28. Encroachment
Metroid Equis
Chapter 28
Encroachment
“Okay squad, bring it in,” Constance called softly. A gentle rain pelted the armor of the eight combatants of CV-Squad as they huddled close together. They had all advanced northward and had great success, but it was not over yet. The Federation and the Korps were poised to liberate the entirety of Trottingham and all that stood in their way was Trottingham University. It was the last bastion of Pirate resistance in the city, but there was a problem. Airstrikes and fixed artillery had been pounding away at the massive stone buildings, but enchanted building techniques were holding firm against Federation shelling. Princess Luna and Celestia had given the okay to “burn the university and the Space Pirate occupiers to the ground,” that the learning institution could easily be rebuilt. But with this new revelation, ground troops would have to go in and personally deal with the invaders.
“The Korps is leading the charge and we’re going with them. The Federation has graciously provided us with the use of a few tanks and artillery, right?” she asked. The Magickakorps wished to be the one to liberate the University, so the Federation largely was allowed to take up defensive and supportive positions. Command accepted immediately, considering that based on reported casualty figures, the Federation had already lost about seven-hundred Marines, with at least half of those killed. In contrast, Luna’s troops had only incurred exactly sixty-three casualties, of which twenty-four were deaths.
“Yup, they’re our mobile cover so use them,” Jacob confirmed.
“Sydney and Arianna, you’re coming with us this time?” Nathan inquired.
“Wouldn’t miss it for the world!” Arianna commented. She swapped out her sniper rifle for a standard long rifle.
“Always,” Sydney chimed in, armed with her usual assault rifle.
"Glad everyone's ready, because you're about to be a part of how the Magickakorps deals with its enemies personally," Radiance added. It was nearly time to launch the assault, as was evident by the entire Magickakorps force lining the periphery of the University from the front. The elite unicorns crowded around each other, with CV-Squad right in the middle, as well as a few Federation Jackknife Tanks ready to provide cover.
Nothing sounded except for the rain and thunder as all of the faceless unicorns plus the faceless Federation Troops (both Crusader remnant and the second wave) stared down the imposing structure. The Space Pirates were horrendously entrenched and this final phase of the battle would undoubtedly involve the most casualties, and a somber, but prepared silence reigned supreme. That was the case... until little murmurs broke out among the unicorn ranks.
"Magicka..." an unknown unicorn stallion murmured. Each of the equine elements of CV-Squad immediately perked up and began regarding each other with admiration. Clearly something inside that the humans probably would not understand.
“Magicka… Magicka…” every unicorn soldier began to slowly fall into synchronized speaking with each other, and the humans could only watch and listen as they got louder and louder.
“Magicka! Magicka! Magicka!” the sound of almost a thousand unicorns at once began to become quite deafening. To add to the spectacle, everypony began stomping their right hooves to the first and last syllables of the word. Nathan, Jake, Sydney, and Arianna all silently agreed that something epic was about to happen, and those thoughts were corroborated when nearly a thousand magical swords were conjured at once. Many unicorns in front, though, opted to cast sturdy barriers and others were just ready to use ranged attacks.
The chanting continued until the fateful order was given, to which the mantra was replaced by a battle cry of pure bloodlust. The tanks moved forward and all the unicorns began the slow trek… a literal sea of black... across no-man’s land through a hail of Pirate machine guns and sniper fire. CV-Squad was near the spearheading drive behind one of the tanks and advanced out under a deadly hailstorm of enemy fire that suddenly erupted, ready to complete the liberation of Trottingham.
[Geosynchronous Orbit: Mothership Vengeful Subjugation]
The space battle over Equis had grown ferocious as the hours had gone by. As Ridley cruised through the last layers of the atmosphere, he had to do well to avoid the wreckages of fighters and other junk that had been destroyed during the battle, as well as avoid friendly and enemy fire from fighters and capital ships. With enough effort, he was able to enter through the hatch he exited from before, effectively returning to his lair. The hatch to open space closed and sealed him inside, where he folded his wings onto his back.
“Welcome back, Lord Ridley,” the ship’s AI spoke with the usual, emotionless yet oddly calming monotone.
“Spare me the pleasantries, update me on the whole scope of the battle,” Ridley irritatingly asked.
“Of course. The Ground Battle is being contested towards the north, but we are quickly losing ground in the center of the Equine Nation. With the induction of the Federation and other Nations taking up arms against us, we simply do not have the troops to hold our positions. Heavy casualties have already been suffered in the central Trottingham region. The large-scale deployment of these black-clad, horned-equine troops are utterly decimating our forces in ranged and close-quarters combat. They are much more efficient than Federation Marines.”
“And of the space battle?” he asked. Ridley knew of some detail already, but wanted a full report.
“With an unsuccessful counter-strike on a frigate group, we are also losing space. Frigate Coercion was lost. It attempted to land planet-side in the Everfree region but crash landed after continued long-range volleys by Federation Dreadnoughts. We can hold out for substantially less time than on the ground.”
