Forgotten Super-Weapons. Ancient Abominations. And Five Elements, each one with godlike powers. Luna's past as Nightmare Moon reveals itself, and Equestria's history is uncovered by five ponies. The Elements of the Universe.
He looked at Luna with utter contempt. "Three Ponies. An Alien and a Fallen God. What have you done to rely on such lost creatures."
Luna looked back at him. "I became Nightmare Moon."
Long Ago, Nightmare Moon created several weapons of mass destruction and hid them throughout Equestria. Now one of them threatens all of Pony Kind. The Elements of Harmony have no effect. Now Luna must find Five Ponies to use The Elements of The Universe to save all life on Equestria from the horror she has created.
Universe Arc 1: Situational Gravity Chapter 1: Radio Chatter
---
It was nighttime in Canterlot, and Princess Luna and her Dark Knights were furiously observing the sky, frantically searching for something.
“Princess Luna” cried Blood Pact, a Unicorn and one of her three top lieutenants. “Princess, come quickly.”
Luna quickly galloped to Blood Pact’s side, and he motioned for her to look into the telescope. She looked down the scope, and Blood Pact watched as her face turned to a look of purest horror.
Luna watched as seven flaming rocks hurdled towards the planet, each one loaded with the darkest fusion of science and magic.
“We had hoped this day would never come.” Luna whispered to herself.
“Your majesty,” Blood Pact said in concern, “What is it?”
Luna sighed, knowing her past mistakes had come back to bite her.
“The Hunter Meteor Storm.” Luna sighed. “When we were, I mean, when I was Nightmare Moon, before we waged war on my sister, we created several super weapons, all of which were designed to cause nothing but total extinction of Pony-Kind, so I could create an all new breed of beings from the darkness. The Hunter Meteor Storm was one of those weapons. Should they touch the ground, they would destroy the planet. Only the moon would survive.”
“Dear Celestia.” Blood Pact said in horror. “Isn’t there anything we can do? What about the Elements of Harmony?”
“We’re afraid not.” Luna said, fighting back the utter devastation in her voice. “We had designed the storm to be an unthinking force of nature, out of the elements of Harmony.”
“Excuse me Princess Luna…”
Luna and Blood Pact turned to see Blue Sun, a Pegasus and another Lieutenant. Blue Sun was a brilliant tactician; his clairvoyance for war scenarios and his ability to foresee multiple outcomes and plan complex gambits would have easily won Nightmare Moon the war, had he been born back then.
“Yes Blue Sun?” Luna asked, curious as to would input her tactician had.
“May I suggest two possible courses of action?” Blue Sun asked. Luna nodded, and he continued. “My first suggestion would be to evacuate all Equestrian life to the Moon. You said it would be the only thing to survive upon impact. Once we are on the moon, perhaps you can place us in suspended animation, until we find a new world. I know this is quite radical, but this is why this is only a backup plan.” Blue Sun finished.
“And what is your plan of action?” Blood Pact asked, looking annoyed. Being the very definition of solider, he was very annoyed by Blue Sun’s ability to win without the brute force he himself relied on. However, now was not the time for petty jealousies, when the fate of all of Equestria hung in the balance.
“Well,” Blue Sun said, turning to Luna. “You said you made a lot of Super-Weapons, and that Elements of Harmony won’t work on the storm. Can’t you make some Elements that do work?”
Luna’s eyes went wide as something dawned on her. Picked up Blue Sun with her bare hooves, she planted a kiss on her Lieutenant’s lips in pure excitement, as everypony’s jaws hit the floor.
“Blue Sun, you’re a Genius!” Luna shouted as she ran into the castle. Blood Pact, Blue Sun and the other Dark Knights looked at each other before running after her.
---
Blood Pact and Blue Sun had found Luna in the Catacombs, a special sect that was flooded with shadow-based Magic, completely inaccessible to anypony but Luna and her Three Lieutenants.
“Princess!” Blood Pact called out. The Unicorn focused and performed a tracker spell. A beam of light appeared, forming a trail to Princess Luna’s whereabouts.
Blood Pact and Blue Sun followed it, and after a few minutes of nonstop running (Blue Sun was hovering, but it was just as tiring), they found Princess Luna at the very end of the labyrinth. She was standing outside a gigantic metal box, known amongst the Elite Guard as “The Big Vault”.
“Princess, what are you doing?” Blue Sun asked in confusion.
“Simple, Blue Sun, the Elements of Harmony may be unable to deal with the storm, but these can.” Luna said, producing five stone orbs, with a different symbol carved into each.
“Elements?” Blood Pact observed.
“The Elements of the Universe.” Luna said with glee. “Each one contains power over an aspect over The Universe. Temperature, Gravity, Energy, Time and Mechanics. The Elements of Harmony cannot handle threats that are part of natural harmony. But these can overcome nature itself.”
Blood Pact found himself stepping back from these small, stone spheres. To overcome nature itself, it was unheard off.
“Why aren’t they used instead of the elements of Harmony?” Blood Pact asked.
“These were created before the Elements of Harmony, but as Alicorns, we could not use them, as our power comes from Nature. But I hope that five regular ponies can use them, and deflect the Meteor Storm.” Luna explained.
Blood Pact saluted. “Ma’am! I volunteer myself, Blue Sun and Eclipse to use these elements and deflect the Meteor Storm.”
Luna smiled, the kind of smile that a teacher would when a child got the wrong answer, but was very close.
“I’m sorry Blood Pact, but like the Elements of Harmony, the Elements of The Universe will choose there own wielders. But, I do so hope you three are amongst the selected.” Luna explained. Her horn lit up, and she cast her magic over the elements. They all lit up, Purple, Orange, Green, Blue and White. The elements began to levitate, before they sprung into the air, smashing five holes into the roof of the catacombs.
“Go,” Princess Luna whispered. “Find you’re soulmates, and fix my mistakes.”
---
“I dunno T-T, it just went kaput yesterday.” Vinyl Scratch said as Time-Turner looked at the inner working of her radio.
Vinyl Scratch, the unicorn DJ from Canterlot, was currently with one of her best friends Time-Turner. Time-Turner was an earth pony, although nopony really had any idea where he was from. Time-Turner was an amnesiac, although his accent suggested he was from Trottingham.
