After the battle of Sepiks Prime, Twilight has been searching desperately for a warp drive in order to join her friends further out into space. But some of them don't think she should.
After the battle of Sepiks Prime, Twilight has been searching desperately for a warp drive in order to join her friends further out into space. But some of them don't think she should. And when an old friend returns to the Tower, Twilight will learn that some choices will lead to broken friendships.
The Fallen Captain stumbled through the vast reaches of space. Searching in all manner of dimensions of space and occurrences until he had found Her portal. Bleeding from his missing sixth limb, the Fallen Captain could barely keep conscienceless until he had reached his destination. He had been told that going to the source of the Darkness was a death wish, but if he was going to obtain that which he desired, he would have to seek the authority before the right was lost in shadows.
And despite only knowing of it, and having only seen Her once, the faint light that escaped the darkest corner of space made his bones run chill from the thought of finding the right portal. He almost wished he had never found it.
But after coming so far... Turning back now would have been more of a regret then dying at Her hooves.
Stepping in as silently as he could, the captain shuttered as the dripping of his own blood echoed in this dim outbreak in space.
She knows I am here... the Captain thought, as whispering would be the same as screaming, just as thinking was a whisper in and of itself.
"I am disappointed, Captain..." words of an unseen Master dropped as shuttle as his blood upon the black matter beneath him.
Halted and now kneeling, the Fallen Captain waited with shifting eyes, wondering if he should still remain on guard in case she should attack.
"Have you no honor Captain?" the voice echoed again, "I expected as much from the House of Devils, but to have let your own God perish as foolish as he did... There truly is, no room for explanation... Failure!"
And upon that striking insult filling the space, she descended. Dodging her attacks with what little strength the captain could muster, the Captain dared not attack back, for fear that she might actually aim at him. The Captain kept running in any way he could to escape the onslaught of fire and explosions raining down upon him. But even he could not run forever.
Blown against a wall matter, the captain tried desperately to get up again, but was stopped by the master herself pinning him up against the solid matter with enough force to crack his armor.
"But there must be some reason that you wish to live long enough to see my bullets shatter your skull Captain, so tell me... How is it that my precious Sepiks died to some lowly little ponies!?" the Master roared at the Captain, to which he struggled to speak as her hooves strangled him.
"T- Light..." he squealed.
"Again!!" she demanded.
"Twi... Light... Spar... Kle..." he forced form his throat, and suddenly, the taste of air filled his lungs faster than the master could flee from his words.
The Master glared with wide eyes, and chattering teeth. But soon the thoughts that filled her head led her to more confusion than fright. Now with retained composure, the Master trotted towards the Captain with a far more, gentler tone.
"Forgive me Captain," she asked as she watched the poor Fallen gasp for one breath after another, "But I thought I heard you recall the name of the Princess... Of the Golden Age... Have I missheard you?"
To which the Captain replied, "No..."
The Master looked down on the Captain deep in thought, and smiled through dark dead eyes.
"My Captain, oh my Captain," she began, "I am so sorry for this misunderstanding, I commend you for telling me so soon, I have not heard word of this from even my spy's yet," she giggled, "which is surprising..." her tone dropped again as she helped him up, grabbing hold of where his missing limb would be, and with a flash of light, the pain stopped, and the wound was closed.
The Captain was shocked that his Master was capable of showing such kindness, but even he didn't forget to bow, as she continued to gaze upon him in pride.
"I must reward you my Captain, this goes without saying, what in this vast cosmos is it that you desire above anything else?" she asked, extending her hoof as though she were a gentle princess.
"Her head..." the Captain breathed out in the cold space, and without fear, despite the now hardened glare of the Master.
"Captain," she began, but her eyes squinted for a moment in a stupor of thought and answered, "wish... Granted."
The Captain looked up quickly in surprise, unable to know how to respond.
"But that reward cannot be delivered at this moment," she quickly stated before turning away from him.
The Captain growled, angered that he was not permitted to seek after that which he wanted.
"But fear not Captain," she said as she reached into the abyss, "I will allow you the pleasure, but in the mean time, I shall give you a name, as you seem to have 'Risen'... Above your superiors," she continued as she pulled out a rifle, black in color, but coursing in gray lightning, "this is the Fool's End... A weapon I have been saving for a special warrior... Take this Risen... And fulfill the role that Sepiks could not..."
Risen took the rifle in hoof, and within that moment, the red glow from Risen's eyes shined over the gun in lust as a thirst for power had just been quenched.
"Thank you... Nightmare Moon..." Risen addressed his Master with a bow, and turned right around, and left for his chance to fight the Princess again.
"Oh! And one more thing Risen," Nightmare Moon called out again, "If you happen to run into the Princess... Don't kill her yet, I wish to speak with her, and when I am done, her head will be all yours..." she smiled, as Risen peered at her for a long space of time, and looked back to the path ahead, leading to Old Ponyville. And with Risen gone, Nightmare Moon was left once again to look after the forces that she had been preparing all these years to unleash.
"I am so glad you are awake Twilight..." she said to the endless space before her, "now I can unleash my true nightmares... And I hope you can stay awake through the night my dearest... For surely... You will never sleep again, when I've ripped your precious TRAVELER IN TWO!!!" she bellowed to the ends of the universe, her dark, purple eyes gleaming into space, as the only warning to her war beginning.
