Seven on One: The War's End PT1
A long moan escaped Heart's mouth as he felt himself begin to wake up, the recovery chamber's door slowly opening as gas filled the room.
"Heart?" He heard Flash's voice as his eyes flickered open, vision beginning to focus as he saw the older pegasus staring down at him with a smile. "Hey there...you feeling okay?"
"Yeah..." he groaned as Flash reached out a hoof, Heart taking it while his other hoof held his head, "I think so." He suddenly gasped as his brain shined a certain memory in his head. "Oh no! The match!" He went wide-eyed as he stared up at Flash, seeing a big frown on the defender's face, "No...we lost, didn't we?! No!"
Flash shook his head, "Don't worry, we didn't lose."
Heart's frown quickly turned to a smile. "So we won?! Yes!"
"I didn't say that," Flash instantly replied, making the colt blink at him.
"Wait...so did we win or did we lose?"
"It's...complicated." Flash spun around and motioned him to follow, "Come on. I'll explain it upstairs."
In the other castle...
Tempera had just finished having the situation explained to her as she worked on a new drawing. "I see..." the mare muttered as she stared at the love of her life, the unicorn looking away as he glared at the orbs floating above the table. "I'm sorry I couldn't be of more use to you, my love."
Shadow didn't reply, not even looking at her. The silence made her look down at the floor, only for Shadow to speak up, "You kept the wolf busy." Her eyes went wide at this, glancing back up at him, "If he had been there, the battle wouldn't have been so even. You may have lost, but at least you kept him at bay long enough for me to do what needed to be done."
Tempera weakly smiled at the praise, only to look back down at her paper. "Its finished, beloved."
He turned back to her as she pulled the paper out of the book, the sight making him take out a particular mask. The two threw them at each other, Tempera hitting both with her magic. A flash of light came next as the drawing came to life before the mask attached itself. When it was done, Armalum stood in the center of the room. "Master, I-"
"Save it," Shadow growled, turning and staring at the orbs again, "I don't want hear your excuses. You were defeated by a mere infant. What type of weakling does that?" Armalum fought back the urge to remind him he had as Shadow continued, "I'll deal with you later."
And as he stared at the orbs, Wingill spoke up, "Is something wrong master? No offense, but you keep staring at them like they're going to do something."
"They're not...but that's not the point. It's yesterday battle that has me intrigued." Shadow hummed before glancing at the screens, the machine now showing the match they had yesterday. "Something about the way they were fighting seemed more...extreme. Like they believed they absolutely had to win this match." He looked back down at the seven orbs. "Maybe yesterday was meant to be final battle."
"But how would they now that?" Terror asked.
Storm turned to her with crossed hooves, "They've appeared to have known more about this game than us since day one. I mean, they had that alicorn with them, and now she acts like some kind of judge over this thing." The cultist turned to his leader, "Master, do you think they actually had contact with whatever's been doing this and kept it from us?"
"Its possible..." Shadow responded as he walked over to his throne, sitting down with a low hum, "Though I suspect they have limited information."
"Then what happens now master?" Salix asked next. "If the goal was to get seven orbs and both teams have the same number, what'll happen?"
"I don't know," Shadow replied as he tapped the armrest of his throne, "But the answer better come soon."
"And that's everything," Cold finished as Heart stared at the seven orbs.
"Wow...that's heavy." the colt huffed before letting out a sigh, "If only I was able to reach it before I got dusted."
"It's not your fault," Flash chimed in, "I'm amazed you were able to move at all after getting shot through the chest like that. Don't be upset with yourself."
Heart did a small nod back before asking, "I guess. Still, what's supposed to happen now?"
"No idea," Trixie grumbled with crossed hooves, "Our gracious host hasn't spoken a word since yesterday."
"But if both teams now have seven orbs, how are we supposed to decide a winner?"
"Play for an eighth?" Soarin suggested.
"I doubt it'll be that easy," Springer replied while shaking his head.
Cold nodded at this. "I agree. This whole event has been out of our hooves since the start, so I suspect all we can do now is wait and see what the one using Soul's voice decides to do." He then shook his head as well, "Though having something like that deciding your fate isn't exactly the most enjoyable prospect."
"Eh, hate to say it, but we can't do anything." Flash continued, "We already tried going against this game and it got us nowhere. We'll just have deal with whatever comes next."
Heart slumped down in a chair as he added, "Ugh...I just want this to be over and see Soul again. I hope she's still okay." Most of the others frowned at him, only for the colt to see their faces and come to notice one member wasn't there. "Hey, where's Ruby?"
"So you finally believe me," Sombra told the Crystal Knight as she stood on the other side of his cell.
"From what Flash told me, it seems you really have changed. Though the fact it was forced upon you instead of your own choice isn't exactly making me happy."
Sombra did a small shrug, "Well...maybe this was the only way I could ever change."
"Maybe it is..." Ruby grumbled with crossed hooves, "Still doesn't change what you did."
"True. But at least now you know I'm serious about being remorseful."
"Yes...I do." Ruby sighed, her eyes barely able to look at the smile on Sombra's face. It was so...peaceful, something that just disturbed her. As such, she tried to change the subject as a question entered her mind. "Say...how much do you know about Armalum?"
"Not as much as I'd like. Why?"
"He battled yesterday using a scribeast as a host."
"I see," Sombra replied while rubbing his chin in thought, "Did he use magic?"
"Nothing special. Levitation, shield magic and a few very weak magic blasts."
"So he didn't use my abilities, but you're afraid he might be able too. Is that why you're asking me?" Ruby nodded back, only to see Sombra shake his head, "No, I suspect he can't use my powers anymore. Of what I remember when he possessed me, he uses his host's magical pool for himself, so a scribeast shouldn't have anything for him. My best guess is that Shadow charged him with magic, but knowing him...he probably didn't want to give him much."
Ruby did a slight grimace at this, "I see. Armalum's power wasn't much in that last fight. Heart was able to keep up and even beat him...but he did have an addition to him he didn't have with you: Wings." Sombra raised an eyebrow at this, "The scribeast he was possessing was alicorn shaped."
"Interesting. Well, you're right about him not being as powerful as he was with me. With enough force, you could probably take him down in one hit."
"Heart was able to beat him with water. Breaking the armor and letting the water flow into it."
"Makes sense," Sombra replied, "But I wouldn't count on that tactic again. Of what time I was under his control, I know one thing more than anything else: Shadow tries to plan for everything. He'll make sure to fix that weakness."
"That's fine. We'll beat him for sure." Ruby responded, only for her ears to hear a certain alarm.
"Battle beginning. Please head to the map room."
"This is it," Ruby sighed, "Wish us luck."
"You won't need it," Sombra replied with big smile, only to slightly frown as he said, "Though if I was gonna wish for something, it'd be a way to watch the matches myself."
