[Displaced] Victor Von Doom was a Character in Marvel comics. So why am I in his head? Why are we in Griffonstone? I also must ask... who am I?
[Displaced] into a darker My Little Pony world than the one he knew. Hans now lives in the mind of Marvel's Victor von Doom, Dr. Doom himself. Not just looking like Doom the mind of the character was also active.
Hans now has to figure out how to work with one of Marvel's prime villains in a harsh 1800s technology world with colorful anthro ponies and anthro griffons. One thing is clear DOOM has arrived and on his left hand was the Infinity Gauntlet.
Victor Von Doom knew something was wrong. The sun was radiation the wrong spectrum of energy to be Earth 616 sun. The Infinity Gauntlet power seems to function oddly. It wouldn't get rid of the annoying voice in his head. The creatures he seeing are humanoid mostly in appearance. All the species he sees break known physics with some kind of X-gene or Magical means. A world of superpowers, a world where superpowers mean nothing, the most powerful rule this world. Worst was the gaps in his mind, the knowledge he should have wasn't there. When was the last time he ate? When was the last time he took a nice shower? Things that should be in his memories but wasn't. It doesn't matter he was Victor Von Doom of Earth 616 and he will conquer this land and with its resources, find the way home. ——————- Fanfiction I don’t own anything just having fun. ——————- Featured many times by now. Really the list just got too long! 6/6/2020 - 4/7/2021
Two Years, it took me two years to make a cosplay costume I’m proud of. 3D plastic printed armor, fine pure cloth high count green fabric, even had the makeup for scars. It was my crowning achievement as a cosplayer. The full armor of Doctor Victor Von Doom, and once it was done, the state is on stay-at-home order and the con is canceled.
Really it no one’s fault, not every decade a major pandemic happens. Even if the government did its job and had us all social distancing and locking down the convention would still be closed. It was just so damn annoying. Not to mention scary as fuck.
The existential dread, a key emotion of Lovecraftian horror, stuff that nightmares are made of, in 2019 no one really understood that feeling. Being helpless knowing something was outside ready to kill you and not even care. Now in 2020, we know what that feeling is as the death totals rise.
Sitting at the computer the only form of social interaction I have left on Facebook was showing memes and posts. Postings from some relatives get on my nerves. “Come on... the president's... fuck it.” Closing Facebook I start surfing the net. One adds caught my attention, really I just ignore all the ads but this one stood out.
Not sure why really, was it the colors, or some clickbait wording I can’t really say. It was just something about the website MultiverseTrader.com that caught my attention. Not being stupid I went to Google and typed in a search for the site. There it was a website for all things cosplay offering items and gimmicks for characters across the multiverse.
There in golden glory with six sparkling gems was the Infinity Gauntlet. Doom did have the Infinity Gauntlet a few times in the comics, heck technically from what I recall he has more than one from other universes. Looking back at my costume I smiled who else would have an Infinity Gauntlet wielding Doctor Doom cosplay? Besides the gauntlet was limited supply and only... crap just one left. With a quick filling in the info partly thanks to my Dashlane I had the Gauntlet ordered. Of course, it would be weeks if not mont... two days it was going to be delivered in two days? Well, guess the seller was close by.
Okay, the price wasn’t bad either and there was that emergency money due to the pandemic coming from the government. Might as well use it to ease my emotional stress.
Life was not normal after that same stay-at-home lifestyle. Watch a movie streamed from whatever service I logged into, eat frozen pizza, play video games. Thank god we got those, after modding Skyrim for the tenth time I got a whole new experience to play through.
It was during an online game of D&D when I brought up the Infinity Gauntlet.
IAMDOOMJS: Yeah, so I order an Infinity Gauntlet from the Internet. Some sites called MultivereTrader.com.
JokeBOX54: Dude, ordering crap off the Internet? I bet you got scammed say goodbye to that cash.
GoodLoving843: Josh, what was that site again? I tried to find it but, I’m not getting anything.
IAMDOOMJS: Odd... I even saved the link but it’s not showing up now. Crap Joke right it's gone fuck I got scammed.
JokeBOX54: Called it.
IAMDOOMJS: Guys I need to play some DOOM to blow off steam. Nothing like blasting demons to release stress.
JokeBOX54: Call your bank and get your account locked down. Don’t want to risk it being an Identity thief.
IAMDOOMJS: Good idea Joke thanks.
GoodLoving843: Take care man.
Logging off of discord I looked outside spotting a delivery van. The van was green and had the company name DNA Delivery. Where did he recall that before? Who calls a delivery company DNA? The Delivery man was dressed in green thin with red hair. He tips his hat setting down the box before leaving.
Opening the door I brought in the box and opened it seeing the gold gem-mounted gauntlet. “Fuck, it was a real site. I need to tell the guys.”
Logging back in.
IAMDOOMJS: Guys it’s here!
JokeBOX54: What? The Gauntlet arrived? Shit, maybe the guy shut down the site after sending it.
IAMDOOMJS: It’s beautiful work too not a cheap crap thing. I post pictures on Facebook.
Goodloving843: Dude you need to do it in full armor. Show off your hard work as well. Besides you in plain clothing with the gauntlet on would be dorky as hell.
IAMDOOMJS: Sure guys I armor up and take some selfies with the Gauntlet. Going to take me some time to put the suit on alone thought.
JokeBOX54: It is worth it. At least you get to do some cool poses with that armor.
IAMDOOMJS: Give me likes when you see the pics.
Logging off I look at the gauntlet in the box. An urge to just put it on did enter my mind, but the guys were right it deserves the full armor.
Around an hour and a half later I was in the full Doctor Doom outfit. Looking down at the gauntlet I saw it had strapped to adjust the size. “Cool wonder if I can get it onto the armored gauntlet?”
Sure enough, I got the Infinity Gauntlet on and struck a pose. “No one can stop VICTOR VON DOOM!” Laughing to myself I look down at the box and noticed a card with large bright gold letters.
‘Enjoy your adventure. Signed the Trader.’
“What...” the world shifted under my feet and I fell losing consciousness. “Fuck”
The dry arid wind blew steadily over the dry grassy mountain range. Life struggled to survive in the arid place the constant winds blew any storms away before they could rain enough cause the plants to recover. Trees had no leaves and the barks turned gray as they dried out. It was a wasteland in any sense of the word.
In this dry windy place, a figure appeared standing 6‘7“ in full-body armor that seems to belong to the middle ages but was in truth one of the most advanced armors in the known world. Interlocking plates of titanium alloy protected the man from the moisture stealing winds. His green cape pressed against his back as he looked at the wasteland with his piercing brown eyes. The only part of the human within that was viewable was those brown eyes and scarred skin surrounding them.
Nero-interface connections to the armor sensors fed the man data directly to his brain. Cybernetics linked to his optic nerves feed him a HUD display. He stood there reading the incoming data and then looked up at the sun. Subconscious commands to the armor caused protective screens to slide into place guarding his eyes against the powerful light direct looking at the sun. Those same sensors quickly analyzed the sunlight and size. Rage built up in him as he read the data.
“AGGHHHH” That rage released in an atomic blast of energy at a random boulder shattering it into glowing melted fragments. “REED RICHARDS! When I get back to Earth you will regret the day you exiled Victor Von DOOM!” His anger didn’t lessen but he had a goal in mind and blasting rocks wouldn’t get him back to earth.
‘Reed Richards? He’s a comic character... what happening to me.’
“Who said that? Who dares trespass in my mind!” Doom looked around most telepaths need the line of sight on their targets. It was possible for telepath like Charles Xavier, but as far as Doom knew there weren’t many of that level of power.
‘Trespass, my mind? It’s hard to think... who... am I? Wait, I am...’ Then from the mouth of the man “I am Victor Von Doom!” ‘Wait... no, I’m...’
“ENOUGH!”
‘Okay, look I don’t know what going on. I can’t move and I got you in my head.’
“insignificant insect. It is you who is invading my mind. This body is Doom’s and Doom’s alone. I built this armor from the scraps of the armor I created with the assistance of Tibetan monks.”
‘The armor! I remember putting on my replica armor... and the infinity gauntlet.’
“Of course! The Gauntlet... I shall banish you from my mind.” He raised his left hand the golden infinity gauntlet shone in the alien sun. “Begone!” The mind stone flashed then...
Victor grabbed his head as pain rocked his mind. The pain was something he was used to, but the focus-shattering agony that shook his mind was overwhelming. It was only the might of the armor that prevented him from falling to his knees.
‘Did it work?’
“Reed must have sent me to another universe. That the only explanation. The infinity gems can only work at full power in the universe it was created in.”
‘Yeah, let’s go with that. I’m sure if you had the resources you could remove me from your mind. For now, however, all you have is your armor, so we aren‘t gaining anything just standing here.’
Victor was brooding, banished to another universe with this annoying voice in his head. Worst that voice was correct he needed a base of operation, and standing still wasn’t getting those resources. Still in what direction to travel? A quick calculation and the anti-gravity disks on his belt activate and he lifts into the air.
‘wait... where did you get those?’
“Annoying voice, I based these disks on the Wizards anti-gravity disks.”
‘First seen in Fantastic Four Vol 1 number 42.’
“What are you going on about?” Doom was only partly paying attention as his armor sensors noticed extremely large trees in the distance. Like everything else, they seem dry, but he activates his suit’s telescopic vision and sees buildings constructed on the branches and among the roots.
‘The comic Fantastic Four. In that issue, the Frightful Four tricked the Thing into attacking Reed. The Wizard used his ID machine to brainwash Johnny Storm.’
“I know the event, but why do you call it a comic. Those things happened.”
‘Doom, they were in a comic. Here I remember it I had signed up for Marvel Unlimited and read it online. Here I show you.’
The memories of a young man's brown hair and brown eyes like himself sat in a lounge chair reading a comic on a tablet. The images were hand-made dating from the 1965s. These memories fought against his recordings of the fight. Doom made it a point to track and monitor not just Reed Richards but any self-proclaimed foe of the Fantastic Four.
“Interesting it seems your reality views my own as a comic.” He starts flying forward for the city tree in the distance. His armor could fly, but it wasn’t meant to fly long distances. Unlike the Iron man armor, his was built for battle against foes like the Thing and Human Torch. Utility options like faster propulsion were set aside for pure combat.
‘Hey, stop! There something I spotted.’
He didn’t know why he stopped perhaps it was a tone in that inner voice statement. Curiosity, and fear? “Speak voice what is it you see.”
‘You need to use my name. It... it... um.’
“Later! Answer me what did you see that made you stop me.”
‘alright... see that hill over there, the one with the crack all the way through?’
“Yes, I see it.”
Another flash of memory crossed the mind of Doom. He looked again at the city in the tree. Then at the hill, it stood on, a large crack split the stone straight down to the base. The image was a cartoon with just a few frames, the real thing was a near copy. He could see more than the image didn’t have, a winding road to the top, a rope bridge spanning the fissure. Other than those minor real-life additions the cartoon image was true of the same place. Griffonstone, a city of griffons in the My Little Pony Friendship is a Magic cartoon.
“I’m in a little girls cartoon?”
‘You said it yourself. Your reality is a comic book in my universe, so who says the same couldn’t have happened again. Except for a comic book a writer and producer named Lauren Faust made a girls cartoon.’
Doom lowered down to the ground “Very well voice tell me what you know of this Griffonstone.”
‘We need to call me something else besides the voice.’
“Enough foolishness, tell me of this place.”
‘Fine, Griffonstone the home of the Griffons of this world. They were, hmm... are greedy creatures. The story I know is they were united by King Grover who ushered in an era of prosperity for the griffons with an Idol of Boreas. That ended during the rule of King Guto when a one-eyed monster named Arimaspi stole it and disappeared. In the episode Lost Treasure of Griffonstone, it turns out Arimaspi fell into the Abysmal Abyss. It was on a ledge till it fell into further into the abyss.’
“Don’t you mean Gryphon?“
‘Hasbro and My little Pony spell it G,r,i,f,f,o,n my guess for ownership legal reasons.’
‘Anyway, as I was saying the Griffons now struggle mostly where greed is the driving force of their way of life. They are often more focused on themselves and being harsh and brash to others.’
“A people so focused on themselves they ignore everything else till it’s falling apart.”
‘Pretty much.’
Now having a destination Dr. Doom starts walking forward again his mind running hundreds of calculations a second. Perhaps he could use this Idol of Boreas in some way. This Abysmal Abyss would be child's play compared to the feats Doom has done in his life.
They headed along... Victor curses in silence that he started thinking of that voice as a travel companion. “I have chosen a name for your voice. From this day forth I would call you Zephyr.”
‘No, That name in this universe is an insult.’
“Then it is fitting because you are an annoyance.”
He stumbles as an episode of My little pony enters his mind showing Zephyr Breeze.
“Very well I see your point. I will not have that being associated with me even if it just a voice in my head. To keep things simple Hans it shall be.”
‘Hans I can accept that.’
The lone figure didn’t reply as he came to a field of flowers. In the distance, he spots a figure picking from flowering plants. A moment of thought and his telescoping vision activates zooming onto the figure. “From what you showed me the Griffons are quadrupeds, but I see a bipedal variation with clothing.”
The Griffon was dressed in cheap-looking garments a poncho-style top of a tan color and darker brown pants. Standing on feline-like paws she carried a basket full of seed pods from the flowering plants. ‘now that is interesting... a bipedal griffon. On the one hand, this is a bad thing, what knowledge I have wouldn‘t be as useful. On the other, some of the more extreme situations that could happen might not even be possible.’
Doom started walking to the griffon when suddenly the ground starts shaking. “TATZLWURM!” the female griffon yells as the ground near her bursts apart and a pink and redhead of the worm rises snapping at her. She leaped into the air her wings flapping hard but wasn’t fast enough and the wurm snatched her left wing tip with a shake she fell to the ground.
‘We need to save her!’ Hans yelled mentally in Doom’s mind “Why?”
‘I recognized the voice she’s important! Also, this proves this world isn’t following the timeline. That Gilda she appears in three episodes none involved her getting killed by a Tatzlwurm.’
“This could be outside the timeline account. However, I shall do as you ask we need information she could provide.”
During the short talk, the Tatzlwurm went to bite Gilda a second time only to get a talon claw swipe at its eye. The hard scales of the worm's head were hard enough to handle digging through dirt, but its eyes were normally closed during the subterranean travel. Instincts to protect the sensitive eyes caused it to miss bitting off Gilda’s head by mere inches.
