Hoof and Claw Versus the World

by Chythar

Act 5, Chapter 1 - First Strike

Full control of the United States was within our grasp! Nightmare Moon and I finally got our private meeting with the President of the United States! All we had to do was enslave the President, and control of the country was ours!

Then Princess Celestia showed up.

Man, that bitch has the WORST timing!

---

I tried to keep my face neutral as Celestia's horn lit up in her golden magic. But on the inside, I was panicking. A moment later, I felt a light tingle rush over my body. A memory in my head told me that Celestia’s spell was a magical scan, and it could not be blocked or fooled. I felt another shiver roll down my spine. I was in a LOT of trouble, and there was no way to avoid it. Five seconds rolled by in silence. I know, because I counted them. Suddenly, Celestia's eyes snapped open in alarm!

"Beware, Mister President! This one is not who he seems to be!"

At those words, I felt a flare of magic from my shadow. That flare made my blood run cold; it meant that a battle was about to begin, whether I wanted it to or not. An instant later, Nightmare Moon exploded out of my shadow and landed on the couch opposite mine. Suddenly, the weight of my business suit vanished and my armor was dropped into its place. Its bulk upon my body was very welcome, and I drew comfort from its magical protection. However, the spell that returned my armor violently broke my human illusion. The sound of breaking glass signaled the death of the disguise, and my feline form was revealed for all to see.

I quickly stood up from the couch and turned to face my opponent, Princess Celestia. Battle this early wasn't the plan, for Nighty and I had wanted to sneak out of the White House the same way we came in. However, the Night Mare had discussed this possibility and I knew my part in it. But when the time came to fight, I panicked. I was about to battle with THE immortal Sun Goddess, what could I do against her? I felt my body flush as it prepared for the heat of battle, even though my mind was frozen stiff. Time seemed to slow, and I watched Celestia's expression change from surprise to anger. A ball of magic materialized on the tip of her horn, and I knew then that I was done for.

The Night Mare came to my rescue, though I know she didn't do it for me. Something shoved me to my left, and a gigantic blast of magic scorched into the couch right where I had been standing. The light was so bright, it would have blinded me if I didn't have magically-enhanced sight. Accompanying the blinding light was a loud and deep hum, one that I not only heard but felt as the beam went past. The bolt of force smashed through the couch and slammed full-force into Princess Celestia. The snow-white mare disappeared into the light as the blast savagely hurled her backwards. Her body was crushed into the Oval Office wall, and I heard the mare let out a high-pitched wail. With a loud crunching sound, the bolt of force violently pushed Celestia through the wall and out into the corridor beyond. The magical bolt continued to burn until I heard another crash, then it faded away into nothingness.

The silence that followed was deafening. My brain was still frozen in fear, so all I could do was stare at the hole in the wall. As I slowly recovered, small details began to emerge. I noted that the large hole was just to the left of a door set into the wall. And despite how bright the magical blast was, there was no heat and nothing had actually burned. My brain finally unlocked, and I remembered that I had a job to do. That job was twofold: stop anyone that interfered with Nightmare Moon, then enslave the President of the United States. My first task was to check the Oval Office and clear it of any hostiles. I turned to my right to check on the people I knew were in the room. Past the gaping hole in the couch I had been sitting on, I saw the body of Mr. Nicholes. The man was sitting right next to the hole in the couch, and was sitting rigid in fear. His expression was pure terror as he stared at the hole in the couch. And the smell of urine told me he had wet himself. If his emotional state had broken his shadow parasite, he might rebel and fight me. But it looked like his fear had frozen him in place, so I figured I was safe for a while.

I turned my attention to the other person I could see, the President of the United States. The President showed surprise and shock, but didn’t stink of fear like Mr. Nicholes. Nor did he reek of urine, fortunately. The President was busy staring at the new hole in his wall, so I felt I could ignore him for a little longer. I took a brief look around the Oval Office for any other threats, but I saw none. My attention then turned to the Mare in the Moon. My Mistress was also staring out the new hole in the wall, but her expression was one of concentration. I wondered, was she watching for her sister or waiting for another attacker?

