U-Knighted We Stand
A few minutes earlier...
Back at the village, the townsponies had finished barricading the door of the inn and were now all huddled inside. Great Taste, Salt and Pepper were now giving out the food they had prepared, trying to ration it out as much as possible.
"Here you go little guy," Pepper said as she poured some soup into a colt's bowl. The colt smiled and gave his thanks before moving over to Salt, who was now giving out bread rolls. "Next."
While this was happening, Great moved over to the front door with a few plates of food. There, the strongest of the town's stallions and mares were keeping watch. "Anything?"
A stallion shook his head, a low huff following, "Not yet. But who knows what that mad stallion that's behind all this could have up his sleeves. We can't afford to let our guard down, even for a second."
"I'm sure the knights have everything under control," Great replied as he gave the stallion a plate. "They saved us all and now they're gonna stop those psychos."
"Maybe...but we can't put all our faith in them. If by some chance they fail, I want to be able to keep everypony safe. I refuse to allow my family to be taken away again." The rest of the guards all nodded in agreement, Great also agreeing as he continued to give them the rest of the food.
But as he made his way through the soldiers, loud hoofsteps could be heard rushing down the inn's stairs. Everypony glanced at the wooden steps, only to see a mare appear. She was panting heavily as she yelled, "You ponies have gotta come up to the roof!"
"What is it?" Great asked.
The mare's face soon contorted to what could only be described as a combination of fear and confusion, which she then used to reply, "Its...its something....I don't know what it is! You just gotta see it for yourselves!" She then turned and ran back up, her hoofsteps still loud as she may her way to the top.
Everypony exchanged worried glances before Great, the stallion he was talking to, and several others rushed up after her. She lead them to a door that lead to the roof of the inn. After a few moments of organization from moving in one group, all of them were outside. There, the mare pointed in the direction of the crater they had just escaped from, only for everypony's eyes to go wide in shock.
"What...what in the world is that?!" Great asked in amazement. What he was looking at was a giant vortex-like tornado, only it wasn't made out of wind or clouds. He grabbed a pair of binoculars the mare had just offered him and looked through, only to shiver at the next sight. The tornado seemed to be made out of stone and dirt. "What's going on?" Great asked nopony before giving the binoculars to another so they could take a look.
"It just...appeared," the mare who had brought them up explained. "I was on lookout, trying to spot if those cloak things were coming back when that suddenly appeared. I came down to tell you as soon as I saw it, but...but..."
"But what?" The stallion looking through the binoculars asked.
The mare's lips trembled as she quibbled out the next few words, "its much much bigger than when I left to get you all. Like, its twice the size than when I was first looking at it."
Hearing this, Great and the others exchanged another round of worried glances. As they did this, another pony piped up with a large gulp, "If uh...if that's the case....um, I don't want to ask this but...how much longer until it gets here?"
"We don't even know if it will come here," Great told the one who asked that.
"But I'm pretty sure that's something we need to worry about," another added. "I mean, if that comes for us...well, I don't know what we could do."
"Maybe we could evacuate?" The mare suggested, only to get a tilted head from Great.
"And go where?"
"As far away from that thing as we can," she replied as she shook all over. "Though I don't-"
"Wait!" The pony with the binoculars interrupted as the viewing device shook in his hooves, "Something's happening to the tornado!"
Everypony turned back to the vortex, their eyes just barely seeing the tornado in the distance. It was here that they saw it had stopped growing, but they couldn't see why. They then turned back to the binocular pony, Great asking him, "What's going on? Give us some details!"
"I...I don't know. It looks like...it looks like the tornado is making something."
"What do you mean?"
"Umm....I'm not sure. Hold on a second." he commented as the others waited with baited breath. And so, several minutes passed as the pony continued to watch, describing everything he was seeing. Slowly, the rocks and dirt within the tornado stopped swirling and spinning, all of them now merging together into a solid shape. This shape was a colossal of the highest magnitude, and only when its form was complete did the stallion recognize what it was before saying what the sight was.
"A pony?!" Great repeated. "You can't be serious! Why would a tornado make a giant rock pony?!"
"See for yourself," the stallion gave him the binoculars, Great soon replying by looking through the glass. And just as he had been told, the figure now standing in the crater was that of a giant unicorn pony made entirely out of stone.
"I don't believe it," Great gasped as he lowered the binoculars but continued to stare. "I don't...I don't understand."
"What do you think it is?" A stallion asked next.
"Please tell me this is the knight's doing," a mare added.
"I don't know," Great said as he gave the binoculars to another pony. "All we can do now is keep watch and pray that whatever's happening is happening for the better."
The other ponies all nodded in agreement, not liking the plan but knew it was all they could do for now. That is, till the pony currently holding the binoculars saw something new, "Hey, what's that?"
Everypony else turned and saw something moving towards them, and it was being pulled by a pair of winged creatures. Great quickly grabbed the binoculars, his eyes focusing on the new figure. He instantly recognized them, especially the two pegasus stallions that were now pulling a crystal cart. "Its the knights!"
Smiles appeared on all of their faces as they saw the chariot land, causing Great to spin around and rush towards the door. The rest of the ponies quickly followed as they all headed downstairs, the group soon making their way outside. As they did this, the chariot stopped in front of inn, in which the knights lifted a pair of ponies on the backs of Iron and Skybreaker. Seeing their injuries, Great immediately asked, "What happened?"
"Long story," First replied as he started to direct Iron and Skybreaker, "Right now, I need space to properly examine these two. Do you have a spare room we can use?"
"Yes. Follow me." With that, they all headed inside the inn. Great went first to tell the ponies inside to clear a path to the stairs, allowing Iron and Skybreaker to get through with no problems. "This is the biggest room I have," Great explained as he opened a door in the second floor. "I'm sorry if its not big enough."
"Thank you," Skybreaker said as he stepped inside and placed his comrade on one of the two beds. Iron did the same with Lightning, First soon following after he told Great this was more than enough room.
"Lightning is fine. He is magically exhausted and suffering a strong case of fatigue, but nothing deadly. He needs rest more than anything else." First responded as he gave the unicorn another scan. He had already examined them while in the chariot, and had a feeling Lightning was okay. Then, he turned to Grand as a slight glum frown appeared on his face, "As for Grand..."