Vinyl had found him unconscious of the coast of Ponyville Beach. He had adjusted well since that, with him running his own business in Ponyville. He worked on repairing all the electronics in Ponyville, and since Vinyl owned the most electronics in Ponyville, she was his most frequent customer.
“Well, Vinyl, I can’t seem to tell what’s wrong with it.” T-T said, placing the back of the radio back into place. “Let’s hope it works.”
T-T switched the radio on. To Vinyl’s disappointment, it did not play music. Instead, it just spewed out garbled gibberish.
“Hmm, maybe the problem is that the radio is too weak to pick up a signal.”
“So are you gonna get you’re magic wand?” Vinyl asked, referring to the sonic screwdriver.
The sonic screwdriver was a device that T-T had built. Vinyl wasn’t exactly sure what he had intended it to do, but it seemed to do pretty much everything. Opening doors, unscrewing screws, enhancing tech, a small torch, looking for cuts. Heck, it could even make a decent milk-shake.
“Vinyl, it is not “Magic Wand”, it’s a Sonic Screwdriver. It’s technology, not magic.” T-T said as he gave the radio a quick once over with the device.
“There.” He said. “That should do it.”
Vinyl switched on the radio, horseshoes crossed. This time it did read as mere gibberish. However, it was defiantly not music either.
“I AM THE HUNTER”
“I AM THE STORM”
“I AM COMING!”
Vinyl’s ears rung. That voice, it was just, wrong. It sounded so eldritch, like a lunatic’s lullaby.
“What, the buck, was THAT!” Was all she could muster.
“I think that’s what’s been interfering with the airwaves.” T-T surmised.
“No, I mean, WHAT THE BUCK IS IT!” Vinyl shouted, obviously more shaken at the voice than Time-Turner.
“Well Vinyl, I…”
Time-Turner was interrupted by a brilliant flash of light that filled the room. It was both Brilliant Green and Royal Purple at the same time.
The Light Subsided and Vinyl & T-T were suspended in the middle of the room.
“T-T, I can’t move!” Vinyl said in panic.
“Me neither!” T-T replied, equally spooked.
NAME: TIME TURNER! SPECIES: UNKNOWN! YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN TO BE THE ELEMENT OF TIME!
NAME: VINYL SCRATCH! SPECIES: UNICORN! YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN TO BE THE ELEMENT OF MECHANICS!
The voice rattled in their heads. It was otherworldly, although unlike the radio chatter, it was benign, almost empowering. The light subsided and the two ponies were allowed to drop to the floor. Vinyl looked at T-T. He had…changed…somehow. His eyes were now a deep green, and on his left foreleg, creeping up to his shoulder, was a piece of golden armour, with an emerald shaped like his Cutie-Mark embedded in his shoulder.
“Woah T-T!” She said in surprise. “Where’d you get the fancy bling?”
“Speak for yourself.” T-T said, gazing at Vinyl.
Like Time-Turner, Vinyl had also changed. Her eyes were now a Royal Purple. Also, much like Time-Turner’s new leg armor, Vinyl now had a golden crown, with her Cutie-Mark made from Amethyst sitting atop it.
“What’s happened to us?” Vinyl asked.
“I don’t know.”
Before anymore words could be spoken, there was a frantic knocking at the door. Giving eachother a glance, they ran to the door to see who it was.
It was Rainbow Dash.
T-T cleared his throat. “Rainbow Dash, I haven’t fixed your clock yet, I’m sorry but…”
“This isn’t about that!” She shouted. “You two need to get out now. Ponyville is under attack.”
No sooner than she said that, a building in the background exploded. An orange Pegasus pony, with nothing but rage in his eyes, walked out of the flames.
“PONYVILLE! YOU DID THIS TO ME! NOW YOU ALL SHALL SUFFER THE DESTRUCTION BROUGHT BY THE WRECKING BALL!” He shouted.
“Scalpel”, Wrecking Ball requested as a Nurse wiped the sweat off of his brow. Another Nurse hoofed him the requested tool and he got to work on opening an artery.
Despite his Name and Cutie-Mark, Wrecking Ball was a very gifted surgeon. He was a orangey-brown coloured Pegasus with golden orange mane, cut into a Faux-Hawk. His Cutie-Mark was that of a Wrecking Ball, smashing a building.
Wrecking Ball was known as an Anti-Marker. He didn’t believe in destiny. Which makes his tale all the more inspiring. Despite his Cutie-Mark for smashing things, he dreamt of being a surgeon. To save ponies. To repair, not break. He worked so much harder than any other medical pony. Because he had no natural talent, he was forced to work twice as hard for twice as long to be just as good. So he worked three times as hard for three times as long, to be even better. Unfortunately, nopony really believed he could be a doctor back then, so he had to take several jobs in order to put himself through school.
Even today, despite being a doctor, nopony truly believed he could choose what he could be.
Wrecking Ball made another incision, and opened up the artery. A blood Clot had appeared and put the young filly on the table into cardiac arrest. The hospital admins would’ve liked to put somepony with a medical cutie-mark on the job, but they were busy, so they were forced to put Wrecking Ball into the operating room.
“Tweezers.” Wrecking Ball requested, putting out his hoof.
“Are you sure?” The nurse asked.
“Nurse, this is no time for “are you sures”, now give me the Tweezers!” Wrecking Ball grunted. The nurse placed the tweezers in his hoof, and Wrecking Ball, with expert precision that only came from years of practice, plucked the clot from the vein.
“Surgical Thread.” He said. The nurse looked at him with utter mistrust. She couldn’t help looking at his Cutie-Mark. And he noticed.
“Nurse, I am more than equipped to save this filly, but I need your trust because if you cannot remember that I earned my doctorate fair and square, and give me the thread, then this filly is going to die." Wrecking Ball said quietly, with nothing but a look of duty and repressed anger in his eyes.
The Nurse handed him the thread, and with expert skill, Wrecking Ball quickly closed the artery. Having corrected the blood clot, he proceeded to sew up the filly's chest. Then, without looking at the nurse, he grabbed a lighter off of the tray and began to cauterize the cut.
Wrecking Ball looked at the heart monitor. With a mix of relief and satisfaction, it began to stabilize. He had saved her.
"Saved her." He said. He turned to the nurse. "Go and tell the parents. I'll wait for the staff to come and move her."