Ridley breathed a heavy sigh as he thought of everything. Things were going so well and the advanced timing of the Federation had completely thrown everything off-balance. Then again, he did not know how populated this particular planet was, and he simply did not have the ground power to enforce his will upon the entire planetary population, even with his direct intervention. The discovery of magic (and unsuccessful attempts to harvest it) further provided a great detriment and demoralization factor to his troops. To make matters worse, there were no available reinforcements within the general space sector that would make any meaningful difference in the outcome of this battle.
While Ridley was bloodthirsty, cocky, ruthless, and downright evil, that did not impede his rational thought. While he would like nothing but to bury the planet under relentless orbital strikes, he simply lacked the means to do so on account for underestimating both the timeframe of the Federation arrival as opposed to what they could harvest in Phazon, as well as the amount of fight the potential local population would put up.
Like he had told the wretched Hunter not too long ago, he had no plans to make this planet his potential grave, and he had come to the conclusion that the opportunity cost of continuing operations on Equis was simply too great. Even secret runs to a rebuilding Aether were essentially costing less (though yielding less output) than this operation. Combined with the discovery of other major Phazon-producing planets, this all gave no credence to remain here. With that, Ridley, ever the opportunist, made his decision.
So it has come to this…
“Initiate a withdrawal of as many forces from the planet as possible. We’ll need as many as we can get. Send out my universal orders for a tactical retreat. We’ll regroup at the First Homeworld.”
“Yes, Lord Ridley. It shall be done.”
[Crystal Empire]
“Your Highnesses, the Elements have arrived,” a Crystal Guard interrupted the congregation between Princess Luna, Celestia, and Cadence as well as Prince Shining Armor. There was a more diverse group of individuals as evident by the four High GFMC Officers including Colonel Borsig, the latter showing a document in great detail to the ponies and explaining something unidentifiable from a distance.
“Very well, we’ll reconvene at a later time,” Celestia acknowledged and addressed the four officers.
“Of course, Princess. At your convenience and hopefully when we’re not burdened by current events,” Borsig respectfully replied and motioned to the other officers to stand aside to discuss amongst themselves. He then slipped the confidential document within a folder which had a discreet title along the lines of “Framework for 1st Equisian Fleet.”
Forming up together, the four ponies convened back to the throne room, where all of the Elements plus Spike had just entered. Shining immediately ran up to Twilight and embraced her tightly.
"Twily! I'm sorry I couldn't be there... what happened?? Are you okay?!" He asked in quick succession, berating her with questions like the overprotective brother that he was. Twilight returned his nuzzles happily and with a few giggles.
"I'm okay, BBBFF, all thanks to my friends and Samus," she replied honestly. It would be a while before she got over the whole ordeal... for anypony to get over the whole ordeal due to what was seen back in Ponyville. Shining almost spilled some liquid pride and embraced her nice and tightly.
"And like last time, it appears as if she has gone missing," Rarity pointed out.
"But this time, I can assure you she is just fine. She is out in the Frozen Overworld, observing the Changeling threat," Celestia joined in on the conversation.
“Indeed. Samus’s ability to explore the unknown and counter the threat of Phazon surpasses our own ability, so we felt that giving her free reign on how to handle herself against this substance, as well as the link between it and the Changelings, was the best course of action,” Luna explained as she joined her sister’s side. “As well, it is necessary to maintain the homefront.
“Ah don’t know…” Applejack voiced out loud, looking down to the floor and having conflicted thoughts.
“What’s wrong, AJ?” Rainbow asked.
“Ah just feel like we’re doin’ nothing! We’re supposed to be the Bearers of the Elements and Ah don’t like just sittin’ on our flanks while Samus takes the lion’s share of the work!”
“For once I have to agree with Applejack,” Rarity voiced. “All we’ve done is sit and wait in safety while Samus, other ponies, and this Galactic Federation are risking their lives for our nation. This was a mantle that we were supposed to take on, was it not?”
“It most certainly was, but realize that the Elements, while still bound to you, are mostly in Samus’s possession,” Celestia reminded. Shining and Cadence could only watch the back-and-forth.
“Does that really matter though? Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow and Pinkie may not have their elements available but we six are still the Element Bearers,” Twilight voiced her opinion. Applejacks bout of bluntness had spurred a surge of thoughts that had been suppressed ever since the Phazon grabbed at life in Equestria.
“Twily…?” Shining softly called her name with concern, fearing she may have overstepped her boundaries somehow. Spike had nothing to contribute and he just listened with apprehensiveness, clutching onto Twilight’s left front leg.
“No, Shining Armor, it is perfectly fine,” Luna took the reins. “Twilight Sparkle, I… we understand your willingness and wanting to do something to aid your kin, but realize you are simply too important right now. We need you when it will really matter and if anything were to happen to any one of you that, forbid, takes one of your lives, the Elements would be void.”
“I realize that Princess Luna, and we had first hand experience with that during Discord’s return, though nopony died, granted,” Twilight conceded.
“B-But as Elements Bearers, the mantle requires sacrifice… I-It’s what it means to be an Element of Harmony, in the end…” Fluttershy finally expressed herself.
