> Thunder > by The Zebra Hybrid > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > No Touching!!! > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cold. That's all he felt as Marcus laid back on the snowy ground, feeling the cold, sharp breeze of the blizzard on his skin. His bottom lip was busted and he could taste the iron flavor of blood inside his mouth. His body ached, protesting to attempt any kind of movement. He didn't care however as he clenched his fists and struggled to sit up. The human instantly took notice that he looked and felt like shit. A few ribs were definitely cracked, a sprained ankle, and not to mention that his armor that he was wearing was dented and scorched. He rolled on his stomach and brought himself to his knees as he looked toward the frozen wasteland that was in front of him. Marcus grit his teeth as he saw a silver object implanted in the snow in front of him. Or more specifically a silver hammer. The same stupid hammer that got him in this predicament in the first place, if only he had listened to someone for once in his life, he would be at home eating cheese balls and getting fat on his couch. Fate, however decided to screw him over apparently and sent him to this cancerous world of technicolor ponies. It wasn't all bad though. He did meet somebody that managed to change his life forever, but now she was in danger and it was all his fault. "Fl-Flurry..." stuttered Marcus as he face planted in the snow below him; his body started to fail due to his injuries and the cold environment starting to take affect on his body. How did he get in this mess anyways? Marcus groaned as the tour group he was in stopped again to marvel at another exhibit in the museum he was in. Three hours. Three DAMN HOURS of hearing the tour guide's stupid puns! Three hours of the some lady's kid crying as loud as they can be! And three hours of the couple making kissing noises at each other! He felt like he was going to snap at any second if this kept up. He should be at home right now, playing PS4, eating, shit, and then sleep. Only to repeat the same process the next day. Why was he here again? "Yo Marcus, you paying attention?" said a voice beside him, to see his best friend and roommate Devon. He had a short black fade, reading glasses, light brown skin, a grey polo shirt, and black jeans. Which explains why he was here and not in the safety of his home. It turned out Devon had won two tickets to this very museum and who does he decide to bring? You guessed it...Marcus. "Come on man," replied Marcus in a bored tone, "You already know the answer to that." "Bruh why aren't you paying atttention?! Aren't you a little interested in this stuff?" Devon questioned as Marcus shrugged his shoulders. "I guess so, I like a good history lesson. However I rather do it from the computer than waste my Saturday out of the house." answered Marcus as he let out a quick yawn. "Come on Marcus, it ain't that bad." "My man, the lady's baby has been crying since this tour started and I think the tour guide is coming on to me." Marcus shuddered as Devon just chuckled. "Bruh, the tour guide is like in her sixties. I doubt she'll have time checking anyone out. Just suck it up and stop being a punk." Marcus grumbled to himself as he continued to walk next to his friend in the tour group. He looked down at himself and noticed that he wasn't even dressed like the rest of the group, who were wearing mostly semi-formal clothes. Him however wore a simple graphic tee, Jean shorts, high-top sneakers, and a snapback. He had dark brown skin, brown eyes, and short black hair. To be quite honest, him and Devon stood out of the group like a pea in mash potatoes. So it's not like he can sneak away- Wait...maybe he can? It's not like they were going to throw him out for not being with his scheduled tour. Devon was going to throw a fit, but he should be alright. Looking for the right moment Marcus quickly stepped away in a nearby hallway and watched his tour group shrink further in the distance. He let out a quiet cheer in victory and was about to head straight to the exit, until he noticed a sign hanging on the ceiling in the hallway he was in. Norse Artifacts Marcus wasn't an archaeologist or a brilliant historian, but he was always interested in Norse mythology and it's history, with Ancient Egypt being a close second. "I guess I could spare a few minutes in here for a bit." Marcus says to himself as he makes his way down the hallway. He looked around in awe at what he was seeing; weapons and armor from Vikings, paintings of ships sailing the northern seas, and paintings of the Norse gods themselves. However what caught his eye was a lone hammer at the end of the hall. It wasn't just any hammer though, this was Mjlnoir, the hammer of the God of Thunder, Thor! Well, it was a replica at least. Marcus quickly made his way to the hammer and studied the details. The maul itself seemed to be a steel cube with the handle being covered in brown straps. Nordic symbols and lettering was engraved on each side of the hammer, but what really set him off was that he was...feeling something toward this hammer. Almost like...it was alive and calling out to him. Which can't be right since this was only a replica. Must be his low blood sugar making him think crazy again. "Marcus! What the hell are you doing in here!" Devon shouted from behind, making Marcus almost jump out of his skin. "Jesus, Devon!" exclaimed Marcus, "Almost gave me a heart attack! How did you even know where I was?" "I followed you dipshit. I figured you would ditch the group the moment you had the chance. So being the good friend that I am I wanted to make sure you were alright." Silence, "The tour guide tried to hit on you too did she?" said Marcus with a deadpan expression. "Oh hell yeah she did. To be honest, she didn't look that bad for someone in their sixties. If I wasn't already taken-" "Bruh! Too much info! I do not want to hear your fetish for older women." Marcus almost gagged at the random images that was now put in his head. "It's not a fetish! It's just a preference!" "My man, I've seen your porn history. It's a fetish." Devon gave a light blush before punching Marcus in the shoulder, "Shut up dude! And how did you get in my laptop in the first place?" "I have my ways," said Marcus with a prideful smirk, "anyways take a picture of me with this hammer." "Thor's hammer? Why am I not even surprised dude just hold on a second, just let me get my- what are you doing!?" Marcus looked to the his friend with a confused expression as he held the hammer, Mjolnir, in his hands. "What? It's just a prop?" "Marcus put it down! Do you know that's an actual relic?" Marcus only rolled his eyes, "Devon, do you expect me to believe that this is the actual Mjolnir, that could level mountains?" "No! That would be ridiculous! I'm saying that the hammer could be over hundreds of years old!" "Dude it'll be fine, just take a quick picture and we'll be out of here." As Devon went in his bag to take out his camera, Marcus felt....weird while holding the hammer. It wasn't like a bad weird but more natural like he had held this hammer before, which was weird considering this is the first time he's holding it. He could've sworn he heard a light 'humm' when he picked it up. Now that he thought about it, why was it sitting out in the open anyways? Wouldn't something as valuable as this have more security? He turned the hammer over in his hands feeling the weight of it, which wasn't light but at the same time wasn't heavy. He scoffed to himself, there was no way that this hammer could be the real deal. The stories about Thor and Mjolnir is just a bunch of mumbo jumbo; not to mention that the hammer looks way to clean and polished to be over hundreds of years old. Yeah, it was probably some prop made by some blacksmith or something. "Marcus, you ready or what?" asked Devon snapping Marcus form his thoughts. "Oh yeah, when ever you're ready." answered Marcus as Devon nodded before pointing the camera at his friend. However none of them noticed the light blue glow emitting from the hammer as the camera flash engulfed the room. Devon put the camera down and looked at the picture and groaned when the image was nothing but all white. "Hey man, gonna have to take another one. I think the flash was to bright." said Devon as he looked up only to find his friend gone along with the hammer. In the spot of where he stood was a black scorch mark with fresh black smoke radiating form the spot. Devon's eyes widened as he looked around the room desperately trying to find his friend. "MARCUS!" "Flurry! It's time to wake up! You don't want to be late don't you?" The mare known as Flurry groaned in her bed as she placed a pillow over her head. The knocking then started to become more louder as the same voice called out to her again. "Alright I'm up!" exclaimed Flurry as she threw the pillows and covers off of her, and across the room revealing the young pink alicorn. Flurry Heart had a pink coat, with wings and a horn, and a purple and pink mane and tail with a blue streak. She slowly stretched stretched her limbs and let out a long yawn before smacking her lips. "Don't give me that tone young lady! Me and your father will be waiting in the dining room for breakfast. You don't want to be late on your special day" said the voice again before the sound of hooves could be heard leaving the door. Flurry Heart, daughter of Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor, and soon to be ruler of the Crystal Empire slowly made her way to her bathroom. She hated having to wake up this early, especially since today is her birthday. She should be sleeping in or at least going somewhere fun. Knowing her parents however, there was probably going to be another gathering at the palace with mostly high class stallions trying to hit on her. Then her dad will get involved, then the yelling, then fighting, and then some nobles getting sent to the hospital. It's been that way almost every year, at least they planned to have the paramedics on stand by this time. The pink princess sighed as she placed a slab of toothpaste on her toothbrush and started to brush her teeth. She loved her parents really much, but she doesn't think being a princess was...well who she is. She can't stand the meetings she has to sit through with her parents and her patience is very thin sometimes. She only wants to one day leave the Crystal Empire and live on her own accord, without the responsibilities of running a kingdom. She wants to know what's beyond Equestria and what other species are like and maybe meet her special somepony and settle down to have a nice family. She rinsed her mouth and spat in the sink before looking in the mirror, "Might as well get this day over with," she says to herself, "I wish nothing goes too bad." Flurry leaves the bathroom and walks out of her room and made her way down the hallway. The guards and maids she passed bowed, causing her to sheepishly wave back. That was another reason why she didn't like being a princess, she is not really fond of the praise and the attention that she was getting. It was fun and cool at first but now it seemed that most ponies think that she doesn't have a life other than being a princess. "I wonder if Mom and Auntie Twilight feel the same way?" Flurry mumbles to herself as she opened the doors to the dining hall to be greeted by her loving friends and family. There was of course her parents, sitting next to them was a purple alicorn and a teenage dragon, which she recognized as Auntie Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friendship and Cousin Spike. Sitting beside them were two more alicorns, one with bright white fur with a flowing rainbow mane and tail and another with dark blue fur with a flowing starry blue mane and tail. These two were rulers of all of Equestria, Auntie Celestia and Luna, Princesses of the Sun and Moon. Oh and Mr. Sunburst was there also, who was an orange unicorn with a red and orange mane and tail. "Looks like the birthday girl finally woke up." called out her father as she sat down at the table. Flurry smiled as she walked to her father giving him a nuzzle before doing the same for her mother. She sat down in the empty seat in between her parents and gave a light yawn. "I kind of wish I could've slept in a bit longer." Flurry says with a tired smile, "What time is it anyway?" The ponies at the table looked at each other before Cadance spoke up, "Sweetie, it's noon." "O-Oh..." said Flurry as a bit of red came on her cheeks, "I-I didn't notice it was that late." "Flurry," started her dad, "You've been sleeping in late recently and it's not fitting of somepony of your status." "Shining is right Flurry," added Cadance, "When you become a princess-" And here they go again. Flurry let out a mental groan as both of her parents started to lecture to her about being a proper princess once again. A princess should always wake up bright and early. A princess should always smile. A princess should be a symbol of hope. A princess should always take a shower before bed! Alright, maybe that last one wasn't too bad since she has been getting a bit of a body odor lately, but did both of her parents realize how much she despised doing all those princess duties? She would tell them how she felt but the problem was however is that she doesn't want to let them down and hurt their feelings. All they are trying to do is help her and want her to be happy. So she deals with all the princess things they assign her to do. It was all for them, but if there was just a single chance of her leaving the palace. No. The Crystal Empire entirely, and go explore the world like she wanted, even if for a little while then she would be grateful. "Flurry," said Cadance gaining her attention, "Did you hear anything I said?" "Y-Yeah!" lied Flurry, "You said-" BOOM Flurry was cut off as the sudden shock wave shook the entire room, surprising the occupants. Flurry nearly fell out of her seat but she was quickly caught by her dad. The sound of screams form the crystal ponies could be heard from outside, as a few crystal guards burst through the doors making sure everyone was alright. "What in Equestria's name was that?!" asked Luna as she was on full guard. "I don't know, but we need to find out quickly and tend to anypony who needs support." replied Celestia as the same guards that entered the room saluted to Prince Shining Armor. "Guards, what just happened?" asked Shining with a stern expression as Cadance was looking over Flurry, who had a annoyed expression due to her mothers overreacting. "Two foreign objects crashed landed in the court yard of the palace my prince." said the guard, "We are unsure how both of them got past the shield, but we have a squad going there to access the situation as we speak." "Good job," responded Shining Armor, "Tell the rest of the guard to focus on the panic while we go see what made this ruckus." The crystal guards nodded before galloping out of the room, Flurry Heart couldn't contain her excitement. Finally something exciting was happening in the Empire for once! As she watched Twilight, Spike, Celestia, Luna,Sunburst and her father leave the room she was ready to follow until a magical grip grabbed her tail and forced her back. "Where do you think you're going, Flurry." said her mother with her horn glowing a bright blue. "Um," said Flurry with a confused expression, "I'm going to help dad and the others?" Cadence shook her head, "No you're not. You're going to stay here until it's safe." Flurry's jaw dropped, "What!? No way!" "Yes, you are!" retorted Cadance, "We don't know who or what we're dealing with yet. So in the mean time you're staying here!" Flurry rolled her eyes and groaned, "I'm not a little foal anymore Mom! Isn't this supposed to be what a princess does anyways? Protecting her subjects?" Cadance's expression softened and sighed, "I-I guess you're right. I'm sorry, I didn't realize that you are growing up and not the same little foal I held in my grasp." Now Flurry felt a pang of guilt in her chest, "Mom, I know you and Dad want to keep me safe but I can handle my self. Also I don't think whatever is down there can beat five alicorns, a dragon, and two powerful unicorns." The princess of love giggled before nodding, "Alright sweetie, just promise me you'll be careful." "Don't worry, I will." Everything hurts. Again he asks himself, why in God's name did he decide to go with Devon on that stupid trip! He could've opened his eyes if he wanted to but with his head still spinning and his muscles aching he couldn't. Wait a second, speaking of Devon why isn't he helping him right now? Can't he see that he is CLEARLY not fine right now! The floor that he was laying on didn't make things better either, he could've sworn the floors in the museum was a smooth marble but it feels like he was laying on a construction site. It seemed that his senses was coming back to him as he started to hear muffled voices around him. Maybe Devon really did call some help, but then why was he still laid out on the floor? It was then the voices started to become more clearer. "What is it?" "It looks like a minotaur. But where are it's horns?" "It doesn't really have that much hair either." What the heck are these people talking about? "From what I'm seeing; this is a human, but he doesn't look like the ones through the mirror though." "Flurry, don't get too close!" "It's kind of ugly." It was then Marcus' eyes shot open as he shot up, hearing the surprised gasps around him, "Who the hell you calling ugly!" he exclaimed as his vision began to focus, he was about to give these people a piece of his mind until the words caught in his throat. He was in a crater, a big crater as a matter of fact, with what looked like shards of broken crystal and rock. Well that explains why the floor felt so rough, but it was clear that he wasn't in the museum anymore. However his new surroundings wasn't the thing that surprised him, but the 'people' around him. "I must've hit my head harder than I thought, when Devon took that picture." mumbled Marcus as standing before and around him were none other than..ponies....girly, magical ponies and dragon. Yeah, he must be dreaming and knocked out in the museum right now. Then again if he was dreaming why was he in so much pain? Marcus glanced at the audience around him and got a good look at these ponies. Some had dark coats, silver armor, and helmets, that reminded him of the Romans. However the other seven ponies and lizard was what caught his attention the most. These didn't resemble the ponies from what he remembered. They had smaller snouts, large eyes, and what looked like softer hooves. The dragon that was with them kind of reminded him of Spyro, if he walked on two legs and had a purple and green color scheme. He managed to stand to his feet and looked to his right to find his hat, but it was hanging on something that he thought he would never see. Mjolnir. As crazy as it sounded to Marcus, he had to admit that he wasn't on Earth anymore. Let alone this being a dream, and all this was because of that divine hammer. Not really paying attention to the ponies around him he walked toward the hammer and grabbed his hat that was on top of it before placing it on top of his head. He then started to have the same feeling he was having back in the museum when he first saw the hammer. He was about to reach out for it until... "Hold it!" One of the ponies, specifically the white unicorn, called out to him. Wait...unicorn....talking? He stopped and looked at the unicorn stallion. "You can talk!?" exclaimed Marcus. "Of course, I can talk. But it doesn't seem you're in the position to be asking questions." replied the stallion in an authoritative tone. "Wha...huh..." stuttered Marcus not knowing what to say. His mind was still trying to process what the hell was going on and how he got in this situation. "Dad, I think you're making him uncomfortable." said the smaller pink unicorn...pegasus...thing, which was now right in front of him giving him the brightest of smiles. "Hi! My name is Flurry Heart. What's your name?" And just like that, Marcus' eyes rolled to the back of his skull and he fell backward hitting the crystal ground. > We're Not In Kansas Anymore..... > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Are you sure you haven't seen a human like him before?" asked a curious Celestia as the purple alicorn shook her head. "I'm certain. The humans I encountered from the mirror have a brighter complexion, like the rainbow on a spectrum. Not to mention that his eyes are way to small." Theorized Twilight. "Maybe he's a different human? Like a different species?" suggested Luna. Twilight put a hoof to her chin, "That could be true, but why is he still human in our world? Normally when you pass through the mirror, it would change your physical appearance to that universe's desire. So he should be a pony like us." The ponies and dragon were now all in the throne room of the Crystal Palace, after lugging the mysterious human to one of the guest rooms in the palace. However when they tried to move the hammer, it wouldn't budge a single inch. Not even the princesses were able to pick up the silver weapon. After a few more failed attempts and a mental breakdown from Twilight, they all had decided to retire to the throne room to figure out where this strange creature came from and how he was able to bypass the shield that surrounded the Crystal Empire. Flurry sat in the corner of the room bored out of her mind as she watched the older ponies and dragon converse about the arrival of the human. They had been here for Celestia knows how long debating, when the human himself could have a concussion in the other room. He did hit the ground pretty hard. Wait, why was she still here? The human technically wasn't a danger to anypony, so maybe she should go check on him to see if he was alright and learn more about him. As she was about to leave the throne room a low cough made her freeze in her place. "Where do you think you're going young lady?" asked Shining Armor, her father, from behind her. "U-um," stuttered Flurry as she turned around to see the stern expression on her father's face, "Pl-Places?" "You're going to see the human aren't you?" Flurry let out a groan, "Dad, I'm nineteen years old! I don't need you and mom to watch over my shoulder all the time!" "Alright." "No you don't understand-..wait what?" Shining gave a smile, "Flurry, I understand that you're older now and that you can make you're own decisions. Which is why I'm not stopping you, but know this sweetie. No matter how old you get your mother and I will always be there for you." Flurry gave a smile back and pulled her dad into an embrace, "I love you Dad-" "But make sure you don't stay with that human too long. Bring a guard with you just in case. I'll tell your mom where you went so she won't get worried." And there it was. Flurry could only smile and nod as she broke the hug and left the throne room. Once the two doors closed behind her she let out a breath of relief to finally be free. Too be honest she didn't expect her Dad to be that understanding, maybe it won't be so bad if she opened up to her parents every once in a while. The pink alicorn then made her way through the crystal halls of the palace and towards the room that held the human that fell from the sky. While walking, many questions swam through her mind. What was his world like? How did he get here? Why did he come here? Is he some kind of warrior? That would explain the hammer, but why couldn't they pick it up? Was he that strong? Maybe it's an enchantment? It was then something clicked in her head. This creature has probably traveled places! Outside of the Empire, or even Equestria! This could be her chance to finally see the rest of the world! All she had to do was make sure she was with him if he ever leaves the empire and her dreams would finally be a reality! Only problem though....her parents. And just like that her hope was taken around back and shot in the back of the head. Her parents would never let her go out of the empire, let alone with a human they just encountered. They are already skeptical on how he managed to get in the Crystal Empire without bypassing the shield. She walked for a few more moments in silence, lamenting her crushed dreams, until she finally made it to her destination. In front if her was one of the guest rooms with two crystal guards guarding the doors. Flurry put on her best poker face and walked toward the guards and spoke in a commanding tone. "Guards, I will require-" "No." interrupted the first guard with a stoic expression. And just like that Flurry's facade shattered. "B-But why!?" The second guard gave an apologetic look, "I'm sorry princess. We have explicit orders from your mother not to let anypony in." "But my dad said it was okay!" Flurry whined. "Sorry princess but your mother is scary when she's angry. Especially when it concerns you. Remember what happened to Private Garnet that was assigned as your personal guard?" "Who's Private Garnet?" "Exactly." Marcus groaned in pain as he came back to the world of the living. His head throbbed every few seconds making him hold his head a couple moments before the pain finally subsided. Was all that pony shit a dream? He opened his eyes slowly and found that he was in a bed. A damn comfortable one at that. Crystal walls surrounded him, with a dresser beside him and two doors, one leading to a bathroom and another he assumed lead outside the room. "So that wasn't a dream," Marcus concluded to himself, "Well shit. What do I do now? I'm trapped on a world full of ponies thanks to that stupid hammer. Speaking of, where is that metal piece of shit?" Marcus looked around his bed to see that the hammer, or Mjolnir, was no where near him. There were two possibilities on where it was; either those ponies confiscated it and were now experimenting on it or they just couldn't lift it due to none of them being worthy and it is still sitting in the crater, where he appeared. Right now however, he could care less about the mystical weapon, and worry more about the fact that he may be stuck on another world with no way back home. That thought lingered in his mind making his expression fall a bit, he may never see his friends and family again. "Oh SHIT!" exclaimed Marcus as he leaned up on the bed, "I left the stove on back at the house!" He groaned and face planted in the pillow, mumbling curses to himself. If he had only just stayed home and not let Devon convince him to go on that museum tour. At least these ponies seemed nice and friendly, judging that he's in a nice, soft, comfortable bed, instead of a cold and dark cage. He looked toward the dresser beside him and found his hat resting on top of it. As he was reaching for it, the door to his room came open making Marcus jump a bit in surprise. He glanced and saw a familiar pony walk in the room. She was the one of the first ones to encounter him when he first arrived in that crater. Now that he had a good look at what she looked like, she didn't look like the ponies back on earth. First of all her muzzle was smaller, with big round eyes, and not to mention that she looked super soft, like a marshmallow or a plushie. As she walked in the door closed behind her. She walked to the foot of the bed.....and she looked nervous. Marcus could only raise an eyebrow, shouldn't he be the one shitting bricks right now? He's still not one-hundred percent sure if these ponies are hostile or not. Maybe they think the same as him? Taking a deep swallow Marcus gave his best smile and hesitantly waved, "H-Hey....I've come in peace?" Smooth. Real smooth. The mare seemed to freeze in place clearly surprised by Marcus' greeting, "H-Hello, I'm here to see how you were feeling?" she answered with a nervous smile of her own. Marcus felt a little relieved and responded, "I guess I'm still shaken by this whole situation. First finding out that I'm not on Earth, and then meeting talking ponies." The pink mare clocked her head to the side, "Earth? Is that where you're from?" "Yeah, it's kind of a crappy place, but you get used to it after a while and call it home. What's your name by the way?" "O-oh, my name is Flurry Heart, or Princess Flurry Heart to most ponies." Marcus internally screamed at the mention of the pony before was actually a princess. He was surprised that his brain hasn't melted down due to all these revelations happening at once. He was staring to think being with that pervy guide back at the museum wasn't a bad idea. Damn, Devon and his cougar fetish must've been rubbing off on him. He needs to fix that later but first he needed to keep calm and find out where he was exactly. "Hey, Flurry was it?" He asks as she nodded in response, "Where in God's name am I anyway?" "You're in the Crystal Empire," she answered, "and judging by your appearance you aren't from around here. If you don't mind me asking, why did you come here?" Marcus could only shrug as he leaned back and rested his head on the soft pillow, "Too be honest, I have no clue. The last thing I remember is that my friend and I were about to take a picture, and next thing I know I'm here and surrounded by talking horses." Flurry gave him a sympathetic look, "So you're saying that you're stuck here with no way to go back home?" Marcus sighed, "Yeah I guess so." Marcus was then faced with the actually reality that he really will never be able to go back home. He'll never see Devon or his family again, and the fact that his house is probably burned down by now. The human smiled and perked up from his bed, "That's fine though," he said to Flurry, "moping around and being depressed isn't going to get me home. So I'll just make the most of this place." Flurry looked at the human a bit confused. He had just learned that he won't be able to return home and here he is smiling like it was okay, "Are you at least a little down, because you can't go home?" Marcus gave Flurry a look making her think back to what she just said. Her face then retorted to a look of regret as a pang on guilt rose in her stomach, "I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean it that way its just-" "Nah, you cool. I understand where you were coming from. Too answer your question though, I am a little bummed out and confused. However I was taught to make the most out of your problems." Flurry smiles, "You're very optimistic you know that?" Marcus smiles back, "It's a gift. God knows I needed it when I was growing up." There was an awkward silence between the two. He didn't really have a terrible childhood, it was just certain variables affected things where he couldn't have or do things like other kids his age. he still doesn't really like to talk about it much with other people. The only other person who knows in specific detail is Devon. "What does that mean?" asked Flurry snapping him form his thoughts. "Don't worry about it . So what's it like being a princess?" Marcus watched as her cheerful expression to one of annoyance, "It's not as great as you think. I barely have any things to do for myself because of my stupid 'duties'. Not to mention that my parents are way to clingy to me, they won't even let me leave my room without an escort most of the time." "It does sound like a lot of work, but it doesn't sound too bad. Have you told your parents about how you feel?" "N-Not really. They do so much for me, that I feel if I say thing it'll make me feel selfish and I don't want to be taking advantage of them." "I'm sure they'll understand. You'll never know until you try." "I guess you're right." Marcus then stretched and swung his legs off the bed before standing. It was then he noticed how small Flurry was compared to him, she wasn't super small due too the fact that she only came up to about his stomach, counting her horn. Marcus then heard a familiar hum as he snapped his head to one of the windows in the room. Flurry gave him a confused and worried look at his sudden reaction and asked, "Are you ok?" Marcus knew that sound, it was coming from Mjolnir. Judging how Flurry couldn't hear the hum like he can it was probably calling to him, "Yeah I'm fine. Hey Flurry you think I can go get the- I mean my hammer?" he answered. "Well, I guess so. I'm sure my parents won't have a problem with you. They seem to trust you anyways." Marcus nodded as he placed his hands behind the back of his head and made his way toward the door, "Yeah I figured that since I woke up here and not in a prison cell with my booty getting taken." Flurry giggled and followed, "Hehe, yeah I guess so....wait what was that last part?" After Flurry had a long struggle of trying to convince the guards that it was okay for Marcus to leave the room. As the two walked they conversed a little about themselves. Which didn't really go well as the both of them thought. For Flurry it turned out that the human didn't like doing a lot of work, as a matter of fact he didn't like work at all. From what she was hearing his friend would literally drag him around to get hings done. Marcus however learned that Flurry, was starting to sound a bit unappreciative from her parents. Yeah, she says that she's not but it doesn't sound like it when she's complaining about them. The two made their way to the courtyard of the Crystal Palace where as the large crater where Marcus arrived, was still present. Lying in the center of the crater was Mjolnir and beside it was two crystal guards, ordered by Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor to keep watch over the mystical artifact. "Are you sure it's okay for me to go over there and pick it up?" Marcus asked with a fearful expression. Yeah these ponies where inferior in terms of size compared to him. However they still had weapons and military training where he only had a metal of eating the most hot dogs in thirty minutes. "Don't worry you'll be fine," assured Flurry Heart, "As long as your with me it should be fine.....I hope." "You hope? That's not very assuring. I would rather not my first impression on these ponies be with me being in jail and..." "For the last time! You will not go to jail and be.....anally violated. Just let me do the talking and you will have your hammer back, and what are you worried about anyway? You're a powerful and brave warrior aren't you?" Marcus gave her a confused look, "Uh, are you talking to me? You said 'powerful' and 'brave', so you must be talking about someone else." The pink princess rolled her eyes, "Of course I mean you! You did survive the fall and has a hammer nopony else can pick up!" "Making a lot of assumptions here. First, I'm no where near brave or powerful. Second the only warrior I am is the warrior that slays roaches in his own house." "But the hammer-" "Was supposed to be a prop at a museum in my world, but turns out it was the real thing. So now here I am on a different world." Flurry groaned and rubbed her temples, "That...complicates things. Look just pretend you're some powerful warrior for now." Marcus looked at her with an eyebrow raised, "Uh why the hell would I do that? I'm trying to befriend the people, er, ponies who are deciding whether I'm dangerous or not. So I don't think lying would be a good idea." "Just keep quiet, I'm good at this. You'll be fine." "That doesn't sound too promising and you know you're starting to sound a bit more ungrateful every second I'm with you." "I am grateful! I appreciate what my parents have done for me! I just need to be out on my own and think for myself for once. Plus you're starting to sound bit more of a lazy couch potato every second I know you." "Touche." The two made their way down the crater where they got a closer look at the two guards, both of them wore the standard guard armor for the Crystal Armor with one of their coats being a dark maroon and the other being a bright orange. The two didn't seem to acknowledge their presence due to the both of them conversing about something. "Hey." said the orange one. "Yeah?" replied the maroon guard. "You ever wonder why we're here?" asked the orange guard as he glanced in the sky. The maroon guard nodded and replied,"All the time. Are we even important? Are we some byproduct of the universe? Is there really a god? I don't know dude, but it keeps me up at night." "What?" "Huh?" "I meant what are we doing in this crater, when we should be out at the local bar." "O-Oh, uh...yeah." "What was about that stuff with the universes and a god?" "Nothing!" Marcus and Flurry gave each other unsure looks at what they were walking on, but continued forward. The two guards noticed them and and saluted toward the princess before aiming their spears at the human who quickly put his hands up. He groaned in annoyance and wanted to tell these two guards that he was not a threat, but he remembered what Flurry said and decided to let her keep quiet and let her take the wheel. "Princess Flurry," said the maroon one, "why is the creature out it's room?" "First of all, it's a he," stated Flurry in a calm but authoritative voice, "Second he is with me so we can retrieve that hammer. It belongs in his possession and it would be kind to return what belongs to him." Marcus was literally speechless this didn't sound like the same pony he had just met moments ago, even when she was persuading the guards to let him leave the room. Also for a princess who hates her duties she is actually really good at it. Does she not realize that many other people would give their life to be in her shoes? He does understand that the bird has to leave the nest some day and her parents does sound a bit over protective of her but they were still her parents though. "Are you sure about that Princess?" added the orange one, "Not even Princess Celestia or Princess Luna could lift this thing. What makes you think this creature could lift it?" Flurry gave a prideful smile and looked over to Marcus, "Call it a hunch. Marcus would be kind and show these two your immense strength?" Wait what? Marcus gave a weak smile and whispered down to her, "What the shit are you doing? I know I'm supposed to be this powerful warrior or whatever, but why are you throwing ME under the bus! Matter fact it sounds like I'm you're damn servant. I don't deal with slavery thank you very much! Racist ass mother-" Flurry harshly whispered back cutting him off, "That's the whole point! Did you not understand? We need them to think that you're some all powerful being. In that case they will be more careful around you and not point spears in your general direction. Also I'm not racist and I hate slavery!" Marcus face palmed and slowly slid his hand down his face. Yep, he definitely should've stayed home today, "Fine...." The human walked toward the hammer as the two guards stepped aside. He again heard the hum coming from the Nordic weapon, but this time however, it was much louder and he could feel everything in his body vibrate with some unknown adrenaline like he was being supercharged. He took a deep breath and wrapped his hand around the handle, grasping it tightly. If he managed to pick this thing up in the museum he could pick it up now. "We're waiting..." said the orange guard in a bored tone. Marcus gulped and then with all his might pulled the handle of the hammer. However the hammer didn't even barely move. His arm however did move and pop out of his socket though. The two guards and Flurry looked at the human's arm as it fell limply at his side making Marcus let out a mighty yell. "FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU-!" > You're Such A Nice Guy! > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "AHHH! DON'T TOUCH IT!! DON'T TOUCH IT!!!" "Marcus, we have to pop it back in place!" "NO!!! YOU'LL JUST MAKE THINGS WORSE!!" "Sir, if you would please just cooperate-" "SUCK A DICK!" Marcus was now in the infirmary of the Crystal Palace, using his good arm to fend off Flurry Heart and another mare,the nurse, from popping his dislocated one back in place. Normally he would let them do what they had to do, but the fact  that they’d never seen his kind before meant that they might not know how the human body works. Yeah, it was just a dislocated shoulder, but he was not taking the risk damn it! "Your arm is just out of its socket!" exclaimed Flurry with an annoyed expression, "Just let the nurse pop it back in pace and you'll be good as new!" "Sir, I promise that nothing bad would happen. It'll be quick, like pulling off a band-aid." He glared at the two of them, but finally he gave a nod. His arm wasn't going to fix itself and he guessed the mare was the only thing closest to medical support. Too be honest,  this wasn't the first time he had dislocated an arm, and he could pop it back in place easily, but the last time he did he somehow dislocated the other arm in the process. Marcus then gave a stern glare toward the mares, "Fine...but if my other arm gets like this, it's your ass on the line!" The mare and Flurry gave confused looks at each other, "We don't have any donkeys though. Not to mention that’s been banned in Equestria since the banishment of Nightmare Moon." Marcus gave them a deadpan look, "Just fix my shit." His tone made the nurse flinch, but she nodded as her horn glowed a bright turquoise, making Marcus' arm do the same. He was about to lash out at the unfamiliar sensation until he actually felt his arm pop back in place. No pain or anything. The glow dimmed from the nurse's horn and so did Marcus' arm, he rolled his shoulder a few times in disbelief.... It was like he’d never hurt his arm in the first place! "W-Wow...that's pretty cool." was all Marcus could say. The nurse blushed, "It was nothing great. Just a simple healing spell." Flurry rolled her eyes, “Anyways, thank you for the help Nurse Diamond." The mare known as Nurse Diamond was snapped from her trance, "O-Of course Princess. Call me when you need anything else!" With a quick bow the mare left the room leaving both Marcus and Flurry.  