---
After the surgery, Wrecking Ball was called in to the admins office.
"Wrecking Ball, I'm sorry to inform you that the parents are outraged that we allowed you to operate on their daughter." The main admin said as he looked sternly at Wrecking Ball.
Wrecking Ball raised an eyebrow. "They're outraged that I saved their daughter?"
The second admin cleared her throat. "He means that they're threatening to sue the hospital for letting an unqualified..."
"I am qualified!" Wrecking Ball argued, getting defensive.
"Look, Wrecking Ball, you're a brilliant surgeon, one of the best. If this was a different job, we'd be more lenient. But we're a hospital. We need to be a 100% that our doctors won't fail. And you can't give us that 100%..."
"Why not?" Wrecking Ball demanded.
"You smash things." Said the third admin. "It's what you were built for. It's the complete opposite of what you're doing. I'm sorry, but we have to let you go. You'll get your redundancy package in the mail."
"But this isn't fair! I'm the only doctor who's never lost a patient! I give 110% percent, constantly." Wrecking Ball said, trying harder and harder to bottle his rage.
"I'm sorry Wrecking Ball. I guess it's just destinies choice." the first admin said.
*SNAP*
"RAAAAAAHHH!" Wrecking Ball screamed, flipping the desk over the admin's heads and sending it smashing into the ceiling. All the anger and rage he kept suppressed over the years had been let loose. He ran into the 2nd admin, then ran into the wall, crushing her between his durable body and the wall. Her ribs went crunch, and Wrecking Ball threw her into the other two, the three ponies unable to compete with his own maniacal might. The Orange Pegasus stopped his hooves on the ground, causing the ground to shudder.
"YOU WANT ME TO SMASH!" Wrecking Ball snarled in pure, primal rage. "FINE! I'LL START WITH YOU!"
He rammed into the first admin, the sheer impact breaking his front leg. Grabbing the admin with his forehoof, Wrecking Ball swung him over his head, and smashed him into the floor, breaking his shoulder.
Once Wrecking Ball was satisfied with the damage, he picked up the 2nd admin by the scruff of her neck.
"I'm not going to kill you, for two reasons." He growled. "A) I took an oath to preserve life when I became a doctor. B) And this is very important. DEAD PONIES DON'T LEARN THEIR LESSONS!"
And with that he tossed all three ponies into a pile and ran through the wall, leaving a pony shaped hole in the wall.
--- [Today]
Sundown at Sugarcube Corner was always when they made the most money. Since the foals were all in bed after dark, Mr. Cake thought it best to sell "More Adult Beverages". Since then, Sugarcube Corner has made more money after dark than during the day.
"Can I get you something?" Mr. Cake asked the pony at the counter. It was a mare with a light brown coat and a blonde mane. More interestingly, however, was her cutie mark, depicting a hammer and a lightning bolt.
Mr. Cake looked at her. "I'm sorry, I don't think I've seen you around this parts. Miss...?"
"Hammer Strike." She answered with a small. "Anyway, I'll take a flagon of your strongest beverage."
"Flagon?" Mr. Cake asked. "Is the renaissance fair coming to town?"
"Well, whatever you normally serve drinks in will be fine." Hammer Strike said, with a grin. "Just make sure it's strong. I plan to get absolutely kershnickered!"
Mr. Cake shrugged, and served her the drink. She paid with four bits and downed it. She then smashed the glass into the floor.
"ANOTHER!" She shouted boisterously. This shocked Mr. Cake quite a bit. "Okay, but please don't do that again." Mr. Cake said, as he fetched Hammer Strike a new glass. She downed it instantly.
"RAAAAAAAGGGGGHHH!"
Hammer Strike snapped her head towards the window. With sight a normal pony shouldn't have, she saw out of the window and saw an Orange Pegasus, smashing up ponyville.
'Finally.' She thought to herself. 'A decent fight!'
Hammer Strike galloped outside with a look of pure glee. Running down the broken boulevard, she eventually caught up with Wrecking Ball.
"NOPONY TRUSTED ME! NOPONY BELIVED IN ME! I'LL SHOW THEM! I'LL SHOW THEM ALL!" Wrecking Ball shouted. Stamping his hoof, his unnatural strength cracked the pavement tile.
"YOU!" Shouted Hammer Strike, getting his attention. Wrecking Ball looked at her with rage in his eyes.
"RUN YOU STUPID FOAL! I'M IN THE MIDDLE OF A RAMPAGE!"
But Hammer Strike did not run. She looked at Wrecking Ball, a glint in her eyes saying one thing.
'Come at me!'
Wrecking Ball snarled and ran at Hammer Strike with incredible speed. He attempted to smash his hooves into her, but Hammer Strike blocked him with her own hooves, resulting in a huge shockwave and a blinding light. Wrecking Ball was launched away while Hammer Strike was suspended in the air.
NAME: HAMMER STRIKE! SPECIES: UNKNOWN! YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN TO BE THE ELEMENT OF ENERGY!
The light faded, and Hammer Strike fell to the ground. Crackling with energy, she cricked her neck.
"Whapow!" She said, slamming her hooves into the ground. A giant thunderbolt crashed down from the sky, engulfing Hammer Strike. A magical transformation occurred, turning to Hammer Strike back into her true form. A male, golden alicorn in blue, silver and red armour. His/her cutie-mark was glowing golden, and floating by his/her head, was a hammer, like the one Hammer Strike's cutie-mark depicted. In addition, he had bright orange eyes, and golden armour going up his right leg, with an orange gem of his cutie mark in his shoulder.
Wrecking Ball pulled himself out of the rubble, cracking his joints and grunting. He looked at Hammer Strike.
"I don't know who you are or how you did that! BUT I'M GONNA SMASH YOU!" He roared, barrelling towards Hammer Strike. The Alicorn telekinetically swung his hammer into Wrecking Ball's path, swatting him away into a building.
"I KNOW NOT HOW I UNLOCKED MY TRUE FORM, KNAVE!" Hammer Strike shouted, keeping the same boisterous speech pattern. "But as for who I am..."
Hammer Strike took to the sky, and lit up with an orange glow. Channelling his newfound energy powers on instinct alone, Hammer Strike generated a lightning bolt from his horn, and sending it towards Wrecking Ball.