"How is he First?" Ruby asked as she and the rest of the knights entered the room.
"Still too early to know for sure. Give me a few minutes." He pulled out Crossbolt and used its magic to connect to Grand, the gear now showing him all the damage that had happened to Grand's body. "Hmmm..."
Flash moved over to Grand's side, looking down at his mentor with fear in his eyes. His mind flashed back to the Battle of Canterlot, where he had seen Grand fall ill. Back then, he looked just like this. He was so sure that Grand would be okay when he left for the fight after that, only for Fluttershy to later tell him, Lightning and Iron the news mid-battle. He had almost died, and now history was repeating itself. "Grand..."
He felt a hoof on his shoulder, making him turn to see Skybreaker with a look of confidence on his face, "It's okay kid, you don't have to worry. Grand's gonna be fine. He's a tough old mule." Despite the sure look on his face, Flash could see the fear in his eyes.
But before he could say anything, First spoke up, "I am done with the analysis." They all looked to First, who was now lowering his Celestic Gear. There was an unreadable yet purely analytical look on his face, one that no one could understand except a certain mare in the room, Heather Bloom.
"I know that look. Give it to us straight First," Heather asked as she pointed to Grand. "Is he gonna be okay?"
First sighed as he pushed his glasses up his nose. "I am afraid that it is bad news. Personally, I do not care for what I am seeing here."
Tidal then stepped in front of Heather, "Grand's gonna be alright though, won't he amigo?"
His question was met with a sigh as First replied, "All creatures in this world carry some form of magic in their bodies. Magic users like unicorns, Alicorns and others have the ability to stockpile it for spells, but they are not the only ones with it. Earth pony strength, pegasus flight, even the aura Springer uses to an extent. We all have magic. It is part of our very being, like blood."
"What does that have to do with Grand?" Springer asked with a tilt of the head.
First looked down at the stallion before taking off his glasses and rubbing them with a handkerchief, "All of the magic within Grand is gone, drained right out of him. Like I said, magic is like blood. And like blood, if you lose a little of it, you will still be fine. If you lose a lot of it, you can still be okay depending on the situation. But lose all of it and...well, I suspect you all get the idea."
Everypony looked down at Grand, nopony wanting to say a thing. The silence was eerie, hanging over them like a shadow before Ruby whispered, "Grand..."
"It is not just that he lost it either," First continued as he put his glasses back on. "It is the way that it was simply ripped out of him that has done most of the damage."
Again, the silence shrouded over them before Skybreaker turned to First, "is there anything we can do?"
First shook his head at this. "He needs magic, and by magic, I mean his magic. Not a transfer from somepony else, as that is meaningless with this condition he is in. Only when that is returned will he stabilize and have a chance of survival. But he needs it soon."
"And how long is it before it's too late?"
First looked back at Grand, another sigh following, "My best guess would be...it would be morning. In particular, sunrise."
For a third time, silence fell upon them. The very thought of losing Grand was now in their minds, making them all realize just how far this mission had gone. But before anypony could say anything, a coughing sound rang out in the room. They all followed the noise and saw Grand, now waking up from the ordeal. He opened his eyes and stared at them all, "what are you all looking at? I got something on my face or something?"
Everypony laughed at this as Heather moved over to his bed. "We're just glad you're awake. Try not to move too much, you've been through a lot."
"Maybe...but I still got work to do." Grand muttered as he tried to move his body. "Doom's still out there and he has all of my power. He could reshape the land like its nothing now. He needs to be stopped."
"But not by you," Skybreaker said as he put his hoof over Grand. "You're in no position to fight."
"Don't give me that," Grand replied as he swatted Skybreaker's hoof away. "I'm not giving up that easily. Where's my Grand Slammer?"
It was Ruby's turn to put her hoof down, stopping the old knight from getting up. "Its downstairs. Not that it'll do you any good anyways. Its been drained of all it's magic, just like you."
Hearing this, Grand sighed before laying back down. "I can't believe I let Doom get this far. I'm a failure."
"You're not a failure Grand." Flash told him next. "You may be out of this fight, but we're still here. We're not gonna let Doom do what he wants."
Tidal nodded at this. "That's right amigo. We said we'd stick with you till the very end, and that's what we're gonna do."
Grand looked around the room, at the faces of the ponies who had come to lend him their support. It was here that he noticed they had gone further beyond the very concept of support. While he was off chasing his son, they had defeated Doom's quartet and freed the ponies of the island. Now they would need to do even more, they would have stand in for him in the fight against Doom. Seeing this, Grand let out another sigh, "Very well. I'll leave it in your hooves for now. But don't any of you fail, you hear me?"
They all nodded with small smiles before Skybreaker gestured to the group, "Come on everypony, let's give Grand some time to rest."
With that, they all stepped outside. There, Ruby spoke up first as they walked down the hallway, "You think he knows?"
"That he has only a few hours to live?" First replied with a cocked eyebrow. "Almost definitely."
Everypony sighed as they headed downstairs.
Back at the crater, the fifty meter stone giant simply stood there. Within it, we find Doom. He was inside a small section inside, one that had little free space, but his hooves appeared to be covered in mud that was slowly spreading up his legs. The Omni Sphere floated in front of his chest as a series of pants followed from his mouth. The energy he had stolen from Grand Hoof was now flowing inside the orb, which was now connecting small strands of energy into its new master.
"Power...so much power..." Doom moaned as he felt his mind sink into the magic the sphere was giving him. "Soon father, so soon...once I've fully merged with the Omni Sphere's power, I'll make my way to your precious Equestria. Its magic...all of its magic will be mine! I'll pay a visit to Canterlot first and suck those pathetic alicorns dry, then I'll head over to that Ponyville town I've heard so much about. That'll be fun, maybe drain them into husks. Then...who knows, maybe the Crystal Empire? As long as it has magic for me to take, I don't care where I go." With that, the mud spread further and further up until it reached his knees. "Yes...yes, I can feel it all. It feels...wonderful."