The human, now glad that his arm was back to normal was in deep thought. Why couldn't he pick up the hammer?  He did it easily back at the museum, so this time couldn't be any different. He sure made a fool out of himself though, he could still hear their laughter as Flurry carried him here in the infirmary. Wait... if he couldn't pick up the hammer then he was never worthy to begin with!  What kind of shit is that! What does he have to do? Be a boy scout? Help little old ladies across the street? "Hey," called out Flurry gaining Marcus' attention, "I'm... I'm sorry about your arm. It's my fault you're here." Marcus looked at the mare, "What are you apologizing for? It's not like you knew this would happen. I'm more mad at myself for being too confident." "Well, do you know why you couldn't lift the hammer?" "Mjolnir." Flurry gave him a confused look, "What?" "The hammer's name, it's Mjolnir.  As for the reason why I couldn't pick it up is because I'm not worthy as of yet.  Which is some cop-out bullshit." "Not worthy? So it’s enchanted?" "In a sense, yes, however it's more sentient than enchanted. I know it wants me to wield it, but I can't." Flurry couldn't believe what she was hearing, a hammer that could think for itself? That's ridiculous! Then again a human appearing out of nowhere is little unbelievable also. The young princess sighed and decided to let it go for now. "So why you?  You're just a lazy potato, from what I see." Marcus gave her a stern look, "That's a low blow, but true. My guess is as good as yours, to be honest my friend Devon would be a much better candidate than me." There was a moment of silence between the two once again. Marcus was in deep thought on why Mjolnir would send him here of all places. Was there an ancient evil that he had to take care of? Did it want him to be some superhero? Or maybe it was just being a dick. That last one seemed to make more sense. The sound of the door slamming open startled them as Princess Cadence and Prince Shining Armor came barging in the room. Flurry barely had time to talk before she was pulled in an embrace and then pelted with kisses and questions. "Flurry! Are you ok!? We heard you were here and we feared the worst!" cried Cadence. "Do you need some juice!? Or maybe some orange slices?" added Shining. Flurry squirmed from her parents grasp, "Mom, Dad I'm fine! Where are Auntie Twilight and the others?" "You're Aunties and cousin decided to leave and Sunburst had returned to his duties," stated the Princess of Love, "They did however leave your presents and an apology for leaving so abruptly." "Right now though, we’re just glad you're safe." added Shining. "Thanks, but like I said I'm fine. It's him you should be worried about." said Flurry, pointing to the human. The two rulers of the empire turned their heads to see Marcus sitting on the bed. The human gave them a wave and smiled, "’Sup." Cadence gave a smile and made her way over to the human with her husband following behind, "It's a pleasure to meet you..." "Marcus." "Marcus. I am Princess Cadence and this is my husband, Prince Shining Armor. We rule over the Crystal Empire." Princess and prince? Didn't the Emperor and Empress rule n Empire? Well, this was magical pony land so maybe some rules don't apply here like back on Earth? "We hope that you are feeling well," added Shining, "We feared the worst when you passed out. However why are you in the infirmary? We could’ve sworn we put you in one of the guest rooms." Marcus froze, "U-um....about that-" "He was protecting me!" blurted out Flurry. "Yeah..wait what?" Cadence turned to Flurry, "Is that so?" Flurry nodded and put on her best damsel in distress facade., "Y-Yeah! Some rude stallions tried to foalnap me in the courtyard! If it wasn't for Marcus fending them off I would've been a goner!" While Marcus was listening to Flurry describe how he’d 'allegedly' fended off a group of foalnappers one thing was going through his mind. This was bullshit!  How stupid did Flurry think her parents were? It was clear that some points in the story she was telling them were exaggerated and unbelievable. Now she was digging an even deeper grave for him and if her parents found out the truth that he was actually sent here on accident and was a complete coward and couch potato, either they will laugh at him assuming it was a joke or they would lock him up and somehow blame him for THEIR daughter lying to them. Once Flurry completed her bullshit lie of a story both parents turned to the human sitting on the bed. Marcus braced himself for what was about to come, there was no way they would've believed a half-assed lie like that. At least he could make a few friends in pris- Wait, were they hugging him? To Marcus' surprise the two ponies were now in a warm embrace with his body. He didn't really know how to react at this point, should he be relieved that they believed Flurry, or should he be worried that they actually believed her! If Flurry managed to get away with that, what else had she been able to get away with.  Oh shit! Was she a hoe?! Do prostitutes even exist here?! Questions for later. "Thank you for protecting our daughter." said Cadence in a motherly tone. "We are forever in your debt. We wouldn't have known what to do if we lost our Flurry." added Shining. Marcus gave them a fake smile and slowly squirmed himself free of the hug, "I-It was nothing! Those bastards were nothing against...my uh...superior warrior-ness?" Flurry groaned and placed her face in her hoof. She wondered how long they were going to keep this charade up before her parents caught on. Judging how the human was performing, probably not too long. Then again, her parents were pretty gullible. Would they even notice? Can a terrible liar trick a super-gullible pony? Questions for later. Cadence smiled, "We must repay you back somehow-" Marcus waved them off, "No I don't think that's necessary." "How about over a nice dinner?" Marcus' attitude then did a complete one-eighty, "Well, I was pretty awesome fending off those evil, dastardly kidnappers. I guess a good-ass meal will do." "That would be great!" said Shining Armor, "Dinner should be started around six or seven. In the meantime, I'm sure you won't mind Flurry showing you around?" "Oh that would be a wonderful idea!" added Cadence as she clapped her fore hooves together, "Since you two are already well acquainted, I'm sure you two will become quick friends!." Ok, now Marcus was starting to lose his appetite. First they sounded like pretty chill individuals, but now it seemed like they only wanted him around just to protect their daughter. Which he understood a concerned parent, he still felt a little used. He guessed Flurry had enough embarrassment from her parents as she quickly pushed both of them out of the room, "Yeah that sounds great," Flurry said quickly, "I'm sure you two have more of your duties to take care of. In the meantime, I'll show Marcus around the castle and the Empire. Sounds good?  Good. Bye!" The young pink princess slammed the door with her magic and turned to face Marcus with a glare. "WHAT THE BUCK WAS THAT!?" she exclaimed in a clearly angry voice. Marcus crossed his arms and glared at her, "I should be asking you the same question! What the hell was with that kidnapping shit?!" "I was improvising!  What's with you accepting dinner with my parents!?  If you haven't noticed, we don't want another conversation like what we just had!  So we need to avoid my parents as much as possible!" He groaned, "First of all, after meeting your parents in person I can agree with you. They are a bit overprotective. However they seem to be cool people, er, ponies. This is all on you, if you hadn't lied in the first place we wouldn't be in this mess." "You just don't understand do you? What do you think they'll do when they find out that you can't protect me? What my MOTHER will do to you?" Marcus shrugged, "I don't know, does it really matter though? If we just tell them the truth about me being from another world I'm sure they would understand." Flurry rubbed her temples and groaned in annoyance. She would have to make it easier for the human to understand where she was getting at. Seriously, why would a powerful mystic hammer choose him to wield it? "Let me break it down for you then.  What happened when you first met us?" Marcus blinked in confusion, but still answered, "I was surrounded by ponies." Flurry nodded, "Yes, but not just any ponies but some of the most powerful ponies in Equestria. Who knew little of your kind to begin with. Tell me when humans find a living being they don't know or understand what do they do?" "Well, I'm no scientist or expert, but most likely we'll study it and maybe dissect....oh I see where you're getting at. Your parents would never do that to me right?" Flurry sighed, "My parents will do anything and I mean ANYTHING to make sure nothing bad happens to me. That's why I want every pony to believe that your more powerful than you are. To make sure you don't end up like Private Garnet." Marcus didn't know who Private Garnet was, but he felt bad for him for whatever reason, "So you're saying that if your parents knew that I was a lazy fat ass, then they'd study me like a lab rat?" "I wouldn't go that far, but they wouldn't be treating you with the respect and pleasantries you’re receiving now." Marcus nodded, "Alright l get it, we'll see how long we can keep this up. However, you need to stop exaggerating on what I can do. Sooner or later they’re gonna want proof on what I can actually do and I'm afraid I'm going to get more than a dislocated arm." Flurry gave a guilty expression and nodded, "Y-yeah....I'm really sorry about that by the way." Marcus felt his chest tighten. Why did she become so adorable all of a sudden? She was like a big pink marshmallow that he could squeeze and cuddle. However, said marshmallow also had a bad temper, and could kill him without a second thought. Yeah, now that he thought about it, she wasn't as cute anymore. "No need to beat yourself up about it," said Marcus as he stood up form the bed, "It's not like you knew I couldn't pick up the hammer.  Let's just bury the hatchet and move on okay?" "Sure," Flurry smiled as she walked toward the door, "Now hurry your monkey butt. I want to show you around the Empire before dinner." Marcus smiled and followed her until something came into realization. Hold up, did she just call him a.... "YOU RACIST SON OF A BITCH!" "And you’re sure that's what happened?" Devon nodded toward the police officer, "Yes sir, I know it sounds crazy but it's the honest truth." The police officer nodded and started to scribble on his notepad as his partner took pictures around the exhibit that held Mjolnir. After a few hours of calling out for Marcus and searching for him around the museum, Devon had decided to call the cops. Once they arrived, he told them everything that had happened, from him and Marcus arriving to the museum, to them splitting off from the rest of the group, and then Marcus' mysterious disappearance. They had checked the cameras but all they saw was static, right when Devon was taking a picture of Marcus. Once the static cleared it showed the hammer and Marcus gone without and trace and a confused Devon. "So what happens now?" asked Devon with a hopeful expression. "Look kid, I'm gonna be honest," started the cop, "the only thing we can do is put his name in a missing case file. We’ll give you a call once we find something, but until then we have to play the waiting game." "That's it then? There's nothing else you can do?" "I'm really sorry, but that's how it is. Sometimes these disappearances are too unnatural to solve. I hope you understand." Devon sighed but nodded. The cop placed a hand on his shoulder and gave him a comforting look before he walked over to his partner. Devon watched as the two policemen collected their equipment and left the area. He walked over to a nearby wall and leaned against it before sliding down to a sitting position. He buried his face in his hands and softly cursed to himself. "Damn it," he whispered,"where the hell did you go dude? People don't just vanish into thin air. Do they?" Devon heard footsteps walk toward him, but he paid them no mind. He was too busy lamenting over his missing friend that he may never see again. He wants to blame himself for what happened, but he knows  Marcus wouldn't have it if he was here. He let out a small chuckle, that was one of things he respected about Marcus. Yeah, he was a lazy ass and should have a job by now, but he was selfless and always cared more for others than himself.  In his opinion that trait about him was going to get him killed some day. No matter how many times Devon told Marcus to think for himself once in a while, he simply refused. Which he couldn't blame after what happened to his- "Ahem." a sudden cough snapped Devon form his thoughts as he looked up to see two men dressed in black suits. One was tall and lean with shoulder length brown hair and eyes, while the other was a tad shorter and a more broader build with short brown hair and eyes. "Can I help you two?" asked Devon with a curious expression. Who were these two? "Hello sir," said the shorter man, "I'm Agent D and this is my partner Agent S. We're here to talk about the disappearance about your friend?" Devon raised an eyebrow, "So you're feds? I though I only called the police. Plus, I already told them what I know." "That may be true," stepped in Agent S, "But it's better to get the story from the witness themselves rather than the police.  Story could be changed." Devon looked at the two suspiciously. Something wasn't right here, he knew for a fact that he ONLY called the cops and no one else. The police would’ve contacted the feds for some assistance but for them to come this soon? That didn't sound right, it was almost if that they knew what happened in the first place. "Alright, quit with the bullshit." said Devon as the two agents kept their stoic expressions, "Who are you two really? FBI? CIA? Some secret organization funded by the government?" "Sir," Agent D said cautiously, "I think you're just in denial that your friend-" "His name is Marcus and I'm not stupid! There is no way you two would've known about the situation this early! Even if the police contacted you! So who are you?" The two agents looked at each other and then nodded in a silent agreement. "Are you sure you want to know what we do?" asked Agent S. "Once you find out, there’s no going back.  Trust us." added Agent D. Devon nodded, "I just want to know what happened to my friend, and if there’ is a way to bring him back!" There was a small pause as Devon stared down the two agents. To be honest, he felt like shitting bricks right now. He didn't know what these two were capable of, and they could probably kill him and make him disappear.  But, Devon was smarter than he looked, he knew that whoever these two were needed him and couldn't afford to lose him, so he had the advantage. "Alright," said Agent S, "But you have to do what we say and when we say it." "We're serious," Agent D stepped in, "We've dealt with things you could only see in your worst nightmares." Devon gulped and put on a determined expression, "I-I'll do whatever it takes, agents." "No need to call us agents. We were kind of surprised you saw through our facade so easily," said Agent D as he held out his hand. "I'm Dean Winchester and this is my little brother Sam. I promise you that we’ll get your friend back whatever means necessary." > You Got The Touch! You Got The Power! > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Marcus followed Flurry around the palace, after a heated argument on why she shouldn't call someone...of his color, a monkey, she’d finally apologized and started his little tour of her home.  Huh, why was he getting a sense of deja vu? Probably nothing. Flurry had shown him first the main foyer, then the barracks, then the kitchen. He kind of stopped listening after that and let his mind wander to a certain piece of junk still resting in the crater outside. It still confused him as to why Mjolnir would send him here and then have him not be worthy.  He had come to terms that whatever this hammer wanted from him, he had to find out. It's not like he had anything better to do in magical pony land, or Equestria, as Flurry called it.  The only problem was how to prove to Mjolnir that he was worthy of wielding it: from what he’d been told, Equestria was a place of friendship and harmony. He felt like throwing up just thinking about it.  However, he and Flurry were lucky that Shining Armor and Cadence believed them about the foalnappers. "And this here is- Marcus? Are you even listening?" asked Flurry, snapping Marcus from his thoughts. "Huh? Oh yeah! You said something about...uh...." "Are you serious!? You weren't listening to anything I said?!" Marcus put on a prideful smirk, "I have you know I was listening! I just stopped after you showed me the kitchen." Flurry rubbed her temples,"You're unbelievable." "Not the first time I heard that." Flurry sighed, "Fine, at least listen as I explain this last room we’re about to see. Then we can go meet my parents in the dinning room for dinner." "Alright, but weren't we supposed to look at the rest of the empire? Or is it city? It's not really an empire if your goal isn't to expand." "The reason why we're not looking at the rest of the empire is because I don't want to explain every little crevice if you aren't going to be a bit interested," She replied, "Plus I want this dinner to be quick as possible." "Hey, that reminds me... where am I going to be staying?" Flurry stopped as Marcus almost ran into her backside. She hadn’t thought about that. Marcus was sent here against his will with no money, and no way to support himself. "Well, I guess if my parents are okay with it, you could stay here for a little bit." Marcus rose an eyebrow, "Really? Just like that?" "Of course! You might be a lazy potato, but I'm not going to throw you out into a world you know nothing about." "Wow...uh...thanks I guess." Flurry furrowed her brow, "You don't sound too excited." "Don't get me wrong, but this is one of the few times someone actually did something for me without wanting something in return." "Oh....then you’re welcome." There was an awkward silence between the two. Marcus looked to the side, out the nearby window. Flurry looked down at the floor and played with her forehooves. It was then Marcus finally broke the silence. "So, how about you show me that last room?" Flurry was snapped from her daydream and lightly flushed in embarrassment, "R-Right, just follow me." Marcus only nodded as he followed the young princess into a nearby door, which looked a bit more decorative than the other doors in the palace, excluding the ones that led to the throne room. As they walked in, the first thing he noticed was pink. Pink everywhere. Everything was pink; the bed, dresser, floor, walls, ceiling, and even the bathroom were pink. At least there were different shades of pink or Marcus would've clawed out his eyes from all the pink.  Pink, pink, pink! (He had to admit though, it did look kind of pretty with it made out of crystal.) "This is my room." Flurry said, catching his attention. Marcus rose and eyebrow, "It is? Well....um...it looks interesting. The decor was well thought up, and..uh...I see you’re a big fan of pink." "You don't have to be nice. To be honest I can't stand my room." "Oh thank God! I didn't know how long I could keep that up. This room is so bad I rather sleep in a crappy trash can. I mean look at all this pink! I feel like I might go blind and then throw up in your toilet. How do you managed to sleep in here? If I were told this was my room I would've ended it all right when-" "ALRIGHT! ALRIGHT! I GET IT! MY ROOM IS TERRIBLE!" Marcus put his hands up in defense,"Ok....no need to bite my damn head off." "Ugh, sorry for snapping." "Let me guess, your parents?" "What was the first clue? You don't even want to know how many times I I’ve asked to change rooms, but mom and dad just weren't having it. Said this room holds too many memories. They think I'm going to destroy the place for Celestia's sake!" "Don't you think you're overreacting? I mean, yeah the room looks like a pink piece of shit that needs more than flushing but it's nothing to worry about." "Oh and pray tell, what would you do if you had a room like mine?" "Well first I'll try to talk with my folks. If that doesn't work, I'd fix up the place you know? Starting with getting rid of all this pink. I'm surprised you haven't done that yet." Flurry just stared at Marcus, why hadn't she had thought of that in the first place? It's not like anything was stopping her, and she didn’t think her parents would complain. She wasn’t moving out of the room, like they were worried about, just changing some things out. She couldn’t tell Marcus that though! Not like he pay attention anyway. Putting on a confident expression, Flurry looked to Marcus. "O-Of course I thought about that," lied Flurry, "I-I was just worried what my parents would say." Marcus rolled his eyes. It still baffled him how she got away with most of the shit she did. She was a terrible liar, whether her parents were brain-dead idiots or they loved her too much to even care. It was probably both of those options if he was being honest to himself. "Of course," he replied, "You know, you're a terrible liar." "What!? I'm an excellent liar!" "Uh bitch, no you're not. It's a miracle that you haven't been caught as of yet." Flurry puffed out her cheeks and sat on her haunches, crossing her fore legs. Marcus had to say, if this pink princess was cute before, she was goddamn adorable now!  It literally took all of his willpower to not grab her and pull her into a back- breaking hug. Now that he thought about it though, could he be actually to do that? These ponies looked fragile enough, however if what Flurry had told him about two of them moving the sun and the moon was true, then that probably wasn't a good idea. Wait, why did he think of that of all things? He was just thinking of how adorable Flurry was to questioning if he could break her back. If he ever found a way back to Earth, maybe he’d consider actually leaving his house and hanging with Devon. The anime he watched and the games he played are not helping him in the situations here in Equestria. Wait, what if- "Hello!? Equestria to Marcus?" exclaimed Flurry as she waved a hoof in front of the human's face, snapping him from his thoughts. "Huh, what do you want?" Flurry groaned, "What I want is for you to actually pay attention for once. While you were daydreaming one of the guards came in and said that dinner is rea-" "Why didn't you just say that before? I'm starving!" "I don't think you should be that excited about food." Marcus raised an eyebrow and glared at Flurry, "What, you calling me fat or something?" Flurry shrugged, "Well not fat, but you do look a few extra pounds heavy. Not to mention the small gut you have going there." Marcus snorted and slapped his stomach, "I’ll have you know that ladies love a man who's as thick as them!" "I'm sure they do." "Don't mock me woman!" Flurry couldn't help but giggle as she turned her back toward Marcus and made her way toward the door, leading back in to the crystal hallways, "Yeah, let's just go get some food. We don't want to keep my parents waiting. They might assume...things." Marcus followed her, placing his hands behind his head in a lazy manner, "Sorry Flurry, you're cute and all, but you're not my type." Flurry whirled around making Marcus stop abruptly, "What's that supposed to mean!" "Well, judging by the bitchy attitude I wouldn't date you. Not to mention that i'm not into bestiality-" SMACK "So you two hunt monsters?" asked a curious voice from the backseat. Sam and Dean had led him to their car, were now explaining to him why they were at the museum as Dean drove. It turned out that these guys were 'Hunters' for the paranormal.  He’d kind of hoped they were with the Men in Black, but that theory was quickly shot down. "We do," started Sam, "but we also investigate other things, like cursed objects, cults, and mysterious disappearances." Dean nodded as he tapped the steering wheel, "Your friend, Marcus, is part of a series of strange disappearances all over the country.  Me and Sam had been on this case for a while now, and like always we end up with nothing. Hell, not even the Angels know what's going on." Devon raised an eyebrow, "Angels?" "Don't worry about," said Sam, "Me and Dean have a way to find out where the next disappearance will occur. They usually happen in crowded places. A school, a social event or con, or in this case a museum." "If you two know where these disappearances happen at, wouldn't it be easier to help these people?" Dean shook his head, "I wish it was that easy. The thing is, they’re at random. We could go to one of those locations right now and nothing would happen. In the meantime another disappearance could be happening somewhere else. We just got lucky when we ran into this one." Devon put a hand to his chin. There were so many things happening. Not only was his friend part of a series of missing peoples but it turned out that monsters, like vampires and werewolves , were also a thing now.  How was he even supposed to be the same after today? Did he need to buy some garlic? Maybe silver? "There is one thing that's bothering me though." said Devon. Dean nodded, "Go ahead kid. We're all ears." "First of all, I'm twenty-two.  Second, you two said that you knew, or at least you have an idea on how to bring Marcus back, but you just said that every case you guys have on this has ended cold." "It is true that we have a plan, but....it's complicated." "What's so complicated about it?" Dean put on an annoyed expression as he clenched the steering wheel a little tighter,"We need a witch." "Oh, shit. I might not know anything about witches but just by your tone alone, it doesn't sound good." Sam nodded, "We can handle a few witches, but we have to be careful. Unlike the other monsters we hunt, witches are better at blending in, not to mention difficult to predict.  One wrong move and that could be it." "Look enough talk," exclaimed Deana as he stopped the car, "Now we get down to business." Devon looked out the window and noticed that they were in a parking lot. and right in front of them was the local burger joint. He raised an eyebrow and looked at Dean from the backseat. Why would he stop here? Did they have a contact here that could help them find this witch? Wait....were they just here to get lunch!? "Excuse me, why the hell are we at the local burger joint?" questioned an annoyed Devon. Dean looked back at him like he had a screw loose, "We're here to eat, what else? I always wanted to try this joint when I was in California." "What about Marcus!?" Sam sighed, "I know this is tough, but it's best that we relax right now and clear our heads. We can't just go hunting for a witch.  We need leads. We can use my laptop inside while we eat." Dean, without a second thought, left the vehicle and quickly made his way into the burger joint. Devon could only chuckle, this Sam and Dean reminded him of Marcus and himself. Maybe the two were right, he had to have a clear head if he wanted to see Marcus again. Especially if he was going to up against a witch of all things. He watched as Sam exited the vehicle, with him following short after. "Hold on Marcus," Devon said quietly to himself, "I'll be on my way." "Oh my goodness!" Princess Cadence exclaimed as Marcus and Flurry entered the dining room, "What happened to your cheek?" Marcus sat down at the table with a red, throbbing mark on the right side of his face. Flurry gave a 'hmpf' as she sat in the chair across from him. "There's no need to be worried princess," assured Marcus as he glared at Flurry, "I just underestimated an annoying and bitchy bug." "Well, maybe if you hadn't agitated the bug so much this wouldn't have happened to you." barked back Flurry. Luckily the two parents were too stupid to catch their bickering. In fact the both of them were staring at the two with bright smiles plastered on their faces. "It's so good to see our Flurry making some friends!" exclaimed Shining. Marcus just gave the two rulers of the Crystal Empire a blank stare before whispering to Flurry across the table, "Are these two actually serious right now? They have to be bullshitting, there is no way someone is this ignorant." "You'd be surprised," whispered back Flurry, before she turned to her parents, "Mom, Dad can we get started with dinner already?. I didn't have a chance to show Marcus the outside of the castle." "Are you sure about that sweetie?" asked Cadence with a concerned expression, "It's getting kind of dark now and we don't want those foal-nappers coming back." Shining Armor put a hoof on his wife's shoulder, "It'll be fine. Marcus helped fend them off before and he can do it again. Right ol’ champ?" Ol’ champ? Marcus was a grown ass man! He didn't know how long he was going to take these two's constant baby talk and innocence. He was really considering to just get up and leave the room, but there was food on the line and knowing himself he couldn't pass up a good meal. His grandma taught him better than that. Marcus then noticed the stares he was getting from not answering Shining's question and snapped himself from his thoughts. "U-Um, yeah! That was all me!" said Marcus, somewhat confident, "Trust me, if those bandits every come around here i'll knock a few screws loose." "I'm sure you would," laughed Shining, "Now let's eat before our food gets cold." As if on cue, a multiple of ponies dressed in cooking uniforms came from the back door with each one carrying a silver platter and top. Marcus couldn't contain his excitement, he hadn't ate anything since that tour in the museum and he may or may not have considered of eating Flurry. One of the ponies placed a platter in front of him. Marcus instantly grabbed the fork and the knife by his plate and lifted the platter. Only for a frown to come on his face. "What the hell is this?" he asked in a baffled tone. Cadence, Shining, and Flurry gave him a confused look, "That's the dinner we prepared." "No, it's not. It's just grass and leaves! Where's the seasoning! Where's the beef!?" Flurry kicked Marcus from under the table making him yell out. He turned and glared daggers at the young princess who stared back with equal hatred, "If you haven't notice Marcus, we ponies are herbivores." Cadence nodded, "That's right Marcus. We apologize for the misunderstanding, we completely forgot that Twilight said that you humans are omnivores." Marcus crossed his arms and looked at the plate of literal plants in front of him. It was kind of on him for not assuming that the ponies only ate vegetables and all healthy crap. They could of at least made it look appetizing though. From what he was looking at, his meal resembled something from a damn greenhouse! If they had it, he would've just grabbed something from that local burger place back home and- Wow, maybe Flurry was right about him being a few extra pounds. Putting his train of thought behind him he glanced toward Shining and Cadence who had guilty expressions. He grumbled inside his head and mentally slapped himself. Now he felt bad for snapping, it wasn't their fault they didn't know anything about his dietary needs. Then again there's nothing wrong with a little more green in his life. "No need to apologize," replied Marcus, "I shouldn't have snapped like that. Anyway, I'm starving." As Marcus was about to grab the fork next to his plate, something struck the table near his hand making him flinch back. He looked at what almost took his had off and noticed that it was an arrow. A damn freaking arrow. He was so awestruck by the sudden projectile that he almost didn't even notice Cadence and Shining Armor rise from their seats as they glared at the kitchen staff. Only now they didn't look like kitchen staff. There were 13 of them in total, 12 of them looked like regular ponies without the wings and horn while wielding crossbows or swords. How are they even holding them with hooves? What really caught his attention was the unicorn mare holding Flurry in a magical grip with a sadistic grin on her face. What confused him though was how she got Flurry in the first place? Wasn't she supposed to be some powerful alicorn or whatever? "What is the meaning of this!?" exclaimed a very angry Cadence, "Let go of our daughter at once!" The unicorn mare chuckled as her horn started to glow a deep green, "No can do, Princess. Not until you listen to our demands, and if not, you'll have to scrape your little brat from the walls of the palace!" Marcus watched as both Cadence and Shining Armor stayed where they were obviously not about to risk the life of their only child. The two weren’t the same loving parents he met before. They held battle-ready expressions you would see on a soldier, and he was sure that even though they were pretty stupid, they definitely weren’t pushovers. He really hoped there was something that he could do, but what could he do? He was only a normal guy.  