Wrecking Ball tried to dodge, but lightning will always strike the highest object, which in this instance, was Wrecking Ball. Wrecking Ball screamed in agony, but his natural toughness keeping him protected from any real damage. His wings gave out, and Wrecking Ball flopped to the floor. Hammer Strike flew down and landed beside him.
"Submit, Knave. The battle is mine," Hammer Strike said, changing back to his/her mortal mare form.
This proved to be a very stupid move, because Hammer Strike soon felt Wrecking Ball punch her in the face with all his might. The force of the punch not only created a small shockwave, but sent Hammer Strike flying through several walls.
"Let's agree to disagree on that one." Wrecking Ball said. dusting himself off, Wrecking Ball punched a building, ripping it from its foundation and sending it flying. Wrecking Ball then spotted three ponies. He knew one of them, Rainbow Dash was a pony who was strongly opposed to his belief that he could choose his destiny. He didn't recognise the other two.
“PONYVILLE! YOU DID THIS TO ME! NOW YOU ALL SHALL SUFFER THE DESTRUCTION BROUGHT BY THE WRECKING BALL!” He shouted.
---
"He's coming right for us!" Time Turner shouted. Wrecking Ball was running towards the three at break-neck speed.
"Oh no he's not!" Rainbow Dash shouted as she zoomed at him with incredible speed. With greater speed, Wrecking Ball punched Rainbow Dash in the face, breaking her nose and creating a tiny shockwave. Rainbow Dash fell to the floor, temporarily stunned.
Wrecking Ball picked up Rainbow Dash by the hindleg and swung her around like a dervish. He let go, launching Rainbow Dash into nearby rubble. The impact on jagged ground grazed her skin, but the impact alone rendered her unconscious.
"Vinyl we need to run, NOW!" Time-Turner shouted, grabbing Vinyl's hoof and pulling her away. The two ran quickly, but Wrecking Ball bucked a building, sending it flying towards us.
"WATCH OUT!" Time-Turner shouted. Pulling Vinyl close, his eyes lit up with a brilliant green light. His gem did the same, and Vinyl looked up.
The building was frozen in mid-air. She looked around, and so was everything else.
"T-T, what's happening?" Vinyl asked. Time-Turner's eyes were still glowing, and he looked around. Birds were frozen in the sky, Wrecking Ball was frozen on the spot, heck, even smoke was frozen in place.
"T-T, I think you've stopped time?" Vinyl said, in utter astonishment. This should've been impossible, nopony had this kind of magic, and even if it was magic, Time-Turner was an Earth Pony, not a Unicorn.
"How is this possible?" Time-Turner asked in confusion, and a little bit of panic.
'YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN TO BE THE ELEMENT OF TIME'
Vinyl remembered the voice that had rung in their heads after the flash of green-purple light. The Element of Time? What did that mean? And The Element of Mechanics? Did that mean she had superpowers like Time-Turner. And if so, what could she do?
T-T nudged Vinyl, getting her attention. "Vinyl, we need to run, I'm not sure how long I can..."
T-T was interrupted by the sound of a building crashing behind them. This could only mean one thing.
Wrecking Ball lunched, but Time-Turner grabbed Vinyl by the legs and Vinyl felt the world blur around her. Suddenly, she was on the other side of the street, and Wrecking Ball hit the floor, creating a shockwave, and a large crater.
“How the hell is this guy that powerful?” Vinyl asked.
“Don’t know. Don’t care. I don’t have many instincts but I’m sure they’d be telling me to run.” T-T shouted as he pulled Vinyl’s hoof and began to gallop.
“Wait, what’s that in the sky!” Vinyl shouted.
True to Vinyl’s claim, there was something in the sky. It was a flying Earth Pony. It was a mare, brown in colour, with a hammer for a cutie mark. Lightning was dancing around her hooves.
“KNAVE! I HAVE RETURNED FOR ROUND 2!” She shouted, as her cutie-mark began to glow brightly. She was enveloped in an orange light, before changing into his/her true form, the male alicorn.
"SHUT UP!" Wrecking Ball shouted. “YOU WON’T STOP ME! THIS PLACE NEEDS TO RAZED TO THE GROUND!”
“What the...?” T-T shouted, catching Wrecking Ball’s attention. “You can’t do that! You can’t demolish everypony’s homes. It isn’t ‘t right!”
“THIS ISN’T RIGHT?” Wrecking Ball spat in angry surprise and disgust. “DON’T TALK TO ME ABOUT RIGHT! WAS IT RIGHT THAT I WAS FIRED FOR DOING MY JOB! WAS IT RIGHT THAT I SPEND YEARS DOING NOTHING BUT SAVING PEOPLE AND THE ONLY THANKS I GOT WAS THAT NOPONY BELIEVED IN ME! NOPONY BELIEVED I COULD CHOOSE!”
Wrecking Ball drove his hoof into the ground, creating a huge shockwave, which blew back T-T and Vinyl. Hammer Strike, on the other hand, took the sky to avoid the earth ripple, and then fired a lightning bolt at Wrecking Ball, causing a huge jolt of pain in the super-strong Pegasus.
“HA, I HAVE FOUND THE THING THAT CAN HURT YOU!” Hammer Strike shouted boisterously. Lightning crackled around his hooves as he fired another blast.
Wrecking Ball avoided it and clapped his hooves together, sending a shockwave that smacked right into Hammer Strike. Before he could replicate this attack, a brownish blur encircled Wrecking Ball. T-T had evidently slowed time down, but from an outside perspective, he was galloping fast enough to put Rainbow Dash to shame.
T-T managed to land some blows, but due to his lack of any super-strength and Wrecking Ball’s durability, he wasn’t actually doing any damage.
Vinyl, on the other hoof, was desperate to do anything but sit on the sidelines. But what could she possibly do. She didn’t seem to get superpowers like T-T and Hammer Strike, and if she did she didn’t know how they worked.
She had to do something, but what should she do.
“VINYL!” T-T shouted as he appeared in front of her, startling her slightly. “I need you to go and get Twilight.”
“Ok.” Vinyl said as she galloped off. Unfortunately, Wrecking Ball saw her make a break for it, and slammed his hooves into the ground, causing a huge earthquake.
“T-T! Help me!” Vinyl cried. T-T’s eyes flashed green again, and he ran around Vinyl, creating a small cyclone to catch her.
