Lone Wolf of Equestria: Back to the Pack

by JNKing

Chapter 14: Crazy Train

Author's Note:

Shout out to Wysteria; originally, I had Logan fighting someone else on this train, but then she gave me a fabulous idea.

Thanks for the feedback, Wysteria Hope you enjoy.

Twilight was stunned. “You… used the train?” she asked. “But… I’ve calculated the train routes. How long were you shifting through the snow?”

Logan laughed. “Shifting through the snow? I don’t think I got to be in that wasteland for more than a few days before I found you guys.”

Twilight looked down at her list. “But we didn’t get assigned to come there – here - for another few weeks,” she insisted. “What were you doing?”

Logan glanced away. “Paying for taking the train. And I don’t mean in gold.”

#

See, the problem with the train is that it’s predominantly ridden by ponies. Griffons and dragons don’t need it; they have wings. And sea ponies obviously can’t. So, you’ll probably think it was weird to have a train full of ponies, with a single diamond dog sitting in the back.

I didn’t try to make my presence a big thing. I sat in the back, and kept to myself.

Unfortunately, I still drew more than my fair share of eyes. A simple baring of my teeth kept anyone from acting too worried or suspicious.

But, all too soon enough, something happened.

#

Logan turned to Celestia, who gave a resigned sigh.

“So, tell me, Celestia,” he said. “What do you know about a ‘Tempest Shadow?’”

Celestia and the others tilted their heads.

“Who?” Celestia asked.

“Tempest Shadow,” Logan said. “Dark coat. Wore darker armor. Broken horn. Mohawk. Attitude that makes me look pleasant?” He narrowed his eyes. “Not important enough for you to care about?”

Celestia’s ears flattened. “Logan,” she said, struggling to keep her tone patient. “I may not have the time for all my subjects, but I can assure you, I would have known a ‘Tempest Shadow.’”

“Sounds like a bad guy,” Rainbow Dash commented.

“Sort of,” Logan admitted. “If you consider a mare working for the former Storm King bad.”

The others blanched, horror written on their faces.

“Oh, she must have been mad at you,” Pinkie commented.

“Mad?” Logan noted, more to himself, with a chuckle, before continuing the story.

#

I’m not sure when she made her appearance. The problem with riding on a train as opposed to walking is that you become lethargic. I started nodding off; a really dumb idea when I was surrounded by ponies. I’m halfway between sleeping and waking, when I suddenly notice Ms. Shadow sitting next to me. Staring at me with cold green eyes.

I only noticed her through half-lidded eyes; it looked like she was waiting for me to wake up so she could do something dramatic. Problem was, she must have been waiting a while because she was looking steadily more and more annoyed. I simply grinned and pretended to keep sleeping. You guys are more fun when you’re angry.

At least, I thought so until she realized I was messing with her.

She seized me by the ear and dragging me from my seat. I let out a surprised bark-yelp before she hurled me right out the back door. I’m sure the ponies had their own reactions, but none of them came to my aid. I staggered in the line between the two cars while the dark mare stormed out.

“Silly little dog,” she said, a malicious snarl on her face. “A dog with hunters even from Equestria, and you choose public transport?” She chuckled. “You practically gift-wrapped yourself for me.”

She went for a buck that would have knocked me right off the train if I hadn’t managed to dodge it. I followed up with a slash, briefly noticing a scar over her right eye before I nearly threw her off the train as well.

“You’re not the first of Celestia’s pony bounty hunter I’ve dealt with,” I snarled back at her, seizing her by the neck and pinning her against the wall. “If anything, you’re easier to deal with,” I added with my own malicious grin.

Her eyes widened in indignant anger.

“I am not one of Celestia’s pawns,” she snarled, before her horn exploded with light. I hit the other train car before she went for another buck. I jumped up, reaching the roof of the train car. Bit of a mistake, as the sudden wind smacked me in the face, sending me rolling across the train car roof. I managed to catch myself, just as the mare leaped up as well. She used the wind to her advantage, shooting forward with a kick that hit me right in the gut. I stumbled backward, as she rolled with the fall, tripping me up and catching my tail to suplex me to the ground.