Doom took this opportunity to lift his right gauntlet with quick movements of his fingers he fires a mystical blast right at the center of the beast's eyes. The energy hits and the wurm, but it shakes off the effects and turns to look at its attacker. Seeing a more dangerous target the Tatzlwurm comes out of the ground fully like a snake it slithers along the flowers crushing them underneath as it raced to Doom.
“I see it’s tough on the outside.” He races at the coming worm as it raises its head to snap at him. Doom surprises the creature grabbing the upper jaw with one hand and slamming a foot down on the lower jaw. “Try eating this you pathetic worm!” This time he uses the armors Concussive blaster and fires pure force of energy into the back of the worm's head. The skull explodes as flesh took the devastating force from a direction it never evolved to handle.
Dismissively Doom pushes the now dead Wurm’s head out of his way and walks at a near lazy pace to Gilda. “Are you severely wounded?”
Gilda was looking away hiding her weakness in a display of bravo. “I didn’t need help from a pony.”
“Pony? Open your eyes and look at me girl. Do I look like a Pony?”
“I’m not a ...” her voice stopped as she got the first full look at her rescuer.
“No, I am no Pony. You may call me by my name, I am Doctor Victor von Doom.” ------------------------- Gilda’s POV
Gilda got up that morning and squash the dread she felt. Her one chance of getting help was ruined by that pink pony Pinkie Pie. She saved up for the ticket to visit Ponyville for a whole year nearly starving herself for the airship ride.
Then every time she got Rainbow Dash alone, every time she tried to ask her friend for help that pink pony showed up. Then Rainbow Dash herself humiliated her. In the end, her hope for help was dashed to pieces.
She got dressed in a pullover poncho and trousers no point in putting on something nice, not when she got to return to the mindless labor of picking the dreamweed seed pods. Officially they were being used to make medicine but everyone knew they were being harvested for illegal drugs. She didn’t care, even less now. If ponies want to kill themselves getting high so be it she done with those annoying ponies. Or at least the ones she could avoid. “Move it, dweeb!”
She shoves one of the street urchins in Griffonstone aside. The younger griffon was just a poor grunt like herself pecking at the bones of the once majestic griffon empire. Being an orphan in Griffonstone was hard, she was lucky that her mother was once a speed flyer in the Friendship Games.
Gilda sighed thinking back to the flight camp she got to go to. The good times before things got rough. Her mother's income from being a sports star finally ran out, then her father started drinking what coin they could get. By the time Gilda was a teenager they were poor, by the time Gilda could move out on her own her father left and her mother died from feather flu.
She was alone and helplessly fell into debt. Now she had to pluck seed pods for drug dealers, her once chance... ‘Rainbow Dash why couldn’t you help me.
“DOOM! DOOM is coming! Beware his might! He who will turn the sun and moon into his minions! He who will make Harmony bow before him! He who will crush the storm bringer! DOOM IS COMING!” An old griffon with a black body and raven bird-like features was on a street corner. Her right eye was white with blindness her left seem to be lost in a drug haze or madness.
Gilda shakes her head passing the crazy old crone. Then she was grabbed by the old hen’s black talon. “Let go of me you old hag!”
“You... you be a most careful young fool. Soon you will know the one with two minds. Beware of angering Doom!”
Shaking off the crazy hen she hurries on her way taking to get farther away from the crazy bird.
Landing at the shed that was base for the Dreamweed farms. The voice of the Pony in charge called out. “Your late Gilda.” The pony was copper brown with a light yellowish-brown mane and tail.
“Some crazy crone got in my way.”
“No excuses. I gave you a week off and now you late returning.” He throws her the basket. “Get to picking.”
“Sure Penny Pincher. you are the boss.” Gilda swallowed her pride, last time she spoke up to the pony the brutish Earthpony Balderdash held her down as Penny Pincher whipped her.
Rainbow why couldn’t you have listened to me...
The day was mostly boring she was on her third trip things change as the ground start shaking “TATZLWURM!” She screamed and tried to leap into safely of the air. The Wurm, however, snapped her wing breaking the bones in the farther end and she fell to the ground. Then when it came at her she lashed out at the eye.
That when a blast of magic distracted the wurm. Gilda scoots back as the wurm went after the figure in armor. Gilda barely noticed the figure as it charged into the mouth of the beast. “Fool” She stood up and tries to ignore the pain in her wing as she tries to get to safety.
That was when she noticed the shadow of the armored figure. “Are you severely wounded?”
Gilda was looking away hiding her weakness in a display of bravo. “I didn’t need help from a pony.”
“Pony? Open your eyes and look at me girl. Do I look like a Pony?” She turned to get ready to curse the armored pony. It has to be a pony no other being could blast magic like that.
“I’m not a ...” her voice stopped as she got the first full look at her rescuer. The figure was taller then she expected, even taller than any Griffon she ever knew. The armor was unlike any she ever has seen before but what caught her attention was the eyes. Small, piercing, cold, and calculating with scarred skin around them. Eyes designed for fine detail and focus, eyes of a pure predator.
“No, I am no Pony. You may call me by my name, I am Victor von Doom.”
The only thing that went through her mind hearing that name was the old crow’s voice "Beware of angering Doom!”
Hans watched as Doom fought the Tatzlwurm. Not much he could do really he was riding shotgun in the mind of one of marvel comics iconic villains. Going back over what he could he saw Doom blast the boulder with the Atomic blast.
This was interesting he saw the option of weapons pop up and doom shifted through them quickly. The Atomic blast was marked long-range with a wide blast point. This was why Doom didn’t use it on the Tatzlwurm the heat from the atomic blast would have burnt Gilda.
The concussion blast was close range the effects diminish with distance. In the cavity of the wurm’s mouth, it was devastating. The magic... that was beyond Hans to figure out he saw the complicated hand movements but that was it.
The symbiotic joining of his and Doom’s mind was strange he could think independently of Doom, and so could doom not read his mind. When Hans thought about talking that was when Doom heard him, where doom had to speak out loud. He could even force memories and thoughts at Von Doom. So far the reverse hasn’t been tried.
‘Hans pay attention! I need your My Little Pony Information’
The thought rushed through his thoughts and Hans focused on what Doom was seeing. ‘What... wait you didn’t say that out loud.’
‘Insufferable earworm you don’t think I could focus my thoughts at your annoying presence? Now tell me about these ponies.’
There before him was a group of three Ponies. One dark gray and green maned male Earth Pony, one a blue and black-maned female Pegasus, and the copper-colored Unicorn.
The Unicorn was speaking “What have you done you, armor-plated moron!”
Even in the corner of Doom’s mind, Hans felt the building anger. “You lamentable dullard use your eyes. That tatzlwurm attacked your employee and I defeated it before any lives were lost.”
The sky blue Pegasus spoke up. “I was about to dive-bomb that thing when you blasted it and caused it to come out of its tunnel.”
Penny Pincher spoke then “that resulted in more property damage. I demand restitution those seed pods are worth more than any pathetic griffon. There are plenty of those who would work for food you tin plat...”
That was it Hans could tell. It seemed Gilda also knew something was up as she scrambled to get away.
Once more Doom’s fist rose and opened as the atomic blast was selected as a weapon. Even before Penny Pincher was finished with the tin-plated insult his head was blowing into burning chunks. The heat of the blast singed the fur and skin of the Earth Pony. The Pegasus moved fast enough that only her tail was scorched. Screams of shock from the watching Griffon workers and even the Pegasus filled the air.
“MONSTER!” The Earth Pony charged fists balled up. ‘Doom Earth Ponies have enhanced Strength and endurance, the most powerful can punch through granite and hold tons of weight. Power could fluctuate depending on how much magical force they can channel at the time.’
Doom seemed to take the information and moved to the left lifting his right knee to connect to the Earth Pony Boulder Dash abdomen. At the same time, his armored elbow came crashing down onto the brute’s back. “Fool I have battled Benjamin Grimm. Compared to him you are a mere child.”
A flash of blurring blue fur and doom’s head moved just enough for the armored villain to move his attention to the Pegasus who was still trying to punch his metalhead. Hans saw the option for the electrical field but before Doom activated the defensive measure Hans spoke again ‘Pegasi are immune to lighting and thus electrical attacks.’
Doom switched to the concussion blast once again and blasted the Pegasus away, the force of the blast designed to combat the THING ripped her body in half spilling guts as her body hits the ground in chunks.
By this time the Earth Pony rose up and seeing both his partners killed went berserk and mindlessly attacked. “You don’t learn do you.” This time Doom showed no mercy having Mastered many combat techniques of martial arts against a crazed brute of a thug Doom had no problem using a move of Shuai Jiao to smash the Earth Pony head into the ground. There he gripped the pony’s head and with the force of the power armor crushed his skull.
‘Fuck Doom! Do you really need to be so brutal.’
‘They earned the ire of Doom.’
“How are we going to get paid!” “Shut up Glados you want it to kill you next?” Doom turned his head to spot the group of Griffon workers. All but Gilda took off fleeing. “IT LOOKING AT US RUN!”
---------------------- Victor Von Doom's POV
Doom moved to one of the flowering plants and plucked a seed pod. He forced the pod open and then examine the seeds. “Similar to Opium in chemical composition.”
He then turned and headed over to Gilda seeing the other Griffons fleeing in panic. “Cowards leaving you behind.” He looked down at the terrified Gilda “Do not fear I offered aid already and Doom does not retract his kindness easily. Now tell me who you are and what going on here.”
Almost as an afterthought, Doom remembered he had the bloody remains of the fight on his body. A quick spell banished the biological matter from his person.
He watched as the griffon Gilda swallow her fear then look him in the eyes. Impressive given the heightened heartbeat and other signs of fear she was displaying including her feathers rising to make her appear physically larger. True bravery wasn’t the absence of fear it was action despite fear, this one was brave. He could use that.
‘Um... I told you her name.’
‘What demon did Reed sell his soul too so I will be cursed with an ignoramus. Think, I just killed three sapient beings in front of her, she’s wounded, how much more panic would she be in if I called her by name before she told me?’
‘Good point.’
“My name Gilda of Eagleblood. Those are Dreemweeds and we collect the seed pods to ship to Equestria where they are made into medicine. That what they say at least, it is known around here they are made into drugs. Those... ponies you killed were the Prince's personnel, these are his lands.”
Doom raised a brow when he heard Hans in his head ‘Oh god, please don’t say it’s Blueblood.’
“What is this Prince’s name?”
“You don’t know?” She spoke out in a harsh voice then gasped realizing who she was speaking to. “Oh... sorry... it’s Blueblood, the Prince of Equestria. Fuck he’s going to cut trade to Griffonstone if he doesn’t get what he wants.”
‘Hans what do you know about this Blueblood.’
‘Okay, this is off the cartoon and comic book script. Blueblood was introduced in a fantasy of Rarity’s...’
‘IMPORTANT INFORMATION. I don’t need that much detail who is he, what his personality, what importance is he.’
‘Fine. Blueblood in the show was a self-absorbed arrogant narcissistic nephew of Princess Celestia. Princess Celestia is one of the rulers of the nation of Equestria. Now the comics he is depicted as a high ranking diplomat. In the fandom, he’s a favorite punching bag and clown. Even when written as a villain he’s often a joke. Like I said it completely off-script for him to be a drug dealer.’
Doom nods “Do not worry about trade deals. I have made up my mind, by this time tomorrow I will be ruling Griffonstone myself. As such you have the honor of being my first servant. Now let take care of that wounded wing of yours.”
Gilda's eyes widen and she flinches as Doom moves his hands in a pattern neither she nor Hans could follow. Soon mystical light glowed around his gauntlets and then her body. Soon her wounds were healing at a rapid pace.
“You know healing magic?” Gilda asks shocked even among the Unicorns she knew healing was a rare skill of magic.
“There little I don’t know about magic. Serve me well I might even grant you the right for me to teach you some.” Doom stood up and looked to the city. “For now take me to a place where I can rest. I have plans to formulate and a kingdom to conquer.”
As he heads for the city with Gilda guiding him the voice of Hans was in his head. ‘Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck.’ --------------- Gilda’s Pov
She could feel the heat from here. Penny Pincher’s head just vaporized in mid insult. The blast was like a miniature sun where his head used to be. Even as the body fell to the ground Boulder Dash was rushing at Doom with pure hate in his eyes.
Gilda remembered that muscular Earth Pony strength when she was being punished. Surely that armor wouldn’t be able to stand the might of an Earth Pony rage-filled punches, no matter how tough it looked.
Blinking she couldn’t understand how Doom moved so fast sending Bolder to the ground. Then Windshier was punching the helmet with all she had. Screaming and crying as she pounded the metal armored head. Gilda saw it was barely even registered to Doom. She watched as his fist rose and something that was like sound but wasn’t blasted forth. Her bones ached with the feeling of the subsonic blast. Windshier, however, was blown apart.
Gilda couldn’t keep her stomach contents in as she watched a shocked Windshier look at her own guts before dying. A scream of rage and Boulder Dash was up and charging again. This time Doom somehow flipped the raging stallion and then crushed his skull.
What was left in her stomach joined what She had to escape, this wasn’t just a predator whatever was in that suit was an Alpha predator. Showing no sign of remorse, mercy, or hindrance in the killing. The only reason she wasn’t dead was that he didn’t feel the need to bother. This was a fact she was sure of now.
“Cowards leaving you behind.” Of course, they were fleeing, if she could fly she be flying as well. “Do not fear I offered aid already and Doom does not retract his kindness easily. Now tell me who you are and what going on here.”
“My name Gilda of Eagleblood. Those are Dreemweeds and we collect the seed pods to ship to Equestria where they are made into medicine. That what they say at least, it is known around here they are made into drugs. Those... ponies you killed were the Prince men, these are his lands.”
Did she see the eyes Doom look away? Was he distracted by something?
“What is this Prince’s name?”
“You don’t know?” She heard her voice rise in anger, it was her normal reaction to something. Griffon culture was about not showing weakness, stand up be the strongest. Her natural instincts screamed for her to run. No amount of bravo going the help here. Shit! Did she doom herself?
“Oh... sorry... it’s Blueblood, the Prince of Equestria. Fuck he’s going to cut trade to Griffonstone if he doesn’t get what he wants.”
Doom nods “Do not worry about trade deals. I have made up my mind, by this time tomorrow I will be ruling Griffonstone myself. As such you have the honor of being my first servant. Now let take care of that wounded wing of yours.”
Gilda's eyes widen, magic, he really can do magic. That wasn’t some effect from the magical armor. Healing magic was something that has to be done in person, some potions could speed up natural healing. No enchantment could guide magical healing. “You know healing magic?”
