The Armoured King
Eight years ago.
In a jungle of a far off land, a group of ponies were trotting through the undergrowth. Leading the group was an Indiana Jones styled unicorn stallion, the pony carrying a map in his magic while also swinging a machete to cut through the branches and vines. But as he cut down another bush, he and the stallions behind him froze as a giant snake appeared, glaring and hissing at them.
The group stayed entirely still, all knowing this was one of the most venomous snakes in the area. Their eyes shrunk as the snake let out a roar, only for them all to scream in fear as the snake charged at them, closing their eyes as it was about to bite into their leader. But as it did this...nothing happened.
Blinking their eyes open, they all now saw the snake frozen in midair, a black aura wrapped around it. "Enough clowning around," said a voice, all turning to see one Shadow Corrupter. He was fifteen years old right now, glaring up at the frozen snake before flicking his head, sending the serpent flying into the horizon. "I didn't hire you to freeze up every time something scary looking shows up." He pulled the map and knife from Jones and took the lead, "If you're not gonna be of any help, leave now before I get angry."
The group growled at him, one of the other stallions turning to Jones. "Remind me why we're working for him again?"
"He already payed us a flank ton of bits and promised even more once the job is done. Plus, he said we get any treasure we find at this so called temple." Jones gave them all a knowing smirk, "Besides, if he tries anything, we'll be ready. He's just a kid after all."
"Yeah...a kid with more pocket money than most towns have."
"Who cares how much he has. Soon, it'll be all ours."
"We should still be careful," another stallion chimed in, "Considering all those scars he has, he's obviously been through a lot. Don't wanna underestimate a pony like that."
Jones just rolled his eyes, gesturing them to follow as they caught up to Shadow. Their walk continued for several hours, Jones retaking the map until they arrived at a point on the map. Walking out of the trees and into a clearing, Jones came to a stop as they found themselves staring down a large cliff wall. Shadow let out a long sigh at this, "What is it now? Another snake?"
"Nope. We're here."
Shadow raised an eyebrow at this. "I don't see any temples."
"One of the first things you need to learn kid. Not all temples are big flashy buildings." Jones stepped up to the wall and brushed his hoof against it, revealing the wall to actually be made of bricks. Each brick had a different shape or symbol like a sun, moon and other things. As he bushed this off, they now saw a single larger brick in the center, which had a bunch of writing on it. "Huh. That's a new language on me." He then turned to Shadow, the teen squinting at the symbols, "You okay kid?"
"I think I...understand them?" Shadow replied, tilting his head as he continued, "I've never seen these shapes before, but somehow I know what they mean."
"Well, what do they mean?"
Shadow glared at him, hissing as he looked back at the walls, "Don't interrupt me worm. Now..." he put his hoof to and traced it under the letters, "The world is right, when stars align. When not in sync, the danger you'll find."
"Stars?" An explorer asked, "You mean we have to wait until dark?"
"Maybe not," Jones pointed at one of the bricks. "Look." They turned to a star shape carved into a brick, Shadow's horn glowing as he grabbed it in his magic, "No!" Jones yelled as he used his magic to push it back into place, Shadow glaring at him. "Remember! When not in sync. I'm betting there's a second stone we have to remove at the same time." His eyes darted around next, pointing to a second star stone, "There."
Jones then gripped both in his magic before pulling them out, the wall shaking as the pieces came out. A gap in the wall came out a second later, revealing a staircase leading down into a dark cave.
"This is it," Shadow commented as he went first, the rest following. The journey down the stairs was a short one, soon arriving at a stone door with several carvings. It seemed to show a story, depicting what looked like an army of armoured ponies marching into battle against an army of alicorns and a tree of subspecies. One carving showed a piece of armor shatter off their wearers due to damage, only for the next carving to show the broken pieces fly over to the pony that broke it. The third showed the armor had completely encased the pony, turning them into a replacement solider. "Perfect." Shadow chuckled as he pushed the door open.
The explorers went in, casting a light spell to illuminate the temple room. Grins appeared on all their faces as they now saw multiple chests inside, Shadow grinning as he saw a large stone box with a stone lid in the back. He ran over to the tome, using his magic to lift the slab over it. And as he pushed the lid off, cobwebs and dust scattered all around as he looked inside the tome, "Yes....Armalum."
Within the box was a mask, just like the ones shown on the door carvings. The mere sight of it made a tinge go down Shadow's spine, making a huge grin grow on his face. He leaned in and pulled it free, holding it up to the light, "With this, nothing will stop me...."
"HEY!" He turned to the sudden outcry, now seeing the other explorers with all the opened chests, seeing them filled with nothing but books and stone slabs, "What kind of treasure is this?!"
"Yeah!" another growled, "We were promised riches!"
"I said you could have whatever was in this temple other than this mask. Not my fault the ancient Alicorns didn't want to hide their treasures here."
Jones growled, stomping his hooves. "We didn't come all this way for just a bunch of ratty old books!" His vision then shifted to the mask, "If you only want that mask, it must be worth a pretty bit. I think we'll take it as our pay."
Shadow just shook his head, "Imbeciles." His horn began to glow a deep dark aura, "Seems you still haven't listened. I'll only give you one warning. Crossing me isn't something the same pony does twice, because nopony lives to do it." His warning went on deaf ears, the explorers all trotting up as a dark aura began to cover his body, "Last chance."
Several minutes later...
BOOM!
"AUGH!" yelped Jones as he was flung out of the temple, his clothes in tatters as he rolled down the mud-filled ground. He spat out a glob of blood as he tried to get up, only for a black spell to carve a line along the ground before getting under the stallion, another explosion following this. Screaming in pain, his body went flying into a tree, slumping over next as he saw Shadow walk out of the temple.
"P--p-please, have m-m-mercy..." he whimpered out, now seeing Shadow walk up to him.
The teen glared down at him before letting out a long deep breath, "Very well. Let it never be said that I am without heart. You may live."
Jones sighed in relief, "Thank you...thank you so much. I promise, you'll never see me again. I'll-"
"You misunderstand me," Shadow interrupted, "I said you would live. I didn't say you would go unpunished." Jones's eeys shrunk as he tried to scream, only to feel a magic aura shut his mouth up. "Stop your screams. Now, I need somepony to test this on, and since you were so adamant about having this..."
Shadow then levitated the mask up to Jones's face, his magic releasing his mouth as it encased the explorer. And as it encased him, the pony screamed as everything went black.
The Present...
Armalum shook his head as he sat down in the map room, its door opening to see present day Shadow with Salix and Wingill behind him. The dark unicorn saw the armoured pony just sitting in non-repose, making him ask, "Problem?"
"No master," Armalum replied, "Simply...lost in a memory." This made Shadow raise an eyebrow, Armalum responding, "Eight years ago, when I first became your loyal servant."
"I see," Shadow nodded before glancing at the three orbs circling the map. "But we do not have time to focus on the pointless past. The present and future are all we have to care about." He glared at Wingill next, "How much longer until the others awaken?"
"We're not sure."
Salix nodded in agreement, "We're not exactly experts when it comes to this weird healing magic."
Shadow sighed before turning back to the table, a 3D image of the city now appearing, "How many more of these battles must we endure before their purpose is revealed?"
Armalum crossed his hooves at this, "And with each battle, Sentry's side seems to grow in strength. That Trixie mare didn't stand a chance against Terror, only to suddenly defeat her yesterday. If this keeps up, they may grow too strong for us to handle."
Shadow let out a low hiss, "That is an issue. With me not at full strength and with each match randomized, we keep finding ourselves fighting blind."
Salix shrugged at this, "Well, maybe we'll get lucky and face off against opponents we're strong again-"
"LUCK?!" Shadow roared, glaring at Salix as he let out an 'eep,' his body flinching as Shadow marched down and got up to his face, "Luck is for gamblers and little foals opening trading card packs!" He continued to march, Salix retreating until his back was up against the wall. "We don't rely on luck! We don't play the odds! We are more powerful than those fools! We do everything we can to make sure we win! We exist only for victory! Do you understand me?!"