"Get that Dreg!!" I shouted as Twilight continued to gallop after the Fallen, holding something valuable under one of it's many appendages. The Dreg sprinted faster then Twilight could keep up, and at this rate, the Dreg would be off with our Warp Drive.
"Ghost! Call down the Sparrow!" Twilight ordered.
"I can't Guardian!" I told her, "The Jumpship would only be able to call it down onto the roof of the building!" But Twilight smiled after a short frown from hearing the problem with her request.
"Then call it down in that opening in front of us!" She said, and looking a little past the Dreg, I saw sunlight peering through a hole in the roof. This Mare and her crazy ideas, I thought as I began to direct our Jumpship into position.
"You do realize this could go completely wrong, right?" I told my half planning excuse of a bookworm.
"Call it down Ghost!" She ordered.
And with the Jumpship in position, I sent the order and the Sparrow materialized just after the Dreg had ran under the sunlight. Bounding into a jump, Twilight managed to hit the gas as her built up momentum collided with the Sparrow, jolting it at an alarming speed that nearly threw Twilight off of it. But she recovered, and caught up to the Dreg, and run it over. The Dregs body went flying into the air as Twilight reached her hooves into the air and caught Warpdrive.
"Victory!!" Twilight and I shouted as we made spiting noises at the back broken Dreg behind us.
But we were far from done with this mission of ours.
Looking back to the front of the Sparrow, Twilight went wide eyed as we began to boost into a very narrow tunnel. Twilight managed to get low before the walls decapitated her. And then we realized that the walls steadily got smaller as we kept moving forward through the tunnel. Thinking fast, Twilight used her magic the increase the anti-gravity in front of the Sparrow for her to crotch on the very tip of the it, all while steering it and keeping the thrust steady in speed until we came to the point of no return. We saw the light at the end of the tunnel, and around us, as sparks began to fly with the walls narrowing onto our Sparrow inch by inch.
Twilight held onto the Warpdrive for dear life as the we got to the very end, and the Sparrow exploded into a million pieces and we went flying out of the pipe, and onto the snow covered landscape of Old Ponyville.
Twilight skidded to a stop in the snow, and looked back at the smoking remains of her poor Sparrow.
"Thank Faust..." Twilight sighed as she laid her head onto the soft snow. Still hold the Warpdrive under her hooves, Twilight stood up and held it in the air, cheering. Finally we had found a genuine Warpdrive!
Or... So we thought.
With a closer look at the Warpdrive, we noticed a small crack in the Drive's sub-atomic fire core, and thought it best to toss it before it blew up in our face. And with one strong movement of body weight, the Warpdrive was in the air, and then it underwent Starflame break down and warped into a bluish black light that destroyed the Warpdrive completely.
Twilight's eyes welled up with tears as she looked on at the stardust remains of the Warpdrive.
"PONY FEATHERS!!!!!" Twilight cursed as she rubbed her hooves into her mane.
This was accompanied by our simultaneous screaming the word "No", not really caring who heard us.
Another Warpdrive, gone the way of all the earth.
A minute or two passed and my Guardian and I had gotten over our lose... Somewhat.
"Any..." Twilight began, sniffling, "Any missions near by...?"
"L- Let-" I stuttered, still a little out of sorts, "Let me check..."
And while I did, Twilight gathered the scattered parts of the Sparrow to ready it for Jumpship repair. The Jumpship came by and reconstructed the Sparrow the best it could. But even with it looking like a typical Sparrow, it sparked another fire in the engine, and died. Turning it into a lifeless piece of metal.
Twilight called the Sparrow back to the Jumpship.
"I guess we're on hoof again today, Ghost." Twilight said in a slump.
I sighed at the bad news, but tried to lighten up the mood with a bit of good news. "That's alright Guardian, I've found a Mission Nod over at the base of that cliff." I said, and Twilight got on all fours and made her way over there.
Coming to the Nod, blinking with an echoing light rippling chime, Twilight activated it and the Nod sounded off with a louder chime and continued to blink before it delivered it's message. But oddly enough, it started to stutter and break as the voice tried to talk to us. Twilight looked to me, hoping I could fix the voice coming from the Nod... And I hoped so too.
Changing some of the calibration output, I managed to shift the signal back into place, back the voice we heard was not of any Pony, Griffin, or Dragon. It was robotic.
"Track back to your Jumpship's launch site," the voice said. Meanwhile, I wanted to know more, tracking the signal to it's source, "Go to that place and it will supply you with the Warpdrive you seek for-" and then it cut off abruptly, shorting out the Nod in the process.
"Drat," I mumbled, failing to follow the signal to it's root, too many loops it led me through. But it must've cut itself off because I was getting close.
"What was that Ghost?" Twilight asked.
"I wish could tell you more, but the only clue I got out of that message was that it was a... A Warmind!?" I shocked myself with the information I managed to gather, "That was Rasputin!" I concluded.
"That A.I. Shining is always going on about?" Twilight made the connection.
"Yes," I said, "But why would he help us find a Warpdrive?"
Both of us thought it to be a little too good to be true, but we somehow found ourselves heading in that direction anyway.
"Are you sure about this Guardian?" I asked.
"About as sure as I can be Ghost. But..." Twilight began, "I'd better call in some back up anyway." Twilight admitted, and proceeded to message Apple Jack.