Movement from the corner of my eye put me on alert! My heart jumped into my throat, and my head spun around to assess the new threat. The threat was only the President; he had shifted in his chair to stare at my Queen. The man started to stand up from his chair, but my bolt of paralyzing lightning stopped him cold. As the President slumped down and slid to the floor, Nightmare Moon spoke.

"Enslave the human, then follow me."

She leapt over the coffee table and the destroyed couch, then slowly walked towards the large alicorn-sized hole in the wall. I turned to enact my second task: enslave the President of the United States. The man was on the floor where he collapsed, but was lying on the other side of the coffee table. I had to awkwardly shuffle around the table before I could kneel down next to him. First, I made sure I hadn't overdone the lightning and accidentally killed the man. I was pleased to see his chest slowly moving up and down, which meant he was still breathing. Next was the important part: I summoned a shadow parasite into my hand, then pushed the magical blob into the President's head. I cast the spell to send the man into the Loyalty dream, and set it on repeat until the parasite had full control. That last part was a bit risky, but there wasn’t time to wait around and monitor his dreams. I just hoped he wouldn’t get stuck in a dream loop.

My tasks complete, I stood up and followed after Nightmare Moon. It didn't take long, she hadn't gone far. I found her standing on the other side of the hallway outside the Oval Office. The ebony mare seemed to be staring into the Roosevelt Room next door, which had a matching alicorn-sized hole in its wall. A brief walk through the new exit from the Oval Office, and I stopped next to Nightmare Moon’s left side. I followed her gaze into the Roosevelt Room, and saw a mix of old and new. The room was decorated in a traditional way, which in my opinion looked really dull. The walls were painted plain beige, and they were covered in classic painted portraits and ornamental flags. The main centerpiece in the room used to be the large conference table and the chairs surrounding it. But that furniture had been knocked over by the body of Princess Celestia when she was blasted through the wall. The alicorn’s unconscious body was slumped up against the upturned table, and was covered in a pile of wood and plaster.

What concerned me more than the Princess, were the six ponies standing in the back of the room. Purple and white, orange and blue, and pink and yellow were the colors of their coats. The purple one wore a golden tiara with a purple gem set into it, while the others wore golden necklaces with gems that matched the color of their coats. None of them were clothed, except the orange pony who wore a stetson hat on her head. There was no doubt in my mind that these ponies were the Mane Six, wearing the Elements of Harmony. I did note that the mare called Twilight Sparkle did NOT have wings. The six ponies did not speak; instead, they stared at either Celestia, Nightmare Moon or me. They made no attempt to move, nor did their Elements light up with magic. I figured that it was safe to ignore the Mane Six as long as their elements were dark. I then turned to my dark Queen to report my findings.

"The Bearers of the Elements are here, along with the Elements themselves."

"Yes, I have seen them. At the moment, they pose little threat."

The Night Mare turned to me, a somber look upon her muzzle.

"It seems our final battle has begun."

A noise inside the Roosevelt Room drew our attention. We both turned to see that Celestia had woken up, and was slowly crawling out of the wreckage she had been buried in.

"Not so fast, sister!"

Nightmare Moon reached out with her magic and lifted the snow-white mare up and out of the rubble. Celestia’s face was a taut grimace of pain, and I could clearly see a band of teal magic tightly encircling her throat.

"Let us take this battle OUTSIDE!"

The Moon Mistress forcefully threw her sister to her right with incredible speed! Celestia’s body brutally smashed through the fireplace set into the west wall! She was hurled so fast, she passed through the brick fireplace like it was made of paper! Dust filled the room, and I heard three more great crashes before things grew silent again. Nightmare Moon cackled loudly, then trotted through the new hole in the wall. I quickly lost sight of her through the cloud of dust. It was an easy guess that the mare went after her sister, and I decided to follow her. But first, I turned to take a long look at the Mane Six. The mares were still frozen in place, shocked looks upon their muzzles. When they made no attempt to move or speak, I turned away and walked through the new hole in the wall.