“The Storm King was my only chance to fix this!” she snarled, shoving her broken horn, still sparking and flickering, into my face. “And you MURDERED HIM!”

“The Storm King?” I asked. My ears flattened. “You’re honestly seeking vengeance for that idiot?”

That was probably the wrong thing to say when I had a sparking and likely unstable horn in my face, but remember, I had my own bit of magic. She ground her teeth in tranquil fury, and tried to blast me with a pretty impressive imitation of my lightning, only for me to catch her by the face and channel my own lightning back. Our little display almost caused a storm: dark clouds swirled overhead as white lightning clashed against rainbow lightning. I won’t lie; she knew how to make it hurt. But, in our struggle, I got my paws under her, and kicked her off hard, blasting her back with an extra bolt for good measure. I rolled backward, back into that pit between train cars. The coupling was the only reason I didn’t fall under the tracks, and despite my entire nervous system feeling like it was on fire, I managed to arc out enough that my body was caught between the two cars.

Now, normally, as a wolf, I’m pretty used to lightning. Granted, it hurts like hell when it’s used against me, but it didn’t manage to kill me the first time, and it didn’t kill me this time. But she didn’t know that. So, as I heard her stomping across the roof, I ended up emulating an old trick that humans used to teach my kind; playing dead.

Her head poked over the side, glaring down at my limp form, and she pulled herself down to the coupling.

“How did the Storm King manage to lose to a foal like you?” she asked, before her horn flared with lightning again. “No matter,” she decided, almost to herself. “You destroyed my only chance of restoring what I lost. And today, you die to Tempest Shadow.”

Damn. Guess ponies could be ruthless when they wanted to be. It was a pity she didn’t get the chance. Because the moment she went to grab me, I shot up, planting my claw over her mouth. I pumped two thousand volts right into her face before releasing her. With a POP, Tempest Shadow was blown off the train and out of sight.

#

Rainbow Dash and Applejack glanced at each other with awe.

“And… was that it?” Applejack asked.

Logan shook his head. “Nope,” he admitted. “No, she still had some kick left in her. Figured out how to get back on the train, if you can believe it.”

Twilight looked up. “How?” she asked. “If her horn was broken, she shouldn’t be able to teleport, or levitate or handle more complex spells.”

“Maybe she didn’t use magic,” Logan snapped back. “You ever consider things like… grapple guns?”

Twilight went silent at that, her face turning red with embarrassment. Rainbow Dash, on the other hand, looked like she wanted to find Tempest Shadow and challenge her.

“Wow,” Rainbow Dash mumbled. “Where d’you think she learned how to fight?”

“Storm King might have had a teacher or two he intimidated into training her,” Logan admitted. “Either way, Tempest wasn’t the only problem I had on that train.”

#

I returned to my seat, only to find a surprise: a bright pink Diamond Dog was sitting in the back. She shot me a seductive grin, even as I moved back to my seat.

My mind whirled with the implication. A diamond dog here? But I hadn’t seen any other dogs when I got on. Was I just being inattentive? Or was something else at play here?

I didn’t get long to wonder if it had just been a trick of the eyes: the diamond dog got out of her seat and walked right over to me. Hard to mistake a giant pink dog for a pony, I can assure you of that.

She indicated the empty seat next to me.

“May I?” she asked, in a voice that sounded like sugar.

I shrugged, and looked away as she sat down next to me.

She looked like… um, do you guys have beagles? Cuz she had the head of a beagle, with soft brown eyes and blue spots complimenting the pink. Instead of a vest, she wore some sort of muumuu dress with flowers imprinted on it. The whole thing was oddly gaudy, and a bit of an eyesore. If that’s what Diamond Dogs were attracted to, then maybe I should’ve tried to pass myself off as a timber wolf instead.

