League 03
Old and new heroes
The call of the open skies was something that beckoned every pegasus, and Rainbow Dash was no exception. Before her transformation, she lived for the soothing caress of her magic stroking the wind. Her connection to the Speed Force added an entirely new dimension to the experience. It was as though she could see in color for the first time; it made something she loved even better.
She was heading home from the Dragon Lands at speeds no other Equestrian could manage. She had tuned the Speed Force's protective bubble to allow enough air flow to simulate a leisurely flight while travelling at hypersonic speed without generating a shock wave. Despite Twilight's anxiety, this was just another routine flight. As nice as it was, the sameness of these flights left her craving for something to break the monotony. Her heart raced as she imagined some real action, a fight against a foe as powerful as she. Frowning, she quashed that thought. The last time she had faced a metapony opponent, she had lost a dear friend. Worse, she had lost a part of herself; the Reverse Dash had destroyed her faith in her innate goodness. She now knew that she had a dark side, and that made her all the more wary of her emotions.
A familiar voice crackled over her commlink. “Dash! Dash! Come to Canterlot Castle! We’re under attack!”
Ruefully, Dash smiled. If the Canary were this worried, it had to be something big. She replied, “Be there in a flash, Canary!”
“Arrow and the guards are friendlies. They’re after the princess!”
The outside world smeared into a blur as the pegasus fully embraced the Speed Force.
Most ponies considered the Royal Guard to be little more than decoration. It seemed that all they did was to stand around in dress armor and attend the minor annoyances that might spoil the princess’s day. On a good day, they might even rescue a kitten from a tree.
The invaders were learning the truth the hard way. Despite their normal routine, the guard was a highly competent military force. They worked in teams to force their opponents to face the strengths of each guard. In the audience chamber, a pitched battle raged, with the Solar Princess as the prize. Unicorns blasted the invaders back with magic. Pegasi attacked with wind and weather. Earth ponies fought with spear and hoof.
A normal army would have been brought to heel by this spirited defense. This was not a normal army. They did not feel pain, confounding attempts to stun. They did not breathe, thwarting attempts to suffocate. They did not retain physical damage, negating efforts to destroy.
The world abruptly came back into focus as the Dash stopped over the castle. A quick circuit of the grounds revealed that creatures of mud and algae were streaming in from every door and window at ground level. Despite the efforts of the guards, the creatures simply streamed past the defenders, leaving the ponies trapped like insects in amber.
Dash activated the commlink and said, “Hey! What did I missed?”
A male voice cut in. “Dash! Celestia’s under attack in the audience chamber!”
In an instant, the speedster bore witness to the bedlam within. The guards had formed a defensive perimeter, but they were slowly losing ground, even with the blasts from the Solar Princess. A concussion arrow forced the invaders back from a beleaguered section of the perimeter.
Celestia snarled, “This changes nothing, Arrow.”
The Arrow replied, “Not the time, Sun Butt.”
The guard commander gasped, “Need more help!”
A cyan blur streaked back and forth, into and out of the room. With each trip, a guard who had been trapped outside appeared within. After a moment of nausea, each joined the line, allowing the perimeter to expand.
The Dash frowned when she saw the princess. The royal was sweating even more than her guard. It was only a matter of time before they were overwhelmed. Dash shouted, “Everypony! Hang on! This is gonna suck!”
The pegasus moderated her speed as she flew circles around the room, generating a gentle updraft. The spellcasters in the room all switched tactics, casting anchoring spells on themselves and their allies.
The Dash unleashed the power of her magic. A cyclone trailed behind her, taking all of the creatures in its wake. Once she had ensnared the creatures from outside as well, she took them at full speed to their new home in uninhabited Ponynesia.
Satisfied with a job well done, she cruised homeward. The Arrow’s voice came over the link. “There’re even more of them now!”
In a fraction of a heartbeat, the Dash was back on scene. Despite the reinforcements she had brought, the ponies were in even more dire straits. The creatures were beginning to crest, forcing their way over the defenders.
One creature dropped down behind the defenders. It had scarcely taken a step toward the princess when a black, bat-shaped blade embedded itself half way into the creature’s head. The red crystal in the center of the blade flashed rapidly before detonating, removing the head in a spray of mud and algae. The body collapsed, completely inanimate.
A filly in soft black armor fluttered down from the skylight. Her black cape resembled bat’s wings. Each flank was emblazoned with a black bat on a steel gray circle.
In an amplified whisper, she said, “They’re not alive! Aim for the head!”
Heeding her advice, the defenders began decimating the horde. Celestia asked, “Who might you be?
“I’m Batmare.”
“You look more like Batfilly to me.”
The filly gave an irritated groan before firing her ascender.
“Where are you going?”
“Do you think you’re the only princess here?”
Celestia gave a horrified gasp. “Luna.”
