said in your letters, the Cult of The Ravager has surfaced again?” Stone Maw queried. The zebra nodded.
“They have regained their former strength. And their arm reaches an untold length. Last time, they wiped the Saddle Arabians off the maps, we will be the next poor saps,” the zebra expressed. “I, Nora of the Zebras, request your aid, please, do not let your hands be stayed.”
Sam clapped his hands together and rubbed them. “Well, guess I’ve got a target now,” he said. “When can we leave?”
“We have arranged a carriage already. The teams we promised are also ready. One hundred of each of our finest troops,” Celestia informed.
“If I may,” Sam said, stepping forward. “I’d like to add a new mandatory item for each fighter.” He lifted his hand and summoned a potion. “At least one potion of regeneration for each of them.”
“‘Potion of regeneration?’” Stone Maw queried.
“You summoned something almost exactly like Him…” Blade Feather noted, narrowing his eyes.
“That I did,” Sam replied tossing the potion from one hand to the other. “During the fight, I managed to gain his powers… before he stabbed me in the gut and took off.”
“That...is most remarkable. How did you manage that?” Celestia queried.
“I have yet to name it yet, but I can copy the abilities, skills, and strategies of others,” Sam explained. “All I got to do is get a hold of their head.”
“That is most impressive,” Stone Maw commended.
“Right, well, we haven’t much time. Samson, I suggest you get ready to leave. You have quite the journey ahead of you,” Celestia urged.
Sam gave a shrug. “I’ve got no gear except my morpher that never comes off,” he stated. “As far as I’m concerned, I’m ready to go.”
“I meant provisions and the like,” Celestia deadpanned. The rulers chuckled at the man’s silliness.
“Riiight,” Sam said, putting a hand to the back of his head. “Still not used to the whole… ‘body’ thing.”
“Hehehe, indeed,” Dryad giggled.
“A warrior must have sufficient food to keep up his strength,” Lord Torch affirmed.
“Any suggestions?” Sam asked. “I’ve never actually packed a lunch before.”
“Well, that would depend on your diet. Though the pastries the chef’s serve here are quite divine,” Dryad said.
“Guess I’m going to go to the kitchens then,” he answered, before looking around the room once more. “Is there anything else I should know, or that you want to know?”
“Well, now that thou’st mentioned it, We hath not heard how thou can travel betwixt planes, nor why thou’rt summoned with a trinket,” Luna noted.
Sam gave a smile. “That is an interesting question,” he replied. “I’m what’s known as a displaced, which means that I was taken from my home, given powers, and placed in my own version of Equis. That trinket, or Token, is infused with my energy and put into the void where it multiplies and goes to other displaced… He just so happens to be your displaced.”
“That is most interesting… How many more of these, ‘displaced,’ are there?” Stone Maw queried.
“There could be an infinite number of us,” Sam answered. “Some are good, some bad… some are just in between.”
“Hmm… So He could gain allies, then,” Iron Hoof wagered.
“Though He is likely to double-cross them,” Luna pointed out.
“Indeed. Samson, why don’t you head to the kitchen? We have urgent matters to discuss alone,” Celestia said.
“So that’s what that feels like,” Sam noted, before giving a short bow. “I’ll leave you to it then.” He turned to Dryad. “Guess I’ll see you later?” She nodded and gave a smile.
“That you will,” she said as she gave him a brief, but no less warm hug. The rulers chuckled at this but made no comment.
Sam smiled as he returned the hug before pulling back. “If you guys need me, you know where I am,” he said, flashing one last grin before turning to the door and starting to walk out of the room.
“And done and done,” Sam said, a smile on his face as he finished packing his provisions. “You’re being very quiet, brother.”
Just taking a page from your book and getting some training in, Chris replied. And thinking… lots of thinking.
“Yeah, that’s about all you can do,” Sam replied, before putting the pack on and walking back out to the hallway.
It’s boring as Hölle…. Do you think that filly, Silver, will be okay?
“No idea, but I plan to find ou-”
“Mister!” cried a familiar, young voice as Sam felt something collide with his legs. Sam let out a huff of breath and struggled to keep his footing before looking down. What he saw was the adorable emerald eyes of the filly he had found earlier. Silver Fray. “Where are you going?” she asked innocently.
Sam stared wide-eyed for a moment before he lowered himself down to one knee, a soft smile replacing his shocked features. “There are some zebras that need help in their homeland, and that’s just what I’m going to do,” he explained.
“But… Who will take care of me? I’m all alone now…” Silver said, started to cry.
Sam’s face turned sad and he reached up and drew her into a hug. “Oh, Silver-”
“I’ll take care of her while you’re gone.” Sam looked up to see a sphere of silver light, wisps of red and blue coming off of it. Sam stared for a moment. “Hey… bro.”