It's been 2 months since we've faced off against the House of Devils and reduced their God to a shell of metal and junk. And it's felt even longer since I've set out to follow the Speaker's quest for me. I have succeeded in finding myself a new Guardian to call Friend, but something inside me just feels like there's more missing to this question that I have... What is my Destiny? What am I meant to do with this Princess of Friendship? Am I to help her exact revenge upon the Darkness that left her home in the state it's in now? Or keep her from falling too deep into that Darkness, so at least her friends will recognize her by the end of all this.
Twilight glanced at me, and as our eyes met, she smiled warmly, but looked ahead as she kept trotting, and her expression went solemn.
The answer to that question is still unsure... All that I know now, is that I won't turn my back on her, no matter what kind of Monarch she becomes. Our fates are locked together... For better, for worse... Until death.
Following Rasputin's directions, we found ourselves back where we started. The launch site of our Arcadia.
"Brings back memories doesn't it Ghost?" Twilight interjected, "Who would've thought we'd find a Warp Drive here."
"If we do find one," I said, not entirely convinced that this "Rasputin" had our best interests in mind.
"Either way, worth a shot!" Apple Jack spoke up, trotting beside us as if we were going out for a picnic. "It's not very often I get to patrol like this Twilight, thanks for bringing me along." Apple Jack said sincerely. She was excited to hear that we needed help when we called her, but now that she was here, I don't think I've ever seen a pony more happy than her. Hugging Twilight with one hoof tightly as we continued on to the path to the abandoned facility.
"Likewise AJ..." Twilight smiled back, glad to see a friend as well. And if I'm being honest with myself, seeing Twilight like this makes me happy too.
There have been so many times that I forget just how close she is to Apple Jack and Rainbow Dash. Sometimes I think it's too good to be true that some of the tower's most skilled Guardians are Twilight's long lost friends. But when I take into scope just how determined and courageous they all are, I begin to understand why.
Their friendship, truly is magic.
And every day I spend with her is just another testimony of that.
"Arm yourself Guardian," I told Twilight in the midst of their giggling and small chat.
"That's right ladies, pull out the exotics!" Scarecrow, Apple Jack's Ghost spat as if that term for weapons was common.
"Scare!" Apple Jack hushed her firm voice, "Sorry Twi, Scare just doesn't know his manners."
"It's quite alright AJ," Twilight interjected with a smile, "There aren't many Guardians with a gun like mine in the Tower, but because of that, I consider my Khvostov an exotic personally!"
"Aww... How cute, she thinks it's cool..." Scarecrow whispered loudly into Apple Jack's ear. To which AJ rolled her eyes, and equipped her helmet as Twilight did.
Now entering the facility, Twilight and Apple Jack raised their weapons with the utmost cation. Cracked concrete, prodding rebar, and a stench of decay described just about everything in this part of Old Ponyville. Twilight scoured the dark corners of each room we passed through, looking for the slightest sign of the enemy. But I could tell that wasn't the only thing she was glancing at.
Apple Jack's Forth Horsemen shotgun drew her attention as well as a bug to a light. So much so that Twilight bumped into a wall gazing at it.
"You alright Twi?" Apple Jack asked in a hushed tone. Twilight nodded, embarrassed. But honestly, who could blame her, the quad barrels, the titanium iron sight, and the auto fire on a five round clip made for one nasty tool of death for anything on the other end of it's trigger.
"You should really get one of those..." I accidentally said out loud.
"What did you say?" Twilight asked, turning to me a little annoyed. But I dodged the question when we heard Fallen howling ahead.
All of us got even more focused as we neared the next room. The room we first encountered that Captain, and the room we found our Arcadia. Looking around corners, and finding good vantage points, Twilight and Apple Jack turned on their radio channel to further discuss their plan of attack. There was a lot of Fallen in there. Around eleven in total. Five Dregs, a Vandal and Captain, guarded by three shanks and a... Oh dear.
"An Archon?" Twilight asked over the radio channel.
"Exactly," AJ began, "These fellers are higher rank than even a captain, and taller too. Their like priests in a church, except instead of talking to gods, they talk to Prime Servitors, communing any information from them to the Kells of each house. And this ones a Devil... Must be pretty mad that you killed it's god."
"Oops..." Twilight grinned, but kept looking for the best moment of opportunity to strike. But as she looked, a glowing object glistened against the sun's light. A warp drive dangled by a rope along the Archon's waist.
"A warp drive!" Twilight chimed a little loud. I could see Apple Jack cringing as the Fallen looked around the room, only to spot a rusty door, squeaking on it's hinges. They paid it no mind, figuring Twilight's voice was just another tiny noise made from the door.
"Keep it down Twi!" Apple Jack insisted, "It's bad enough that a big group like this is here, let alone an Archon. We should go outside and wait for back up with this one. I'm calling up Rainbow..." But while she started to radio for Rainbow Dash, Twilight watched the Archon and the captain intently, seeing them converse with each other, gesturing to a large hole in the far wall.
"No," Twilight muttered, "Their leaving..." Apple Jack saw the same look in Twilight's eye's as I did. She was going to go for the warp drive. Apple Jack and I both started to call out for Twilight to stop, but stopped ourselves to give Twilight a chance of getting to the warp drive. Regardless we disagreed with her plan.