Ruby said nothing as she headed out the illusion room, her horn sparking as she teleported to the map room. As she appeared, Heart spoke up, "Hey! Did you hear what Soul just said?!"
"Yeah," Ruby responded, "Why do you think I'm here?"
Heart shook his head, "No, not that! She said something different from last time. Every time she's said head to the map room, she said it was 'for selection'. She didn't say that last part this time."
"Does that mean nopony's getting selected?" Terror asked after Storm pointed out the same thing.
"Who knows," Shadow replied. "I've given up trying to guess what's going to happen next in this game."
"But then how are we supposed to decide a winner?" Soarin chimed in.
"Maybe whoever's doing this is just gonna stop this whole game and let us all go," Trixie added.
"I doubt it," Storm told Tempera after she suggested the same thing as Trixie.
"I wouldn't want it that way anyways," Shadow continued.
"After everything we've been through, I wanna see this through to the end. Not cop out at the very last hurdle."
"So then what do we do Flash?" Springer asked, only for Heart to point at something above them.
"Uh...are they supposed to be doing that?" The others looked up, now seeing the orbs beginning to glow.
"What are they doing?" Salix added as their orbs began to shine as well.
"I don't know," Shadow responded as he ascended from his throne, "But I'm betting it has something to do with deciding the outcome of this whole thing." As he said that, the orbs slowly began to spin in a circle above the table.
"Now what?" Armalum grumbled as the orbs began to pick up speed.
"This looks familiar," Flash told himself as he remembered when he got his Sacred Light back. And before anypony could say anything else, the spheres shot out across the room. Each one flew off in a different direction, heading to one of the occupants in the room.
"What the-" Flash didn't get to finish as one of the orbs struck him in the chest, only to feel nothing. Instead, the ball seemed to phase into his body and completely vanish. The sight made him shiver before looking up at his friends.
Trixie and Ruby were both struck next, the orbs phasing through their bodies like liquid.
"Whoa!" Soarin yelped as he sidestepped the sphere, only for it to curve midair and strike him in the back.
Springer put up an Aura Guard to protect himself, but the orb flew through it without issue and hit him in the stomach. Cold created a bat out of ice and tried to knock it away while Heart flew around the room, only for the orbs to catch them both. One sphere dodged the bat while the other got ahead of Heart as he continued to fly. "Whoa!" the colt yelled as he tried to stop himself from hitting the orb head first, only for it to phase right through him.
And with all seven orbs now inside each of them, the group stared at one another.
"What the heck just happened?!" Wingill asked after the same thing happened to them.
"I don't know," Shadow growled as he rubbed his chest, "Maybe this is what was always meant to happen once you get all seven orbs."
"But why would-" Tempera didn't finish her question as her eyes went wide at a new sight, "Master?" Shadow blinked at her question, only to look down to see a certain light wrapping around him. He glanced back up, now seeing the rest of his minions all beginning to glow the same color.
"What now?"
"What now?" Flash asked as he and his friends began to glow.
"Wait...this is the same light that surrounds us when we teleport." Heart added, "Does that mean-"
The colt didn't get to finish his question, as in that moment he suddenly vanished in a bright flash. "HEART!" They all yelled, only for Trixie to teleport as well. This was followed by Soarin, then Cold, Ruby and finally Springer. Flash stood there in shock, almost believing he was going to be left behind...only for his world to be replaced by a white light.
And when the light faded, he felt his hooves land on the ground. Blinking at the sight, he looked up to see that the city had been completely repaired, looking brand spanking new considering the damage done to it by Flash and Shadow. The pegasus spun around at this, only to notice something else. He was alone.
"Springer?! Soarin?! Trixie?! Ruby?!" He called out, getting silence as his response. "Cold?! Heart?!" he yelled as he did a full spin, only to gasp as he saw something new in the distance. A barrier.
The entire city had been split in two, divided by a barrier with Flash trapped on one side of it. The pegasus could only assume that his friends were on the other side. "Oh no..."
"FLASH!" Heart yelled as he and the rest of the team stood in the middle of a street.
"Where is he?!" Trixie asked.
"You think he wasn't sent down with us?" Soarin added, only to see Ruby shake her head.
"No, he was glowing just like us."
"Then where is he?" Trixie asked before turning to Springer, the jakhowl now closing his eyes in meditation, "You get a lock on him?"
Springer remained silent for a few more seconds before sighing, "No. I can't even sense him. Whatever's going on, it's blocking my connection to him."
"That's new. You've never had that issue before." Cold chimed in before pointing to the barrier splitting the city in half. "That's also new. You don't suspect he's over there?"
The others turned to the barrier, all wondering the same thing. But as they did this, Springer's ears flared as he then yelled, "Look out!" He leapt in front of the group, raising his arms to form an Aura Guard, The barrier was quickly struck by a giant flaming dark fireball, the sight making everypony else get into a fighting stance.
That is, till a low chuckle followed the attack. "Well, isn't this cute." The owner of the voice added as he walked into view, the group tensing up at the sight of one Shadow Corrupter, "Almost every single annoying little obstacle in this entire game...all in one spot for me to crush."
And as he said that, Soul's voice echoed through the city.
"BATTLE...BEGIN!"
A small yawn came out of Flash's mouth as he wandered down a street with Lightbringer strapped to his side. His wings were folded as his eyes darted back and forth. And as he took one more step, his ears shot up as he turned to see a building explode to his left. Flaring his wings, he flapped himself backward, dodging a rain of rubble as he saw a giant lindworm rise from the debris.
"Flash Force!" He yelled as he fired a laser, destroying the beast in one shot. But as he did this, a dust cloud from the collapsing building flew over him, making him cough. This was followed by a sudden burst of wind, knocking him into a building. "Whoa!"
And as he started to recover, getting back onto his hooves with a cough, his ears heard something new. Looking up, he saw Tempera, Armalum, Storm, Salix, Wingill and Terror staring down at him from atop a pile of rubble. But before they could say anything, Soul's voice echoed out through the city.
"BATTLE...BEGIN!"
Meanwhile...
Sombra was staring at the blank ceiling in his cell, a bored expression on his face. He had just heard Soul's voice, making him sigh as he knew the battle had started.
"Well...guess being bored is part of what I deserve. Wish I had something-huh?" He blinked as he turned to a sudden sound, only to gasp as he saw his cell begin to fade, "What the..." he hopped off his bed, only for it vanish as the illusion room returned to its normal state.
He turned to the door, curiosity taking over as he walked up and tapped the frame, the door slowly opening. Peeking around the frame, he slowly trotted out as he said, "Hello? Anypony?" The unicorn then entered the map room as he continued, "The illusion room stopped working and-"
Eyes went wide as he saw two big screens over the map, his form robotically walking over to a chair as he sat down and stared at the two battles, "Huh." His eyes darted between both screens, "Now, this is interesting."
