An Alternate Arc

by Hye

A Different Save

As the Mane Six, the demons, Derpy, and the couple were escorted home to Ponyville, all kinds of questions erupted toward Twilight’s brother, Shining Armor, who answered them to the best of his ability. Meanwhile, a staring Derpy had to be partly carried by two amused soldiers due to Arc answering her question.

“Are you sure-?”

“Derpy, if Princess Cadence has the same level of authority that Princess Luna does, then she’s able to give you a significantly better house than what you have right now.”

Ember butts in.

“Speaking of authority, Sir, have either of you wondered just what prompted such an overreaction on Canterlot’s part? To send a bloodthirsty stallion willing to go against his own ruler?”

“Miss Ember! While Captain Decimus had certainly crossed the line, he and his ancestors has done a great many things that has kept Equestria safe over the centuries, and I will not hear his name trod upon!’

He spots Arc looking forward, smirking and shaking his head as if he knew something.

‘Care to let us in on the joke, Mr. Arc?”

“The CD, mostly. If that’s the kind of stallion that normally gets promoted to such a high level, present company (possibly) excluded, then it speaks to the general mindset of the army. After all—'

He looks around at the soldiers’ incensed and waiting faces, stopping on Shining’s downright furious one.

‘How many here, disregarding your training, would’ve unhesitatingly attacked me and Ember if we’d been just outside the gates of Tartarus alone? Because CD certainly disregarded his.’

Their faces got angrier for a moment as they seemed on the verge of shouting, but a second look at the now-nervous demons, with one hiding her baby, the stoic human, and the protective dragon made them rethink their position. Shining forced himself to look at Twilight’s devastated look as she buried her face in the nearest pony’s mane and quietly cried, Pinkie Pie stroking her neck and the rest of her friends also comforting her.

Before anypony could move, he held up a hand.

‘I’m not looking for your pity or apologies. Just do better.’

Catching Shining’s attention again, Arc has a congratulatory look as he nods towards him.

‘In other news, how much longer is this going to take, Captain Shining Armor?”

“Two more hours, since we have to sparingly use the Heating Potions my sister created because of the snowstorm.”

The look quickly cooled to caution as Ember wrapped her tail around his waist. Before he could do something to try and start repairing her and Arc’s relationship, Arc stepped closer to Armor and spoke in a monotone whisper.

“Your sister essentially tried to kill me after pulling me from my world while being drunk. The only reason she isn’t dead twice over was because Derpy, my true first friend, stopped me from snapping her neck. Ember reminded me that saving her from where I had been trapped was the right thing to do.’

His tone turned harsh as Armor tried finding a way of getting a word in.

‘I don’t want your sister to be so much as a glimpse on the horizon when we’re back in Ponyville. I don’t care how it’s done, only that I don’t want to see that sociopathic unicorn except when it’s absolutely unavoidable or necessary.”

With a heavy internal sigh, he nodded in acceptance, only for his attention to be drawn to a massive surprise gathering of “armored” ponies that included two familiar actual armored ponies. The latter two galloped up, weapons unsheathed and speaking as one.

“HEAR US NOW, TROOPS OF EQUESTRIA! WE WILL GIVE YOU ONE CHANCE TO RELEASE THE HUMAN, OR ELSE!”

Shining Armor also galloped to the front, stopping a couple of feet in front of his troops and proceeding to quickly explain what happened. At the end, the atmosphere was heavy, only the wind speaking through the trees. It was broken by the Cakes screaming as one.

“Then take Twilight Sparkle with you! She doesn’t deserve to live in our town!”

It was quickly taken up by the rest of the outraged populace, who took a few threatening steps toward the army. While nervous enough to not do anything, the presence of the whole town was enough to make the army nervous in turn.

Meanwhile, her friends were trying to convince the people that she had learned her lesson, but the former’s words were shouted down as the latter fiercely questioned their loyalty to Arc. Said human was currently being escorted by his “fiancée”, several guards, and Derpy to the rejoicing half of the crowd. They were accompanied by the demons, who, after quick reassurance from Arc, were welcomed in. As the crowd turned as one to the Mane Six, they made one last demand.

“Leave her, or never come back!”

“Or join me and Ember on any of our potential journeys and prove yourself.’

They turned as one to the cross-armed and narrow-eyed Arc, muzzles and irises as wide open as possible. As questions flowed across the crowd, he strode forward, ending between the two groups.

‘She did a very horrible thing, yes! The fact that she was willing to stay trapped there, helped make me and Ember practically indestructible armor infused with every spell a warrior might ever need, and create potions that helped us survive the intense cold, should tell you she’s on her way to making things better! Will I forgive and forget what she did?’