Twilight galloped for the Archon, and just when the captain was about to alert the room from spotting her, Apple Jack had pitched a cooking grande at him, seconds barely passed as it exploded in his face. The sound of a shield breaking and the cries of two Dregs echoing in the room, and conflict had already erupted between Apple Jack and the other Fallen. Leaving Twilight with just enough of a diversion to pull the warp drive from the Archon's belt. The Archon whipped around to see Twilight ducking for cover behind a pillar, as the strong tug at his waist left him furious and raging as he forgot about Apple Jack, and began his assault on Twilight.
"You bucking idiot!" Apple jack shouted over the radio channel.
"Lecture me later AJ, Ghost and I have the warp drive, we just need to get out of here now." Twilight said, hunkering down as blast after blast blew a chunk off the pillar she hid behind. Apple Jack couldn't get a good enough opening to fire back at the Fallen, so she surprised them, jumping out from her cover, Apple Jack switched to her assault rifle, a Shingen-E. Firing a little at the shanks, taking down two of them before rolling into more cover.
Twilight was getting uneasy as the Archon approached to the pillar. In a despite attempt to get him off her back, she formed a void grenade and tossed it on the Archon's right. Exploding into a swirling vortex, the grenade pulled at the Archon, hurting him, but he quickly moved away from it, leaving Twilight the time to bolt past him. But even with the void driving the Archon away while she sprinted through it, the Archon reached for her, gripped the back side of her neck tight, and put barrel of his shrapnel launcher against her back. Twilight tossed the warp drive to Apple Jack just as she had killed the last of the minor Fallen.
"Let her go!" Apple Jack ordered. Pointing her gun fearlessly at the Archon.
"Drive!" The Archon slurred in our language. Apple Jack looked down at the warp drive hesitantly. To her it the drive didn't matter, but to Twilight, who shook her head desperately, it wasn't worth the trade. Apple Jack slowly picked up the warp drive, gun still pointed at the Archon.
"I give you this, you drop her... Or I will unleash hell on you..." Apple Jack sternly said, and the Archon replied nodding, growling with earnest. AJ tossed him the warp drive, and as he grabbed it out of the air, the Archon narrowed his eyes. Apple Jack glared with grinding teeth, as he watched him pull the trigger on Twilight.
Twilight couldn't form any words to describe the pain that ripped through her. Large pieces of metal exited on the opposite end of her body, and her eyes rolled back as she fell.
"Twilight!" Apple Jack called out, catching her from hitting the ground, and the Archon turned to the large hole in the wall to escape. But before he could, a loud boom was heard over head, and a shining golden spark ignited as it entered through the hole in the ceiling, and blocked the entrance to the Archon's escape. Rainbow Dash hovered there, shining like pure gold, sniper rifle aimed point blank at the Archon's head. No words were exchanged, just a glare, and a loud bang.
The bullet ripped through the Archon's head, splitting it to pieces. And as the Archon fell, the warp drive rolled out of his grasp and next to Twilight and Apple Jack. Rainbow Dash descended, her golden light fading as she stepped closer to her friends, saddened expressions from both of them as they looked down on Twilight.
"Everything will fine, just fine!" I said out of desperation.
"Ghost..." Rainbow said, hoping I would hear her out for a moment, but the thought of Twilight dying out here was all I could think of.
I had already parted my nodes to resurrect Twilight, but the light I was gathering wasn't enough. I kept repeating the healing process until Apple Jack stepped closer to me, her hoof touching my core. Rainbow Dash too stepped in and joined her hoof to me, and the light that they poured into me exceeded the amount needed, and the light emitted a burst into a shower of sparks. Reforming Twilight, healed and breathing.
Rainbow Dash and Apple Jack hugged her, relieved she was alright. It was really astounding, to see the light source of Guardians at work. There would always be a scarce amount of light out here as long as the darkness ruled over it. But in this tiny room, there was an abundance. Twilight sat up, frowning as she did.
"I failed to even get past him..." she said.
"It couldn't be helped Twi," Apple Jack said, "The same thing would've happened if tried that stunt."
"So what your saying is, that it was pointless..."
AJ cringed as she heard her say that, but Rainbow picked up the warp drive, and dropped it in Twilight's lap.
"Maybe not entirely pointless," Rainbow commented, "But that should teach you to not steal from an Archon with a grudge." Twilight smiled weakly at that. Holding up the warp drive to the setting sun.
"Let's go..." I said, and Twilight nodded. Thinking of how her pride had gotten in the way of accomplishing what good she thought she could do. We then warped to our Jumpship,, setting the course to the Tower. And while we sat there in the Jumpship, Twilight looked to me with something to say.
"Once I was so worried about writing a letter to Princess Celestia, I ended up causing more trouble than there should've been,"
"This was completely different Guardian... That Archon was going to have his way no matter what." I said. But Twilight shook her head.
"There is still so much more I need to learn... I really am still just a student..." Twilight turned on her side in the cockpit, facing away from me. Her saying that was a little enraging. I felt like she didn't even listen to me. But I left her alone, out of spite. And then I heard a soft sniffling and uneasy breathing. "After everything... I haven't changed..." Twilight said, in between breaths.
I said nothing as we returned to the Tower with Rainbow Dash and Apple Jack stayed within out flight pattern. I suppose there was still a lot I need to learn too. About Twilight, and about being a Ghost.
Noon time at the Tower. Twilight and I have yet to venture out since our newly acquired warp drive was being installed. We thought that it would be quick. But Derpy's workload seemed to have piled up a bit lately. Twilight let out an agonizingly loud sigh.