As this happened, Doom remembered everything leading up to getting the power he now had. Finding the city, capturing the villagers, unearthing the ruins and releasing the tomb. The memories kept flashing in his head, along with the visions of his minions failing over and over. It was here that a big smile shined on his face, "I don't need any minions anymore. I don't anyone!" Then, the memory of him fighting his father and son entered his head, "Grand...Lightning...oh Daisy, our son is such a disappointment. Lightning, you could have had all this alongside me. Alongside what Daisy, your mother, would have wanted....but no. No, you let your fool of a grandfather get in your head! Why?! Why would you let that powerless ancient relic of a pony get in your head?! Now I don't have a choice." The mud continued to creep up his legs. "Now the power is mine and mine alone. Such a disappointment."
Back at the inn, Flash was sitting at the bar, watching the ponies of the town work with each other. First and Heather could seen moving around the room, administering first aid and anything else the ponies might need. The rest of the knights and Springer had headed up to the roof to keep an eye on the colossal that now threatened to simply walk through the town and turn it into a pancake.
Seeing the many families work together reminded him of his own. Twilight, Scootaloo, Spike, Shining, Cadance, Night Light and Velvet, along with all his other friends across Equestria. All those he considered apart of his family, they were all now in great danger. He turned back to the bar, crossing his front legs on it before resting his head and shutting his eyes. Grand and Lightning were down for the count, the rest of them were all tired from everything they had been through that day and their enemy was now more powerful than ever. He sighed into his hooves, only for his ears to flicker as the sound of something being placed on the bar in front for him caught his attention.
He opened his eyes and raised his head, only to see a steaming bowl of soup and bread roll sitting in front of him. He looked further up and saw Great Taste. "You'll never be able to save the day if you're fighting on an empty stomach."
Flash smirked as he grabbed the bread and ripped it apart before dunking it, taking it out once fully soaked. Flash could not help letting out a moan as he put it in his mouth, "Its really good. Thank you."
"Its the least I could do," Great replied as he started cleaning down the bar. "Especially after everything you guys have done for us."
Flash let out a snort at the compliment. "We didn't do much."
"Oh yeah? You putting your life on the line for a bunch of ponies you don't even know is nothing much?" He looked up from his cleaning and right into Flash's eyes. "You knights did the impossible for us. You gave everypony here hope when we thought we had lost it all. Don't say you didn't do much, because I get the feeling you're not a liar."
A small smile started to form on Flash's face as he stared at Great. "Thank you."
"No...thank you knight Sentry." With that, he headed back into the kitchen and left Flash to enjoy his soup in peace. Once he was finished, the pegasus squire left his bowl on the bar and headed upstairs.
Up on the roof, the rest of the knights were watching as the stone unicorn simply stood there. A certain young jakhowl let out a sigh as he kept staring at the figure, "What's it doing? Why isn't it, you know...moving?"
"It probably can't yet," Ruby said in a low grumbling tone. "Doom must still be integrating himself into it."
Tidal nodded at this. "Agreed. No doubt that when that villano is fully linked to the beast, he'll move it telepathically the same way he'd move his real body."
"So what are were waiting for?" Iron asked as he tightly gripped Piecemaker in his hoof. "Let's get over there and take him down before he's fully linked with it!"
"How?" Skybreaker asked his apprentice. "That thing's made out of solid rock and enhanced by the sphere. Even if we combined our attacks, I doubt we'd even get a quarter of the way inside."
Ruby sighed at his statement. "Doom and the Omni Sphere are likely in the very center of the construct, where the heart would be. That's the thickest area of rock, meaning we'd have to break through that to get to him. Not only that, if he knows we're attacking, he'll know what to do in order to protect himself."
"Exactly," Skybreaker said as he nudged Iron, "That's precisely why we can't just go off half cocked and without a plan. We need to be smart about this." He looked back at the stone titan and low out a depressing hum. "What we need is to be up and close with the body, see if we can locate a weak spot. We couldn't do that when he summoned that giant stone vortex earlier. If we had been caught up in that, we would be torn to shreds."
The others all nodded before Skybreaker turned towards the door leading downstairs, "I'll go get the others. Once we're all together, we can come up with some kind of a plan."
Once he was gone, Tidal went over to his saddlebag and pulled out a book. The sight made Ruby raise an eyebrow, "Is that a two way journal?"
"Si," Tidal replied before opening it up. "I'm ordering my ship to come closer to the shore. We don't need to be stealthy anymore and the Mighty Leviathan will likely be the last line of defense if that thing gets to the ocean. After all, that villano said he wants to absorb the power of the portal. We must make sure he doesn't get his hooves on that amigos."
"Wait...does your ship even have any sort of weapons?" Iron asked him. "When we were last on it, I didn't see a thing."
Tidal chuckled at this, shaking his head, "The figurehead on the front of the ship isn't just decorative amigo. Inside that holds a powerful magic cannon. Though considering that's rock goliath's size, I doubt it'd even scratch the surface. Even so, it is more than worth a try in this situation." Tidal finished his writing as he said his last words, "There. The ship will be near the shore within the hour."
"Let's just hope that's soon enough," Springer added as the rest nodded at the jakhowl's statement.
When he arrived on the second floor, Skybreaker spotted the door leading to Grand and Lightning's room was open. He looked inside and saw Flash, staring down at his mentor. This made the pegasus sigh as stepped inside and tapped Flash's shoulder. "You doing okay kid?" Flash turned to him, the look on his face giving the answer immediately before the apprentice looked back at his mentor. "I know this is hard for you. Grand was one of the first ponies you ever forged a bond with, isn't he?"
Flash nodded. "He was the first pony to believe I could be more than what I was when he met me. Before I met him, I was just a foal on the streets, something not worth anypony's time." A slight teary-eyed sniff followed the next words, "I wouldn't be here if he hadn't seen my potential, potential I didn't even know I had back then."
Skybreaker chuckled at this, "He made a good choice. You might be young, naïve and headstrong, but you've got guts and heart. That'll go a long way in this business, trust me." Skybreaker then saw that Flash's expression wasn't changing as he started down at his mentor. Seeing this, the pegasi let out a long sigh as he said, "Hey um...I'm sorry about how I treated you and Springer when this all started. I know I still kinda need to apologize to him, but-"
"It's fine," Flash interrupted, still not looking at Skybreaker. "Don't worry about it."
Skybreaker put his hoof on Flash's shoulder, slightly gripping it as he said, "No, it's not kid. You didn't do anything to get on my bad side, yet I treated you like you had, and I'm sorry." A low huff followed as he then said, "And...and I did that because..."