Salix's entire body shook as a long gulp went down his throat, "Yes master. Sorry master. Slip of the tongue. I just-" He stopped talking as he saw Shadow's horn about to spark, "Sorry."
Salix was about to faint, only for the doors to open to reveal Tempera, Storm and Terror. Shadow turned and glared at this, "You're all awake. Good."
The three bowed to him, Storm speaking up first, "We can not apologize enough for our failure."
"They caught me by surprise my love."
Terror said nothing, Shadow letting out a long hiss as he spoke up, "Terror!" She glanced up, her form shaking as he continued, "I saw what happened. It seems you are your own worst enemy. If you had simply kept your mouth shut, your opponent wouldn't have been able to beat you."
"I'm...I'm sorry master."
"Just make sure it doesn't happen again," Shadow growled as he looked back at the map, "For now, we make sure our next battle ends in victory...along with the rest."
In the other castle...
Ruby and Soarin had now woken up, both entering the dining room as they saw their friends eating breakfast. "Morning! How you doing?" Flash chimed in first, a semi-giant smile on his face.
"Not the best..." Ruby grumbled as she saw the other smiles except Cold and his usual emotionless face. "Why are you so happy? We're behind again."
"Not exactly," Springer chuckled, both raising an eyebrow as he continued, "While you two and Trixie were fighting, this game made me, Flash and Cold do a separate fight...and we won!"
"Cool!" Soarin cheered, clapping his hooves.
"Not just that," Flash added as he pointed at a certain magician, "Trixie managed to even the score with Terror."
"Really?" Soarin gasped as he turned to her, "You beat her future sight?"
"Future Sight?!" Ruby exclaimed, her eyes now going wide. The others giggling at her reaction, they went into a small explanation, making Ruby take on a look of curiosity, "Incredible. No wonder those cards always landed the way she wanted."
"Until Trixie managed to overpower her abilities," Cold added as he finished his meal, "I suggest we watch her fight so the rest of us can do the same thing."
"Who cares about that?! Great work Tricks!" Soarin exclaimed as Soul gave him some breakfast, walking over and sitting down by the magician. But as he did this, he raised an eyebrow as he saw she had a book open on the table, "What's with the book?"
Trixie took a small gulp of milk before replying, "I found it after my battle with Terror. I thought it might have something that could help give us an understanding of this city. None of the other buildings seem to have any books in them, but this one was here despite the whole...city changing thing. So...this thing must be special."
Cold hummed at her statement, "You have a point. What does it say?"
This caused Trixie to sigh. "I wish I knew. Most of the pages are so faded I can't even tell what's written. And even the parts that survived are written in a way I can't make heads or tails. Although..." she crossed her hooves at the current page, "It does look familiar, but I can't put my hoof on it."
The others then gathered around her, Flash looking over her shoulder before going wide-eyed, "Hey..." He leaned in and squinted his eyes, "I can read this stuff." He took the book and flipped through it, "This is...this is the same writing my parents showed me that temple stuff."
Several others in the room all raised an eyebrow at this, remembering that moment as Trixie added, "So that's why it looked familiar." She tapped the table, Flash sitting down and putting the book down as she said, "Well? Can you read it?"
"Not much. You weren't kidding when you said it was all faded. Let's see..."
Day 15
The quarantine is --- beginning its third week. We can only hope --- healers can discover a ---- before it is too late. Many of our -------- have fallen to this plague. If we do not do something ----, all ---- is lost.
"Plague?" Cold asked.
"Is that what might have wiped out the city?" Ruby added, everypony turning to Flash as he flipped to the next readable page.
Day 63
673 --i---n-, 541 -e--s-, -9- e---h --nie-, 71 ----c--s, and 35 --k----- have perished. Even if the remaining ponies ------ to survive this plague, what is left of us will not have the ---- power to -------. Our only hope are the children. None of them seem to be -------- by this illness. If we can find --- what allows them to be immune, we may -- able to find a cure and ---- out this disease. We can only ----.
"Ouch. This sounds...really depressing." Soarin commented.
"That is what happens when you have no hope." Ruby sighed, Heart and Soul now seeing a long depressed frown on her face. "How sad..."
"Hmmm..." Flash muttered as he flipped through a few more pages, "Nothing...nothing...noth-wait! Here's something."
Day 181
I'm afraid the ---- has come to accept our fate. The plague --- spread to everypony over the age of --, with ----- following within days of infection. We have no choice but to ---- the quarantine up ---- the plague is completely extinct.
"But wouldn't that mean they would all be dead?!" Trixie gasped.
"What kind of disease could cause such suffering?" Cold asked as Flash kept reading.
But our culture still has hope. The children will survive. King -------- has designed a spell that will allow us to seal our children in a temporal bubble. They will sleep as the world passes ---- by. Eventually, the plague will die out and they can ------ to the world. Though it may be many generations before they ------, we have no other choice. The king has ------ tested the spell on his own ---------, and got excellent results. Though we don't know what side effects --- occur due to this spell, or even if the children will be able to ------- within the bubble, we are sure it is far ------ than simply watching your ---- be destroyed. But we must be -------. If even one foal is carrying the plague within them, we may end up ----- the disease into the future.
There is ---- testing to be done before we can start, so I will leave this final entry now and hope the next ---- to read it are living in a world where this disease is gone.
Grimaces were all on faces, Cold's just showing a small frown as Flash shut the book, "Well...that was unexpected."
"So that's how the city was destroyed," Cold chimed in as he saw down and rubbed his chin in thought, "No wonder this bubble's so powerful. It must be what they used to keep the plague in." He then turned to Heart and Soul, "It also explains where you came from. You must be the inhabitants of the city."
Heart and Soul exchanged a glance, Heart looking back at him as he said, "Huh?! Are you saying we're from a thousand years in the past?"
"Maybe?" Soarin chimed in, "You did say can't remember anything, right?"
They nodded back, Cold pointing at the book as he continued, "It said there might be side effects to the spell. Maybe one of them is memory loss."
"It's possible," Ruby added. "But let's not forget there were supposed to be many ponies placed inside it. Why were you two the only ones released? Does that mean you two were the only ones to survive?"
This made both young ponies freeze up, Soul shivering while Heart did a long gulp. Seeing this, Flash leaned over and patted their heads, "Hey, don't feel bad. If that is what happened, it's not your fault." The two looked up at the pegasi, a giant grin on his face now. The sight made both smile back as he continued, "Besides, even if we know what happened to the city, it doesn't help us. Right now, let's just focus on winning our next match." He turned to the others as his grin kept growing, "That means training."
The others nodded back, all soon heading downstairs. Once inside the training room, they morphed it into a replica of the city with replicas of Shadow and his followers.
"Let's do this!" Flash cheered as he charged at Shadow, the unicorn transforming into smoke before Flash could hit him before reforming behind him. At the same time, Springer took up his battle mode and ran to fight Wingill and Salix while Soarin began to fight against Tempera and Storm. Finally, Ruby took on Armalum, only for the Terror illusion to vanish.
As for this, Trixie and Cold with Soul, the knight making some targets for her as he Trixie kneeled down to help her, "Okay Soul. Since we...well, we can't stop this game from picking you, we need to help you control your magic. As such, Cold is setting up some simple target practice."
"Practice with what?!" Soul exclaimed, "I don't know any spells!"
Trixie shook her head before turning to a target and firing a blast from her horn, knocking it down instantly. "That...was not a spell. It was just raw magic power that's focused into a shot." She turned back to the filly, "You just got a horn and spells are...well, they're not something you learn instantly. But this is something you can learn, as its nothing but raw magic."
"She's right. This is how unicorns learn offensive magic." Cold added as he set up the last target before walking over to her, only for his eyes to slightly look away as he said, "Also, Flash told me to....apologize for how I've been. I didn't realize you hadn't had that horn for your whole life and was...insensitive."