"Twilight..." I began. But then I forgot what I was going to say. Twilight didn't seem like asking why I suddenly said her name. She just kept her head down, lying on her hooves just hanging over the edge of her bench. Her eyes were drooping. I tried to start up a conversation again, but her yawning face scared away any thought of small talk.
"Ghost..." Twilight said. But she didn't say anything after that.
Figures.
Rainbow Dash and Apple Jack walked up to us. Both of them shrugging to each other as to why we were board.
"Still waitin'?" Apple Jack asked, taking a sip of her apple juice.
"Yes..." Twilight and I grounded in harmony.
"Now I know this is going to sound weird... But you know who I miss?" Rainbow said, drawing our attention just enough to look up at her. "Discord." She answered with a sip of her drink. Twilight chuckled.
"He certainly would've made things a little more interesting around here..." Twilight commented. Snuggling into her bench.
"Haha! Yeah..." Apple Jack agreed. And then the silence grew again. Sometimes life at the Tower was not all missions and stories. Sometimes you spend a good while organizing your vault, browsing the many vendors, and if you're lucky, you can chat with a legend or two. But today was not one of those days. Twilight had tried pacing, figuring out prime napping spots around the plaza, even learning different dances from her friends. Which was a new change from the patrols and deliveries she had been asked to do since her enlistment here.
"Would he have survived? The Collapse that is?" Twilight asked, and Apple Jack got to thinking. Rainbow Dash just shook her head.
"I doubt it," Rainbow began, "He would've had to have found a really good hiding spot to have waited out that storm of shi-" but before she could finish, an absurdly loud sneeze was heard, and a crash, following screams and shouts of all kinds coming from the hanger bay.
"What in the name of all that is cider!?" Apple Jack shouted, drawing her primary weapon on reflex. Twilight stood up with wide eyes. There was a funny expression on her face. I couldn't tell if it was comical, or the beginning of a horrifying thought.
"Do you think?" Twilight asked.
"No!" Rainbow said quickly.
"But if it is..."
"No! That would be crazy!" Rainbow said again. And then as we continued to stare at the west wing of the Tower, Guardians seemed to be running away from bullet fire, unarmed? And only after a few moments, guns of all kinds came flying out of the hanger bay entrance, wings sprouting out as if they were born with them.
"Oh, pony feathers it is..." Rainbow Dash said, head dropping. And the three set out for the for the hanger bay.
"Jeez, I know I get made fun of for sowing a pair of wings to a Unicorn, but this is too much," I said. Twilight glared at me. Honestly, I had to make that joke.
Galloping into the hallway, we could see a Frame getting attacked by the gun birds. Rainbow whipped out her Hawkmoon quickly, firing in quick secession, shooting the guns back down to the ground. The Frame ran past us as a swarm of more gun birds came flying in.
"Oh dear," I said at the sight of them, and we all ducked for cover.
Bullet fire roared in the hallway, and breaking glass and chipping concrete as we hid behind two weapon counters. Apple Jack hunkered down behind the counter on the other side of the hall. While Rainbow Dash and Twilight squeezed behind the other.
"Y'know that old saying how guns don't kill ponies, ponies kill ponies?" Rainbow Dash smirked as she reloaded calmly. Twilight rolled her eyes before ducking again from the absurd amount of gunfire.
"There isn't enough time for an opening!" Twilight shouted for us all to hear.
"Leave this to me," Rainbow said pulling out her heavy machine gun, charging headlong into the swarm. More bullet fire was heard, some blood splatter, and a messy corpse came crashing back behind Twilight. I could tell that she didn't want to look back at Rainbow Dash. But a few gags later, Twilight looked up at Narrator's shaking body. Disappointed at Rainbow Dash's attempt to solve the problem. Twilight reached up to Narrator's core, and successfully revived Rainbow Dash.
"Not my best idea," Rainbow admitted. And all of us agreed.
It was now time for us to get a real plan together. "Scarecrow, Narrator, let's plan," I said, calling the other's respective Ghosts. Apple Jack watched as us Ghosts tried to think of a way to get around this wall of guns in front of us. But AJ simply took it upon herself to jump headlong into the gunfire, and slam her hooves down on the ground roaring. Sending a shock wave throughout the air, and not only knocking all of the gun birds out of the air, but also making a creator, splitting the stone floor in every direction.
"Everypony alright?" Apple Jack asked, and Twilight and Rainbow raised their hooves slowly. A Striker's power was unmatched. Twilight said it once, and I'll say it again, a Warlock's magic infused hoof attack hit hard, but Titans hit harder.
Moving forward into the hanger bay, we were met with zero opposition. So judging by the Guardians coming back to retrieve their guns, we had silenced the all of the winged weapons. Venturing up to Derpy's workspace, we found her waiting for us. Mane in disarray, clothes ripped from gunfire, and an expression that screamed: "I've had a rough day".
"Derpy what-"
"Here's a crowbar, there's the hatch to your Jumpship, and where is your apple cider stash?" Derpy interrupted Twilight giving her the tool to open our Jumpship, and looked to Apple Jack, demanding a drink.
"Uhh... Back of the tower, behind the last crate on the left..." Apple Jack told her, and Derpy took her leave without another word.