Flash turned to him as confusion now graced his face, "What?"
Skybreaker sighed again. "Because you remind me a lot of me when I was your age, back when I first joined the Royal Knights." Flash's eyes went wide at hearing this. But before he could say anything, Skybreaker continued, "As you've probably noticed, we knights aren't the cheeriest bunch. We're serious folk, especially birds like us. Pegasi knights are as serious as they come at times. After all, why else do the Wonderbolts exist as well?"
"Yeah...I guess I could see that. But why did I remind you of you?"
"I knew it the moment I saw you." Skybreaker admitted as he turned and stepped over to look out the nearby window, "You're an act first pony, much like other young pegasi. In fact, pegasi knights are rare because of this." He looked back at Flash with a face that showed nothing but grim experience. "Its this naïve, happy-go-lucky act first nature that makes others see you as weak. Its why I did kid....and I'm sorry." The knight glanced back at the window, "I'm sorry because...well, because I've seen that kind of dangerous behavior burn way too many Royal Knights."
"Really?" Flash asked as he walked up to Skybreaker, getting a nod from the knight.
"I was just like you when I first joined the Royal Knights. Talented, cocky," Flash smirked at the praise. "Dumber than all my teammates," that smirk quickly vanished.
"Wait, who says I'm dumb?!" He asked, only to get no reply.
"I used to rush in head first without thinking about the consequences," he turned back to Flash again. "The same way you did when you went to free the prisoners." The apprentice knight looked down, a little bit of shame filling his heart.
He didn't regret doing that, but he realized now that the situation could have gone a lot worse when he did so. "I'm sorry."
Skybreaker sighed again before looking out the window once more. "I was sorry too on the day my rash actions finally caught up with me. And it cost me the most important thing I had." He glanced back and saw Flash staring at his metallic wing. "No, not that. But it did happen on the same day."
Flash felt a twinge of fear, but asked anyway. "What happened?"
Skybreaker let out a long huff, "I...I killed my mentor." He watched Flash as he showed the reaction he had expected, wide eyes and a fully dropped jaw. "As you probably know, I was inducted into the Royal Knights after saving both Canterlot and Cloudsdale from a griffon attack. Because of that, I was never an apprentice knight and was instead placed under the supervision of another knight until I learned the ropes."
He then leaned his back against the wall as his body slowly slid down it until he was sitting right under the window. "That knight became my closest and most trusted friend. He helped me master my Celestic Gear and stood by me through many missions. But like I said, I was cocky and took too many risks. I thought I was invincible, until I finally found myself against an opponent that was...well, you know the saying: 'There's always someone better'."
"And this led to you killing your mentor?" Flash asked while tilting his head in confusion.
Skybreaker nodded. "My opponent was a unicorn, with swords skills the likes I'd never seen before or since. My mentor and I had been hunting him down and when we got a lead, I rushed in and tried to take him down alone. But...I was a fool thinking I could win." He glanced at his metallic ligament, "I lost so much that day, including my wing. But that doesn't matter. I...I should have died that day."
"But you didn't." Flash stated as he sat down beside Skybreaker.
"Yup. You wanna know why?" Flash nodded at this as a small tear went down Skybreaker's face. "Well...I didn't die because my mentor leapt in front of me and took the hit. And by hit, I mean him getting himself stabbed in the heart." Flash's eyes went wide at this, his mouth unable to make talk as Skybreaker continue, "My mentor took that chance to injure the unicorn. As he got hit right in the heart, my mentor struck the guy's horn." Tears began to fill his eyes, "I...I won so easily after that. I beat the guy with ease since he couldn't use his horn. And yet...I...I can still see him. Sometimes when I close my eyes, I find myself looking down at him." The knight started to wipe away his tears as he continued, "I...I still remember what it looked like. I remember being covered in his blood...watching as he took his last breath."
"That's awful," Flash told him, unable to think of anything else to say.
"Yeah...it is." Skybreaker said as he looked over at Flash, "And that's why I was so harsh on you before. It took me months to get back my confidence, and even then I still had trouble." He looked down at the floor in shame as he continued, "When I saw you smiling and joking around like I used too and that you were a pegasi...well, I'm the kind of pegasi that instantly judges other pegasi, even when I shouldn't. That and uh...it made me...well, it made me remember my own experiences doing that and what it cost me. I shouldn't have done that...but I'm still naïve after all this time." He let out a low dark chuckle, "I didn't want you to make that same mistake and I'm sorry kid. I shouldn't have judged you like that."
Skybreaker looked back up at Flash, only to see a smile on his face. But before he could ask, Flash chuckled as he said, "I appreciate your concern, but you're a little late. I've already made that mistake." Skybreaker raised an eyebrow of confusion at this, which made Flash point to the X shaped scar on his chest. "I didn't get this thing in training. I got it when I fought against Sombra at the Crystal Empire."
Skybreaker's eyebrow rose slightly. "Oh? And what does that have to do with me being late?"
Flash let out a long sigh, rubbing his face while grumbling. "Well, for starters, I did everything I could when fighting him but...just like you said, I met my better. When I fought Sombra, I was joking around, making fun of him as I tried to stop him." Air flew out of Flash's nostrils as he admitted the next part. "But Sombra...if I'm honest, and you can ask Ruby on this one, he might be tougher than anything we've faced here on this island."
"That's a tall order to say kid."
"But I guarantee its true, even if you don't ask Ruby." Flash immediately replied, "I...I couldn't even scratch him. The guy was basically invincible, as any blow would instantly be healed. And if you're wondering, his body could heal the wounds, not unicorn magic."
Skybreaker slightly hummed at this. "Okay, I could see a tough fight out of that. But what does that have to do with you..."
Flash raised his hoof, "I'm getting there. For starters, I completely lost. Heck, even if I did stand a chance, all I could do was slow him down, as the Crystal Heart was the only thing that could beat him. Thankfully, my friends got to it and used it on him..." He rubbed his chest after saying this, "But I wasn't left uninjured. He pierced me with his scythe, so much so that another inch in and...and he would have got my heart. I almost died, and would have if Ruby hadn't got me back to the empire in time."
Skybreaker crossed his hooves at this, a huge frown on his face, "Let me guess, this is when it happened."
"Yup. After that, I started to change. I stopped joking around and acted all doom and gloom. I stopped listening to my friends and tried to do everything the Royal Knight way. Basically, I became like you are."