Trixie giggled at his words, Soul just blinking at his statement as he didn't go any further. The magician then nudged her side and whispered, "Just take it as an apology. He doesn't know any better way to say it."
"Okay." Soul replied as she turned to the targets, "So I just gotta...aim and shoot?"
"Yup. Let's begin."
As that happened, Heart watched from the sidelines as Flash, Springer, Soarin and Ruby sparred against their chosen opponents. But as he turned to watch Springer, he saw the jakhowl make an Aura Guard. The sight made him raise an eyebrow, walking over as he spoke up, "Hey! Springer!"
The jakhowl disengaged from the battle, Salix and Wingill freezing in place as he turned to the colt, "What's up?"
"I was just wondering how you do that. You know, make all those cool weapons and attacks. You don't have a horn, so how's it work?"
Springer smirked as he formed an Aura Blast in his paw, Heart staring at it intensely as he began to speak, "I don't need a horn, it's just something I can naturally do." Heath raised an eyebrow as Springer desummoned the orb, "Okay, simplest explanation: I can manipulate Aura. Its uh...an energy that flows through every living thing. It's usually invisible and intangible, but jakhowls like me can solidify it so it becomes visible. Then we can just shape it into whatever we want."
"Cool..." Heart gasped as his eyes became like stars, "What else can you make?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, you can make orbs, bones, claws, blasts and that bubble. What else can you make?"
"I uh....huh." Springer looked down at his paws, blinking, "Never really thought about it. Every time I get a new power, it just sort of happens."
"Well, why don't you try making something? Maybe make that guard one turn into something else!"
Springer hummed for a moment before nodding, "Alright." He raised his paws, causing the bubble to form around him before he closed his eyes. As he did this, the bubble began to wobble and weave, as if it was trying to be stretched. He then tried to reform it into a square.
The situation soon caught the attention of the others, making them look away from their work. They watched as the bubble slowly began to reshape itself, trying to make a cube....only for cracks to appear. "Urgh….this is tough." Springer growled as he clenched his paws, veins appearing on his head. But as he did this, the cracks continued to appear before shattering like glass. "AUGH!"
Springer fell to his knees, gripping his head as he let out a moan of pain. Flash then cut his fight with Shadow before flying over, "You okay bud?"
"Yeah...I'm okay. That really hurt though." Springer moaned. "I really hope that wasn't how my father used to make his new moves."
"He wasn't that reckless." Ruby chimed in as she walked over. "But you're not wrong in terms of experimenting. That being said, you shouldn't just try to manipulate aura like that. Aura should never be forced."
"Ugh..." Springer groaned as he rubbed the side of his head, "Okay."
"Now hang on. New ideas are never bad, especially right now." Cold added as he appeared beside Ruby, "You should definitely try it as long as you don't kill yourself." The others turned to his deadpan comment, the knight looking away as he focused back on Soul, "Now, back to work."
"He's not wrong." Flash replied as he gave Springer one last glance, "Don't overdo it, okay bud?"
"I won't." Springer responded as he retook his battle form. "I'll figure something out."
And as everypony went back to their training, Ruby went up to the Armalum illusion, a long deep sigh leaving her mouth as she began to slash her swords at him. Her blades were blocked by his scythe, the unicorn spinning around as she began to thrust the swords, her mind now racing, 'Sombra….whether it really is you under there or just something that looks like you, I will find a way to take you down. This, I swear.' She slashed at him again, her mind now flashing with images of their childhood, making her shake her head. 'No...you burnt that bridge a long time ago.'
Everypony trained for about three hours. In that time, Springer was unable to reshape his aura the way he wanted it to, but Soul was able to make some progress. She was able to fire a very small blast out of her horn, which just enough energy to reach the targets...but not hit any of them. And as this time passed, the alarm went off, the group nodding to each other before rushing into the map room. As they entered, the 3D image appeared and outlined a section of the city close to the edge.
The roulette then began to spin, the first ball revealing Springer's face. The jakhowl nodded at the sight before the second one showed Flash's cutie mark. "Alright!" he and Springer hoof-bumped as the last orb flew out, this one showing Soarin's cutie mark, making Flash turn to the Wonderbolt, "You ready bro?"
Soarin nodded back, "You bet!"
The trio turned to the others as Flash said, "Wish us luck!"
"Be careful," Ruby replied as they vanished. They then turned to the table, now seeing six dots appear, Ruby gasping as she saw the names, "Oh no..."
Flash, Springer and Soarin took to the air as soon they appeared in the city, Springer having caught onto a pair of auras. "Where's the third?" Flash asked as the jakhowl rode on his back.
"I'm not sure." Springer replied, clenching his eyes as he tried to focus, "I don't get it. It's like there's nothing here but those two."
"Well at least we know where two of 'em are," Soarin pointed out. "Once we deal with them, we can focus on the third."
"We tried that before, remember?" Flash countered, "Leaving one of them undistracted just gives them a better chance of finding the-"
"Wait!" Springer interrupted, "Something's wrong!"
"What?"
"One of the auras is splitting off from the first. And they're moving fast...too fast to be on the ground." Soarin and Flash followed Springer's gaze, only to see Storm shoot out of a building while spinning the dial on his weapon.
"STORM TRI-FORCE!" A triple element tornado shot out of his blade, Soarin and Flash flying apart as it flew between them. The wind coming off the tornado quickly hit them, rocketing both back while causing Springer to lose his grip.
"AUGH!" He yelped as he was sent flying off the pegasus, Soarin spinning to dive down to catch him. But as he did this, Storm appeared in front of him, smacking him with his sheath.
"Unf!" the Wonderbolt grunted as he was knocked back, only to counter with a spin-kick, which Storm blocked with the sheath.
"Going somewhere?" Storm chuckled before doing a thrusted kick, Soarin flapping his wings to fly backward as he dodged the attack.
As this happened, Flash dove to catch Springer, only for a blur to fly by, grabbing the jakhowl. "What the-Springer!" the defender yelled as he saw that the blur was a giant bird, the jakhowl in his talons. "What the heck?! Hey! Get back-GYAH!" he yelped as a sudden red energy blade struck him, exploding next as it slammed into a building. "BLAUGH!"
"That was easier than I thought." commented a voice as it walked up to the house Flash had crashed into. "Perhaps-"
THOOM!
The door of the building went flying down the street, Flash growling as he pulled out his blade, "Okay, who did that?!" he yelled as he entered through the now doorless space of the house.
"You're a sturdy one, I'll give you that." Flash's eyes shot open at the voice, making him turn to see a certain chuckling armoured pony.
"You..." Flash hissed as he got into a fighting stance, glaring at the pony. But as he pointed his blade at him, he suddenly felt a shiver go down his spine. He gripped his chest, feeling a slight burn on his scar as he began to shake, "Wha…" He looked down at his shaking hoof, now feeling a drop of sweat go down his face.
"Problem?"
Flash looked back up, his eyes shaking as he replied, "No. Let's go."
At the same time...
"Let me go!" Springer yelled as he kept squirming in the bird's talons. But as he tried, the bird kept flying him across the battlefield, a bulb went off in Springer's head. "That's it!" His morphed into his battle form, pushing the talons away before bursting out of its grip, quickly landing on a nearby rooftop.
"Aura Blast!" He threw an orb at the bird, the beast popping like a balloon from the blow. "Oh great...that means-" his words came to a stop as a sudden light shined in front of him, revealing a certain smiling unicorn, "You."
"Hello." she waved with a cocky smirk.
'Can't give her time to draw anything.' Springer thought as he charged at her, only for an eyebat to appear from below the building, firing a blast at him. "Whoa!" He yelped as he put up an Aura Guard, the blast destroying the shield in one blow, sending him flying to another roof.
Quickly hopping back to his feet, he ducked as he dodged another beam from the eyebat. As he did this, Tempera pulled out a notepad and began to draw, Springer growling as he formed a Bone Breaker.
"Oh, no you don't!" he roared as he charged at her, swinging the bone at the eyebat as it charged at him.