“There was always a risk, and we have always been aware of that, Princesses,” Pinkie Pie also voiced, albeit in a more serious and determined tone.
“And with all due respect, Princesses, if I never took the risk you wish to avoid, all seven of us would have perished back in Ponyville when the Space Pirates attacked,” Twilight admitted with confidence. Celestia, nor Luna, had anything to counter that argument, because the both knew it was completely true.
“Please, Princesses… just let us help in some way. We don’t all have to be in the same area, nor do we have to be soldiers sent to the very front lines, but please, let. Us. Help,” Twilight closed her argument with a deep request. The remaining five Elements plus Spike rallied around her, facing the two regal sisters, including Cadence and Shining, waiting for an answer. Celestia and Luna looked to each other for a couple of seconds, undoubtedly having an enormous mental conversation which concluded as fast as it began. The latter breathed a heavy sigh of concession.
“Very well, Twilight. You and the Elements may provide direct assistance to our efforts,” Celestia said. A wave of relief flew over the Elements and Pinkie jumped for joy.
“Then we shall figure out what we can have you all do for…” Luna was cut off when a Crystal Guard Officer and two Magickakorps troops burst through the throne room, accompanied by a platoon of Federation Marines behind them. All had a look of urgency as the Crystal Guard made his way directly to the Princesses.
“Your Highnesses!” he blurted out before offering a quick bow.
“What is it, soldier!?” Shining Armor immediately asked, on the edge.
“In the Frozen Overworld… The Changelings have amassed a huge army!” the Guard wasted no time with small talk. Everypony was silent for a tense few seconds, and not even a peep could be heard from the Marines.
“W-What?! What are we dealing with?? Estimates, soldier, out with it!” Shining Armor yelled, needing to know exactly how to plan.
“We don’t rightly know, it’s changing every minute. My educated guess is greater than three thousand, mostly drones, and some weird, larger changelings. A lot of scouts died getting this information, sir!” he informed.
“What forces are stationed within the Empire’s borders?” Luna inquired?
“The Guard Force is five-hundred strong, and our regular forces number at about twelve-hundred,” Shining ran through numbers in his head.
“Fifty of my Elites are committed here,” Luna added.
“And don’t forget a hundred marines,” a new voice entered the conversation. All turned and found Colonel Borsig and his staff having returned to the throne room, getting briefed by their own intelligence.
“Our warships from space indicate about closer to four-thousand enemy combatants massed and encroaching on the Empire’s shielded border. Unfortunately, we don’t have any more available troops or air support to divert to the area. The Changelings seem confident that they can break the shield,” he continued.
“They’re going to. The shield was meant to halt the spread of underground Phazon into our land, not to repel an invading force,” Shining admitted. Nevertheless, time was running out, and action had to be taken. Orders were necessary immediately.
“I need to find Samus,” Luna concluded. Her prowess would be crucial in breaking the siege with minimal loss of life.
“How?” Twilight asked, dumbfounded. Tens of minute ago, nopony had the slightest clue where she was.
“Her magical prowess stems from my own, and I can track my own magic. Think of it as an organic compass.”
"Just be careful, Your Highness. The Phazon spreads unabated throughout the region," Borsig mentioned. Luna nodded resolutely.
“Orders, Your Highness?” one of the Magickakorps troops asked, alluding to the fact that Luna would not be directly commanding on the ground. She turned to the faceless soldier with a look of dire determination.
“Defend this city with your lives,” Luna simply ordered, to which her troops wordlessly saluted and teleported out to their command posts to deliver the message.
“Alright girls, it’s time to get with it,” Twilight said with friendly authority. The others rallied along-side her.
“Twilight, surely you don’t mean…” Celestia was cut off when Twilight’s horn lit up and, to the surprise of one of the GF Marines, yanked his assault rifle out of his hands and rested its side on her chest, clutching it protectively. She then gave a look to her mentor that left no room for debate.
“Very well, Twilight. But please, please be careful. I trust your judgement fully,” she conceded. She and Luna knew that the other Elements plus Spike would follow her direction without question. Twilight was always the unofficial leader of them all in dire situations.
“You know I always am, Princess. We’ve fought Changelings before, and we’ll gladly do it again. Now...” Twilight magically pulled back the charging handle on her ‘requisitioned’ weapon while directing her gaze to her best friends in the world. “We’ve got work to do, everypony.”
The Elements all stomped their hooves in unison and gave their own expressions of affirmation, while Spike stiffened his resolve next to his older sister. With some final words being said, soldiers were dismissed to take up positions, Luna took flight out of the castle to locate Samus, and Twilight, Celestia, Cadence, Shining Armor, and Borsig began to draw up plans.
[Crystal Catacombs]
Samus’s feet hit the ground of the catacombs and she hunched down to absorb the impact, a subtle ‘clink’ of her boots permeating throughout the new territory. The only visible light was through the hole she jumped through, and upon looking up, the dead Crystal Hydra was staring right at her.
That’s lovely.