“There little I don’t know about magic. Serve me well I might even grant you the right for me to teach you some.” Doom stood up and looked to the city. “For now take me to a place where I can rest. I have plans to formulate and a kingdom to conquer.”
Gilda stood up and started leading Doom for the city. If she takes off now perhaps she could get away far enough before he attacks? No, he didn’t even waver when he killed Penny Pincher. Now she was leading him to the city, a city he told her he was going to conquer.
Hans watched as Gilda lead them to the city. He was expecting to see the run-down place, but seeing it, in reality, was far different than the cartoon. What hit him first was the smell the stench of garbage mixed with sewage filled the air. He even spotted a griffon dumping a chamber pot out of a window.
The smell was indescribable. A memory of traveling past a chicken farm and the sicking sweet smell of chicken poop filled the air entered his thoughts. Somehow this was far worst.
Then noticed cheers and it seems so did Doom, for he soon saw two sickly looking cubs at a building poking the boards with a stick. Then licking that very stick, with a thought the telescopic vision kicked in and termites were seen on the stick before they were eaten by the cubs.
“That perhaps the first protein they had in a week,” Gilda spoke noticing the urchin cubs.
Hans felt it, that building anger. ‘Dude, relax they are just children’
‘Do not insult me, Hans. I’m angry not at them, I’m angry they have to live in this pathetic condition.’
‘That we can agree on. This is horrible, I was expecting it to be bad, but seeing it in real life with all the misery of such a place on full display. This smell enough to make me sick how can you stand it?’
The smell suddenly stopped ‘Hey how you do that?’
‘Fool do you think I wouldn’t have air filters and air recycling in my armor? If I didn’t all the fantastic four had to do was encase me in a forcefield and suffocate me.’
‘As for this city, it’s the typical Capitalistic conditions. Most of Europe was like this during the 1800s and early 1900s London was one of the worst cities before environmental and fair work laws came into effect. In the poorest district during that time mortality rate of East End was 20% with the life expectancy of only 19.’
‘Oh? What is Latveria then a socialistic nation?’
‘It’s...’ Doom staggered as his mind drew a blank. ‘With my technology, the needs of the population are taken care of. So in that regard, you can indeed consider it socialist. Without the need for heavy workloads on the population they can focus on the Arts, Science, and technology to benefit us all.’
“Um... sir? You alright?” Gilda had noticed him staggered.
Then Doom motions to an alleyway. “I was caught off guard seeing the body of the old one over there.”
Gilda saw the body as well and gasped. There in the alleyway was the old raven blood griffon. This time she was quiet, she wasn’t moving at all her body slumped over and a fly was crawling on the lifeless eyeball.
“They... they pick her up tonight.” Gilda looked down heading for her home.
“Gilda, did you know that old one?” Doom asked with a touch of sympathy in his voice.
“No, just a crazy old bird, at least that what I thought this morning.”
Hans didn’t let Doom change the subject there was something about the Latveria economy that caused Doom to stumble. ‘Nice cover there. But something made you stagger and it wasn’t the old body.’
‘Silence you overrated migraine.’ ------------------------- Doom’s POV
His mind was running wild. There was a problem and it was in his knowledge. The annoying voice had stumbled something Doom couldn’t just dismiss.
How did the economy of Latveria work? More than that what was the population, primary crops’ popular music? It wasn’t long before other memories seem to have similar errors. He couldn’t recall details of his life. Going over his knowledge he still knew advanced robotics, thaumaturgy, martial arts, biology, chemistry. He recalls the information and skills but who taught him was missing.
Remembering school he recalls Reed Richard very well. His robotics teacher, not so much. He couldn’t even remember a single name of a fellow student. It was as if all those minor details were generalized.
“We are leaving what’s known as the outer fringes of the city. It’s not even considered a district just where the poorest live. We now entering the lower roots district mostly warehouses, crafting, and manufacturing buildings, abandoned mostly. I live in The Higher Root District.” Gilda spoke out as she motions to the tree. “Then you have the shopping district set up on the trunk road to the lower branches. The higher you go the more expensive the shops. Lower and higher branches are the wealthy districts. The High branches also have the old castle where the council rules.”
Shoving the issue of his messed up memories aside he looked at the buildings around him. All seem to be in a state of disrepair. He stops walking as he notices a large knot-like structure in the tree roots. He looked farther up the tree noting more and more of those knots. By this time Gilda noticed he stopped walking. “Um... sir?”
“Tell me about this tree. Why is it here? How old is it?”
“How the hell should I know that?” Gilda visibly swallowed. “I...i... I don’t know.”
Doom looked at her “Learn to think before you talk.”
‘Kettle calling the Pot Black, there Doom.’
‘Shut up you second rate brain freeze.’
“Just tell me how old is it? Where did it come from?”
“Um... it’s over a thousand years old. Maybe a thousand one hundred years, I don’t know. The city was built by King Grover I think... History kind of not my thing.”
Doom nods and walks to one of the knots and scoops up dirt that was in the center of the knot. So much dirt it was as if the knot was hollow. The soil was well fertilized compacted black earth, unlike the brown ground he saw before. Then with a quick wave of his hands glowing markings appeared on the root. “It’s heavily enchanted. It makes sense a tree this large would not be able to survive on a hill. The water demand for a plant this large would be hundreds of thousands of gallons. It would take more nutrients then these hills could provide as well. This was grown by magic.”
“But griffons don’t do magic...”
He looked to Gilda “You do magic without thinking about it when you fly. I noticed it when the others fled. It’s magic that helps you fly in fact. Without magic, your bodies would be too heavy for your wings.”
Gilda blinks and looked to her wings. “Well... sure but you talking about major enchantment. Only ponies do magic like that, and they would never do this much magic. Even for themselves there only a few who have magic enough to do something like the city tree. They were, even more, self-centered a thousand years ago.”
“Look at the magical lines my spelled reveled. This is your first lesson in magic. Magic is everywhere even more in this universe than my own. Willpower and focus can manipulate the strands of magic to produce an effect, this is called Thaumaturgy. The problem most mortals have is the lack of willpower and mental focus, to control magical energy mental focus control is paramount. Weaker minds lose focus and lose control. Think about it like a language, all creatures can produce sound, but only consciously aware beings can manipulate the sound from our throats into meaning. Then you have those who can speak multiple languages and dialects, the same happens with magic. Every self-aware being can speak, but how many can give a moving speech in multiple languages? Each culture creates is own language it would take me some time to figure out the language of these enchantments.”
Of course, that annoying voice in his head didn’t stay quiet. ‘Interesting I never thought of magic that way before.’
“Now Gilda show me one of these crafting workshops. I prefer a Smiting workshop.”
‘What are you thinking Doom?’
‘I need to know the level of technology here, we can’t go by what you have seen in the cartoon. Judging by the clothing we are dealing with a technology progression of about the late 1800s, but I want to be sure. This tree throws off my calculations.’
‘like how you stated they were about the same culture-wise. Work the poor to death and don’t care about the health conditions? In the show, they had steam trains and blimps like airships.’
‘We can’t trust the information you have in the show. Their biology already diverges from quadruped to bipeds. Even those ponies were stood on two feet and wore clothing.’
“THERE it is there the monster!” Doom turns to see a female Griffon leading two males. The two male Griffons were dressed in some form of leather armor. “That the one you were talking about Glados?”
“I just said It was, Gerry! Kill that thing before it does any more damage! Now that Penny Pincher dead I’m in charge of the fields I want to display its head for Prince Blueblood.” Glados yelled out. Doom watched as Gilda moved back clearly expecting to witness another slaughter.
Doom on the other hand stepped forward. “Greetings, I am Victor von Doom. I do believe this young female is mistaken.”
“Mistaken? You murdered Penny Pincher and his assistance. Listen, you... thing, those Ponies were here to monitor the Equestrian’s property. Now, come along peacefully we need to take you to the Chamberlain.” The griffon guard Gerry spoke up.
“You forgot the Tatzlwurm as well. Nor will I be going anywhere. I shall see this Chamberlain when I wish.”
“Wait, you killed a Tatzlwurm, and three ponies?” the other guard looked around showing the signs of fear.
“I can demonstrate my power if you wish.” With that, he lifts in the air and for a moment it seemed he had multiple arms. Then four copies of himself appeared surrounding the guards and Glados. “How long will it take for you to get back up?”
“Fuck that... I don’t get paid enough.” Gerry spoke out “Me neither!” The two guards turn and flew away. “WAIT for me!” cried out Glados.
Doom just shook his head “Cowards.” The illusionary copies vanished and the real Doom looks over to Gilda “come, Gilda, it time for you to lead me to that workshop, I prefer one that’s abandoned.” ------------------- Gilda’s POV
She didn’t know what was more shocking. The very magic she saw radiating from the old city tree, or the idea she could learn magic. Sure he said something about teaching her earlier, but being seen real magic in her own home. The magic that wouldn’t be cast by a Unicorn. How would the City Tree be grown if not by Unicorn magic? The only logical reason was King Grover used magic to grow the city tree, but how?
She was so lost in her thoughts she only noticed the Guards when they confronted Doom. Fighting the fear she was about to see Glados and the guards die she backs away getting out of the line of fire. Instead Doom dose some sort of magic, producing multiple copies of himself.
Then her mind hit a wall. He said there was more magic here than his universe?
“Tell me, Gilda. What is the most advanced form of travel you have seen?”
“Travel?” She had to think about what he meant about the other universe later. “Um... There are airships, and Equestria has Trains. They are the only nation that has trains, just another example of elitism.”
“What kind of trains? Are they widespread?”
“I don’t know... I was only visiting Ponyville for a short time. It produced a lot of steam.”
They come to a building and she looks around “This is the nearest metal shop I know of, been empty for three years.”
She watched as doom easily broke the lock and entered. Not wanting to stand out in the street during a break in she hurried inside as well.
“Gilda close the door. I have to change plans, the griffon Glados saw you with me. It would be easy to assume she be leading guards to your residence. Due to that possibility, I would be using this building as my staging point.” She watched as he walked among the old metalworking tools. “The equipment here is suitable. Go and fetch something to eat for both of us. You might have enough time to get to your home before they arrive. If you see any guards ignore the home.”
Her heart races as he looks at her the dark building was darker to her eyes. The majority of griffons have poor night vision. The contrast between the dark interior and bright beams of light shining through cracks gave a seral look to the armored figure of Doom.
“Do you have any funds for food if they are at your home?”
“No... what money I have is hidden in my house.”
Doom then nodded and moved to some of the rusting iron left in the building. Gilda watched as his hands move in the complicated way the creature does magic. Small drops of silvery metal appeared oozing from the iron. Soon a ball of... Moon silver! “That’s Moon Silver!”
“Moon Silver? Interesting name, where I’m from we call it Aluminium or Aluminum. Tell me Gilda is this valuable?”
“Yes, it’s nearly as valuable as Silver.”
“Hmm... 1800‘s as well. I see well take this Gilda, get us something to eat.”
“What would you be doing sir?”
“I will be fixing that cart in the back. We would be needing it when I claim the throne of Griffonstone.”
Gilda blinks and tries to see the cart, sure enough, a cart with a broken wheel was in the shadows. “Why would we need a cart?”
She couldn’t see it but she heard the humor in his voice. “I am going to retrieve the Idol of Boreas.”
“You know where the Idol is?”
“No more talking Gilda. I gave you a task now go. The longer we take the more time this Chamberlin has to prepare.” Doom turned and headed into the darkness the shadows consuming his form. Gilda looks down at the ball of pure Moon Silver, it was more worth more than the money she used to visit Rainbow Dash. Enough money for her to live on for months, and he just tossed it to her as if it was trash. Turning she headed out of the building, she has a job to do.
Once Doom was sure Gilda had left, he screamed slamming his fist into the very iron ore he drew the aluminum from. The force of the impact left a fist shape indentation.
‘Doom what’s the matter.’ Hans that annoying voice spoke in his head again.
“My mind has been corrupted you insufferable voice. Not only I got you whispering in my thoughts, but I also found my memories are flawed.”
Dooms anger was boiling. If he had a target, he would incinerate it, but the source of his rage was unknown. “Reed Richards… it must be him. He the only one who would dare try to mess with my mind. Hans, you must be a failed personality implant”
He nods that must be the reason for his gaps in memories, his mind was being rewritten. “I must have escaped, perhaps with the Infinity Gauntlet”.
A quick spell and an orb of white light were floating above him. “My skills and knowledge are too valuable to erase, but events of my life were targeted for erasing. Yes, it makes sense now. Reed Richard or whoever would dare mess with my mind wanted my brilliance without my personality”.
‘Okay, and you are talking to me with your voice again.’
“There is no need for me to be quiet when alone.” Doom headed over to the cart seeing the car’s wheel was detached. “Simple enough seems it was just abandoned mid fix.” He looked around for supplies. Most of the handheld tools were gone, either taken when the place was abandoned or scavaged later.
‘Are you sure? We all have memory degradation over time it’s a natural thing.’
“Not to me. I have an Eidetic memory. I can recall every fight, every detail of my battles. But my life… is blurred.”
‘Show me’
“Show you? Ah, I see like you projected your memories into my head.”
In the memory.
Doom was controlling the Doombot as it flew the helicopter to the Fantastic Four base of operation. The task was difficult he was still refining the technology of the doom bots. Soon he dropped a nanocarbon fiber net over the building. He calls out via the chopper’s broadcaster. “Send out Sue Storm.”
The memory of getting the helicopter was fussier. Then farther back as Victor Von Doom was hiking in the mountains, the chill of the snowy air reached the skin of his face even with the bandages covering it. Then he looks up seeing the temple of the monks he came looking for.
‘Doom… when was the last time you took a shower?’
“Are you implying I’m dirty you mental tick?!”
‘No, just humor me. When was the last time you had a shower or a bath? What was the last meal you ate?’
“Enough of this… Tell me about this cartoon. What was it called?”
‘My Little Pony, Friendship is magic. It all begins in the magical land of Equestria…’
Hans draws up his memories. --------------------------
Hans’s POV
He dug in his memory for information about the show. Starting from the very start. Somewhere in the mindscape, he started to work on more.
Doom had split his focus he both paid attention to the cartoon as he repaired the broken wheel of the cart. Hans did the same.
“What kind of moronic name is Nightmare Moon? Sounds like a name a teenage girl going through a GOTH phase would name herself.” as the appearance of Nightmare moon took shape on stage.“Complete with tacky purple eye shadow.”
First, he imagined the show was playing on a large screen T.V. then expanded creating a theater room. For the first time since the issue started, he brought his hand up and viewed his hand. The room was more dreamlike than a physical world. Things disappeared when he didn’t pay attention.