"This'll be easier than I thought." Tempera commented as she finished her drawing before looking up to see Springer strike down the beast. "Want a new playmate?"
"Bring...it...on!"
Meanwhile...
Soarin glared down Storm, the cultist shining a huge grin in response. His side tinged as he remembered their last fight, making him whisper to himself, "Just gotta remember what Flash told me."
"Remember, speed is your game. That's your biggest advantage against these cultists."
"Right....doesn't matter how powerful their attacks are if they don't connect." he finished before charging at the other pegasus.
"Storm Cutter!" Storm countered as he swung his weapon, firing a blade of lightning. Soarin then spun like a top, only to bounce around the lightning blast, circling its edge. Storm's eyes went wide at the sudden motion, Soarin getting right up to his face, a hoof hitting his head, "Augh!" Soarin yelped as he felt the punch, only for Soarin to quickly grip his blade, swiping it in one motion before tossing it away.
And as he came to a stop from the blow, Storm shook his head before clenching his hoof. He now felt his missing weapon, making him glare at Soarin, "Not bad. Let me guess, you think because I don't have my weapon, you can beat me?"
"That's the idea."
"HA! Now that's a foolish idea!" Storm laughed as he instantly zipped up to the Wonderbolt, immediately punching his face with a one-two jab. He then spun and kicked Soarin's face, smacking him into a building wall. He then shot down to his weapon, a big grin on his face as he got close. "Come to papa."
"No!" Soarin yelled as he bounced off the wall, hitting the ground and springboarding off the floor before tackling Storm.
"GYAH!" Storm wheezed as Soarin slammed his stomach, gripping him next as he spun like a top. Letting go a second later, the cultist went flying into a nearby building wall, "AUGH!" he yelped as he slumped off the wall, hitting the dirt with a moan.
Gasping as he landed, shaking his head from the spin move as his eyes were still spinning, "I've gotta stop doing that." He turned around and grabbed Storm's blade before flying up and threw it as hard as he could. Looking back at Storm, the pegasi had just recovered from the blow, Soarin seeing he didn't see where he had thrown the sword. Running up and getting into a fighting stance, he yelled at the cultist, "Now there's no chance you'll be able to use your Celestic Gear!"
Storm just growled back, "Oh please. I don't need my Celestic Gear to defeat a weakling like you."
Back to another part of the city...
Flash's whole body was now shaking, like he was a colt going into a haunted house for the first time. Armalum stood in front of him, inspecting him like a piece of meat before speaking up, "You're afraid." Flash glared at him, the shaking not stopping as he continued, "I can see it in your eyes. You're afraid."
"So what if I am?" Flash asked as he put one hoof on his other, slowing the shaking down.
"Fear is a weakness."
"Fear is what's gonna keep me alive," Flash countered, "Yeah...I'm afraid. Its because of our last encounter." Armalum said nothing, "You really don't remember, do you?" Flash pointed at the stallion with his blade, "Well I remember. I remember it all. And because I'm scared, I won't take you lightly like last time. I will take you down."
But as he did this, Armalum rubbed his chin with his hoof, "Hmm...strange."
"What?!" Flash barked back, only to feel a twinge in his scar. Putting his hoof on it, he now felt it was like a mild burning sensation.
"I'm just...comparing you two. Master Shadow is quiet interested in you. He believes you two have some kind of connection, but I see no similarities to the two of you." Flash didn't reply, just gripping his chest as Armalum continued, "You see fear as a benefit, while master Shadow despises any form of cowardice."
"Guess your boss isn't as smart as he thinks," Flash spat before charging at him with his blade, "Now, let's go!" He swung his blade downward, Armalum instantly blocking with the handle of his scythe before pushing the blade forward. Flash flapped his wings backward, quickly pointing the sword at the armoured pony, "Flash Force!"
The laser shot out the sword, Armalum responding with a red beam from his born. Both attacks collided, instantly creating an explosion. A blast of smoke came next, only for Flash to leap out of the smoke with sword raised. "Flash Cutter Barrage!" Several light blades came next, the armoured pony countering as he spun his scythe like a pinwheel, deflecting them all. But as he did this, Flash thrust his blade right at Armalum's face, the pony ducking before swinging his scythe horizontally. Flash countered by entering Theta Mode, dodging the swing as he leaned back.
His neck felt the slight breeze from the scythe's swing, Flash then thrusting his sword again. Armalum blocked it again, only to stretch out his hoof, gripping Flash's neck. He began to pull the pegasi, only for Flash to flip his body, uppercutting Armalum's chin with a kick from his backhoof. But as the blow hit his helmet, Flash felt the rough armor scratch his skin, making him flinch. And as he got back into a battle stance, Armalum fired a beam from his horn, Flash quickly ducking and hopping back.
But as he did this, he felt a burn hit his body, making him grab his scarred chest. "Urgh…"
"Problem?" Armalum asked, now seeing Flash's pain riddled face.
Flash growled back before firing a Flash Cutter at the ground, an explosion covering him as he flapped backward. He then landed a few feet away, only to flinch as he slumped over, gripping his chest. "What...is going on?"
"What's wrong with him?" Heart asked as they all watched Flash stumble backward.
"Not sure," Trixie added as she squinted her eyes at the fight, "It looks like he's in pain, but he hasn't taken a hit yet."
"There must be something we're not seeing," Ruby commented as she rubbed her chin, only for her eyes to slowly grow as she saw Flash hold his chest now while dodging a beam from Armalum's horn. "His scar?"
"Didn't he say that he got that from Sombra?" Cold chimed in, Ruby barely nodding back.
"Yes..." Ruby barely replied, her mind melting between the present and the memory of that battle of Sombra versus Flash several months ago, "Sombra...what did you do?"
Meanwhile again...
"Bone Breaker!" Springer roared as his swung his aura weapon, slicing through several uni-troopers before ducking under a minotaur's punch. He then fired an Aura Blast at the beast, blowing it up with a single orb. But as he did this, three more uni-troopers appeared, making him switch to Steel Paw.
Tempera just laughed as she saw him cut those down, now summoning a lindworm next. Yelping at the sight of the beast, he hopped away as the worm swung its tail at the jakhowl. He quickly glanced behind himself, making sure nothing was back there before looking back at the lindworm, dodging a charge from the beast next. The jakhowl was starting to pant, frustrated due to knowing he couldn't sense where any of these lifeless, aura-empty scribeasts were coming from.
And as he kept hopping back, his body suddenly disappeared. The lindworm stopped at the sight, looking up to see Springer appear on a building wall. His body was in Velocity Strike mode, rocketing off the wall before slamming its fist into the worm's mouth. However, the attack didn't kill it, making him hit it with ten punches in a split second. Ink exploding off the beast, Springer flinched as he felt his aura tinge across his body.
"Urgh...it still hurts." He whispered as he looked down at his paws for a second, "But not as much."
His words came to a stop as several eyebats appeared around him, the jakhowl leaping as a barrage of beams fired at him. As he did this, he spun and fired several Aura Blasts, knocking several down. He then cartwheeled, dodging the last few as he felt a tinge of aura shook his spine.
"Flash?" he muttered as he felt the aura shake his body. Narrowing his eyes next, he leapt off the roof as he told himself, "I gotta get out there! Hang on Flash, I'm coming!"
"Hey!" Tempera yelled as she saw him sprint down the street. She then flipped to a page that had a Quetzalcoatl, summoning it as she leapt onto the beast, "Come back here!"
In another sector of the city...
Two pegasi collided, punches hitting each others' faces. Both were knocked back into a building, the two then pushing off the walls as they turned into light and dark blue blurs before slamming into each other again. Two, three, four, five times they smashed into each other at incredible speed, the force of each collision knocking them back again and again.