It was time to figure out what was around her and, if possible, where she exactly was. Placing her hand on the side of her helmet and pulling up a larger view of her map, Samus was off-put but not entirely surprised at the lack of map data available. As such only the hard way remained: She’d have to explore these caverns herself. Fancying a look around, light was present, yet not as much as she’d have liked. However, there was enough throughout any path she could take that it did not warrant the use of her Thermal Visor.
There were large and jagged crystal and phazon formations of any conceivable color lining the tunnel walls and reflecting any available light, dispersing it evenly throughout. Still, Samus wished she could see a bit better without sacrificing the detail of her Combat Visor. She took a few steps forward, out of the light created through the ceiling, and was about to choose a pathway to follow, whether it be north, east, or northwest.
Oh wait… duh.
Samus tapped the side of her helmet and a small light on the side of her visor lit up brightly, casting light in front of her. She had forgotten that she had a flashlight equipped on her suit, and had inwardly chastised herself for not employing its use in her earlier missions.
With extra light, she decided to head straight into the northern tunnel where… absolutely nothing awaited her. Other than a few twists and turns, a few different Phazon strains to add to her scan logbook, there was nothing of interest. Whatever had created these tunnels appeared to not be using them now, or had abandoned them completely. Unless of course, whatever was hypothetically in these catacombs was there, and just watching her, waiting for their opportune moment to strike.
Yeah, that’s probably it. That’s definitely it.
So she continued her trek in silence, ever vigilant of her surroundings, especially when small tunnels would intersect the main one she was walking. Things changed up however, when she entered an intersection but her motion detector picked up movement to her immediate right, causing her to duck back and stack up against the adjacent tunnel wall. Taking a small peek, she found two Changeling drones attempting to harvest one of what appeared to be a Phazon growth with marginal success. With their attention elsewhere, Samus armed her Night Beam and struck immediately.
A rapid-fire hail of searing magical rounds decimated the first drone, leaving nothing but eroded exoskeleton and destroyed internal organs. The other attempted to fight back, but Samus side-stepped and dodged a magical bolt before following up with a binding spell, holding the Changeling in place, and ending it with a missile to the torso. The fight was over in about five-and-a-half seconds, and Samus had to admit that her evolving magic was now having a greater, complementing effect on her fighting ability.
Still, something was off about this growth that they were harvesting. Taking a closer look, Samus confirmed that said growth was actually crystallized Phazon.
Odd... Phazon never calcifies like this,
[Recorded to Logbook]
[Object: Phazon Crystal]
[Phazon growths with crystalline traits. The large quantity of magic within the Frozen North of Equestria has appeared to have altered the genetic makeup of some Phazon strains that have expanded through the ground. Large, quantifiable amounts of magical energy detected within, and the Changelings appear to harvest and collect these specific types of Phazon Crystals. Further analysis needed to corroborate, but it appears Changeling Drones consume these crystals to catalyze their metamorphosis into Soldier Changelings. Contact with substace will cause damage to shielding.]
Samus's reading was cut off when a bright-green magical bolt impacted the rock near her head. Qucikly taking cover around a bend, Samus oriented herself against her attackers: a squad of four Drones lead by a Soldier. As soon as she peeked out, a storm of magical fire erupted, forcing the Hunter to cast a small shield and return to cover. However, there was no point in drawing out this confrontation into a needless, ten-minute firefight. She needed to find a way out and figure out where she was, ultimately.
Samus charged her Power Beam to full and aimed out deeper down the tunnel where the Changelings advanced. She then fired a Super Missile which deliberately impacted in front of the group, obliterating the Drone that trekked too far ahead, and collapsing the tunnel on top of the aggressors. They never saw it coming and thus, did not have time to maneuver or teleport out.
Too easy.
While that addressed the problem of her getting shot at, it did not really help to solve the larger problem at hand: finding a way out. Her map was of no use, as no matter where she went, it was a newly explored area, and she honestly had no idea how far this network of tunnels continued on for, or in which directions. After continuing her trekk and dodging Changeling patrols when she could (she had been 'down here for too long and ain't nobody got time for this'), her search and efforts were met with little progress; she could have been under the Crystal Empire proper for all she knew. She was not low on energy, her ammunition was somewhat plentiful, and ultimately she was not in any critical danger, relatively speaking. In the end, Samus just felt she was merely wasting time, time that could have been better spent elsewhere.
She was a little hungry though, but she could address that later.
Her efforts would have been rewarding if she had come across the Changeling Hive, and while this location seemed promising from the beginning, the lack of Changeling volume was quickly dissipating those speculations.
Huh?
Her suit detected movement in one of the closer tunnels, though not in Samus's immediate vision. She would, under these circumstances, be inclined to ignore the little blip, but the fact that this blip on her motion sensor was accompanied by a notification of a point of interest is what piqued her interest.
[Powerful entity present in the immediate area. Scans inconclusive due to magical interference. Identify unknown entity.]
She wanted to walk away... but due to her appetite for adventure, willingness to put herself in danger, and ultimately, because her suit said it was important, Samus slowly began to hunt this target. Her motion sensors confirmed that it was moving, but at a slow rate, so likely walking or searching. She came to an artery and made an appropriate transfer of tunnels, hot on the path of this 'powerful entity.' The Hunter made slow but steady gains, ensuring that she was not followed and attempting to be as ginger in her steps as possible. A couple beads of sweat formed between her suit and her skin on her head, necessitating a slight adjustment in suit temperature.
