Final Fantasy VII: Darkness in Equestria

by Axel IV

The Train Ride

Cloud closed the door to the shed that held Fenrir quietly, the morning sun that Celestia raised up was peaking out from the horizon. The day had not even begun, and the streets were all quite and peaceful. There were no young fillies or colts laughing about, and the marketplace didn't even have a wandering soul. Just the kind of atmosphere Cloud wanted.

Cloud reached into his pocket, taking out the small ticket that he had bought for the train from the day before. It was a great decent amount of time to get to Canterlot, and the only train that would leave for the royal city was early in the morning. Not that Cloud was one to mind since he was typically used to getting up so bright and early.

The human paused as he walked in front of the library. He had left as quietly as he could, not wanting to wake up Twilight or the dragon. He hadn't told the others about his departure for the morning, and would rather keep it that way. Cloud wasn't very good at... Saying goodbye. Shaking his head of unnecessary thoughts, Cloud began his short walk to the train station.

He had to admit... He was growing rather fond for the town. In fact, he was already learning some of the names of the others and had begun to interact more with them. He would chat briefly with the market ponies, and sometimes have to respectfully decline asks for dates (He still has no clue why they found him so attractive). He already knew Big Macintosh, but he had some of the most intelligent and inspirational conversation with the big red stallion. Macintosh was one of his closest friends.

Feelings of nostalgia and a bit of reluctance filled Cloud as he gazed upon the train station. He needed to leave... But a part of him wanted to stay. A part of him wanted to go back to the schoolhouse. A part of him wanted to watch Rainbow Dash participate in her race. A part of him wanted to help Fluttershy with her animals. A part of him wanted to help Applejack buck apples. However, he didn't feel like modeling for Rarity, partying with Pinkie Pie, and telling Twilight about his entire life, but he would miss them just the same.

When Cloud stepped onto the platform, the early morning breeze chilled him to the bone. Or was that a bad feeling he was getting? It was a good thing that none of the six friends were going to come with him.

"Leaving so soon?" A voice called behind him. Cloud glanced back, and to his dismay he saw the six ponies all watching him with mixed emotions in their eyes.

"I told them everything..." Twilight said quietly, taking a few steps forward, "And whatever Princess Celestia wants you to do, however dangerous it is... We want to come with you."

Cloud opened his mouth to speak, but was silenced by a brown hoof being placed softly on his lips.

"Now don't you dare tell us off!" Rainbow Dash growled, "First, you tell me that you're going to watch my race, and now you're just leaving without saying goodbye?!" Cloud could see moisture building up in Rainbow's eyes.

"Please let us come along..." Fluttershy begged, "We won't be any trouble... We promise..."

"Someone has to keep you looking fresh and clean when you visit the Princess," Rarity beamed, "And who else but me could be able to help?"

"You can't have an awesome party with Princess Celestia without Pinkie there! Even through thick and thin!" The pink pony pranced joyously.

"C'mon, Sugarcube," Applejack grinned, "You can't leave us here. You'll need our help sooner or later, so for the time being, you're stuck with us."

"Please," Twilight said, giving Cloud the eyes that looked so familiar, "Let us come with you."

Come on Cloud! Let them come!

Cloud blinked before looking behind him, the eerie voice disappearing just as fast as it came. It sounded vaguely like...

Cloud sighed, looking back at the ponies. They sat in a long moment of silence, the horn of the train echoing far in the distance.

"Alright." He gave in, scratching the back of his head.

"YAY!" The ponies cheered in unison, and Cloud soon found himself being engulfed by the six mares, his arms completely restricted as they embraced him tightly. Geez, did he get glomped for a second day in a row?

The ponies finally released him, and Cloud sighed in relief as they began to excitedly chat among themselves. The blonde human saw the train in the distance, and like always, its colors were far from masculine. He began to wonder if there was anything dark in Equestria besides him, the Everfree Forest, and Princess Luna.

The sound of the train blared as it began to brake, the massive mechanical beast slowing down as it approached the platform. The train cars soon stopped right beside them, five of the six mares dashing to get in. Before Cloud could step a heavy boot in, he felt a small tug from something behind him.

"Um..." Fluttershy said quietly, "I... I know I should have showed you these earlier, but it just slipped my mind." The yellow mare reached into her bag, and brought out a glowing orb from her saddle bag. Cloud instantly took it, lifting it up to his eyes as he stared into the shining ball.