He leaned forward and silently gave her a death glare for a few moments.

‘… My silence should make my answer clearer than any curse word.
Now, Twilight Sparkle. Deal, or no deal?”

Gulping, she glanced to and fro, from her silently wondering brother, to her worried friends, to Arc. With a shuddering sigh and tears, she shakes her head.

“I-I-I-I-.”

“I’ll TRAIN YOU, TWILY!’

Everypony whips their head towards the captain, who was quickly trotting to his sister.

‘If you’ll give me several weeks, or a few months, that’ll be enough time to train her to where you won’t need to start from scratch!”

Looking as one at each other, the human-dragon duo turns back to them and nodded in agreement, Twilight breathing a huge sigh of relief. As everyone heads back to town, Twilight’s friends encouraging her, the two armored ponies struck up a conversation with Arc. The one on the right spoke first.

“We can tell that your armor has some… pretty advanced and overpowered spells, Arc.”

“Yeah well, you can thank Twilight for that. She said that she memorized the most powerful spells she could. How powerful? When she was done infusing them, she passed out.”

As one, they looked at each other, then looked back at the still softly crying Twilight, who was tiredly leaning on Pinkie Pie.

“Well, she had certainly done something to start making things right…”

“But would that be enough?”

Facing forward, Arc shrugged his shoulders while replying in a whisper.

“We’ll see, my neighbors. We’ll see.”

---

Several weeks pass, the library having been taken over by Auriel and Esther, with Rebme being babysat by Derpy at her new, more luxurious house a short trot away.

Meanwhile, AJ had gotten a disturbing and coded letter from her cousin, Cherry Jubilee in Dodge Junction. In it, she told her—in “glowing” letters and phrases—that she had gotten married to Buffalo Bill. Their honeymoon was to take place in Baltimare the day the letter was to arrive, causing a panicked Applejack to gallop to Arc’s new house, Derpy’s old one.
Hearing grunts and panting caused her ears and cheeks to burn, but she unhesitatingly pounded on the door with both hooves. Upstairs, Arc and Ember had just finished moving a positively heavy and uncomfortably designed desk, deciding that workouts out of their armor would help. Collapsing on their shared bed, they leaned on each other while listening to the frantic pounding and shouting downstairs. Arc finally caught his breath after a bit and spoke.

“Who’s going to get up and check it out?”

“Not me.”

“Well, I can’t get up and get down there, not without help.”

With a shared moan, they helped each other and half-stumbled, half-walked there, calling out that they were coming as the pounds and shouts kept coming. Unlocking and turning the doorknob, the pony in question ended up falling flat on her face. Quickly getting up, she tore into their house, waiting until they sat on their couch before throwing the decoded letter in front of them.

“Mah cousin’s in trouble!”

They read it, eyes becoming alarmed at the letter’s contents and Ember speaking up.

“At least we can get some rest on the ride over. Apple-?’

“On it. Where do ya leave da armor?”

‘Hallway closet. We haven’t-.”

“On it!”

Opening the closet, she grabbed the disorganized pieces and put them as neatly as she could on her back, neck, and head, gulping and sliding down the stairs, backwards. The duo winced at her muted groans of pain coming down, giving her sympathetic looks she ignored as she shook her plot. Setting the pieces on the table in front of them, she galloped back upstairs and got the rest while Ember used her magic to set Arc’s helmet on his head.

That immediately revitalized him, allowing him to get up and do the same for Ember then armor up. As she did the same, Applejack repeated the backward sliding, stepping up and giving them the pieces as needed. When they’re suited up, AJ held out a sack of bits they looked at questionably while she headbutts Ember out the door.

“There ain’t no time for y’all to get your own money! Da next train leaves in a literal minute, and-!”

“Understood!”

Snatching it, they run to the station with seconds to spare, get a ticket, and leap into the train’s first class. Literally stumbling onto a bench, they stared dumbfoundedly at the upside-down mare next to them, Stetson on her plot.

“D-did ya really think Ah was ‘bout to let ya leave wit’out me?!”

“And your ticket, Miss-?”

“Ah’m well-known enough for that ta not be a problem! Now git ‘hat armor off an’ get some sleep! We’ll be hitting the ground running in a few hours!”

The hours pass dreamlessly for the trio, two too tired, one too worried to do more than a light nap.

“BALTIMARE! BALTIMARE IN FIVE MINUTES!”