“Focus your thoughts you blundering brain fart. I need to know everything I can.”
‘It isn't easy remembering a cartoon from the very start. Where was I?’
“Cows talk in this universe as well?”
‘I don’t know talking cows never showed up again in later seasons. They’re also talking goats and non-talking goats. So the same could be for cows. Then again like you said we can’t go by what is in the show.’
“I will have to investigate this matter of sapient animals later.”
‘Yeah I agree, I could so go for some steak. Just not if the steak intelligent.’ Hans refocused on the show as the episode ends the next starts.
‘Griffon the Brush off. This is the first appearance of Gilda.’
“This pony Fluttershy speaks to the animals. How strong is that ability.”
‘Doom, she powerful all the mane six have interesting abilities. Let jump a few episodes...Ah, here it is. Fluttershy’s Staring down a Dragon, and then I show you her staring down a cockatrice. imagine Squirrel Girl with the ability to be able to affect all animals.’
“Do not speak that girl’s name. You have no idea how frustrating a hundred squirrels swarming over you can be.”
‘If we want to talk about scary… let me show you Pinkie Pie’s greatest reality warping.’
“In will have to test these bearers of the Elements. For now, show me the episode you spoke of. The one where the Idol is found.”
‘Season five episode eight. The lost treasure of Griffonstone it is then.’ Hans sits down on the couch that appeared under his new body, and he starts eating popcorn.
“What is that munching sound? It’s disturbing.” A growl comes from dooms abdomen.
‘Sorry, Doom. Guess you are hungrier then I thought.’
“Yes… hungry. Don’t disturb me I need to focus on learning what I can about the Lost Treasure of Griffonstone.”
Hans sat there watching the episode play, thinking. Doom’s tone of voice was puzzled as if he was confused about something.
------------------------- Gilda's POV
After walking out of the metal workshop Gilda took a deep breath. Ever since the Tatlzworm, she has been fighting fear and anger in equal measure. Her life was on a titering edge, Glados as Doom said would be leading the guards to her home. This would mean she couldn’t return home again.
At the same time she has seen hornless magic, and her ancestors might even have use magic themselves. Could she use magic?
She slips the orb of Moon Silver into a pouch she had hidden under her poncho. She didn’t have any coin in it, but she did have her lunch in it when working. Lunch she ate before the attack.
Doom was both intriguing and terrifying. His focus and will were almost a physical thing, a commanding presence that was hard to ignore, his magic was unlike anything she has seen before. At the same time, she could feel he was holding back a monstrous devastating power. He slaughtered Penny Pitcher and the other ponies with ease. What more he seemed to not even registered to kill someone as anything more than a nuisance.
Her hand touches the pouch. She could flee she has the money. Where would she go? Back to Rainbow Dash? No, what remains of her self-worth couldn’t stand facing the pony that humiliated her just a few months ago. She submitted to the hard work of the fields to survive; it was not hard to submit to Doom. At least doom could show her magic, and she could gain the power to be a master of mysticism as well.
Taking a deep breath she made her choice. She will learn this hornless magic of doom. She will be the master of her destiny and any who stand in her way will be vaporized like Penny’s head. From this day forward she wouldn’t be a dweeb she will be the apprentice of DOOM. She will grab her destiny by the talion and force life to follow her desires.
With that, she headed for one of the few pawn shops she trusted. Old Grampa Gruff’s place.
The pawnshop was like many such places in many worlds. A window with bars showing items that could be bought, but wasn’t so rare they couldn’t be replaced. By the door was a large buffed griffon male serving as a guard.
Gilda didn’t pay the guard much attention as she headed inside. “Gramps! I got something you want to see.”
Grampa Gruff was behind another set of bars in the back of the display floor. “You got the coin for your medal, Gilda? If you don’t it be on display soon. Can you afford to pawn something else?”
Gilda sets the orb of Moon Silver on the counter. “How much for pure moon silver?”
Gruff reaches out for the orb, but before he could Gilda picks it back up. “I have to examine it first if you want a number, Gilda.”
Gilda looks to the answer to her problems before setting it down again. With a voice expressing her frustration “Fine”.
Gruff puts a jewel’s eyepiece over his good eye and examines the orb. “It’s pure? Not some copper coated?”
“Of course it’s pure you old buffoon. I know what happened to the last Griffon that tried to con you”. The story of the fool who tried to sell Gruff a fake diamond was well known. Found a few days later every feather plucked and eyes gouged out. Gilda tried to resist the urge to shiver as she brought the story up in her mind.
Gruff snorted and put the orb on weight scales. “Do you want your mother’s medal back as well”? He says as he measures the orb.
“How much is the orb worth?” Gilda fought with sadness, the pendant was the silver equestrian games medal her mother won so long ago.
Gruff took note of her voice and looked at the young griffon in the eye. “About one hundred more than your mother’s pendant. Where do you get the Orb?”
“Same place as the medal. It was in my mother’s hiding spot.”
Gilda watched as the old bird reached down and brought up the medal and set it down. “You paid off half of what you owe me. So I let you have the medal and four hundred for the orb, final offer.”
For a moment Gilda was going to argue but then snatched the medal fighting the emotions that ran rampant in her mind. Gruff was being kind in his annoying way, she knew he was dropping the interest she still owed.
Gruff then put four double silver coins down on the counter. Griffonstone coins went from copper slivers, copper coins, silver slivers worth 25 coppers, silver coins 50 copper coins, and finally double silver coins for 100 copper coins. Given most don’t deal with anything above a single silver many griffons just use coppers as standard.
“I need one of those doubles broken up, got some things I need to buy and don’t want to advertise I got so much on me.”
Gruff snorts and sets out 25 copper coins. One silver sliver and one silver coin “Happy now you ungrateful feather brain.”
Gilda snatched the money and with a growl turns and heads out of the pawnshop.
Gruff watched her leave then scratched his head. “Gallus get in here you urchin.”
A still very young fledgling Gallus enters the back room of the pawnshop from the warehouse. “You called Gramps?” Grampa Gruff was known to the urchins of Griffonstone. Being one of the few Griffons who took care of the orphan homeless. Of course, he wouldn’t put up with any lazy hatchlings. If you earned his approval, you would get to sleep in one of the buildings the old griffon owned and got to have blankets, as well as a meal once a day. Twice if you find money or items dropped or lost for the store. Of course what counts as lost items was sketchy if a said item was ‘Lost’ in a jewelry box under a bed and happened to be found by a sneaky thief, Gruff wouldn’t ask questions.
“I want you to follow Gilda. Make sure you aren’t spotted.”
Gallus scratches his head “Why? She’s a good customer.”
“Fool. Think, her mother didn’t have any Moon Silver, no way Gilda would pawn the medal first. If Gabriele had an orb of Moon Silver, Gilda would pawn that. Somehow Gilda got her hands on this orb. She’s not the thieving type, find out what you can.”
“Yeah, yeah. Follow Gilda, find secrets… I want extra pay!”
“You think I’m made of coin! Fine. Shoo before she gets too far.”
The still young teen or tween Gallus hurried out the back to follow his target.
Gruff picks up the orb and with a knife, he makes a slight scrape. “Purest Moon Silver I ever have seen.” ------------- Griffonstone Castle
Chamberlin Archion was a Falcon like griffon with a sharp beak and sharp eyes. He was dressed in a flowing red robe and at the moment looking down at the Griffon before him. "Tell me again about his monster."
Glados nods "It's some kind of magical metal creation I think. All metal with green garment and cape. The thing showed no fear of killing a Tatlzworm, and no mercy killing the Prince's men at the fields."
With a growl, the Chamberlin stands up. "If the Prince hears about this he cut our trade. That's our food supply!"
"I know! The field can be fixed I can do it!"
"Shut up commoner! I don't need your simple thoughts. Guards, start a full search of the area I want this monster found before the Prince hears about..."
"Hear about what Chamberlin Archion?" There walking out of a side passage was Prince Blueblood dressed in a fine blue suit. "Please, explain to me why I shouldn't hear about what happened to..." Then his horn lights up and a blast of magic strikes the ground near Archion's feet. With deeper and more anger filled voice "MY FIELDS, and my servants!"
Archion swallows, "It a monster, I already got guards searching for it. There was no way to predict the attack. From what this field lead supervisor reported only about ten percent of one field was damaged. Your servants were killed fighting the beast."
Prince Blueblood was nodding. "Make sure this metal monster is taken care of. We don't want my Aunt to send any military assistance here."
"Of course Prince Blueblood. We don't want any interference from Equestria." Chamberlin Archion swapped his cape hurried to get guards mobilized.
There are three ways to survive in Griffonstone according to Gallus. Take other’s stuff, take other’s stuff, and take other’s stuff. Most people would not even realize the difference.
The first is the way the wealthy or powerful do things. Governments call it taxes, wealthy call it insurance, powerful call it protection.
The second way is for the strong, grab, and takes from weaker. The worst beat the weaker they are taking from.
The last was the cleaver. This can take a few different ways. A con could come up with clever ways to trick the weak-minded, or there are thieves. Gallus was such a sneak. Fortunately, for him, Gilda was not. The trick to being a sneak is not to try to hide; this makes you stick out, even more, no a pro sneak blends in. So when Gilda looked back at the store Gallus opened a nearby trash can and reached in dumpster diving. Something any street urchin would do.
Once Gilda looked away, he hurried to take flight and move along the rooftops. The streets weren’t busy, at the same time they weren’t empty. Even on the lower side of the trunk street stores were run down and a few were empty. It was a good thing Gilda wasn’t going up the street it would be harder for Gallus to blend in.
After following her from the safety rooftops, he shakes his head. Gilda hasn’t even looked up once. Sure most life on Equis had large eyes to have a wide view. Even predators tend to have enough range of sight to look for threats. However, it seems Gilda was not used to sneaking life and wasn’t paying enough attention. Spotting Gilda stop at Guss’s deli shop she looked back but by the time she did he was high up on the building on the other side of the street. He jumps down. It was time for another change of tactic.
The second rule of sneaking is always changing how you sneak. Habits form when you do the same tactics each time, these habits make one lazy and predictable. It was much better to shift methods every so often. So Gallus headed to a fellow urchin this one was begging for the coin on the street corner. “Faina, this is a mission from Gramps. I need some cover.”
The street urchin was ragged and small. A runt her weak and pathetic appearance seemed to shift as she stopped the act. Though still small her shoulders roll and her eyes sharpen on his face. “Half.”
“What? I need cover Faina just do it.”
“I get half of what you get, or you can sit on a thistle.”
“No way, not for a cover job. I still have to track and infiltrate. I give you five percent.”
“Twenty-five my final offer. I’m not going to get bruised just for a measly copper sliver.”
“Fine, twenty-five percent but you stay on task and follow along.”
“Okay, so how you want to do this?”
Gallus smiles “Scrap”
When Gilda left the deli, she had a bag of food with her. Instead of heading to the workshop, she turned to see how her home was doing. Just then Gallus ran past her holding a small pouch. “GIVE ME MY STUFF BACK!” Faina playing her role ran after him. They got about a block up ahead before Faina seemed to caught up to him and tackled.
The two fought and were ignored by the rest of the population including Gilda. After all, these were the lower roots no one cares. That was, after all, part of the plan. Most people would never think the two causing a ruckus were in truth didn’t want to be noticed. The fighting ended when Gilda turned the corner and stopped seeing her home.
Gallus slaps his forehead as Gilda did the classic blunder and duck into an alleyway with her back against the wall. The reason was her house was indeed being watched. Gallus noted it was also being raided, the door was busted down and the sounds of a search being done were heard over the hustle and bustle of the streets.
“She’s such an amateur,” Faina says from behind Gallus.
Gilda felt like she was being followed. The feathers on the back of her neck fluffed up as she felt eyes on her. She has been feeling them since leaving Grampa Gruff’s. Looking back she saw nothing out of the ordinary.
Some old hen was screaming at a young male who was caught trying to get out of a window. Various poor folk coming from work or just moving about. A few street Urchins scurry among the people, some seeking easy pickpocket targets. Others like the blue fledgling opening a trash can looking for scraps. Everything she expected to see.
Shaking her head, she continues along her way to the deli. Once at the door, she looked around, still nothing in sight.
The deli was simple none of the fancy crap in wealthy locations. There were two rows of meat counters with various meats for display. There was a third counter with various plant material for sandwiches.
She looks up from looking at the hams and sees two blue eyes way to close in a field of gray. “AGH…” She leaps back “WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!” Flashbacks to blue-eyed pink pony flashes in her mind.
“Hi, I’m Gabby! Short for Gabriella, how can I help you. Please let me help you.”
“Ugh, fine.”
A near ear-piercing squeal came from Gabby. “Thank you, thank you. Now, what would you like?”
Gilda tries to get the ringing to stop in her ears, shaking her head. Then it dawns on her… what would Doom want to eat? She could tell that his eyes were that of a predator, but could he eat bread or plants?
She looked to the toppings, would he want the roasted crickets?
“I have the pastrami on rye bread with lettuce and tomatoes. Light on the mayo and mustard on that as well.”
Gilda then looked around might as well get a sub sandwich that was heavy with meats. “And a Special ham with lettuce, tomatoes, onions, mayo, and add some crickets.”
She fought the disgust at how happy and cheerful Gabby seemed to be. Once her sandwiches were done, she hurried out of the building.
Suddenly two fledglings raced past her. “GIVE ME MY STUFF BACK!” the female fledgling yelled as they got into a fight.
Soon she was coming near her home turf. Perhaps she could return and grab a few more things. If they would be sleeping in the workshop, they would need pillows and blankets. he stops in her tracks, there her house was two guards outside and a who knows how many inside. What caught her attention was the figure in blue robes. “WELL! Where is she?” The robed Griffon yelled. A third guard came walking out of the building.
“Sorry Lord Cristoff. There doesn’t seem to be any sign she returned home after her work this morning.”
Gilda rushes to the alleyway and presses her back to the wall. Suddenly two fledglings drop from the rooftop. No not just two fledglings the same two who were fighting.
She takes a breath getting ready to yell at the annoying balls of fluff.
The male hisses “quiet they hear you. If you want to not get caught, follow us.”
She let the air out keeping her voice low “why should I follow you, two dweebs.”
“Because if you don’t you get caught. Now come on or say hello to the city prison, your choice.”
Gilda watched as the two hurried down the alleyway. She glances back seeing two guards take flight. “Fuck.”
She was never a street rat even if she lived in the poor part of the city. Not growing up as an Urchin, she never learned the tricks and hideaways of the sneak.
Turning the corner they came to a dead end. “You brats, you tricked me!”