Flash stared up at the six ponies glaring down at him, the pegasus holding his weapon tightly. "Great...just great." he sighed, "This is just what I needed. Don't suppose you're here to surrender?" Storm was the one to reply, charging with a surging blade as he Flash blocked it with a loud clash, "I'll take that as a no then."
"It's clear what's going to happen," Storm spat as lightning swirled around his weapon, "You're going to be taken down!"
Flash pushed him back before he could strike, only for Tempera and Terror to teleport behind him. They fired a pair of magical blasts at him, making him turn and yell, "Flash Driver!" Light magic wrapped around him as he blocked the blasts as the drill formed, Tempera teleporting away while Terror put up a shield that the drill struck. It pushed against the magical barrier, cracking as Terror quickly ducked under the drill as it shattered the shield a second later.
The defender got out of his light drill next as he saw Wingill and Salix coming for him next, "Flash Cutter Barrage!" He spun like a top, firing a swarm of energy blades stopped their advance.
"Have a piece of this!" Wingill yelled as he and Salix hopped back, a water sphere appearing behind him. The bubble then split into hundreds upon the movements of his claws, thrusting them next as he shot them with another force to level a building.
Flash just replied by slashing the bubbles, not a single one touching him as Salix propelling above him, "And a slice of this!" he roared as he slammed his hooves into Flash, a stream of fire encasing him as Flash blocked his charge with his sword.
"Gyah!" Flash cried as the heat pushed him down, flapping his wings to push the flames away. And as he did this, Storm and Armalum appeared, both charging with their weapons.
"Storm Cutter/RAAAH!" Storm unleashed a wave of super sharp wind as Armalum swung his scythe at Flash's neck. The defender ducked under the armored pony's blade before firing a Flash Cutter at Storm's attack. He then locked his sword into Armalum's scythe, only to flip over him and leap into the air.
Storm, Wingill and Salix took to the air next, all launching blasts of lightning, water and wind down at Flash and Armalum that was right under him. And as Flash's eyes turned white, switching to Theta Mode, Terror took a card out and threw it upward. A dome around her and Tempera appeared as Flash dodged the trio's onslaught, quickly zipping to another part of the street as the card came to a stop. "Arcana of the Reversed Magician!" Terror yelled as the dome shrank around Tempera, exploding with the light that flew into her body.
The artist giggled at the boost. "Oh, yes!" She pulled out her sketchpad and began drawing, throwing the page into the air as he magic took effect. In a flash, a trio of minotaurs crashed into the ground, though these wore metal armor and their hands were replaced by jackhammers, drills and chainsaws.
Flash could only gulp at the sight, almost backpedaling as he pointed his blade at the beasts. "This is gonna take a while, isn't it?"
Rewind to a few moments ago...
Shadow shined a huge grin as he stared at his six opponents, "Oh, I'm going to enjoy this," he chuckled as his horn shined, his sword appearing next. In response, Heart transformed into his fire form while Ruby and Cold forged swords of their respective elements, Springer forming a Bone Breaker while Soarin and Trixie got into a battle stance.
"Now..." Shadow rubbed his blade with a hoof, "Who's first? And please, try to be a challenge. I want to enjoy every minute of this."
The seven remained perfectly still, waiting for Shadow to make the first move. They stayed like this for almost thirty seconds before one finally snapped. "RAAAAAH!" Heart yelled as he propelled at Shadow, the unicorn laughing at the sight. The colt thrust his hoof next, about to shoot a stream of fire, only for Shadow's horn to spark. Before Heart could react, a chain came out of the ground, grabbing and yanking Heart's back hoof, "Whoa!" he yelped as he thrown into a nearby building. "Augh!"
This was followed with a charging Soarin, trying to send a flying kick into the unicorn's head. However, Shadow just sidestepped him before ducking under a beam of magic from Trixie. He then raised his blade, blocking Springer's Bone Breaker as he reached him, his horn firing a beam right at Springer next. As he knocked the jakhowl back, Ruby and Cold appeared, both swinging their swords at him opposite sides. Shadow smirked at this, blocking Ruby's blade with his own while putting up a shield to stop Cold's. He the pushed his blade into Cold, making the knight hop back before spinning around and firing a beam at Ruby.
She blocked the blast with her sword, the blade shattering as Trixie and Soarin ran up next. The unicorn sparked her horn, creating an illusion of seven Soarins that joined the original as they circled around Shadow, all picking up speed. Wind began to pick up as they zoomed around, only for all of them to pull their hooves back in an attempt to punch him. But as they launched their attacks, Shadow teleported away, the real Soarin just flying through the illusions, making them vanish.
"Pathetic," Shadow spat as his horn sparked before it flew into his hoof. He punched the ground next, unleashing a wave of dark lightning that struck both Trixie and Soarin, both crying out in pain before they were blasted back.
Shadow cricked his neck next, a grin on his face as he saw Heart launch a fireball. The unicorn countered with his own black fire form his horn, the two attacks meeting head-on, only for his flames to consume Heart's, making the colt take to the air to dodge the attack. But as he did, Springer appeared with a swinging Bone Breaker, Shadow's horn flaring as he teleported right before it could hit.
The unicorn reappeared on a nearby rooftop, only for Cold to teleport up there as well. He slammed his hooves down, unleashing a wave of ice spikes. But Shadow just summoned his blade and lightly swung it, a swing of decay magic hitting the ice and melting it with ease.
"How pitiful. Is that really the best you have?" He asked before launching a barrage of magical bullets. All of them hit the rooftop, shattering it to pieces as Soarin flew up and grabbed Cold.
They both looked down, now seeing Shadow teleport to another rooftop as he started firing some dark fireballs at them. "COLD FORCE!" Cold yelled as his horn flared, unleashing a tornado of freezing air that pushed back the flames. And as they dodged a few stray fireballs, Cold growled at the sight, "We need to get closer."
"We're the distraction," Soarin replied, Cold raising an eyebrow at this before seeing somepony hop into the building Shadow was on.
"Got it," his horn glowed before a bunch of ice birds appeared. They divebombed at the unicorn, Shadow swinging his blade as he unleashed a wave of decay at them. "NOW!" He yelled, making Shadow blink before he felt the building begin to shake.
Before he could do anything, the floor exploded as a giant crystal spike flew up and struck him. "AUGH!" He yelped as he was sent flying up, glaring back down as he saw Ruby, "Damn mare!" He teleported down to her, only for Springer, Heart and Trixie to appear right beside her.
"Aura Force!" Springer unleashed a beam of aura, Shadow quickly summoning a shield to block the attack. And as he did this, Heart and Trixie moved around him so that the three were in a triangle position.
"Feel the heat!" Heart yelled as he sent out a burst of fire while Trixie launched a magic blast, all three hitting Shadow's barrier from all sides.
Shadow just shook his head at this, "How disappointing," he sighed as his shield shattered, the triple attack hitting the same spot.
KABOOM!