Minute after minute passed, both now crashing into a nearby rooftop. The two got back up and hit each other again, both colliding before rolling back onto their hooves. Panting as they both stood up, Storm chuckled as he pointed at Soarin, "See?! I don't need my weapon! Especially to beat the weakest member of your team." This made Soarin growl, Storm laughing at his reaction, "What, you didn't know? Surely you must have figured it out. After all, there's nothing special about you. You're fast, but that's all you got. You don't have a Celestic Gear, you don't have illusions or weapons or magic...you're nothing. Heck, even that filly's stronger than you!"
"Oh, shut up!" Soarin roared as he charged at him, Storm blocking a punch next before countering with a jab to the Wonderbolt's face, "Blaugh!" Storm then grabbed him and slammed a bent backhoof into Soarin's chest, making him spit out a glob of blood. Storm let out a single laugh before spinning and throwing Soarin off the roof, the Wonderbolt flaring his wings to slow his descent before kissing the ground.
"And that's that." Storm chuckled before taking to the air, staring downward as he began to fly over the many buildings. "Now...where are you? You have to be somewhere." He flapped over a few houses, only for a giant grin to grace his face, "Ah! There you are."
But as he began to descend, his ears spiked up as he turned to see Soarin flying at him at full-speed. Unable to react, the pegasus tackled him into a building, the wall instantly crumbling as they flung into the house. And as they hit the floor, the two rolled around, wrestling each other as Soarin began to pin Storm down. However, as he did this, Storm suddenly slammed his lower hooves into Soarin's stomach, kicking him off a second later.
"Augh!" The Wonderbolt cried as the wind was knocked out of him, Storm quickly flying out of the building. And as Soarin tried to recover, Storm reappeared with a certain blade in his hoof. "Aw crap."
SHING!
"BLAUGH!" Soarin screamed as the Celestic Gear sliced his chest open, staggering back next as he clutched his now bleeding body. A mild concussion was now throbbing his head as well, barely looking up as he saw Storm spin the blade in his hoof.
Storm then struck him in the face with the hilt of the blade, Soarin trying to block the next blow as Storm spun around to hit him with the sheath. But as he did this, Storm punched his gut before smacking him in the head with the blade. Soarin could only scream as he was knocked back, blood now rolling down his face.
The cultist shook his head while chuckling as he pointed his blade at the Wonderbolt before spinning the dial. "Such a shame. You Wonderbolts are so well loved, but in the end, I guess a show pony can't compete with a true solider." Soarin growled as he tried to push himself up, only for Storm to yell, "STORM TRI-FORCE!" The three in one attack launched out of his weapon, forming a tornado that stuck the pegasi before he could react.
"GRAAAAAAAH!" He screamed as the wind ripped into his skin, the cuts then drenched by water that acted as a conductor for the lightning. Within seconds, his entire body was cut, watered and electrocuted, all while being thrown backward by the spiraling force of the tornado.
The tornado curved upward, pushing Soarin flying before gravity pulled him down. Nothing could be done as he fell like a rock, his limp body hitting the dirt before bouncing like a basketball. And as he came to a stop, Soarin could feel almost every bone in his body now breaking.
A long moan came out of his mouth as Storm walked over and laughed at him, "As I said before, you bring disgrace to your uniform. I don't know why you were chosen to come here, but it's clear it was a mistake. You're no warrior."
Soarin tried to counter, but his mouth could barely move. As such, Storm took to the air, the Wonderbolt groaning out, "Sorry everypony. I wasn't...strong enough."
Meanwhile...
"Flash Grinder!" Flash roared as he spun into a wheel, Armalum raising his scythe to block the attack. And as the wheel struck the weapon, he swatted Flash away with a single swipe. Flash quickly broke out of the wheel, flaring his wings to come to a stop. But as he did this, Armalum appeared right in front of him, thrusting his scythe downward. The defender blocked it with his blade, hopping back at the same time. And as he did this, he let out a yelp as he clutched his chest again.
"Grrr...blast it." Flash moaned, gripping his scar as he felt pain there again. He then raised his blade at his enemy, "Flash...force."
A laser shot right out of the sword, instantly pushing Armalum back. He let out a gasp as he felt his hooves grind against the ground, a crack appearing in his armor. And as he came to a stop, Flash slumped over, gripping his chest as Armalum stared down at his armor, his horn shining as his magic began to repair the crack.
"What is happening to me?!" Flash whispered as he panted, rubbing his chest as the heat in his body started to die down. He let out a long breath, only to look back up as he saw Armalum charging at him, scythe pulled back. "Whoa!" Flash yelped as he ducked from a swipe of the blade, countering by swinging his sword, "Flash Cutter!"
An energy blade fired out of the weapon, Armalum spinning his scythe before slamming it into the ground. A red crack came out of the ground, blocking the attack before the crack started to charge at Flash. The defender took to the air next, avoiding the exploding earth before spinning into a drill. "Flash Driver!"
"Tch!" Armalum hissed as he pulled his weapon back, the blade now glowing in a dark aura. Swiping it next, a mix of red and black lights flew off the scythe, forming a boomerang that struck Flash, instantly destroying the Flash Driver.
"AAAHHH!" Flash screamed as he was sent flying back, slamming into building. Armalum let out a laugh before pulling back his scythe again, Flash looking up to see him fire another boomerang again. However, before he could do anything, the energy blade him, an explosion following as it smashed him through the house. "Augh!"
"So pathetic." Armalum commented as he rested the scythe on his shoulder. "Let's end this."
At the same time...
Springer was now sprinting down another street, his aura feeling Flash's pain through their link. But as he ran, the building in front of him exploded, two minotaurs and a lindworm flying out of the house. The jakhowl leapt away as the lindworm swung its tail, only to raise an Aura Guard to block the minotaurs' fists. And as they pulled back to hit again, he dropped the bubble and zipped under their legs, spinning around and firing a pair of Aura Blasts.
BOOM!
Both cows exploded into ink, only for Springer to create another shield as the lindworm slammed its tail in him again. "Stupid worm..." he growled, only to look up to see Tempera on a flying beast above the worm.
"Done running?" She asked with a deadpan stare.
"Nope." Springer replied before lowering his shield, switching to Steel Paw as he cut the lindworm in half before putting his paws together, "Aura Force!"
He fired an aura laser at Tempera's ride, instantly destroying it. She let out a yelp as she found herself falling before her horn sparked, casting a levitation spell on herself. Her body came to stop just an inch off the ground, gasping before landing with a thud, "Ow!"
And as she started to pick herself up, she looked up to see Springer now running down the street again. "Oh, come on!" she yelled before pulling out her sketchpad again. "Let's see how you like a Scorpentine!" she growled as the paper was hit by her magic, the piece teleporting right above Springer before forming into the giant beast.
Springer leaped back as the creature landed in front of him, the beast swinging its tail down at him. The jakhowl backflipped from a swipe of its claws, only to come to a stop as he saw he was now again surrounded by minotaurs, eyebats and lindworms.
Flash's heart felt like it was in a vice, pain consuming the defender as he gripped his body. "Stop it..." he whispered as he tried to escape a pile of rubble. As he did this, he felt his blade now longer in his hoof, making him realize the previous blow had knocked it away. But before he could try to find it, he looked up to see Armalum walking up to him.
"Stay back!" Flash cried as he tried to take to the air, only for a beam to fly out of Armalum's horn. The laser missed the knight, instead hitting the building behind the defender, causing a rain of rubble. "AUGH!" he yelped as the rocks slammed into him, knocking him back to the ground.
Armalum just laughed at the sight, walking up slowly as he raised his scythe. Flash looked back up as he got on his hooves again, now seeing the blade about to come for his head. "Whoa!" he yelped as he pulled his head back, dodging the stab by doing a limbo slide. He then turned to see his sword just a few feet away, diving for the blade at the same time. The pony gripped the sword while rolling on the ground, rolling back to his hooves as he pointed it at the enemy, "FLASH-"
"Stop." Armalum interrupted as a black light shot out of his horn, hitting Flash's chest. The light then morphed into a black rope, quickly wrapping around the defender before tying his wings and front hooves to the side.