Another artery was reached, but Samus had detected that her target had stopped in the middle. Turning off her suit's flashlight, she took a peek out of the tunnel and found a quadrupedal creature, taller than a Drone but thinner than a Soldier. Samus could not make out too many details of the creature due to lack of light, but before she could engage her Thermal Visor, it had finally made up its mind and continued down the left-most tunnel. The only thing left to do was to persue, but as she moved to follow, her systems could not detect any more motion, as if the entity disappeared. On the flip-side, her map data showed that this particular tunnel had an end.
Finally!
Finally making her way out of the tunnel, the passageway opened up into what looked, what Samus would best describe, like a massive "Phazon chamber." While the network of tunnels crisscrossed in these catacombs, there was only one entrance to this chamber, namely, the one she just emerged from. The walls spread out immediately to give the impression of a super-massive biodome where the walls were lined with numerous colors of different Phazon strains. Quite frankly, the whole scene was bringing back unpleasant memories of Emperor Ing's lair in the Sky Temple back on Dark Aether.
Come to think of it, it's only been about two weeks since that all happened. My, how time doesn't fly.
While, what she was now calling as the "Phazon Biodome," was impressive, she still did not know what purpose this structure would serve the Changelings. Samus's thoughts were jumbled, however, when a lone figure appeared in her vision.
It appeared to be waiting here long before she came, but Samus could not discern any identifiable features of this new entity due to the light being given off by the collections of Phazon that were shining in front, effectively blackening the appearance. One thing Samus knew immediately though, was that this creature was quadrupedal and had a horn.
Samus entered more into the biodome and planted her metal foot into the ground, raising her cannon towards the unidentified quadruped. Upon hearing the noise, said creature in question turned around, and revealed the typical stoic face of somepony quite familiar to the Hunter during her stay on Equis. Samus lowered her cannon back to her side. Oddly enough, a spike of intense pain hit her head once she laid eyes on the co-ruler of Equestria.
"Oh, hi Luna. You seem to have a habit of being able to find me," she spoke first. Luna was still a little far away, and amongst the small bouts of sound generated, Samus didn't think she heard her, as evident by the lunar alicorn not responding but casually closing the distance between them. That, and this biodome was actually quite large, again, akin to Emperor Ing's lair.
"No sign of the Changeling Hive though... anyway," Samus also met Luna halfway and clutched her cannon with her left arm, ready to move. "Lead the way out."
Luna, clad in her standard regalia, did not move a muscle, but merely stared at Samus with a look of deep contempt. The fact that Samus was talking more than Luna was already raising major red flags, indicating that something was wrong. While Samus was starting to feel at ease in Luna's presence in general, right now her instincts were telling her to "get the fuck out right now."
"Luna...?" Samus spoke again, taking a few steps back. A preliminary scan showed that it was indeed the Princess of the Night standing in front of her. Aura visor showed nothing out of the ordinary. But that's when it hit her.
Samus, reluctantly, performed a full scan of the Night Princess, and found Phazon Corruption that had not manifested completely, as due to the lack of external signs.
No...
Samus took one more step back and planted her heels in the ground, having a staring contest with Luna, her weapon still at a passive position by her hip. While she appeared perfectly stoic and 'normal,' internally Samus was in chaos. This was a major ally (and dare she say, a friend) that had just been taken by the Phazon. What was becoming worse, though, was Samus's headache.
Luna huffed and stomped her left hoof into the ground and let out an exerted cry to battle as her horn flared up. Samus, acting upon instinct (with some major reluctance) raised her cannon towards the Night Princess, expecting an attack. However instead of an attack, Luna's magic drew physical Phazon from the walls, into her body. The material formed around her and absorbed into her coat. Samus could only watch in silent horror as the alicorn began changing in front of her. At first, she thought Luna was merely equipping her battle armor. But Phazon was not necessary for such a feat, so naturally, when Luna's coat began to darken considerably, she knew something extraordinary was taking place. Taking a few more steps back, one magical shock-wave later and what stood in front of her was a literal Nightmare out of Equestrian history.
Her horn became elongated by one and a half times, rudimentary and ancient battle armor in the form of a helmet and light plating on her back appeared, and most notably, her eyes became distinctly catlike/reptilian. To compliment it all, fluorescent Phazon veins ran through her skin and armor, pulsing with light synchronous with her heartbeat. Samus, of course, was going to have only one clear, inevitable choice: she was going to have to stand and fight. Not like she had a choice, since Phazon had formed and blocked the only exit.
Fuck me...