Smoke filled the street as the three attacks collided, the attack sending a small shockwave that slightly pushed everyone back. And as the fog cleared, they saw...nothing. Nothing but a scorch mark on the floor.
"As I said, how disappointing." Shadow said as Springer's ears flared, making him lock onto an aura above them. They all looked up now, seeing a cloud of black smoke flying through the air before hitting the ground, reconstructing itself as Shadow. "I was hoping the six of you would be an actual challenge. Guess beggars can't be choosers." He commented as he dusted himself off with his hooves. "Now, where were we?"
Flash quickly leapt back as a minotaur thrust its jackhammer arm at him, quaking the ground as it missed before Flash leapt and slashed the creature in half. As he did this, a certain cultist yelled, "Storm Surge!" The pegasi turned to a bolt of lightning coming for him, quickly raising his sword to block the attack.
"Raaah!" Salix roared as he shot out a stream of fire, Flash deflecting the last bit of electricity before looking down and firing a Flash Cutter at the flames.
"Take this!" Wingill said as he swung a whip of water next, only for to Flash to spin around and fire a Flash Force at the water, evaporating it in one good. This was followed by the two minotaur scribeasts, on with the chainsaw swinging the weapon at him. Flash ducked under the slice, quickly positioning himself so that the minotaur now stood on opposite sides of him. He then shot straight up, the scribeasts trying to hit him and colliding with each other before he fired a Flash Cutter at both.
"Yes!" Flash cheered as they turned into ink, "Another one bites the-Augh!" he yelped as a magic beam struck his side.
"Don't get cocky," Armalum hissed as he flew up to Flash's level with scythe in hoof.
"Who, me?" Flash chuckled as he spun his blade, easily blocking Armalum's first swipe of his scythe. And as Flash easily locked the weapons, he leaned up to the armored pony's 'face', "You really think you're gonna beat me? You couldn't even beat a colt with no actual combat training."
"He took me by surprise."
"Sure he did," Flash laughed as he unlocked the blades and spun around, firing a Flash Cutter right at Armalum, the energy blade pushing him back, "Face it masky, you're old news. Without Sombra, you're nothing to be scared of."
Armalum growled, "Impudent fool..."
"Aw, you pouting?" Flash giggled with a giant grin, "What, don't wanna admit I'm right? Heck, I don't even know why Shadow keeps you around."
"Because I am his most loyal of servants!" Armalum roared as his horn began to spark, "I was the first to join him, and I will remain his most loyal servant long after the rest are gone!" His memories flashed back to everything he and Shadow had been through since their first meeting. "And defeating you will remind him of that!" He added as he charged, swinging his scythe right at Flash's neck, only for the pegasi to duck right under it with ease. And as he did this, Flash spun and axe-kicked Armalum's back, sending him flying down.
The armored pony let out a clang as he landed, Flash landing between him and the others as Flash charged at him, "Let me remind you of something," Flash yelled as he thrust his blade, Armalum blocking it as Flash continued to talk, "Your days of hurting ponies ends now!" He then spun around, firing a Flash Cutter that pushed Armalum back while taking a quick glance back, seeing Storm and Wingill incoming. As he did this, he glared back at the armored pony, "I won't let you steal their lives anymore! You're going down and staying down!"
"Never!" Armalum roared as he swung a horizontal scythe slice, Flash ducking under the attack before flaring his wings.
"See ya!" Flash laughed as he thrust his hooves, spring boarding himself into the air just as Storm and Wingill unleashed a surge of lightning and water. They quickly tried to stop their attacks, but it was too late. Both elements came just for Armalum, the pony's horn sparking just before the elements struck.
"RRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" He screamed in pain as the water soaked his body, giving the lightning more staying power.
And as Armalum's horn tried to summon a spell within the pain, Flash raised his sword and yelled, "Flash Force!" He pointed the blade down, a laser of light striking Armalum's back and breaking through the armor, impaling the scribeast beneath.
"NO!" Armalum cried as he felt his host be destroyed, making him dissolve into nothing but a mask.
The others grimaced at the sight, only to gasp as they saw Armalum start to dust. "No!" Tempera pulled out her sketchpad, "I can make him a new body! Don't take him!"
"Master..." he spoke to nopony, "I'm sorry." With that, he vanished as Soul's voice spoke out.
"ARMALUM, ELIMINATED!"
Flash sighed in relief, wiping his brow as he prepared himself to take the other cultists. But as he did this, he went wide-eyed as he saw something appear where Armalum was: An orb. "Wait..." he tried to talk before the sphere suddenly shot up and struck him, phasing into him as the seven ponies all gasped at the sight. And as Flash patted his chest, he shined a big grin, "Huh. Cool. So that's what we're doing."
"Cold Dragon!" Cold roared as he summoned a icicle serpent as Shadow blocked Ruby's blade with his own sword. And as he was about to counter her, he saw the attack coming in the corner of his eye.
"I don't think so!" He teleported next, appearing on the dragon's neck before slicing its head off with one blow before teleporting to Cold, "Now this is fitting!" He laughed as he swung the decay magic coated sword, Cold raising a shield to block the blow, only for the ice barrier to melt, "The first pony I fought is now the first one I will take down."
"Not this time!" Cold barked as Heart, Soarin and Trixie charged at him. The knight teleported away as Heart unleashed a fire blast, Shadow countering with a black flame from his horn as Cold reappeared and said, "You won't win this. When last we fought, I was alone and fought you was the best way I knew how. But now I know that true strength comes from working as one, with those you trust and care about." The others smiled as they grouped up, "That is the Equestrian way."
"And those disgusting ways will fall when I stand as their once and future ruler!" Shadow yelled as his body began to be surrounded by a dark aura. "Surrender and bow before me now, and I promise to spare your lives in eternal servitude to my unending rule. Resist...and you will be, OBLITERATED!" As he yelled that, his body was wrapped up in a shadow tornado as his armor appeared.
The group countered by firing blasts at the tornado, only for every attack to bounce off. And as they saw their attacks do nothing, Shadow suddenly zipped right up to them, the tornado exploding off his body as the wind knocked them all back. Wings appeared next as Shadow took a deep breath, a grin gracing his face as he saw Cold recover first, "You will never win. Just give up, kneel before your superior."
"Never. And you'll never conquer Equestria." Cold grunted as he summoned an ice axe, "Even if you defeat us, the princesses will not let you hurt their land."
"You think the princesses will be able to match me after this is over?" Shadow laughed, crossing his front hooves as he began to pull himself up into the air. "Once you and your friends are taken care of, nothing will stop me from taking the power of this city." He raised a hoof, clenching it as a black aura covered his body, "The one trapping me here will rue the day they tried to play games with me. I will take the power they possess for myself, and with it, nopony will be able to stop me. Not even the princesses of Equestria."
"Then we'll stop you here before that happens!" Springer yelled as he fired an Aura Blast at the unicorn.
"You can try," Shadow chuckled before vanishing, his disappearance without light showing it was not teleportation, and reappeared in front of Cold.