Flash grunted as he fell to the ground, his sword slipping from his grip. "Dang it!" He yelled as he tried to move, only to feel the rope tighten. "Augh!"
"Now, let's end this farce." Armalum's horn began to glow, the aura growing into a pillar of magic. Flash could only watch as his eyes shrunk at the sight.
And as this happened, a yell down the street could be heard. "Aura Force!" Springer roared as he unleashed another blast, vaporizing an oncoming lindworm before performing several back flips to avoid an eyebat attack. And as he did this, he got to the street where Flash was, making him to turn to see Flash tied up.
"FLASH!" He yelled as he turned to run over, only for a giant minotaur to appear in front of him. Slamming its fists down, the jakhowl summoning an Aura Guard to block it. He felt the beast's blow hit the bubble, making him drop to a knee as he tried to keep the barrier up. And as more punches followed, he glared over to Flash and Armalum, seeing Flash struggle against the magic rope.
"Flash...I gotta...no..." he moaned, having to look back at the minotaur as it kept hitting the shield.
"It's over," Armalum chuckled as he reached maximum power.
"Ahh!" Soul screamed as she turned away while covering her eyes with her wings.
"Get out of there!" Heart called out, "Flash!"
"I can't watch," Trixie whimpered as she looked away, shutting her eyes. Cold sighed as he looked down, also not watching.
But as this happened, Ruby kept her gaze firmly locked on Flash and Armalum, unable to look away. "Even now, after everything he's been through, Flash still can't defeat Sombra." she whispered, memories of the battle all the way back then. Her fears for what would happen if Sombra broke free of the armor came into her mind, only to go wide eyed at the next sight, "Wait...what's that?"
The others turned back to the screen, now seeing a soft glow radiate from Flash.
"Is that..." Cold tried to say.
"The Sacred Light?" Trixie added, "But the light seems to be coming from his chest."
Ruby's eyes continued to grow as she heard those words, "His scar."
Armalum's had also noticed this, holding back his attack as he stared Flash down. The pegasus was now screaming in pain, his eyes shut as the light from the chest seemed to increase. He felt like his heart was being roasted alive as he kept shaking in the magic rope.
And as his X-shaped mark continued to glow, Armalum leaned down and asked, "What is this? If this is some kind of tick, I'm not falling-"
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" Flash screamed, the light exploding out of the chest. Gasping at the sight, Tempera teleported onto a building roof while Springer and the minotaur just watched the scene. The light then morphed into a beam, striking Armalum right in the forehead.
His response mirrored Flash as he screamed out, letting the spell he had held back loose, hitting the building behind Flash. Pain ripped through his entire body as cracks appeared along his armor, his loss of focus causing the ropes around Flash to vanish. The pegasus didn't notice as he just gripped his chest in pain, also not noticing the building crumbling behind him.
"FLASH!" Springer yelled as he leapt over the minotaur, trying to sprint after the defender as rubble began to fall onto him. "NOOOO!" he threw a paw in that direction, knowing he wouldn't make it until....suddenly, a tentacle of aura shot out of his shield. The tip of the tentacle went over Flash, only to morph into a shape that mimicked Springer's paw.
"What?!" Tempera yelped as she saw the paw block the rubble, Springer coming to a stop as he watched the paw just stay hovering there.
As this happened, Flash let out a giant pant of exhaustion before looking up, now seeing a blue energy paw levitating above him. Blinking at the sight, he saw the rubble the paw was carrying, making him grab his sword and leap away. The paw disappeared a second later, Springer flexing his paw as he saw Flash get to safety. His ears spiked up next, hearing the roar of the minotaur before turning and firing an Aura Blast into its stomach, instantly destroying it.
"Okay....okay..." he gasped as ink splattered the road below him, making him look down at his paws, "What was that? Was that something-"
"RRRRAAAAAUUUGGGGHHHHH!" screamed a voice, Springer, Flash and Tempera turning to Armalum as he began to stagger around while clutching his mask while screaming.
"What's happening to him?" Springer asked, Flash shrugging in response.
However, Tempera just let a long gulp down her throat, "This isn't good. He must be...remembering."
"No..." Shadow growled, putting a hoof to his head as he felt a shiver go down his spine, "Sentry...what did you do?!"
"What's going on?" Salix asked while tilting his head.
"It sounds like Armalum's gonna be getting a roommate," Wingill told him.
Terror bit her hoof before turning to Shadow, "Master, is he really going to remember?"
"It appears so," Shadow hissed as he slumped back in his throne, "And that could cause issues for us."
Inside a dark void, Sombra was floating there without the armor or his usual attire. The umbrum's head was waving back and forth, only to grip his head with his hooves, "Who...who am I?" he moaned as he tried to remember who or what he was, "Armalum...Sombra...who is it? What....just what is happening to me?!"
He let out a scream of pain next, his eyes shooting open as his question echoed through the void. And as he said this, a bright light suddenly exploded in front of him. Gasping, he now found himself staring at a golden bubble of light floating in front of him. "What is this?"
The pony leaned forward, now seeing inside the orb an image of Sombra as a colt, being found by the Crystal Guards. The bubble then switched to another image, this one showing him arriving at the orphanage and meeting Ruby. More and more bubbles flew up next, each showing a different scene. His life growing up, the yearly pains brought on by the Crystal Festival. Ruby saving him from the yeti and leaving before discovering his destiny to take over the Empire. He then saw the empire be banished alongside himself, only to be followed by the thousand year return. And as he saw this, another bubble came up, showing him fighting against Flash and winning. The memory seemed to freeze on a single moment: When he gave Flash his scar.
"I...I remember. I remember...EVERYTHING!"
Armalum's screams continued as his entire body thrashed around, cracks appearing on every piece of the armor. Flash and Springer just watched the sight, Tempera switching between her sketchpad and her ally. At the same time, both castle audiences were staring at the scene, Ruby shivering at the sight as a mix of emotions appeared on her face.
And as this happened, a sudden golden light began to seep out from the cracks, glowing brighter as Sombra screamed out, "GYAAAAAAAAAH!" He bellowed as the armor exploded off of him, Flash and Springer hopping back as they dodged the pieces.
But as the pieces all hit the ground, the light off the pony died down, revealing one Sombra. The umbrum's eyes slowly opened, the purple gas still not present around them as he gasped, "I'm...back." he looked down, raising and flexing his hoof as he added, "The king...is back."
"Sombra..." hissed a voice, making him look up to see Flash getting into a defensive stance.
Sombra opened his mouth to respond to the defender, only to let out a scream of pain, gripping his head, "Gyah!" he yelped as he clutched his forehead, new images now going through his mind, "What...is this?! These memories...they aren't....mine?"
"No, they're mine." a voice replied out of nowhere, Sombra suddenly feeling the pain stop. He let go of his head next as the trio looked around for the voice. "Down here." The three looked down, now see puddles of sludge move along the ground, all the same color as the Armalum's armor. Blinking at the sight, the pile of sludge moved up to each other before solidifying into a mask...only for the mask to speak.
"It's nice to finally meet you face to face." The voice chuckled, everypony but Tempera going wide-eyed.
"Wait...that voice." Flash spoke up, "You...you're the real Armalum?"
"That's right," the mask replied as more sludge began to circle around Sombra. "See? I'm actually just the armor."
"What?!" Springer yelped before pointing at Sombra, "Then who have we been fighting, Sombra or the armor?!"
"A bit of both, really." Armalum chuckled, "Sombra was the one in control, but I've been secretly pulling his strings. Think of me like a little shoulder angel."
"More like a devil," Flash growled.
"What are you?!" Sombra asked while panting, "I doubt you're a natural creation."
"You're right." The mask replied before it began to levitate, everypony backpedaling at the sight as it began to hover, "Long story short, I was forged centuries ago by a powerful group of creatures who needed a way to fill out their dwindling number to build their armies. I was one of hundreds, but uh...let's just say I'm probably the last of my kind."
"But why were you on Sombra?" Springer asked next, Flash nodding in agreement.