Skybreaker raised his eyebrow again at this, "So what changed? Why'd you stop being...like me?"
Flash gave him a huge smile. "My friends made me realize that I can still be serious but not forget who I really am. When I'm scared or when I'm up against something I have no idea about or...when I'm up against somepony I know I can't beat, I can still make jokes. Even if everything is wrong, I can still giggle at the ghosties." He saw Skybreaker's expression show more confusion at this, "Inside joke. But I am serious about stopping Doom, helping others, and being a knight Skybreaker. And I know I'm not invincible, Sombra showed me that. But if I am gonna be a knight, I'm gonna be one that fights with a smile on his face because I know when others see that smile, even if it's only a little smile, they feel safer."
Skybreaker smirked at this, a small series of chuckles following. "You know kid, I think you're gonna be one heck of a knight someday."
Flash's smile would not stop growing at this, especially the joy of hearing praise from the pony he had idolized since he was a colt. "Thanks."
But as the mutual respect had just started, everything came to a halt as the sound of the door being thrown open could be suddenly heard. The duo quickly turned and saw a certain jakhowl yell, "We've got a problem!" But before he could say anything else, a shushing sound came from the pegasi before pointing to the sleeping ponies. "Sorry. Forgot about that." Springer's turn red with embarrassment for a second before pointing behind him, "but you've gotta come see this. Doom's finally on the move."
A few minutes earlier...
"Yes...yes...I can feel it all now. Power...so much power."
Back inside the colossal, Doom's entire body was now completely covered by the mud. The only part of him still showing was his head, thought the liquefied dirt was quickly spreading up it. The Omni Sphere had also been covered, though it was still connected to the unicorn. It was here that everything but his face was consumed, meaning he was ready. As such, his eyes shot open, revealing them to be blood-shot as the Omni-Sphere's magic flowed into his brain. A series of screams followed as the overwhelming magic took its time devouring his already unhinged brain.
Then, one last outcry pierced through the rock titan.
"It...is...TIME!" With that last outcry, the mud around his body glowed, the light now spreading throughout the entire construct. The cracks between the rocks that made up the colossal's body glowed with this same shine as it slowly began to move. At first, it was only the head, slowly moving from one side to the other as the rest became animated.
Despite not being able to see a thing outside his new form, Doom could tell where everything was and where he needed to go. "Never thought I'd have to learn to walk again," Doom told himself before thinking about moving his front and back legs. The colossal did the same, stepping forward to the edge of the crater. Once there, it held pulled itself out of the hole, each step violently shaking the ground. But as it walked, it showed its power as the earth flattened into many mini-craters, all made from just one step of the titan.
Doom laughed even harder as he walked. "Yes...I have the power now. I am unstoppable...I am invincible! AHAHAHAHAHA!!!" Another layer of magic aura shined from the rocks of the colossal as Doom then said, "Now...time to send those knights a warning of my new, unending supreme rule."
Back at the inn, Flash, Springer and Skybreaker had just reached the roof to see the colossal rock monster make its way out of the crater. "This is really bad," Skybreaker commented as he took the binoculars from Iron. "If he's that big, he could squash this whole town with one strike." The knight put down the eyeglass and gave the others a grimace. "We need to evacuate the town. Now."
"And send them where?!" Iron asked as he pointed at the titan. "Nowhere on this island is anything gonna be safe against that."
"My ship should be able to hold them," Tidal said next. "We could send them through the portal to Equestria if absolutely necessary."
"They will not be safe there for long," First added as he glanced at Tidal. "Though to be fair, they will not be safe any place now."
"You're right," Skybreaker continued as he passed the binoculars to Flash. "Our only hope is to rally the Equestrian army."
"So we're just gonna let that guy into Equestria?! Are you nuts?!" Springer barked back, "That thing could stomp a city in no time!"
"I get what you mean Springer, but I don't think we have much of a choice," Heather told him while patting his shoulder. "I mean, we're just a few knights and-"
"Err...guys? I think we have a new problem." Flash spoke up, the tone making the others worried.
Everypony turned back to him as Skybreaker asked, "What is it?"
"I'm...not sure," Flash replied as he gave his senior the binoculars. There, they saw the rocks around the colossal's back begin to crack apart before sliding off towards the ground. As they hit the earth, the rocks started to take shape. It was here that all of the knights grimaced as they saw what the rocks were morphing to. The stones began to swirl in a ball-like shape, only for rock wings to appear out of the stone sphere. Then their shape changed until they showed themselves as large stone birds, all of them taking to the sky as large rocks morphed under their stony claws.
"That's bad," Springer commented as he watched more and more rock birds appear.
"Looks like Doom's showing us what else he can do," Ruby added as she tapped her necklace. "This isn't good."
"We've gotta stop 'em!" Flash yelled as he gripped his Celestic Gear and spread his wings. With one mighty flap, he shot off the roof and into the sky.
"Kid's got the right idea." Skybreaker said next as he did the same. "Everypony guard the inn. If any get past us, turn 'em back or turn 'em to dust!"
"RIGHT!" The others all replied as they left the roof, weapons in hoof.
At the same time, Flash and Skybreaker flew towards the flock, both weapons ready to destroy the incoming enemies. But before they could reach them, the birds dropped the rocks they were holding. Said rubble hit the earth, only to morph into what looked like large stone cats, all of them rushing towards the village. Seeing this, Flash groaned as he finally cut the first rock birds, "That's not good! We already got our hooves full with these birds!"
"Let the others deal with them!" Skybreaker told him as he cut down two birds in one swipe of this gear. "We got to deal with these first!"
"I know!" Flash barked back as he fired a barrage of Flash Cutters. "Let's do this Skybreaker!"
As they continued to light up the sky, the rock cats rushed towards the inn at high speed. But as they got close, a certain jakhowl appeared in front of the impending monsters. "Aura Blast!" he yelled as a Aura Sphere tore through three cats in one go.
Tidal, Heather and Ruby appeared behind Springer as they started cutting down the army of rock creatures as well. At the same time, Iron and First gave a volley of support as they raised their weapons to the sky, their gear knocking out a series of rock birds. It was here that First shot another group of arrows from his crossbow as he said, "Like shooting fish in a barrel!"