"What?"
"I warned you," he said as his right hoof sparked with dark lightning. The thrust it into Cold, a surge of lightning consuming the knight's body in an instant. A scream of pain came next, Shadow laughing as he saw the electricity fly out of the pony.
"COLD!" Everypony screamed, Soarin and Springer quickly going at their top speed. But before they could reach them, Shadow burst into his smoke form, flying away as they saw Cold slump over.
"No! Stay strong!" Springer told him, now seeing Cold's body begin to turn to dust. "No..."
"Don't worry about me. Just...focus on Shadow." Cold mumbled as the others gathered around him, "Good luck...my friends." With that, he was gone as Soul's voice spoke out.
"COLD STEEL, ELIMINATED!"
And before they could react, an orb appeared right over where Cold was. "What?" Was all Springer could say before the sphere shot past them and went into the dark cloud that was beginning to reform, Shadow's body solidifying as the orb phased into his body.
"Oh? Now that's interesting." Shadow chuckled before turning to his opponents, "So that's what my objective is for this battle." He cricked his neck next as his horn began to shine, "I couldn't be happier if that's what I have to do."
The five glared at him as they stood in a line, Springer in the middle with two ponies on either side. Each of their minds were going over what Cold had just said, nodding to themselves as they yelled, "Not a chance! We will beat you!"
On the other battlefield...
"STORM TRI-FORCE!" Storm roared as Flash braced himself for the triple element attack, sucking him into its vortex and bombarding him with lightning, water and wind.
"Augh!" He cried, getting flung into a building as the storm spat him out, "GYAH!" He crashed through the wall and slid down the floor, the defender quickly pushing himself back onto his hooves, "Well, that hurt like heck."
As he said that, Salix and Wingill flew up to the hole. "I'll smoke him out!" Salix cheered as he unleashed a burst of fire from his horn.
The pony gasped before pointing his crossguard at the flames, "FLASH FORCE!" The light shot out the weapon, colliding with the flames as it made an explosion that blew the roof off the building.
Flash then leapt through the smoke, only to find Wingill yell out, "Oh no you don't!" The hippogriff fired a barrage of water bullets, the pegasi taking to the sky as he dodged the attack.
"Flash Cutter!" Flash called out as he fired the energy blade at Wingill, striking the hippogriff's shoulder as he cried out in pain. The knight then looked up to see a wave of eyebats coming for him, making him zip across the sky as the fired a volley of lasers. And as he did this, he saw Terror take out a card and threw it upward. Flash growled at this, quickly firing several energy blades through the sky, taking out the army of scribeasts with ease. But as the last one fell, the dome shrank around Wingill and the cut he had sustained vanished.
"Dang it!" He grumbled as he dodged a fireball from Salix, "This could go on forever if I don't take her out." He zipped down to the street next, glaring at his opponents as they got into formation, Tempera taking the lead with the males in line behind her and Terror Card behind them.
"I can't hold back," he told himself. "I've gotta take them all out now." A certain light appeared around him next as he continued, "Five on one is no prob, you're all going down! ARMORIZE!" With that, the light shot off his body, wrapping around him to form a tornado.
The five charged at this, Tempera throwing another piece of paper that soon became a giant rhino, its form landing on the ground being enough to shake the street. Flash stood still as the armor continued to materialize, the rhino charging with the intent to impale him on its horn. But seconds before it was about to stab him, the tornado exploded and he reached out to grabbed the horn in his hooves.
He grunted as the force pushed him back, only to come to a stop as the light formed the swords on his back as Flash yelled, "RAAAAAH!" He pulled back, throwing the rhino behind him, the scribeast hitting a building and turning into a inky pile of mush.
As this happened, Tempera tossed two more pages, creating an armored minotaur with a jackhammer hand and a giant lindworm. Flash quickly hopped back as the minotaur attacked first, grabbing his light swords next as he impaled the minotaur. The lindworm then tried to charge at him, but Flash flew up into the air before spinning around. "Flash Driver!" Morphing into a drill of light, he cut through the beast, ink splattering everywhere as Storm then charged at him next.
Flash pulled out Lightbringer and the two locked weapons, Flash's boosted strength pushing back Storm with ease. A Flash Cutter was about to come out at the blade next, only for the knight to look up and see Salix and Wingill fly up above him. They both sent out a burst of fire and water, which fused together and exploded into a cloud of hot steam that came for Flash. The pegasus flinched at the intense heat, only to duck under Storm's blade as he swung it, quickly grabbing the cultist's hoof before he could even react. He then yanked Storm over himself, slamming the pegasi into the street.
"AUGH!" He grunted in pain as he slammed into the rock, Flash about to finish him off, only to see Wingill in the corner of his eyes. He pulled his neck back as he saw Wingill try to swing his talons at him, hitting only his cheek. The strike made him flinch, only to counter with a hoof-punch to Wingill's gut.
"Blugh!" Wingill yelped as the wind was knocked out of him, Flash spinning around next before slamming both backhooves into Wingill's face. A scream of pain came next, the hippogriff going flying down the street.
And as Flash tried to turn back to Storm, a certain voice spoke up, "Surprise!" He turned to see Salix, a burst of fire coming out of the kirin as Flash pulled off his light swords to block the attack.
As this was happening, Terror was using her Reversed Empress card to replenish Tempera's energy. "Thanks," she told her after the light recharged her.
"No problem," Terror replied as they both looked back at the fight, now seeing knock Salix away, "I should be in there, helping."
"You are helping," Tempera assured her. "The only chance we're gonna have of beating him is with your constant healing and re-energizing us. Without you, we're as good as done for."
And as she said this, both Storm and Wingill charged, joining Salix by firing blasts of water and wind at Flash. But the pegasus just smiled as his light swords morphed into orbs that he slammed together. Doing so unleashed a shockwave of light, knocking back all three away. Storm's headset flew off as the slid down the street, Flash flaring his wings to take them down, only for Terror to run at him.
"Wait!" Tempera cried as Terror fired a beam at Flash, forcing him to take to air as she pulled out a Tower Card.
"I won't just sit back while I can help master Shadow achieve his goals!" She tossed the card into the air, causing it to spin around. 'Until I met him, my life was a never ending misery of impending doom. But thanks to him, I finally have a choice about my future.' The card stopped right side up, "and I choose to help him!" The card unleashed a burst of lightning at Flash, the pegasi blocking it with Lightbringer.
Terror then took this moment to use her magic to move Storm's headset back over his eyes before pulling out another card, the piece paper soon spinning as the dome formed around her and Flash, "Arcana of the Lover!" Flash turned to the card, now seeing it slow down.
"No thanks!" Flash yelled as he charged at the card and swung his sword, cutting it in half before it stopped.
"What?!" Terror screamed as the dome shattered around her, "I didn't see this!"