"She's gonna think you're a liar, AJ," Rainbow Dash said, "Depending on if there is any cider left." Rainbow then burped, leading Apple Jack to grab Dash's armor in frustration.
"Girls, a little help?" Twilight said in the midst of their bickering. Then Apple Jack and Rainbow Dash helped to open the Arcadia. And when the hood opened up, a long snake-like creature stretched its different limbs and yawned as if it just woke up. This serpent had the head of a goat, the arms were of an eagle's talon and a lion's paw. Legs of a Dragon and a donkey, crooked horns of an elk unicorn and wings of a bat and bird. If I wasn't so well versed in Equestrian history, I might have questioned what he was. But since I was, there was no mistaking who or what he was... Discord. The Draconequus of chaos and disharmony.
"Now I know what your thinking, an amazing adventure in the middle of an ever expanding universe, and the story is hidden on little cards you have to collect? Wouldn't it make a lot more sense if somepony just told you? But really, what fun is there in making sense... Twilight?"
"... We also need those clash records Spike, not to mention the progress that the each faction is making in their desired crucible ranks, their weapon registration, control tactics..." Shining Armor kept rambling on about the different chores I needed to report about. I really wish I didn't have to run it all, but some pony had to do it. So why not a dragon. "Are you listening to me?" Shining asked.
"Yes, Shiny, I'm listening..." I answered.
"Don't call me that," Shining snapped, I guess he didn't like that. He continued to look through the pages, shooting looks at me occasionally.
"Yes?" I asked. But all I got from him was ignored. Typical.
"General has that lovers yearning sickness," Commander Spitfire stated, "He's a real piece of work when he's like this." Spitfire covered her mouth with her hoof, pretending that she secretly talking to me.
"Mind your own business," Shining said in a harsh tone.
"Cause you certainly mind everyone else's..." Shining seemed to bite his tongue at that statement. I think he was about to retort but stopped at the sight of Spitfire pouring over a map with focused eyes. But I knew she wasn't doing anything of the sort. She only pretended to look busy. She never wanted to be a vanguard. However, she accepted the position because she was used to leadership, and didn't want some other inexperienced hunter telling her what to do. It made me laugh sometimes.
"The faction's Lord Spike," Zecora addressed me, "Do they all cooperate, or retaliate one with another?"
That question was something I'd been wondering myself as of late. Sure, the future war cult, new monarchy, and dead orbit have always had their differences and rivalries. But when considering the concordant...
"It's nothing I can't handle," I told her, picking up the paperwork Shining had assigned me and began to take my leave. Before Shining called out to me one last time.
"Spike, we need to know if there's something up." Shining seemed to have sincerity in his voice. It took me by surprise a little. It was nice to hear that. But one look around the room and I could tell they all knew I was unnerved by something. But it shouldn't be a concern of theirs.
"I'm having new monarchy help me, don't worry," I saw Spitfire look back to her map, Zecora back to her books, and Shining nodded to me. He trusted me. And I was grateful for that. As the vanguard doors shut behind me, I spotted a group of guardians gearing up at the end of the hall. I set my paperwork on the coffee table behind my desk and walked over to greet them. All five addressed me with a salute, and I raised my claw to relax them. "At ease, guardians. What's the mission?"
"Anual patrol of the Hellmouth Lord Spike," Roseluck said proudly, speaking for her other guardians Lyra, Bonbon, Carrottop, and Golden Harvest. All of them were guardians that lead the front line fight with the hive, and they were a mean bunch. I wish I had their courage. The Hellmouth was never too much trouble for this group, I always worried that they'd not come back one day. But I was always being proved wrong since I became crucible handler.
"Good," I said, excited. "Bring me back a souvenir will you?" I asked Roseluck, and she promised with a nod. And then they took their leave. And I turned back to my desk to start my paperwork. But then I felt a tap on my shoulder. It was Roseluck again, holding out a piece of paper in her mouth. "What's this?" I asked, taking it from her.
"It's an energy disturbance that we found during our last patrol on the Moon,"
"And what do you want me to do about it?"
"Give it to Pinkie or someone you trust with a spike of Darkness energy, we would check it out ourselves, but we're heading in an opposite direction of where that thing is."
"So what's the big deal?" I asked.
"The big deal is that we'd have to restock on supplies if we went for that energy reading, and we don't intend on being back for a few days, we're on the verge of something big." I didn't like the sound of that.
"Rose, you know what happens when you linger too long in the Hellmouth, right?"
"You go mad?" She answered, checking her saddle bag one more time, not really caring as to what I was getting at.
"Rose..." Roseluck looked up to me, head shaking at me, looking over my armor. Despite that fact that I didn't belong to any class of guardian, I took after the Titan's for their heavy armor and ideal for protection. Roseluck was a Warlock and obviously saw me differently than I saw her.
"You will never understand what it's like, Spike," Roseluck glared up at me, "Titans protect, Hunter's hunt, and we Warlocks... We deserve to know the secrets of this universe. And we will find them, even if it means certain death..." I raised my claw out to her, but she knocked it away, "In the end Spike, we'll all die, but the real question is, where will you die? I'd rather die knowing what the hive are planning, instead of waiting here for them to attack. Because if I stay safe here and learn nothing... It's the same as going mad."
I had no words for that. I lowered my claw to my side. "I'll be sure to get this to Pinkie..."
