The Manual of Heroes

by Kaliann25

Fourth Principle

Fourth principle:
The best way to keep the Kingdom safe, is show the villains who is in charge

Bright Spark and Luminositè got into their lab, where Flurry Heart was already waiting for them.

Even if her cousin told her to make herself home, she wouldn’t dare to touch anything unless they deactivate their machines in front of her. Seriously, she was very aware that more than half of their gadgets were capable to blow up Mount Canter with ease.

“Hey cuz!” greeted the young mare. “How is it going on the surface world? Am I the most wanted pony on the Crystal Empire, or my parents didn’t take it that bad?”

Bright shrugged. “Let’s put it this way: the only reason a SWAT team haven’t been mobilized, is because they know exactly where you are.”

“And, is well-known that this place is the most secure in the world.” finished Luminositè.

Flurry didn’t ask more. Clearly, her parents, uncles and aunts, and ‘grannies’ wouldn’t be as pleased with her new Royal Title as her. But, at least, they still had enough common sense to stay away from Bright’s and Lumi’s lab.

Flurry Heart chuckled.

“Is something on your mind, dear?” asked Lumoniostè.

The young alicorn shrugged. “What can I say? I’m just amused by the irony. The most dangerous place in the world is also, the most secure.”

“I disagree.” said Bright Spark. “This place is not dangerous at all. All the equipment you see, have a security system that prevents that anypony but Lumi and I use it.”

“But, you can use the tunnels.” informed Lumi, as she waved to the underground railways. “So you can continue with your travail de justicier. Have fun.”

Flurry Heart clapped happily, and hugged the two teenage ponies.

“Thank you guys, thank you!” she giggled. “Is like your manual says, a hero should do everything on his/her power to do the right thing.”

Lumi made a small smile. “La norme is a bit different, but whatever. However, darling, je te recommende to solve your issues with tes parents le plus vitè possible.”

Flurry frowned. “What? Am I being a bother for you?”

“Non. But I think this is what’s considered an average empathic reaction.” explained Luminositè. “I’m not as skillful to fake those as your friend, so I can’t really tell.”

Flurry made a step backwards, and Bright simply changed the subject. “What matters is that you’ll feel as comfortable as in your home. We have all kinds of food, a warm bed, all kinds of books. And, if you want to buy something, just tell the Z-Bots. They’ll do it for you. Or, you can use the tunnels. Is up to you.”

“Thanks!” said Flurry.

Then, Bright showed her Flurry the space he prepared for her. It had a bed, a night table, a night lamp, and, her treasures. Comics, action figures, daimakuras, superhero-themed sheets and pajamas. Oh, and her toothbrush.

The two teenagers made a small nod, and went to work.

Lumi took a remote from one of the tables, and pressed a button.

One of the steel walls moved to right, revealing a hidden closet. The closet was full of samples of all kinds of fabrics, of all colors and patterns. Luminositè chose what it seemed like black velvet, and cut half of a yard. (With the help of an especial pair of scissors. The only thing in the world capable to cut her nano-machine-infused-fabric.)

Flurry couldn’t help but smile. “Is hard to believe she’s not Rarity’s biological daughter.” She said to herself.

Then, she turned her attention to Bright Spark. Her cousin was busy giving some instructions to his ‘steel-giants’.

The machines immediately went to work, accommodating and welding huge pieces of metal, around a structure that Flurry haven’t seen until then.

Once again, Flurry giggled. “Aaand, I guess that if magic was his stuff, he would be just like aunt Twilight.”

But then, Luminositè pressed another button on her remote, revealing a horrible vision. The stuff of nightmares.

Since she was linked to the Crystal Heart from her Crystaling, Flurry was considered one of Equestria’s most powerful guardians. That’s why Cadence made sure that she learned a list with all the enemies of Equestria. That’s why Flurry recognized the poor creature who lied unconscious on a steel stretcher, firmly held by shackles on her four extremities; connected to several machines destined to keep her alive, and measure her biometrics.

Her name was Lady Catrina, a powerful cat sorceress who liked to kidnap people of all the species, and feed from their life-force to keep her youth, and her powers. The former teacher of Lord Tirek, and one of the most feared beings on the world. She managed to terrify changelings, griffins, minotaurs, centaurs, etc. In fact, even powerful foes like the Storm King or the Windigos thought twice before messing with her.

But now, she was reduced to the shadow of her former self. Her entire body was covered in bruises, burn marks, and even bold zones.

“What the hay…?” mumbled Flurry Heart. But nor Bright neither Lumi paid any attention to her.