"Don't use that expression in front of Fluttershy," Iron joked as he fired a series of metal spears into the sky. "She'd give you the stare for that one."
As the knights continued to fight against the beasts, the villagers were watching through the windows. It was here that they spotted a stone cat rushing towards them, their guards bracing themselves. But as it pounced towards the inn, a metal pole fell from the above, crushing it into dust. The civilians sighed as they saw this, stress pouring over all of them as they continued to watch the knights.
"Flash Cutter!" Flash yelled as another series of energy waves cut through a whole group of rock birds.
"Sky Grinder!" Skybreaker spun into a wheel of wind, the attack turning into a spinning whirlwind that sliced through another group of birds.
"Tidal Whip!" Tidal spun around while unleashing a surge of water, his trident whipping a slash of water that instantly turned the rock cats into mud.
"Ruby Hammer!" A crystal mallet followed this battle cry as Ruby slammed the earth, a small quake knocking a group of rock cats off balance. "And now....Crystal Sabers!" A pair of swords appeared as Ruby cut the group with two slices, tearing them into pebbles.
"Bloom Coil!" Heather wrapped her chain mace around several of them, pulling them all together into a compact ball of stone. "Now Iron!"
"Iron Lance Fury!" Iron yelled as series of metal missiles into the sphere, destroying them instantly.
This all continued for half an hour, all of them tearing through the monsters like paper. But as they did this, they made sure not a single rock monster got through. And as this happened, the knights took down the last one, that being Flash as he landed and slashed a final rock cat, "Is that...is that all of them?" Flash asked through haggard breath.
"I...think so," Skybreaker replied as he landed as well. "Whew...what a workout."
Beside the two warriors was Ruby, who was looking over the remains of one of the cats. "This is bad. If Doom can do this with only one piece of stolen magic, what else will he be able to do if he gets more?"
"We can't think about that now," Tidal told her. "We need to get the villagers to my ship. Now."
But in that moment, the doors of the inn were ripped apart as the ponies inside rushed out in a mad panic. "We need to get out of here!" A stallion cried as he ran around in circles.
"But where?" another mare cried. "We're stuck here with that monster!"
"ANYWHERE!" Another mare screamed in fear. "As long as it's away from that monster!" The rest of the citizens continued to simply run around, logic and survival instincts overrode by fear.
"Everypony! Please calm down now!" Skybreaker yelled as he took the air, only to fall on deaf ears. "Please, we can help you! Just stop for a second!"
The rest of the knights all tried to calm the ponies down, but none of them were getting results. As such Iron signaled the knights, all of them quickly huddling towards the earth pony as he said, "This is bad. We can't deal with panic riot right now!"
"Agreed. Getting these ponies to the ship will be impossible if they're like this." Heather added as she glanced back at them.
"So what do we do?" Springer asked as they all turned to Skybreaker, their expressions begging for an answer.
"I...I don't know," he replied in staggered breath, "I'm not sure what to do now. I'm sorry."
"Well, we gotta think of something. Doom's still on his way and we don't even have a plan yet."
"And if he can do that with only Grand's power," First grumbled while holding up a piece of rock. "Then imagine what he could do if he got all of us."
"Then we don't have a choice. We've got to get out of here." Skybreaker admitted, the others sighing as they all nodded in agreement. The knight then turned to Flash, "Flash, got get Grand and Lightning. The rest of us will try and calm the locals down and get them ready to leave."
Flash nodded as flew into the inn. Rushing into Grand and Lightning's room, the sounds of the commotion outside echoed as he entered before stepping over to Lightning. "Lightning, wake up."
Lightning let out a moan as a small yawn escaped his mouth, "What? I'm trying to sleep Sentry."
"Well sleep's gonna have to wait. We need to get out of here." Flash then moved over to his mentor's bed, "Grand, I need you to wake up."
Grand's eyes cracked open as he looked up at Flash. "What's the matter kiddo? And what's with all that noise?"
"The villagers are...yeah, they're terrified." Flash told him with a sigh. "Your son just sent a horde of rocks monsters and...lets just say it made everypony scared."
Grand wanted to sigh at this, his body pushing him back from groaning, "So Doom's mastered my magic. That's not good...we don't have much time left."
"Which is why we need to get out of here. Come on, let's get you outside."
"No," Grand replied as he raised a hoof. "We can't let Doom get any further than he already has. We have to stop him here."
"But how?" Flash asked as he pointed to the room's door. "There's only eight of us able to fight, and if he gets any of us, he'll be even more powerful than before."
"Maybe...but if he gets to the portal, then he'll be unstoppable."
Flash sighed, having forgot about the portal. "If he absorbs that magic-"
"Then he'll be able to teleport over vast distances," Grand finished as he rubbed his face in despair. "He'll be able to appear anywhere, attack and steal magic from any place in the world. He could get to Canterlot in a snap. You...you have to stop him before he gets that far."
"And again, I ask how?! We have no idea how to stop him Grand! We don't know what else he can do or what weakness that sphere has!" Flash let out a long groan as he sat down by Grand, "Plus, we're not exactly organised right now. Without you leading us, we're lost."
"Then the team needs a new leader. One that can inspire hope in not just the knights, but the ponies of the town as well." With that, he turned to stare at Flash.
The apprentice knight instantly realized what he was getting at, his hooves quickly waving back and forth at his suggestion. "Oh no, I can't do it. I'm not even a true Royal Knight yet, I'm...I can't lead Grand. I'm not that pony." Flash then looked down at the floor, depression on his face as he sighed, "I'm...I'm not that kind of pony Grand. I can't do it."
But as these words left his mouth, a hoof tapped his shoulder. He looked back up, his eyes now staring right into Grand's confident eyes. "You can do this Flash. You've passed the Great Test, and you've already proven yourself as a leader. I believe in you my boy."
A small yet faltering smile started to form on Flash's face, "You...you really think I'm worthy? Grand, you heard what Doom said about me and how I've affected your family. I can't-"
"Don't." Grand interrupted, a glare following that made Flash wince. "Don't even think about what he said back then. Every bad thing that's happened to him is mine and his fault. You're not involved in the slightest." Grand's expression started to form back into a smile, "You've forged a strong bond with each of the others knights, earning a trust needed to lead others. You can do this Flash, you're the only one. You...you can stop Doom." Flash wanted to say he was wrong, but Grand's face melted all those fears away as Grand then said, "Now stop feeling sorry for yourself kiddo, and go get these ponies under control. That and stop Doom of course."