“Chris?” Sam questioned, his arms loosening a bit from around the filly.
“Who’s th-that?” the filly asked, noticing the sphere.
Sam looked between the filly and the floating sphere. “Um, Silver, this is my brother, Chris,” he introduced.
“Hello,” Chris greeted, the sphere dropping down a bit more and coming forward.
“H-H-Hello…” she greeted timidly.
Chris gave a little chuckle. “It’s okay, you don’t have to be afraid,” the glowing sphere assured. “Besides, I’m nicer than Sam.”
“Hey, I resemble that remark.”
“You said ‘resemble, not ‘resent’.”
“I know what I said.”
“Umm… I-I just came here to see Mister Sam off. Queen Dryad is taking me in, she’s really nice,” Silver told them.
Sam smiled at that. “That she is,” he said softly. “You sure you’re gonna be okay, kiddo?” The filly nodded before giving Sam a tight hug.
“Thank you for everything, Mister Sam,” she whispered quietly.
Sam’s face looked a bit surprised for a moment, still not used to this sort of attention, before he smiled again and wrapped his arms around the filly as well. “No problem, Silver,” he said quietly. “And if you ever need me, I’ll just be a call away….”
“Right,” the filly replied, before releasing the man and running back down the hall.
Sam stared after Silver Fray until she disappeared out of sight, staying silent the entire time. Chris slowly floated closer to his shoulder. “...You’ll miss her a lot, won’t you?”
“More than I’ve ever missed anyone before,” Sam replied before standing to his feet. “Now come on. We have a job to do, and we can’t mess up this time.”
“Rodger,” Chris replied before he dissipated. Let’s go kick some arsch. Sam nodded and started to walk down the hall towards his destination. They arrived at a sea of armored beings, from Griffons, Minotaurs, and Diamond Dogs, to Changelings and Ponies. There were few dragons, however, and those that were present looked to be adolescents. All along the runway were countless carriages, and as Sam took in all the sights, he was approached by one member of each race.
One was a Diamond Dog that wore heavy plate armor of some kind of brass alloy, face and body covered entirely. Silver engravings decorated the armor. A large hammer was strapped to the dog’s back.
The Changeling wore simple studded leather armor and had eyes not unlike King Thorax in that they were not just orbs of bluish green, but had actual pupils and such. Her eyes were a captivating and electric blue. A number of daggers were strapped to numerous places on her armor, most of which looked like throwing knives, but were still of good enough size to function as standard daggers.
The Griffon was carrying a stylized bow with swans as the riser, their heads situated around the nocking point. The griffon himself was wearing chainmail and bore the head of a crow. His eyes were a striking golden.
The Minotaur wore splint mail, a large great ax strapped to her back. Her ruby red eyes sized Samson up quickly before she snorted. She was a big female, and Samson’s head only came up to her chest, which, to his embarrassment, was quite bountiful despite the splint mail.
The pony was none other than Shining Armor, who had his signature decorated purple armor and longsword. He gave Samson a once over as well, before smiling lightly.
The Dragon was a tall lad with brown scales and cerise eyes, and he wielded nothing but a greatsword and wore scale mail that was a bright red. The six of them eyed up their new officer.
“So… You’re Samson Jaeger?” the cow asked.
“Thought he would be taller,” the diamond dog commented.
“I am Samson and forgive me if I disappoint,” Sam said with a short bow of his head. “I suppose you’re all my new team for this little outing?”
“That we are. Pleasure to meet you. Name’s Shining Armor,” Shining greeted.
“Mag Pie,” the griffon introduced himself.
“Final Will,” the cow said curtly.
”Plessius,” the changeling said with a bow.
“Basker,” the Diamond Dog said as he clapped his armored chest.
“Tiny Winy,” the dragon rumbled.
Sam gave a grin as he looked over them all. “It is good to meet you all,” he stated. “I look forward to this more and more. Also, I have one rule… please try not to be formal. Makes me feel kinda awkward.”
“As you wish,” Plessius conceded.
“Fine with me,” Final Will grunted.
“Alright then,” Shining said.
Sam let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you. Now, what exactly are your specialties, if you have any?”
“Assassination and stealth,” Plessius answered readily.
“Long range support, and tracking” Mag Pie replied.
“Front-line offense,” Final Will, and Basker said simultaneously.
“Defense,” said Tiny Winy and Shining Armor.
“Guess that leaves me as the all arounder,” Sam said nodding his head. “Last order of business, when do we leave?”
“Whenever you’re ready. We’re fully prepared,” Shining Armor answered.
“Then let’s not waste any time,” Sam said, his seriousness coming to its apex. “The longer we wait, the more time His army has to cause damage.”