He wasn't even supposed to be here in the first place! Flurry was being held hostage and her live was being threatened. So calling for the guards were out of the question. The kitchen doors then flew open and more of the hostile ponies surrounded the three. This time there were some pegasi and unicorns which made things more complicated. How did they all sneak in? Judging by the attire that they all wore, they must’ve impersonated the staff and even some of the guards. He looked to Cadence and Shining Armor, whose horns were glowing brightly. "Marcus," whispered Cadence, "You wouldn't have any plans would you?" He shook his head, "I-I have no clue. I'm hog tied." "Fine," suddenly said Shining as his horn dimmed but keeping his stern expression, "What are your demands?" The mare grinned sadistically. This was going perfect for her, just like she predicted the young alicorn was only a novice when it came to magic, which made it easy to contain her. Her parents wouldn't dare attack without causing their precious daughter any harm in the process. Not to mention that the guards were easy to handle, thanks to the illusion spell she cast on herself and her party. She had to admit however, the arrival of the ape creature was unexpected but it didn't look like he could pose any threat. "The Crystal Heart," the mare said confidently, "bring me that and she will go free." "That's impossible!" exclaimed Cadence, "Without the Heart, the empire will freeze over! Tons of lives will be in misery!" "I'm sorry, is the Princess of Love putting her people before her own daughter? Not really motherly if you ask me." "That's not what she meant," stepped in Shining Armor, "there has to be another way." The mare shook her head, "Absolutely not. My employers is paying me and my entire crew a lot of bits for either the Crystal Heart or this prissy little princess. Either way, we aren't leaving until a Heart is in our possession!" Marcus usually would've made a snarky remark  to the mare because of the terrible pun she had just made. However given the situation he was in, it didn't seem like the right move. He looked toward Shining and Cadence, who both lost their glares and had the worried looks of parents. He looked toward Flurry and she didn't look like the same mare he met. She was scared and hoping for anything t get her out of this situation. The two made eye contact, small brown gazing into large light blue. He took in a deep breath and exhaled. He really hated that he put others before himself. "Hey!" he called out gaining the attention of the mare. He almost shit himself right there as the crossbows and swords the other ponies were wielding were pointing at him. "What gives you the right to speak down upon me ape?" demanded the mare. Marcus got a good look at the mare and she screamed overconfident. She had a dark grey coat, a smooth black mane and tail, green eyes and of course a horn. He gulped and started to reconsider until his gaze landed on Flurry again, why did he have to be raised like this? He sucked up all the doubts and stepped forward trying to ignore the crossbows and swords pointed his way, "My name is Marcus and...I have a proposition for you." The mare raised an eyebrow, "What kind of...proposition do you speak of ape?" "Well, racism aside. I....I want to trade places with Flurry." Silence. Flurry couldn't believe what she just heard. This human that she only had met today, who had been a pain in her flank....had offered to be taken hostage for her sake. She should be relieved but the uneasy feeling in chest had gotten even worse. "M-Marcus....You don't have to do that!" cried out Flurry. Marcus only smiled, "Don't worry about me. It's probably not even that bad being held against my will. Hopefully they’ll have some better food than what you guys have." "Hold it," said the mare, "We haven't agreed on anything. What makes you think that you would be of greater value to my employer?" "If you haven't noticed yet I'm the only one of my species here. A human to be exact," replied Marcus, "and from what I'm hearing the guy you're working for wants something in value?" The mare stayed quiet confirming Marcus' question,"Here's the deal, I go with you and Flurry stays with her parents along with this 'Crystal Heart'. You get paid, your boss gets something equal in value, and everybody else can go about their business." The mare gave him a curious look before smirking, "You drive a hard bargain human. I'm sure my employer won't mind a change of plans." With that said the green magic constricting Flurry vanished and she was dropped to the crystal floor. The young princess wasted no time in galloping back to her parents. Not before giving him a worried glance, but he only smiled and nodded. "Alright human you know the deal." said the mare as Marcus nodded, "Just know that it is out of my control on what my employer will do when I bring you back instead of the things we were paid to get." "Just make sure my black-ass doesn't get-" Marcus stopped mid sentence as he heard a familiar humming from outside the window. He felt the inside of his body tingle and warm up like a firecracker. He clenched his hands as they started to shake. He had felt this before….when he was close to Mjolnir. He couldn't help but smirk as he knew what that meant. "What is it human?" questioned the mare as her horn started to glow a deep green, "Having second thoughts?" Marcus let out a chuckle as the ponies in the room were oblivious to the small metal object that was speeding towards the window at mach speed. "Actually I am," said Marcus as he looked toward the mare and held his hand out toward the window, "It turns out I won't be able to go with you. Instead I'm going to kick your bitch-ass-" 'CLONK!' Marcus didn’t even have time to finish his one-liner before Mjolnir slammed through the window.....and right into the side of his head, sending both him and the mystical hammer through the nearby wall. > Godly Stupidity.... > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The ponies in the room could only look in shock and amazement as Marcus stumbled out the massive hole that was in the wall, rubbing his now bruised cheek, holding the mystical silver hammer tightly in his other hand. "Goddamn! That stings!" he hissed in pain, "Why does this thing hate me so much!?" The lead mare was snapped from her trance and barked toward her followers,"What are you idiots doing!? Kill the ape and take that bratty princess!" Marcus gulped as half of the raiders pointed their weapons at in his direction. Maybe this wasn't the best idea, even with Mjolnir in his grasp he wasn't really sure how to actually use it to its full potential. The best he could do at this point was to swing and hope that he hits something. As the group of raiders slowly advanced towards him he noticed the rest of them going for Flurry and her parents. Which reminded him not to piss off Flurry's parents anytime soon. The group of raiders that advanced on their positions were getting their asses kicked. No, scratch that. Obliterated. He kind of felt bad for the raiders that had dared to challenger both rulers of the Crystal Empire.  That’s when he noticed Flurry slowly backing toward the door that led back out to the hallway. She must be planning to go get the guard, however he noticed the lead mare keeping her gaze on Flurry as well. That wasn't good, Flurry's parents were too occupied with the other raiders to even notice. All that mare had to do was find a right opening and then she'll have Flurry for leverage once again- 'Duck.' "Huh? SHIT!" Marcus exclaimed as he dropped to his knees from a nearby arrow bolt that nearly struck between his eyes. He let out a breath from that near death experience, but was wondering what that random voice was- 'Roll right!' Marcus rolled to the side as a nearby blade struck the floor where he once was.  He didn't know if he was finally going insane or if there really was a voice speaking to him. He didn't really care about that at the moment, it was keeping him alive and that's was all he needed at the moment. 'Swing left!' He didn't hesitate and followed the instructions that was ordered. As a result the mystical hammer impacted a nearby raider's chest as a crack echoed through the room. Said pony was then sent soaring across the room and out the window never to be seen again. Marcus paused and looked at the hammer and back at the raiders, who held shocked and fearful expressions. "Y'all are gonna get it now!" He exclaimed as he struck the hammer into the floor. Only for the ground to cave in from under him and the raiders sending them under to the next floor. Marcus groaned in pain as he looked up at the hole above him. He looked to the hammer next to him and grabbed it. He stood up and checked his surroundings to see the raiders slowly pick themselves up, along with their weapons. 'Behind you' Marcus instantly turned around and blocked an incoming blade with Mjolnir. With strength that surprised both him and the pony, Marcus kicked the pony in the chest sending him tumbling like a rag-doll. "Jesus! I didn't mean to kick him that hard!" He yelled to himself, "but I guess they do deserve what's coming for trying to kidnap Flurry...oh and trying to kill me." Marcus watched as the raiders stalked toward him and then glanced down at the hammer in his grip. He felt something spark in his brain as he grinned. Looking back at the group of raiders of approaching, he gripped the strap at the end of the handle and twirled Mjolnir at abnormal speeds. With a loud yell, he threw the hammer, however he didn't really calculate his height compared to the ponies, so as a result, Mjolnir soared harmlessly over the heads of the raiders and straight through another nearby wall, causing it to collapses behind them. The raiders looked back at the wall and then back at Marcus, who was now sweating more bullets than usual. That had gone much better in his head than the final result. As they started to advance on him, he almost didn't notice Mjolnir bursting back in the room knocking down a couple raiders in the process. Actually ready for the hammer this time, Marcus held out his hand and caught it in his grasp. The raiders now started to back away as Marcus smirked and started to twirl the hammer in his grasp, "I think I'm starting to get the hang of this." He let out an....interesting.....battle cry and charged the raiders. “LEEROY JENKINS!!!” The grey mare watched in shock as half of her raid was sent through the floor to the one below. The rest of her forces were being decimated by Cadence and Shining Armor alone, and if Flurry left the room she would get the rest of the guard and it would be game over for her.  She needed to get involved now before everything fell apart. Cadence and Shining Armor had quickly gone back into in action after Marcus sent the group of raiders below. The two were glad that he was fighting on their side and not the other. Cadence took a quick glance behind her and saw her daughter visibly shaking and slowly backing away from the chaos. Shining and herself would have dealt with these raiders easily by now, but with their daughter in close proximity they couldn't afford to use all their magical power for fear of catching her in the crossfire. "Flurry!" exclaimed Cadence, snapping the young princess from her panicked trance, "You have to go and get the guard!" Flurry looked to the door and the hole that Marcus fell through. Everything was happening so fast that she couldn't keep up with what was going on around her. Not to mention these strange ponies were fighting their way towards her.  However that wasn’t the entire reason why she wasso petrified. It was because she wasn’t' doing anything, her parents were right in front of her risking their lives to keep her and the country safe. Even Marcus, the lazy human she had gotten to meet today, managed to suck up some courage and stand up for her. She could feel the tears forming in the corners of her eyes, "B-But..." "We'll be fine sweetie!" added Shining as he brought up a a pink barrier blocking multiple arrows sent his way, "But you need to run! If you find Marcus, allow him to escort you!" Flurry hesitantly nodded before making a break for the doors. She burst through the two and ran down the hallway, looking frantically for a guard that was on patrol. She passed every room and turned every corner, but everywhere she looked there wasn't a crystal guard in sight. Were they all impersonated? No, that can't be right. Most likely they have replaced every guard in the palace. However that meant that the guard outside the palace are still loyal.  A sudden shake of the ground almost made her lose her balance. "Th-That must be Marcus." she said to herself as she ran to the nearest stairwell and descended to the floor below.  Once she reached the floor she spread her wings and flew down the hallway toward the source of the tremors. She needed to get to him, so then he could lead her outside. There was no way she could do it alone. The tremors got more frequent until they suddenly stopped. Flurry flapped her wings harder feeling something tighten in her stomach. She finally came to a door that was barely hanging on its hinges and gulped. With a gentle nudge of her hoof the door fell over revealing the art gallery. She instantly noticed the giant hole in the ceiling confirming that this was where Marcus and the other raiders had ended up. She gasped as she saw the the unconscious and beaten bodies if the ponies that tried to kidnap her. Did Marcus do this? Did he win? If so where was he? Flurry then felt a small tap on her flank making her face heat up and causing her to buck her hindlegs backwards. "AH! SHIT!" screamed Marcus as he fell over clutching his family jewels, "What in God's name was that for!?" Flurry turned around with an angered expression, with her face still flushed, "Marcus!? What do you think you're doing!?" "I WAS trying to get your attention. I see now that was a bad idea." "You think!?" Marcus just flipped her off and slowly stood to his feet still holding the factory that would probably never produce children now. Flurry's angered and embarrassed expression softened however when she observed Marcus' condition. His clothes were torn and wrinkled. He had a black eye, and a busted lip, which was leaking fresh blood. His hat was also missing ,and there were bruises and cuts along his arms. She was so entranced by his wounds she barely noticed Mjolnir held tightly in his grasp, while his other held his...special area. "H-Hey," she squeaked out, "You don't look so good." Marcus rose an eyebrow and looked down at himself, "Yeah, even with these new bad-ass powers, I kind of assumed I was invincible. Turned out that wasn't the case and got my ass beaten, but a win is a win in my book." 'The only reason you are alive right now was because of me guiding you' "Shut up!" Marcus yelled making Flurry flinch. "Well excuse me for trying to be nice!" "Oh wait! Not you Flurry!" 'It appears you made her mad' "You're not helping asshole!" "What do you mean! I'm the one who needs help!" "Flurry! I will get to you in a moment." 'You know, as a female, it is not wise to raise your voice towards another female' "Wait...you're a girl!" "Of course I'm a girl!" Marcus groaned as he punched the bridge if his nose, "Flurry, I'm trying to be as calm and collected as I can, but I can't do that when you don't listen." Flurry gave the human a deadpanned look, "Marcus, what the hay are you talking about? Did one of those bandits knock a screw loose?" "I'll explain later. Right now we need to figure out a plan to deal with these raiders or whatever." "That's right! I need you to escort me outside of the palace. The raiders have taken control of the whole palace, without the exterior guards knowing." "So you wanna alert the guards outside and have them storm the place. It's the best bet we’ve got. What about your parents?" "They’re.... still holed up in the dining room, but I don't know how long they’re gonna last." Marcus put on a stern expression and crossed his arms, "Crap....looks like we’re going to have to handle this ourselves." "What!? I can't fight! Not to mention you probably need medical attention." 'The pink one does have a point. In your condition, you wouldn't stand a chance against that mare. However with the palace being taken over there is also a lower chance of you reaching the guards outside in time.' Marcus cursed to himself; it was just his luck that he would be stuck between these two options. They could sneak to the outside and tell the guards, but that would take to much time due to his injuries. Not to mention that he would be abandoning both Shining Armor and Cadence, just like what he did with..... he paused. He wasn't going to do that again. Marcus gripped his hammer and started to tremble a bit, as Flurry took notice of his strange reaction. "Marcus?" she asked worriedly, "What's wrong?" Flurry watched as Marcus clenched harder around Mjolnir and his shaking continuing. He held a grim expression and his eyes were shut, she could of sworn that she saw a single tear threatening to escape his eye. After a moment she watched as Marcus had finally gotten together his bearings and wiped his eyes. She didn't know what happened to him right now, but she knew this wasn't time to be asking questions at the moment. "Flurry, we're going to save your parents." he said as he walked toward the door. "What about the guards outside?", she questioned, "There's no way you can take that mare on in your condition." Marcus stopped and looked at the pink alicorn and showed a bright smile, "Well, I won't know till I try right? Also, don't worry about the guards. I have a plan to gain their attention." Flurry sighed and smiled back, "You are really something else are you? I can't even begin to explain, at first you act like a good-for-nothing, lazy slob-" "Hurtful." "-then you act like you’re completely selfless. You offered to switch places with me when I was being held hostage, and now you're risking your life to save my parents. Thank you." Marcus knelt down to eye level with Flurry, "Don't mention it. Now are you ready to hear my awesome plan, that may or may not get us killed?" "As long as it isn't stupid, we'll be fine." The doors to the dining room was blasted of their hinges as the occupants in the room stopped their tussle and looked toward the distraction. There they saw Marcus standing in the opening with Mjolnir held tightly in his grasp and Flurry beside his covering her face in embarrassment and annoyance. Even the black mare was surprised by this sudden revelation, but from what she could see of this...human....her party had managed to do a number on him, even though he is still standing. Marcus walked in with Flurry slowly following behind him cursing to herself. He raised the mystical hammer toward the lead mare and called out as loudly and deep as he can. "I'VE COME TO BARGAIN BITCH!!!" This is a stupid plan. Devon watched as Dean scarfed down his third burger and Sam typed on his computer. The three of them were now sitting in on of the booths of the diner, and were supposedly, going to discuss on how they were going to find a witch. However, for the past thirty minutes, it had just been the sounds of Sam typing on his laptop and the slaughter of burgers and fries coming from Dean. "So..." Devon broke the awkward silence, "Why do we need a witch in the first place?" Sam looked up from his laptop as Dean kept on eating, "To put it simply we need one for a ritual to help track the thing that's making these people disappear. We would usually ask Cass for help but he's been busy at the moment." "Cass?" "He's an angel." bluntly said Dean before throwing a fry in his mouth. "Don't worry about that right now," added Sam, "unfortunately, like before, I'm finding nothing that could lead us to a witch." Devon glanced at him with a curious expression, "What are the usual signs of someone being a witch?" "Like we said, there isn't much since they appear human like the rest of us. However they do sometimes slip up. Usually with hex bags. Which they use to help cast some of their spells. Without them their spells are useless." Devon held his chin. If these witches are that hard to pin down then, it is next to impossible to save Marcus. Anybody could be a witch, and without a hex bag they are pretty much headless chickens. He eased his thoughts for a moment and took things one step at a time. Obviously witches are female, they use hex bags to cast most of their spells. "Any other details you have on witches?" asked Devon. "Well, it's more of a hunch than actual evidence," started Sam, "I have a theory that most of these witches live very sociable lives to scope out their next target. Also they sometimes use seduction to easily plant a hex bag." "You said sociable lives?" "Yes. A teacher, therapist, or even a politician. The more contact with other people the easier it is the pick out their targets and blend in." Devon looked at the two, "Even a tour guide at a museum." Sam, and Dean who looked up from his burger, had blank expressions as they looked at Devon. After a few moments of silence they both looked to each other as Dean swallowed the rest of his food. "Son of a bitch." > I'm Totally Supposed To Be Here(Revised) > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Flurry was debating on just having her kidnappers take her or actually following through with Marcus' stupid plan, that he hasn’t told her as of yet. She could see that the fighting in the room had stopped and all the attention was now on them. She could literally feel the glare from the grey mare burning into Marcus' skull. She didn't know how that was possible but decided not to question it. Even her parents were quite shocked at this change of events, probably wondering why she was back here and not out of the palace alerting the other guards. The grey mare started walking toward Marcus, her glare never breaking front he human, "My name is Misty Knight! What makes you have the right to be demanding negotiations!" Marcus gulped,but put on a smirk, "It won't be like last time because I know a deal that would end this whole situation. Plus you kind of ruined my dinner so I'm pretty pissed about that." Flurry looked at the human with a deadpan expression, "She also tried to kidnap me." "Oh yeah, that too, but it's mostly the food part." "Are you serious! Food is more important than my well-being!" "Flurry, Flurry. You have to understand that one of a guys greatest love is the things that is put on his plate." Flurry was taken back as all the stallions in the room murmured in the agreement. Even a "He's right sweetie!" from her father as her mom quickly shushed him. "I can't believe this." groaned Flurry "ENOUGH!" exclaimed Misty causing the room to go silence once again, "Tell me what you want ape! Or I'll kill you and take the princess by force!" Marcus only chuckled and put his hands in front of him in a calming manner, "Cool your tits. As for my bargain, I demand....A TRIAL BY COMBAT!" There was a deafening silence, before Misty burst out laughing, "You? Want to challenge me?" "Laugh while you can, but I'm pretty confident that you won't be hard to beat." Misty wiped a tear from her eye. This creature couldn't have been serious? Him challenging her to a duel? Does he have a death wish? Yes, might have increased strength with that strange hammer of his but that won't stand against her with her mastery of magic and....other things. However it was impressive that he managed to defeat that whole group that fell through the ground with him. Judging by the fact that he is here with the princess and not dead. However he looks like he could go down like a stack of cards, he might've won that fight but he did come out with a few scars. "Alright," she said, "I'll give in to your little fantasy of beating me. What are the conditions?" Marcus put on a stern expression trying to look cool only to almost lose his footing making Flurry rub her face in embarrassment, "If I win, you and your little posse here has to turn yourselves in to the guard." "And if I win." Marcus hesitated for a bit before answering, "Then you can have Flurry and the Crystal Heart and walk out of here with no resistance." "WHAT!?" screamed Flurry and her parents. Flurry growled and stomped on his foot making him howl in pain, "That's your plan! You're betting my freedom and the Empire on your low chance of winning!" Marcus rubbed his aching foot and glared at Flurry, "Uh, yeah? What did you think I was planning?" "Anything other than this!" "Flurry just trust me okay? I have everything figured out." "But your-" The look Marcus was giving her made her pause. She didn't know why she stopped but something inside of her was telling her to let Marcus do this. To trust him and have faith. Her angered expression fell as she only nodded before rushing to her parents. She gave them a comforting hug before their disapproving stares settled on Marcus. The raiders all formed a circle around Misty and Marcus as the two stared each other down. "I agree to these conditions," confirmed Misty as her horn glowed a deep green, "I'll promise to make your death slow and painful." Marcus gulped, "D-Don't you mean quick and painless?" "I know what I said." 'U-Uh, Mjolnir. Think you can help me out here?' 'And why would I do that? You're stupidity and recklessness got you in this situation' 'Well you chose me for a reason to wield you, so it wouldn't make sense for you to let me die' 'I'm still debating on that' 'Come on!' ... Fine. Marcus smirked, "Then bring it! Unless you're chicken! Bahk!" Misty only growled, she decided that she was done fooling around with this creature and end it all in one shot. She focused more power in her horn causing it to glow a brighter green before pointing it at the human. Marcus' eyes widened when a large beam of green magical energy headed towards him at incredible speeds. He felt his arm move on his own as he twirled Mjolnir in front of him at blinding speeds as the beam connected. To Misty's, and even Marcus', surprise the beam was held in place by the spinning hammer leaving Marcus unharmed. He smirked as the beam died down and he could bask in the shocked faces of the ponies around him." "H-How.." stuttered Misty as Marcus slowly stopped spinning the hammer and raised the end toward her again. "I'M GONNA TEAR THAT ASS UP!" The mare blushed as her anger escalated, "Wh-what is wrong with you!? I thought you wanted a duel!?" "Huh? All I said was....Oh. Ooooooh. No you got it all wrong. That's a phrase my kind like to say when we are about to beat someone up?" "Then why didn't you just say that!?" "Cause it sounds boring and cliche." Misty blush never vanished and her anger only continued to rise. It was only a matter of time until she burst and make sure there were no remains of this creature. She couldn't understand him, first he's acting noble and brave. Now here he is treating like this whole situation is a big game. Not to mention that she had greatly underestimated his power, whatever that hammer was, it was definitely powerful. Probably powerful enough to give Princesses Celestia and Luna a run for their money. Maybe even Discord. "Then I guess, I should probably not hold back." she retorted as her eyes laminated a bright green and shot multiple blasts from her horn. Marcus responded by swinging Mjolnir, deflecting each blast away from him. The crowd around them ducked and scattered not wanting to be hit by the stray beams as Shining put a shield around himself, Flurry, and Cadence. Marcus started to slowly stalk forward deflecting each green, magical blast that came his way. Once he was close enough he swung Mjolnir aiming for Misty's cranium. The dark grey mare ducked only for the hammer to strike the tip of her horn and stunning her. Marcus took the opportunity to spartan kick her and make her skid across the crystal, marble floor.  He watched her snarl before her horn glowed green once again as two projections formed a green spear and shield. She charged forward with a battle cry and swung the spear down toward Marcus' head as he brought up Mjolnir locking the both of them into a stalemate. 'Remember Marcus, you only just received my power. Even though you out class her in strength. She surpasses you in experience.' 'I can see that. Do you have a plan, because I'm not feeling to straight about this fight.' 'Are you telling me that you jumped into a fight where you were entirely outclassed, and hoped to pull out the win in the end?' 'Well when you say it. It sounds fucking stupid.' 'Odin help me. Fine just follow my lead.' Misty bashed her shield forward, striking Marcus in the abdomen and knocking him on his back. She raised her spear and bought it down to pierce the human's chest, only for him to roll to the side. Misty grunted in annoyance and thrust her spear forward once again, however it was once again batted away by Mjolnir. Marcus then held Mjolnir in a double grip and brought it downward as hard as he can. Misty quickly brought the magical green shield above her as the hammer stuck. Neither Marcus, Misty, or the rest of the crowd expected the strong shock wave that knocked the two combatants to the opposites of the room. Flurry grimaced as her mom held her tight and the shield that her dad made around them started to crack. She watched as Marcus and Misty Knight was blown away from each other, both of them crashing into the floor. To be honest she was worried for Marcus. This mare was super talented with her magic, she might even be better than Auntie Twilight. She watched as both of them slowly stood up before running toward each other once again to continue the fight. Even though Misty was incredible and talented, she had to admit that Marcus wasn't bad either. Even if he had just attained the powers he had. He was mostly on the defensive, blocking and dodging each of Misty's strikes while hoping to land a counter hit against her. She fidgeted her fore hooves in front of her and winced each time Misty's spear came close to a vital area or made a new wound on the human. Marcus swung at Misty, who countered with her spear before smacking him in the face with her shield sending the human tumbling across the ground. He spat out a bit of blood, panting heavily while Mist stalked toward him with her spear screeching against the floor. "I must say, you've impressed me. It's been a while since I had to put this much effort in a fight. After I win and take the princess. I'll be sure to tell my employer about you." "I ain't done yet." said Marcus standing to his feet, "I've got plenty in me." Misty chuckled, "Nonsense. You look like you've taken enough. Time to end this." 'Mjolnir. I could really use your help now. Plus I could really go for a bite to eat.' 'Here you are, about to die and all you can think about is food?' 'I'm a very optimistic guy' 'Good we need that right now. Raise me in the air when I tell you.' Marcus steadily stood to his feet with Mjolnir clenched tightly in his grip as he stared down the mare in front of him. Misty could only smile as victory was finally about to be in her grasp. It was a shame she had to put this 'human' down, he would of made a fine addition to her crew. She focused her green eyes on to his brown ones and thrust her spear forward ready to end it all. However her eyes' widened when Marcus grabbed the spear with his bare hand, she looked down at the spear and tried to yank it away only for Marcus' grip to tighten. Blue electricity then sparked around his hand as he crushed the spear in his grip, sending green magical shards bursting in the air. Misty, now in a panicked stated, swung the shield hoping to stun the human. Only for him to swing Mjolnir and having the shield meet the same fate as the spear. Marcus' eyes then started to glow a bright blue as the blue electricity started to dance around his entire frame. Misty started to slowly shrink back in fear as Marcus was the one now stalking towards her. Marcus then raised the hammer high above his head as a streak of lightning burst through the ceiling, striking Mjolnir and himself, coating the room in a bright blue light. The ponies in the room covered their eyes until Marcus lowered the hammer and canceling the streak of lightning. He walked toward misty Knight who was low to the ground cowering before him. He raised the hammer toward her and smiled. "I told you I was going to beat that ass." Misty couldn't even get mad or embarrassed, "F-Fine....you win." Once the rest of the raiders her their leaders surrender, they all followed suit. Dropping their weapons to the ground as the sounds of crystal guards could be heard storming the palace. Cadence and Shining walked over by Misty, making sure she didn't try anything. He heard footsteps behind him and couldn't help but smile at Flurry standing before him. She flapped her wings and flew to his level. He was about to say something....... Until she struck him in his face breaking his nose in the process. "AH! You bitch!" "That's for betting my life and scaring me to death!" 'This is my life now. I think I can manage though' Marcus sat on the bed in the guest room of the palace, holding a piece of tissue to his bleeding nose. Once Misty and her followers were taken to dungeons by the guards for interrogation he was sent back to the infirmary to get his wounds patched up. The doctor was surprised to see that his wounds were already stitching themselves back together, even his nose managed to fix itself somewhat besides the bleeding. "So I have a healing factor. That'll come in handy." he said to himself as he threw the bloody tissue in a nearby trash bin. He laid back on the bed with his hands behind his head. He looked over to thee nightstand to see Mjolnir resting on top of it. Apparently he could talk to the hammer now and it talks back, which means that he could finally get some questions answered. Like why did it- she send him here? Why pick him? Was he supposed to be some kind of protector? Or was there something more? All these questions and thoughts swam through his head. His mind then slowly drifted back to the mare he had recently fought against, Misty Knight. She said that she was hired to retrieve either this Crystal Heart or Flurry, and He's guessing it won't be long until they find out that she had failed. Going from anime and comic experience, that meant that they were probably going to do the job themselves or send someone even stronger. Even though he has a healing factor, he wasn't going to take the risk of being immortal. 'You seem troubled, Marcus.' 'Me? Nah, I'm good. Just a few things on my mind. Might be feeling a little homesick though.' 'I have....been unfair to you.' 'Huh? How?' 'I've assumed that you are like the other warriors that had wielded me. But I see now that you are no warrior and only a simple boy.' 'Then why did you pick me then? There is plenty of other people that has more battle experience than me.' 'Because, even though you may not be a warrior. You are the very few that has the heart of one. Even with your quips and joke, you are righteous and selfless. That is why I chose you to wield me.' 'Ok, then why send me to a different world?' 'There is...something I had promised an old friend. She is in need of special people and you just happened to be one of them.' 'Cryptic. Please tell me that there is more to that?' 'You aren't ready to hear the whole story. Only when you truly mastered my power.' 'Being blue balled aside.  