Waking up with a moan, the human-dragon duo stretched, about to get up before freezing and passionately kissing. When they were finished, it hit them like a pound of bricks that they weren’t alone. Quickly sitting down, they made sure to stay a good distance from each other as a lightly yawning AJ stretched and looked at them with a light grin.

“Afternoon, Sugarcubes! Rest well?”

They nodded while getting up and leaving their cabin, stopping in the meal car and getting some snacks. When the train finally arrived and they exited, Arc whistled at the size of the city and Ember scowled. As Applejack led the way to the nearby hotel, they encountered a pale-yellow mare, with light pistachio-colored eyes and a mane with two shades of moderate crimson. She was escorted by two rough-looking stallions who were carrying several bags, some being bits and others being products.

“CHERRY!”

“APPLEJACK!!”

They rush towards each other and hug, the stallions following while rolling their eyes. Stopping as the two chatted, they looked at Ember and Arc with admiration, the right one speaking.

“Looks like the Apple Family finally remembered their roots. How many Trials did you two have to go through and how many “volunteers” did you have to beat?”

Applejack interrupted with a flawless Manehatten accent.

“Excuse me, gentlestallions, but The A’s don’t do Trials. We only ask for those who show that they have the ability and skills to keep our Family safe. These two are fairly new to Guarding life, so go easy on them during the next Meeting.”

They tip their hats in response as Cherry and AJ hug again and kiss each other’s cheeks, leaving with wave and hat tip. As they got further and further apart, AJ finally allowed a fierce scowl to enter her face as she bypassed their chosen hotel and entered an Orange store, which sold everything that could be possibly made from the orange.
Trotting to the back of the store, she knocked twice, then thrice, then once, and then thrice again. A hidden entrance opened, barely wide enough for AJ. Entering while keeping it open, she manually widened it so that her companions could enter, then closed and locked it.
In front of them was a simple desk, a light brown Pegasus mare behind it with some simple green glasses, cute freckles, and a blue skirt with a white blouse, flowers, butterflies and animals embroidered on them.

“I hope you have-.”

“Buffalo Bill forced Cherry to marry him, M. They’re having their honeymoon here, and I, for one, AM NOT ABOUT TO LET THAT WALKING PILE OF FILTH RAPE HER!!”

M dropped everything she was doing and let them through while making some calls, the last thing they heard being the following before the door slammed shut.

“Cami! Don’t sha-. We don’t need more-!”

In front of them was a cloaked pony in shadows, their voice disguised.

“This true, Applejack? Our best customer?”

“Yes. I understand about leaving The Families to run their section of Equestria how they see fit, but-!”

“It needs to be bent just this once. You have the support of my Friends and some Family.”

She turns to her silent “bodyguards” with a mischievous grin as she turns to leave.

“Just as backup, Ab. Just as backup. The Open Land Hotel, as usual?”

“I’ll have everything ready by 6:30.”

---

When evening fell, the trio came downstairs, armor hidden under a robe. They were meeting in the lobby a tan earth pony with curly hair, with his first words being as follows.

“So, we’re dealing with a criminal mogul who’s threatening a mare because he’s a crybaby and she’s a coward who didn’t ask for help when she needed it the most. Is this supposed to be a challenge?”

Arc and Ember resisted reacting while Applejack’s eyes took on a hardness that wouldn’t look out of place on Tirek. Stepping forward as Cami realized he stepped over the line; she gently placed a hoof on his left shoulder, slightly increasing the pressure continually.

“Now, Mr. Cami. I know this might be new for you as you were never mentioned at any Meeting but let me tell you how this whole thing works.’

At this point he was trying to put up a brave face as the pressure was getting unbearable. That quickly fell off as she slammed him into the ground, a few tiles getting cracked as he muted his cry of pain.

‘You, are not on your Family Grounds. We’re on Neutral Grounds in every Open Land Hotel. However, as things are a… bit unusual right now, I can do this to convince you that this isn’t a Family Game.
You, are here to help that so-called “coward”. My cousin. From getting raped. For the rest of her life. Thus, you are here to do your best.’

She leans down and whispers into the terrified stallion’s ear as she helps him up.

‘Do you understand?”

Backing away, he nodded furiously as the squad trotted out as Ab’s personal carriage pulled up, the pony themselves in the center seat facing the door. With everyone in their seats, they were on their way to a waterfront restaurant.

“I trust that my Family has been the utmost picture of helpfulness in your short time together so far?’

Applejack nods, with the pony replying, a smile audible in their voice.

‘There’s no need for you to lie to me, Element of Honesty, even if it’s to protect one of my own. Have you resisted smashing his face in?”