"Goodbye Spike," Roseluck said, turning back to her group and ascended the stairs. I heard them warp out, and I checked the time on my holo-book.
"Pinkie should be here soon, better go tell her about her new mission."
Discord stretched like a cat waking up from a nap. Rainbow Dash and Apple Jack seemed to be a little on edge at the appearance of this being from legends past. Except they looked a bit annoyed that he was here as well. Twilight had told me a little of what her life was like before the golden age. In that time, she and Discord were once great friends. But after seeing him for myself, I can only sense the worst of intentions coming from his wily grin. However, such warnings were not felt by Twilight, as she jumped up and hugged him tightly.
"Discord!" she cried out, refusing to let go. Discord was surprised and taken aback from such affection. But even that didn't stop him from smiling and patting her head, eventually leading into a heartfelt hug. "What are you doing here? Wait, how did you get into the Tower?" Twilight asked. And such good questions required good explanations.
"Why, I've been here the whole time, Twilight!" Discord said. And then a thought crossed our minds.
"You were under the hood of the Jumpship... The entire time!?" Twilight shouted.
"Of course!" I said, remembering something very important. "That time we first traveled to the city, I saw words written on the icy fog of the Jumpship's window, just after Twilight had mentioned Discord! It was you!" I said, gesturing to Discord. Twilight looked at me with a puzzled expression.
"When were you going to tell me about that?" Twilight questioned.
"I- I thought I was seeing things!" I said. Honestly, I did. And then Discord let out a hearty laugh.
"Oh! That's priceless!" Discord started the roll onto the ground, completely lost in hilarity as the rest of us stepped back and discussed things.
"This is weird," Rainbow Dash said. "It's been a really long time since we all started coming back... Why did he come back now of all times?" All of us thought the same thing, what connection was there?
"I think the answer rhymes with, flashlight..." Narrator, Dash's ghost said. We all turned to Twilight.
She never was the one that liked too much attention. Twilight avoided eye contact from everyone. No one could deny it, things haven't been the same since Twilight Sparkle came back from the dead. It was technically our fault that the Devils attacked the city in the first place, following our slow Jumpship here and preparing for an attack. And since then the tower has been all up in talk about the princess of friendship's return. So, of course, Narrator had grounds for saying that. But I had a feeling that wasn't the case with Discord.
"Are you talking about little old me?" Discord said, slivering around each of our guardian's necks. Rainbow Dash's skin crawled as he moved through them all until he had moved to the middle of us. "Because as much as I'd love to talk about the great and powerful me and catch up on old times, I have a mission for all of you."
"What kind of mission?" Twilight began to say, but then Rainbow Dash pushed Discord out of the circle, flying up to his face with a glare.
"You got some nerve showing your face around here after everything that's happened!" Dash said.
"Rainbow!" Twilight called out.
"No, Twilight! He has some explaining to do." Rainbow crossed her hooves. Apple Jack didn't seem that against Dash's reasons, even if she was being a little rude. Twilight on the other hoof flew in between Dash and Discord, halting the interrogation. "Get out of the way, Twilight!"
"Ha! I'm sure..." Dash remarked. Her sarcasm that she slipped in agitated my guardian.
"Twilight," Discord said suddenly, "It's true I have some explaining to do... But not right now."
"For Fluttershy's sake, you do!" Dash stated. Discord quickly grabbed Dash by the scarf, scowling.
"Don't... Say her name...!" Discord growled, pulling Dash closer with a hurt expression. Twilight and Apple Jack looked at Discord. I remember that Twilight told me of very few times Discord would get angry. Clearly, this Fluttershy was a touchy subject for every pony at the time. Discord quickly softened his expressing and let go of Dash. Then we all started to calm down and Rainbow apologized.
"I'm sorry..." Dash said. Straitening her scarf with her eyes fixed on the ground.
Discord looked over at Twilight. "I may not be the best friend you all have had, but I'm here now... And so are the others." But those words he said begged a question.
"Others?" Twilight asked as if she already knew the answer.
"Good old Rarity and Pinkie Pie." He said.
Twilight's heart started to pound with excitement and she was about to turn and leave to find them, but one look at the others and she figured it would be best to resolve any problems here first.
"Go on Twi," Apple Jack told her, "We'll be fine right here."
"Yes, I'll explain the mission to you and the others when you get back." Discord said.
"Along with everything else..." Rainbow Dash mumbled.
And with that said, Twilight leaped into the air, her wings gliding her over to the next set of stairs on the corner in front of us. She galloped up that set and turned left down the hall leading back out to the plaza. And when she finally reached that center plateau of the tower, she saw them. Instantly spotting a pink armored titan and a pale coated hunter off by the vaults, chatting. She couldn't believe her eyes as she stood there watching them.
"Are you going to talk to them?" I asked her.
"W- What do I say?" She asked. That question just seemed silly to me.
"Wait here," I said. I heard Twilight call me back, but I didn't listen. I floated up to the two ponies. Both of them looked to me with warm expressions as I said, "Hello, guardians."
"Hiya, Ghost!" Pinkie Pie, the party titan greeted cheerfully.
"Good afternoon, Ghost," Rarity, the blade dancer politely addressed me. It still surprised me to learn just how many ponies Twilight knew back when she was alive. I personally got to know both Rarity and Pinkie when they first arrived at the tower. Both of them I remember came here one after the other. Like with most folks who were chosen by the Traveler's light, they quickly got the hang of things as they not only took part in their assigned patrols but also gained fame in the crucible. Both were highly ranked and dedicated to the light's survival.