I emerged into the northern side of the rubble-strewn Oval Office Corridor. A glance both left and right did not reveal anyone walking, hiding or even screaming. In front of me was another large hole in the wall. With no other clues to guide me, I crossed the Corridor and followed after the wanton destruction. Celestia's passing had obliterated a wall separating a hallway on my left and a small office to my right. I recognized the hallway as the one I walked through to see the President’s secretary, and knew it led to the room where Mr. Nicholes and I had waited to see the President. Several steps later, I walked into the ruins of the President's Outer Office.

The large hole continued straight ahead. Through it, I could daylight cascading across a large grassy lawn. I also saw Nightmare Moon taking potshots at something farther down the lawn. Although I couldn’t see what the ebony mare was shooting at, it was a safe bet that it was Princess Celestia. The snow-white mare's passing had demolished an empty desk in the room, but left everything else untouched. A glance to my right showed a pristine desk with a frightened secretary sitting behind it.

"Hey miss, are you OK?"

The woman did not answer, but stared wide-eyed at the ruined desk instead. I snapped my fingers to get her attention, which worked amazingly well as my fingers were covered in black fur.

"Miss? MISS?!"

She finally turned to look at me, but still looked scared out of her wits. A large alicorn suddenly exploding through the wall of your office would tend to do that.

"Are you OK?"

The frightened woman managed a frantic nod. I gave her a thumbs-up in response.

"Cool. I wouldn’t hang out here, I don’t know if the battle’s going to stay outside.“

I left the frightened secretary on her own, and walked through the hole in the outer wall to enter the Rose Garden. The concrete walkway around the garden was cool under my feet. By coincidence, Celestia's path had taken her down the short stairs and right down the middle of the Rose Garden. The formerly pristine grass was covered in debris from the White House interior. Large chunks of turf had been torn up as the snow-white alicorn had tumbled across the lawn. There were two pillars framing the stairs, and the one to my right had been damaged when Celestia tumbled by. The pillar was missing a chunk of wood and had lost a lot of paint. Nightmare Moon was standing at the top of the stairs, firing magical bolts at her sister. Each time Celestia tried to stand, Nighty would take a potshot at her and knock the mare off her hooves. Nightmare Moon would cackle at her sister's misfortune, then the process would repeat again. It didn't take a genius to realize that the Night Mare was toying with her sister. A few steps brought me to the ebony mare's right side, and I placed a hand on her withers to get her attention.

"Don't toy with her, you know she's a serious threat. Don't give her time to think, like you did with me."

Nightmare Moon stopped firing at her sister, then turned her head towards me. The deep frown she wore on her muzzle left no doubt that she was displeased. My comment about 'time to think' was a deliberate reminder of my first and only battle with her. A battle where I defeated her, because she had toyed with me instead of taking the battle seriously. I was concerned that Nighty would do the same with her sister today, with similar results.

"Yes, I believe I shall heed your warning."

We turned back to Celestia just in time to see her flap her wings and take off into the air.

"Do not go far, sister! I am not through with thee!"

The Night Mare leapt into the sky and took off after the snow-white mare. I watched after my Queen for a few moments, then took some time to think.

So, that leaves me with the Mane Six. I have to keep them busy or they'll try to zap us with the Elements of Harmony.

Six against one is not good odds, even if they're as inexperienced as I think they are. All they need to do is have Pinkie distract me at the wrong time, and POW. Doesn't matter if it's Kicks McGee, a Rainbow Barrage or a spell from Twilight. If they work together, I'm finished. And that's ignoring the Elements.

I turned to look through the hole in the White House, where Nightmare Moon had thrown Celestia through the outer wall.

I don't see them. Are they waiting for Celestia's order? Or just hiding?

I guess I should go find out.

I walked back to the hole in the wall, then peered inside. At that same moment, an orange hoof holding a Stetson hat poked out from the Oval Office Corridor. The hoof shook the hat up and down several times before both disappeared back behind the wall.

Ah, there they are.

I don't really want to fight the Mane Six.

DO IT!

Aw, come on! They're nice ponies.

DO IT. NOW!