Flash nodded before turning to Lightning, who was now getting up. "I'll get the old stallion outside. You focus on what you need to do Sentry."
"Thanks Lightning." Flash said as he ran out the door, soon leaving the inn to see that the villagers were still panicking. Seeing this, he took the sky and pulled out Lightbringer, a bright flash following as the shining blade embraced the sky with a shining light. This made the panicking ponies stop for a second, which was enough for the defender as he yelled, "Everypony listen!" These two words made them come to a halt, only for Flash to then yell, "Now I know you're all scared, but you need to listen to me! You're all in danger right now, so we have to get you to safety!"
"And where the heck are we supposed to go!?" A stallion cried out to him, his comment gaining murmurs from the rest of the crowd.
In response, Flash pointed towards the coast. "My friends and I arrived here on a ship that's big enough to take you all away from here. It'll take you to our home of Equestria, where you'll be protected. But you don't need to worry about your home, because my friends and I are gonna stop that monster that's heading our way!"
This announcement confused not only the villagers, but also the knights and Springer as one of the villagers yelled, "How the heck are you gonna stop something like that?"
Flash just shined a confident smirk. "We're the Royal Knights. We fight monster like that on a weekly basis, and that thing over there is no different." The smirk was just barely enough to make them feel safe, making Flash feel relieved as he saw that they were all starting to calm down, "Alright. We're gonna go stop that thing, but you guys being here will make it a lot harder. So here's the plan. Everypony gather up any essential item you need and started heading to the coast."
"What if those rock monsters come after us?"
Flash was about to instantly reply, only to come out a halt as he scratched his chin in thought, "Right...good point. Guess we'll need to have one of our team come with you."
"Who?"
"Um..."
"Me," said a voice, making them all look down and see Springer stepping forward. "I'll get all of you to the ship."
The statement made Flash shine a huge grin as he landed down by the jakhowl. "Alright, you heard my partner. Springer here will keep you safe, trust me on that one." Flash then patted Springer's head as he continued, "Heck, Springer's more skilled than some of us here, and even if you think its not enough, you're just gonna have to deal with it." Flash pointed at the crowd as his grin turned to an expression of pure drive and confidence, "Now, go and get everything you need. Make it quick, as this place is gonna be a battleground soon." Everypony nodded as they spread out, gathering everything they could while Flash walked up to the other knights.
Iron spoke up first with crossed hooves, "So...since when are you calling the shots?"
"Since Grand put me in charge in his absence," Flash replied as he went up and tapped Iron's chest. "And that's final."
"He made you leader?" Heather asked with a raised eyebrow.
Flash turned to her and nodded. "Yup. I'm not sure if he was in his right mind at the time, but that doesn't matter. He put his trust in me and I'll be damned if I let him down."
"Alright," First said next as he pointed to the titan in the distance, "Then do you mind explaining why we are now going to fight that monstrosity?"
"Because we need to stop him here. Doom's headed for the portal, and if he gets his hooves on it, its all over. Think about it, if her gets that-"
"He'll be able to go anywhere instantly, won't he?" Ruby interrupted, finishing his statement as Flash nodded. "Okay, you're not wrong there Flash. But do we even stand a chance against something like what Doom has become?"
"Sure we do," Flash told her as a smirk appeared on his face.
Ruby giggled at his expression. "Always the optimist, aren't you Flash?"
Flash shook his head, his smirk still on his face. "Nope. I told you before Ruby, I'm a realist. And the reality is that we can beat the power of the Omni Sphere because its happened before. Don't forget, the original Royal Knights beat the Omni King and he was packing way more magic than Doom has."
The rest all glanced at each other, a series of nods following as Skybreaker looked back at Flash, "Yeah...you're right Flash."
"Sounds good to me Sentry. Let's go take that freak down!" Iron cheered as he pounded one hoof into the other.
Heather nodded in agreement. "We can do anything as long as we stick together."
"Could not have said it better my self," First added.
Ruby let out a light chuckle. "It seems history repeats itself. Seven ponies, fighting to stop a deranged wielder of the Omni Sphere. Very well, I don't mind being put into history once more."
Tidal laughed as he held out a hoof. "Let's do this amigos!" The rest of the knights all did the same, created a circle of hoofs, with only one not doing so.
They all turned to their new leader, who smirked as he held up his own hoof and placed it into the group, "Alright! This is it, our final stand. And that stand is gonna be a united one. You all ready?"
"READY!" The others cheered in unison.
Over at the inn, Lightning and Grand stood with smirks on their faces as Grand chuckled at the sight, "Watch out Doom. This is one battle you can't win."
Doom continued his trek towards the village, excited at the prospects of finally getting to crush it. With each hoofstep, he absorbed parts of the earth into his body, replenishing every bit of his form that he had used to create the rock beasts. But as he continued his stride, the titan's 'eyes' allowed him to see a new sight.
Just in the distance was a large field of giant rocks and stones, one's that had stood there for the longest time. He remembered first seeing these when he first arrived on the island, right before he began enslaving the ponies that lived nearby. But it wasn't this sight that stopped him. It was the sight of seven figures standing atop the largest rock of the field. Flash Sentry, Iron Core, Heather Bloom, First Aid, Ruby Scarlet, Tidal Wave and Skybreaker stared the colossal down, not one of them having any look of fear in their eyes. Seeing this, the behemoth stopped and moved his head so it was pointed directly at them.
"Have you come to surrender? Come to bow before my new rule?!" Doom's voice echoed through the stone, "A wise choice."
Flash, who stood in the center of the line, stepped forwards. "We didn't come to surrender. We came to put a stop to you, once and for all."
Doom let out a mighty laugh, one that almost shook the ground. "Seriously?! A piece of gutter trash like you thinks he can say such a thing?! HA! You chose to throw away your lives so recklessly, you idiotic fools!"
"Maybe we are fools," Skybreaker said as he stepped forward. "But I'd rather die a fool than live a coward."
First stepped up next. "Your evil agenda ends right now."
"We won't allow you to just do whatever you want," Heather told him as she joined First.