[Recorded to Logbook]
[Morphology: Nightmare Moon]
[Dark Magic corrupted Princess of the Night. Princess Luna's alter ego was purged and removed by the Elements of Harmony after her one-thousand year banishment, but it appears contact with Phazon has allowed her to be reborn and to resurface, at least, in part. This Nightmare Moon differs from the true Nightmare Moon, as the true one was born of Luna's deep seated resentment, sorrow, and anger. This rendition was artificially brought out by Phazon exposure, and thus, is far less powerful than the true Nightmare. Nevertheless, enhanced magic potential brought out by the sheer ferocity of the Nightmare, plus amplification by Phazon will yield powerful magical attacks laced with Phazon, as well as heightened aggression. No specific points of weakness detected other than the standard horn and wings.]
Samus reactivated her combat visor and stared down at the Luna-turned-Nightmare Moon, who was now fully transformed and returning the gaze with one of pure malice. Her headache had achieved a stable but durable pain, which concerned the Hunter, as the Nightmare was undoubtedly getting a rise from the deepest recesses of her mind. Despite it all, Samus gently lifted and aimed her cannon square at Nightmare Moon's head.
I'm sorry, Luna.
Where Samus was going to perform the first strike, the aiming of her cannon provided all of the provocation needed for Nightmare Moon, as she fired short bursts of magical beams, tainted with Phazon Energy, not unlike Samus's Phazon Beam. Samus barely had time to dodge and roll before Nightmare immediately rushed her, plowing straight into her full force and knocking her onto her back. She was able to cast a shield to block any other strikes while she lay on the ground but her shield soon shattered under Nightmare’s Phazon Beam.
Samus quickly angled her cannon and fired a charged Power Beam blast, which sent the Nightmare about fifteen feet backward and allowed the Hunter to land back on her feet. Like her systems had stated, there was really no strategic way to combat Nightmare Moon, and from the first few opening attacks, Samus had a feeling that this battle would essentially be a war of attrition. She also noticed several breaks in the ancient-style armor, quite different from Luna’s standard battle armor that she was used to seeing. Thus, it was time to put her Needle Beam to good use.
Samus’s cannon oriented itself to fire the crystalline munitions and she aimed squarely at her recovering adversary. She fired once and the needle impacted Nightmare’s chest armor, shattering on impact with no effect save for aggravating her enemy even more. So, Samus locked onto an exposed area that would do the least amount of damage possible: the ankle.
Focusing her combat visor, Samus aimed and fired three times to ensure a hit, and a hit was scored.
”AAAhhh!!” the Nightmare bellowed in a sickeningly familiar voice as the crystal round pierced straight through her exposed ankle. Blood trickled out and dripped to the floor as she recoiled her left leg in anguish, shooting Samus a deathly look and a snarl as she retreated ever-so slightly. Nightmare then activated a magical shield to hold Samus at bay and stay any advance so she could heal herself.
In response, Samus engaged her Night Beam and pounded the Nightmare's shield with rapid-fire. The sounds of casted magic and the high-pitched piercing sound of Samus's beam (A/N: Think of the wave beam in Zero Mission) were all that pervaded through the chamber as the Hunter moved to shatter Nightmare's shield... and shatter it did, but not before her horn flared and a Phazon tendril ensnared Samus's leg, tripping her.
The Blue Phazon burned into her suit's shielding as Samus attempted to get her leg free. The Nightmare had removed the crystal round from her ankle and adequately healed herself, so Samus needed to get free immediately. The Nightmare advanced on her but Samus was able to pour some Night Beam rounds on her to force her on the defensive, though her shields were continuing to drain from the Phazon exposure. Samus activated her Kinesis and, with slight desperation on her mind, discovered a small-grade destruction spell which blew apart the Phazon tendril (though not destroying the Phazon), freeing her leg.
She got back to her feet, only to find the Nightmare, again, charging directly at her and attempting to cast an unknown spell. Samus quickly armed her Needle Beam again and attempted to pepper a few rounds into Luna's alter-ego (with some success) before having to dodge and roll away. Samus came out of her roll on one knee and quickly looked back towards the Nightmare, who had cast a magical sword into existence. Samus spied two Needle rounds having struck Nightmare's lower chest non-lethally but before she could aim out again, Nightmare disappeared.
Samus's adrenaline went wild, her eyes widened, and her instincts screamed for her to evade low and to the right. She complied and immediately, the Nightmare reappeared and attempted a diagonal chop with her sword that would have cut Samus in two. The latter countered with a hard swing of her arm cannon which connected perfectly with the side of Nightmare Moon's face, forcing her to lose her balance and stumble away. Samus aimed out and was about to fire, but again, had to dodge a long thrust of her enemy's blade... but that's when the realization hit her:
Due to the lack of armor, and Samus's magical-shield penetrating weaponry, the Nightmare literally had no decent defense mechanism, and she was outclassed at range. Thus, she was attempting to give Samus no room for ranged combat. So, Samus would be forced to essentially fight hand-to-hoof.
Samus would not lie to herself... she was holding back against the Nightmare. There was no point though, she reasoned. She would not fall here.
Dodging another strike and countering with pounding-movement of her cannon, Samus reached down with her left hand to her lower thigh and unsheathed her energy knife... just in time, as Nightmare recovered and followed up with an overhead swing of her sword, to which Samus was able to parry. She then moved on the offense and took a swing at the dark-alicorn, only to have her own blade deflected by Nightmare's technique. Samus retracted her arm in a fake-out and attempted another strike, only to have it blocked again, but this time, the Nightmare dissipated her sword and, with a magical burst of energy, pushed the Hunter back into the wall of Phazon.