“Shut up feather brain,” Faina yelled back before she pushes on a stone causing a fake wall to move aside.“Hurry moron, they could have heard that.”
Gilda blinked seeing the hidden passage and got in just before Gallus closed the door. He didn’t wait either. As Gallus closed the door Faina opened a hidden passageway down. “Move it.”
Crouching down into the underground tunnel Faina and Gallus closed the passageway with boards making the trap door unmoveable.
Gallus motions his talion to his beak in the universal keep quiet motion. Then head down into the dark underground.
The two fledglings seemed fine in the dark but Gilda was fighting her fear. Griffons weren’t made to be underground, but the sound of someone trying to open the secret passage door drove her forward. At first, her eyes couldn’t see anything she kept her path forward by having one hand on the wall and another on the low ceiling. Then there was a light, faint barely enough to see but it was there.
Glowing fungus stuck to the tunnel faint blue-green bioluminescence. Gallus went back and shoved a wooden beam. The sound of earth falling collapsing the tunnel was the only sound she hears for a few seconds.
“There we got time now.” Gallus turns “You moron, why you had to return to your house. If they catch you, I don’t get paid."
“What you mean twerp”
“Well duh, Grandpa Gruff wants to know where you got that Moon Silver. Don’t give me that lip it’s your mother’s. If she had that orb, you wouldn't pawn that Equestrian Games medal.”
Gilda facepalmed as it dawned on her she did mess up. Of course Grampa Gruff would realize she didn’t have the orb hidden till now.
“Moon Silver? Oh, I’m so getting half of your pay Gallus!”
“We made a deal, Faina.”
“Huff, that deal didn’t include dumb and grumpy here.”
“You little brat!”
“Oh, I’m sorry who was the feather brain that froze in her tracks then obviously jumped into an alleyway like a moron? Oh right, that’s you. The only reason they didn’t see you was that noble was hogging the guard’s attention.”
“Look, you don’t want to get involved.”
“Too late, now tell us where we are going.”
“Old Decker’s place.”
“Not bad, Old Decker had the best locks in town. How do you get in?”
“That, really you don’t want to know. He, well you find out if you don’t chicken out.”
Gallus narrows his eyes, “No one calls me chicken.”
--------------------- Doom’s POV
Doom’s sensors detected them before they even opened the door. Gilda’s biosignature was already recorded, but the other two were not. The only reason he didn’t move to attack as they were small. Was Gilda a mother? That would explain the children with her.
But if that was the case why didn’t Hans or her say anything.
“Um… Sir, we got a problem. Well two, maybe three?”
“Why are you so submissive feather brain?” The young female asks in a very sarcastic tone. Interestingly enough it fit what he has seen in the cartoon representation of typical Griffon behavior.
“Listen, you little twerp pay respect you don’t want to anger my boss.” Gilda’s tone was much different to the child than to himself.
Doom watched the young male look around into the darkness. So the poor dark vision was true, he could use that. Stepping into the light “Gilda introduces me to the two young ones.”
“I’m Faena, but I’m not afraid of you! Oh, that’s Gallus.”
“Faina I can speak for myself!” Then to Doom “What the heck are you?”
“I am Doom, your future ruler. Now tell me why you are here.”
Faina steps forward “Money. We know Gilda got that Moon Silver from you, so pay up or I scream and get the guard to come here.”
Gilda gasps and rushes forward. “Please… don’t kill them... They are just…”
“Do you take me as a Monster Gilda? I don’t kill randomly.” Doom kneels to one knee. “You are brave, but how do I know you won’t sell me out if I do pay you. Faina?”
Faina blinked her feathers fluffed up a clear sign she never even thought her life was in danger. “Um, I’m not stupid. Everyone knows snitches get stitches. Grandpa Gruff doesn’t like snitches, we starve without him.”
Doom nods “This Grandpa Gruff reliable?”
“Well yeah, he pays us and lets us sleep in his buildings. He sent me to follow Gilda, but she almost got caught by the guards if it wasn’t for us.” Gallus speaks up then.
Doom moves his hand to his belt and removes two aluminum bean size orbs and holds them to the children. “Tell this Grandpa Gruff to meet me tomorrow. He will know when to meet me. Now leave and remember Gilda was right my anger is something you don’t want to mess with.”
The two children take the Moon Silver and hurry out of the building. Doom looks up at Gilda’s face “A ruler is a poor leader if he leads by fear. Remember this Gilda; I killed those ponies not because they angered me, it because it was clear they value a plant more than the life of a fellow sapient being.”
Standing up “Now let us eat; I’m hungry.”
------------- Gilda’s POV
How many times was Doom going to shake up her reality? Thinking over what happened at the fields indeed he didn’t attack till Penny mentioned there was always another griffon.
She went to one of the cleaner counters and laid down the sandwiches. “Um, I didn’t know what you could eat, so I got you a ham sandwich sub.
Doom walks over and opens the paper wrapper seeing the foot long roll of bread with heaps of ham meat, lettuce, as well as tomatoes. “Are those crickets?”
“Yes…” She gulps. “Is it alright? If not you can have my pastrami?”
He took half of the sandwich “Once I was sent into the past, I had to survive on my skills and cunning. Survival taught me … I’m sure I ate worst.”
Gilda watched him then used his left hand and removed his mask. The face underneath was pinkish similar to the color of a domesticated pig. No fur, beak, or even fangs. But… the face was scarred, her appetite vanished as she looked over the twisted flesh. It almost seemed as if his skin had both been burnt and melted. She could see where someone operated on his face to repair function to his mouth. Scars warped his mouth into a permanent sneer. The area above the mouth was a hole she could almost make out a triangle-like shape bone still shown through the flesh. Perhaps one time the face had a snout? No, it was more like what a dog or cat would have a nose. Just the nose was gone just leaving the void for nostrils would have been.
Doom ate in silence and soon Gilda started eating. Part of her mind trying to reject the scarred face, the other intrigued. What could have caused such damage to his face? What kind of being could suffer so much and still be sane?
------------------ Doom’s POV
'OH MY GOD, YOU ARE EATING CRICKETS!’
‘Just shut up I’m trying to eat.’
When was the last time he ate? What was the last thing he ate? These thoughts ran through his mind as he tried to ignore the gaging sounds of Hans in the back of his mind.
The sun had set during the time they ate and as soon as Doom was finished eating he replaced his mask. “Gilda tell me why so many Griffon names start with G?”
“Just culture with the city founder named King Grover families tend to try to inspire the young with a name with the same letter.”
“Those two... fledglings were orphans?”
Gilda sighs and looks down reorienting her thoughts. “The Gallus most likely was, Faina would have been abandoned after hatching. Did you notice her wings?”
“They were large enough to brush the ground when she was standing. Is this important?”
“She is a runt. You can tell by her wings she would be the older of the two of those fledglings, but because her body is growing wrong she looks smaller. It's easy to tell who a runt is when hatched, even fresh from an egg the proportions are off”. The loud bang of Doom’s fist smashing into the counter was the only sign he showed of any emotional response.
Gilda’s eyes widened seeing that Doom had destroyed the counter with that single hit. “I see. So this Grandpa Gruff takes care of the orphans?”
“Yeah, I guess. I haven’t really paid attention to street urchins before". She rubs the back of her head thinking. “I was alright money wise most of my life till a few years ago. So I never noticed. I only started pawning stuff to Grampa Gruff, when my father died.”
Doom snorted “typical capitalistic mentality, only notice things if they are profitable or entertaining". Then Doom looked up “Get into hiding, someone coming.” He heads over to the door and grips it.
Gilda by now learned to listen to Doom, so she ducked into what used to be an office. She heard someone grunt as they tried to open the door that was being held closed by Doom. A muffled voice from outside spoke up “Door seems bared fly up and look inside.”
“Yes sir.” Doom grabbed a nearby sheet metal the countertop he smashed and held it up blocking his appearance from the above window. Gilda moved back a bit more into the office as she saw a shadow appear in the moonlight.
“There was some debris blocking the door. Old Decker must have jammed the door up.”
“Okay Harold let get going”
It was a few minutes later when Doom moved the metal and let go of the door. “It's safe to come out now Gilda they left.”
“How did you know they were there?”
“This armor has advanced sensor systems. I shall return later". Doom lifts a bar of steel. “Use this to jam the door. When I return, I will knock three times, then one time.”
“Where are you going?”
“This is the best time to retrieve the Idol. With griffons having poor night vision, I should easily retrieve it.”
“Most griffons… the Owlblood griffons are nocturnal. They can see fine.”
A huff was heard, “I see, the best time is still now…”
The ground started shaking “Earthquake?”
“Just the nightly tremors. It happens every night when the equestrians move the moon, we get another during the day when they move the sun.”
The tremor ended. "This happens twice a day"?
“Yeah never bad, well, there was the story a thousand years ago there was a bad one that created the abyss.”
“I see, get rest, Gilda. I shall be back soon.”
With that Doom went into the night. Gilda hurried to the door and jammed it with the metal bar then went to the office where she curled up on the old couch.
----------------------- Doom’s POV
‘You lost your temper back there Victor.’
‘I was willing to go into hell and fight demons including Mephisto to save my mother’s soul. I did that because I loved her that much. I even earned her contempt when her soul saw what kind of man I became. To think a mother would abandon her child just because of a deformity… yes, I got angry.’
‘I can’t remember my mother… I can remember my father'. Doom noted a wave of anger and hate coming from the corner of his mind where Hans dwell.
‘So you understand my anger.’
‘No… I hate him. Hated him, he died of a heart attack. The happiest moment of my life up to that time.’
Victor didn’t reply to that as he moved through the alleyways of the lower root district. Gallus would be rolling his eyes at how much Doom stuck out. He was not the type of being that snuck in shadows, this was, however, a special case. Having turned up the suit sensors to the max gave him the only advantage he had.
The night was bright with the full moon overhead casting deep shadows in the dilapidated warehouses of the lower root district. Moving from shadow to shadow doom made his way through the maze of buildings. Even with his scanners at max, he came across other beings in the alleys. Most were homeless Griffons bundled up together against the harsh winds. A hen was curled up with a hatchling held close to her. Her wings protected the young from the constant winds. Her eyes focus on Doom and for a moment fear then determination. She hissed and Victor nodded. This was a mother who would fight to the death for her child. As he passed the hen, he lightly tossed a bead of Aluminum to her. When she looked down at the bead then back he turned the corner and left.
‘You can’t keep handing out aluminum. The market is going to go nuts if you keep that up.’
‘Silence you buffoon a few bits of Aluminium will not disrupt the market. More the economy here already destabilized. I’m already planning to introduce electrolysis to manufacture aluminium. With this constant wind, we could produce wind turbines for electricity. It seems the major manufacturing here was steel manufacturing. There was enough carbonate bauxite mixed into those iron ore samples to provide a good source of the base material.’
‘I wonder why this place has this wind. The only place they hinted at wind here was the Abyss.’
‘You missed it, look at the map of Equestria. The one that showed the whole continent including the Hippogryphs and Griffonstone.’
‘What… you only saw that a few seconds and you memorized it?’
‘Pay attention to you, subconscious nervous tic. I’m a genius with an idyllic memory. I remember everything.’
‘Except what you ate last Tuesday.’
‘Don’t make me give myself a frontal lobotomy. Did you see the map with the Dragon lands’?
‘Oh it south of Griffonstone across that bay? Or is that a natural channel?’
‘It appears to be a channel between landmasses, there are clearly more lands beyond those mountains never explored in the show. Now back to the subject at hand, those dragon lands seem to be a constant state of eruption. Perhaps a supervolcano that hasn’t settled down fully, this produces a high-pressure zone. The winds we are having here is air rushing into that high-pressure spot.’
‘That has to be a thousand miles at least?’
‘Why did I have to be stuck with a bad personality of an American? Think you, undereducated simpleton. The maps you see are a hand-drawn interpretation of a cartoon. We can’t take the image you have in your memories as sound. We won’t know how many kilometers that gap really is till we are there. That stated there is another reason, we have a mountain range to the east. The wind coming down from the north hits those mountains and is channeled down to Griffonstone. How much the supervolcano caldera provides to the wind I can’t tell till I properly study it.’
‘In other words, you don’t know.’
‘I have a working hypothesis it’s vastly different than not knowing, you undergraduate hamburger flipper.’
‘I was not a hamburger flipper; I had a respectable job.’
‘What pray tell what would you have done? Oh, wait, you are just a failed mental imprint that can’t even remember his mother.’
‘I was… a custodian and I am not a mental imprint, who would make up the life of a janitor? Unlike you, I know what a shower feels like. That fact shows you are of the imprinted mind.’
‘Nonsense, my face is still the same under my mask. I saw the horror in Gilda’s eyes. Clearly, you are the…’
“Hey, you stop there!”
‘See what you have done you moronic second rate schizophrenia auditory hallucination. I lost focus and got spotted.’
“SHIT the day guard was telling the truth. A metal monster! Trevor, call for backup!”
Victor lifted his hands and activating one of his non-lethal weapons the Nerve Impulse Scrambler caused both Owl looking Griffons to collapse.
‘Are they dead?’
‘Of course not you fool. Once more you impress me at how you miss something obvious. The Nerve Impulse Scrambler simply forced their nerves to shut down, keeping life functions still operating. Or using simple words I knocked them out. They’ll wake up in an hour with a headache.’
Victor pulled the two guards into the alley to hide them before heading to the abyss. Standing at the edge he looked down into the void.
'I don’t see it anywhere.’
‘Sure, the idol was easily seen from the edge. I'm sure it would still be here. Of course it farther down and out of sight. I will have to go down there. The Abyss is acting as a wind tunnel, but my forcefield would be able to handle it.'
“There! It’s at the Abysmal Abyss"! Victor looked over and saw another pair of Griffons. Then he leaped into the abyss.
“Did it just kill itself?”
“It must have been crazy. At least now we don’t have to fight it; I heard it ripped a pony apart with its bare hands.”
Just below the cliff, Victor von Doom floated in the air with the anti-gravity disks effortlessly kept him in the air. His forcefield protected him from the now extreme winds of the abyss.
He cast the same light spell he did in Old Decker’s Workshop and moved among the canyon walls. ‘There it is.’
There on a ledge were the skeleton remains of the Cyclops. He released the forefield just long enough to grip the Idol. Then when the field reactivates, he looks at the golden idol. “Interesting.”
‘What is it Doom? Oh, and you said that out loud.’
With a wave of his left hand, rune-like markings appear on the Idol. 'This idol has enchantments similar to the ones in the tree'.