In the Lunar Tower, outside the royal bedchamber, the stairwell served as chokepoint where a handful of the Lunar Guard and the Canary could keep the invaders at bay. The Canary’s hooves were dirty from climbing over the creatures to give warning, and she used her telekinesis to use her bo staff against them while the guards formed a phalanx. As with their solar brethren,they were slowly succumbing to exhaustion. Relief came in the form of a black-clad filly. In an amplified whisper, she said, “They’re not alive! Aim for the head!”
The Canary could not help but give the filly a critical look. Canary had chosen her peach-colored fur and blond mane and tail to hide her identity. The black domino mask, bodysuit and boots were fashionably hiding its gadgetry. Despite its attempts at sophistication, the Batmare outfit was positively gauche, functional, but little else.
Turning back to the battle, the Canary said, “Cover your ears. I do believe I am going to take the stairs.” The unicorn took a deep breath. Cisco’s amplifier was set to its maximum. Canary set her original scream spell to boost the amplifier's output. The scream that followed obliterated the stairs and everything on them.
The doors to the bedchamber swung open, revealing the Princess of the Night with sleep mask and fur askew. “What in Tartarus is going on!?”
The guard commander snapped to attention. “We are under attack, my liege. The filly gave us the key to victory.”
Exasperated, Batmare replied, “Anypony with half a brain could have figured it out.”
Luna eyed the filly. Her gleeful smile faded when she realized what was behind those empty eyes. “What is this secret? Who are you, filly?”
“Those are golems. Aim for the head.” Snarling, she added, “I’m no filly; I’m Batmare.”
Luna looked over the ruin of the stairway. The creatures were climbing atop each other to reach the princess. With a predatory grin, she said, “Let me show you why I earned the title Night Mare.”
Back in the audience chamber, Celestia said, “The tide is turning, but we could use more hooves.”
Dash nodded. “I’ll call for some help.” She keyed her transmitter. “Twi! You’re not gonna believe it! Some mud monsters are attacking the Princesses! Arrow, Canary, and I are on it!”
“Kinda busy here, Dash!” answered Twilight’s voice through the link.
As a new wave of monsters streamed in, the Arrow griped, “They just keep coming!”
Dash grinned. “Why don’t I just invite them all in?”
Again, the anchor spells were cast, but instead of the tropics, the creatures were brought high into the audience chamber, where the defenders had no problem picking them off. Dash easily dodged their attacks while maintaining the air cushion.
Twilight’s voice came over the commlink. “Rainbow Dash! Go for the head! That’s their weak spot!”
“I know Twi, Batmare told us a few minutes ago!”
Celestia prepared two spells. She commanded, “Dash! Down!” A powerful shield spell pinned the invaders against the skylight. With a hint of anger, she said, “Everypony, look down and cover your eyes!” The chamber went white as she brought power of the sun to bear. When it was safe to look again, the skylight had gained a new layer as the creatures had been melted to glass. With a dismissive snort, Celestia restored the feature to her liking.
As the defenders caught their breaths, the Lunar guard entered, forming a pathway to Celestia. The Solar Guard interspersed themselves in their ranks in a show of unity.
The Canary walked in and bowed to Celestia before taking a place among the guard. Finally, Luna walked in with Batmare at her side.
“You, I warned you to go home!” said the Arrow, aiming his bow at the filly.
“Shut up, Cupid!” said the Batmare, unimpressed. “You already showed you need my help.”
Luna added, “Indeed, my dark knight has shown there is much we need to discuss.”
Batmare continued. “Somepony is attacking Equestria. What I want to know is who has the power to create an insane number of golems.”
“Golems?” asked Dash.
“Creatures without intelligence, animated artificially to chase one objective,” explained Celestia, walking to Batmare, along with Canary. “This requires a lot of power and a lot of time. A simple golem is easy to make, but not something this durable.”
“And tenacious,” added Luna.
“Alicorns,” said Batmare. “From what I saw, the things were after alicorns.”
Canary looked at Dash. “Do you think . . .”
“Twilight said she was busy. She sounded like she was in trouble. Then, she called to tell me about the monsters’ weakness,” said Rainbow Dash.
“That's impossible!” said Luna. “Nopony is powerful enough to make that many! Right?”
“I’ll go for Twilight!” said Dash, disappearing in a streak of light.
“Wait! What about Cadence and Flurry Heart?” asked Canary. But Dash was already gone.
Two seconds later, the cyan speedster reappeared with a perturbed purple alicorn on her back.
“Twilight Sparkle! You’re okay!” said Celestia, relieved, as she walked to hug Twilight.
The junior princess rushed to the nearest restroom. The. vigilantes cringed at what they heard.
Stepping back into the room, Twilight glared at Dash and said, “I left my stomach in Ponyville.”
“At least you’re in one piece,” said Dash, with a shrug.