“Right!” the six chorused. They lead Samson over to a larger carriage, and they all piled in. To Samson’s imminent embarrassment, he was squished between the two females.
“Any idea how long this trip is supposed to last?” the young man asked, his trigger finger itching a bit as he kept his eyes on his feet until someone spoke.
“About...say, eight hours,” Shining informed Sam.
“Huh,” the young man said before leaning back and rubbing under his chin with the back of his hand. “I was actually expecting it to be longer. Wake me when we get between one and two hours away from our destination or there’s an emergency.” With that, he closed his eyes and fell into his inner world.
After training with his brother in his mind, Sam woke back up. He immediately noticed that the two females were slumped over him, Plessius’ head on his shoulder, and Final Will was nearly smothering him in her bountiful chest.
Sam tried to remain still so as to not disturb them, mostly afraid of what the cow might do to him if she found him pressed against her like he was. Instead, he settled for looking around at the carriage’s other occupants.
Shining Armor was drooling and mumbling in his sleep, Tiny Winy was awake, if the sight of him sharpening his blade wasn’t obvious enough. Basker...well, Sam couldn’t tell if he was asleep or not with the helmet on. Glancing outside the window, Sam noted it was night. He continued to look out the window before everything came crashing down on him. “Oh, what the hell am I doing?” The young man whispered.
Here he was, fighting another world’s war when his own waged back home. He thought of all his friends and colleagues he had basically abandoned. Sam closed his eyes again with an angry frown at himself before lightly bumping the back of his head against the back of the carriage.
“‘A pint of sweat saves a gallon of blood,’” came the voice of Tiny as he slid a whetstone across his blade.
“Um, I’m sorry,” Sam replied, still keeping his voice low. “That just kinda went over my head.”
“Work hard to save more innocents,” Tiny Winy amended.
“Ah,” the Ranger said in understanding before leaning back his head again. “That makes it sound so simple….”
“Nothing is simple,” Tiny responded easily, dragging his whetstone across his blade again as Final hugged Sam tighter.
Sam winced ever so slightly before relaxing again. “You can say that again,” he sighed. “It always feels like when you have everything figured out, it all goes straight into a nosedive.”
“That is the nature of leadership,” Tiny replied, scrutinizing his blade.
The young man went silent for a moment. “...Then I guess it’s time to get off my ass and do what I’ve always done,” he muttered. “Adapt.”
“Indeed. Many need you. Some more than you may think,” Tiny said, sparing a quick glance at the Ranger before returning to looking at his greatsword.
Sam’s mind immediately went to Dryad and Silver. The moments in the glade with the doe, the hug shared between him and the filly in the hallway. If there had been any cracks in his wall before, they were quickly sealed up by the strength of his determination. “Thanks, Tiny,” he said. “I needed that.”
“Don’t mention it,” the dragon said as he started to clean his blade, taking a cloth out.
Sam started to think on the things to come, going through all of the strategies he had tugged out of Herobrine’s head so that he could try to formulate a plan. But he just couldn’t figure it all out. The strategies were, for lack of a better word, incomplete. Like Herobrine had noticed right away and set a trap...or some kind of ward was protecting his mind a bit. Whichever it was, none of them would be nice to see coming to fruition.
Damn, we’re in a bind, Sam muttered mentally.
That we are, Chris agreed. But at least having something is better than nothing. We just have to start filling in the gaps.
Sam nodded to himself. If nothing else, we can try to surprise him with a few of our own twists. The mental brother ‘nodded’ and fell silent as the two waited out the rest of the ride, trying to puzzle some of the better parts of their opponent’s strategies to form one of their own. That night, the wind blew coldly over the desert land of Zebafrica. And not just because it was night.
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Awesome chapter my friend and I can't wait for the next upload for this story I'll be waiting my friend and keep me posted on the story thanks
7952007
In case you haven't seen, chapter 14 is ready for your viewing pleasure!
7954106
I'm glad you're enjoying it. As always, I'll be as quick as possible... without losing quality anyway!
7954305 sweet I'll be waiting my friend
When did he get gold?
Do all the displaced worlds take place in different times?
Damn, is he outside the window?
Damn, they packing.
How did they get that?
What does he mean by that?
Is he possessed or something?
Is she talking about chris or sam?
That’s a thing?
Which is?
So I’m guessing this isn’t psycho black?
When could he do that?
Why did he demorph?
What does he mean?
Did he just combine suits?
So he can make diamonds, now?
Don’t they have his token?
He can do that?
Welp, that’s probably your fault.
Mimicry?
Really?
Does he have the omega rangers ability, now?
I thought Chris was watching silver.
Cow?
Didn’t know he had a trigger finger.