I thought I had already mastered your power? You know since I already can wield you.' 'Just because you can pick me up and swing me around,doesn't mean you're automatically a master. If it wasn't for me guiding you in that fight, you would've been overpowered and killed instantly.' 'I can't be that bad-' 'So far you are the weakest person to ever wield me.' 'NIGGA WHAT!? BULLSHIT!' 'I assure you the bull is not shitting.' 'No..that was just...never mind.' 'Do not worry. I have done my research of this world and have found a suitable place for your training. The ponies aren't the only races that dominate these lands. There are dragons, changelings, hippogriffs, griffins, yaks, and many more.' 'From what I'm hearing is that we won't be training with the ponies and is most likely leaving the Crystal Empire? Hold on, have you've been here before?' 'To this Equestria? No I have been not, but I have visited others with my previous users. If my memory serves correct there should be a small minotaur settlement down south of Equestria. Their physical anatomy are the most similar to yours and will serve as excellent teachers.' 'I'm....I'm as confused as a homeless man under house arrest.' 'I'll explain later.' KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK Marcus' conversation with Mjolnir was cut short by the three knocks coming form the door. He was still lost at what the mystical hammer was talking about, but decided that he'll probably understand when the time was right. He called out telling whoever was waiting that it was okay to come in. He was actually kind of surprised to see Princess Cadence come in with her usual bright smile. "Hey Princess, what's up?" asked Marcus as he sat up form the bed. Cadence giggled, "No need to be formal with me, Marcus. Even though you did use my daughter for your plan, you did save all of us in the end." "I....I don't really know how to respond to that. Are you thanking me or trying to scare me?" Cadence walked up and sat on the bed next to him, "I'm thanking you of course. Too be honest when you first arrived me and my husband were afraid that you were going to be a threat. That you cared for nothing but only yourself and wanted  nothing more than conquest but after seeing your actions. I'm glad we were wrong." Marcus smiled, "No problem, but...uh....I won't be staying." "Why is that? Flurry seems to like you and will be devastated to see you go." "I highly doubt that, but after that fight with Misty it showed me that I have a long way to go to fully control my powers." "Are you saying that you are inexperienced with the power you've shown?" "Yeah, too be honest I only just revived these powers....not too long ago." "Then I'm even more grateful. Even with your lack of knowledge and experience you still were able to protect me and my family. I humbly appreciate what you done. When you are ready can you please meet us in the throne room?" Marcus nodded. It was funny, after only being here for a couple of hours, he was actually going to miss these ponies. It still was a question on exactly why he was here with these powers but at least he had an idea. Mjolnir was asked to pick something worthy of her power and do something. If he was going to be stuck here,he might as well help Mjolnir fulfill her promise. He was cut from his thoughts as Cadence's horn lit a bright blue and she tugged on his shirt making him stare into now stern blue eyes. "Listen carefully Marcus," she said in a threatening voice, "I appreciate what you've done, but if you ever put my daughter in harm's way again. I'll personally make you disappear like Private Garnet. Understand?" Marcus gulped as a lone sweat came down is forehead, "Y-yeah, crystal! N-No pun intended!" Cadence's demeanor then morphed back to her cheerful self and she trotted toward the door, "Great! I'll see you soon Marcus. Oh! I almost forgot! We've had these made for you since your attire seems....unfit to wear!" Marcus watched as she placed a chest from outside the door inside the room before she left him alone. He took a deep breath and thanked God that wasn't as bad as he thought it was going to go, "What the hell was that?" 'Are you okay Marcus? I don't think even Loki would've wished to put you through that.' 'I'll be fine. I'm just happy my balls are still intact.' 'You twenty-first century humans are strange.' Marcus looked toward the crate and made his way towards it. Can you blame him? Princess Cadence literally threatened him not to long ago and then ominously places a random chest in the room with him. Without thinking he kicks the chest as hard as he can, and then hops behind the bed. Silently underestimating the toughness of the chest, as he held his now throbbing foot. He peeked over to see that the chest was not a bomb, or booby trapped in any kind of way. He slowly walked back over to the chest and unhooked the latch, before opening the lid. His eyes widened at the contents inside and grinned to himself. "I really love these guys." "What do you mean he's leaving!?" exclaimed an angered Flurry Heart. "Marcus, explained to me that he needed to improve his strength," answered Cadence, "And that he couldn't do that here." "So after everything's that had happened! He's just going to leave!" Shining watched his wife and daughter go back and forth as they 'conversed' about the human. When Cadence told her that Marcus would be leaving the Empire tonight, Flurry didn't really take it well. Which he could understand, the human just arrived this afternoon and made a good impression on all three of them.Not to mention that he helped saved Flurry when those raiders attacked. Speaking of them, he should pay a visit to the dungeons soon and pay a visit to this, Misty Knight, and interrogate her on why she was after their daughter. "Mom! You don't understand!" shouted Flurry cutting Shining from his thoughts. "Then help me understand, sweetie! What's gotten you so upset that the human is leaving? Are you going to miss him that much?" replied a concerned Cadence. "N-No! It's not that! H-He's just my only chance to-" "Maybe I should come back another time?" the three ponies turned to the doors slowly closing as Marcus made his way into the throne room.  The first thing they noticed was his change of attire, he wore a chest-piece that resembled the silver armor that the guard wears, with a black long sleeve underneath. A red cape attached to the shoulders of the chest-piece, silver wrist guards, and black pants and boots. Mjolnir was strapped to his side as he made his way toward the three ponies of royalty. "No, you're fine Marcus," said Cadence, "We were just having a.....heated conversation. It seems that you are happy with the gift that Shining made for you?" "Technically, it was the royal tailor and blacksmith, so you should be thanking them." added Shining. "Well, the pants is kind of tight in the crotch area," responded Marcus, “but other than that, this stuff is the shit! I have to say though how did you get my measurements? Let alone the right build?" "You can thank the medical staff for that. They managed to discreetly record your size while checking you after the battle." "If you call groping almost every part of my body discreet, then okay." "Are you really leaving?" asked Cadence as Marcus nodded. "Unfortunately yeah. Too be honest I got way lucky in that fight without it I would definitely gotten my ass kicked and then Flurry wouldn't even be here by now. So I'm leaving to train....man this sounds so sappy I might throw up." "You know," started Shining, "We could train you here." "Nah, I'm good. Plus it'll be good to explore the land a bit. Since I'm going to be staying here for awhile." "Well, the we wish you luck on your journey. When will you be leaving?" "The earlier the better to be honest. No offense but the high class lifestyle isn't really my style." "None taken," added Cadence, "we'll get you a ticket for the train departing in a few hours-" She was cut off as Flurry stormed out of the throne room. Leaving her now confused parents and Marcus behind. The throne room doors closed behind her as she quickly ran to her room. It wasn't fair! How does Marcus get to leave and not her!? The young alicorn princess stomped in her room and slammed the door. She jumped in her bed and screamed in her pillow. "What do I do now? I didn't expect for him to leave this early." She mumbled to herself, "If it wasn't for that attack, Mom and Dad might've actually let me go." She rolled on her back and looked up at the ceiling. Too be honest she was mad that Marcus was leaving, but also.....betrayed? She hadn't even met the human for a full day and she's scared of him leaving. Probably because he's her only hope of getting out if the palace. It's not like she can sneak- That's when Flurry had an idea. She had an wonderful idea. Flurry Heart, princess of the Crystal Empire, had a horrible awful idea. Marcus handed his train ticket to the stallion as he walked on the cart. He couldn't really admire the inside of the caboose and how much it reminded him of the ones from Harry Potter. He made his way to his assigned room and opened the door to see two seats and a lone bed. He walked in and closed the door behind him and set Mjolnir on the bed. He wondered why Flurry ran out the room like that. He had to admit he was disappointed to not be able to say goodbye to her. Even though she was a pain in the ass sometimes, she was one of the few in that palace he could actually relate to. Well he could always visit when he was done with this 'mysterious' training that Mjolnir is having him do. Speaking of the hammer. She had been awfully quiet since his battle with Misty Knight. He groaned to himself that he even referred to the object as a 'she'. Maybe it wasn't too late to start drinking if he ever got home. Marcus snapped his head to the door as another pony entered the room. He couldn't really tell their features do to them wearing a cloak. "Oh, I didn't know I was rooming with a jedi master for this trip." mused Marcus as the pony cocked their head to the side in confusion. Marcus mentally slapped himself, "Right, you ponies won't get my references. Too be honest I'm surprised you aren't freaking out. I had to be escorted by the guards all the way here so there won't be panic. Which I'm still thinking is kind of racist-" "Are you ever going to stop talking lazy bones." said a familiar voice as Marcus' eyes widened at how familiar the voice was. "Flurry!?" The pony lowered their hood to reveal the smirking expression of Flurry Heart, "In the flesh. What? Did you think you were just going to leave without me?" "B-but what about your parents? M-more so your mom." Flurry looked to the side, "They're.....fine." "Are you saying they know you're here?" "U-Uhm..." Marcus groaned, "Go home." "What? After the trouble it took me to get out of the palace? Not a chance!" "Look I rather not face the wrath of your mother. So you are going home, end of story-" Marcus was cut off by the sound of a loud whistle. More specifically the whistle of the train as he felt the caboose starting to move. He looked out the window and watched as they gradually left the train station and further away from the Crystal Empire. He looked back to Flurry who had a bright grin on her face, making him pinch the bridge of his nose. Now he was stuck with her. He'll have to send her back on the next stop, but who knows how long that'll be until then, not to mention that she definitely wouldn't go back and he can't really leave a princess by herself. "Fine," started Marcus, "But you ARE going back to that palace. Which won't be long from now since your parents probably already sent out a search party. Once they find us I'll gladly hand you over." Flurry gave the human a nervous look, "A-About that....my parents should already know where I am." "Perfect! Now all we gotta do is-" "Because they let me come with you!" ..... ..... ..... "THEY DID WHAT!?" 'Can you keep it down I'm trying to sleep!' > The Frustrating Journey Begins(Revised) > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- She never moved so fast in her life. Out of all the hunters that had to be on her trail, it had to be those two. She recognized the two as soon as they walked in the museum to question that young man. Now here she was, in her personal office throwing all her ingredients and notes for her spells, in her hand bag. She was supposed to be the predator and those hunters should be her prey, but right now she felt as feeble as a mouse. She wasn't like other witches, sure she killed a person or two every now and then, but only the bad ones. Those hunters however wouldn't give a rat's ass though, and if they connect that she had a handle in that boy's disappearance- A sudden knock from her door snapped her from her panic. She took a deep breath and fixed her skirt and did her best to fix her now messy, short brown hair, "Wh-Who is it?" she called out nervously. "Serena? It's me Amanda." said the voice, as known as Amanda her secretary, "I have two FBI Agents here wanting to talk to you." And welcome back panic. No, she can do this. They're probably here to ask more questions and that's it,  "U-Um, send them in please." "Are you sure? You don't sound like yourself. I could ask them to come later-" "Th-That won't be necessary! I'm fine!" As on cue, the door to her office opened as her heart dropped to her stomach when she saw Sam and Dean Winchester enter her office. She wiped a bead of sweat from her forehead and gulped as she quietly kicked her hand bag under her desk. She put on her best smile and held put her hand toward the disguised hunters. The tall one, which she knew as Sam Winchester, shook it with enthusiasm. "Thank you for meeting us....." said Sam. "Blair! Serena Blair." Blurted out the witch as she mentally kicked herself for being this nervous, "I-I'm assuming that you're here to ask about the disappearance of that young man." "That's correct," answered Dean, "I hope you don't mind answering a few of our questions." "It would be my pleasure," said Serena as she sat behind her desk twiddling her thumbs, "would you two like to take a seat?" The two brothers looked to each other before nodding as they sat in the two chairs in front of Serena. The witch's heart rate sped up as the two seemed to be eyeing her up and down. She didn't know if they knew what she was or not, so she had to play stupid just to be safe. However she was never one to be good at keeping secrets, not even her fellow witches trust her. She is a lower level witch, not to mention that she's a laughing stock to the witching community in general. Maybe if the two brothers did know her true identity they wouldn't see her as a threat and leave her alone. However that would mean that she had something to do with the boy's disappearance and that required a lot of magic that even an elder witch will have trouble with. So why was she able to pull it off? "Ma'm?" suddenly said Sam snapping her from her thoughts, "Are you still with us?" "Y-Yeah, sorry. I'm just still coping with the whole situation." "We completely understand. Now do you remember the time when you lost track of the victim?" "It was...about noon if I remember correctly." "And the victim was in your tour group correct?" Serena nodded, "Yes, he was." Dean stroked his chin, "Did you see anything suspicious in the area? Maybe a person out of place at the time?" Serena stayed silent and shook her head. Everything seemed to go smoothly so far. All she had to do is to stick with the small and straight to the point answers then she'll be home free. Her breathing finally slowed down and her heart rate decreased to a normal pace. She could relax and let this interrogation flow. "Mrs. Blair," started Sam, "in the video recording of the victim's disappearance we noticed a specific looking hammer with him. However when checking with the employees they informed us that they never had something like that on record. Do you know why that is?" Okay it was now panic time again. "N-No, of course not!" she nervously said as she discreetly reached under her desk. "You don't sound to sure about that. Mrs. Blair." sternly said Dean as he narrowed his eyes. Sam folded his hands on the desk, "Mrs. Blair, if you know anything, please tell us. The life of an innocent person could be in your hands." Yeah right. If she told them everything she knew about that hammer and the boy then they'll just kill her anyways. Her hand moved around under the desk trying to grab her back up plan so she could escape. However all she felt was air. Where was it! She was sure she had at least one more of those stupid hex- "Looking for this?" said a voice from the door as a third man walked in. Devon shut the door behind him and locked before showing a brown tied up pouch in his hand. A hex bag. HER hex bag. The hex bag that she was going to use to escape. Salt was added to the wound as Devon took a lighter form his pocket and set the bag a flame before throwing it in the nearby trash bin. "So," suddenly said Dean, making the witch jump in her seat, "Are you gonna tell us what happened to Marcus?" "A-And what if I don't?" "Then we'll use....persuasion." said Sam as he placed a 9mm pistol on the desk making Serena gulp. "I-I can't! She'll find out!" blurted Serena as she instantly covered her mouth. Devon rose an eyebrow and walked closer to the trio, "Who will find out?" Serena dropped her head in shame, "I'm already dead so what's the point. It wasn't my decision to send your friend away.  I was approached by a woman not too long ago. We coordinated the disappearance of...Marcus." "Wait..." started Devon,"How do you know Marcus' name and how did you know that he will be in the Norse section?" "I learned his name from the woman that met with me, it seemed that she knew a bunch about your friend. She even predicted that he would break off from my tour group and explore the museum. I don't know how she knew so much about him, but all I knew at the time was that she was powerful and she somehow needed my help." "And what was she trying to accomplish?" asked Dean. Serena shifted in her seat, "She never said....all I know was that she needed Marcus and I was going to help." "Well from what you pulled off," started Sam, "You must be a very powerful witch. And also dangerous." "W-wait! I'm not that powerful! I-I'm still a novice. Hell I'm even considered a 'witch' anymore." Devon, Sam, and Dean looked at each other before looking at the supposed 'witch' in question, "What's that supposed to mean?" "It's a long story." Devon crossed his arms, "We got time." "Marcus." "No." "Marcus!" "I'm not talking to you." "Marcus. I'm sorry!" "Fuck off." Flurry watched as the human crossed his arms and turned away from her. It had been a full hour of silence before she tried to talk to him and explain her reasons. Only for him to ignore her and shut her out. She felt a slight pang of guilt in her chest, he had every right to be mad. "Marcus..." she said more sympathetic, "I....I know how you must feel-" “The hell you do!” “-but this is really important to me and I might not get a chance like this again. Marcus looked toward her way and rose an eyebrow, "Fine....I can't stay mad anyways. I'm more worried on what your parents will do if something ever happened to you under my watch." Flurry tilted her head in confusion, "What are you talking about? My parents wouldn’t blame you...as much.  They definitely wouldn’t cause you any harm, plus aren’t you granted with godly powers?" Marcus laughed right in her face, "Did you see how bad I got my ass beat by those raiders back in the palace? So what makes you think I'll be fine against trained guards? Not to mention that Shining is the prince AND captain of said guard. Oh shit....Cadence is literally a god herself." "What's wrong with my mom? Out of all the ponies she'll be the most understanding." "Are you serious? I'm pretty sure she threatened to cut my balls off the last time we had a one on one talk." "You're over exaggerating." "I wish I was! Which is why I'm handing you over right when the train stops at the next station." "Wh-what! No! I'm not going back and you can't make me!" Marcus had to look away as Flurry was giving him a pleading look. These ponies were already cute as it is and now one of them was giving him the pleading puppy dog eyes. He had to be strong! He was a grown ass man! All he had to do was think of manly things. Trucks. Football. Cheetos. Pit Bulls. Marcus became a bit bold and glanced at the pink princess once again and immediately regretted his decision. Flurry was now sitting on her rump with her head tilted to the side and looking up at him and he swore that her eyes grew three sizes that day. Meanwhile Flurry was inwardly praising herself. She had Marcus on the ropes, she always did this with her parents and not even them could resist her charm. She couldn't afford to go back to the Empire, at least not yet. If she went back now then there was no guarantee that she will ever get a chance like this again. Her parents will not only ground her and send her to her room, but she'll have a guard by her, watching her every move twenty-four-seven! It was already annoying enough that her parents were breathing down her back, but she will not have a random guard doing the same. It was time for Marcus to break. Flurry opened the floodgates and let the tears flow down her cheeks. Marcus' heart was now beating faster than ever. Flurry was now crying in front of him. He felt the guilt possess him like an evil spirit. A demon punishing him for making a innocent pure creature such as this feel any kind pain. The part that sucked however was that he  KNEW this was all a trick! However he has a curse for being too caring! He couldn't give in! Mjolnir never said this was going to be a safe journey, which meant that there were going to be dangers along the way. If something happened to her, he didn't want that on his conscious. Also there is no doubt that her mom will find them and then he could say goodbye to Marcus jr. 'You know you're acting like a pussy.' 'Hey! It's harder than it looks! I have a weakness for cute things.' 'And you wonder why you're my weakest wielder. Just suck it up and be a warrior. All you're really doing is telling her no. Has your parents taught you anything?' '...' 'Marcus?' '...' 'Marcus did something happen-' 'Don't worry about it. You're right Mjolnir. I do need to be more assertive.' "No." he said as he watched Flurry flinch back a bit. "N-No?" she stuttered. "Did I stutter?" replied Marcus as he looked out the window, "If you’ve gotten hurt at any point then it’s my ass. I know your parents said it was okay but I’m not taking that risk." Flurry's expression instantly became sour, "Do you not think I know that! I-I just need some time to find myself! I can't do that if I'm sheltered in that palace for the rest of my life! My parents finally gave me a chance to go out and find myself! WHat if it was your parents!" Marcus looked back at Flurry, he was expecting her to use the same method but instead she held a different emotion. She looked desperate and actually scared. "Flurry," Marcus said as he stood from his seat and knelt in front of her, "I wouldn't know if it was my parents. I do know that YOUR parents are worried sick about you, and….the place I’m going to is not going to be easy." Flurry sighed, "I can take care of myself!" "You sure? You really didn’t show it back at the palace." "That was different! Stop treating like I’m defenseless!" Silence. Marcus gazed at the pink alicorn as she was giving him a desperate look, "Alright fine but the first sign of you being hurt.You are going on a one way ticket back to the Crystal Empire" Flurry took the seat across Marcus and smiled, "Don't worry Marcus. Everything is going to be smooth sailing. What could go wrong?" Her smiled faded as she remembered how his mood changed when she asked him about his parents, "Hey Marcus?" He looked toward her direction with an eyebrow raised, "Hmm?" "If you don't mind me asking. What were your parents like?" It was only a quick moment but Flurry swore she saw a hint of hatred in his eyes. The human took a glance at the mystical hammer beside him and then looked back out the window of the cart. Watching the snowy landscape past by, "it's a touchy subject," he said with a bit of venom, "I rather not talk about it." Flurry hadn't seen this side of the human, this wasn't him being mad. This was pure hatred, "O-Okay." There was silence in the cabin. 'Well things just became awkward. Maybe I should've stayed asleep.' "Maybe we should turn in for the night," said Marcus as he laid back on the couch, "You can take the bed." Flurry nodded, "A-Alright. Marcus, thank you." The human didn't answer for he was already asleep. Flurry sighed, as she felt the spirit of guilt creep inside of her as she climbed in the bed. She didn't plan to hurt Marcus at all during her plan to escape the palace, she was desperate and just wanted to be....herself. Maybe she could do something for him in the morning as an apology. With that thought in mind she laid her head on the pillow and fell asleep. Princess Mi Amore Cadenza of the Crystal Empire was many things. She was a supportive wife, a niece to the best aunts ever, a caring sister-in-law, and a loving mother. However right now, she was livid. As she walked downward into the Crystal Dungeon, the guard she passed would literally fell the negative emotions radiating out of her. It wasn't too long ago when she was enjoying a wonderful book before turning in for the night until her husband came bursting in the room and informing her of the note that was in Flurry's room. She grit her teeth, how dare that human play them like that! Not only did he betray both her and Shining's friendship but also allowed Flurry to go with them despite their disapproval! When she gets a hold on that human, he's going to wish that he never showed up in the Crystal Empire. From what they were told he was heading toward Ponyville. Shining had already sent out a message to Twilight, as well as Auntie Celestia and Luna informing them of the situation. This human maybe powerful but he was no match for four alicorns. She held a stern expressions she reached the cell she was looking for. She nodded toward the two crystal guards and relieving them of their duty. She used her magic to unlock the cell and entered to see none other than the mare that attacked the palace earlier. The grey mare's attention snapped to her as an angered growl escaped her lips. Cadence stood unfazed and stepped further in the cell before closing the door behind her. Misty could try all she want, as long as grey mare had anti-magic ring on her horn then she was powerless. "What do you want?" spat out Misty. "I want answers and you are going to answer them." calmly said Cadence. "And what if I don't-GAK!" Misty didn't have time to finish as a blue aura wrapped around her throat and slammed her against the wall, pinning her against it. She felt the air being knocked out of her stomach as she desperate gasped for air. Her expression then true and to fear as Cadence's face was inches away from hers. She could see the hatred and hurt in her eyes, but luckily for her she could be able to use those emotions against the princess. "DON’T TEST ME!" "Wh-What's wrong Princess-gak. Something h-happen?" Cadence stayed silent as she dropped the mare and watch her catch her breath, "I could've easily killed you but I need you alive. You're a mercenary aren't you?" Misty coughed before looking at the princess,"I-I guess. What's it to you?" Cadence walked toward Misty, she knew what the grey mare was trying to do and she wouldn't let her. As long as she kept her emotions in check this mare can't control her, "Flurry Heart....do you remember that name?" Misty raised an eyebrow, "Of course, she was my one of my targets for another employer." "Then you should also know of the human, also known as Marcus, that interfered with your plans." Cadence watched as Misty sneered at the mention of the human, "Yeah, I definitely remember that idiot. What about him?" "I'm going to be blunt, because today has been a long day and I'm too close to my breaking point. Marcus and my baby girl have run off. After everything we had done for him! Healed him, sheltered him, fought with him, and accepted him! He turned on us and took my little heart!" Misty stayed quiet as the stoic princess now started sobbing, "I did not come here to play games! I came here to get my little girl back. you'll receive a fortune for your efforts, I'm asking.....no I'm begging you to bring her back safe and sound." Cadence felt a hoof on her shoulder and looked in the green eyes of Misty who held a sympathetic expression, "Why come to me? Why not send your guards or husband?" “T-Too be honest. I’ve been thinking about the one that employed you. They were after my daughter and the Crystal Heart, then they won’t stop. They’ll either send someone else who even stronger or they might come and do the job themselves. So we need my husband and every guard on toll. Plus…..it would be suspicious for me to send out a detachment of guards from the empire. The public will act questions and be on edge, that's something we can’t afford right now.” Misty studied the princess of love a little longer before sighing, “I’ll do it, but you don’t have to pay me anything.” Cadence looked at the mare wiping her tears away, "Wh-Why? I-I assumed that you would jump at the chance to be richer than you can imagine." Misty let out a chuckle,"Usually I would, but I relate with you. I know how hard this is for you and how much a mother cares for their children. Trust me you're looking at one." "Y-You?" "Surprised? It's not a happy story I'll tell you that. Some stallion did the old 'hump and dump' leaving me alone to care for my only child. I had to work two jobs to keep both of us feed, but it was never enough to pay the rent on time.It wasn't until I found myself in this business that made me a bit of money. However I couldn't let my little colt see his mother coming home late at night, either too tired to acknowledge him or on the brink of death from a dangerous job. I had no choice but to leave him with a friend until I knew I had enough bits. Then maybe the both of us could settle in a quiet town and start over." Misty sniffed struggling to keep her own emotions in check, "How old is he?" "H-Huh?" asked Misty. "You're colt. How old is he?" "I-I haven't seen him in five years. He should be ten now. Princess, I know what I did to you and your family is unforgivable, if it makes you feel better I wasn't going to take Flurry away from you. I was just going to take the Crystal Heart and be on my way, I could never break up a family. So I promise you that I will get your daughter back." Cadence felt her tears resurfacing, "Th-Thank you, if you do this. I'll make sure personally that you'll see your son again." Misty nodded and wiped her own tears, "Of course, princess." "Oh, and one more thing." "Yes?" "When you encounter Marcus. Make sure to send him my 'regards', but don't kill him. I want to deal with him....personally." Misty smirked and nodded, "As you wish Princess Cadence." Marcus woke up with a startle, he looked at Flurry who was still asleep and then to the clock which read two in the morning. "Why does my dick hurt?" > Cereal Killers > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Marcus woke up to the smell of something sugary and sweet. He released a loud yawn as he sat up on the couch in his and Flurry's cabin on the train, feeling a unusual weight in his lap.  Letting his curiosity get the better of him he looked down and saw a sight that caused his mouth to water a bit. Sitting in his lap was a plate of stacked buttermilk pancakes, topped with syrup, with a side of scrambled eggs and hash browns. He felt the tears surface as he looked at the heavenly gift that was in front of him. "Good morning." said Flurry as he looked in her direction to see that she was eating her own pancakes, "I felt guilty about what happened yesterday. So I got you some breakfast from the meal cart as an apology." Marcus looked at her, then the food on his plate, and then back to her, "You really got this for me?" Flurry looked away, "W-Well, you were so mad when I said that I was staying with you. You also didn't really get a chance to eat at the palace yesterday." Marcus gave her a suspicious look, "Alright, what do you want?" Flurry eyes widened as she had a bead of sweat roll down her forehead. How did he know!? "Wh-What are you talking about Marcus?" "Flurry, nobody just GIVES away food. That shit's just not normal. You either really felt guilty about what happened yesterday or you're just buttering me up for the actual question you have on your mind." Marcus was technically right. She did feel guilty on how mad he was yesterday because of her showing up out of the blue. She could tell that he was just worried for her after the whole dinner incident, but even though she was held hostage she could totally take care of herself. Maybe. However the main reason why she was giving the dark-skinned human breakfast in bed was because she wanted to know about his parents. When she had brought it up last night she noticed his mood do a complete one-eighty. She didn't want to admit it but Marcus is probably the first one, other than her family, that she could probably call friend. She didn't want to be nosy or bring up any bad memories that human had with his parents, but if that was a topic that would bother him in the future, she'll help him though it. "Well?" asked Marcus snapping Flurry from her train of thought, "What do you want?" Flurry gulped, she had to carefully choose her choice of words. If Marcus did have something going on between him and his parents, then one wrong step could lead to disaster, "I...just wanted to know what your parents were like." Flurry answered softly, as Marcus just stared at her. She could feel his gaze pierce through her, trying to figure out why she would as a question. His face was stoic as ever, showing no emotion but the way his eyes stared at Flurry told confirmed on what she assumed. Marcus looked away from her and stared at the food still resting on his lap, for a moment Flurry had thought that she had offended him until he answered her, "My parents....well they're alright I guess." he said cryptically. Flurry tilted her head, "Alright? What does that mean?" "Look, it's complicated. Let's just say that my parents weren't there when I needed them and let's leave it at that. Why are you asking me about them anyway? It's none of your business." "Well excuse me for being worried for a friend," said Flurry clearly offended, "we are friends right?" "Yeah," chuckled Marcus,"if you keep giving me free food then we can be best friends." "I don't think that's how friends treat each other." "What? That's the whole point of being a friend. You mooch off and shit talk to each other and grab some food to laugh about it later. Yeah there maybe a fight or two. However no amount of broken bones or police sirens could ever break your bond." 'Really? That's your view on friendship?' 'What the hell do you know? You're just a hammer.' 'This hammer, has plenty of friends and lovers! Unlike you!' 'You take that back you stupid piece of- wait what? Lovers? How on a Mcdonald's cheeseburger does that work?' 'That's for me to know and for you to find out. Who knew mortals could be so good with their fingers-' 'Alright! I'm cutting connection before you ruin my appetite.' Ignoring Marcus' random pause Flurry decided to follow up on his words of wisdom, "That's....a special way of putting it. Are you certain that's how friendship works?" Marcus blew a raspberry as he picked up the knife and fork off his plate and started to cut into his food, "I'm hundred percent positive. Don't you have friends yourself?" "O-Of course I do!" Flurry lied through her teeth, "I'm a princess after all. I've had many friends come to the palace." "Yeah, yeah" Marcus stabbed into his pancake and brought it to his lips and placed it in his mouth, "GAK! BLEUGH!" Only to spit it out back on his plate as he started to dry heave and gag. Flurry instantly flew over to him with a concerned expression, "What in Celestia's name happened! Are the haycakes that bad?" Marcus stopped and turned to Flurry, "HAYCAKES! You gave me pancakes made out of HAY!" "Well duh!" retorted Flurry, "That's how they're made! Come on their not that bad." "You know, I'm two second from making glue right now." "Glue? What in the hay does that mean? At least eat the eggs and potatoes." Marcus rose an eyebrow "What are those made of?" "Well since we ponies don't eat meat the eggs are made out of tofu. Also the potatoes have pesticides so they last longer." Marcus opened the window and threw his plate outside, "Feed me that shit again and I'm shipping you to Elmers." Flurry didn't know what 'Elmers' was but her instincts were saying that she definitely didn't want to find out. She watched as Marcus crossed his arms on the couch, clearly pissed off about the food and judging from the growls that were coming from his stomach he was starving. The human hadn't ate anything since he arrived, which meant that if he didn't get anything in the next hour he'll have to try horse meat. "Well geez," said Flurry, "You don't have to be so mean about it. How would I know what hyoomans eat?" Marcus sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, "I guess you're right. Sorry, I'm just pissed that I'm in this situation and being hungry isn't really making me feel better." 