“Thank goodness you were spared the attack,” said Celestia.
Before Twilight could answer, Rainbow spoke. “She’s in one piece, not her castle.”
Twilight gave deep sigh.
“There was a lot of collateral damage. Fortunately, I had some help.”
“What kind of assistance?” asked Princess Luna.
“The same kind you had,” said Twilight, “a couple of vigilantes like Arrow, Canary, and Rainbow Dash.” Then, she turned to Batmare. “And you, I don’t know you.”
“It doesn’t matter,” said the newcomer. “So, what about the Crystal Empire? Do you think they were attacked too?”
“I sent them my backup,” said Twilight. “I just hope they’re okay. I’m sure they could handle any sort of trouble up there.”
Everypony turned to Rainbow Dash.
“Okay, fine!” groaned Rainbow, as she rolled her eyes. “But, you better have something for me to eat when I come back. Speedster metabolism, remember?”
She disappeared in a streak of light, only to return a half second later.
“That was fast even for you!” said Princess Celestia, genuinely impressed.
“They were already on their way,” explained the speedster. “You are not going to believe this!”
Before they could ask her what she meant, an unfamiliar zooming was heard over the castle. Several guards rushed out to see what it was, fearing the worst. They were not disappointed.
It was a green jet, an unknown machine for the ponies. Most of them, including Batmare, Arrow and Canary, prepared to fight. But, the thing landed, and then disappeared, revealing Princess Cadence, and their former captain, Shining Armor. Trailing behind was a baby dragon they all knew, dressed in a black and green suit.
“Sorry for the delay!” said Lantern Spike happily. “But, Alicorn Marevel had to be home in time for supper, so we dropped her off.”
“Alicorn Marevel?” asked Celestia.
“Drop her home?” asked Luna.
“Yeah, today was a long day, so I’m not worried about details yet,” said Cadence. “But it’s true, we dropped her off at home, where we met her parents. Nice ponies.
“Today was weird,” sighed Shining Armor. “But, at least Flurry is safe thanks to them!”
“Glad to hear it!” said Twilight.
“The help you sent was amazing,” said Shining, winking an eye at the dragon.
“Thank you Spike,” said Twilight, hugging Lantern.
The dragon gently stroked his emerald ring. “You’re welcome. It was my duty to my family, and the Corps.”
“The Corps?” asked everypony.
Spike sighed. He couldn’t put off the explanation any longer.
“Let’s put it this way: there’s an intergalactic police force, and after finding one of them about to die, I got recruited. The ring chose me.” He showed the ring to everypony. “So, during the two weeks I disappeared, I was on Oa, the central planet of the Green Lantern Corps, training. And now, this section of the galaxy is supposed to be under my protection.”
“But, that’s not possible!” said Twilight. “Yes, I heard Spike saying he was recruited by an intergalactic police force, but he must be wrong. I mean, I’ve been watching the stars for years, and there’s no evidence that there’s life on other planets.
“Say whatever you want, but I saw them with my own eyes.”
“And, seeing the power of the ring in action, I can tell this is no magic,” said Cadence.
“All right, this is interesting, but, what about the Alicorn Marevel?” asked Celestia.
“Oh, she’s explaining the situation to her family,” said Spike. “We agreed that they deserved to know the truth before anypony.” He turned to Rainbow Dash. “Oh, Rainbow, your family is waiting for you.”
“Spike, this is important. I’ll go later!” said Rainbow.
“You better go Rainbow Dash. Spike knows what he’s talking about,” urged Twilight.
“All right, if you say so.”
And she disappeared in a streak of light.
Finally, Batmare fired her ascender through the skylight. “Very well then, it’s a relief that there are more meta-ponies, and a meta-dragon involved. This attack was only the beginning.”
Once on the roof, she jumped, extending her cape as bat wings to land softly on the roofs of Canterlot.
Stats
Page generated in 0.033 seconds
Total duration
987 users online
2,112,795 hits today, 2,707,512 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Alright, well done and glad to be first review to new chapter. The scene was short but effective. Tactics used rocked and what was needed for now was covered. Hmm, kind of wonder if Blackest Night may occur here. Plenty of dead this run to pick from.
Still wondering on Trixie learning about Starlight, cause I know that'll be rough.
Where in Chaos is Discord during this mess?
Either Celestia or Twilight should call the first meeting of the Justice League of Equestria sooner than later.
8803246
It'll be Twilight or Luna. I'm hoping it's Twilight.
I think they need to be called "meta-creatures" at this point. Also, why couldn't Alicorn Marevel have been a part of this meeting? Batmare was. So, I believe this is all of the League, or will there have to be another addition to the team some time in this story?
So, how soon until Batmare's identity is revealed to the others?
Ten bits say within three chapters.
8803760
This is why she wasn't at the meeting