"Trixie's not the only one who can shape her own future!" Flash told her as he pulled out his light swords. "Anypony can, and that includes me!"
Terror gasped as she saw Flash dive down, Tempera jumping in front of her, "Get back!" She told her as she threw three pages into the air, creating a roc, manticore and quetzalcoatl. Terror growled at this before doing as she was told, jumping back as the stallions ran up to the knight.
"AERIAL ATTACK!" Salix roared as the five charged, Flash doing the same. But before any of them could reach him, the knight suddenly multiplied in a dozen copies of himself. "What the?!" The army began to zip around the group, all missing their attacks as he kept running around.
"Is Lulamoon here?!" Wingill yelped asked as one of the Flash copies flew at him, the hippogriff clawing at it, only for it to vanish.
"They're speed mirages!" Storm yelled as he unleashed a wide spread bolt of electricity, hitting several that phased right through the attack. "He's trying to distract us! We have to-" He stopped and turned to see Flash appear in front of Tempera and Terror, "TERROR!"
Terror gasped as one of the Flashs suddenly appeared in front of Tempera, the rest vanishing as he did this. The unicorn glared at him, tried to fire a beam of magic, only for time to suddenly come to a crawl around Flash. He smirked as he raised Lightbringer, deflecting her magic before spinning around and dealing a double backhoofed kick into Tempera's side. Spit flew out of her mouth as she went flying, time going back to normal as he got up to Terror and put his weapon's crossguard at her chest.
"FLASH FORCE!"
"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" Terror screamed as she was blasted point black, her form burning as she slammed into a building.
"TERROR!" Her friends cried before Storm launched a lightning blast at Flash, only for the defender to dodge it by taking to the sky. And as the three males started firing attacks at him, Tempera ran over to the Terror.
"Terror! Don't leave us!" she said as the unicorn started to turn to dust.
"I'm sorry," Terror wheezed out, "You'll have to do this without me."
"I'm not sure we can," Tempera replied, holding her hoof.
"You can," Terror responded, trying to form a smile at the same time, "I know you can."
Tempera's eyes went wide at this, "Do you mean....did you see it? In the future?"
Terror weakly shook her head. "No. For the first time in my life, I truly have no idea what the future holds. I just have faith." She gave Tempera one last smile as she completely vanished, leaving the orb in her place.
"TERROR CARD, ELIMINATED!"
The orb flew over to Flash as he took down the scribeast manticore and quetzalcoatl from before, firing a Flash Force at them as the orb struck his chest and phased into him.
Tempera glared at the defender as he took down the roc next, "I promise the future you foretold will come to pass Terror. And this time, the distant future you saw will be a good one." With that, she ran in to join the battle while praying her love was doing okay.
"Let's go!" Springer roared as he and the remaining members of Team Flash charged, Shadow laughing at their futile efforts. "Aura Blast!" Springer launched a sphere of aura, Shadow easily smacking it away with his wing before firing a magic blast.
"I don't think so!" Trixie quickly raised a shield to block the attack, only for it shatter on impact. "Augh!"
"Go go go!" Heart yelled as he and Soarin charged past Trixie, "Fire Force!"
Shadow laughed again as he saw Heart's fire attack, blocking it with his wings as Soarin flew over the flames and dark wings. "Oh please, as if you really think you can beat me?!" Shadow spat as he prepared to throw an electrified punch at Soarin, but the pegasus suddenly dodged the jab, making him raise an eyebrow. A quick look in Soarin's eyes allowed him to see that they had turned completely white.
"We're not the same ponies that first showed up here!" Soarin roared as he punched Shadow next, hitting him with enough force to send him flying back, smacking the side of a building.
Heart and Trixie ran up next, before preparing a combined attack of fire and magic. "We've grown since coming here," Trixie continued, "Throughout the many battles we've fought, we've each found something inside us that has made us grow stronger!"
"And that's why you'll never beat us!" Heart finished as he and Trixie unleashed their attacks, sending fire and light to strike Shadow head-on. "All the power you have, you didn't earn! You just lucked into it or stole it from somepony who did!"
The light from their attacks then died down, letting them see Shadow had placed a barrier up to protect himself. He teleported away next, reappearing down the street before finding himself bombarded by crystal arrows. He summoned his sword and began to deflect them, seeing Ruby charging next with a crystal sword.
"The power you've stolen might get you far, but eventually you'll meet somepony you can't hope to defeat." She added as her blade met Shadow's, the unicorn firing a beam of at her next that she ducked under. But as he did this, Soarin suddenly swooped in, slamming a roundhouse kick into Shadow's face.
"You think you're invincible!" Soarin roared as he springboarded off the unicorn.
"But you're not!" Ruby screamed as she slammed her sword into the ground, sending a wave of crystal spikes out.
"Gyah!" Shadow yelped as the spikes hit him, the unicorn letting out a roar of pain before slicing the crystals with his sword. But as he did this, Springer leapt above him with an Aura Blast in paw.
"You're gonna lose and never hurt another pony, EVER AGAIN!" He thrust the Aura Blast down, Shadow countering with a magic shield.
"Enough of your foolish speeches!" Shadow barked as his barrier vanished, firing a beam right at Springer a split-second later.
"GYAH!" Springer yelped as the blast him, knocking him back as the magic singed his fur. Ruby's horn shined as she created a crystal glove to catch him.
"You okay?" She asked as she put him down.
"I'm fine," Springer grunted. "But this isn't enough. He's seen everything we have to offer, and I'm pretty sure he's still holding back." Ruby frowned at the jakhowl's words, only for a smile to form as she put a hoof on Springer's shoulder, "What?"
"Fully connect your aura with me Springer."
"Huh?"
"Just do it." Ruby replied while tapping his head with her hoof, "It'll be easier to tell you that way."
Springer nodded back, "Okay." He closed his eyes, a blue aura flaring over his body as he mentally said, "Can you hear me?"
"I can." Ruby mentally responded. But before they could start anything, Shadow fired a blast at them, only for Ruby to slam her hoof into the ground, creating a crystal wall to block the attack. And as the blow bounced off the crystal, the two could hear Trixie, Soarin and Heart all fire attacks at Shadow as Ruby continued, "Now, listen closely. You've done well learning your father's techniques, and you have his aura...but there's one thing you don't have yet."
"What's that?"
Ruby shined a big grin, "Your mother's techniques."
Springer went wide-eyed, "Mom made aura stuff too?! Did she figure out some like Aura Velocity?!"
"Not exactly." Ruby replied while shaking her head. "Your mother was more...practical. She was especially known for her team-up stuff."
The two then came to a stop as Shadow teleported to them, "There you are!" He yelled as he fired a blast of decay magic at them, only for Springer to block it with an Aura Guard. Ruby grabbed him next, teleporting away before Soarin flew in with a flying kick, Shadow blocking it with a wing.
And as Trixie and Heart joined in, Springer and Ruby appeared inside a building one street over, both panting as Springer turned to Ruby. "By team-up, do you mean combo moves?"