Now with the Idol, he rose up to the edge of the cliff. He took off his cloak and wrapped it around the Idol. It was hard enough to sneak in shiny armor, a shiny gold idol insight was even harder to hide.
On his way to the workshop, his sensors alerted him to guards, and he moved into a shadow. Then he heard a female voice “Guards! I saw it! The metal monster"!
His head turned, and he spotted the mother still holding the child. “Where did it go?” as
He brought up the mental command for the nerve impulse scrambler “He went that way". The hen pointed in the wrong direction but her eye moved to look directly to him and she gave a very slight nod.
Returning the nod, he continued on his way. A rare good deed paid back. Once at the door he knocked with the prearranged code. The sound of metal being moved alerted him that Gilda was opening the door.
“Is that it"? Gilda asks, seeing the cloaked wrapped bundle.
“It is indeed, secure the door then you get to sleep you need as much rest as you can. Tomorrow after the sun tremors we are heading to the castle. You are using the cart to carry it there.”
“Why do I have to use the cart? What are you going to do?”
He turned his head “I will be doing the same thing I've been doing all my life. Removing anything that gets in my way. Be it, guards or civilians who seek a bounty, If they stand in my way I will get them out of my way? Now get some sleep.”
‘See Victor saying things like that why you are listed as a Villain in the Marvel Database. That and well doing that.’
‘Database? Let me see this Marvel Database entry.’
‘Get to sleep Doom we can discuss your vanity later.’
Victor snorts and sets the Idol down in the office so it was out of view from the windows. Seeing Gilda settle down on the old couch he knelt down crossed, legged, and started to meditate.
‘Really? You can rest in that pose in full armor?’
‘Of course, I designed this armor to support my life even in the void of space. Why wouldn’t I be comfortable within it?’
‘You are one strange man Victor. Good night.’
---------------------------- Luna’s POV
It has been months since she returned and still, she hasn’t fully recovered. To purify her of the Nightmare Moon taint her body was stripped of all magic. Now she was relaxing after reading another book about new laws. “So many changes over the years.”
She stands and puts the book away. Her gown flowed down her legs a black dress with silver star patterns. Her hair was returning to the ethereal deep blue of the night sky. “I need a break before I fall asleep, so many tax reforms.”
Night court was still not being held until she caught up on the laws. One thing both sisters agree is that it would be too easy for someone to slip something past her instead of Celestia at this time.
She turns to face east as a mental impression, unlike any she ever felt before entering her awareness. “What in Tartarus?”
“Something bothering you, your majesty?” A unicorn butler asks, stepping into the chamber. A Stallion with silvery hair and a light gray coat. Dressed in the typical butler uniform of black pants, a white shirt with a black bow tie, black vest, and a black jacket.
“I just feel something odd Mr. Goodlife. I shall be entering the dream realm to investigate.”
“Is that wise, your majesty? Your magic still is recovering". The butler nods and steps back.
“The impression I felt… it's something I can’t ignore. Though I’m still recovering, I’m already powerful enough to take a look. If it is a growing nightmare entity, I have to stop it now.”
“I will prepare some calming tea for your return.”
Luna stood up from the chair she was sitting at and moved to the waiting mat on the floor. Dream walking was tiring in ways beyond physical. Her mind and magic would be active as her body sat.
Soon her mind was on the astral plane the impression this time was shadowy ponies walking in a fog. This wouldn’t do because she needed another medium to tell what the problem was. With a shift in thought, the world she saw changed. Rows of doors in an endless hallway manifested. Then another thought brought her to a very unusual door.
A double door one might find on a castle or church. The left side was hard steel with rivets with panels painted a green shade. The right door was a dark hardwood so dark it seemed black with gold and silver artistic inlays mimicking leaves. “Strange…AGhhhhhh” She opens the right door, and the force of mind drew her into the abyss on the other side.
Finding herself standing in a flowing ball gown of deep blue and silvery ruffles. The ruffle pattern mimics clouds on a moonlit sky. Reaching up she feels a mask on her face. At that moment the room she stood in took on more detail as figures started dancing.
The creatures were unlike any she saw before. Bipedal but unlike ponies that were unguligrade standing on hooves, these creatures were plantigrade walking on a defined foot. Or she thinks given the shape of the odd footwear.
Music started playing and her ears turned to home on the voices. The singing came from the dancing figures.
"Masquerade! Paper faces on parade Masquerade! Hide your face, so the world will never find you! Masquerade! Every face a different shade Masquerade!"
Then a voice different from the others directly behind her close enough she heard it even as a whisper.
"Look around—there's another mask behind you!"
Spinning around her heart racing. That was not the voice of dream creation. It was the mind creating the dream impression. The moment her hooves settled again the world shifted again. A large room was before her; she was standing on the edge of a platform. Taking a step back she looked down, at the image of her looking in another direction. A perfect copy of her was below her looking down from another platform, looking up at her looking down.
Steps were twisting and turning in all directions. Her mind followed the path and noted a twist in the steps making it one constant string of steps with only one side. What more on each platform she saw was another her. “What’s going on? Who is doing this"? Her voice repeated in a strange echo as each copy spoke the same words.
“You should not be here Princess.”
Turning again she found herself yet in another room. So far she hasn’t even made four steps and the world kept shifting around her. At first, she thought it was the mind of someone unfocused and random. Then she realized this wasn’t true the mind she was seeing was very in control.
Standing now in a skirt and top one might see a noblemare wearing. Long skirt and top blouse with a jacket. She finally took a step of her own approaching what looked like an art painting. The painting was of a male of the bipedal beings from before.
“I hated him.”
She turns hearing the voice again and saw one of the creatures standing on the other side of the gallery of art. She was sure this figure was male dressed in a suit much like her butler Mr. Goodlife. Unlike Goodlife, the figure’s outfit was all black with a white undershirt and red tie. The was something else the figure's head was the same white as his gloves. What was most creepy was the head had no face. No eyes, nose, mouth, or ears.
Then the figure vanished and the gallery turned dark, screams of a child crying out caught her notice and the male in the painting was standing over a younger male with a belt in his hand. “No Son of mine going to grow up a fag!”
Then the world shifts back to the bright gallery. Any traces of the scene of the beating were gone. “He was wrong, you know. I wasn’t interested in men". She saw the figure standing there now just a few feet away. “The book he found was an art book for anatomy study, nude models. If the moron bothered to keep turning pages he would have seen naked women as well. Then again he never understood that I wanted to be an artist.”
The figure started appearing and disappearing rapidly. The only way she could explain it was someone was causing a candle to flicker. With each appearance, she saw the art on the walls change. In the bright-lit gallery they were art she would be familiar with. Landscapes, still life, even portraits, none was professional quality, but all were still good enough she would have bought them.
When the lights went out, when the figure was gone the images in the paintings were dark and warped. One of a grave with the headstone reading Mother. Another of the same male standing over the body of a female.
The same younger male was slightly older standing there as the other male was struggling his hand on his chest. The name on the painting was ‘Heart Attack.’
“Enjoying my work?” The same voice spoke again just behind her.
Spinning she came face to that featureless face. “Who are you? Let me help you. I can feel the darkness… it is deeper than I ever felt. I can help get rid of this nightmare.”
“Nightmare? Oh no Princess there is no nightmare here. Well, perhaps not in sense you mean, there is darkness here but there no nightmare".
Luna looked at the smooth featureless face. Then she realizes what the figure meant. The darkness was the being behind the mask, stepping back fear gripped her heart.
“Oh please don’t be afraid. I’m not a monster… at least I don’t think I am. I can’t remember who I was, just these paintings, these memories. Like you, I’m a creature of the night, a creature of shadow. Does that make me evil"? The faceless head turned to the side.
Then the figure raises his hand and snaps. All around the gallery the paintings change to images of Nightmare Moon. “We both know the reason you changed your mask once before. The issues that created Nightmare Moon are still there aren’t they?”
Luna looked around and the paintings showed different versions of Nightmare Moon. Some were on four hooves, others were like her two hooved bipeds. Others like the creatures from the ballroom with pinkish skin in black armor, still clearly Nightmare Moon. “No… I swear to never be her again“!
“I haven’t… see I'm finally free. I understand why you welcomed the Nightmare. I’m free of him, free of the dead-end job. You broke the chains on your desires once, mine is finally broken. Then again perhaps next time someone brakes free it wouldn’t be you.”
The paintings of Nightmare moon change to a white mare with fire for the mane and tail. “No… Celestia?”
“Do you think she doesn’t have a dark side? How many little pranks has she pulled when you were young? How many times did she move things just right to watch the dominos fall? How manipulative can she be when she lets her mask slip?”
A voice louder and more powerful than the masked man’s mental voice thundered. “WHO INTRUDES IN MY MIND!”
The world shifts and Luna found herself standing in a throne room. Granite blocks from the walls, the floor tiled with marble, the glass of the windows the finest quality. Under her hooves was a fine threaded carpet of green. The cracked face mask figure standing beside the throne. On the throne was a similar creature in heavy armor with a green cloak and tunic.
Unlike the masked figure, two eyes stared from behind the metal mask. Eyes evolved for fine details and focus, the cold eyes of a predator.
The faceless figured bows “Dr. Victor Von Doom allows me to introduce you to Princess Luna, of Equestria.”
“Ah, the dream walking princess, I see.”
“Princess Luna may I introduce you to my more powerful other, and I’m beginning to think the better half. His Majesty Doctor Victor von Doom, ruler of Latveria and future ruler of Griffonstone.”
“Enough Hans.” Victor stands up and looks down at Luna. “Do not trespass on my mind again girl. The only reason I won’t punish you is that I have a use for you.”
“What is that use” Luna's anger built up in her a sword manifested in her hand.
“Remove your diplomats and any civilians of Equestria from Griffonstone lands. All trade or negotiations are now null and void. Now Begone.”
Luna braced herself as doom lifted his right arm in a dismissive motion, at the same time Hans lifted his left arm mirroring Doom’s motion. The combined blast of mental that sent her flying back through the double doors and out the dreamscape and into darkness as she lost consciousness.
Her eyes flutter open finding herself dazed; it took her a few moments to recognize Celestia sitting on the bed. “What happened?”
Celestia sighed in relief, “You screamed and collapsed about an hour ago. Mr. Goodlife told me you went to investigate some anomaly in the dreamscape. What happened to you, Luna?”
“A… I don’t know. He, it, them? It's confusing, but something happening in Griffonstone. He demanded we remove any civilians and diplomats from Griffon lands, and all trade and agreements are voided.”
“Who is this he, you speak off Luna"?
“Something worse then I imagine. A being strong enough to keep a Nightmare creature under control… a being named Victor von Doom. Sister, they are going to attack Griffonstone, the griffons have no defenses against a monster like that!”
Fear came to Celestia’s face “Blueblood there… I have to warn him. Perhaps there still time to have him, and the other ponies evacuate.”
“What scares me worst, Sister… I don’t know who is the threat. Victor von Doom or the shadowy nightmare creature named Hans.”
Once Luna vanished from the mindscape Victor turned to Hans. “You idiot. Do you think before you speak or is there no filter on that brain of yours.”
“Wait, what? What did I do?”
“You told her I was going to be the future ruler of Griffonstone. Now you alerted the equestrians to my goals and my location. I have no expectation they will alert this Chamberlin and the council of my impending attack.” Doom starts walking his arms behind his back. “Did you notice I waited till I heard some guards spotted seeing me before I jumped into the Abyss. That was to create doubt I was going to attack if at best they would think I jumped to my death.”
Turning he blurs across the room and grips Hans by the neck, his voice a rage-filled scream. “THIS IS NOW NOT POSSIBLE. The Equestrians would most likely warn the Chamberlin. Thanks to your foolishness when I make my way to the castle they will be prepared. Now I don’t have the element of surprise.” Then Doom lets Hans go. “Something is wrong with you.”
Hans gasps rubbing his neck. “I think I’m a little power-mad. Is that a thing in dreams?” Hans straightens up and looks around raising his hand. He and Doom are back in the art gallery in front of the painting of his father beating him.
“I was a failed artist. I even showed my work to someone from Marvel, he said I needed to work on my proportions. So I got an anatomy book. My father found it and saw just pictures of nude men and beat me with a belt.” Hans looked around then motions to the Heart Attack painting/memory. “He had one heart attack by that time. So… I listened to the doctors he didn’t.”
Doom watched the scene play out Hans' father dying then the younger Hans reaching up to the top of a cupboard and taking out a bottle marked Potassium supplement. Then tossed it into the trash. “Potassium is known to cause irregular heart… You poisoned your father?”
“In a roundabout way, you could say that. Potassium itself isn’t a poison, and the bastard did have a love for fried potato wedges. I just nudged the statistics of a second heart attack a bit. If he paid attention to his health he wouldn’t have had the heart attack in the first place.”
Hans moved closer to the painting. “I tried to be an artist again. Paintings, drawings, but… I was always just shy of being good enough. The only thing I was really good at was costumes, making cosplay outfits.” He turns to look at Doom.
Hans laughs “The whole world is a stage and we are just actors playing our parts. Until now my life was a tragedy or at least the parts I can still remember.”
A flash and they were in a kitchen Hans father yelling at a woman with brown hair the type of woman not pretty, and not ugly… normal, next-door neighbor looking. “I think she was my mother.” Then Hans' father backhands her, she falls her head hitting the countertop and slumps to the ground. Blood oozing out of her ears and back of her head.
“From what I have seen of you Victor, do you think he deserved death?”
“I heard you. You asked Princess Luna if she was admiring your work. You didn’t say art, you were talking about him dying.”
“Yes, lies are the fall back of a coward. Truth from a certain point of view, the clever can manipulate the view. I was ready to go to jail to be free of him. No one figured it out.” Hans looked around “Here, in this dreamscape? Mindscape? Whatever it is. I am free to create without the limits of flesh or real skill. It was all from my mind crafted with my thoughts. Here I am a god.”
“No, you are not. I was a god, believe me, it's not all it cracked up to be.”
“You found it beneath you.” The painting changes to panels of a comic, doom saying those very words.
“Hmm, what challenge is there left when one is a god? Quite boring. Remember Hans here, just like in the waking world. I AM DOOM.” With that, the world shatters and the two figures stand on a circular ground floor in a void of darkness deeper than black. “Your power is only a small reflection of mine.”
Hans looked around then to doom and bows. “Yes, my liege, I understand.”
Doom vanishes as he wakes up. In the mindscape, Hans looks around. “Oh well, back to the drawing board.” ------------------------- DOOM’s POV
Doom wakes up still in the cross leg pose. It was a pose one got used to when focusing on complex magic.