“I did have to remind him why he’s helping us. Sorry for forcing you to repair some tiles.”

“Tiles are replaceable and customizable. Family isn’t on both counts and that’s why you must learn to live with and love the one you have. Of course, that doesn’t mean you’re forced to be a doormat. Even I had to and have to be told off. It happened a lot during my younger years, I’ll admit.
We’re here. Stay alive, keep each other safe, and check out the drinks on your immediate left side.’

They’re gently persuaded out, where they find that yes, they are at their destination.

‘Farewell.”

The carriage went down the street at a moderate speed, turning the next corner and disappearing completely. Staring as one at the shocking sight, they shake the feeling off and enter the grand restaurant, being guided to the equally grand ballroom on the floor above. Rejecting the drinks immediately offered them, they went to the snack table and grabbed those drinks, gulping them down as others tried to ‘accidentally’ spill them.

Backing off with a glare, they were about to call for backup when a disguised Buffalo himself entered the room, the spotlight on him and a subtly sad Cherry on his right side. The group split up after going over a plan suggested by Arc in contrast to the ‘head-on’ attack plan of AJ and Ember, mingling with the rich and powerful as best they could. Ember was with Arc and Cami was with AJ.

“So, what’s your special talent? Your Cutie Mark is no help.”

“That’s the idea, sis. Can’t be a spy and have everypony know who I am.”

When she discreetly tried to wipe it off, he smoothly grabbed her hoof and pulled her into a dance which she quickly and semi-mechanically followed. While he tried to make conversation with her, Arc implemented part 2.

“Time to disappear, my dear.”

Simultaneously, they cast off their robes in their respective bathrooms and turned invisible, making their way to the back of the building. Finding out that Bill was planning to wrap up the night by taking a boat ride, he put a stop to it by noiselessly stabbing numerous holes in the bottom. As it instantly went to the bottom, they went to wait at the pier’s entrance only to find a terrified Jubilee frozen in fear and confusion.

Meanwhile, AJ was dealing with the sudden twist of everypony but her falling unconscious right as Cherry was escorted outside. Cami had somehow disappeared during their dancing, and she was left dancing with a somewhat lecherous, somehow respectful stallion. At the end, when they respectfully parted and Applejack went looking, the pony in question was right next to Bill as he was telling him to go through and grab everypony’s bits and jewelry.

“I’m sorry, Bill. I can’t let you do that.”

Allowing a split-second look of confusion, a disguised Cami was surrounded by yellow and dark-yellow flames and replaced by a black Changeling drone with yellow eyes and dark yellow inner ears before attempting to knock him out. Unfortunately, he was scarily fast, catching the punch and returning it three-fold, embedding him into the wall. Making his escape outside, he got clotheslined by Ember and dragged back in by a coldly furious AJ, who started with his lower legs and eventually ended with his neck. By general consensus, his body is wrapped in Cherry’s dress, weighed down with his bodyguards’ armor and other heavy items, and tossed into the harbor.

---

Getting back to the Open Land Hotel, each of the visitors is given three thousand bits and a magically compressed storage ring each, with Arc also given ten thousand bits for coming up with the plan. Appearing to think for a bit, he decides to give Ember his three thousand bits, the observers disbelieving how a human would be willing to give up even a small amount of his wealth.

The next day, they find out that they’ve been given a hero's farewell to the train station, Judge High Justice having a slight and unnerving rictus smile on his face as he gives them the key to the city at the station.

Comments

[Starlight Nova]

I never read The Equestrian Odyssey - A Tale of Two Worlds because I hate it when the author just refuses to end their story. I don’t care what their reason is or what those stupid fans say, I hate those kind of stories with a burning passion. Will this story be as long as that one is?

[Starlight Nova]

11761203
What are the six questions of good writing?

[6mike161]

Honestly I like that you made Arc an actually flawed individual which a lot of hie writers in this genre seem to be anathema to largely

[Hye]

11766479
Nope! Safe to say mine will be significantly shorter, as some events can't happen because of the changes that has already occurred.

[Hye]

11766527
That's literally why I'm writing this thing, because he's too perfect.

[6mike161]

11766538
What is it with authors like the Lost Element or Equestrian Odyssey with their misanthropic Gary Stu characters and I talked to the author of the lost element before and he said James isn’t but the goddess called humanity tainted in that story you can’t tell me it isn’t misanthropic. I believe the only real way for humanity to squander its potential is if there was a global nuclear war. Compared to other races in fictional media humanity is downright friendly in comparison.