Luminositè approached to Catrina, and, put a small Tazer on her neck.

Catrina shrieked in pain, when the electric current ran through her body. She looked at Lumi with tears of fear coming from her eyes.

“Bosoir mon chat. How did you sleep?” asked Lumi.

Catrina sobbed. “I had the most wonderful dream, a dream where I never tried to take over Equestria. A dream where I never met you and…”

Lumi nodded. “Yes, yes, je comprends. If that’s the case, I have great news for you. Your biometrics are extremely long. I’m sorry, but you won’t last for too long. Today you’re going home.”

Catrina shivered.

“I don’t believe you.”

“I don’t care if you believe me or not.” said Luminosité, indifferent. “But it’s true. One more experiment and that’s it.”

“Why don’t you just kill me? I’M BEGGING YOU!” cried Catrina.

“No, no, no. There’s a line we won’t cross.” said Lumi. “We respect our mères too much.”

The cat gulped, looking at the unicorn mare, as she questioned the choices of her life.

She have heard the rumors about the two of them defeating Grogar. But she never believed on them. And now there she was, trapped as a guinea pig for their new weapons, after a one minute battle. A battle where the two of them limited to press a button each. After that, she saw a light, and everything went black.
When Catrina opened her eyes, it was the beggining of her agony. She spent the next four weeks being electrocuted, burned, attacked with sound waves that made her eyes and ears bleed, crushed by giant machines, etc.
As far as Catrina knew, the last experiment would be the worst.

“Please don’t…” cried Catrina.

Lumi ignored her, as she took the piece of black velvet, and applied some current with the Tazer. The fabric turned rigid, getting ten times harder than steel, but only at a fraction of the weight. Lumi felt the weight on her hooves, and then she activated her Power-Suit.

“Okay, I’m going to try the durability of this new material. If it works, I’ll sell it to the construction industry. Aren’t you excited to be such an important part of Equestrian history?” asked Luminositè, with apparent interest on science, but Catrina could see the sadistic smile on her lips.

“Please don’t…” begged Catrina, again. “Kill me already!”

“I won’t.” said Lumi. “However, I seriously doubt you would be ever able to walk again. Not after this.”

Catrina closed her eyes, when Lumi started to hit her legs over and over with the piece of fabric.

Much to Flurry’s horror, Catrina’s shrieks resounded all over the lab.

The young Princess looked at her cousin, who interrupted his work, and turned to Luminositè.

“Stop it!” he commanded angrily.

Luminositè tilted her head. “Why?”

“Lumi, you know I can’t stand shrieking. Can you please shut her up?”

Luminositè gasped, ashamed. “Oh, excuse moi.”

And she pressed another button on the remote, making a glass wall to appear, isolating the noises from her side.

Bright smiled, pleased. “Much better. What’s up cuz? You seem upset.”

“Come on! This doesn’t bother you?” protested Flurry Heart.

“Yes it does, that’s why I ask her to shut up.” explained Bright Spark.

“Bright, please, you know what I mean. She was torturing someone!” said Flurry.

“Yes, but she was a bad guy. Why should I care about her?”

“What are you?” asked Flurry Heart. “She’s clearly suffering!”

Bright sighed. “Flurry, I don’t care. Period. You see, my friend and I need bad guys to release the ‘need’ without harming innocents. We cannot fight this part of ourselves, so we keep it under control only with those who deserve it.”

Flurry shivered, as Bright continued with his explanation.

“Equestria is safe from both the two of us, and them. And, the baddies get reformed. Everybody wins.”

Flurry looked at her cousin straight to the eyes. “But I thought you were medicated.”

“This helps more than medicine. Also, our meds somehow interferes with our genius, so we don’t take them if we can avoid it.”

“Bright, please, don’t you have any empathy?”

“My theory is that our intelligence takes so much space in our brains that there’s no space left for that superficial emotions that the normal ponies have.”

Flurry looked at her cousin, and lowered her gaze. She really loved him and knew she could always count on him. But sometimes she forget what he really was.

The two of them continued working in their projects, ignoring Flurry, until Lumi was done with Catrina.

“How was it?” asked Bright.

“It worked, of course. With the punishment she was receiving, a normal steel would break in seconds. This resisted for five whole minutes.”

Bright Spark nodded. “Okay, so, are you ready to release her?”

“I’m going to miss having someone to play with, but I suppose it is time.”

Then, a couple of Bright’s robots took what was left of Catrina, and took her out of the lab.

Flurry just stared them, and shivered. She wished that her parents forgive her soon, these two were really scary.