Rising up he checked the logs of his suit for any sign they were an intrusion on the workshop. Seeing no record of disturbance he looks to Gilda still asleep on the couch. His eyes look at her from lying there sleeping on her front the wings of her body held close for warmth. Shaking his head he mentally cursed himself for not thinking about ways to keep her warm during the night.
He went into the workshop and picked up one of the iron ore samples he drew aluminum from then putting it in the forge of the workshop he uses a controlled burst of his blaster to heat it up to a glowing red. The warmth of the heated ore soon started to warm up the early morning air. His eyes look to the window noting the faint increase of light.
Then he headed into the office “Gilda get up, It's time for us to move.”
“Fuck off dad, the school closed today…”
“GILDA!”
“SQUAWK!?!” Gilda leaps up her wings and feathers standing up and eyes looking around wildly. Then she sees Doom “What? Oh… doom?” She stands up rubbing her eyes. “It’s so dark… what time is it?”
“It’s pre-dawn I calculate the sun will be rising in about half an hour.”
“Why so early?” She yawns stretching.
Doom watched her form. She didn’t have any breasts; it makes sense the Griffons didn’t have lips and suckling with a beak was physically impossible. This is also aligned with the reference of the young hatching. Still, her form was feminine sleek form some would call tomboyish, or pixie-like, very agile in construction and muscle structure. Doom turns once his sight, his eyes go down her spine to her rear.
Gilda stopped and eyed doom “What? Some of my feathers are out of alignment or something?”
He shook his head “Nothing just thinking to myself.” Turning he heads into the workshop and to the double doors used to bring in large items, like the cart he fixed. “Gilda you will be in charge of the cart. Do not let anything happen to the Idol.”
“What would you be doing?”
“From what I suspect I will be fighting the entire guard force of this city, plus any civilians seeking bounty, and perhaps even a few Equestrians.” He punches the area where the lock was located on the outside smashing the heavy doors apart. Then throwing them fully open.
“Right now will be the best time. The Owlblood would be tired from working all night, the day guards would be groggy from waking up. Try to stay two carts length away from me, for your own safety”.
He heard Gilda speak softly to herself. “They aren’t the only ones groggy…”
‘Have fun storming the castle’. Hans’s voice echoed in his mind.
‘Don’t distract me. This is already harder thanks to your mistake’.
------------------- Gilda’s POV
The sun wasn’t even up and they were moving. She could barely see in the pre-morning. Sure she wasn’t blind just overly dark. Much worse, no breakfast, tired, and well she was cold but the warmth from a forge was nice. Too bad she had to leave it.
Doom threw open the doors like some grand display. Without the cloak, she could see the faint moonlight reflecting off the metal encasing his head.
She gripped the handles of the cart and started pulling it behind her. They reached the main road when the first group of guards spotted them. Three owlblooded Griffons swooped down each with a spear and showed no hesitation in trying to kill him.
It was sudden at the speed Doom moved. She once thought such armor would make someone slow. Doom however showed no sign of being slow as electricity jumped along the length of his gauntlets. Grabbing a spear he sent an electrical blast at the guard. The other two took the chance and tried to spear him.
Both spears snap once they hit the titanium armor. He grips one guard and throws him into the other. Then fires off his Nerve Impulse Scrambler causing the guards to drop.
“Are.. are they dead?” Gilda asks not sure she wanted to really know.
“No, it would be counter to my goals to lead a trail of bodies as I climb this tree to the castle. Once I rose to save my people. Today I rise to save yours. Now come, our window of opportunity is limited.”
It wasn’t that many in each group as they made their way to the upper root district. That where the first change happened.
“HEY TIN CAN! I BROUGHT THE BACKUP!” Glados yells as fifteen griffons land. Glados herself had two matchlock pistols strapped to her belt and a sword. Gunpowder wasn’t used often for weapons when most magical creatures are too tough for a metal ball to penetrate unless you had a very good aim for the weak spots. So guns were very rare after all Unicorns were born with a built-in long-range weapon, Griffons had natural talons as sharp as knives. Guns were mostly useless, more for the show than real effectiveness in combat. “I see, permit me to salute your courage, A pity you have not the power to match it,” Doom says with an almost bored tone as electrical energy sparked among his fingers.
Glados looked to the guards with her. “Don’t stand there like some crappy nameless thugs in a Daring Doo story! ATTACK!”
The guards rush forward as Glados leaps into the air. Suddenly Gilda was glad Doom told her to stay back, all around Doom lighting seemed to come to life striking the majority of the guards.
Gilda's focus shifted as a shadow caught her attention and she leaped back just in time as Glados’s sword came down slicing her cheek. “Don’t think I didn’t forget about you. You brought this monster to the city!”
In the back of her mind, Doom’s voice echoed ‘You do magic without thinking about it when you fly. I noticed it when the others fled. It’s magic that helps you fly in fact. Without magic, your bodies would be too heavy for your wings.’
Focus and will power, that what Doom said she needed to use magic. She leaped away from the sword of Glados as she raised her hands. Deep within she felt the feeling she uses when flying, this she always thought was some muscle memory, now she trusts Doom. Her body had magic, she had the desire, of course, she didn’t know what she was doing all she thought of was stopping Glados.
“Begging for mercy! I didn’t think you were… AGH” The flash of light was blinding, in the early morning, it was even more effective. Unfortunately, that was all Gilda did a flash of light.
Glados stepped back to rub her eyes as she fought against the spots in her eyes. “Your mad Glados! DOOM GOING TO HELP US!” Gilda leaps at her prey, her talons striking the leather armor Glados had on.
The armor was made to handle such abuse so Gilda's attack was minimal before Glados struck back kicking her in the shin sending Gilda to her knees. “Stupid moron! That thing is going to cause the Prince to cut off the food aid, we starve!”
Then Gilda’s eyes widened not because of what Glados said but because of the figure standing behind the other Griffon. “From what I can see, your people are already starving.”
Glados squeaks as a metal hand grabs the back of her neck. “No one harms those under my protection.” The metal hand starts tightening. “The last thing you will hear is the shattering of your vertebrae one by one.”
Horror returns to Gilda's mind as she watches Doom slowly kill Glados. Once more reminding her that this armored figure was an apex predator. With a toss, the body of Glados went rolling into a building. “You did your first magic spell. Unfocused, it was nothing more than a flash, a magic equivalent of a scream. Still, more than most of my kind could do.” He turns to look at the groaning forms of guards. “We need to continue, the battle has just started.”
Then Doom looks up as the ground starts to rumble with the morning tremors. It was not officially morning the sun was already up but it leaped across the sky as the Equestrian Princess rose the sun in her land.
“GRIFFONS OF GRIFFONSTONE! Hear me, you fight and argue among each other for scraps and a fallen city. Equestrians work your people every day for what? Is it not enough food? No, or there wouldn’t be cubs eating termites! Is it pay? Who has enough coin to not be in debt? I tell you who gets the food and coin! The Lords and Councilmembers in the higher branches! You are a proud species. I heard the story of how you lost your pride when the Idol of Boreas was stolen. This is wrong! If you had no pride you would not complain! If you had no Pride you would be silent. What you lost is your leadership! You lost hope, not pride! You no longer see the point in trying. A real Leader doesn’t just govern, they Inspire! Those who are afraid of you tell you that you don’t have pride! They want you to have no hope. Controlling people with Pride is easy, controlling people with Hope is impossible.”
Around her, Gilda sees Griffons who were hiding before coming out of the buildings.
“Why should we listen to you?” An old griffon with no feathers on his head and one good eye came forward. Grandpa or Grampa Gruff as some call him came forward showing no fear of Doctor Doom. “We heard it before. Some hotshot chamberlain squawking about how he will fix things, only to do nothing or make things worse.”
“I seek no wealth.” He removes more of the aluminum from his belt and tosses to the growing crowd. “I have the knowledge to make more. Enough to make Griffonstone the heart of Moon Silver manufacturing in the world. That will easily bring jobs back to replace the lost Steel jobs. This is not the main reason you should trust me. I will be doing something that only King Grover has done!”
Doom went over to the cart and yanks his cloak off revealing the Idol of Boreas “Bring you the hope for the future! Now Join me! Together we all can turn Griffonstone into a land even the Equestrians envy!”
“Hmm, so this is what you meant when you said I would know when to speak with you.” Grandpa Gruff looks at the large griffon who serves as his guard. “Kronk, take the cart and follow…” Grandpa Gruff looks to Doom. “Who are you again?”
“Raising his Infinity Gauntlet fist into the air. “I am DOCTOR DOOM! If you have me I shall be your ruler!”
Gilda looked around as the chanting voices rose into the air. “DOOM, DOOM, DOOM.”
“Good! Now to kick that Chamberlin out of my new Castle!” Doom spun around and started walking back up the street entering the Merchant district.
Behind him, Gilda followed with Kronk pulling the cart. Behind them, an army of poor and downtrodden griffons was on the march.
Along the zig-zagging trunk road, there wasn’t much fighting. Wasn’t much room on the path, the stores were carved into the trunk.
There at the entrance to the lower branch district were three cannons. Sanding there was the Lord Cristoff from the group that searched Gilda’s house. “Ugh… the peasants are revolting.”
“From my perspective, you are revolting.”
Lord Cristoff looks to his troops. “Kill them all. FIRE THE CANNONS!”
Gasps of horror were heard from behind Gilda before the thunderous roar of the cannons. She expected pain or at least a flash of agony before death. As the gunpowder smoke cleared she saw Doom standing there with his arms outstretched and a glowing field of energy. Three cannonballs floating in the energy field. “My turn.”
It was as if Doom became the embodiment of his name. Rising in the air his cloak billowed around him. Gilda's heart started racing with the awe she felt seeing the display of power. Deep in her bones, she could feel the magical forces Doom was channeling.
“Creatures of fear and terror I summon, THEE!”
On the ground, a pattern of magic form and from the center of the circle rose beings of black shadow. Creatures she instinctively was repulsed by. Creatures of nightmares.
The Nightmare creatures rushed forward. The guards were helpless as blades and talons sliced through the smoke like forms. Soon they were screaming as nightmares attacked the minds of the guards.
Landing Doom started walking again with a snap of his fingers the shadowy nightmare creatures faded into nothingness.
---------------------- Celestia’s POV
Celestia got the letter just after she finished raising the sun.
Dear Auntie
The city of Griffonstone is now under assault from that monster you warned us about. The Griffon’s guards are out in full force. Two hundred members, as well as tree cannons, are between us and this beast. They wish to thank you for the warning.
I’m sure even if this monster gets past the guards, there is still the elite fighter Stoneslasher. A mighty Minotaur gladiator.
Even then you did state this monster wants Equestria to withdraw our diplomats. This shows intelligence and unwillingness to harm our ponies. I and my personal guard are ready to flee if we need to. Today I will be taking my yacht home in either case.
Your nephew Prince Blueblood.
Celestia puts down the letter hoping that whatever is happening in Griffonstone. She looks at the records and trade agreements with the griffon nation. “What legal authority do I have sending backup?” She needed a reason some sign this Doom was a planetary threat instead of a localized monster attack.
The door of her office bursts open and Luna stands shaking there in her nightgown. “CELESTIA! NIGHTMARES!”
There it was. “Nightmare creatures. Luna, you sure?”
Celestia rarely saw fear in her younger sister. She was often the first to draw a weapon and charge into battle. That was something she always admired in her younger sibling. Still seeing the wide eyes and lowered ears of panic on her sister were unnerving. Celestia stood and hugged her sister. “I take care of it. Even if I have to send Twilight and the other bearers.”
“Hundred… there were over a hundred of them.”
Celestia blinks “In that case… I go myself.”
Determination formed on her face as she looked to the guards and one of her assistance. “Raven Inkwell, cancel all my appointments and meetings. Have my armor ready, I'm going personally to Griffonstone.”
------------------------------ Gilda’s POV
Gilda walked beside the cart. She couldn’t count how many guards were now fighting their own inner demons. Lost in nightmares there was no resistance to the followers of Doom as they headed to the higher branches.
At the castle's gate was a ten-foot-tall Minotaur. As well as the council members and to the left were the Equestrians including Blueblood. Unlike the guards, the minotaur had no armor. “Magic, Armor, spells, these mean nothing to StoneSlasher! I am Honor bound to defend those I serve. We heard your speech, fancy words but do you have any honor? You who used nightmares to fight for you?”
“Only fools doubt the honor of Doctor Doom “
“Then Doctor Doom, I Stoneslasher challenge you on your honor to a fight to the death. NO weapons, no armor, no magic.”
Gilda looked to doom. “Doom… That’s the Council enforcer! He never lost a duel”
Doom didn’t speak, he reached up and removed his mask revealing his scarred face. The voice of Blueblood was heard over the gasps. “Disgusting.”
He then handed Gilda the mask. “Hold this for me, Gilda.”
Then the cloak and tunic of his outfit seemed to get drawn into the golden disks on his armor. Of course, he researched the Fantastic Four’s unstable molecule uniforms and formed fabric with even more improved function. Like being able to be stored into ultra-small containers.
Once the fabric was stored the armor itself opened up in a similar method as Tony Stark's armor. Gilda watched as he stepped out of the armor for the first time since she met him.
His body was well-formed muscles defined with no trace of fat. His body was pinkish-tan like his face. There were no claws, no natural armor, no advantages Gilda could see. How such a creature became an alpha predator she couldn’t even imagine.
Just like his face, there were scars. Though there were no melted effects, there were burn scars and jagged scars from healed cuts. Her eyes took him in, every muscle, every scar. Again the question came to her mind. How could someone suffer so much and be sane, looking at the 6’2 figure staring at the 10-foot tall minotaur? She wonders if Doom was sane at all, brilliant yes, but was he insane?
There was no vocal start to the duel, it just seemed both fighters started circling around each other, then some unspoken moment Stoneslasher charged. The force of the punch was strong enough to form bruises on Dooms arms he used to block the blow.
“Impressive, but you're going light on me. Don’t hold back.” Doom spoke up to Stone.
“Hmm, very well. I was going to spare you the disgrace, but if you insist.”
The fight intensified as Doom showed how such a creature could become a predator. Agility was the answer he was moving and dodging as if his body was water. Gilda didn’t know what it was but the reality was Doom was an expert in various martial arts. The Mix martial arts versus an opponent that relied on brute tactics of punching. Years of fighting the likes of the Thing and even the Hulk fine-tuned Doom’s reflexes to the fighting style of his opponent.
On top of that Doom was noticing a flaw in the Minotaur’s body, the legs were hooved digitigrade. Sure the hooves were wide enough to support the mass of his opponent, but such a leg construction with the added weight of hundreds of pounds of muscle. The Minotaur couldn’t kick, he was all fist fighting.