Her shields immediately reacted and began draining, but the Nightmare used her own magic to wrap Phazon tendrils around Samus's limbs, effectively preventing her from falling to the ground and keeping her pressed against the growths. Warning after warning was flooding Samus's visor and her shields were draining at unprecedented levels, having reached sixty-percent already. Nightmare re-activated her sword and was in a position to almost crucify her enemy.
Samus could only rely on her magic at this point. With an almost-feral cry, her Grapple Beam module lit up to extraordinary luminosity and Samus cast the same, though higher-powered, destruction spell all around her, destroying her figurative 'chain's and letting her fall to her feet. Using her magic once more, she called to her knife on the ground and brought it to her hand before Nightmare continued with her onslaught.
The dark alicorn attacked yet again and the sheer power of the chopping attack forced Samus to one knee, since she did not have the leverage of a full sword to help block. They parried each other hard, and Nightmare kept forcing her sword closer and closer to Samus despite her best efforts to stay its advance. Of course, this was part of the plan.
Samus grinned and lifted her cannon to Nightmare's chest level, a charged Power-Beam having lit the barrel, and released the shot. Nightmare careened backward and Samus immediately got to her feet and gave chase. The former bounced a few times but got back to her hooves, re-conjuring her sword right as Samus was on top of her. The Hunter swung and stabbed a few times but to no avail. She attempted to follow up with three rounds from her cannon but the Nightmare expertly cast a localized shield to absorb the shots. Progressing forward and pressing her resolve, Samus swung her knife and it connected with a re-conjured blade right before it would have contacted Nightmare's neck, and a trap-shunt was initiated.
No more prolonging the inevitable.
This ends NOW!
Nightmare angled their connected blades to Samus's left in an attempt to swing upward, but the latter instead felt it appropriate to back-hand Nightmare Moon with her arm cannon, an ear-shattering *clang* echoing throughout the Biodome as metal connected harshly with metal. Samus then followed up with a Charged Night Beam round, silencing the Nightmare's magical capability and forcing the dissipation of her sword. Nightmare's eyes widened in true fear as Samus was upon her instantly.
Suddenly, there was a sickening squelch and a curt, shrill cry.
Samus had wrapped her arm cannon around Nightmare's neck, pulled herself against her, and plunged the energy knife into the dark-alicorn's neck. Samus did not relent and only pressed the blade deeper before the 'Phazon' Nightmare broke free, gagging and quickly losing fight. She tried to cast magic but the energy blade continued to cause imeasurable pain and burn through her throat... so her horn merely flickered before she fell to her front knees. Nightmare writhed, screamed, and gagged as if she was rabid, and Samus could only watch with quiet sadness and disappointment as she gently strode over to the dying alicorn.
She closed her eyes and sighed somberly. She was not going to make this painful. Luna deserved this much.
"I'm so sorry..."
Samus engaged her Needle Beam and was content with ending her suffering. She aimed at the blood-puking alicorn.
And then an enormous beam of teal-energy struck the dying foe, throwing Nightmare Moon through the air and forcing her to land, weakly writhing, twenty feet away from Samus. The latter turned abruptly to the source of the blast...
... Only to find a certain Lunar Princess, Phazon-free, clad in battle-ready armor and a fierce expression on her face. The massive web of Phazon on the walls had been blown through.
Samus recoiled in complete disbelief. Her mouth opened, but was unable to form words. She looked back between her and the dying Nightmare Moon... but instead of the latter, she found another Luna, dressed in only her royal regalia, dying on the floor. A few seconds after that, her form 'flickered' and eventually dissipated, leaving a nearly dead Soldier Changeling in the imposter's place.
"W-What...?" Samus expressed, still in a state of bewilderment. The real Luna did not answer, and merely bypassed the Hunter and stood over the Soldier Changeling. She stared it down for a good few seconds before firing five Night Beam rounds into its head, ending it for good. She then cradled the blade, still stuck in it's neck, with her magical grasp and handed it to Samus, who wordlessly sheathed it. Luna finally rejoined the Hunter.
"I had tracked you here to find you, but this... large Changeling... must have seen me and assumed my form."
"But... Nightmare Moon?? Not even a minute ago I thought I killed you!" Samus pointed out with more emotion than she would have liked. She thought she had to justifiably murder the Princess of the Night, probably one of the closer allies she had made... definitely some trauma that would last for a little while.
Seriously, how would she explain that to the others if it were true?
"That... is what is disturbing me. While it is known that Changelings may assume the powers, to some extent, of whom they took the form of, the fact that this one was able to channel a low-grade form of Nightmare Moon, even a weaker version, throws me into territory I have no knowledge of. I honestly do not know, Samus," Luna explained, glancing again at the dead Changeling, before turning back to the Hunter with an incredulous gaze.