"I'm a suit of armor mutt. Even if I'm sentient, I can't move or fight without somepony to wear me." Armalum replied before turning to Sombra, "That's where you come in. Remember partner?"
Sombra blinked at his words, only to feel a sudden foreign memory surge through his head. He let out a gasp of pain, clutching his head again as a scene played in his head.
The past...
Sombra could see himself watching in the back of a room, now seeing Shadow and his followers staring at something in a glass tube. It was being electrified by black lightning, courtesy of Shadow as Tempera looked up at the container, now showing a red curved horn inside. But as it was electrified, the horn slowly grew something from its base, the horn trying to form a pony-esque shape.
"I was right!" Shadow cheered, "He can be revived!"
"Master!" Tempera yelped as she saw the lightning surge in the tube, "Maybe we should be a little more careful. We know nothing about this creature or its powers."
"It'll fine!" Shadow yelled back as the pony finished reforming. As soon as it did, Shadow cut the power, the tube opening as Sombra's body slumped over in the container.
It was then that the memory seemed to shift, the world going white for a second before he found himself looking out his own eyes as he was slumped on the ground. Storm and Salix ran up next, grabbing his sides as they helped him up to his front hooves. Shadow then walked up, leaning down and putting a hoof to Sombra's chin, "Tell me...who are you?"
"Who...am...I?" Sombra replied, now feeling Shadow's hoof leave his chin. His head leaned back, his eyes waving back and forth before letting out a low breath, "I...I don't...I don't know."
Everypony went wide-eyed at this except Shadow, a curt smile appearing on his face. "Is that so?"
"Yeah...where-" Sombra tried to ask, only to let out a scream of pain. Both Salix and Storm let go of him next, Sombra's body thrashing as he screeched in pain. "AAAAHHHH! It hurts!" he cried, only to look down and see his hooves starting to show cracks.
"He's coming apart," Storm gasped as Shadow saw the cracks continue to appear.
A bulb went off in Shadow's head next, making him to point to Tempera, "Get the mask." She quickly nodded before running out of the room, Shadow turning back to Sombra, "You're in luck. This should keep you in one piece, and with your lack of memories, the two of you should work quite well together." Before Sombra could ask what he meant, Tempera returned with the mask, "Armalum." Shadow said as he took the mask and put it on Sombra, "Meet your new partner."
The Present...
Sombra's eyes shot open and he staggered back, only to start glaring at Armalum. "You...you used me. Controlled me."
"I saved you," the armor countered, "Without me, your unstable body will disintegrate. It was a win-win for both of us. Usually, my mind ends up fighting with the mind of my host. But since you didn't have any memories, it was easy to suppress your personality and bend it to my will."
"But now my memories are back," Sombra growled as he put himself in a defensive stance.
"Yeah...that does pose a problem." Armalum replied while trying to imitate a sigh. "Though I doubt it'll be that much of an issue."
As he said that, Sombra suddenly let out a scream of pain. "Sombra!" Flash and Springer gasped, now seeing cracks appear on Sombra's body. But before they could do anything, a Quetzalcoatl landed in front of them.
"Stay out of this!" Tempera yelled from atop the beast before looking back at her comrade, "Armalum, get yourself back under control."
"Working on it," the mask responded as he turned back to Sombra. The umbrum was now staring at himself, seeing the cracks appear again just like in the memories. "Hey! Up here!" Sombra looked up to see Armalum hover in front of him, "Put me on partner, you need me. Without me, you'll be nothing but a pile of dust, and I doubt master Shadow will decide to revive you a second time."
Sombra panted as he looked down at his body, more cracks appearing. He kept going between the mask and his body, his eyes darting up and down. A long sigh left his mouth next, his head slumping as he said, "Do it."
"Gladly." Armalum chuckled as he spun around and latched itself to Sombra's face. As he did this, Sombra cried out as the sludge grabbed his body, slowly reforming the armor around him.
"No!" Flash yelled as he took down the scribeast, Tempera leaping back behind Armalum as her creation was destroyed. And as the ink splattered the dirt, the armor sludge solidified on the pony as Flash asked, "Sombra? Are you in there?"
"Sorry," Armalum's voice cackled, "Sombra is unavailable right now. Please leave a message."
Meanwhile...
In another part of the city, Storm was flying down a few streets. His wings were doing a casual set of flaps as he looked at every window. "Where are you..."
And as he went down another road, he looked into another house before laughing, "Yes! There you are!" he landed and walked up to the orb, tapping it with his hoof, "Another victory in the bag."
"SOMBRA!" Flash yelled as he swung his blade at the armoured pony, Armalum blocking the blow with his scythe, "Sombra, I know you're in there! Don't let this creep control you!"
"You misunderstand," Armalum replied while chuckling, "I'm not controlling him, I'm just borrowing his body as payment for keeping him alive." He the pushed Flash back before resting the scythe on his shoulder, "Now, let's get back down to business."
Flash and Springer both got into fighting stances, Tempera pulling out a sketch as her horn began to glow. But before they could start, a bright light exploded in the distance.
"Oh." Armalum added as he turned to the light, "Looks like we'll have to settle this another time."
Flash growled as he sheathed his sword, "This isn't over."
"I'm counting on it," Armalum quipped as the light struck them.
Inside the dark castle...
Shadow hopped off his throne as Armalum and the others reappeared. As soon as they did this, he threw a hoof into Armalum's face. "BLAUGH!" The armour cried as black lightning shot out of Shadow's hoof, zapping both him and his host. "Master, what are you doing?!"
"I'm putting you down for a bit. We can't afford for you to lose your host. He may start to cause problems." Armalum fell to his knees as the lightning flowed into him. Within the armor, Sombra screamed as he felt the world around him go dark, his consciousness fading as he fell into a deep and uncomfortable sleep.
Sensing the host calming down, Shadow pulled his hoof away. "There. I've managed to suppress the consciousness of your host. This should allow you to use his body and power without him trying to take control....but it won't last long."
Armalum panted as he picked himself up, "As long as it helps me help you. I just wanna know what happened. All I remember was Sentry's scar seemed to glow this light and then hit me with it."
Shadow shook his head at this, "I know. I saw that." He crossed his hooves in thought, "But as I watched...it didn't feel like it was just Sentry's doing...wait." he pointed at Armalum's horn, "Check the host's memories now that they have returned. Maybe Sombra knows what happened."
Armalum nodded before standing still. Everypony watched as he stood there, only for a long cackle to come out of its mouth. "My my....Sombra, you sneaky sneak stallion. I must say master, I suspect you would like my host."
"Oh? What did he do?"
"He made a backup of himself."
In the other castle...
Everypony was in the map room, all discussing the battle with looks of confusion and surprise.
"Living armor," Cold repeated for the third time. "It's just...it doesn't seem possible."
Flash turned to him. "Well trust me, it's real."
"Though I wouldn't really call him alive," Springer added, "When Sombra was out of the armor, I was able to sense an aura around him....but I couldn't sense one coming off the armor. It probably also explains why I couldn't sense him at the start of the fight. They must have figured out my abilities and Armalum blocked Sombra's aura."
"Augh! You gotta be kidding me!" Trixie yelped, "We get answers to one mystery, but now we've got more questions about this armor! Why is everything a mystery in this place?!" She then turned to Flash, now seeing him scratch his scar. "Oh yeah...how do you feel?"
"Weird. It hurt like Tartarus before, but now it's fine."
"What the heck even happened back there?" Heart asked next.
"No idea," Flash replied while shaking his head, "But whatever it was, it seemed to give Sombra back his memories."
Cold stared at the scar, "Sombra was the one that gave that to you, right?" Flash nodded back. "I see. Ruby said there was much we don't know about umbrum. Maybe Sombra did something when he gave you that scar."
Springer turned and raised an eyebrow, "Are you saying Sombra put his memories into Flash's scar?" Cold shrugged back, "That's...creepy."