Location, unknown:

The lost mountains were considered the last refugees of the outcasts. A deserted icy land, where no life form dared to make its residence.

For most of the people, it was empty and dead. But, if you look for long enough, you would be able to find a small pub, hidden between the rocks.

A pub where the most dangerous and powerful villains in the world get together just to drink and to talk about their recent conquers, small victories, and even defeats. From Queen Porccina of the Pig People, and her daughter Crystal; Crunch the Stone Dog, lord of the Diamond Dogs; Ahuizotl, Tirek, just to name a few.

And, attending all this horrible beings, was a no less horrible being. Squirk, a squid monster who used its multiple tentacles to serve the beverages. Oh, and was also the tyrant of an underwater Empire.

Suddenly, Lady Catrina entered to the pub.

Everyone muted in fear, except for for Tirek, who happily waved at his teacher.

“Lady Catrina, Lady Catrina! Here, there’s an empty seat just aside me!”

Catrina sat aside his student, who gasped when he saw the silver collar on hi teacher’s neck.

“Oh no…” he turned to Squirk. “Hey, Squirk! Bring something to Lady Catrina, I pay!”

The giant squid turned to the cat sorceress. “What can I do for you, Lady Catrina?”

The cat sorceress sobbed weakly, and asked for the pub’s signature drink. An Equestria Neveragain.

Designed on the Twilight Sparkle era, the villains drank it to forget being defeated by something as stupid and sappy like the Magic of Friendship. However, now they drank it to forget the horrors they suffered at the hooves of Prince Bright Spark, and Warrior Belle.

It was a pint of vodka, a pint of gin, a pint of moonshine, a small jar of medicinal alcohol, and a shot of whisky; deluded in a liter of beer. A brain cell killer for sure.

Squirk brought the drink to Catrina, and she emptied the cup in two seconds.

“ANOTHER ONE!” she demanded.

Squirk obeyed, and Catrina emptied the cup just as fast as the first one.

“Ehem, Lady Catrina?” asked Tirek.

She smashed the table with her fist. “I was lucky I still had a couple of prisoners to take life force from! Can you imagine how difficult could be get all the way here in a freaking wheelchair?!”

She finished her third drink, and continued. “At least I made history by proving their weapons. THEY WORK PERFECTLY!”

And she began to laugh hysterically, a laugh that slowly turned into a cry.

The whole pub looked at her in pity, knowing what an encounter with the two ponies could do to a villain. During the last five years they have learned that absolute madness was as dangerous as pure evil.

“The day they defeated Grogar, I knew they would become real monsters whey they grow up.” finally said Tirek.

“What are they doing, claiming to be heroes?” asked Crunch the Stone Dog. “They can conquer Equestria and who knows how many other Kingdoms!”

Queen Porccina squealed. “I’ve heard they don’t do it simply because they have no interest on it. Who understands lunatics?”

“Psychiatrists!”

Chrysalis sighed. “Those two are as scary as Grogar.”

“Well, they did defeated him, right?”

They started arguing, when suddenly they felt a very familiar energy.

Grogar. GROGAR! They all tried to escape, but, in the end, instead of the Overgoat, they found a note.

“What does it say?” asked Crunch.

No one dared to touch anything from Grogar. But, in the end, Catrina decided to open it. She had nothing to fear after her experience with Bright and Lumi.

“What does it say?” asked Porccina.

“He is demanding our presence, all of us, on the Island of Tambelon in exactly two months. He have a very especial announcement, and the ones who doesn’t show up, will be sorry for the rest of their lives. That won’t be long.”

They all gulped in fear, but Catrina seemed uninterested. “Hey, I’m going to throw a huge-ass party at my place, in two months. Who’s in?”

No one said anything, immediately.

Between them, there was an ongoing debate of who scared them the most. Grogar, or the lunatic duo. And they were divided half and half. Also, originally Catrina was on Grogar’s side, but she changed her mind after being released.

“What does he want?” asked King Bumble from Bees.

“I don’t want to know!” said Crunch. “Lady Catrina, I’ll go to your party! I’ll bring my famous Crunchy Guacamole!”

“The one with stones on it? Bring a bag of ice!”

So they left it that way. However, they still wandered what Grogar wanted. Something was about to change, and they were afraid. Really afraid.

Author's Note:

This is the one of the most violent chapters on the story. However, I plan to keep the story on the comedic side, I only wanted to present how did Bright and Lumi changed from the prequel.

Also, all the bad guys mentioned were the ones from older generations of MLP.

Read ya’ later!!

Comments

[Lakeguy]

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You mean Flurry Heart?