"Yes, like what you and Skybreaker used back in Omniara. I suspect you and Flash have made something like that, right?" Springer nodded back, then mentally telling her they only had one technique, "I thought so. Unfortunately, Flash doesn't have a horn like me or Princess Luna, so there's not many team-up stuff you can do. However, your mother was a genius on coming up with combinations of magic and aura. Let me tell you one I want to do right now. Here's how it works..."
Springer went wide-eyed as Ruby went over the move, the jakhowl gasping, "That's...we could do that?!"
Ruby nodded, "Yup. Wanna try it?"
"Heck yeah! Let's do it!"
Back at the fight...
"Fire Force!" Heart unleashed another burst of fire, the dark unicorn quickly blocking it with a shield.
"Is that seriously all you can do?" He spat before teleporting behind the colt, "So disappointing!"
Before Heart could react, Shadow swung his wing into the colt, smacking him into the side of a building. "Heart!" Soarin and Trixie both cried, glaring at Shadow next as he gave them a 'bring it' gesture. Soarin growled before charging at the unicorn and in the blink of an eye, the two ponies were at each other throats as the Wonderbolt slammed a punch into his Shadow's face.
"RAAAH!" Soarin roared as he spun around next, bringing his tail sailing down on Shadow's head, hitting him with enough force to send him crashing to the ground. But before Shadow could hit the street, he fired a beam upward, striking Soarin's wing, "Augh!"
As Soarin began to fall, Trixie was unleashed a barrage of magical blasts at where Shadow was falling. The unicorn just rolled his eyes at this, thrusting his wings down to stop his descent before firing a beam at the mare. She leapt back to dodge the attack, her horn sparking as she made several copies of herself, dividing Shadow's attention as he tried to shoot them all down.
While he did this, Heart was picking himself up, clutching his side in pain. His crash into the building had broken three of his ribs, not that he knew that, but he just ignored the pain and reignited his body. "I might be just a kid..." he grumbled as he propelled himself forward, "But don't think I'm weak!"
His outcry caught Shadow's attention, making him turn to see flying colt. The pony's entire body erupted into flames, turning him into one massive fireball aimed right at the unicorn. But before he could make contact, Shadow morphed into his smoke form, making Heart go right through him. "What?!" He yelped as the flames around him extinguished.
"I didn't say you were weak," Shadow told him as he reformed. He then shot a dark chain out of his horn, the rope instantly wrapping around Heart's neck. "But you're a million light years away from being able to beat me!"
With that, he swung Heart around and with a flick of his head, slamming him into another building. The colt squirmed as he tried to pull himself free, unable to melt the chains. But as he tried to do this, his body was flung down into the roof of a building, crashing right through two floors while screaming in pain.
"HEART!" Trixie and Soarin screamed, Shadow chuckling before another flash of light made him turn to see Springer and Ruby appear on a rooftop.
"Aura Force!" Springer launched his attack before the unicorn could react, hitting Shadow and sending him flying back.
And as this happened, Trixie and Soarin ran over to Heart, now seeing him turn to dust, "Hold on!" Trixie said as she pulled him into her lap.
Heart let out a long moan as he opened his eyes, seeing he was about to disappear. "Did I...did I do good?"
"Yeah little buddy," Soarin replied, "You did great. Rest now."
"We'll finish this," Trixie added, Heart nodding back before closing his eyes as he completely vanished, leaving nothing but the orb.
"FIRE HEART, ELIMINATED!"
The orb then shot past the two, Ruby and Springer seeing it and both trying to grab it, but the orb evaded the duo. It kept moving until it reached Shadow, the unicorn smiling as the orb phased into him.
"Ah...right where it belongs!" Shadow laughed.
"That's the last one he's getting," Ruby growled before turning to Springer. "You ready?"
"Oh yeah!" Springer nodded before the two charged at Shadow, the jakhowl forming a giant Aura Blast. Shadow quickly lifted his wings, shielding his body for the sphere. However, as he did this, Springer instead turned to the Crystal Knight as she formed an orb of crystal magic around the Aura Blast, turning it into a sphere before forming a crystal chain on the sphere. Spikes came out of the ball next, quickly turning it into a crystal mace ball.
Springer turned back to Shadow next, this time forming a white aura orb. "Aura Force!" The laser then slammed into Shadow's wings, pushing him back.
"Insolent worm! Don't think this will harm me!" Shadow yelled as he spread his wings, dissipating the laser. His horn flared next as he pointed it at the jakhowl, "DIE!"
But as he did this, Ruby spun the chain and slung the ball right up to Shadow's face. And as one of the sphere's spikes was about to touch the unicorn's face, the Aura Blast inside suddenly burst.
BOOM!
"Blaugh!" Shadow screamed as the ball exploded like a grenade, the crystal spikes flying into the unicorn.
"It worked!" Springer cheered as he watched Shadow stagger back, clutching his face.
"Don't let him recover!" Ruby roared as she started firing crystal arrows, but the unicorn lowered his hooves to show his scratched up face.
"You'll pay for that!" He yelled as his horn flared, making a barrier to block the arrows. "I'm going to-"
"Surprise!" Soarin said as he suddenly slammed a flying kick into Shadow's side, making him release a glob of spit from his mouth before being knocked flying back.
"Velocity Strike!" Springer barked as he used his speed to zip right up to Shadow, his body spinning like a top as he slammed his foot into Shadow's face, smacking him into a building. And as he crashed into the wall, the jakhowl turned around and yelled, "Girls!"
"ON IT!" Ruby and Trixie yelled before firing two magic beams, both hitting the foundations of the building, causing it to collapse and bury the unicorn.
They stood still at the sight, waiting to see if Soul's voice would announce their victory. "Did we get him?" Soarin asked, Ruby about to answer...only to stop when she felt a burst of pain explode through her chest.
"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" She screamed, making the others turn and gasp as they saw a black beam shoot through her chest from behind her. As it faded, they tracked the source back to the doorway of a building opposite of the one they had just demolished, seeing Shadow standing there.
"I told you that you would pay for that," Shadow laughed as Ruby slumped over, her body turning to dust.
"Augh!" She moaned, the others circling around her as she wheezed out, "I'm...sorry. You'll have to...finish this one...without me."
"Don't worry, we've got this." Springer replied, Ruby nodding back before completely vanishing, leaving the orb in her place.
"RUBY SCARLET, ELIMINATED!"
Back in the castle...
Sombra flinched at the sight of Ruby vanishing. He had been alternating between intrigue and grimacing as he had watched both battles go on. And as he saw Ruby vanish, fear truly settled inside his mind.
"She's okay...she's okay. She's resting in the recovery room." He whispered to himself, biting his lip as he tried to watch Flash's battle now.