'I could tell you some stories until you find a place with decent food.' 'I rather starve.' Flurry sat on her haunches and looked at the floor, "O-Oh...is being with me making you that upset?" Marcus noticed what he said and instantly tried to diffuse the misunderstanding, "N-No! Not at all! I meant me being stuck here in general. Being away from home and friends. No doubt that my best friend is already trying to find me as we speak. it's just stressful." Flurry placed a hoof on his knee, "Equestria isn't so bad. Yeah you've run into a couple bad eggs-" "A couple?" "-a lot of bad eggs. However you still have a whole country to explore. Doesn't that excite you? Leaving the place you were always sheltered in and seeing what the world has to offer?" "Yeah of course. However no matter where I go,, that one place that I've been sheltered in will always be home." Flurry was taken back, not expecting that answer from the human, "I-I guess i never thought about it like that. Plus you are just a lazy couch potato." Marcus shrugged, "Hey, you call it a curse. I call it a blessing from God." "That's another thing I want to ask you about." "Hmm?" "Well, I've noticed you saying those names a lot. This 'Jesus' and 'God'. Are they like Auntie Celestia and Luna?" Now it was Marcus' turn to be taken back a bit. He wasn't expecting that question at all too be honest. How does he even answer that? Sure he believed in both of them and prayed every once in a while, but he never went to church or anything. He could always tell her the well known stories from the Bible. Maybe he could become an author here and become very famous? Wait...that would be plagiarism. Well the ponies wouldn't know that, but then God will. Yeah he didn't really feel like being struck by lightning, would that even affect him? 'Oh yeah, they hurt like a bitch.' 'Jesus! Do you ever announce yourself before you just jump in my thoughts? Also....you met the big man upstairs?' 'Of course I have! He's a pretty cool guy and his son is really nice. He was even one of my wielders.' If Marcus had a drink in his mouth he would've spit it out, 'WHAT!? You're saying that Jesus. THE JESUS, wielded you?' 'Of course. It was only temporarily though, he had to retrieve some key from, what you humans call, Hell.' 'H-How old are you anyway?' 'You know it's pretty rude to ask a lady her age. Let's just say I'm really mature.' 'Gross.' 'Get your mind outta the gutter.' 'Hey I've also noticed that you've been...well....how do I put this?' 'What?' 'Well, you've been kind of....cool? I guess?' 'I have no fucking clue what you're talking about.' 'That! That right there! You're personality seems more human than an all powerful artifact.' 'Oh, that! You see each time I'm wielded I inherit some of the personality traits of the user. So in this case you're human traits got past on to me.' 'I guess that makes sense-' "Ahem, Marcus? Did you even hear what I said?" Marcus was snapped from his conversation with Mjolnir as he looked toward Flurry, who had an annoyed and impatient look on her face, "Sorry Flurry. I kind of forgot you were here and tuned you out. What were you asking again?" Flurry gave Marcus a stern glare before walking over back to the bed across from him. She sat on the bed and crossed her forelegs and turning her head away from him, "I've seem to have forgot." Flurry did not understand him at all. First he's sincere and caring, now he's acting like he barely has brain cells! Maybe she should've stayed back at the palace and waited for another opportunity, but the only problem with at was when that was come. If it ever was going to come. The young princess would just have to deal with it for now, he wasn't that bad and like before, he is caring and selfless. He just sometimes gets under her skin that makes her want to pull out her mane piece by piece. She watched at the corner of her eye as Marcus stood and walked toward the door, "It seems that it's your time of the month. So when you're done acting so damn moody, I'll be in the cafe cart getting some ACTUAL FOOD!" Flurry let out a giggle as she watched him leave. He was pretty funny in his own way. She glanced at the hammer that he had left in the room as the curiosity gotten the best of her. She hopped off the bed and slowly started toward the mystical artifact that gave Marcus his powers and saved her from those bandits. She reached forward and was mere inches from grabbing the handle until a small spark shocked her hoof. She let out a small 'yelp' as she retracted her hoof and rubbed it tenderly. If she remembered correctly then the hammer, or Mjolnir, only let those worthy to wield its power. She hadn't dropped the subject with Marcus and his parents, she knew it was personal for the human but she just had to know. More importantly she had to know what made Marcus worthy in wielding this magnificent power that could rival her three aunts. She wasn't going to get answers right away and she could admit that. They literally just met yesterday, so all she had to do was follow Auntie Twilight's lessons on friendship and learn more about him that way. Maybe they could actually be really close friends in the future. Even though she was a princess she never really had real friends, just ponies fillies and colts that wanted to be around her for being a princess. She sighed and looked out the window watching the grassy plains scroll by, "I just don't want to be alone." 'Oh, girl. You are a complicated one, are ya'?' "Are you out of your mind!" shouted an enraged Shining Armor. "Shining before you get mad-" "-mad doesn't cut what i'm feeling right now! More like absolutely livid!" Shining Armor was not walking back and forth in Cadence's and his personal chambers . He had just been told by his wife that she hired Misty Knight, the mare that kidnapped her daughter, to bring back Flurry from her little 'get away' with the human Marcus. In all honesty Shining didn't particularly care for Marcus during this salutation, but just wanted his daughter safe and sound in the palace walls. However he wanted to do it with the help of the Crystal Guard, not some mercenary. "Are you kidding me Cadence?! You're going to put the life of our daughter in the hands of the same mare that tried to take her away from us!?" exclaimed Shining as the Princess of Love stood her ground. "It's not like that Shining! Misty Knight, had just used Flurry for leverage to get the Crystal Heart-" "-And that's supposed to make me feel better!? Are you even sure you can trust that mare!?" "I-I do! I know I shouldn't but I'm going with my instincts with this and I'm sure that Misty will follow through." Shining only rolled his eyes, "What about Marcus then?" Cadence's mood suddenly became sour, "What about that kidnapper?" "Cadence....we both know that's not true. Flurry only ran away, for what reasons I don't know but for what that human has done for us, do  you really think that he kidnapped Flurry? Let alone persuade her to abandon us?" "Th-Then why would she just leave!?" Shining shook his head, he loved his wife but her emotions were so strong that it sometimes clouded her judgement and that led to her making rash decisions. Unfortunately that's one of the traits that Flurry inherited from her mother, he had assumed that was the case when she ran off to her room last night after their argument and then her sudden disappearance that same night. This is why he wanted to go himself to find her, so he can talk to her and see why she left. "Sweetie, there has to be a reason why she went with Marcus and as her PARENTS we need to go and figure that out-" "DON'T YOU THINK I KNOW THAT!" Shining froze, as the bedroom fell silent. Cadence was looking to the floor as a her bangs shadowed her eyes, tears were now flowing down her cheeks and she let out a few sniffles. She knew this would happen when she told Shining about Misty's involvement, but she couldn't keep secrets from him. The both of them were a team no matter how much they fought or how many obstacles they faced they would overcome it. "Shining...I won't lie. I'm still having second thoughts about Misty as well-" She started. "So why-" Shining was then cut off as Cadence raise her hoof. "But...I know she's not lying. Everything from her being a mother and only wanted to the best for her child. That's not something you can easily fake. I realize what she did before is unacceptable and she will face the consequences, but you and I both know that she wasn't behind this attack. There's something behind closed doors trying to get the Crystal Heart and if one of us leaves the Palace then it'll know." Shining rose an eyebrow, "So you want to use the mare that was hired to steal the heart, to get our daughter back." "I know it sounds crazy, but....I know there is good in her. I just want to her to go and bring Flurry....and the human back." "Human? Where did that come from?" "Until we get the full story, I'm still led to believe that he had some part of Flurry being gone." Shining shook his head, "Just go easy on the kid, I'm sure the same human who saved our daughter wouldn't just kidnap her." Cadence nodded hesitantly, "I-I suppose you're right, but I can't help but feel....against him for what's happened." Shining pulled his wife into a tight embrace as she rested her chin on his shoulder, "You're just stressed and worried. Look, I'll jump on board with this plan of yours on  a couple of conditions." "Anything." "Whatever that mare does while trying to locate Marcus and Flurry is under your responsibility. She might be a mother but she is still a mercenary. Second, no harm is to come to Marcus until he is back in the Empire so we can get the actual story. Understand." The pink alicorn smiled and nodded, "Th-Thank you Shining. For trusting Misty." "I'm trusting YOU. Not her. We'll still hold up our end for her child's sake but that's it." "I understand." Cadence let go of her husband and walked toward the door, "I'll go tell Misty." Shining sighed as he watched Cadence leave the room He could tell that she wasn't entirely agreeing with what he was telling her but it was fine. He knew that she would never go back on her word and her heart was too soft to hurt another being. He just hoped that he made the right choice in trusting Misty Knight to find Flurry and Marcus, his wife had made some good points about somepony lurking in the shadows, which meant all hooves needed to be on deck in the palace. It still some how irked him that the mercenary was going, even if he and his wife didn't leave they had already sent out letters to Celestia, Luna and Twilight informing them of the situation. He just needed to trust his wife's judgment and hope that all this is just a misunderstanding. Flurry made her way to the cafe cart, and instantly saw her human companion. He was currently stacking a plate with various fruits and pastries. It was clear that he obviously didn't trust the other food that was displayed, due to the 'incident' back in their room. She smiled as she walked up to the bar next to the human, still feeling a little hungry, and started to make herself a small bowl of cereal. It was then she felt a cold stare at the side of her head, she turned and saw Marcus staring at her with, what's to be seen as, murderous intent. "M-Marcus?" nervously said Flurry as a bit of fear crept inside her, "What's w-wrong?" Marcus continued to stare at her before looking as her bowl in front of her, "Did you just pour the milk first?" Flurry's fear instantly died as she now had a look of confusion on her face, "Yeah? What's wrong? Is the milk expired-" "Nobody pours the milk first! I-It's weird!" "Um...I pour the milk first?" retorted Flurry clearly offended. "It is freaking weird!" "Why are you so offended? It's just milk!" Marcus seemed to stop picking out his food and turned his whole body to Flurry with a look of determination on his face, "Because.....like serial killers pour the milk first!" Flurry rolled her eyes sarcastically, "Ooooh, so I'm going to kill somepony for no reason because I poured the milk first?" "I don't know maybe-" "Why does this even matter to you?" "Why do you even do it that way?" "So the cereal doesn't get soggy as fast? Duh?" Marcus couldn't believe what he was hearing, he didn't care if the ponies, who were sitting at the tables in the cart, were now staring at them with curious and nervous expressions. He had to talk some sense into this little royal princess before she ruins her life forever. "What..." was all he could say at the moment. Flurry had now fully faced Marcus as well, "It makes sense!" "No. It doesn't" "Listen, if you pour in the cereal first and THEN pour the milk in afterwords, then all the cereal gets saturated by the milk-" "All of the cereal gets saturated and submerged in the milk anyways!" Flurry shook her head in denial, she was going to make this human see reason, "Nooo, not if you put the milk in first-" "YES IT DOES!" "Wait! Let me finish okay!" Marcus gave an annoyed glared and motioned her to continue, "Fine, fine go ahead." Flurry nodded, "Because of surface tension," Marcus gave her a dejected look as she continued, "the bottom layer of the cereal will act as a flotation device-" "What are you even saying right now?" "Shut up, let me finish!" "But that's hell'a stupid!" "You're stupid!" "This whole argument is stupid!" "You're the one who started this whole argument!" "BECAUSE YOU POURED THE FUCKING MILK FIRST!" "JUST LISTEN TO ME!" There was silence in the cart as the two glared daggers at each other. Some of the ponies that were observing the argument had already left to their own rooms, or stayed to see how this debate would turnout. Marcus could tell by how red Flurry's face was that she was heated. The way she yelled was kind of like when she was arguing with her parents, usually he'll just drop the argument and continue to with what he was doing, but he will not drop something as important as this. "Fine..." he grumbled and Flurry took a deep breath. "As I was saying, if you pour the cereal on top of the milk-" "Wait?' started Marcus, ignoring Flurry's growl as he cut her off once again, "How are you supposed to know how much milk to pour, if you don't pour the cereal into the bowl first?" "You eat all the cereal and if there is still more milk left, either 'A' drink it or 'B'...pft I don't know, POUR SOME MORE CEREAL!" "What if you're not as hungry or thirsty as you thought you were and now you just sit here with a bowl full of extra milk-" "Oh,do you need a bottle? Maybe a sippy-cup? Or are you going to stop being a little baby! And finish it!" "Cereal milk, is tainted milk." "Well, that's your fault for pouring too much milk. Plus there is always room for more cereal. Milk and cereal is like the ice-cream of breakfast!" Marcus couldn't deny her. He had agree with her on that last part, "Cereal for breakfast is poppin'." "But on the other hand, if you pour the cereal first and then pour the milk on after-" "STOP!" "-all the cereal will get soggy quickly." "Exactly!" "Huh?" "It gets soggy! That's the best part!" Flurry now had a deadpan expression, "You're kidding me." Marcus was taken back,as he put a hand to his chest, "No, I am not!" "Have you ever had soggy Fruity Stones before?" Ignoring the obvious rip-off brand of Fruity Pebbles, Marcus answered, "Yes, and they're delicious." "You're a demon." "Soggy Fruity Pebbles, or stones whatever, are heavenly!" "They're disgusting!" "You're disgusting!" "E-Excuse me?" said a soft voice from beside the two as both Marcus' and Flurry's head snapped toward the pony who dared interrupt their life and death conversation. Standing before them was a mare with a red coat and yellow mane, wings on her back stating that she was a pegasus, and reading glasses. "WHAT!?" The mare looked nervously to the floor and started playing with her hooves, "I-I heard you two arguing and I was just thinking.....have you tried having cereal without the milk? I actually prefer to eat my cereal dry." Marcus and Flurry looked at the mare with emotionless expressions before looking at each other. Even though you couldn't read it on their faces, you could see it in their eyes. They both had an understanding at what they just heard, it was time to stop this senseless fighting and work together combat a greater evil that had risen right before them. The poor mare never had a chance. "DO YOU ALSO PREFER BRUSHING YOUR TEETH WITHOUT WETTING THE TOOTHBRUSH!" shouted Flurry. "I BET YOU POOP AFTER YOU TAKE A SHOWER!" added Marcus. "WHO ARE YOU?!" "WHY ARE YOU EVEN BUTTING IN OUR CONVERSATION!" After a few moments of calling out the mare in front of them, she quickly apologized before running of in fear. The two then grabbed the rest of their food and made their way back to their room as heroes and comrades. At least in their eyes, once they walked in the room the two busted out laughing. "Did we really just tell the poor lady off?" laughed Marcus as Flurry nodded. "Yeah, we did! You know Marcus. To be honest, I didn't expect for me to smile this much while with you." "Please, don't start to catch feelings. I've broken too many hearts." "Oh please, keep dreaming that, but seriously though. This is the first time I had fun with an actual friend." Marcus smiled and sat on the couch, with his tray of fruits and pastries, "Don't mention it. I was also a little worried about you joining me but I think I could get used to having you around. I'm glad you're parents aloud you to come." Flurry felt a small sting of guilt in her heart, but couldn't help but blush at Marcus' kind words, "S-Same." 'Marcus and Flurry sitting in a tree-' 'Oh shut up! I rather stub my toe' 'You're just mad because I've gotten more 'tail' than you.' 'Aaaaand there goes my appetite, again.' > The Concrete Jungle Part 1 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Devon, Sam, and Dean stood in a stunned silence as Serena finished her story. They knew what they were getting involved in was important, but something this big was insane. Even the Winchesters, the same brothers that have faced Death and Lucifer in the flesh didn't know how to comprehend what was just said to them. Well Dean could only say one thing... "Son of a bitch." Serena looked down at her desk, gripping both of her hands as tight as she could as her body  trembled with fear, "N-Now you see why that hammer needed my help? I hate to say it, but this is bigger than even Heaven and Hell." "So you're telling me," started Devon, "That our chances of getting my friend back are next to nothing? That he's gone forever." The elderly lady shook her head, "I-I'm not saying it's impossible but....we're talking about inter-dimensional travel and different universes. You'll need God, or some other divine being to even consider that." Sam and Dean looked at each other before nodding. They didn't know if their angel friend, Castiel, could pull off something of this magnitude with the power he has now, but it was worth a shot. "Thank you for your cooperation Ms. Blair," said Sam, "It seems that's all the questions we have." Blair looked to her desk once again with a solemn expression, "I guess, I'll accept my fate. You are hunters and I am a witch. Just make it quick. At least let me die in my true form." Before the three men could say anything, Serena was bathed in a bright light. Devon, Sam, and Dean covered their faces until the light died down. Once their vision was restored they were shocked to see not the elderly woman,  but a young lady with dark hair, green eyes, and pale skin who looked to be in her mid twenties. "Well, this is a surprise." said Devon. "I bet it is," answered Serena, "It's only a low level spell, but it is really useful when keeping a low profile. Just make it quick, I rather my death be painless." "Who said anything about killing you?" stated Dean, as Serena looked at the elder Winchester with a confused expression. "Wh-What?" Sam nodded, "Me and my brother can tell you're not a bad person. You don't enjoy killing innocent people. Plus just because you're a witch doesn't give us enough reason to kill you. Hell, there are some hunters who are witches or practices dark magic." "S-So...you'll let me go?" "Not quite. You're going to stay with us. We may need you if we are going to fix this." Serena looked at the three before smiling and nodded in agreement. The train slowly came to a stop at the train station, steam blowing out of it's engines and the sound of it's whistle echoing through the air. The doors to the carts opened as ponies of different shapes and sizes departed the vehicle, among these ponies was Marcus, with Mjolnir strapped to his side, and Flurry now wearing her cloak to conceal her wings. As they walked away from the train the small alicorn gave him a curious look. "Hey Marcus, I have a question." she started. The human shrugged, "And I may or may not have the answer." "Ha-ha, but seriously. Aren't we supposed to be heading straight to that minotaur settlement you were talking about?" "Yeah, we are." "So, why are we here? In Manehattan?" Marcus stopped and looked at her like she had lost her marbles, "Well to sight-see, duh? This is my first time being here and do you think I'm going to just pass up the chance to see all these new places? Plus didn't you want to leave the castle and explore the world? Now you can do it." Flurry was taken back, she hadn't expected Marcus to do this because of her. She should be flattered but the guilt of her lying to him was eating away at her. Her parents never approved of her being here with him, she ran away because she was fed up being treated like a foal and the duties of being a princess shoved down her throat. Who even knew what her parents were thinking of at this moment. Most likely flipping out and worried to death. She'll have to apologize once she gets back. "Hey Flurry, ya'll alright?" said Marcus snapping her from her trance. "Y-Yeah, fine. I'm just surprised that you're doing this for me. Doesn't you getting training from the minotaurs kind of...important." "Yeah, but that can wait. Gotta make this little road trip interesting somehow. It'll be boring if we just stayed on the train the whole way. Plus since your parents let you come with me to see the world anyway, we can kill two birds with one stone." Flurry chuckled nervously, "I guess you're right." "I do have something to ask that's been bugging me." Flurry gulped, "Wh-What's that?" "Why are you still wearing that cloak?" Flurry looked at her attire and let out a sigh in relief. She was in the clear, at least for now, "I just don't want to be the center of attention. With me being an alicorn and all. I just want to be treated like any other pony. So if you wouldn't mind..." Marcus put a hand up to stop her, "Don't mention. You do know that we might be the center of attention anyway right? With you know me being the only one of my species here." "It'll be fine, different species visit Equestria all the time." "But I'm literally wearing armor, with a cape behind me. Not to mention this big piece metal on my waste." 'I take offense to that' 'Shut up, no one cares' Flurry shrugged, "Just say you're a traveler or a mercenary. They're pretty common around here. Why did you think nopony asked about you on the train?" Marcus had to admit she did have a point. Not one pony asked what he was and why he was dressed like he was. Too be honest he felt kind of disappointing that he wasn't the center of attention, but at the same time he'd much rather keep to himself and do his own thing, if he was going to be stuck here forever. Which is part of the reason why he wanted to do a little sightseeing. "Well you got me there. In that case let's get a move on, I want to see what 'boot-leg New York' has to offer." said Marcus as he continued walking again with Flurry following next to him. "What's New York? You mean New Yak?" "Fucking damn it." It had been four hours since Marcus and Flurry arrived in Manehattan, and the human had to admit that it wasn't as different as the Manhattan back on Earth. Other than the obvious carriages and carrot dog vendors, everything else was exactly the same. You had people who couldn't drive for shit, ponies bickering about stupid stuff, and your occasional ‘on-the-street-and-totally-not-suspicious’ salesman, or salespony. He and Flurry were having a great time though, they had seen some interesting monuments, including the Statue of Liberty....which was a pony. He should've expected that but paid no mind as the two had gotten churros form a local vendor. He of course had gotten a few glances here and there, but he figured that would happen and just enjoyed his time. Flurry was having the time of her life, her eyes lit up at everything she saw.. None of this was like the Crystal Empire, and there was a whole country that she still needs to see. The two were now currently walking toward to a nearby hotel, thanks to the directions of a mare named Coco Pommel, where the two would be staying for the next few days. Not to mention that it was getting pretty dark out and the two were exhausted from their train ride and their little tour of the city. Flurry, thanks to her being pretty wealthy, had more than enough bits to cover the stay and future stays if needed. Once checked in, both of them took the elevator up to their room and were astonished. The hotel room had two queen sized beds, a large closet, sofa, small kitchen, and one bathroom. Marcus instantly unstrapped his chest piece and cape before setting Mjolnir on the sofa, and crashing on the bed with his face buried in the pillows. Flurry was in the same state, tossing her cloak on the floor and hopping in the second bed. "I'm beat," started Marcus. Flurry nodded, "We did have a long day. Not to mention that there is more to do tomorrow!" Even though she was tired, the young alicorn couldn't contain her excitement on being here. "Mhmm." was all Marcus said as he turned over. Flurry gave an annoyed look, "Aren't you even excited for being here?" "I am," said Marcus, "just kind of exhausted. You seem to be full of energy though." "I would lie if I didn't say I was a little tired, but this is my first time seeing something this amazing outside the Empire! I read in some books that Manehattan had the best plays and performances in Equestria. We should go check one of them out!" Marcus instantly shot up form his pillow and pointed at the alicorn, "No! No plays! Not what happened last time!" Flurry rose an eyebrow, "What? What's wrong with you, it's just a simple play? Did something happen to you or something?" "You could say something almost happened to me. That I promised myself to never speak of again." Flurry gave a smirk, "Awe! Now you got to tell me!" Marcus crossed his arms and turned his back to Flurry, avoiding eye contact. He was not going to fall in to her trap of her using her cuteness again. He couldn't afford it this time. He had made a promise to himself, when he was a kid, to never speak of or go to plays ever again. Judging from the look Flurry was sending his way, she was not going to let this go until he told her.  He needed to change the subject or give her a throw away answer or maybe even bullshit his way to freedom. "Let's just say that clowns, a basketball, and toothbrush was involved and lets leave it at that." "A...what?" Marcus took her confusion as an opportunity and stood up, "Well, I'm suddenly not tired anymore. I'm going to take a look around the hotel. You should get some rest, if you want to go out tomorrow." Flurry tilted her head in confusion but nodded anyway, "Fine...just don't stay out too long." Marcus waved her off and picked up Mjolnir before strapping it to his side, "Yeah, yeah whatever." With that said Marcus quickly left the room and placed a his back against the door. He let out a deep sigh and made his way down the hallway and toward the elevator before making his way down to the lobby. He gave a quick greeting to the receptionist before leaving the hotel and feeling the cool breeze of the night air on his skin.  He started to walk along the sidewalk, not paying too much attention to the stares he was getting along the way, he wasn't wearing his armor at the moment but it still must've been unusual for them though, considering that they've never seen a human with a magical hammer before. He wasn't concerned of what the nearby ponies thought of him though. His thoughts were traced back to his journey to that minotaur settlement Mjolnir was talking about. 'Hey, Mjolnir.' 'Yeah? What's up?' 'Tell me more about this minotaur settlement.' 'Well, like I said before they  are located more down South of Equestria. Specifically a little west of a town, called Ponyville, where Princess Twilight Sparkle resides.' 'Ponyville? What the hell kind of name is that? Are you screwing with me now?' 'I wish I was but that's the actual name for the town. Anyways, minotaurs are known to be fierce warriors here.  They didn't originate in Equestria originally but there are a few settlements that they call home here from previous visits from their homeland. As for their appearance, they resemble from what you know from those Greeks back on your world.' 'They aren't going to clobber me on sight are they?' 'You'll be fine, they aren't savages......most of the time.' 'I'm starting to have second thoughts on this whole little crusade.' 'Oh stop being a baby. All you gotta do is prove your strength and then they'll welcome you with open arms. Not to mention, you have me by your side.....this is about Flurry isn't it?' 'Not really. I am concerned that this will be too much for her, hell I think this is too much for me. However.....Mjolnir, what do you think of Odin?' 'My creator? A weird question, but....he was stoic and proud. Always thought with his head and was a good father to his children despite his many mistakes.' 'Would you consider him your father?' If Mjolnir had eyebrows, one of them would be raising in curiosity right now, 'I wouldn't go so far as to call him my father despite him creating me, but if I would give someone that title then that would be, who you know as, Thor.' 'Really?' 'Yes, he didn't treat me as some object or a weapon. He...treated me as a person. As someone to have by his side until he drew his last breath. During my first times with him, he was nothing more than another wielder like the previous ones but over time I realized that he cared for me more than I could tell and eventually I did the same.' 'What happened?' 'He eventually surpassed Odin and became the new king of Asgard. As a result he sent me on my way to find a new wielder.' 'So he abandoned you?' 'No....he didn't. He wanted me to see these realms and do some exploring. To think for  myself for once and not just some lump of mystical metal. I haven't seen him since.' 'He sounded.....like a great dad.' 'Yeah, I guess he was. Alright now you're turn.' 'Huh?' 'You're parents. Don't think I didn't know what you were getting at when you asked my about that 'father' crap! What happened with your parents?' Marcus stayed silent before forcing a smile, 'Like I told Flurry, they weren't there when I needed them.' 'Bullshit!' 'It's the truth! I'm not going into detail, but just know that my, so called, parents have been absent almost my whole life! I moved from orphanage to orphanage, but nobody wanted me!' 'Marcus...I'm sure-' 'I had to teach myself most things. I taught myself to ride a bike, go to school, drive, and eventually survive on my own. If you think I'm depressed because my parents weren't here for me then I'm not. I didn't need them before and I don't need them now.' 'There has to be more than that.' 'There is....but....I don't feel like talking about it now, Minnie.' 'Alright- wait...what the fuck did you just call me?' 'What? Do you honestly think I was going to call you Mjolnir the whole time? No offense, but that name doesn't sound...natural.' 'No! I refuse to be called that! I-It's embarrassing!' Marcus then felt a strange warm feeling on his thigh as he looked down to see Mjolnir cover in a slight tinge of red, 'Are you actually blushing?' 'N-No! Of course not!  Th-That's ridiculous.....B-Baka!' 'Baka? Are you serious right now!' 'I-It's not my fault! Remember with each wielder I show some of their personality traits. It seems that you have a 'thing' for tsunderes.' Marcus felt his own cheeks heat up, 'I do not! I-I just watched that anime one time Minnie!' 'Stop calling me that, b-baka!' 'Stop saying baka!' 'B-Baka!' 'Minnie, I swear to God!' "Thank you and come again!" called out a bright yellow earth pony mare, with a long silky black mane and tail, and goggles on her head with a red sash around her neck. She smiled and grabbed a nearby towel, wiping the sweat from her forehead after a long day doing repairs on the carriages and carts that were brought in. Tossing the towel the side she walked over and flipped a lever shutting the garage door. She then left the garage, which led her to her shop where she sells parts and accessories for different types of carriages and carts. It was closing time, she was exhausted and eager to turn in to her bed for some shut eye. She was tempted to skip the shower and take one in the morning, but she would rather not stink up her apartment with the smell of oil and sweat. As she went behind the counter to grab the key to close up shop, the bell rang from the front door signaling that a customer had walked in. "I'm sorry but we're closed for the night- Oh....it's you." said the mare as she peaked over the counter to see three lion-eagle hybrids walk in the store wearing well-tailored suits.  The three griffons walked up to the counter, with the one in lead taking off a pair of sunglasses before stuffing them in his pocket. "Yeah, it's us," he said in a thick accent, "The boss informed us to tell you that we would be collecting payment today rather than next week." "What?" questioned the mare, "But I haven't got it yet! Just tell Iron Beak to give me-" "The boss has gave you enough time, Ollie," interrupted the second griffon, "you either pay up or you'll be spending the night in a hospital bed, with your shop in flames." "L-Look," stuttered the mare, now known as Ollie, "This shop is all I have! Just give me more time! I promise I'll have the bits by then!" "You know we can't do that." threateningly said the third griffon. Ollie watched as the three griffons started to stalk closer to the counter, all three of them reaching in the interior flaps of their suits. "I-I'll scream!" she warned, "You'll get arrested!" The griffons chuckled as their advance on the mare didn't stop, "Lady, we have contacts in the police force. Hell, we have contacts in this whole damn city! Now you'll respect Iron Beak's wishes or we'll have to-" "Minnie, I will personally put you in the dumpster!" yelled a voice from behind the griffons as they and Ollie both looked toward the form of the store to see a creature that was unknown to either of them. It resembled that of an ape, but it was completely hairless aside from a small patch on his head. It also wore simple clothing with a metal hammer strapped to his side. Marcus snapped form his argument with Mjolnir and focused on the three occupants in the store, "Oh damn, uh....this is awkward. I just came to see if ya'll have any polisher for my annoying hammer?" "Sorry buddy," said one of the griffons, "but stores closed for the night, maybe permanently if things don't go the way they're supposed to." "Ominous. I know evil gangster talk when I hear it." said Marcus, now gripping the handle of his hammer at his side. The griffons, noticing the gesture, quickly reached into their suits and pulled out, what looked like old looking pistols you'll see in those black and white detective movies. "H-Hey!" called out Ollie to the mysterious human, "I-I got this handled. Please I don't want any trouble." Marcus smirked as he unstrapped Mjolnir and twirled the hammer in his hand, "Sorry lady, you look like you need help dealing with some assholes and I'm not taking no for an answer.....I don't know if that was gay or not." "Look ape!" exclaimed the first griffon, gripping his pistol tightly, "this is none of your concern. You might have that scrap piece of metal but there's three of us and one of you." 'Scrap metal! Marcus, rip their assholes a new one!' 