"I found them near the crater that your um... Motorcycle? That shiny black thing came in on. There are three others, if you want them... I don't know if they're important or not, but-

"Thank you." Cloud replied, taking the other orbs out from her saddlebags, "Yes, these will help." He gave her a smile, and her cheeks instantly flushed up, sending the mare into a state of shock as Cloud turned to walk into the car. It was the sound of the horn that woke up Fluttershy and sent her running into the train car.

---

Not even an hour had passed and the mares were already finding some way to entertain themselves. Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie, and Twilight were locked in a deadly game of Go Fish while Rarity was combing Fluttershy's hair. Cloud, however, was sitting in the corner seat in the back of the train car. They were the only riders that he had seen on the train, and he couldn't help but be thankful for it. He just couldn't shake the bad feeling away.

"Hey spiky!" Applejack called, "Why don't you sit yourself over here and play cards with us instead of moping around over there?"

"Not right now." Cloud answered, staring out the window as his eyes narrowed. Applejack huffed before trotting up to him, plopping her flanks down onto the padded seat beside him.

"Now, come on!" Applejack playfully punched him in the arm, "What's wrong? We're on a train heading right for Canterlot. You shouldn't be worried about something chasing us or putting us into any sort of danger!"

At that moment, Cloud thought he spotted something in the distance. Something running. It had managed to dash into some woods, but he had clearly seen something.

"There's no monster that can keep up with us in this!" Applejack stated, crossing her hooves, "And why are ya getting up and antsy?"

"Applejack." Cloud murmured, catching the orange mare's attention, "What if I told you that there were creatures where I came from that could keep up with us?"

"Umm..." Applejack furrowed her eyes, "What do ya mean?"

Cloud looked back at her, his serious stare piercing, "What if there was a creature from my planet that could keep up with this train... And what if it managed to follow me here as well?..."

There was a loud *Thump* from the ceiling of the train car, making the six mares jump in surprise and fright. Cloud growled, his sword in hand. They heard what sounded like a snarl, followed by scratching noises.

"U-Umm..." Fluttershy eeped, clutching Rarity's side so hard that the white mare soon began to turn blue, "C-Cloud-

"Quiet." The blonde human snapped, slowly making his way to the center of the car, keeping his gaze on the ceiling. Soft thumps were heard moving, and Cloud held his sword straight at a certain point. When the thumping stopped, he heaved his giant blade through the ceiling, causing a blood curdling screech to rattle the entire train car.

Cloud held back a smirk, and leaped up, bursting through the metal ceiling of the train car with ease. The powerful gusts of air nearly knocked him off of the train, but he managed to stab his sword onto the roof to stabilize himself. He heard a growl, and Cloud looked up to see the attacker.

The monster was shocking to see. It looked like some sort of mutated human-reptile creature, its scales protruding out from all over its body. It's eyes were a blood red, and he could see no irises in them. Whatever it was... There was no doubt in Cloud's mind that it had come from his own planet.

Blood was dripping down a wound on its lower torso where Cloud had stabbed it earlier. The monster shrieked, raising its claws as it charged straight for the blonde warrior, somehow managing to run perfectly on the moving train. A handle suddenly popped out from Cloud's giant sword, and he eagerly pulled on it to brandish a smaller blade.

As the creature charged, Cloud used the sword that was plunged into the train car to stabilize himself. When it was just about ready to swing on his head, he slashed horizontally with his other sword, slicing the creature clean in half. It gurgled as its body rolled off the car in two pieces.

"MOTHER!"

Cloud blinked, turning his head to see two more of the scaled creatures leaping onto the train car, both of them surrounding him.

"Cloud!" Twilight called from below, "What's going on?!"

The monsters roared, sprinting for him. Cursing, Cloud extracted his blade from the train car in order to fend off both attackers. He nearly stumbled when the two creatures were upon him.

Their claws were met with the steel of Cloud's giant swords. With a grunt, Cloud shoved them back, and they almost lost their footing on the train car as they slid back a few meters. Just the perfect distance.

With a yell, Cloud rushed forward, his sword flashing and cleanly decapitating one of the scaled monsters. The other roared behind him, charging at his back. Cloud was faster, his body spinning as his sword cut down the creature, knocking it off of the train car howling.

A purple unicorn's head popped out of the hole Cloud had created earlier, the air blowing her mane all over the place. "Cloud!," She yelled out, "What's going on?!"

"Get back inside!" Cloud yelled back, "We've got company!" He spotted more of the blue scaled creatures running at an impossible speed alongside of the train. The blonde human grimaced, watching them all leap up onto the train, and soon he was completely surrounded on both sides. Cloud combined his two swords into one and placed it on his back, a strange red glow starting to form around his hands.