But as he did this, his eyes darting between the screens, he could feel his stomach turn. Slowly turning his head, he stared at the door, only to sigh. "I've got to check. I've got too." He hopped off his chair, cutting into a sprint as he ran through the castle and down the staircase, jumping three steps at a time to reach the bottom.
And when he got to the recovery chamber, he took a deep breath and opened it with his magic. And as the door opened, Sombra's eyes went wide. Cold, Heart and Ruby had been eliminated, so the healing chambers should have had them inside....but they didn't. All three chambers were completely empty.
"Ruby?!" Sombra gasped as he ran up to the chambers, "Why aren't you-what is..." He placed a hoof on one of the chambers, his heart beating a hundred miles a minute. "RUBY!"
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Um... you already told us that with the Season 5 Finale and Friendship games, it's not so much the who, but the how and what will happen to the losers.
Gonna be honest... this fight feels... well boring, you've already established how broken Flash and Gleaming are in comparison to their team mates, it's not that interesting to see the two fight their opposites' ... well mocks. Sombra's wanting to see and being allowed to see was nice.
Like Ruby, I am not too keen on his remorse being something that was ulitmately forced on him and now that he's free from Flash... well Sombra makes a better and more interesting villain then good guy. The reason is because Sombra is not a Darth Vader character, he's more akin to Sauron from The Lord of The Rings.
While I'll hold off on the whole Amore being still alive thing, I am going to have a hard time buying in to a premise that says he wouldn't relapse. Redemption is hard, and there are many pit falls in the road. His anger for what happened to him under Amore's watch and let's be honest conset is something that is hard to let go of and we've seen that Flash too has a hard time letting go of his own anger.
Yeah, this chapter was so boring my focus is on a spectiator, and the only comment I can make is about him down the road.... Not a good chapter.... maybe not splitting this into two would have been the better choice
Gonna be honest, I think a more interesting battle would have been something like a cross of the Goku Vs. Vegeta fight at the end of the Saiyan Saga and the beam exchange between Kerrigan and Narud from the mission Phantoms of the Void in StarCraft II: Heart of The Swarm.
Here's the thought, Flash is hovering outside of his team castle and Gleaming is standing in front of his team castle and a beam of light and darkness jettison from the respective pony and the six other members of each team would fight each other and the beams would weaken as the respective team members get eliminated.
Flash's light beam would inherently start stronger than Gleaming's because Flash has a stronger bond with his teammates both individually and as a group then Gleaming does, as such as Flash's team members are eliminated his beam is weakened more than Gleaming's beam, but at the end Flash has one more teammate remaining and thus wins the duel.
10355711
Gotta agree to the boring part...
Not much is happening...that's it, just by reading the title, you would already know what's about to happen.
10355821
a little harsh
Oh heck, you're really going all-out here Banshee!
That last part with Sombra's discovery in the recovery room blindsided me, also seems strange that Flash doesn't seems too worried that if Deluded One's minions are trapped there with him then the opposite is true, he's gonna have one heck of a wake-up call when the numbers on both sides dwindle down to nothing! 
Some highlights include :
Yep, pretty much a useless parasite!
Doggone it!!!!
OOoooohhh this is soooooo not good!!!
To say the least!
As cool as this is, I'm not gonna like it when the reverse happens!
I was right, I don't like it!!!
Sweet, lay it on us Ruby!!!
Oh heck NO!!!!!
Second part of this fight can't come soon enough, till the next time Banshee!!!
Oh man this is intense! So the "tiebreaker" is a battle royale with the leaders for both teams fighting the other members of the opposite team all at the same time. I am guessing once they are all defeated they will be able to join the fight against the opposing leader, but at the rate Flash and Shadow are going by the time they are done it will be a one on one between them.
This is going down to the wire. Flash and Shadow are unquestionably the strongest members of their respective teams, but both are shown to not be invincible. Flash struggled in some of his fights this story when fighting two on one, but right now he is going six on one, and we all remember how Shadow lost two of his previous fights. This war will end soon, and I have my fingers crossed for Flash and his team.
I loved the part where Springer and Ruby did a combination attack together, that was awesome. I don't think Springer and Flash have used their own combo move that much since they mastered it against Tirek, but like Ruby said there are limits to what can be done. Even if it wasn't enough to stop Shadow, it was awesome to see it be used on him, followed by Soarin knocking him into a building and Ruby and Trixie trying to bring it down on top of him. That ending scene has me worried though. If the eliminated fighters aren't sent to the recovery room like always, then where the heck did they go?!
Really wish Fire Heart didn't go so early
10355842
That's my game mate. I am mean to every soul that ever existed. Heck, I ain't even a shipper. Just here to read action, adventure, gore, and some tragedy that will make men cry like the scene from titanic.
10355872
10355850
Really...... there wasn't enough to justify me suspending my want of disbelief to care about the fights... we know what's gonna happen, Flash and Gleaming will eliminate the other combatants with each eliminating the last of the other's teammates at the same time and it will be Flash vs Gleaming, Flash will narrowly win via something that could be considered an ass pull by those not paying attention to the growth of Flash and Gleaming's stagnation. Gleaming will cry foal, get sense knocked into him somehow and he and his group will have to face justice for their crimes with Salix possibly being sentenced to a lifetime of silence and Wingill possibly to life imprisonment (irony), not entirely sure about the rest Gleaming's mocks, and then we can move on to Season 6 and the reformation of Starlight and the founding of her suicide squad and whatever Flash ends up doing at that time.
Frankly I rather get on with series as a whole
10355949 Oh, so you think you know everything I'm gonna do. How do you know Flash isn't going to lose and the last few chapters is the fallout. Only Flash was confirmed to be returning to Equestria. Maybe the others are Shadow's group, holding him hostage.
10355949
Who cares what you think when you complain and whine about everything? I'm excited to see what happens next whether you are or not. If you aren't going to be supportive and just want to bring everything down then don't bother reading.
10355949
Well unlike you I'm enjoying this tale & wanna see how everything wraps up at the end there, including the scene connecting with Friendship Games.
In other words, don't be a wet blanket!
10355966
You're entitled to your enjoyment about this as I am entitled to feel bored it.
10355953
You are aware that if that criticism was true you would have to go through every single post and show that each and every one is a complaint. But that being said, just because you like everything Banshee writes doesn't mean I have to. And until Banshee either disables comments or block me, if I have an issue with something he writes I am going to voice it.
10355952
Given what you have written for the Season 5 finale and the Friendship Games... it's not that hard to make 4
If they aren't in the recovery room, then where are they? I know they're not dead. I also hope Sombra worrying about Ruby doesn't turn him back to the dark side.
By the way, speaking of Ruby, I read your Tvtropes page. I know Ruby is supposed to be your way of fixing the problem you and a lot of other fans had with Radiant Hope, but you might be creating a different problem in the process. It's not that I dislike Ruby, but I think with how you write her, you're running the risk of taking her too far the other way, which makes her harder for me to sympathize with.
now there are only 5 chapters left.