"And really... I can assure you I would have put up a spectacular fight. I can assure you, you would not have killed me," she followed up jokingly. Samus's relief, though, was cut short when more feral hisses and growls came from the only exit of the Phazon Biodome.
"So... I don't suppose you have a way out of here?" Samus asked, readying her cannon for a fight. Luna got into a battle stance, aiming her horn at the exit.
"Indeed. I left a return spell back in the Crystal Empire, which will allow us to teleport directly to the throne room. We need your immediate assistance, and I doubt you wish to remain here," Luna explained, charging her horn. Samus was just happy that there was a way out and her headache had subsided.
Thank the CREATORS!
"Get us out of here," Samus affirmed stoically. Luna chuckled lightly.
"Of course, Hunter," she said, charging her horn.
The humor was short lasted, though, when Samus's head was engulfed in excruciating pain, emanating from what felt like her brain.
"FUCK!" Samus cried as she gripped her helmet with both her cannon and her hand, and fell to her knees. It felt like her mind wanted to claw its way out of her head, accompanied by heavy breathing and pained cries of exertion. Luna, though extremely startled, wasted no time. Samus needed another element.
"Hold on, Samus!"
The two then disappeared in a bright flash of teal light.
.
.
.
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New Data > Equis > Equestria > Ponies > Society > Military > Special Forces > Magickakorps
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[United Equestria Magickakorps Archived by Samus A.]
[The Magickakorps is an all-unicorn part of the Special Forces branch of the Equine Armed Forces. They have been kept secret for the past several years and were inadvertently revealed during the Space Pirate Incursion of the Planet and Nation. The revealing has allowed them to play a much more active and transparent role in the defense of the Equestrian Nation under the direct command of Princess Luna, Co-ruler of Equestria. Experience studies have shown that, without the local anomaly known as "magic," they are equally as trained as Federation Marines. With magic, one lone trooper can hold off an entire company of enemy combatants. Battle prowess is astounding. Personal accounts from the battlefield allege platoon-sized annihilation of Space Pirate Commandos, the most feared among Federation Soldiers, with a mere one or two troops. Brigade-size concentration is nearly unstoppable without the aid of air support. Deadly in ranged, melee, and psychological combat, the standard Magickakorps Trooper may fight with their horns by means of directed energy, with loaned weapons, in melee combat with the casting of their own personal blade, or simply with the anomalies of magic which we know next to nothing about. No further information is available. See below diagram for physical specifications and traits. Simplified due to lack of information:]
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I am a Metroid wearing a snow suit
fear me
Damn! That was an unexpected scene.
Still, I knew it was a Changeling the moment it looked like Luna. Still, the fight was awesome, and had me doubting for a time towards the end.
4979941 ......... ITS SO FLUFFY!*hugs*.....why do I feel so tired?
Very intense battle with Changeling Nightmare Moon. It would be kind of funny if they were a reoccurring enemy and Samus got so blase about killing them that she can say, "I've killed Nightmare Moon twenty five times," and cause a bunch of ponies to do spit takes. Bonus points if one of them is Celestia.
4979941 Doesn't mean you still can't be frozen and shattered, it just takes way more shots from the Ice Beam!
4979941 D'awwwwww...
…
…
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You're an Eskimoid! :P
Im absolutely dying to know what phazon has done for/to queen chrysalis (if she will be in the story at all but cmon you cant have changelings without her)
she would make excellent 'boss battle' material
4979941 :D
aw......
you cleaver bastard...... i love you!
4979941 That...is the single most adorable picture of a Metroid I have ever seen.
I liked this chapter, with some time given to each (group of) character(s). That couldn't have been the real Luna, she's more badass than that.
I can't wait for the next part.
And I forgot to say I look forward for the Warhorse's entrance, and who'll be its pilot.
Ooh, did we just get Stardust/Mente Materia!Twilight??
[youtube=ACC3BuB7nNc]
This sequence of events feels very out of order. Despite the fact that Samus doesn't scan the crystal until after she encounters the changelings, it is still referred to as a Phazon Crystal in the narration. Not only that, but Samus only notices something odd about said crystal after she has already passed and scanned several different kinds without remark or notable interest. These events should really be reshuffled, with the Logbook entry moved to shortly after Samus enters the catacombs and notices that the formations lining the wall are unusual, with the encounter with the changelings following that.
Missing an "n" in "substance".
4995892 Hmmm... excellent point!
Lemme change that. Thank you!
Oh F**KING HELL.
WHOOOO! That was the most intense battle between Samus and Nightmare Moon/Changeling! Had me scared for a second there.
Good job!
Ooohhh, this definately interests me though I wonder what style of space combat the ponies will employ.
Star Trek
or
Star Wars
I was a bit less shocked about this than I should have been. Samus has a very bad history of her allies and friends dieing on her missions.
Jesus Christ man I thought that you killed off best princess for a second there.
Damn, guess magic is better than technology? Or is quality better than quantity?
...Actually I'm unsure exactly how well trained Fed Troopies are compared to Magikor Troopies. Also, yes, I am in fact too lazy to put a single 'nother letter at the end of Magikor.