Wrecking Ball made a break for them, but Hammer Strike landed in front of the pair, punching Wrecking Ball in the face, sending him backwards.
Wrecking Ball roared and collided with Hammer Strike again, the two created a huge shockwave.
“Come on, while their fighting. Let’s go.” T-T said as he piled Vinyl onto his back and made a run for it.
---
Spitfire was up in her office, drinking her 2nd cup of coffee. Being up all night with paper work really took it out of her.
“Excuse me Ma’am.” Her secretary said meekly as she poked her head through the door. “You have three ponies from the royal guard who wish to speak with you.”
“Send them in!” Spitfire said, a little too enthusiastically. One reason was that she had been pining for a position in the royal guard for a good year now, and maybe her request had gotten through. The second reason was that any break from paperwork was welcomed.
But nothing could’ve prepared Spitfire to see Luna’s top 3 generals, Blood Pact, Blue Sun and Eclipse. Just as Blue Sun and Blood Pact were Pegasus and Unicorn stallions, Eclipse was an Earth Pony mare, complimenting Blue Suns tactical brilliance and Blood Pact’s ability as a soldier with her intuition and ability to command & intimidate both soldiers under her command and hired mercenaries on her payroll.
Spitfire knew Blue Sun from Flight School. He was a genius back then, putting it to good use, the only pony to ever run rings around her in the air. Spitfire always thought he was dreamy, if only he wasn’t so…weird.
“The Dark Knights!” Spitfire spat out her coffee in surprise. Blue Sun had a magic chariot strapped to his back, which allowed Blood Pact and Eclipse to travel to Cloudsdale.
“Blue Sun, it hasn’t happened yet.” Eclipse said.
“Or, he was just plain wrong.” Blood Pact muttered.
“Oh yeah,” Blue Sun. He reached for his saddlebag and reached for an inert stone ball with a blue symbol on it. “I found this in your wardrobe.”
“Yes, that thing attacked me this morning. Lucky my house is blast-proof. WAIT!” Spitfire said as something dawned on her. “You were in my house?”
“Not important.” Blue Sun continued. “What is important is that this…” He said, gesturing to the orb. “...Is an Element of the Universe. The Element of Temperature to be precise.”
Spitfire’s eyes went wide “That thing?” She exclaimed, “It tried to attack me this morning. Lucky my house has anti-magic security or I would have been…”
She was interrupted when Blue Sun threw the orb into her face. There was a huge explosion and a flash of blue light.
NAME: SPITFIRE! SPECIES: PEGASUS! YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN TO BE THE ELEMENT OF TEMPERATURE!
The light had faded, and Spitfire had been altered by the magic now coursing through her. She now had a golden armour plate covering her neck and chest, with a Sapphire ion the shape of her cutie mark in the centre. Hey eyes were now the deepest blue.
She floated a bit, and lifted both forehooves in the air. An ice crystal materialised, floating in her left hoof, and in her right hoof, a small flame.
“AAAHHH!” Spitfire shouted in surprise, causing the fire to dissipate and the ice to explode into a million little particles. “What did you do to me?”
“Spitfire, you have been chosen to be an Element of the Universe.” Blood Pact calmly explained.
“Don’t you mean an element of harmony?” Spitfire corrected.
“No dear.” Eclipse said softly. “The Elements of the Universe. They are an extremely powerful magical artifact created by Princess Luna, each one capable of commanding a force of nature.”
“In your case, Temperature.” Blood Pact finished, with a twinge of jealousy in his voice.
“What does that mean?” Spitfire asked.
“It means you’ve been given unmatched power over a force of nature,” Blood Pact said, with a twinge of jealousy in his voice.
“And you’ll be escorted to Canterlot along with four others like you to become Knights of Equestria.” Eclipse explained.
Spitfire looked at her hoof, and watched as a small spark of fire came off of her hoof.
“Wow…” She could only gasp. At last, this was her chance for a challenge. She looked at Eclipse and Blood Pact. But what she noticed was that Blue Sun was painfully distracted. He was staring intently at the mug of coffee that was on Spitfire’s desk.
“Blue Sun?” Eclipse prodded his side. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s the liquid in the cup. It’s rippling.” Blue Sun said, not taking his eyes off the mug.
“Yeah, so what?” Blood Pact scoffed.
“Well, I want to know why it’s rippling.”
“Why would you care?” Blood Pact questioned.
The discussion was interrupted briefly by Special Delivery, the office mail-colt.
“Hey Spitfire, you just got a letter from the racing commission.” He said merrily. “You need to g...ah!”
Blue Sun had tackled Special Delivery, and began to rifle through S-D’s mail bag.
“Hey, you are in direction violation of Mail Courier rights! This is mail fraud! I could have you arrested!” Special Delivery shouted. “I have diplomatic immunity.” Blue Sun said as he found what he was looking for and hopped off of Special Delivery.
“BLUE SUN! Explain yourself!” Blood Pact shouted.
“This!” Blue Sun said as he put the letter on the table. “It’s a redundancy package for Dr. Wrecking Ball. He’s on Luna’s watch list.” “You mean the list of...unusual...ponies.” Eclipse raised an eyebrow, and Blue Sun nodded in confirmation.
“The good doctor’s had a history of anger-management, and has an unusual body-type, which deaden the nerve endings, thicken the skin and enlarges his muscle and bone density. He’s strong, incredibly so, and feels virtually no pain and is nigh impossible to injure. And this letter says he’s been fired, hence the rumbling.”
“How in Celestia’s green earth did you connect rumbling in a glass of water with some freak getting fired?” Blood Pact scoffed. “It makes no sense!”
Special Delivery pulled himself up with a grunt, and trotted towards Spitfire.
“Anyways, this is for you, providing I’m not to be tackled and robbed again!” S-D grumbled. “It’s an emergency summons to Ponyville. Some super-strong doc is on a rampage.”
Blue Sun smirked and Blood Pact’s jaw dropped.
Spitfire scanned the letter intensely. To her dull surprise, it described exactly what Blue Sun predicted.
“I’m leaving. I need to deal with this madmane.” Spitfire said with the glint in her eye that said...mission.
“Oh, that is good. You can get some on the job training.” Blue Sun said, reattaching himself to Blood Pact and Eclipse’s wagon. “We’ll meet you in Ponyville.”