"Doesn't change the fact that Sombra's memories are back," Trixie chimed in.
"So what do we do?" Soul asked next, everypony turning to her as she continued, "It's clear Sombra doesn't want to be trapped in the armor. But if he leaves it, he dies. So what do we do?"
Flash sighed, leaning back in his chair, "That's a good question." He turned to Trixie, "Don't suppose you know any way to stabilize his body?"
Trixie shook her head. "I doubt even if Twilight or the princesses could do that. The only being I can think of that might have the power to completely restore him is Discord." She then blinked at her own words, "Say, did we ever try summoning Discord?" She looked up as all but Cold, Ruby and the twins yelled out, "DISCORD!"
...
"Rats."
Heart and Soul blinked at the weird exchange before Heart said, "Ooookay. But getting back to Soul's question, what do we do?"
Nopony answered for a moment, only for Ruby to speak up, "Its obvious what we do." they all turned to her, seeing a dark expression on her face, "The next time Armalum is fighting, we do our best to destroy the armor and free him."
"But if we do that, Sombra will turn to dust."
"Exactly."
Everypony went wide-eyed at her tone, Flash standing up as he said, "Ruby, you can't be serious. You don't wanna really kill Sombra, do you?"
"Sombra died a long time ago. At least, the Sombra I knew." Ruby hissed as she stared at the nearby window, "He...was replaced by a monster that looked like him. One we had no second thoughts about destroying last time." Flash opened his mouth to respond to her words, only for nothing to come out. As such, she continued, "If Sombra's gone, Armalum won't have a host. That'll give Shadow two options. Leave him out of the fight, or put him on another one of his minions. Either way, that'll mean he'll be down a follower."
She turned back to the others, her face now showing no emotion as she stared at Flash, "Flash, if the Sombra in that suit was the same one I knew so long ago, he'd rather die than be trapped and causing pain to others." Her body then ascended from her seat, "I'm going to bed. We need to be ready tomorrow, as who knows what's gonna happen."
With that, she walked out of the room, the others just staring at the leaving figure. No dialogue came out next, all knowing the new situation of Sombra and Shadow's team now being one point ahead. If they were to win, they needed to go all out for the next battle.
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Okay, I looked up Dogold, and judging by his appearance, I'm guessing he's the guy Dino Charge replaced with Fury.
Yup.
wair. Armalum... arma... armor... why didn't I see that.
given what we're shown in the Season 9 opener, this bending the knee on Sombra's part seems somewhat uncharacteristic.
Why do I get the feeling that this will blow up in Armalum's face?
I see that lampshade, well played
I think he'd rather die than be a slave
so when can we expect him to say, "Yes..."... unless you're using the Unicron Trilogy Megatron (same voice actor)
10241239 Unicorn Trilogy. Best Transformers series after Rescue Bots.
10241244
I think you mean after Prime, Beast Wars and Gen 1
10241264
10241269
Let's agree to disagree
10241294 Agreed. So, no issues with the route I'm taking Sombra?
Wow, that's a lot to take in. So, my original theory was that Armalum was an empty suit of armor that Shadow brought to life. It kinda sounds like the truth was close to my original guess, with the armor being alive but needing a host to be able to do anything. The fact that Sombra has his memories back is troubling enough, but the implication that he somehow made a backup of his memories and put them in the scar he gave Flash is just creepy. The heroes lost this round but hopefully this knowledge will be better in the long run for winning the whole game, and more importantly the war.
Also, it seems like now the only cultist we have been given no hint of backstory for thus far is Tempera. I wonder if a chapter with her in the limelight will be soon?
I kinda felt bad for Soarin in this chapter though. I really hope he gets his chance to shine eventually, maybe get a shot at revenge like Trixie got with Terror.
10241244
Oh yeah, the Unicorn Trilogy, more specifically the Armada series, was my first introduction to Transformers. Pretty good start.
The Unicorn Trilogy is my second favorite version, my first favorite is the Aligned continuity (consisting of stuff like Prime, Rescue Bots, Robots in Disguise, and the games taking place in that universe).
10241295
So far... no
10241322 Sweet. I was worried it would be 'to much for your suspension of disbelief.'
10241324
It's more like your explanation as given connects the dots you have left since the start.
As for Soul, I can get behind her being a born pegasus and being unskilled with magic, to the point that I am willing to 2ait and see the internal narrative justification for her Alicornhood.
No problems with Storm, only that Grand has some explaining to
As for Shadow, to quote Snoke from The Last Jedi, "Darkness rises and Light to meet it"
Concerning Glitter, I see no issues thus far
With regards to Tempera... Shadow's #1 fan girl... not much of a character presented other than a school girl being drawn to a powerful man, but there is enough to wonder why and how she come to... long for senpai to notice her...
As for the hippo and kirin... I have given up caring about them, as characters, as plot points, as narrative tools, I just don't see a reason to care about them, for their sake, please prove me wrong with wanting to just write them off, because I don't want to not care, but I don't see a reason to
10241303
I must be old, because my robots transformed into animals... Beast Wars was my introduction
10241344
I like Beast Wars too, it is in my top 5 easily. I just didn't grow up watching it. Though I will admit, it has one of the best version of Megatron.
10241352
I am did see Aramada... well until Sideways stopped his charade of being either an Autobot or a Decepticon... yeah once they headed back to Cybertron the whole trilogy kinda lost me... then again I was in high school at the time... (I am starting to feel old)...and it wasn't until the first Bayformer in 2007 that got me to take a serious look at the franchise...
10241141
so are they only 5 or 10 chapters left?
10241410
He said there would be 24 chapters. There are 14 left.
10241412
oh okay
10241412
so this will end at August 25th that's a pretty long time.
Such startling revelations about Sombra and the armor he's wearing.
Plus I originally imagined Fire Heart's voice sounding more like Todd Haberkorn's dub if Natsu.
10241454 A bit too old. I'm trying for a younger voice.
A very surprising twist at how you got Sombra back after seeing Armalum's backstory, planting a memory backup on Flash's scar was both genius & creepy!
With the way Sombra behaved in S9, even with that mask on I don't see him jumping though hoops for Shadow & his posse long term, hoping the hammer drops for that crew sooner rather than later. Also nice info on what happened to the city's inhabitants with the notebook Trixie found last chapter, still wondering if maybe the rest of the foals & fillies are still somewhere inside the city hibernating while Heart & Soul woke up earlier than expected?
Poor Soarin got the short end of the stick this chapter though, not to mention Shadow's group going up 1 win against our heroes, hoping things turn around next chapter!
As for highlights :
One word ......YIKES!!!
Yep, he pretty much sum it up you arrogant mare!
And the plot thickens!!!
To say the least!
Holy light show Batman!!!
Sombra : Hey Shadow, I have a new trick I wanna show you, it's called *play dead!*
Looking forward to see what the next round will bring Banshee, great work!!!
10241526 10241299. Oh, it's more then just a backup. Think back to the events right after Flash got that scar, I'm talking next story.
10241529
Ooh! Now that’s certainly interesting.
10241529
Hmmm now I'm even more curious!
10241529
I'm not a psychiatrist, but I'm pretty sure that's not how PTSD works.
So, that scar is what was causing his PTSD?
Just thought of something.
Ruby in Season 9: WHY WON'T YOU DIE?!
10241610 It was a combo of PTSD and something else.
10241458
Yeah he might sound like Natsu when he gets older.
Hold on. When did you start writing this? With the references to a plague and quarantine, I can't help but wonder if this story was inspired by current events. However, you didn't reveal your plans for this story until January, and according to Wikipedia, quarantine in the UK didn't start until March. Granted, the first confirmed cases appeared in the UK in January, but I didn't think enough people were worried about it enough back then to start inspiring fan writers to write fanfics about it.
10242662 I wrote this chapter about three weeks ago
10242913
So, did you always intend for Heart and Soul to be survivors of a plague or was that a recent addition?
10243072 Pretty much. I needed a reason for them to be in the city. It'll be more explained later.