The monsters all screamed, as they sprinted at the blonde fighter, almost positive of their victory. Cloud couldn't help... But smile.

He thrust his hand towards one of the groups of charging monsters. The red glow suddenly flashed, and a powerful burst of fire blasted out from his palm, engulfing the monsters as they growled and howled, their bodies blasting off the train car and incinerating.

"Cloud!" Rainbow Dash suddenly popped up from the hole, "What's going- She froze at the sight of the creatures that had turned their attention to her. Cloud gritted his teeth, and jumped at Rainbow.

He managed to wrap an around around the blue pegasus and pull her back at the expense of a sharp claw digging into the flesh on his chest. He bit back the pain and fired a burst of flame from his other hand, the blazing inferno overwhelming the monsters as they were all obliterated into ashes.

"O-Oh my gosh..." Rainbow gasped, her wings beating fast as she hovered over to his side, "Cloud, are you-

"Get back inside!" Cloud demanded, "NOW!" Rainbow quickly rushed into the train car, and he breathed a sigh of relief.

But it was too soon for that.

Up ahead, the train tracks were supposed to cross a huge bridge over a wide canyon. Problem was, was that the monsters had managed to completely destroy the bridge... Which would ultimately end their little train ride. He would need to pull the breaks, or they would be splattered at the bottom of the canyon.

Ignoring the searing pain on his chest, Cloud made a mad dash to the locomotive. A few more of the scaled monsters had jumped on top of the train cars, but Cloud managed to cut through them with ease. Slashing down on the roof, he jumped down to where the conductor was supposed to be.

He was met with the clawed hand of one of the monsters, and he quickly lunged his sword into its gut, piercing its body into the wall. When life left its eyes, Cloud began to search for the brake.

What he found was the body of the pony conductor buried in the coal, and the broken metal shaft of the break lodged into his chest.

"Damnit..." Cloud growled, the train bridge getting closer and closer by the second. He needed to act fast.

Cloud sprinted through each train car until he opened the door to where the elements of harmony were staying in. When he had arrived, they were each huddling against each other on one of the seats. They look absolutely terrified.

"Cloud..." Fluttershy gasped, "You're... You're hurt..."

"No time for that..." Cloud winced, "Whatever has been attacking us has destroyed the bridge ahead. Not only that, but they've destroyed the break. Twilight, can you teleport us out of here?"

The purple unicorn shook her head, "If I did, we would still be traveling at the speed of the train... It wouldn't be the safest way to go by far..." Her ears flattened, "We could disconnect this train car and I could see if I can slow it down..."

Cloud's vision was starting to get blurry and he glanced down at his chest. He was bleeding worse than he thought, and he began to feel slightly light headed. Shaking it out, he pulled out his sword.

"Right..." Cloud said, spinning the sword in his hand, "We're gonna have to act fast."

"Wait..." Applejack blinked, "You aren't thinking of-

Cloud proceeded to cut the train car in half.

Chapter proofreaded by LyonAzakura.

---

Author's Note:

This was a bit difficult to write, but hopefully you all enjoy it! Many thanks to my proofreader LyonAzakura!

Remember to rate and comment if you like! They keep me going!

Comments

[Mike32oz]

sweet what kind of Magic Materia he have.?

[Liaf112]

does he have any sumons?

[Zephyrion]

I hope the three materia are Master Magic, Master Summon and enemy skill. There should be some cool abilities he can steal from monsters in Equestria. also I hope he busts out knights of the round at some point.

[Cellin]

Cloud proceeded to cut the train car in half.

...DAYUM!

[Bookmaster]

Please be all three of the master materia just for the sake of being over powered also 4x cut

[Ghostwind Assasinshy]

finally the MATERIA has appear

[read all the stories]

Don't mind me just cutting this train in half.

[GOOPMONSTER]

Still some errors as far as word choice goes. An example would be "obliterated into ashes." The meaning of "obliterate" means to completely, and utterly destroy, so that no remains are left behind. A better word would be "scorched," so that it would be "scorched into ashes."

Still, it doesn't detract from the enjoyability of the story in any way. Excellent chapter, as always.

[Apollo and Artemis]

1308406 Knights of the Round? That is just OP. I do want to see Omnislash at least.

[Shimmer_Spark]

MOAR FOR THE LOVE OF CELESTIA MOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!111 -UnexplainbleRaig-