---
Time-Turner and Vinyl had made some decent ground, and Hammer Strike’s distraction had proved to be a boon.
The two spied Twilight and Applejack, helping some ponies out of the destruction.
“TWILIGHT!” Vinyl shouted, catching the purple alicorn’s attention. “WE’VE GOT A PROBLEM!”
“Vinyl?” Twilight raised an eyebrow and tilted her head back. “What’s wrong?”
“We know who’s causing this destruction.” T-T panted, exhausted from the fight. “It’s Dr. Wrecking Ball. For some reason he’s gone berserk!”
“Y’all mean MISTER Wrecking Ball.” Applejack corrected. “He ain’t no doc. He ain’t got the cutie mark.” “Wait, what do you mean he’s gone berserk?” Twilight ask.
Her question was answered by a thunderous chopping sound, like helicopter blades, and a gust that blew away bits of rubble. Rainbow Dash and Hammer Strike’s alicorn body were tossed to the ground, followed by the good doctor himself dropping out of the sky, hitting the ground with such a thud it caused the ground to rupture.
“BERSERK! YOU DON’T KNOW THE MEANING OF THE WORD!” Wrecking Ball shouted.
Vinyl ran out in front of him, just as he raised his hooves to make another shockwave.
"Doctor Wrecking Ball! Why are you doing this, bro!" Vinyl shouted in shock.
"What did you call me?" Wrecking Ball said in utter shock.
"Please doc, you gotta stop. Don'tcha realise you're hurting your friends and neighbours." Vinyl continued. Wrecking Ball just stood there, breathing.
"Please doctor." T-T chimed in. "Don't do this."
Wrecking Ball swallowed, and taking another deep breath, put his hooves to ground in a gentle fashion.
"Okay." He said. The he was blasted by a purple magical bolt.
"Thanks for the diversion Vinyl; we'll take it from here!" Twilight said brashly. She fired some more magic bolts, driving Wrecking Ball into the dirt.
"Yee-haw, we'll teach that no-good son of a knacker what happens when you mess with Ponyville." Applejack chimed in, as she lassoed his feet for good measure. She pulled on it, making him groan at the tightness. "And that is for impersonatin' a doc!"
"RAAWWWWR!" Wrecking Ball bellowed, breaking through the rope like tissues. He then grabbed the rope Applejack was still holding and yanked on it, pulling Applejack close to him. He punched her in the throat with his hoof, and clung to her jaw.
"I AM A DOCTOR! I WENT TO SCHOOL! I EARNED IT! WHY IS THAT SO DIFFICULT FOR YOU TO UNDERSTAND?" Wrecking Ball shouted.
"PUT HER DOWN!" Twilight shouted as she blasted Wrecking Ball with another fizzy orb of magical energy. This time, Wrecking Ball caught the bolt with his hoof, and crushed it.
"THIS IS HOW IT WORKS PRINCESS!" Wrecking Ball grunted, throwing Applejack to the floor. "I AM STRONGER THAN YOU! I ALWAYS HAVE BEEN!"
Twilight fired several more bolts of magic, becoming more and more exasperated as they bounced off of the angry doctor.
"No! I'm good, you’re evil! I'm supposed to win!" Twilight panted, her futile use of magic exhausting her.
Wrecking Ball trotted forward, his powerful steps causing the earth to shutter. Vinyl and Time-Turner kept their distance, deathly afraid.
"I am not evil." Wrecking Ball said softly. "You don't even know me, so don't pretend that you do!"
Wrecking Ball's skin began to gleam a brilliant white.
"Only I know who I am."
The sky lit up with a brilliant white light, blinding everyone with its shine.
"Sweet Celestia, no!" Vinyl grunted, pulling down her shades to deal with the light. "Not him!"
NAME: DR. WRECKING BALL M.D; SPECIES: PEGASUS; YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN TO BE THE ELEMENT OF GRAVITY!
The cosmic voice boomed and the light subsided and Wrecking Ball was adorned with a plate of golden armour across his back and haunches. Curiously, his crystal in his armour piece wasn't the shape of his cutie mark. It was a medical cross.
"I feel, great!" Wrecking Ball grunted, stretching to get used to his newly energised muscles. "What has happened?"
"You've surrendered! That's what happened! Twilight shouted. She charged up her horn for another big blast, but Wrecking Ball zoomed in-front of her, and using all his strength, struck her horn, shattering it.
She screamed in a mixture of pain and horror.
"What have you done?" She shouted as small sparks danced off the stump on her forehead. "What have you done?"
"This!" Wrecking Ball shouted, punching Twilight in the face, knocking out a few teeth, and more noticeably, knocking her out.
Wrecking Ball turned around, only Vinyl & T-T were conscious.
"You…" He growled. "You set me up for a trap!" His voice grated against Vinyl's ears.
"We didn't." Vinyl said while throwing her hooves I front of her face. "You gotta believe us doc…"
"DON'T INSULT ME BY CALLING ME THAT! You don't believe in me! Nopony ever has! But I didn't ask to be like this! I don't like smashing things!" He shouted.
His hooves dragged along the ground, before cracking it with mighty clops as he walked forward.
"But so many things…" He said slowly as he raised his hooves above Vinyl's head.
"NEED TO BE SMASHED!"
He brought his hooves down, and Vinyl cowered, knowing it was all over. Suddenly, there was a brownish-greenish blur, and Vinyl had been pushed away.
But what she saw was Wrecking Ball breaking every bone in T-T's back. Time-Turner was shoved into the concrete with a bony crunch and a fleshy splat.
"T-T!" Vinyl shouted. Her best friend had gotten clobbered because he saved her.
Unfortunately, this had caught Wrecking Ball's attention. Vinyl weighed up her options.
On the one hoof, Wrecking Ball was too strong to fight hoof to hoof. In addition, he had the same thing as her, T-T and that weird flying Earth Pony, and of the four of them, she was the only one who lacked anything that could be defined as a superpower.
On the other hoof, he hurt Time Turner.
"Raarr!" Vinyl shouted as she charged, putting her head down to spear Wrecking Ball with her horn.
Wrecking Ball turned to face her and instinctively put up his hoof, and his eyes lit up white. Vinyl felt a dragging force behind her, and she suddenly felt herself being pulled way, as if the flat ground was a steep drop.