Tidal put his weapon on his shoulder as he stepped up as well. "Do yourself a favor and surrender yourself villaino. Trust me, it'll be a lot less painful."
"Agreed," Iron said as a huge grin shined on his face before walking up, "And trust me on this, we won't stop until you're begging for mercy. Especially me."
Ruby nodded as she trotted up to Flash's side. "After everything you've done, you don't deserve any mercy."
Flash pulled out his Celestic Gear and pointed it at Doom. "Get ready Doom! We're gonna stop you, right here and now!"
The rest of the Royal Knights pulled out their weapons before pointing them at Doom, then all spoke in unison. "Now...COUNT UP YOUR SINS!"
Inside the colossal, Doom growled. "You dare mock me? You dare say that pathetic line to me?! You...you insignificant specks! PREPARE TO FEEL THE WRATH OF THE OMNI SPHERE!"
"And you prepare to feel the wrath of the Royal Knights!" Flash yelled before turning to the others. "Let's do this guys!"
"RIGHT!"
First leapt back before pointing his Crossbolt at the group. "I will start. Aid Force!" He unleashed a wave of energy, the force hitting each of his comrades.
"Oh yeah!" Iron cheered as he felt the energy surge through him.
"Talk about a power boost," Tidal added.
"Then let's put it to good use," Flash said as he and the six remaining knights pointed their Celestic Gear at the colossal.
"Sky-"
"Tidal-"
"Crystal-"
"Bloom-"
"Iron-"
"Flash-"
"FORCE!" Six beams of different elemental energy shot towards the colossal, aimed straight at the beast's heart. The battle for the fate of Equestria had begun.
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Okay, cut that out! That was supposed to be an epic moment, and then you guys just had to go ahead and make me laugh, didn't you?
You realise I'm going to be making that the go to catchphrase for the knights, don't you?
9151169
So, now, I giggle whenever I read about anyone else using it.
Sorry, I still have that image of Flash gushing about how fun it is to say from the first time it got borrowed.
9151182 So much for making the knights look badass.
9151189
Oh, you mean like how the random background explosions in the Power Rangers shows do it. I'll admit that the catchphrase adds a certain cool factor, but it's laughable how comfortable everyone is about borrowing it. Kind of like how no one in Power Rangers questions where the random explosions are coming from.
On top of all the things, you HAD to make a pun on the name.
9151169
Yeah, it was pretty blatant. But seriously, each knight should come up with their own, each time someone other than Grand uses it cheapens the impact, especially when said to Doom. Sorry but the only way the phrase will have any weight at this point is for, of all ponies, Lightning to say it to dying Doom and then puts Doom out of his misery.
All in all not bad.
Question, where is the Element of Courage in all this, why doesn't Flash use it? Granted I've always had a grip about it existing in the first place as it cheapens the Twilight's moment back in the fight against Nightmare Moon, and that was before the reveal of the Pillars with Courage being the, for lack of better term, 'father' of the Element of Loyalty.
9151168
Personally, I'd like some originality among them. That's Grand's line. They should leave it alone.
I enjoyed this chapter, especially Skybreaker bonding with Flash, now he is definitely looking like a someone for Flash to look up to.
I personally do not have any issue with the Knights using Grand’s catchphrase. I admit I would have liked it if they all had their own, but I think it at least makes sense for Flash to use it since Grand trained him, and since Grand is more or less the leader of all the knights then it makes sense for the group to adopt their leader’s catchphrase as a group catchphrase. I mean, Captain America is most famous for shouting “Avengers Assemble!” but everyone wants to do it themselves at least once.
So I call it a good chapter and look forward to the action.
9151393
If I recall Star Swirl claims Flash Magnus represents Bravery, not Courage.
Bravery is the ability to confront pain, danger, or attempts of intimidation without any feeling of fear.
Courage on the otherhand as the Third Doctor so rightly put it in Planet of the Daleks "Courage isn't just a matter of not being frightened, you know. It's being afraid and doing what you have to do anyway."
Still, I also agree the Royal Knight could be more original. I'm beginning to get sick of coming across that phrase.
9151618
You seemed to miss the point.
9152226
Then may I ask what the point you were trying to make was?
Also, about you question on the Element of Courage and why did Flash not use it. I've always assume the Elements of Harmony can only be used all together not individually.
And I also understand your displeasure at how the way the Element of Courage was introduced did somewhat lessen Twilight's triumphant moment.
I was merely being pedantic with the terminology the show used.
9153188
So you do get the point, you're just making this an issue over semantics.
9153422
I wasn't trying to make a issue of it. I was just pointing out the difference in the terminology you used. It's an easy mistake to assume Courage and Bravery are intrechangable, I'm more than sure the thesaurus does it.
Indeed, I'm not the first to make the point. Bashee himself in his retelling of Dragonshy makes the point as well.
I admit I'm a pedantic person, I like delving into the fine details, and I know other people are not and may find it annoying at times.
9153439
It wouldn't have been an issue if you've left it alone.
9153546 Can we not have this argument please.
9153554
That's up to Magi Tail Welkin
Great chapter. I guess it's time for a big fight, I hope they can get Grand's magic back before he dies. Great job here.
I know that this sounds bad, but I'm hoping for an evil Flash arc. Something corrupted him, or he gets controlled and everypony needs to team up to help Flash.
But that probably won't happen in this universe.
9154718
You mean something like corruption from a symbiote or dark magic? That would be an interesting story in itself. Maybe when we finally get to The Friendship Games in this universe the Human Flash could be corrupted like Sci-Twi was turned into Midnight Sparkle.
9155443 Weren't you lot complaining about how Flash was taking Twilight's experiences away. Wouldn't that be the same.
9155443
9155454
I personally like the symbiotie idea. Or if the trickster can literally become a dark mist and enter flash and control him.
Then springer, the girls, and flash’s psyche fight all at once to free flash from the trickster.
Anyway, just an idea. It probably won’t happen because Flash’s magic would destroy any parasite or dark influence.
9155454
I wasn’t complaining about anything at all. I would be fine with whatever you do, if only Flash or Twi gets corrupted or they both do. I just like brainstorming future possibilities.
Ok, thought it might be good to point this out;
Colossal basically means bulk, something that is colossal is large in size. I would suggest switching out the word for Colossus, which I think better fits what you were using it for.