Fine fine, Creepy Inner Voice. But we do it my way: no killing. But bumps and bruises are fair game.

ACCEPTABLE.

Game On.

I trotted down the stairs to the Rose Garden, then turned and shouted my challenge to the Element Bearers.

"A WARM HELLO TO OUR VISITORS FROM EQUESTRIA! I EXTEND THIS INVITATION TO YOU!

"COME ONE, COME ALL! TO THE GREATEST BATTLE THAT THE PLANET HAS EVER SEEN!"

The battle was difficult and hard-fought, but the bearers were too inexperienced to work as a team and were eventually overcome.

(Wait a moment! You are going to skip over the whole battle?)

(Uh, yeah. Battles are neat to watch but boring to read. Were you reading over my shoulder again?)

(Don't you dare! You are going to write out the whole battle, right now! And yes.)

(Excuse me? Who's the author of this story? Me, that's who. You want to write out a battle scene, write your own story.)

(Have you not been reading the comments on your story? The readers like it when you write out all the details!)

(Nope, still not writing it.)

(Fine. If you will not write out the battle scene, you can just sleep in one of the guest rooms.)

(You. Wouldn't. DARE.)

(Try me.)

(FINE.)

After shouting my challenge, I backed up until I was on the grass maybe twenty feet from the stairs. I did not have long to wait before the Bearers appeared. Twilight Sparkle appeared first, and stood at the top of the stairs that led to the Rose Garden. Applejack took position on Twilight's right flank, and Rainbow Dash on Twilight's left. Rarity was flanking Applejack and Pinkie Pie flanked Dash. I could see yellow and pink behind Twilight, so I guessed they were protecting Fluttershy.

"Welcome! I see you got my invitation to tango!"

Rarity gasped at my words. Dash looked disgusted, while Applejack and Twilight just looked confused. Pinkie Pie was, well, Pinkie Pie. She had that really big and creepy grin on her face that she always had. And she was the first to respond.

"Ooh! Dancing!"

Dash piped up.

"Eww! What are you, a creep?"

"I am not a creep. An invitation to 'tango' is another way of saying I want to fight."

"Well then, why didn't you say so?!"

"I just did. Sheesh, you need to read more."

"Nuh uh! Reading is for eggheads! No offense, Twi."

"None taken, Rainbow."

Dash doesn't like to read?! Doesn't she love the Daring Do books?

But that was in season two of MLP...

These mares haven't been together that long. If they're still at their season one strength and experience, I should be able to separate them and take them out one at a time.

"Excuse me, Miss Rarity? How was the Grand Galloping Gala this year?"

"Who, me? What a strange question to ask."

"I was just curious, I've always wanted to go."

The other ponies looked at each other, confusion all over their muzzles. Except for Twilight Sparkle, who was looking up and scanning the sky instead.

"Well, if you must know I have not yet had the pleasure of attending the Grand Galloping Gala. But my friends and I have our tickets for the next one, in several months' time."

Still season one levels. I can work with this.

"And why would you be wantin' to know that, pardner?"

So I can judge your general power levels and your ability to work as a team. But I'm not telling you that.

"Like I said, just curious."

Twilight chose that moment to interrupt.

"Girls, let's not get distracted. We need to unleash the powers of the Elements upon Nightmare Moon."

Oh no, you don't.

I unleashed a bolt of paralyzing lightning upon Twilight Sparkle. This blast was stronger than usual: it was intended to not only paralyze, but knock the pony unconscious. My attack caught Twilight off guard, and the electricity arced all over her body. The mare's muscles spasmed wildly, and she grunted in pain. All of a sudden, she fell forward. Her body limply rolled down the five or six steps, then came to rest in a heap on the grassy lawn. All the mares shouted out at once.

"TWILIGHT!"

Author's Note:

I used photos found at the White House Museum website as reference for the Rose Garden and the interior of the White House.

http://www.whitehousemuseum.org/ww1.htm http://whitehousemuseum.org

Comments

[BruhMoment23232]

Loving this story so much! Also loving the small interactions with nighty in the background!