Wrecking Ball was really surprised. Did he do that? And what was that white light? Feeling refreshed, he flapped his mighty wings, creating his trademark chopping sound, and took to the air. Now was time to experiment.
He swiped his hoof sideways, causing Vinyl to be swept sideways by an invisible pulling force. It wasn't how unicorns could move things with magic, far from it. It was more like, deciding which direction she was falling.
He focused on his hoof, as he was tightening his grip. Vinyl stopped falling sideways, and was pressed into the ground.
"AAHHHH! OOWW! TOO HEAVY!" She shouted in pain, as the gravity increased.
"…gravity…" Wrecking Ball remembered what the cosmic voice had said. He realised what he was doing, and decided to take this experiment tot eh next level. He took the sky, and shifted Vinyl's gravity slightly upwards, dragging her into the sky with him.
---
On the ground, alone in a mess of destroyed buildings and unconscious bodies, Time-Turner was lying in pain, feeling all his systems shutting down. He was dying.
"It can't end like this." He said weakly. He tried to move, but the pain and rapid loss of vital fluids prevented such an action. He coughed, his mouth becoming stained with warm red liquid.
"I'm going to die, I can't die like this. I never found out...I'll never know who I am." T-T wept.
His body felt hot, as if it was burning up, but it also felt icy cold, as was normal for death. His body radiated a golden glow, like ethereal fire.
"I...I...I don't want to go!"
Time-Turner's body exploded in a glorious light, as he writhed and screamed as he began to change.
---
Wrecking Ball was busy smacking Vinyl around, making her bounce and rebound rapidly between a boulder and the local shop that sold stone fish, owned by a Mister Hard Plaice.
"PUT ME DOWN, CREEP!" She shouted. Wrecking Ball released the grip in his hooves, allowing Vinyl to float in midair.
He chuckled as a new idea sprung to mind.
"Miss Scratch, I believe you're overdue for a check-up. So let's start with some basic physicals. Very simple really, just tell me when it starts to hurt."
Wrecking Ball put his two forehooves together, and gripped them as his eyes glowed white.
Vinyl felt a pulling sensation to the both sides of her. It just a small tug, nothing more, but it was still there.
"Is that all you got doc!" Vinyl spat defiantly. "I guess I'm not the only one with a useless shiny hat."
Wrecking Ball remained calm. Smashing up the down was very cathartic, but now he only had a few loose ends to tie up. After all, Mama Snow Ball always said, "Gettin' Even Ain't a Sin".
He spread his two forehooves apart, wider and wider. Vinyl felt the pulling increase, like it was tearing her in two. Still, Vinyl said nothing, even though it hurt, she wouldn't give this sicko the satisfaction.
"Still within your limits., ehh? That's good, for a pony of your weight class." Wrecking Ball said.
"AND WHAT’S THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?" Vinyl shouted.
"It means you’re chubby," Wrecking Ball said smugly. "Now, let's see what more you can take." He said as he spread his hooves far apart. That gravity increased on both sides, pulling Vinyl apart at the seams. She tried desperately to steel herself, despite the tears welling up in her eyes.
"Your sturdy, but I know for a fact that Pony anatomy can't stand this next gravity force, regardless of how...enhanced...you and I may be." Wrecking Ball said. He put his hooves back together, and swung them out as far as they could go.
Vinyl's sunglasses cracked, and her four legs were pulled out unnaturally long. Vinyl's nerves failed her, and she screamed. A shriek of pain she vowed to never to repeat since that incident with the pool cue, the cooking fire and the time Pinkie told everybody the apocalypse was nigh.
Her shoulders popped and her right foreleg dislocated.
"Oh dear, that’s not good. Miss Scratch..." Wrecking Ball growled as he used his gravity powers to lift a discarded piece of metal towards himself. "I'm afraid I'll have to amputate!"
---
"OH NO YOU DON'T!"
Vinyl and Wrecking Ball looked up to see Spitfire dive-bomb towards Wrecking Ball. Wrecking Ball could’ve easily blocked it, but was taken by surprise, and gave Spitfire the perfect opening to attack. She slammed into him, making him lose his grip on his new powers and drop Vinyl. Vinyl fell to the floor with a thud, unable to move as her legs had been pulled out of their sockets mere minutes ago.
Luna’s three Dark Knights flew from the sky, Blue Sun pulling the chariot while Blood Pact and Eclipse rode.
“There he is!” Eclipse shouted over the noise of the battle.
“And good Luna above us, he has an element!” Blood Pact shouted in disbelief.
“You two find civilians. I’ll assist Spitfire.” Blood Sun said as he flipped the chariot upside down, dumping out Blood Pact and Eclipse.
Blood Pact and Eclipse tumbled to the ground, yelling as they fell. They hit the ground, Eclipse after Blood Pact, allowing the burly unicorn to cushion her fall.
“Alright Eclipse, you heard our tactician. Scout the area for civilians; evacuation maneuver 3605-Apple-Dot-Delta-17.” Blood Pact commanded.
“On it!” Eclipse boldly nodded, and the two rushed off into the danger zone.
---
It was twilight, very nearly sunset, and Princess Luna sat in her chambers at Canterlot Castle, attempting to cleanse her troubled thoughts. Her mane was no longer ethereal, but rather, in its material form, as she magically manipulated the brush to give her firm, soothing strokes, but this only calmed her down marginally.
Her thoughts tiptoed to the wine cellar at the bottom of the castle, but she quickly admonished herself. ‘Tia will not approve of us getting drunk right before our royal duties.’ Luna thought.
The monsters she had carefully designed and expertly carved from the most putrid of clays had returned from her past to haunt her. Her actions had endangered the ponies she loved so much.
Her fears drifted. What if the Elements of the Universe failed? She would gladly save her people, but could she live with the knowledge she stripped away so many innocent lives and homes. She knew of no place that would give them refuge.
Except, perhaps, the planet of Hu...
“NI...NIGHT...NIGHTMARE M...MO...MOON!”
An evil presence began to force itself into Luna’s mind. The Hunter Meteor Storm, its dark influence was growing as it drew closer. “DO NOT CALL US THAT!” Luna roared, clasping her ears with her hooves. “WE REFUSE TO BECOME THAT!”
“YOU...YOU ARE...You are the queen who sired us. We serve your purpose. We destroy, so the queen may build. We destroy, so you may build.”