Two ponies that I was glad to be allied with.
"Did you hear? I got a guardian!" I told them. They both cheered at that but stopped as they remembered something.
"That's all wonderful darling," Rarity said, "But right now we're looking for a friend of ours. You wouldn't have happened to see a tall alicorn around have you?"
"I have, actually,"
"Really, where!?" Pinkie Pie pushed Rarity aside. And I just moved aside and they saw for themselves.
I could tell from over here that Twilight was telling herself not to cry. Her efforts, of course, were in vain, as she stood there looking at Rarity and Pinkie with a forced smile. Eventually, she couldn't stand it anymore, and... Teleported, to us. Hugging her old friends to the ground. Pinkie Pie burst into tears as Rarity desperately refused to cry, but cracked under the pressure anyway, all of them were bawling for a good minute or two. Then came the smiles, like any good reunion.
"It's so good to see you!" Twilight said before Pinkie Pie clung to her again, tears streaming out her eyes like geysers.
"Likewise, Twilight... Likewise," Rarity said, shedding one last tear.
"So what have you been doing all this time? Dash and AJ have been keeping me up to date on where you two have been! Pinkie, you were just on Mars and Rarity, you were on Venus! So, what were you doing there?" Twilight just wanted to keep hearing stories from her friends. And as much as they would've loved to, both of them looked Twilight in the eye and asked simply.
"Where were you?"
But as quickly as they said it, they realized that that question had more than one answer.
"W- Where was I?" Twilight stuttered. She started thinking. Over thinking.
I should've been here sooner, I should've been here to help... I imagined enough, was what she was thinking. Twilight started to grip her upper left arm with her hoof, squeezing it tightly as she bit her lip. There was a feeling regret within her. And I only noticed it after her friends started saying her name with no response.
"She was just in Ponyville," I said, as Twilight snapped out of her stupor of thought. "I found her near the town hall. And we escaped with her trusty Khvostov!" I then queued Twilight to pull out her gun. And suddenly things became normal. Twilight posed her gun in the air as though it was the pride of her guardianship and the others laughed at how old it was. Now content with the answer I gave them.
For a long time, I had known these guardians, Apple Jack and Rainbow included. As a group that went on more patrols than any in the past couple decades. Searching high and low for something. I had run into them a few times before, only in passing as I looked for my own guardian. Little did I know we were looking for the same thing. Twilight.
Now, the search was over. Now was a time for enjoyment, sharing stories and showing off their gear. And as they did so, I spotted Lord Spike approach from behind Rarity and Pinkie Pie.
"Pinkie!" He called out with his deep voice. Twilight and Pinkie both turned to him with interest. However, Rarity looked away with little on her mind but anger. "I've got a new assignment for you, an energy reading, the moon. You think you could check it out for me?" Spike asked.
"Okie-Doki-Loki!" Pinkie Pie saluted. Taking the piece of paper from his claw, now reading it over. And at this time Rarity glanced at Spike, her eyes were cold as Lord Spike met her gaze.
"Milord,"
"Guardian," They addressed each other. Lord Spike made one look at Twilight and I and waved. We waved back, and he left to return to his post in the hall of guardians. And watching him leave got us thinking about something we forgot.
"The hanger bay!" Twilight and I shouted, suddenly.
"What is the matter with the hanger bay, darling?" Rarity asked in a fright.
"Discord's back!" Twilight said. And both the Titan and the Hunter gave my guardian a tired look.
"We know darling," Rarity said, taking a brush out of her pack to pamper her hair. Pinkie just took the paperwork and used it as a tissue. Their sour expressions told us flat out that they didn't want to see him.
"That's because he ruined my beauty sleep!" Rarity complained, "I had just fortified the perfect spot to rest, but one 'Hey Rarity! Head to the tower with Pinkie Pie,' and the obnoxious volume of his voice shook it apart and alerted every goblin and harpy to my location!"
"Ditto," Pinkie said, "He scared me off a cliff..." There was nothing more to really say after hearing that. Discord was one odd character, his creativity alone makes me both worried and excited to further a relationship with him. Of course, some restraint should be expressed in order for him to stay at the tower. That is if he plans to stay.
"Come on, you two!" Twilight said as she tugged Pinkie and Rarity along to the hanger bay. My guardian moved on ahead with her friends trailing close behind. No words were exchanged as we walked, but I could tell from Pinkie and Rarity's smiles, that they couldn't be happier that Twilight had returned.
Discord looked our way and waved for us to come up to Derpy's workspace, although, Rainbow Dash and Apple Jack were nowhere to be seen from over here. We all thought it strange. "Where are the others?" Twilight asked Discord as we climbed up the stairs to meet him, but no real answer was given besides the obvious. Apple Jack and Rainbow Dash laid motionless on the floor with Discord frowning over them. "What did you do!?" Twilight and the others gasped.
"They weren't cooperating..." he answered, clapping his claws together. And when he did, a ripple of magic hit us all. Nothing drastic happened at first, but after Rarity fell over and then Pinkie, Twilight and I both realized that the spell was meant to make us sleep. Twilight hadn't the energy to cast a counter spell, and I too saw only darkness as my eye shut. Forced by Discord's magic.