'Now that's definitely gay-' Marcus didn't have time to finish his thought as he was shot multiple times in the chest. > The Concrete Jungle Part 2 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Marcus stumbled backward with a shocked expression. He had been shot! He didn't expect himself to go out like this! He had so much to live for! Not to mention that Flurry is going to pissed that her only friend was shot down in cold- "Oh..." suddenly said Marcus as he felt his chest, which had no scratch what so ever, except the now ruined long sleeve shirt he was wearing. Right now, during this situation, he'll usually be jumping in glory. However he was too pissed at the three stunned griffins in front of him. "YOU ASSHOLES REALLY SHOT ME!" exclaimed Marcus as he rushed the three. The closest griffon didn't have time to react as a foot was planted in to his chest and was launched into the front counter, shattering it on impacted. Ollie let out a scream as she dove out of the way of the splintering wood and covered her face with her hooves. The two griffons were snapped from their shocked states and opened fire on Marcus once again. The human however only walked forward as each bullet bounced off his skin harmlessly. Spinning Mjolnir at his side he rushed the two, ignoring the bullets that flew past him. The human then did a small jump and struck the hammer in between the two griffons, creating an electrical, blue shock wave knocking them both away and into the shelves. The griffon that he had kicked before, came to his senses and spread his wings before jumping on Marcus' back, wrapping his arms around his neck. Marcus, out of reflex, tossed Mjolnir aside and grabbed the talons, easily prying them off his neck and flipping the griffon on his back, knocking the wind out of him. He held out his hand as Mjolnir was summoned in his grasp. He struck down toward the griffon only for him to roll to the side and strike with his sharp talons. Marcus however only got a more torn up shirt as his skin was still unfazed. "Wh-What the hell are you!?" spat out the griffon. Marcus smirked, "I'm Batman." With that said he punted the griffon out through the glass window of the store and into the street. The other two griffons had regained their consciousness and watched their companion being thrown out like a piece of trash. Marcus glared at the two as his eyes shone a bright blue and Mjolnir sparking with lightning. With out a second thought, both of the griffons ran out of the store and grabbed their fallen comrade before flying off into the night. 'Come back and we'll pound your backsides!' 'Minnie! That's enough with the innuendos! They can't even hear you!' 'Stop calling me Minnie!' Ignoring his annoying tsundere hammer, Marcus strapped her back on his belt and walked toward the front desk. There he saw the same yellow mare cowering behind it. Sunset irises met chocolate brown in an awkward silence. It wasn't until a lone shelf tipped over and spilling it's contents on the floor. This snapped the two out of their trance as Marcus gave off an apologetic laugh. "Uhh....Sorry about trashing your shop," he started, "Are you okay? Those dickheads didn't hurt you too bad did they?" Unfortunately Ollie was furious. "AM I OKAY?!" she screamed as she jumped to her hooves, "DO YOU REALIZE WHAT YOU'VE DONE!" "Save your life?" "NO! If anything, you've put my life in more danger! Those griffons worked for the largest crime family in the city! Now they'll be coming after me and you! Not to mention that you trashed my shop!" Marcus put his hands up in defenses and stepped back, "What's the big deal? You saw how I kicked their asses. I'm not afraid of a bunch of chicken legs. By the way, this is just a shop, I'm sure you'll get it fixed." Ollie huffed and glared at the human, "You don't understand! These griffons are NOT to be trifled with! This shop was passed down by family for generations and..." "Alright, alright" softly said Marcus, "I understand and I'm sorry. I just saw you were being bullied by those jerks and just stepped in to help. I can help pay for the damages....maybe." Ollie sighed, it wasn't this creatures fault. From the look of him this might be his first time here in Manehattan, maybe even Equestria. Too be honest she didn't know what those griffons were going to do to her if he hadn't of showed up and save the day. The griffons, in the crime family in Manehattan, were known to be....aggressively affectionate...toward the mares that were in debt to Iron Beak. She shuddered and put those thoughts behind her. What ever this creature was saved her life and was absolutely powerful. She was grateful that he showed up when he did, unfortunately once those griffons return word to Iron Beak they'll be on both of their trails. "No I'm sorry. I shouldn't blame you for what happened. I'm just stressed and scared for what Iron Beak will do once he finds out about this." Marcus rose an eyebrow, "You keep saying that name like I should know it." "Oh right. Like I said before, those griffons are part of the most largest and dangerous crime families in Manehattan. Anypony who doesn't follow their rules either have their lives ruined or worst. Iron Beak is the head of it all and after what you did he definitely won't be happy." "Well shit, I done fucked up did I?" Ollie giggled and adjusted her goggles on top of her head, "Yeah I guess you did. Hey if you don't mind....can I stay with you for the time being?" "That was kind of out of the blue. Why? Don't you have your own place?" "I do....but Iron Beak is going to send griffons after us and we'll need to stay low until things die down. If not I maybe have to skip town." "Guess that makes sense. Sure, I'm staying at the hotel down the street with a...travel buddy? Yeah we'll call her that for now." "You think she'll be okay with this?" "Pssh! Of course! Trust me I got this!" "YOU CELESTIA DAMNED IDIOT!" "Turns out I don't exactly got this." Marcus and Ollie, who was now hiding behind him, had returned the room in the hotel. To say that Flurry was mad was a tad bit of an understatement.....okay she was absolute livid. Not only did Marcus come back with nothing but pants, shoes, and Mjolnir to his side, she was informed that he had destroyed this poor mare's shop and pissed off one of the most notorious gangs in Manehattan. This is what she gets for letting him go out on his own, but she couldn't be all mad though. He did save this mare's life. That didn't excuse the fact that she was worried sick when he came back. "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING!" the young princess yelled. Marcus shrugged, "Hey, she needed help so I helped her. Not much to it." "There are other ways of helping than violence! Now we are three targets and you manage to destroy her shop!" Ollie nodded, "As much as I appreciate the help. I'm afraid you're marefriend is right." Flurry choked on her breath, "O-Oh, he isn't my coltfriend! We're just good friends and traveling together." Marcus nodded, "Yeah, she's way to naggy for my tastes." Marcus got a pillow to the face as a response and a 'hmpf'. Ollie couldn't help but giggle at the two's antics, for it reminded her of her parent then they first met. They still argue till this day now that she thought about it. A part of her wanted to tease the two some more but she refrained and allowed fate to take the wheel. Flurry coughed in her hoof snapping Ollie from her train of thought, "Excuse, his stupidity-" "-Hey!" "But I don't think I got your name?" Ollie smiled and held out her hoof, "Oh, I guess I did forget to mention that, with everything going on. My name is Ollie Sheen." Marcus groaned, "You know these 'pun' names are going to be the death of me." Ignoring Marcus' comment, Flurry shook the yellow mare's hoof, "Nice to meet you Ollie, my name is Flurry- er....just call me Flurry!" The young disguised princess felt her heart speed up when Ollie started to give her a strange look before shrugging and nodded. She let out an inward breath of relief as she returned her hoof. That was a close call, is this mare would've found out that she was the princess then she might as well kiss this journey goodbye and return to the Empire. Not to mention that they already have a target on their backs. "Well, you two can talk girl stuff. I'mma hit the shower then the bed." said Marcus as he made his way into the bathroom. "Wait!" called out Flurry, "We have to figure out this Iron Beak situation! You can't just go to bed and pretend that we don't have a hit on us!" "I think I can....look I'm exhausted and can't think straight. We can talk about this in the morning." "He's right," added Ollie, "If we all want to get out of this alive, we need to be a hundred percent." The crystal princess sighed and nodded, "I guess so. Alright sounds like a plan." "Great!" exclaimed Marcus as he made his way into the bathroom, "You two can take the beds, I'll settle with the couch." The door closed as a single thought went through Flurry's mind, "WAIT DON'T USE UP ALL THE HOT WATER!" Marcus yelled back, "I MAKE NO PROMISES!" Yeah, he was totally going to use up all the hot water. "I don't know about this." said Devon uncomfortably. "Don't worry," assured Dean, "We do this all the time." "The summoning demons part or you trying to get to another dimension?" "Yes." "Oh, boy." Devon groaned next to Dean, as he watched Sam and Serena set up the ritual to summon an actual freaking demon! Apparently the two said the demon they were summoning was an 'temporal' ally and since witches practically worship demonic magic, Serena would be fine. They were all currently in an abandoned shack in the middle of the woods at 3 a.m. Why they all thought this was a good idea was beyond him, this was like 'How to Survive a Scary Movie 101'. Well, they do hunt these things for a living, so maybe it won't be that bad? He'll stick close to the exit just to be safe. "Alright, it's done." said Serena as Sam lit a match in his hand. "You might want to stand back."the younger Winchester stated, mostly to Devon, as he threw a lit match into the chalice full of ingredients causing a bright spark to fill the room. Devon covered his eyes for a brief moment until the light show was over. When he regained his vision standing in front of him was....he guessed it was a demon? It was just a regular man, by the way he was dressed in a long black coat and slacks, he figured he was from the United Kingdom. Hell, he looked like one of the British villains you see in spy movies. "'Ello boys," said the man as he looked up and down at the star-like symbols that where currently below his feet and above his head, "Come on, after all this time. You still don't trust me?" "Not now. Crowley," sternly said Dean, "We need information and we don't have time for any of your tricks or deals." "So this is a demon?" The demon, known as Crowley, then noticed the two other occupants in the room. He could tell by first glance that the female was a witch, a weaker one at that and the male beside her was just a plain old human. Now he was a bit interested on why the famous Winchesters summoned him. "I'm more than a demon," stated Crowley to Devon, "My name is Crowley, the current King of Hell." Devon had to process for a few silent moments, "Wait....you mean the Devil! As in Lucifer!" "Nah, not that asshole. He's trapped in The Cage at the moment. I'm just the new manager. But other than that, it seems the other boys here want business. So...what can I do for you this time?" Sam stepped forward, "We need you, to transport us to another world." Crowley rose an eyebrow, "And how the bloody hell do you expect me to do that? If you haven't noticed, I'm no Archangel-" "-But you do collect cursed and magical artifacts correct?" interrupted Dean. Crowley stayed quiet, but nodded. "Then surely one of those, has the power to do that right?" asked Sam. Crowley shrugged, "Too be honest, I don't even know what half of those bloody things can do. So far, nothing describing about the IMPOSSIBILITY of what you're looking for." "It's not impossible," said Serena gaining the King of Hell's attention. If she had to be honest she was down right terrified right now. She hadn't seen a demon face to face before and now here she was, with the king of all demons staring her down like she was a mere ant under his boot. She put that fear behind her though. Even though she was a weaker level witch, she had spoke with a being that she was sure to kick this guys ass and back if she wanted to. "And who might you be, witch?" he asked in a sinister tone. Serena gulped, but answered none the less, "My name is Serena and I'm telling you it's not impossible. For I myself sent some one to a different world without an Archangel." "You expect me to believe that? The only way to travel worlds is if you're a deity, an Archangel, have a super powerful artifact, or the big man himself." Now it was Serena's turn to return a smirk of her own, "What if I told you I had one of those things?" "And pray tell, what that was?" "Mjolnir. The hammer of Thor." "Bullshit! The only way for you to acquire that is to be in leagues with-....tell me exactly why do you want to go to another world?" It was then Sam and dean started to explain to Crowley about the mysterious disappearances. The energy left behind and them meeting Devon and Serena. Along with the story that she had told them about how she was connected to all this. Crowley was always known to show a poker face, but this would begone of the few times that he actually broke character. "Winchesters, if what you're telling me is true..." "Then you'll help us?" asked Devon. "I'll see what I can do, but just know that you four are treading on thin ice. The pigeons upstairs won't be to happy if they found this out. Speaking of pigeons where's Castiel?" "On his way here," replied Dean, "He had contacts about this situation, so we need everything we can get." "All this to save a few missing people. I will never understand humans." Devon stepped forward with a stern look on his face, "That's my best friend your're talking about. I don't care if you're the King of Hell, I will kick your ass if need be." Crowley rose an eyebrow before chuckling, "Is that so? I like you. The Winchesters chose a fine new hunter to join their ranks." Before Devon could retaliate, Crowley snapped his fingers and he was gone from their sight. No flash of light, no wings spreading form his back; he just literally disappeared as if he never existed. Devon looked back to see a stunned Serena, and the Winchesters letting out a breath. "That could've gone better," said Sam, "But it's something." "So what now?" asked the witch. "We wait for Cass to get here and see what he's find out," answered Dean, "If it's something we can work with then we'll need almost all hands on deck to bring all those people back." "Are you sure about this?" asked Serena as she embraced herself. What these hunters were doing, they were crazy. She had seen the deity that sent Marcus to another world. She was beautiful but also intimidating, kind but also strict, and she felt if anything tried to get in the way of her plans she wouldn't hesitate to strike them down without a second thought. "Yes," answered Devon, "we are." "B-But she will..." "Look," stepped in Dean, "We don't give a damn how strong this god of yours is. Me and Sam have faced far worst in the past. Trust me." "Look we understand your're scared," added Sam, "but you are the only one that has the most info on what's actually going on. Even if it's a bit vague." "Please..." stepped in Devon, "If not for Marcus, do it for the other people that got sent away from their families." Serena clenched her hands. She really hated being backed into corners with all the attention on her. She had promised Mjolnir that she wouldn't interfere with her boss' plans, but it was time to stop being the weak and scared little witch. She didn't become who she was to be a coward and run from every problem that was thrown at her. With a few more seconds of silence, Serena nodded, "Alright, I'll help in whatever way I can." Marcus laid back on the couch with his arms crossed behind his head. Flurry and Ollie were already asleep in the two beds as he was deep in thought. He wondered if Devon, was trying to find a way to get him back or if he just moved on with his life. It wouldn't be surprising to him if his friend went with the second option, for it seemed it was impossible for him to get here. He thought of what Minnie had told him, with his purpose of being here and that all will be explained once he was strong enough to fully control her power. He had to admit though, he hadn't done much training but it seemed that every time he held her, it felt almost familiar. Nostalgic even. It was almost like him re-watching a TV show from his childhood, with him some what knowing what happens, but just not in full detail. If that's the case why does he need to even go to that minotaur settlement? All he needs to do is swing her around a few times and he's pretty much good to go. It was then he noticed that he had been calling his trusted hammer a 'her' instead of a 'it'. Well she had proved that she was sentient, but....he couldn't really explain it. Even though it's only been a few days, he really feels a bond between them, annoying as she can be sometimes.... 'Can't sleep?' He almost jumped when Minnie's sudden voice rang through his head, 'You could say that. Just thinking about some stuff.' 'What kind of stuff?' 'Nothing important, don't worry about it.' 'Hey Marcus, can I ask you something?' 'Shoot away, Minnie.' 'I told you to stop calling me that....' 'Did you really think I was going to stop?' 'Good point but anyways, I wanted to ask what you thought of Flurry?' 'Flurry? Why?' 'Just a thought I've been having.' 'Well....she's definitely a friend if not anything else. Other than you, I can definitely trust her more than anyone else. Ollie's pretty cool to, but we just met a couple of hours ago. So yeah.' 'Soooo.....are you saying there's not other feelings? Hmmm~.' 'Other feelings?' , it was then Marcus knew where Mjolnir was getting, 'Ew! NO! Look she's cute and all, but that's like a puppy dog kind of cute.' 'I don't know, the way you two argue sometimes could give someone ideas.' "And I'm telling you that I will NEVER EVER, get with a pony. That's like furry territory.' 'Says the one who has a thing for fox girls.' 'Sh-Shut up! And stop inheriting my personality!' 'Alright I'll stop. However Marcus, I'm not doing this only to tease you....maybe. Though I do care for you and don't want you to be alone while you're here in Equestria. It's okay to think about settling down....and having a family. Then I can be out of your hair.' 'Minnie....you don't think I'll actually abandon you right?' 'Wh-what? But....all my other users-' 'I don't give a flying piece of ass what your other users did. I'm basically immortal right? So I can't die?' 'Well... you can be killed yes, however you won't be able to die from natural causes.' 'Point still stands though, I won't leave your side ever. I know what it means to feel abandoned and alone. And if I settle down one day and have a....ugh....family. then you could be the cool aunt.' He could hear Minnie sniffle,'I am cool huh?' 'Of course, but I'm going to have to ask Flurry if it is okay for the kids to play with you.' 'Hmmmmm~?' Marcus could feel the smug coming form her voice, 'What?' "You said Flurry....are you saying you wouldn't mind having children with her?' Marcus felt his face heat up as he cursed himself for that slip of tongue, 'I-I was just using her as an example, that's all!' 'Ara Ara, you keep telling yourself that.' 'Minnie....I'm serious! We're just friends!' 'Goodniiiight Marcuuus~ Have sweet dreams of Flurry~!' 'Minnie!' > The Concrete Jungle Part 3 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cadence couldn't focus on the document she was writing. How could she? Her daughter was missing, along with Marcus, and she has no idea if she is safe or not. Its been couple days since Flurry's supposed kidnapping and she had heard nothing to brighten her mood. Misty, the mercenary, had been silent since she left and her husband, Shining Armor, barely talked to her. He was probably still disagreed with her hiring a mercenary to find their daughter rather than themselves. The Princess of Love took a deep breath and closed her eyes solemnly. She wants to believe that this whole thing was a misunderstanding and that Flurry ran off on her own. However, why would she do that? Flurry did love them did she? There is no way her little girl would just leave them without any explanation. The human had to have forced her go. That had to be the only reason. The sound of the door opening caught her attention. She turned around to see Shining Armor walk in the room, before taking off his purple crystal armor and taking a place on the bed. She pretended not to notice the side ways glance he was giving her, knowing that he was just as mad and worried as she was. "We finally got a letter back from the mercenary." he suddenly said as Cadence froze instantly. She turned around to her husband with a hopeful glimmer in her eyes. "What did Misty say! Did she find Flurry! What about the human? Is he-" Shining held up a hoof, "She didn't find them, no. However when talking to the train conductor, she discovered that Marcus departed to Manehattan. She's heading there as we speak." "Great! We'll soon have our baby girl back! Then everything we'll go back to normal!" "What about Marcus?" Cadence face formed into a frown, "What about him?" Shining groaned and stood from the bed, "Cadence I do not feel like having this argument again. Let me be the one to go get Flurry in Manehattan and get a reason why she disappeared on us." "I already told you-" "That there's somepony else involved? Sweetie, you're letting your emotions take control of you. You're not seeing what's in front of you and it's affecting your decision making." Cadence rolled her eyes and focused back on the documents in front of her, "I'm doing just fine. Thank you very much! I trust Misty, and you should too. She had a legitimate reason, for what she did and I did not feel any deceit when she told me her story about her son." "Then why don't you trust Marcus? I think you just need someone to blame." Cadence stayed quiet. She had to comprehend what her Shining, her husband and love her life, just said. She needed someone to blame? How dare he say that to her! Is he suggesting that Flurry was missing because of her? How? All she ever done was love and protect her filly from the moment she was born, the moment she first laid eyes on her small form. "Are you saying it's MY fault she's gone!" Cadence spat out venomously. Shining shook his head, "I'm not saying anything! There is just too may variables to consider a single possibility. You promised that you would give Marcus a chance to explain himself." "I did. That doesn't mean I like it." "And I don't like the idea that we are having to send out a mercenary, to bring our own daughter back. So you're just going to have to deal with it, like I am." Cadence grumbled, "Fine. We'll agree to disagree until Flurry gets back." Shining nodded and made his way to the bathroom, "I still love you both. Don't forget that." Cadence still looking at the documents in front of her sighed, "And I love you too." "So you mean to tell me that a mere ape bested my three best fliers?" The three griffons flinched at their boss' harsh tone. After the beat down they took form the mysterious ape-like creature, the three quickly made their way back to the private property owned by Silver Beak, their boss. The main griffon boss was larger than normal, his feather's being a dark brown and his feline fur being a coal black. His sharpened talons scraped the chair he was sitting in, and his large wings folded at his side. The more noticeable features would be the red ruby necklace around his neck, and his beak being made of a prosthetic metal. Silver Beak and his three enforcers were currently in his personal office, on his private estate. Once they informed him of why they had failed to convince that mare to sell of her store, he was more than displeased. They would surely get fed to the dogs for this failure. "B-Boss," stuttered the first griffon, "You don't understand. This...thing...isn't normal." "And tell me what makes him different than the other weak ponies in this city?" The second griffon decided to step in, "Sir, our bullets bounced off him like like they were plastic. Not to mention the hammer he has with him." Silver Beak rose an eye brow, "Hammer you say?" "Y-Yes...it's powerful. He sent us flying with just one swing. Not to mention the lightning that radiated off of him." The third griffon nodded, "Boss, I hate to say it but this guy could give a dragon a run for their money......maybe even an alicorn." The large griffon stroked his beak, in thought. Now that was interesting; he couldn't lie that the three in front of him were the best enforces he had when dealing with his problems. Trustworthy too. So who ever this creature was, is a force to be reckoned with. Even though griffons weren't connected as much to magic like the equines or the dragons, they did have the lead in science and technology. If this creature was immune to griffon made bullets then they had two options. Either try to convince this ape to join their organization, or eliminate a potential threat. "Tell me," Silver Beak answered, "who were you 'conversing' with, before the creature showed up?" "It was Ollie Sheen, sir." said the first griffon as the boss froze for a quick second before regaining his composure. That....was going to be a problem. Ollie Sheen and her family have been stubborn and a thorn in his side ever since he started running this city. If this hammer-wielding beast was her ally than he needed to act fast before everything he built here in Manehattan came crushing down on his head. The crime boss reached to the side of his desk and took a lone cigar from his drawer before lighting it. "Then we need to act quickly," firmly informed the boss, "Did you at least have the creature tailed after your retreat?" The second griffon nodded, "Yes boss, the cops under our pay grade informed us that he and Ollie Sheen entered the Manehattan Suites. We assume that is where they will be staying, and they might skip town tomorrow morning." "We can't allow them to do that. If word got out about how you three lost the the whole city would turn against. The cops we bribe would no longer service us, the citizens wouldn't be as afraid to stand against us, and that damned mayor would finally have the balls to actually contact the royal guard." "We understand boss." the three enforcers replied simultaneously. "Tomorrow morning, I want you three to take a group of griffons to Manehattan Suites to apprehend this creature. Since regular bullets don't affect him, supply yourselves with the enchanted ones we have at the warehouse and any heavy artillery we have stored there. I don't care what state he's in when he's on my doorstep, as long as he is alive." "What about Ollie Sheen sir?" "If you can, bring her to me alive as well. I have been to merciful with her and she must be made an example of. However it would also put me at ease if she had a bullet in her pony skull. As for any other allies they have, eliminate them as well, we don't want any loose ends causing more problems for us." "Yes boss," said the three griffon enforcers as they made their way out of the office leaving Silver Beak to his thoughts. He puffed out a plume of dark smoke as he rose from his chair and walked to his window, gazing into the night sky. His metal beak shining brightly in the moonlight. This creature thinks he can just walk in his city cause a bit of trouble and leave without consequences? Once the creature was kneeling before him, he'll feed him to the dogs and mount this so called 'All Powerful Hammer' on his wall. This he swore. Marcus yawned as he leaned up on the couch he was currently sleeping on for the night. After cracking his neck and back a few times, he groggily made his way to the bathroom. Flurry and Ollie was still asleep in the two beds, probably still exhausted from the crazy day they had yesterday. he even heard light snores coming from Minnie, which he had to admit was pretty freaking adorable. After doing the typical morning routine, the human took a quick shower and put on his pants, he's going to have to see if their's a tailor or something here to see if they can repair his ruined shirt. He then instead put the light chest piece of his armor over his bare chest instead, before instantly taking it off. "Okay, that's cold and my nipples are getting uncomfortably hard from this." he quietly said to himself. He would have to make due with his torn top for now. He strapped on his red cape and then made his way out of the room, making his way toward the lobby where breakfast was being served. Hopefully the food here was better than what he had on the train. Then again, the carrot dogs him and Flurry got from that vendor yesterday was actually pretty good. He still wished he had some form of protein though. He approached the elevator and stepped inside. The elevator wasn't like the modern ones back on Earth. It kind of reminded him of that ride at Disneyland. Too bad it closed though. As he felt the elevator descend to the floor he thought about what he was going to do when all this was over. Maybe he could be a residential super hero? Nah, that's too cliche. Plus he's too broke to be working for free. Being a mercenary wouldn't be so bad, he'll kick ass and travel to new places, however he's too lazy to do actual work. His thought's were interrupted as the elevator came to a jerking stop, almost knocking him off of his feet. Raising an eyebrow, he noticed that he wasn't even close to reaching the lobby floor. The doors didn't open yet, no one else had stopped it to come on. "Don't tell me I got stuck!" he exclaimed, "This is just my luck! Of course my damn morning would start out this way!" He could easily break out with his new found strength. The only problem is that he did not want to put any extra fees on his and Flurry's tab. Even though she is a princess and is stacked with bank, he still didn't feel right about. He guessed he'll have to wait until someone notices that the elevator is stuck. It wasn't the worst this that could happen today- *snap* The elevator jerked again, this time as if something came loose. "YOU GOT TO BE KIDDING- SHIT!" Marcus held on to the railing for dear life as the elevator plummeted down the shaft. The human could literally feel his balls rising into his stomach. He needed to get out of this thing but he was too cared and the death contraption was accelerating down faster and faster. He watched as the counter was rapidly descending. If he got out of this alive than he was totally suing the crap out of this place. The human closed his eyes, feeling that the ground was getting closer until impact. Going on his knees and covering his head, the elevator finally made contact with the floor emitting a loud crash to echo throughout the building. The ceiling of the elevator caved in above him as metal, stone, and cords rained down on him. Marcus had to cover his mouth and eyes from the dust that threatened to choke him and block his sight. He could hear ponies from the outside screaming in panic and some calling for help. Hopefully none of them got hurt during the elevator's kamikaze. He groaned, mentally thanking for the godly durability and dug himself out of the rubble in debris. He stood up in the ruined elevator and looked himself over. If his clothes were a mess before, than this time it looked like he got in a wrestling match with both a lion and a bear. The right shin of his pants were gone with torn cuts, his chest piece war also dented and battered, with his cape being half torn. Unsurprisingly however his actual skin was fine. Marcus took off the chest piece an through it to the side before tearing the red cape off it and wrapping it around his bare upper body like a robe. He stumbled toward the doors a bit disoriented and pulled back his fist. He punched the metal doors to the elevator this all his might and knocked them off of their hinges. The dust escaped the tight space and into the open lobby. Judging by the sounds of hooves galloping back and forth and the constant screaming. he made quite a ruckus. As he walked out of the elevator, the dust cleared and instead of greeting with the local pony firefighters or police. He was met with a group of griffons all aiming guns at him. It then occurred to him that these must be the work of that Silver Beak guy, Ollie was telling him about. "Um..." Marcus started to say, "You guys know that bullets bounce off me, like a deadbeat dad bouncing off of child support, right?" The griffons said nothing as they all cocked their weapons getting ready to fire. Marcus just shrugged, "Don't say I didn't warn you, I might not have Minnie with me but I'm sure I can-" *BANG* "FUCK!" Pain. Ooooooh so much pain! Marcus screamed out as a lone bullet tore through his shoulder, erupting a patch of blood from it. He grabbed his shoulder and quickly ducked behind a nearby couch as the rest of the griffons opened fire. He screamed again as a hail of bullets rained toward him nearly shredding the lobby couch apart as bullets sailed past him. What was happening!? What happened to his bullet immunity!? Was it because he didn't have Minnie with him? No, that can't be it because he would've ended up a lot worst in that elevator crash. The only other time he bled was when he fought those mercenaries in the Crystal Empire who had those.....enchanted blades. Not to mention that unicorn, Musky Knight if he remembered, also used those constructed weapons form her horn. Which was magic. He has a weakness to magic.....in a land where magic is pretty much day to day life. "THIS IS SOME COP-OUT PIECE OF DONKEY DICK!" 'Marcus! Silver Beak sent his goonies here!' 'I've noticed! I'm being shot at this very moment and is currently bleeding out. You know it would've been nice to actually warn me that magic is one of my weaknesses!' 'How the hell did you NOT know? You got your ass kicked by the mercenaries with a magic arsenal back in the Crystal Empire.' 'I really don't need the sass right now, Minnie! Where are you anyway?! I might need the magic hammer that shoots lightning.' 'I would've come if I wanted to, but something is blocking my connection with you. I'm surprised we're having this conversation now.' 'Great....so I'm on my own for now. Wait! What about Flurry and Ollie!?' 'Don't worry they booked it once they saw the griffons flooding the building.' 'And you didn't go with them?' 'Does it look like I can go anywhere? Look, they'll be fine. What you need to do is find what is interfering with our connection so I can find you.' 'I guess you're right. I better not die because of you.' 