Guardians of the Elements of Harmony

by mcb893

28. Number One Enemy

Moore ducked into a small chamber, watching as Princess Celestia nods to a guard who is hooded. She briefly speaks to him and he bows, backing away. Moore looks around the chamber, lit only by torches, so it still had the presence of being very dark. Twilight stood terrified by his side, he wasn't faring much better. His heart was beating twice as fast as normal, and he could feel it pulse in his head. He looks back over to the princesses, and there are two guards pulling a stone door open. This was all very medieval, it still had the cheery bright colors of the castle, but it felt like a different building none the less.

"Quickly, come." Celestia said, authority and power booming in her voice. Moore nods and slowly steps forward. Looking at the guards faces, there is only a blank expression. Whoever these guys were, they were good at remaining serious. Looking back to his front, Moore sees the princesses standing in front of a book case. Looking around, he notices that there is several others, though they appear dusty, like they have not been tended to for quite some time. Turning back to them, they ask him to come next to them.

"What is this place?" Moore asks.

"These are the secret archives, they are hidden away from the public due to the graphic, and horrible nature contained inside." Luna says. Moore stops for a moment, just standing there. This world had experienced atrocities before? Why hadn't this been brought up? Turning back to him, the princesses call for him to keep up.

"Were you aware of this?" He asks looking down to Twilight. The frightened mare just shakes her head as she weakly trudges forward. Moore is in a state of confusion when he is told to stop. Looking back to the princesses, he sees them motion to a table in the middle of the room. The room is lined with book shelves, much like the last one. Only, these ones appeared to have been recently read, as several books lie open on the floor.

"Please Staff Sergeant, we must explain." Celestia says with a sympathetic face, though her tone is solid. Moore nods and slowly takes a seat. Next to him, Twilight and the two guards from earlier sit. Celestia walks over to a shelf and grabs a book with her magic. She flips the pages as Luna grabs a book as well and starts searching through that one as well. Moore taps his hands against the table nervously, unprepared for what he may hear next.

The princesses find what they need and place the books on the table. Princess Celestia points to a specific area on a page and Moore begins to read.

Hostilities to the Elements of Harmony #1: Mercuito, Demon of Disharmony and Evil

Mercuito was a despicable being that arose out of Discord's violent acts. Shortly after he was defeated and Princess Celestia and Princess Luna assumed power, a strange creature arrived in Hoofington and slaughtered over twenty ponies, enslaving the rest. Upon discovery, there was a mass panic, and many more villages fell victim to his attacks. It took fourteen months to put a stop to him and he was banished to eternal darkness. But by then, over 2/3 of all the ponies in Equestria had been killed, or horribly wounded. He did not reappear for another 300 years, until Princess Luna was corrupted, and became the fearsome Nightmare Moon. The long imprisonment in darkness had driven him insane, and he had learned how to create creatures of darkness, who feasted on the blood of ponies. Alone, Princess Celestia was forced to set up a more forceful program for royal guards, forcing young stallions to come to service, in order to protect the civilians. It took two years for the Guards to push back his offensives. In the third month of the third year, a mass offensive, consisting of over 15,000 Royal Guards and some 90,000 other forces due to town militias. The death toll was massive, consisting of over half of the guards as well as nearly 1/3 of all the militias. When captured, Mercuito was banished back to the darkness, but this time, was also cursed to know what was happening to him, and unable to become insane, so he would suffer trauma for all time. The effects were long lasting though, over 3/4 of all the ponies in Equestria were killed, with another 1/2 of the survivors being either severely traumatized or mentally unstable. A state of mourning was declared, and lasted for 2 months. This period of mourning occurred every year and would stretch from the day on which the first attack began, and the day Manehatten was rescued from annihilation. 200 years after the second attack began, Princess Celestia noticed a mass state of panic among the citizens. Reluctantly, she erased memories of the events surrounding Mercuito, and ordered all books detailing him removed from public archives. Royal Guards are taught about Mercuito, and are considered one of the few things that they are not allowed to speak of in front of innocent civilians. Mercuito is currently locked away in darkness, as he will remain as long as no chaotic events occur.

Moore stared wide eyed at the page, he couldn't believe that something this horrible could happen to a race this peaceful. Coming out of his trance, he started by asking who Discord was, which was explained in great detail by the princesses. A despicable monster who left Equestria in an eternal state of disharmony and chaos. Regardless, he seemed like a saint compared to this guy.

"But... why is he doing this?" Moore asks. The Princesses shake their heads.

"We do not know, but it is obvious that he wants to control Equestria. As well keeping very few ponies alive to work as slaves." Celestia explained. Luna let her head fall and shed a tear.

"That second attack could have prevented if I had just been more understanding..." She said. She began to weep, and Celestia comforted her. Looking back at the book, Moore thought for a moment. This guy showed up whenever violent, chaotic events occurred, so there had to have been something to trigger it. Turning to Twilight, he tried to ask her, but she was overcome with fear and shock. The guards simply sighed and shook their heads. Thinking again, he thought for a moment...

"What chaotic events have occurred recently?" He asked as he stood. Looking to him, Luna sniffed and stepped forward.

"Well, Discord was revived from his stone prison, and the Elements were briefly corrupted..." She said with a shaky voice. Moore nods, looking back to the guards, who still stand there, seeming troubled.

"But that couldn't have been it... It's been a year since that happened." Twilight said, finally out of her trance, though she still breathed heavily. Moore realized something.

"Because he knew you would still be on alert..." He said out loud. The Princess raised an eyebrow as Moore stood.

"Of course! It's so simple! Mercuito knew you would still be on edge from Discord, so he waited for you to be off guard, that way, he could have the element of surprise when he attacked!" He shouted. The ponies considered this, and agreed. Then Moore began to think again, wondering how this tactician could be beat against his own game, surely his arrival of him had not been expected, but now what?

That's when it hit him. Moore looked around the library, finding a map of the land, and spread it out across the table.

"I need to know some areas that have been taken over." He says as he places books on the edges to keep it unfolded. The princesses stare at him in confusion, but list of a couple of names. Moore writes down the towns named, which include Manehatten, Hoofington, Mareami, Kansas Hay City, and numerous others. Moore grins and observes the map.

"That's just it then... he doesn't expect any offensive strikes... That would be against logic, and he knows it. We need to disturb his logic. Liberate some cities, increase the amount of civilians we can keep protected, probably would get more Royal Guards to help out in the fight too." He said as he drew some battle plans. The Princesses and the guards watch in anticipation, watching as he carefully planned tactic after tactic. Soon they even started helping out.

"Our soldiers will stick out like cats in a dog park, stealth isn't an option." A guard said as he observed a small area representing a town called Baltimare. Moore thinks for a moment, thinking of what to do. He gains a devilish grin, and leans forward.

"Then we just have to kick down the front door." He says. Turning to Princess Celestia, he sees her nod in agreement. Moore draws out a few plans, and points to Baltimare.

"This is the closest city, so that's where we'll start. Princess, with your permission, I would like to lead a battalion of guards and my squad in to liberate the area."

"You have my permission."

"Princess Luna?"

"Yes... I agree."

"Then let's get started."

Comments

[Vyesna]

2565725 which one?

[grim dash]

It's time to go to war