“SILENCE, THING!” Luna spat. “I know not how you exist inside my thoughts, but know this, we will...”
“We only know destruction. We only know servitude to the queen.”
“Then serve your queen now, and leave this world, never to return!” Luna growled forceful, almost willing the voice from her head.
“You are not the queen, you duplicitous pony. But our queen may rise once more, as the Hunter comes full circle.”
This statement had struck a nerve with Luna, whose magic flared in a moment of rage and panic, cracking her mirror and fragmenting the ornaments and baubles she decorated her private chambers with.
Some palace foot soldiers rushed, sensing emergency.
“Princess, what’s wrong?” The lead unicorn asked in concern. “We heard you talking to yourself, and then...then you started shouting.”
“We...are fine. We merely had a bad pondering, a fault I place on Canterlot’s new theatre troupe.” Luna said reassuringly.
This small joke on Luna’s part earned her a few chuckles, but the guards exchanged glances uneasily amongst one another, knowing that something was up. Unbeknownst to all of them, Luna’s portrait of the moon had changed. Instead of the glorious full moon, it had changed. It was a twisted parody of a moon, full of fright and terror. A nightmare moon, if you will.
---
Spitfire walloped Wrecking Ball in the stomach, the two pegasi exchanging blows at a rapid pace. Wrecking Ball swung his hooves upwards, the force of gravity tearing Spitfire upwards. Wrecking Ball increased the gravitational pull around his hoof. Spitfire was dragged towards it, while Wrecking Ball reared back and slugged her right in the belly. The gravity-charged punch sent Spitfire flying, and pulled her back just as quickly. This happened again, and again, pulling her back and punching her away. Spitfire had become the world’s first pony sized paddleball. “Spitfire!” Blue Sun shouted. “Use your element!”
“I don’t know how!” Spitfire cried back as she was whirled around Wrecking Ball’s hooves and slammed into the ground. “Think Hot Hooves.” Blue Sun shouted.
“Hot hooves?” Spitfire repeated. The she saw some sparks dance off her forehooves, and remembered what she did back in the office. “oh yeah, hot hooves!”
She felt Wrecking Ball pull her back for another whack at her, now was her chance. She flew towards him, her speed increased because of the gravitational pull. Her hooves and mane ignited, and she slugged him right in the face with a fiery hooves. Some hair was burned off, and he crashed into the ground. Spitfire dive-bombed after him, but Wrecking Ball crossed his forehooves, creating an force-shield that Spitfire harmless bounced off of.
Inside the shield, the now untouchable Wrecking Ball had time to think. He looked around, and using his new found gravity-powers, he began to collect pieces of debris. They began to slowly float around him, getting faster and faster, now in full-on orbit. He dropped the shield, and roared ferally.
Spitfire was exhausted. In all her years of service, nothing she had faced had put up this much of a fight. Plus, Wrecking Ball seemed to have mastered his powers, unlike herself, who was learning on the job.
“I don’t…*puff*…get it? How…*huff*…does he use his powers so expertly?” She asked.
Blue Sun appeared out of nowhere behind her, spooking her a little.
“He’s a doctor. Y’know, he’s one of those intellectual types. He probably reads in his spare time.” Blue Sun said.
“Are you trying to be funny?” Spitfire asked.
“Look, for your next trick, I suggest think cold, and blow.” Blue Sun said slowly. “And I suggest you do it quickly, because he’s coming right for us.”
Spitfire looked forward to see Wrecking Ball flying towards her, with razor sharp metal and rocks orbiting around him. She glanced back, to see Blue Sun had vanished.
“Okay Spitfire,” Spitfire said to herself. “Think cold and blow.”
She blew, but nothing happened. All the while she could feel the thunder of Wrecking Ball’s hooves as he rushed towards her.
“Doctor Wrecking Ball...SMASH!” He roared as his eyes went black. The good doctor may have been strong bodied, but he was not strong of will, and had given in to his emotions. Now, nothing but rage was left.
“STAY BACK!” Spitfire shouted. She blew hard and though cold, and the icy winds of a thousand winters sprung from her lips. Wrecking Ball was frozen in place, his mane covered in ice, as smallish icicles formed around his lips and nostrils. His eyes, though, his eyes were still black and full of rage, even though frosted at the corners.
Spitfire felt a wave of relief wash over her. She had done it. She turned to seen if Blue Sun was still about, be he wasn't. However, none of that mattered, as soon, a crack could be heard from behind Spitfire. It sounded exactly like, ice shattered.
"...smash..."
---
Blood Pact and Eclipse met up in the centre of the destruction. Luckily, almost everypony had evacuated, and the only unconscious bodies were of Twilight, Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Hammer Strike. Interestingly, Time-Turner was nowhere to be found, only a mysterious patch of burnt grass.
"Is that all of them?" Eclipse asked.
"Lemme' check." Blood Pact said. His horn lit up a deep red as he cast the only spell in his arsenal. A Radar Spell. A crimson pulse rippled along the ground. The two ponies waited for two seconds, before the pulse came back, and Blood Pact's mind was filled with an intricate map of the surrounding area. He saw little blips, white ones representing civilians and injured ponies, black ones representing nearby hostiles and finally green ones representing combat ready allies.
"There's an injured civilian a small way from here. Female, Unicorn, Heavy. Injuries include bruising, minor internal bleeding and concussion that seem to be healing rapidly, but the civilian has had all four limbs dislocated, and is immobilised near the danger zone. Are these four secure?" Blood Pact recited, almost mechanically.
"You go get her, I'll watch the stiffs until Blue Sun gets here." Eclipse said, and Blood Pact nodded, and ran to get the injured pony.
Eclipse watched Blood Pact go, but her head snapped the otherway when she heard a crash from an alley behind her. It was Blue Sun, stumbling out of the alley, clutching his head with his hooves.
"Blue Sun?" Eclipse gasped. "What happened?"
"Oh, my head. Something....ow, it hurts, that thing is pound on my brain!" Blue Sun moaned in pain. "Som..something is in Princess Luna's head! I can sense it!"
"How? How can you know!" Eclipse asked worriedly, holding Blue Sun upright.
"Because...it's driving me INSANE!!!" Blue Sun shrieked as his eyes turned a deep blood red.