'Eh, rub some dirt on it.' With that, Marcus felt the familiar presence of Minnie leave his mind. He couldn't be too mad though, Minnie was right saying that it should be obvious that he wasn't resistant to magic or enchanted items. He needed to find whatever is interfering with his and Minnie's connection. Then he could call her to him, kick some ass, find Flurry and Ollie, and get the hell out of dodge. Which is easier said than done since he has no idea what is cutting him off, and the fact that these griffons are pinning him behind this couch. It was then he saw movement at the corner of his eye and noticed that a few griffons were heading up the staircases. "Shit! Those mother fuckers are trying to keep me pinned so they could get to Ollie, and who knows what they could do to Flurry! If I die I'm totally haunting some pony's ass." Mustering his godly strength, Marcus picked up the couch he was hiding behind and chucked it at the griffons, who instantly dispersed from the large flying object. Taking his chance, the human ran to ward the door to the staircase, dodging the return of bullets aimed at him. Kicking open the door and squatting his legs, he pushed upward ascending several flights before landing, before squatting and shooting off again. "Why the hell, did we pick the top floor!?" Flurry and Ollie peeked out a nearby by storage closet, observing a squad of griffons as they barged into ponies' rooms and demanding them for answers on their whereabouts. Things happened to suddenly that they didn't have time to grab their belongings before they fled the room. Flurry even almost blew her cover of being an alicorn due to the sudden crash that was heard throughout the hotel. The pink mare just hoped that her human companion was okay. She didn't know how capable he was without his hammer, since it was still sitting in the hotel room. Flashbacks of when the raiders took her hostage back in the Crystal Empire flooded her mind. Especially with how Marcus was injured during that whole ordeal. She didn't want that to happen to him again, which meant that she had to toughen up and get a little dirty. "I think Marcus' references are rubbing off on me." she whispered to herself, before glancing toward the yellow earth pony beside her, "Any ideas?" "Not really," said Ollie, "We need to obviously get past Silver Beak's crew. After that we should find Marcus and get out of the city.....this is all my fault. Those griffons are here because of me-" "I'm going to stop you right there. You have nothing to blame for this. It's not your fault this is happening, if anything you should be thanking Marcus." "I-I know, but if he hadn't had helped me-" "You would've been dead or worse. Look I'm not good at giving advice, but blaming yourself isn't going to make things better. Things are going to suck, but all you gotta do is push through it." Ollie chuckled, "I guess you're right. You know, I haven't known you or Marcus long but you're sounding a lot like him." Flurry groaned before smiling, "I know. He may be annoying and we may bicker most of the time, but so far he's been kind and knows exactly what to say during these kinds of situations." "You really do admire him don't you?" "I wouldn't say admire, but he's just something I want to be. I would never tell him this, because I would never hear the end of it but he inspires me to reach for what I want." Ollie smiled, "Sounds like a keeper. Anyway how are we going to get out of this mess?" Flurry's ear perked, "I have an idea, but I need you to promise me not to scream or tell anypony." Ollie rose an eyebrow, "Okay? What is it?" Flurry sighed as he horn glowed a light blue before her cloak was levitated off of her body. Ollie eye's instantly drifted to the wings on her back, both of them widening n surprise. The yellow mare thought today couldn't get any....different. First Silver Beak's gang, then being saved by Marcus the human, and now Flurry just revealed herself to be an alicorn- "W-Wait," started Ollie, "Are you THAT Flurry. Princess Flurry Heart of the Crystal Empire?" "Yeah..." "Well, shit." > The Concrete Jungle Part 4 > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Have you found the targets yet?" "Not yet, and these ponies aren't making it easy." "Keep looking, we don't want to keep the boss waiting. I wish it didn't have to come to this, but start rounding up the guests and start stripping the rooms down. I want them to be torn apart." The griffon nodded as he  went to inform the rest of the gang. Meanwhile back in the hiding spot with Flurry and Ollie, the former was still trying to process the sudden reveal that was dropped on her out of nowhere. The yellow earth pony mare had seen a lot of things while living in Manehattan, most of those she wished she could forget due to the interference of Silver Beak's gang, however meeting a princess had to be in the top five.  "Princess Flurry Heart," she said quietly, "but, what are you doing here in Manehattan? Shouldn't you be in the Crystal Empire right now?" The pink princess chuckled nervously, "Hehe, I guess you could say I'm on a little vacation." "I don't believe it. I actually met a princess! Is your plan to use your powerful magic to blast those creeps away?" Ollie said in an excited whisper. Flurry's face fell a bit. Use her magic? She might be an alicorn but she wasn't on her mom's or even her aunts' level. She doesn't even know any aggressive spells, not to mention to even cast them. he most she could do with her magic is levitate and teleport, and MAYBE a few transformation spells. Other than that she was extremely under equipped to take on a organized gang of griffons! "Uh, yeah about that," Flurry said nervously, "I...don't know any combat spells." "Oh...uh...then what was your plan?" "Well, these griffons don't know that I don't know any aggressive spells. So I was thinking of bluffing our way to Marcus." "As much as I think that would be a decent plan. It won't work, Silver Beak's gang aren't stupid. If anything they'll try to make you do a spell against them to call your bluff." Flurry sulked, "So what now?" Ollie peeked and whispered, "We need to sneak to the first floor, which means we need to find an opening to make it to the stairs or elevator." "Which means we need a distraction." "Maybe not a distraction more of a disguise, do you know any transmutation spells?" Meanwhile the squad of griffon gangsters searched almost every room on the floor, terrifying and harassing most of the guests to tell them any information on their specified targets. They have already been informed that the group in the lobby had already engaged the ape-like creature and they should be able to take him down easily which their magic enhanced weapons. However finding Ollie Sheen and whatever accomplices with her, proved to be more difficult than they thought. The one named Ollie Sheen has been a regular client with Silver Beak, however she's smart enough to stay under their radar and if she and the ape were not alone then whom knows who is working against them. As most of the griffons continued to search, two familiar ones discreetly made their way through the halls. One was a bright pink griffoness with a purple and blue highlights, while the other was a bright yellow griffoness with smooth black fur. The two quickly moved through the halls passing other griffons who nodded their way as they nodded back.  "We need to move quickly," whispered the disguised Flurry, "these forms won't last long. We need to find who's leading these guys." Ollie gave her a confused look, "Why would we do that? I thought the plan was to find Marcus and get out of Manehattan?" "It is but something isn't right. I don't know if I'm over confident in Marcus' abilities, but he should have taken these guys out by now, with his hammer." "So, what are you thinking?" "Either Marcus was overpowered and we need to save him or something is blocking his connection with his weapon making it harder for him to fight. If it is the ladder then it would make sense for the leader of these guys to have whatever is limiting Marcus' powers." Ollie looked a little stunned, "Wow....that was....really planned out." Flurry only shrugged, "Well, my dad was the Captain of the Royal Guard in Canterlot, and is now Prince of the Crystal Empire. Not to mention he also commands the entire Crystal Guard, so I learned a thing or two from him." "Well you are a princess after all. Not to mention that you're going to lead the Crystal Empire someday, so it makes sense why you're so good at this." Flurry said nothing to Ollie's compliment, how could she? The only reason why she's so knowledgeable with this was because her parents forced her to know these things, for when she took over as ruler. She felt conflicted; a part of her wanted to honor her parents and respect their wishes on becoming a great princess, but another part of her knew that being a princess wasn't who she was.  She couldn't tell Ollie this, at least not yet. Maybe if they make it out of this-" "Hey! You two! Get over here!" shouted a deep authoritative voice, causing both griffonesses to freeze in their tracks. "O-Ollie," nervously whispered Flurry, "What do we do?" "Just keep calm," replied Ollie, "Just follow my lead." Flurry nodded as the two turned around to face the griffon that called them. The griffon was obviously male and bigger than your average griffon. He had dark feathers with yellow fur, and the most noticeable feature was the glowing blue gem around his neck. The two disguised mares instantly knew that this was the griffon they were looking for, and that gem confirmed Flurry's suspicion that the griffons are using a power source to limit magic. It was then Flurry started to break a sweat. She didn't think that the closer she was to that gem, thee more strain it would be to keep the spell up. Ollie glanced at Flurry and seemed to know the situation well. The two could make a run for it, but with how many griffons are on this floor alone it'll be impossible. Which meant that they had to deal with this lead griffon quickly and go find Marcus. "I've never seen you two before. What are your names?" asked the griffon with a suspicious expression. Ollie quickly answered, "My name is Blitzwing, and this is my friend...uh...Scarlet Beak! We just came out of our rooms to see what the commotion was about." The larger male griffon sternly looked at the two before answering, "That is none of your concern. You two just-" The griffon stopped himself as he took a closer look at the two female griffons and gave them a smirk that sent a chill down the two spines, "As a matter of fact, how about you two stay close to me? I'll keep you safe." He staked forward as the two carefully backpedaled making Flurry gulp,"W-We're really fine. W-We'll just head back to our room." "How about I join you?" ,insisted the griffon, "You two cuties shouldn't be alone." "No..thank you!" blurted Ollie, she's no unicorn but she could feel the spell draining, "but we need to go." "Now hold on a minute!" growled the griffon as he grabbed both of their talons. The two closed their eyes as the spell was about to break. This was it, they were going to get caught and sent who knows where! Where was Marcus when you needed him- A sudden crash echoed through the hallway as the door to the stairwell bust open and was sent flying. Flurry and Ollie quickly jumped out of the way, but unfortunately for the large griffon he was hit face first and was sent spiraling to the floor knocked out cold. Flurry and Ollie looked at the now knocked out griffon and saw that the gem around his neck was shattered. Flurry let out a breath of relief as her transmutation spell finally gave in, returning her and Ollie to their original equine forms.  "Talk about luck," said Ollie standing up, and then helping Flurry to her hooves, "you doing alright?" "Y-Yeah," stuttered the pink alicorn, "I'll be fine, but what the hay happened?" "I finally made up those goddamn stairs, that's what happened." said the familiar voice of Marcus as he stumbled out of the door frame. Ollie and Flurry would be happy to see him if it weren't for the fact that the human looked like he had seen better days. He was definitely exhausted judging from his sporadic breathing and the small wounds leaking out blood was a great concern. He had taken worse back at the Crystal Empire when he was fighting that black mare, who tried to kidnap Flurry, however these magic weapons were different then the ones that those raiders used. He didn't know if it was because of the magic limiter butting his connection from Minnie or if those griffons used a different type of magic that was more lethal. "M-Marcus!" Flurry snapped out of her trance and ran up, "A-Are you ok! What did those jerks do to you!" "Silver Beak's crew did do a number on you..." stated Ollie as she looked over Marcus' wounds. The human winced and fell to his knees, "Y-Yeah...those assholes used magic bullets. Caught me off guard, not to mention one of them has something that's limited my powers." Flurry smiled, "Well, you don't have to worry about that, because I think you just beat the one who was limiting your powers." Ollie nodded and pointed at the downed griffon with the broken blue gem beside him. Marcus chuckled, "Well shit. That takes care of that then. I actually feel myself slowly going back to full strength too." "We're aren't out of the storm yet though," stated Ollie, "there's no doubt that the rest of Silver Beak's gang heard your little entrance and are rushing here as we speak. We need to get out of this hotel and get on the train out of Manehattan." Marcus nodded, but then was surprised as Flurry levitated one of his arms over her withers supporting him up. He could see the concern on her features as well as a faint blush on her cheeks. "You...you are still too weak to run on your own," Flurry explained, "Me and Ollie will help you walk until you have your strength back." He felt his other arm being lifted up and saw Ollie on his other side, "Don't worry, once we get to the train station we can get you help." Marcus nodded, 'Alright, but hold on, I can't forget something." Marcus lifted his palm and the sound of walls breaking and ponies screaming could be heard. After a few more seconds Mjolnir, now dubbed Minnie, burst through a nearby wall and he caught the handle in his grasp before strapping her back on his hip. "Alright that was pretty cool. Besides the unnecessary damage to the other guest rooms." Marcus shrugged, "They'll be fine. they're not the ones running for their lives." "Good point." Marcus supported himself on Flurry once again as Ollie stayed in front, to keep a look out for any danger. The three then carefully and slowly entered the stairwell and continued their escape out of the hotel. 'You just couldn't leave without me, huh?' 'Well, you do give me my lighting steroids. Not to mention that, other than Flurry and Ollie, you are my only friend here.' 'Awww, you're making me blush!' 'Don't get used to it. I'm still pissed that you didn't tell me that magic was one of my weaknesses. Once we get back on that train you are going to tell me everything about these powers.' 'Yeah, yeah. Such a big baby you are.' 'Just keep talking Minnie.' 'I TOLD YOU NOT TO CALL ME THAT' The black 1967 chevy impala cruised down the empty highway, carrying it's four passengers as the bright full moon illuminated the earth with a pale light. Dean and Sam in the front, while Devon and Serena was in the back. After their meeting with the King of Hell, also known as Crowley, Devon somewhat felt that his chances of ever seeing is friend again as plummeted a drastic amount.  From what Sam and Dean told them, their are barely any Angels, God is missing and finding an ancient artifact is like trying to a single dime in a large swimming pool. "So what's next?" asked Serena. Dean kept silent as Sam gave a deep breath and answered, "Well, first we need to grab supplies and then we need to do some research on some spells powerful enough to cross dimensions." "Which is going to be a bitch to find," replied Dean, "But I already sent a message to our friend Cass and he's looking into it as we speak." "So what are we doing?" asked Devon. "Right now, we wait. I ain't gonna lie, this could take weeks, months, and even years. If you want to bail out and go back to living a normal life then feel free. Just to let you know once you start this there is no escaping it, take me and Sammie here for example." Devon thought about it for a second. Even though they didn't say it verbally he knew where they were getting at. If he wanted to save Marcus he would have to get involved with supernatural elements, and from the Winchesters' experience, these elements follow you wherever you go. So it was either be the hunted or the hunter. However he still had a chance to forget about everything, go live a normal, have a wife and kids, and maybe do some other incredible things. He chuckled, but how could he just give up on his friend like that? Marcus better be alive when he finds him. "I'll do anything to save Marcus. He's been like a brother to me our whole lives. Even if that means joining whatever this is." stated Devon with a determined look. He could feel the curious gaze from Serena but he ignored it and continued to stare at Dean through the rear view mirror. "Alright then," he chuckled, "then we better get you two geared up." "Why's that?" asked Serena. "We're going on a hunt or as we say it a case." said Sam. Devon's eyes widened, "Wait, this early. Don't I need to do some training before I go fight monsters." Dean scoffed, "Who needs training, all you need is some good experience under your belt and you'll be just fine." "So what's the job?" asked Serena. Sam took out his phone and pulled up a recent article that he was looking at, "Seems like there was an accident in Los Angeles, a woman's body was found totally ripped apart behind a dumpster. The LAPD assumes it was an animal attack-" "An animal attack?" questioned Devon, "In LA? Really?" "That's not the weird part. Sources says that there were traces of oak around her body." "Oak? As in wood?" asked Serena. Sam nodded, "To be honest this is new to me and Dean. So we would have to look up on lore to see what we're dealing with." "So how do we go about this?" Dean spoke up this time, "Well first, we need to find out the identity of the victim and see if they have any loved ones, enemies, co workers; anything that could help us know what kind of monster we are dealing with. After that we go undercover to get access to the body and do an examination." Serena gagged a bit, "Y-You mean we actually have to...touch the body." "Well, how the hell else are we going to figure out what killed this person?" "Am I really ready for this?" asked Devon. To be honest, he wasn't expecting to start hunting things right away. He thought he was going to go through some regiment or something. Like a kind of right of passage. Sam, turned around, "You are willing to sacrifice everything. Your normal life for this nightmare, just to save your friend. I say you're as ready as anyone." "The lobby is clear, this is our chance." informed Ollie Flurry nodded as she continued to support Marcus, who was limping beside her. Something wasn't right with her human companion, he had said that he felt his strength returning but his usual dark skin was starting to become pale. Not to mention that he feels like he's coming up with a fever. "Marcus? You doing okay?" she asked. "I'm fine I think," groaned Marcus, "I feel like shit though. Almost like I need a trip to the bathroom after food poisoning." 'I was afraid of this...' 'Afraid of what?' 'Don't be alarmed but I believe you were hit with poison magic.' 'I GOT FUCKING WHAT?!' 'Calm down! If you get yourself hyped up, it'll spread faster. Those griffons must've used poison enhancements on their weapons to slow you down.' "Well, that's just peachy." started Marcus gaining the attention of the two mares. "What is it?" asked Ollie. "I...I think I was poisoned with some magic." "Then we have to stop." Flurry looked at her, "Why? We're almost out of her and we need to get him to a doctor!" Ollie shook her head, "That'll only make things worse. If he moves too much it'll just spread through the rest of his body." The sudden sound of shouting could be heard  and the three of them knew what it was. It wouldn't be long until those griffons catch up to them. He looked at Ollie who had a frustrated and concerned expression, but Flurry was the one that affected him more. She looked like all the hope was drained from her persona and terrified beyond belief. The two could escape, he was sure this poison wasn't meant to kill him but to only slow him down. Which meant that these griffons were here for him and not them. "Shit....what if-" started Marcus only to be glared at the two, "What?" "No," sternly said Flurry, "You are not doing some cliche heroics, so you can give us time to escape." "She's right this isn't some fairy tale, where the hero always win." added Ollie. 'Get fucked.' 'Shut up Minnie. We're having a moment.' "Marcus I can't do this little adventure without you," said Flurry "I...don't know what I'll do." Marcus weakly chuckled, "And you think I know what to do?" The alicorn shrugged, "I don't have many options." "Wow...fuck you." "Your welcome." Ollie cut in between the two, "If you two love birds are done chatting-" "WE ARE NOT TOGETHER!" they both screamed. "-I think I have a plan. Silver Beaks gang won't give up chasing us, which means we have to take this out from the source." Marcus and Flurry was now engrossed on what she was saying,"So what's the plan? I'd rather get this poison taken care of before....something bad happens." Ollie nodded, "For us to truly escape and Marcus to be healed.....we need to willingly be captured and take care of this problem at the source. We need to take down Silver Beak." Marcus grinned "Shiiiit, I game." > The Concrete Jungle Final Part > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Are you sure this is gonna work?" whispered a worried Flurry. "It has to." replied Ollie. Marcus however, was unusually silent. Back at the hotel the three agreed to 'surrender' and be escorted back to wherever these guys came from to meet the big boss in charge. It wasn't long until they were completely surrounded by the griffon gang with guns pointed in their direction. Once the three, mostly Ollie, convinced the griffons that they were giving up, all three of them were restrained with anti-magic bindings and loaded into a nearby carriage. Of course the griffons couldn't pick up Mjolnir, and as a result was left behind staying stationary in front of the Manehattan hotel.  The human was deep in thought about this whole situation, he wasn't able to bring Minnie with him, but he still should be able to summon her. However with how long they've been in the carriage for, it'll take her damn-near forever to get to him. He'll have to find a way for him to discreetly summon her, he just hopes none of the guards have any more of those talismans that interrupts his powers. "You doing okay?" asked Ollie, snapping the human from his thoughts. He held up his cuffed hands, "Doing peachy. I just love being chained and kidnapped." he replied sarcastically, "but in all seriousness though, I'm hanging in there." "Look....I'm sorry I got you two into this mess." "This wasn't your fault," added Flurry, "If anything, I'm glad Marcus stepped in. I have a feeling things would be a lot worse if he hadn't." "But..." "No buts. Whether you like it or not we are in this together." The yellow mare opened her mouth to say something but immediately closed it. She smiled trying to fight back the tears, threatening to escape, and nodded. The rest of the ride was spent in silence, Flurry stared out the window of the carriage, Ollie seemed to have dozed off, while Marcus was playing with the anti-magic cuffs around his wrists. The human had figured out that maybe these griffons were as smart as he thought. For instance, the cuffs barely fit him so they made them loose as hell. Not to mention that the supposedly "anti-magic cuffs" did nothing to affect him. If anything he could call Minnie right now and bust all three of them out if he wanted to. However that wouldn't stop these ass-hats from continuing to chase them. What was the saying again? To cut the head off the snake or some shit?  His thoughts were then focused on Flurry. Maybe she shouldn't have come with him on his little pilgrimage at all. If he knew it was this dangerous he would've kicked her little ass off the train. He didn't care if her parents approved of it,if anything happened to Flurry, Princess Cadence will do who knows what to him and his little friend. He likes his dick attached to his body thank you. However that wasn't the only thing that caught his eye about the alicorn. He knows he can be a bit oblivious sometimes but even he can see when someone is hiding something. His first clue was how she wanted to be so discreet about other ponies not knowing who she was. The next was the fact that she pours her milk before the cereal, that shit just isn't natural and he should definitely talk to her parents about it. However the one thing that really stood out was the fact that she's been really moody at times. Not "time of the month moody" but more like "certain subjects that we talk about will make me cry and kill you" kind of moody. "Marcus?" The human was snapped from his thoughts as he noticed that the alicorn in question was staring right at him with a curious  expression, "Huh? What is it?" "I don't know, you've been staring at me for quite a while now. I know you can be brain dead sometimes but this is actually concerning." Shit, he didn't know he was staring at her for that long. He has to think about something quick before she thinks that he's a total psycho, "I was just deep in thought." "What were you thinking about?" Since the both of them were here he might as well confront her now, "Well, I've been thinking about you." Flurry felt her cheeks warm up at the unexpected answer, "M-Me?" "Yeah," nodded Marcus, "look I may be a bit slow at times but I'm not stupid. I've noticed that you've been hiding something." The young alicorn's embarrassment instantly faded away as fear and worry now flooded her system. If she could get any paler, ponies would think that she was a ghost.  How did he figure it out? Was she that obvious? Millions of questions rushed through her head, if Marcus found out that she lied about her parents letting her go with him and that she actually ran away from home, it'll all be over. She can't let that happen, at least not yet. "Wh-What gave you that idea?" she stuttered trying not to make eye contact with the curious human. Marcus raised an eyebrow, "Well first of all, you're not making eye contact. Second, you've been all James Bond ever since we left the Crystal Empire. So it's either that time of the month for you or there is something you don't want me knowing." "W-Well, it's just...." Flurry was falling apart. She needed to figure out something to say to satisfy him. She knew that Marcus may be lazy but when it comes to others, he could read them like a book. If she couldn't give him a total lie, she'll have to give him a half truth. "It's just," she started, "I don't know what I'm doing." Marcus stayed silent as she continued, "I...I always wanted to be considered a normal pony. I hate being a princess and I hate the popularity it brings. I want to make friends that see me as Flurry Heart, not Princess of the Crystal Empire. I want to go to new places without others making a deal about it. So...I thought if I could hide the fact I was an alicorn and change my name all together then I could get that." "Is that it?" said Marcus. "Huh?" "Flurry, I'm gonna be honest I don't know what it's like being a princess and I can't share your experiences. The best I can give you is some advice, and that's to push through that shit. Hiding away isn't going to get you what you want, and you'll only hurt yourself more in the end. It'll take awhile but if you stay true to yourself, you'll find that what you wanted isn't what you actually need." Flurry could only shrink back as her chest tightened, her stomach felt like it was being invaded by thousands of butterflies. Even though Marcus bought that half truth of hers, she wasn't expecting that compassionate lecture from the human. She could feel her eyes being flooded with tears.  She sniffed and wiped her eyes, "Wh-When did you get so good with words?" she asked, she didn't know why but if she wasn't restrained at the moment she would wrap the human in a tight hug and ask for him to never let her go. Marcus smiled, "I used to watch a LOT of Oprah and Dr. Phil." "Who the hay-" "Hey!" yelled their griffon captors, "We're approaching the manor. Once we arrive, do what we say and things won't have to get ugly." "Looks like that'll have to wait." said Marcus as he noticed Ollie waking up from her nap, "it's almost time to kick gum and chew ass, and I'm all out of ass." Flurry sighed, "You know Marcus, sometimes I worry about your sanity." Prince Shining Armor of the Crystal Empire loves his family. Flurry, Twily, Cadence, and even Spike all had their place in his heart and he would do anything to protect no matter how their relationship was. Him and Cadence have been growing apart ever since the disappearance of their daughter. It had been stressful for both of them, especially when it comes to who to blame. Cadence still believes that the human, Marcus, was the one who convinced Flurry to go with him, but he just had a gut feeling that there was something more than meets the eye. However that did not take away the possibility that his wife might be right and he could be wrong. So he's prepared to take action if need be. After hearing that Misty Knight was sent to find Flurry and that she had tracked her to Manehattan, he decided to do some research on the mercenary. it's still bugged him that his wife hired the same mercenary that was hired to kidnap their daughter to find her instead of having her own parents try to find her themselves. However his wife has never led him astray with her methods, so as of right now he is in limbo on trusting his wife and being prepared for any double cross Misty Knight might have up her sleeve. He was now making his way towards the lower districts of the Crystal Empire, from what Cadence had told him Misty should have a colt and a friend  living there. It was difficult at first trying to find the exact address due to the fact he had little to no information on the colt, other than him being her son. However the friend was another case, with enough asking around he found out that Misty's friend works at the local foster home here. That's where he was heading now. He only wanted to confirm a few things with Misty Knight's friend before returning to the castle. If Misty really did have a son then MAYBE he could trust her a little bit more. In the meantime however that doesn't change the fact that she tried to kidnap his little girl. He could see the building of the foster home come into view. He smiled at the fact that even though it is in the poorer districts, it looks to be in perfect condition. As he approached the door of the foster home he placed three welcoming knocks. "Give me a second!" shouted a young gruff voice from inside. Shining waited until the door opened and he almost did a double take at the stallion standing in front of him.  The first thing the prince noticed was the horn on top of his head, identifying the stallion as a unicorn, his coat was a dark blue and he had golden locks of a mane, beard, and tail. The most noticeable feature was how big the stallion was, if anything he was about the same size of Applejack's brother, Big Mac.  Once the stallion's eyes met his, he placed his giant form into a kneeling position. "P-Prince Armor!" he exclaimed, "It's a pleasure to be in your presence. My name is Storm Bringer." Shining chuckled, "No need to be so formal, I'm just here to ask questions." Storm Bringer gave Shining a curious look, "I don't think I'll be much help. I just run the foster ho-" "Do you know anything about Misty Knight?" The large unicorn's features immediately went serious, Shining was about to bring his guard up until he noticed something in his eyes. They weren't filled with malice but instead filled with pity and disappointment, "Come inside, I'll answer whatever I can." he said in a somber voice. Shining only nodded and followed the unicorn inside. There was definitely something going on and he was going to find out what. As the prince followed the large blue unicorn inside, he couldn't help but notice the faint trace of scars on him. Shining was in the guard long enough to know that this stallion was, or at least used to be, a fighter. It was still somewhat early so the fillies and colts living here shouldn't be up for another hour or so. Which gave him more than enough time to get the information he needed.  He followed Storm Bringer to the dining room and watched him take a seat at the table, prompting Shining to do the same. A few moments passed until Storm breaker gave a sigh. "Alright," he started, "What do you want to know about Misty?" Shining nodded, "First things first. Who are you and how do you know Misty Knight?" "Me and Misty go way back. We were both part of the same group of mercenaries and did many jobs together. Hell, if anything I was her teacher before I retired. I recommended she did the same, when her little foal was born but she was refused." Shining kept a stoic face as the unicorn continued, "As a result she left her colt with me to care for here in the foster home. She tries her best to come by every now and then but....lately she's been more distant. If you don't mind me asking, do you know where she is now?" Shining nodded and explained what had happened the past couple of days. He told him of Marcus' arrival, to Misty's attempt to kidnap Flurry, to Flurry's "assumed" kidnapping, and Cadence hiring Misty to bring back Flurry. Storm Breaker had to admit he wasn't expecting all this to be thrown on him at once. He knew something was going due to the unusual amount of guards he had seen lately. Now it all makes sense, he covers his face with his hooves and lets out a sad sigh. "Oh, Misty, what have you gotten yourself into?" he muttered as he gave Shining an apologetic look, "Look, Misty is....... complicated. She's not a bad mare. She just doesn't make the right choices sometimes when it comes to those that she loves." "Like her son?" asked the prince. Storm nodded, "Exactly. She loves that little colt, and he loves his mother. She'll go to great lengths if it meant supporting her son. Even if she had to go into this line of work." "Why did you retire from mercenary work? It seemed like you made a lot of bits, so why stop?" Shining asked with curiosity, even though he may already know the answer. Storm chuckled as he stroked his blonde beard, "I'm an old stallion, Prince Armor. I've seen a lot of things as a sword-for-hire, seen many of my comrades die in battle. I used to be immune to being too attached when working that job, so I couldn't risk  it. That was until I met Misty, we've done as many jobs as I can count. If anything she's like the daughter I never had." Shining stayed silent, interested in the story, as the large, old unicorn continued, "When Misty found out she was pregnant, she was scared. Almost tried to get rid of the poor foal before it was even born. If it wasn't for me reminding her that she was taking a life before it could get a chance to live. Let me tell you when she saw that colt open its eyes for the first time I new that was one of the few times she felt love. However her son wasn't the only love she had." "Let me guess," started Shining, "She chose being a mercenary over her son." "You could say that. Misty loves her son deeply, she just has an....interesting way of showing it." "One more thing-" "Mr. Bringer? Is breakfast ready?" said a gentle, young voice. The two stallions looked towards the source of the voice to see a young unicorn colt. His coat was a deep charcoal, with a short silver mane and tail. The one featured that stood out was the bright green eyes that seemed to sparkle, just like his mother's.  "Foggy," said Storm Bringer, "what are you doing up so early?" The little colt nervously looked down, "I-I was hungry....so I was hoping you made breakfast earlier than usual." The stallion smiled, "Let me finish talking to Prince Armor and I'll make whatever you want." "Prince Armor?" Foggy asked before finally noticing Shining Armor. The young colt gave a cute squeak before bowing his head, "I-It's great to meet you P-Prince Armor." Shining chuckled, "You don't have to bow to me little guy. Why don't you listen to Mr. Bringer and give us a minute?" The colt nodded before scampering off, "That was Misty Knight's son was it?" asked Shining as Storm nodded. "Mhmm, his name is Foggy Knight. Sweet kid and pretty stubborn like his mother." "Does he know?" "About Misty? Of course he does. Misty comes by every now and then to visit before she heads out to her next job. However, me and Misty both agreed to not let the boy know about her being a mercenary. She might love it, but she doesn't want her son near anypony involved but her." Shining thought for a second. His visit confirmed that Misty Knight did have a son and not to mention that she did care for the colt. Which meant all the other stuff that she told Cadence was also most likely true too. That didn't however excuse the fact that she tried to kidnap Flurry, but it did allow him to put a little trust in her. "Well, thank you for having me, Mr. Bringer. I have all I need now-" "Prince Armor before you go. May I offer you some advice about your missing daughter?" Shining gave Storm a stern look before nodding, "Go ahead." "I just have to say that love can make ponies do crazy things." Shining rose an eyebrow, "What does love have to do with Flurry? Are you saying that Flurry left because she is in love with Marcus?" "I didn't say that, but just know that love is a big factor to your problem." Shining Armor was now confused. What in the hay was this old stallion talking about? What did he mean that love was a big factor to his problem? Maybe Cadence knew something, she is the Princess of Love after all.  "I'll keep that in mind, thank you." said Shining as he shook the large unicorn's hoof. "Anytime Prince Armor. Don't worry about your little girl. If what you told me about this human is true then she is in safe hooves." "I am so not in safe hooves." whined Flurry as she, Ollie, and Marcus was escorted through the manor. She was having second thoughts on Marcus' plan. Before they got captured the human had told the two mares that once they get inside the manor he would tell them what to do next, but so far he hadn't told them squat! "It's okay Princess," said Ollie, "We just have to trust Marcus and hope he knows what he's doing." "You can just call me Flurry," Flurry replied, "and I wouldn't put that much faith in that lazy potato." "You know I'm right here right?" said Marcus, "And my plan is foolproof you pink piece of fluff." "Well so far your plans have either got you injured or captured." "They worked didn't they!" "No they didn't! You just wing it until you get lucky!" "And that's how I've been doing things!" The two griffons escorting them growled as they rubbed their heads, "Val, do you have any spare bullets?" "Why?" asked the griffon known as Val. "So I can shoot myself....these two argue like my parents." "Just try to hold out until then." A couple of minutes of being forcefully escorted through the griffon manor. All that was heard was the two bickering voices of Marcus and Flurry. The two griffons were close to ending it all and allowing two other poor griffons to take the prisoners to the boss, while they went out and to get the strongest drink that could get. Ollie thought it was funny watching the two argue, but even she was reaching her limit. "No, you shut up!" "No, you shut up!" "No, you shut up!" "No, you shut up!" "No, you shut up!" "No, you shut up!" "FINALLY," yelled both of the griffons as they approached a pair of fancy doors, "Now you three get in there, the boss is waiting. And you two hatchlings better shut the buck up! I'm gonna have to get hearing aids because of you!" The three said nothing as the doors opened and they were pushed inside, The doors shut behind them as a soft chuckle bought their attention. The two mares and one human were in an office or trophy room of some sort. Weapons of different variety hang on the walls. In front of them was a desk with a large, maybe larger than Marcus, griffon sitting behind it. The main griffon boss was larger than normal, his feather's being a dark brown and his feline fur being a coal black. His sharpened talons scraped the chair he was sitting in, and his large wings folded at his side. The more noticeable features would be the red ruby necklace around his neck, and his beak being made of a prosthetic metal. "I was expecting Ollie Sheen and the ape-like creature," said Silver Beak in a smooth but menacing tone, "but to have Princess Flurry Heart here? Now that's something that caught me off guard. You're a far way from home aren't you little pony?" "Y-You could say that." stuttered the crystal princess. "Excuse the interruption," sarcastically spat Ollie, "but why did you bring us here, instead of just killing us?" Silver Beak ominously chuckled, "You should watch your tone if you know what's good for you. As to answer your question though, the reason why you're not sleeping with the fishes is because of your ape-like friend here." Marcus pointed at himself, "Me?" "Not specifically you, but I'm more interested in that hammer you have. You see, before I came here to Equestria I was known in Griffonstone as "The Collector". As you can tell by the name I am interested in exotic items and creatures." "And you are looking to "collect" Minnie?" "I'll assume that's the name of the hammer, and yes that is why I had my underlings summon you to me. Speaking of which, where is the hammer." "Somewhere your bitch ass won't find it." "Why the aggressive attitude? Can't we be civilized with this?" "Your goons almost killed me and my friends on multiple occasions. I think we're past the point of being civilized." Silver Beak sighed as he stood from his chair. Even though Marcus had godly powers, he still gave a nervous gulp at how big the griffon was. He easily towered the other griffons and was a bit higher than himself. Not to mention if he knows about Minnie and his powers, why was he so calm? He watched as the ruby necklace glowed a bright red as a sinister aura surrounded Silver Beak. "Then, I guess we would have to skip to the point." said Silver Beak, "Ape! surrender yourself and that hammer to me. If not then Ollie Sheen will be fed to my dogs and the Crystal Princess will be an excellent "stress reliever" for me and my boys." "A-Are you mad!" exclaimed Ollie, "Do whatever you want to me, but Flurry is the daughter of THE Princess Cadence! Do you know what the Crystal Empire will do to you, what she'll do to you?" "What she doesn't know, won't hurt us, whatever happens to you depends on the ape here." Flurry took a step back as her pupil's shrunk to pinpricks. These griffons wouldn't actually do THAT to her would they? She looked over to Ollie who was glaring daggers at the large griffon and Marcus, even though it was obvious that he was scared himself, stood in front of her in a defensive manner. As always she was in the background, being protected, and being helpless. Whoever this griffon was sent a chill down her spine, especially that necklace he wore around his neck. The malice and negative energy she was feeling was strangely familiar. It felt like someone turned up the gravity as she could barely keep herself upright.  "First of all you're not touching Flurry." menacingly said Marcus, "Second I'm called a human, and third I don't think being a slave is the right profession for me." Silver Beak chuckled, "Then you foolishly just threw your life away, human. You will hear your friends' screams from the afterlife when I'm done with you." Flurry's eyes widened as it finally clicked, "M-Marcus! Be careful! He has the Alicorn Amulet!" "Alicorn Amulet? What the fuck is-" Before Marcus could finish, he was picked up by some unseen force and before he was thrown through the wall and was now in a large crater outside. He groaned as he took in his surroundings, he was laying in a small humanized crater in what he assumed was a garden. He looked at the manor in front of him and noticed that giant human sized hole he flew out of. As well of the bright red streak of death quickly coming this way- "Shit in my ass!" he yelled as he rolled out the way as the Silver Beak landed where he previously. The human continued rolling before he quickly shot up to his feet. The dust cleared to reveal Silver Beak who was slightly bigger, his eyes glowing a bright red, and an ash like aura surrounding him. "Quite nimble," said Silver Beak, "but not nimble enough." Faster than the human can see he was struck in the chest by a magic infused talon and was sent tumbling backward. Thank God those anti-magic cuffs broke when he was launched, or else he might have been paste. He saw the enhanced griffon charge at him again but he was ready. Getting into a football stance he met the griffon head on, grabbing Silver Beak's upper half and directing his momentum toward the ground. The human slammed the griffon on the ground full force causing a miniature aftershock.  The griffon growled and back handed the human behind him and let out a screech. Marcus covered his ears and barely dodged a talon swipe from Silver Beak. The attack could've taken his head off but he was lucky that he only got a scratch on the cheek. Marcus couldn't get a break as his head was grabbed and was headbutted before being tossed in the air once again. Silver Beak spread his wings and flew up as the human continued altitude. Catching up to Marcus he elbowed him in the stomach making him cough up spittle sending him back toward the ground. However before he could make impact, Silver Beak was there once again and sent a red magical blast from his mouth. Marcus cursed to himself, as he luckily recovered his senses and turned his body clockwise, dodging the beam as it impacted in a red explosion behind him and charged forward. Only to be knocked face first back in the ground and to be kicked in the side. Marcus spat out some blood and steadily stood up, "Tweety Bird is fast, I'll give him that and also strong. I just need to hold out until Minnie gets here." "You lasted longer than I expected. I'm using the power of an actual alicorn and you still stand. You have my praise, but this doesn't change anything. You will die, and the princess and Ollie Sheen will be mine." "Over my dead body, I rather have my dick ripped off! Wait a minute." "As you wish, human." "Wait to the death or the dick ripping?" "..." "Fuck it, let's continue." Marcus shrugged before charging Silver Beak and the griffon doing the same. Meanwhile, both Flurry and Ollie were peeking through the large hole in the wall. Both observing the, one-sided, battle that was happening in the gardens. Flurry was about to fly out and help her annoyingly, lazy friend but Ollie bit her tail before she could get far. "Hey let me go!" exclaimed Flurry, "I need to go help him!" "He'll be fine!" said Ollie, "We need to focus on the plan!" "What plan!? He didn't tell us anything other than he was going to take down Silver Beak!" "And we need to trust him! You might not have caught it earlier but why do you think Marcus decided to fight by himself?" Flurry was about to answer but stopped herself. Why did Marcus decide to face Silver Beak by himself, without his magical hammer? She knew, he had to had known that it was basically suicide, especially with the griffon having the Alicorn Amulet with him. Then it hit her.... "He's distracting him." realized Flurry as Ollie nodded, "If that's the case what do we do?" "Marcus said he wanted these griffons to be put out of business for good.....That's it! The authorities could never put Silver Beak away due to not enough evidence. However if they catch him in the act and not to mention you being a princess. They would shut this whole place down." Flurry was about to agree, "D-Does it have to be me...." "Of course! When the guard finds out that Silver Beak and his gang kidnapped a princess then that'll be game over for them! What's wrong?" Flurry didn't know what to say. On one hoof, she would be exposing herself and saving Marcus' life probably. However they could force her to go back to the Empire and Marcus would have to leave her behind. She heard another thunderclap as the battle continued outside, it was then she made her decision. "Alright, what do we have to do?" she said confidently. Ollie smiled and nodded, "We first need to find a way to contact the Royal Guard in Manehattan. Then we'll figure out how we can help Marcus." Back in the gardens, Marcus was literally being tossed around like a bean bag. Hopefully Flurry and Ollie figured out his plan to distract Silver Beak so they can call the guard. However Minnie is taking her sweet time trying to get to him! He grunted as he crashed into the dirt again and struggled to get to his knees. Silver Beak landed behind him and laughed before giving off a cocky smile. "Is this the so-called 'powerful ape' that my boys were telling me about? I'll give you some credit for being as durable as you are but I think it's time for our little "match" to end." 'Minnie! I could really use some lightning powers right now!' 'Sorry! I saw a sword with a nice looking shaft-' 'MINNIE! I am literally going to die if you don't bring your ass here!' 'I'm moving as fast as I can! I'm almost there, just give me a few seconds.' Marcus' link with Minnie was instantly cut off as he was struck in the back and was kicked in the side. The human was now on his back holding his now bruised ribs in pain. He grunted again in pain as he was not pinned by the large griffon, with his talon raised. Marcus closed his eyes ready for death to take him, hoping that the sash was at least quick and done with. "Say goodbye human!" 'Marcus!' ' The human then felt a familiar 'humm' and smiled. It took her long enough to get here. Right before Silver Beak's sharp talon made contact with his jugular, Minnie came swooping in and knocking the enhanced griffon off of him and sending him tumbling across the ground like a rag doll. Marcus rolled on his knees once again and held out his hand as Minnie flew backwards and landed in his grasp. Silver Beak slowly recovered and looked toward the human to see the hammer now in his grasp, slowly standing to his feet. He looked up to see storm clouds were suddenly forming, which didn't make any sense. The weather didn't change by itself in Equestria other than a few regions, and there definitely wasn't any pegasi in the area. He looked back over to Marcus who's eyes were now a glowing blue and sparks of electricity were seen around him. "Hehe, so you get a power up when you have that hammer in your possession," Silver Beak barked, "but don't get cocky! It's still not enough to beat me!" "Why don't you come over and show me! Come at me bro!" barked back Marcus. Silver Beak growled and charged Marcus, who twirled Minnie and flew straight upward dodging the attack. Silver Beak followed the human as he saw him disappear in the dark clouds above. "It seems the rumors about flying monkeys are true!" he yelled as he fired another magical beam from his beak. Marcus turned around and swung Minnie, deflecting the blast before shooting down to meet him head on. Silver Beak swung a talon but he was blocked by Marcus. The human then infused Minnie with a quick spark of lightning before hitting the griffon dead on in the face launching him through the clouds. Marcus couldn't believe how easy it had gotten to use his powers. He wasn't anywhere near this good when he first fought Misty Knight and her gang. Was this because he was used to the power? Or was it something else? A motivation? He couldn't tell. He did know that if he lost Flurry and Ollie will be in a lot of trouble. No time to think about it now, for he had an ass to kick. 'Stay focused, Marcus. This griffon is wielding a lot of power, he is most likely more powerful than you. However if you play your cards right you can win by default-' 'How? You just said he was more powerful than me?' 'Will you shut up and listen? Yes he is way more powerful than you and with him having that amulet he'll just continuously increase in power. However the Alicorn Amulet was made to be used by unicorns and, well, alicorns.  If you could hold out just a little longer he should overload with power.' 'Great sounds like a plan.' A bright red light caught his attention in the clouds as Silver Beak was now charging him once again. He really hoped Minnie knew what she was talking about. Twirling his hammer he met the griffon head on in a blue and red explosion. Flurry and Ollie were now sneaking throughout the manor, dodging and hiding from the griffons that were now on high alert. Apparently ever since Marcus started the fight with their boss, the whole building was on lock down. All they needed to do was find a room with a pen and paper so then Flurry could send a message to the Royal Guard. However that was going to be a problem since Silver Beak's office is nothing but dust and debris.  Now the two were forced to look around the manor without being detected to find what they needed. "We've looked all over this place and still no sign of a pen and paper," whispered Flurry, "Like how hard is it to find those!" Ollie put a hoof to her chin, "If I remember correctly we stopped at a security check in before actually entering this place. That has to have them." "That place would be swarming with griffons though!" "It's a risk we'll have to take. Once we get there I can see if I can create a distraction and you write the note and use that spell to send it off. After that we'll rush back to the gardens and help Marcus." 'Marcus! It's about time!' 'Got it!' Marcus swung Minnie and struck Silver Beak in the chest, sending the griffon crashing into the gardens below. He then raised and twirled his mighty hammer in the air as lightning swirled around him. Thunder roared across the skies as hurricane-like winds surrounded the area. Silver Beak growled and looked up at the god like being that was before him. "You spineless ape!" he roared, "You are supposed to bow to me! I will not be humiliated!" Silver Beak spread his wings in an aggressive like stance and shot up in rage. Zooming through the air and straight for the human, however Marcus anticipated this. Pointing Minnie at Silver Beak he shot a blast of lightning full force at the griffon. Silver Beak had tried to dodge but he was too fast and too close, as a result he was struck and shocked by many volts of electricity. Silver Beak roared in pain as he glowed a brighter red. Marcus knowing what was about to happen put more force into the volts and before he knew it an explosion went off where the griffon was. Marcus covered his face from the bright light until it died down. Looking down he noticed a figure lying in the gardens below. Slowly levitating down back to solid ground he noticed that said figure was Silver Beak. Parts of his feathers and fur have been singed and bruises littered parts of his body. Marcus held his breath of the burnt flesh before chuckling. "Minnie, Imma take a nap wake me up when I'm dead." before Minnie could answer the human fell backward and fell deep into unconsciousness. > Watch The Aftershocks > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- The human, known as Marcus, opened his eyes and immediately regretted it. The bright white light nearly blinded him as he covered his face which was now covered in bandages. He tried to take notice of his surroundings and noticed that he was in a hospital room. The sound of a constant beep rang in his ears, which he assumed was the heart monitor. He grunted as he tried to move in his bed, only to feel a heavy weight on his right side. Looking over, he couldn't help but smile at the sight of Flurry sitting next to him with her head resting on his side. Judging from the light snores she was giving off, she must've stayed by his side until she fell asleep. His thoughts drifted back to Silver Beak and his gang. What exactly happened when he was passed out? Obviously, Flurry and Ollie must've gotten in touch with the guard judging how he was still alive, but where was Ollie? What happened to Silver Beak and his gang? Did they get locked up? Or did they pay off the guard to look the other way for now? So many questions he would have to worry about later. Right now, he needed to check on something. 'Minnie? Are you okay?' 'Well, well. Look who just woke up. You really tuckered yourself out this time.' 'You got that right. Damn, I feel like shit.' 'Well, you did use way much power than what you are used to. You just need rest to recover your strength.' 'I guess so. How are you doing? Are you okay? Where are you?' 'I'm still in the gardens at the griffon manor. Since nobody but you can wield me, I was left behind while the royal guard took you to the hospital.' 'Mind filling me in on what I missed?' 'Well for starters the royal guard raided the griffon estate once they caught word that they had a princess hostage. They pretty much rounded every griffon them including Silver Beak and sent them all to prison. Ollie went back to her shop while they took you here to be healed. I guess Flurry decided to stay with you.' 'So everything turned out alright. I didn't expect Flurry to stay with me the whole time.' 'You should've seen her while the guard was there. They were first going to arrest you if it wasn't for her. I swear she was ready to kill.' 'Really? Huh." Marcus felt something shift and, speak of the devil, Flurry was slowly waking up. Her eyelids fluttered open showing her turquoise irises; the human couldn't help but let out a small chuckle gaining her attention. Tears began to well up in her eyes as she wrapped her forehooves around Marcus' neck. Good thing he was kind of expecting it unless he would've been knocked off the bed. "You big, stupid idiot!" she cried out, "Do you know how long I waited! Why didn't you wake up!" Marcus said nothing as started to stroke her back. He wasn't really good with words when it came to other people's venting. He was good at being a shoulder to lean on when times are tough though. Marcus then realized that even though he and the young princess do argue quite often, he hated seeing her like this. It made him contemplate whether she should go back to the Empire or not because he had a strong feeling that this wouldn't be the last time a situation like this would happen during their journey. He felt Flurry shift a bit as he released her from their embrace, with her now sitting at the foot of the hospital bed with still a guilty expression. "Flurry," started Marcus, "You know none of this is your fault right?" Flurry rubbed her stained cheeks, "How would you know that?" Marcus shrugged, "I don't, to be honest. Just trying bullshit my way to make you feel better." "You're unbelievable," she giggled as she rolled her eyes, "How are you feeling?" "Little sore, but I'll live." Flurry could barely look at the human in the eye. She was mostly worried about the humans well being, keyword being "mostly". When the royal guard came, it took her almost everything to convince them to not take her back to the Crystal Empire right away. The best they could do however was allow her to wait until the human was back on his feet, but after that, she would have to be on the first train back to the Empire. She didn't want to leave so soon and Marcus was surely going to find out that she lied about her parents letting her go with him. The young alicorn was trapped in a corner, the best thing she could do at this point was to tell him the truth before anypony else could. Taking a deep breath she was about to vent out everything to Marcus- "Knock, knock," until Ollie decided to walk in the room, "I see our savior is up and about." "It's gonna take more than Big Bird to take me down." referenced Marcus. Flurry shrunk back a bit, cursing Ollie for the sudden interruption. She watched as Ollie informed what she had been doing after the Steel Beak incident. The way Marcus would smile and laugh with the yellow really got under her skin a bit. If she didn't tell Marcus the truth then she'll be pushed deeper in the corner she was already in. There was something else though, seeing the human with Ollie and how happy he looked made her feel off. She couldn't explain it...but- "Princess Flurryheart? Did you hear what I said?" asked Ollie snapping thee young alicorn from her thoughts. She must've zoned off in her thoughts she didn't realize that she was being called. "Sorry" Flurry apologized, "I was..thinking about something else. Also, just call me Flurry. No need to be formal after what we went through together." Ollie smiled and nodded, "Thank you Princ- Flurry. Actually, I wanted to talk to you. In private, if you don't mind?" "Yeah, sure. Guess we'll be back soon Marcus. Don't go anywhere." "Oh, haha" sarcastically laughed the human. Flurry followed Ollie out of the room and into the hallway, she saw as the yellow mare looked around as if they wouldn't be heard and gave Flurry a knowing look. Flurry had an idea what she was getting at but she didn't want to believe it. "S-So," started Flurry with a nervous smile, "what did you want to talk about-" "Flurry, with all due respect, cut the horseapples." sternly said Ollie making Flurry flinch a bit. "R-right, sorry. So how did you find out?" "About you running away from home and Marcus not knowing anything about it?" "Yeah..." "I overheard some talk from the guards here. Not only did you run away, but Marcus is suspected of kidnapping you." "Wh-What? But he didn't! It was me who ran away!" "Calm down girl," reassured Ollie, "they aren't going to take your coltfriend to the dungeons if that's what you're worried about. However, after he is healed, they are going to question him and take you back." "But...I can't leave yet," argued Flurry, "I can't explain it, but I feel like I need to be with him when for this journey. If I go back now...I feel something bad is going to happen?" "What are you talking about?" "Back in the Crystal Empire, I was almost foalnapped by a group of mercenaries. Marcus managed to save me but know for a fact that it isn't over. Those mercenaries also wanted the Crystal Heart so their agenda wasn't just to male a few extra bits. So the real question is-" "Who hired them?" "Exactly." "You know," continued Ollie, "That's a pretty smart observation for a princess." Flurry lightly blushed, "My dad was captain of the Royal Guard. So I guess some of that rubbed off on me." "Alright, I'll help you." "Wh-what?" the young princess was taken back by what Ollie declared. After everything she had told her about lying and some shady ponies coming after them, she still agreed to help her? Flurry knew that Ollie could take care of herself judging form the Silver Beak situation. However, she wouldn't forgive herself if somepony else got hurt because of the mistake that she made. "Why?" softly asked Flurry, "What about your shop?" "Well, that's what friends are for right?" Ollie shrugged, "Plus, my shop is going to need some repairs after Marcus' little tussle with the griffons. I've been needing to take off work anyways." "Thank you. I don't know what to say." "It's alright. However, you eventually have to tell Marcus the truth." Flurry nodded, "Y-Yeah...I understand, but just not right now." "Alright, let's go get that big lug out of his bed and get out of this hospital. The only problem is the guards." "Leave them to me. My dad used to fill me in on different kinds of patrols. If we play our cards right, we should be fine." Ollie nodded, "Let's get a move on then." Devon, along with Sam, Dean, and Serena has finally arrived in the city known as Los Angeles. The four of them went over the plan when dealing with the case of the mysterious "animal attack". The four would go undercover as FBI agents, Sam and Dean would question the witness while Devon and Serena checked out the body at the morgue. The Chevy Impala pulled over to the curb as Devon and Serena departed wearing clean black suites. The passenger window rolled down revealing Sam. "Remember you are Agent John and Agent Kim and try to see the body as soon as possible." the younger brother informed "Once you do that Serena would use a spell to figure out what exactly we're dealing with." "In the meantime, we'll be dealing with the witness. See what they saw and maybe find out who or what did this," added Dean. "Right," confirmed Devon, "we'll give you guys a call once we're done." The two brothers nodded and drove off, leaving Devon and Serena to themselves. The witch glanced at Devon with a curious expression. "You know," she started, "For a person who just figured out that demons, witches, and angels are real you are taking things rather well." "I'm doing this for Marcus," answered Devon, "To be fair, I'm terrified right now. Just recently Marcus and I were enjoying our time in a museum. Next thing I know, he goes missing and I take the job of Van Helsing. However, that's not going to stop me from finding him. He's my best friend and the brother I never had. No demons or whatever is going to stop me." Serena rose an eyebrow, "You sound confident that he's still alive. How do you know that all of this isn't' just a wild goose chase?" Devon paused for a moment. He had thought of this scenario plenty of times. What if Marcus was just kidnapped and he was never going to see him again. What if this supposed gateway to another world can never be opened again? Then all of his efforts would have been for nothing. However, it was because of the effort he is putting in that he still has faith that his friend is still out there. If there is even a slight chance that he could see him again then he'll definitely take it. "It's because what would be the point of him being dead? If you want someone dead, you would just kill them not waste the effort to kidnap them." Devon responded, "The only thing that scares me is what his kidnappers want him for." "You know, I can see why those Winchester boys want you as a hunter. You're pretty smart. You can't survive everything with bug muscles and a gun." "Well, too bad when this is over I'm going back to my normal life." "You do know that nothing will be normal here on and out, right?" Devon gave a knowing smile and shrugged, "Depends on how you view 'normal'." Devon made his way to the morgue leaving the witch in stunned silence. Shaking herself from the surprise she quickly walked to join her partner. As the two entered the building the smell of something lavender and fresh hit their noses. Probably the air fresheners, meant to keep the smell of death from radiating through the place. As the two approached the counter the receptionist gave a sad but knowing smile. She was an elderly lady, no older than sixty, with bright red glasses and yellow earrings. "You two must be the FBI agents that are going to check the body?" The receptionist asked as she adjusted her glasses. "That's right ma'am," stated Devon, "I'm Agent John and this is my partner Agent Kim. Sorry, for the rush but we rather inspect the corpse as soon as possible." The receptionist nodded, "Of course, sir. Such a shame about what happened to that poor man. We barely get any wild animals roaming the city. Let alone any attacks." "It's an unfortunate accident I wish no one has to go through," added Serena. The old lady nodded and handed the two of them a key, "He'll be in Corridor B, Room 313, Tray 6. Just follow the signs" Devon and Serena thanked her one more time before following her directions. They eventually made it to the room they were looking for and found 'Tray 6'. Devon stopped for a few moments. Serena did the same and gave him a worried look, probably knowing that he was preparing himself for what he was about to see. He took a deep breath and nodded as Serena pulled out the tray. The two looked at the body and saw the corpse in front of them. The man looked to be in his forties, with dark brown hair, and pale facial features. What really caught them off guard was the giant claw scars that were seen on the man's torso area and the faint smell of wood. Devon had seen a few dead bodies during his twenty-four years of living on this planet, however, this was different. "Alright, Serena. Perform your magic, no pun intended." Serena nodded and held up her hand. Her eyes were now glowing a bright pink as did her hand. The stitches from the scars on the corpse's chest began to unravel as it burst open revealing the innards of the man. "Shit!" gagged Devon as he turned his head, "I was not expecting that. A little warning next time?" "Stop being a baby and let me concentrate," replied Serena as thin pink-like tendrils formed around the body. They explored both inside and outside of the corpse thoroughly. Trying to find anything out of place, other than it being dead. It was then that the tendrils stopped and dissipated, with Serena's eyes returning to normal. 'What happened?" asked Devon, "Did you find something?" "I sure did," she replied, "Look at his heart." "I would rather not-" "Stop being a pussy and look! This is important!" Devon gulped and took a glance and then....was confused. The corpse's heart was green and not only that but was beating ever so slightly. "What the...fuck? Have you seen something like this before?" Serena shook her head, "Surprisingly no. It seems this is where that wood smell is coming from though." "Weird, a green heart that still seems to be beating but not enough to support the body. It could just be a reaction to some bacteria, but that's a pretty far stretch. Let me try something." Devon grabbed a scalpel from a nearby counter and brought it towards the green organ. That was a bad idea, however. Before he could make contact the body began to shake violently as the veins began to turn a bright green. Serena and Devon quickly stepped back from the course. Their eyes widened as the gaping who in its torso sealed on its own, with its eyes opening revealing bright gree irises. The supposed corpse sat up on the tray and looked at the two. Small twigs and leaves were growing from its skin, and wood-like canines filled its mouth. Yellow and green sores dropped from its mouth and nose filling the air. The two took the hint and ran out of the room as quickly as possible, not missing the sound of a howl of a wolf behind them. "Tell me again, why we had to leave the hospital without the guards knowing?" asked a confused Marcus resting on one of the seats of the now moving train, with Minnie by his side once again and a blanket on top of him. Flurry and Ollie had suddenly busted into his room stating that they had to go. He didn't know why they were so alert all of a sudden but he knew them enough to trust them. As a result, he pulled himself out of the hospital bed and summoned Minnie to his side once more. The strangest part was how the three of them snuck out of the hospital and onto the next train. When he tried to ask what was going on before, Flurry just told him to shut it and that she'll explain later. Now that they were stationary for a while it was time to get some answers. "Just because Silver Beak is taken down, doesn't mean he still doesn't have many followers, " Ollie half-truthfully said, "he has loyalists everywhere including the guard." "Which was why we needed to lead Manehattan as soon as possible." added Flurry. "I...guess that makes sense," Marcus replied, "but where are we going now?" "Fillydelphia, Ollie said she had some business there. Once she's done there, we'll make a stop in Las Pegasus and then a straight shot to Ponyville." "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Why such seriousness? You two are acting like we are being chased by something?" The two mares looked at each other with worried expressions. Marcus knew that look and he didn't like it. He had just gotten done with one of the hardest fights of his life and now something else was after them not even a day later! "You've gotta be fucking kidding me...really!? Who!?" "That's the thing," responded Flurry, "We don't know, but I suspect that itis the same pony that hired those mercenaries back in the Crystal Empire." "That Misty Knight bitch? Great....some one is trying to kill us and we don't even know who they are." Ollie stepped in, "That's why we are going to Fillydelphia. There is a bounty hunter guild there and they might have info on this Misty Knight and who hired her." "So we're doing some detective work? Sign me the hell up! I always wanted to be like a Batman or Sherlock Holmes." The two mares smiled at his enthusiasm and at the point that he had completely forgotten that someone was out there trying to kill or capture them. The yellow mare yawned and made her way to the exit of the cabin." I'm gonna get some shut eye.I recommend that your two do the same." she says. "Alright then. Goodnight" replied Marcus. It was then Flurry and Marcus were left alone in the cabin. An awkward silence hanging over the two. It was until then that the pink alicorn spoke up. "M-Marcus..." she meekly said, "Can I ask you something?" "Shoot." The human replied nonchalantly. "Is it alright if I sleep with you tonight?" Marcus did a double-take and started coughing on his own saliva. He was not expecting that to come out of her mouth. "Uh...look Flurry, you're a good friend and all but..." "It's not like that at all!" she protested with her cheeks becoming a bright red, "i-it's just that I'm cold....and I the seat I have-" "Flurry, I'm just messing with ya'. Get over here." Now it was FLurry's turn to do a double-take, "R-really...I mean if you really don't want to share-" "Flurry, it's just two friends doing a little cuddle. Plus I'm tired and still a bit sore and would like to get some beauty sleep." Flurry wasted no time making her way over to the human and sliding under the blankets with him. Even though her face wore an embarrassed expression her tail was wagging back and forth like an excited puppy. She could feel the butterflies in her stomach and her heart beating rapidly. "Just to warn you I move around when I'm asleep. So don't blame me if you get suffocated-" Marcus was cut off from the slight shores from beside him. Flurry had curled up like a kitten by his side with her head resting on the side of his torso. He hadn't realized that Flurry might've been just as exhausted as he was and kind of regretted picking with her. Kind of. To be fair she was actually adorable in this state. It is literally taking all of this will power to not give her head pats, but he would rather not wake up a sleeping bear. 'You know, she's hiding something else's right?' 'I know.' 'And you're not going to confront her about it?' 'I will, just....not now.' 'Marcus.....just make sure you make the right decision. I don't want you getting hurt in the end.' 'What's that supposed to mean?' '....' Marcus scoffed in annoyance. He loved Minnie but she was starting to get on his nerves with all these riddles. He took one last glance at Flurry who was till resting peacefully and smiled. Out of instinct he pulled her closer to himself and let the world of dreams take him.