“Nice day, isn’t it?” she asked.

I shrugged again. Weather wasn’t too bad. A couple of clouds over a sapphire blue sky. The sort of scenery I came to expect living with you guys.

“I just wanted to thank you for taking care of that nasty mare,” the diamond dog said. “You probably saved everyone on this train.”

I did notice one mare shoot me an odd look. Like, maybe she agreed with the beast next to me. But I didn’t really care.

“Someone had to,” I mumbled, not really caring.

“You were so brave,” the diamond dog continued. Her paw touched at my arm. “So strong, too.”

I jerked my arm away with a small growl. I was really wishing she’d go away.

I… sorta got my wish.

“You know where the best seat in the house is?” the dog offered, leaning closer like she was sharing some sort of secret.

I rolled my eyes. “Where?” I asked. This lady didn’t seem to get the hint that I didn’t want to talk.

“The roof,” she said. “Fresh air. Private.” She grinned as another pony shot us a look. “A lot less hostile glares.”

I chuckled. “I’ve been on the roof,” I replied. “Not my style.” It wasn’t just the fight from before; this lady was really making me nervous. Something was off about her scent, her voice had this odd whisper to it, even after she was done talking. Overall, everything about her was screaming ‘Danger!’

She huffed. I couldn’t tell if she was chuckling, or just getting frustrated.

“Well,” she declared. “I think I’m gonna go up on the roof.”

“Whatever,” I said.

She got up and headed for the door. She glanced back.

“You’re not just gonna let a lady go up on the roof unescorted, are you?”

I shrugged. “Ain’t my business what you do,” I said. “I’m happy right here.”

I checked that my blades were ready, my ears twitching for when she eventually dropped the act and just attacked. Though, I got the sense that she didn’t want to make a scene. I was ironically safer with the ponies glaring at me than I was alone with her.

The dog let out a disappointed groan, and moved to exit. But then I heard her gasp.

“That awful mare’s back,” she screamed.

Part of me wanted to believe she was lying. But a more paranoid part of me was pretty sure that had been actual fear in her voice. I got out of my seat to check.

And, sure enough, that dog was right. Marching through the previous cart with a bloodthirsty glare was Tempest Shadow, a small bit of ash across her face the only sign of any damage I had done to her.

What the heck?! I drew my blades and bashed open the door, ready for a second round. But just as I walked out of the car, two arms suddenly encircled around me.

“Don’t you worry,” the dog’s voice purred in my ear. And yeah, dogs aren’t supposed to purr. “I’ll protect you.”

That’s when my paws left the train. I gave a strangled scream and swung my head back, batting whatever had got me in the nose. It shrieked and dropped me, while I went rolling across the train car roofs again. I spun back to my paws, glaring up at… a ball of fire?

But soon enough, the ball dissipated. And in its place…

It was like a freak hybrid of insect and pony. It had a horn and wings like an alicorn, but the wings were thin like a fly, with a carapace shell that likely covered them when they weren’t in use. Bright blue compound eyes glared down at me, and the creature’s dark body contrasted with the bright sunlight.

#

“A changeling,” Twilight whispered.

“Oh, I knew what they were, Sparkle,” Logan said. “I got very familiar with them in time.”

Celestia straightened. “You didn’t… meet the Queen, did you?”

Logan didn’t answer at first. “Not on that day,” he finally admitted.

#

The changeling flitted about above me. My eyes tracked it as it looked for an opening.

Unfortunately, while it didn’t find one, someone else did.

The wind was doing something to my ears and nose, so I didn’t see Tempest sneak up on me until a garrote wire was around my throat.

“Whatever the hives have planned for you are nothing compared to me,” Tempest snarled in my ear.

“Oy, pony,” the changeling snapped, charging at us. “That dog’s mine!”

Tempest used me as a launching pad, kicking the changeling away. But I used her momentum against her, flopping to the ground and causing her grip to loosen. Yanking her up by the Mohawk, I slashed at her chin, knocking her off the train again. But, turns out Tempest was using a grappling hook – likely the one she used to avoid falling from the train - as a garrote, and the grapple had been hooked to the collar of my jacket. Just as I managed to wrench the grapple off my jacket, Tempest pulled herself back onto the train, and the changeling had landed as well. I was right between the two hunters, just like I had been with Luna and Celestia.

Worse still, these two weren’t interested in talking. They charged me as one, though they looked just as ready to hit each other as they were to hit me. I ducked under the changeling, letting it hit Tempest, but as I went to knock them both off, they sent me running for cover with a barrage of fire; some sort of green spell from the changeling, and more of that rainbow lightning stuff from Tempest. The latter’s fire wasn’t stable, and it nearly buckled the train off before she regained control of it.

Without much choice, I used an old tactic, and fired back at them with bolts of lightning. For a while, we continued in that fashion, trading fire from the roof. But then I heard a train whistle. Off in the distance, I saw a station. And I swore I could see some white bodies waiting there.

“The Royal Guard!” the changeling whispered.

“No,” Tempest growled, rushing me head on. “Celestia won’t keep me from my revenge!”
She wasn’t the only one worried. The minute that train rolled in, I was gonna have to deal with Canterlot’s finest. I had already gone a few rounds with them before; even with dragon training, it wasn’t an experience I was interested in repeating. Firing off a few more shots, I let the changeling start trying to hold Tempest back while I went for the engine. Problem was, I chose to race along the top of the train car, and the changeling got more interested in chasing me than keeping Tempest off my back. A barrage of spells sent me over the side, but I caught the side of the train, and kept going, shimmying along the side of the train.

Thankfully, the changeling and the earth pony weren’t allies, and when the changeling tried to fly at me, Tempest grabbed at the insect as well, trying to throw her from the train.

With that distraction, I managed to reach the train car. But that was when the changeling stopped fighting and let Tempest throw her off. The changeling spread her wings, and arced back up, slamming me into the coal car. I rolled with her blow, smashing her into the coal depository and following up with a punch to her midsection. Insect or not, it knocked the air from her. I jumped into the engine room, scaring a poor pony conductor out of his mind.

I caught him and held my blade to his throat. “Keep the train going,” I ordered. I had no idea how any of the buttons and dials on the train worked, and I wasn’t willing to take a crash course.

“But…” the conductor whimpered, before I shoved my blades closer.

“Do it!” I snapped.

The conductor yelped and pulled a few levers. I cracked a small grin as the train surged past the station, a few guards staring in wide-eyed shock. The train whistled again, before the conductor pointed at the fireplace like gateway, where I could see a fire burning.

“I-It needs more coal,” he explained.

I saw the coal car, and some shovels. With a nod, I seized one of the shovels and scooped up a big load of the black stuff, hurling it into the fireplace. I went for a second scoop, before Tempest shot back in. I dodged her first blow as she dented the floor of the engine, meeting my own attempt to brain her with a parry. I bashed her back to the coal, where she grabbed another shovel with her teeth. And from there, we fought back and forth on that little train engine, shovel against shovel. That mare was holding the shovel in her mouth, yet she was capable of grabbing it with her hooves rearing to her hind legs and nailing me with a hard WHACK to the head and a follow up to my chest.

I lunged back up into the coal car just to escape her barrage. But as she followed me up, I got the idea to scoop some coal up. As she climbed up after me, I hurled the coal into her face. She coughed, clutching her eyes, dropping her shovel and sputtering, and I followed up with a hard BANG to her head. Her eyes spun, and she pitched back onto the train engine.

I got a moment to feel good about myself, but I forgot about the changeling. As I backed up, I suddenly felt her fangs sink into my neck. I screamed and hit her with the butt of my shovel. As I got away from her fangs and her grip, I followed up with a smack that sent her to her side again.

But as I stumbled past her, I could already feel something happening. The outline of my vision got tinged in green, and the shovel slipped from my spasming claws.

I made a leap for the other train car. But my paws caught on the edge, and I hit the roof hard, barely keeping myself from sliding off the edge.

“Struggle all you want,” the changeling taunted. “My venom can’t be stopped by your pathetic defiance.”

Venom? I struggled back up, trying to take a swipe at her. But she hadn’t left the coal depository. She was still laying there, watching me smugly.

“Oh, don’t worry,” she told me. “It’s not going to kill you. The Queen can’t feed off a dead body.” She chuckled, approaching at her leisure as I tried to keep my footing, between the venom making me woozy and the train car rattling. “You’ll serve the queen quite well.”

“That’s what you think,” Tempest’s voice proclaimed. I saw her smash the changeling into the ground before lunging across the gap between the coal car and the other train cars.

It was harder to fight her; the venom was making it hard to think, and on top of that, a voice yelled.

“Lone Wolf of Equestria!”

Reduced to blocking Tempest’s attacks, I glanced back and saw white bodies flying for me. Vaguely, I remembered that the Royal Guard included pegasi.

Looking back was a mistake, and Tempest blasted me with another unstable surge before kicking me right onto the next car.

“The guards won’t save you, Lone Wolf,” she said, bearing down on my struggling form. “It was a mistake to ever trust in Celestia’s ‘friendship.’”

I just laughed.

“You’re…” I slurred, struggling to keep the venom from knocking me out, “You’re an idiot… if you thought… I bought into that.”

Tempest paused, her green eyes regarding me.

“Why use the train then?” she asked. “If not because you thought one of your pony ‘friends’ would help you.”

I rolled my eyes; as if I needed to know how much of a mistake using the train had been. The changeling and ponies had only found out where I was because I had chosen local transport. I forgot the whole reason I stayed away from pony villages and cities. And I could barely even curse my stupidity, as the changeling’s venom numbed my body, and made it hard to think straight.

“They aren’t my friends,” I snarled. “They’re… my… prison wardens.”

Tempest huffed, but her eyes darted up to the pegasi. I could see them as well. Any second now, they would be able to land on the train. They wouldn’t even have to do that; they could just slide down over me and pluck me from the roof like an eagle with a mouse. My entire body felt too numb to try and climb down for refuge inside the train car.

“Either way,” Tempest replied. “They can’t help you now.”

With that, she grabbed my tail one final time, and flung me from the train. It was just rattling over a bridge. A thin line of water teased the bottom of the canyon below. With changeling venom numbing my body, I couldn’t even struggle as she tossed me overboard, and the last I saw of Tempest Shadow was her watching me fall with grim satisfaction before engaging the few pegasi that decided to try and arrest her.

I heard voices scream; the guards, even the changeling. But I could also see a few braver pegasi racing down after me, their hooves poised to catch me. I barely had enough in me for a decent slash, so I forewent my training with the dragons, and concentrated on my magic.

It spiraled to life around me, forming a shield that blasted away the few hopeful pegasi that nearly got to me. Briefly, I remembered what happened when my lightning came in contact with water. But as the river raced up for me, gravity competing with the pegasi still trying to break through my barrier and get to me, I just found myself not caring.

At the very least, Tempest was convinced I wouldn’t survive. That was the last time I saw that crazy mare. And in the brief glimpse I got from the train, she had vanished; possibly captured by the pegasi, but more likely having found her own way off the train.

As for the Royal Guards, they didn’t give up trying to catch me until I hit the water. Though I kinda wish I could’ve seen the look on their faces. Judging from how everything went white around me, I can only assume I went out with a pretty big bang.

Comments

[SolitariLupus]

This story gets better and better each chapter.

[Wysteria]

I am honored for the mention. Thank you.

[DDDDDDDDD23]

yeah tempest is a whiny little bitch.

[JNKing]

9841302
Sure. Thank you for mentioning Tempest; I feel Logan battling her is a lot better than just Logan fighting off the changeling.