Gilda blinked as Doom’s fight style shifted instead of punches between dodges he started kicking. Those feet wide base provided him the angles and leverage to deliver devastating kicks, with a longer range of his arms. Soon the fight started changing where doom was no longer on the defensive, but on the offensive.
That when something caught her eyes. A glow of gold, Blueblood was charging a magic spell. “DOOM! BEHIND YOU!” -------------------------- Doom’s POV
“DOOM! BEHIND YOU!” Gilda’s voice called out. He couldn’t look Stoneslasher was charging any distraction would be his end.
Instead of dodging Doom rushed to meet the Minotaur grabbing those bull horns and using his martial art training shifted the momentum. Using the charge of his opponent to his advantage doom fell back pulling Stoneslasher over him using the massive bulk as a shield.
Just as Blueblood’s magic spell fired, blasting a burning wound into the minotaur’s back. “STUPID GRIFFON!”
Doom stood up. “This Honorable Duel is over. It seems I have to teach you Equestrians a lesson.”
He didn’t stand still as the other equestrians started to join the fight. Three unicorn guards as well as Blueblood. Two Pegasus, and four earth ponies.
Blueblood horn lit up ready to fire when a tomato smashed into his face. The young griffon Faina laughed. “GOT THAT HORN HEAD!” The distraction was enough for Doom to get back to his armor and once it sealed up he held down his hand.
“Gilda, my mask.” Handing the mask over she looked to the Equestrians with pure hate.
It appeared as the two groups were about to fight to the death when the air itself burst into flames. There standing just where Doom was standing a few seconds ago was a gold armored Celestia.
In full Royal Canterlot Voice. “WHAT IN TARTARUS IS GOING ON HERE!”
Chapter Eight: He who will turn the sun and moon into his minions! End of Act 1
“Princess Celestia, if I knew you were coming I would have brought a cake.” Doom almost missed it. The slight twitch of Celestia’s eyebrow, the truth was if it wasn’t for the advance sensors he would have missed it.
“I take it you are Doctor Victor von Doom. By right of the Sombra Acord, I have arrived to deal with the Nightmare Creature incursion. Where are they?”
“AUNTY, This creature summoned those monsters!”
“It slaughtered our Guards! Please, Princess, Save us!” Screamed the chamberlain.
“I haven’t killed any guards. They are all asleep or recovering from a nightmare, all of those creatures I had banished shortly after.”
“YOU Summoned Nightmare creatures! Do you understand how dangerous they are.”
“Of course I know Celestia. I’m not a foolish girl who kept one as a friend because her big sister ignored her.”
‘Oh Burn!’ Hans' voice spoke up in his mind.
“That thing killed three of my personal. It’s a monster.”
“Oh? You mean these ponies?” Doom opened his hand and a holographic display showed the three ponies in the field.
“What have you done, you armor-plated moron!” The voice of Penny Pincher was broadcasted as they all saw the figures displayed in the glowing light.
“You lamentable dullard use your eyes. That tatzlwurm attacked your employee and I defeated it before any lives were lost.” The sky blue Pegasus spoke up. “I was about to dive-bomb that thing when you blasted it and caused it to come out of its tunnel.”
Penny Pincher spoke then “that resulted in more property damage. I demand restitution those seed pods are worth more than any pathetic griffon. There are plenty of those who would work for food...” Doom closed his fist. “The argument ended in a fight and yes they died. Tell me Celestia is Dreamweed illegal in Equestria? Is the life of a Griffon worth more than a drug”?
His scanners picked it up, he was sure few saw the doubt nor the anger in her face as she looked out to the Dreamweed fields. “I was told some were being grown for scientific research. It true the Dreamweed is useful in medical endeavors, but been found to be addictive.” Celestia turns to look at Blueblood. “Those are more than any research could need. We will speak of this later!”
“So Celestia you trusted the word of your nephew and never sent anyone to double-check. Come to think you have the habit of ignoring family. Tell me how is Sunset Shimmer doing?”
Doom’s sensors picked up the temperature increasing including sparks of flames around Celestia’s hooves.
“DON’T you DARE Say that name!”
“I dare. Go ahead and attack me, but I warn you. To even harm me you would need to generate a blast hot enough to kill most of those behind me.”
‘Um… Doom is it wise to piss off the Sun Goddess? Where is there an escape hatch? I want out of your head before we find out what a microwaved egg feels like.’ Hans’ voice echoed again in his mind.
Blueblood didn’t wait, Doom noticed the energy build-up before the magical blast struck against his armor’s protective shield.
“Ah, that reminds me…” Doom opened his palm again and projected the image of the duel. “I trust the Griffons at my back. You Equestrians already tried to shoot me in the back.” He closed his hand.
Celestia turns almost faster than Doom could record her horn lights and she fires a complicated spell. Blueblood and his posse were encased in golden solid energy similar to a spell used by Starlight Glimmer during one of the trips back in time. Doom makes a mental note to visit that town before she messes up reality in this universe.
A yell from Gilda “They are getting away!” was heard and Doom turned and saw the council member being grabbed by the mob of civilians.
“See Celestia I’m not a conqueror, I’m a liberator. This is not a monster invasion it’s a revolution. Now just like I told your sister. Get your diplomats and civilians out of Griffon territory. After all, there are a bunch of griffons here who might decide to take a little anger aggression out on them.”
Celestia looked to the now pinned down griffon council members and then to Doom. “Very well I see the Sombra accord doesn’t justify my interference in this situation. But if we detect any more Nightmare Creatures…”
“About that… just one more.” Doom lifted the infinity gauntlet. Unlike before he tried to eliminate Hans from his mind. That didn’t work because Hans’s mind was intertwined with his own. It was the equivalent of cutting off his arm. This time was different; he wasn’t trying to destroy something in his mind. He was giving Hans what he wanted a way out. With both Hans and Doom having similar thoughts the Infinity Gems awoke.
The darkness seemed to form at Doom’s feet then rising from the mass of shadow came the faceless white-headed and black butler outfit with white gloves.
Celestia's eyes narrow and Doom noticed the temperature increased again. Enough so he could visually see the distortion in the air.
Hans bows before Celestia. “Greetings Celestia. It’s a pleasure, I’m Hans.”
Celestia rushes forward slicing Hans head off his neck. The body stood as the head fell to the ground and splatter into a black mass. The dark mass oozes back to the main body and reforms another faceless head. “Oh, did I say something wrong?” Hans looks to Doom. “I told you we needed a cake.”
She swings the sword again but this time it hits Doom’s gauntlet. “Attack my follower again and you regret it, Celestia. Hans is no Nightmare Creature.”
“Luna knows what a Nightmare is, DOOM!”
“I fought the king of Nightmares and won. No one attacks those under Doctor Doom’s protection! Perhaps you need a real lesson in what power you face!”
Looking up at the sun he lifted his left arm. “Behold the power of DOCTOR DOOM! Twice now you Equestrians have corrupted the power of the Sun and Moon. A thousand years ago Nightmare Moon caused massive quakes when she created the eclipse, a few months ago she prevented the sun from rising. You failed in your sacred duty!”
“NO!” The gauntlet flashes and the world stops. Doom’s mind expanded and he could see Celestia was in an attack, her sword now glowing with heat and flames as it was coming to his head.
This was no matter to Doom; his perspective was altered by the Infinity Gauntlet. The Time stone gave him an unlimited amount of time to plan his moves. The Mind stone gave him knowledge of all he desired.
He rewound time viewing the quakes that happened when Celestia moved the Sun after Nightmare Moon was defeated. He calculated the quakes were in the 5 or 6 range.
Deep into the planet, he saw the effects of the sun and moon moving rapidly. The magma like the oceans had tides. When the royal sisters move the celestial objects to fast they create a surge. This was the cause of the daily quakes, the crust shifting as the magma reacted to the gravity of the sun and moon.
Farther back he watched farther then Nightmare Moon’s first appearance, he watched the fighting as the three tribes went to war. He watched as the world rewound thousands, tens of thousands, even hundreds of thousands of years.
Nearly two hundred thousand years ago there were no Unicorns, no Earth ponies, No Pegasus. All the ponies were Alicorns. This surprised him some, Celestia and Luna were not the first of Pony evolution, they were the last of a species.
Time stopped again Equis was now in orbit of a normal yellow sun much like Sol. There were 10 other planets in the system bringing the planets of this Equestrian planetary system to 11. He watched as a 12th planet entered the system.
A rogue planet, a Super-Earth classed planet was wrecking its way through the system. He saw massive crystalline structures, natural in configuration across the planet’s crust.
It got close to Equis pulling the planet of the ponies out of orbit as the crystal laced planet passed. Massive quakes raged across both, a bit of crystal was flung from the rogue planet and landed in the center of the landmass that is now Equestria.
The crystal shard became the Lone mountain the Ponies now call Mount Canterhorn. The now drifting Equis planet was moving away from its native sun. Storms, impact winter, and planetary apocalyptic disasters raged across the surface.
One group of Alicorns went to work fighting the wild weather, these were the ancestors of the Pegasus. Even to this day, the descendants controlled the weather even if they no longer know why.
The group that worked the land making sure there was enough food were the ancestors of the Earth Ponies.
It was the ancestors of the Unicorns that caught Doom’s attention. They build a fortress, the very Fortress of Talacon from the Daring Don’t episode. The Rings are part of a massive enchanted set of objects that were meant to control a new Sun and Moon. The Sun that now orbits Equis was artificially made by magic of the lost Alicorns. It worked unlike the Unicorns, or the Royal Sisters the Rings of Destiny kept control all day and night. Where the Royal Sisters only corrected the orbits every morning and night.
Why did they change? Why did the Unicorns stop using the Rings of Destiny to control the Sun and Moon? He watched as the descendants of the Alicorns became greedy they created spells that replicate the Rings of Destiny. Then dismantled the Enchanted device. That was the first sin, greed. They lusted for power and they used the Sun and Moon to get offerings from the Earth Ponies where before they had to farm themselves.
Doom now knows the history of the Sun. He knew the flaw in the magic, he knew the truth.
Time was now returning to normal and Doom guided his will to the Sun. With a thought he dissected the sun viewing every layer and the chemical composition. Then with the Infinity Gauntlet, he started adding more Hydrogen and Helium to the artificial sun.
As the sun started to grow he pushed it back, this would be impossible for lesser beings. Keeping a constant increase in components and moving the sun at the same time. To fast adding the elements he would burn the planet, to fast-moving and he would freeze the world. Doom once was God Doom of the Battle world. Moving planets and repairing the sun was a child's play to the vast intellect of Victor von Doom. Some small part of his mind accepted the fact the Mind stone helped.
During this time he snaps the chains of magic binding both the Sun and Moon. With a thought, the moon was back on a normal orbit around the world like it was 200 thousand years ago.
The now normal size young sun settled in place and Doom nudged the planet into its proper alighted orbit. No longer was the Equestrian system strange. The only oddity was it was a single planet revolving around the sun.
This Doom fixed as well as he reached out to that Super-Earth planet that disrupted the orbit of Equis and pulled it back setting it up as the next planet in the system. A shield for Equis much likes how Jupiter protected asteroids for Earth. Other asteroids and dwarf planets he drew in. The system was small and if someone took notice they would see things were odd. But it wouldn’t be as obvious as a sun orbiting a planet.
Time returned and he looked Celestia in the eyes as her sword met the force field protecting him.
“Two Thousand years ago this planet was nearly destroyed. Your ancestors saved the world by making a fake sun. Later their descendants the Unicorns abused their duty and used the Sun as a means to gain power. YOU Never changed that habit. Never restored the Rings of Destiny to the Fortress of Talacon. The threat that you will use the Sun as a weapon, prevented your nation from being attacked. This is no longer the case. NOW BE GONE!”
Doom saw Celestia’s hair catch fire as she screams and she releases a blast of fire at him. But before that flaming hit him he snapped his fingers. Celestia, the fire, and every other Equestrian in Griffon territory were teleported to Canterlot. He didn’t care what happened when the spell appeared in the city.
Turning around he saw the looks of the Griffons. “Now for the wonders your ancestors left you.” He walked to the cart and lifted the Idol of Boreas.
--------------------- Celestia’s POV
Screams… she heard screams. Her ponies in pain but she was enraged. How dare DOOM steal the sun from her. HER SUN, Her Day!
“SISTER! FOCUS! STOP THIS!”
Luna? She blinks and Luna comes into focus. “What are you doing here?... wait…”
Canterlot, she was in Canterlot. Before she was the remains of a building, the scent of burnt wood, melted stone, and…
“No…”
“Celestia, why did you attack?” A Pegasus Guard landed.
“No no…” She rushed forward and saw the rubble remains of ponies. Three dead charred corpses among the rubble. “DOOM! It was Doom he and Hans they must have spelled me. I was so angry and they teleported me here when I attacked.” Celestia looked around seeing the fear in her ponies' faces. Fear of her.
Luna saw the looks as well. “Now you know how they saw me a thousand years ago.” Luna looks to the guards. “Get a crew on this building now! I WANT IT SEARCHED! No stone unturned to make sure we account for anypony inside. This was the fault of a Monster called Doom in Griffonstone! You all saw it! Celestia appeared in a flash of white light, not her golden aura! Don’t let it tricks deceive you!”
Celestia took up a determined look. “We need to head inside. It's going to take detailed planning to deal with Doom and Hans.”
The two royal sisters headed into the castle. Prince Blueblood and his posse still encased in crystallized magic.
---------------- Gilda’s POV
Gilda had first talon experience in being pinned down by Boulder Dash. So pinning the Chamberlain to the ground was surprisingly easy.
Doom looks over to the held council members but then he looks to the minotaur. A moan then “Ugh…”
Doom knelt. “Stoneslasher how are you feeling?”
“What… what happened we were fighting then... My legs… I can’t feel my legs.”
“The equestrians interfered. Blueblood was aiming at me.”
“Good. That means I didn’t fail. This wasn’t a defeat. Now please kill me, I… won’t suffer life being broken.”
“No you won’t suffer life being broken, but I won’t kill you.” Doom cast a healing spell and the burnt raw wound on Stoneslasher’s back. Soon the flesh started regenerating. “The damage is repairable.”
Once the spell was done Stoneslasher stood. “I was going to kill you, yet you spared me. Even when I begged for death?”
Doom offers the Minotaur a nod “You value honor. That is a rare trait I wish to have at my back.”
The voice of the Chamberlain was heard screaming “KILL HIM STONESLASHER! I HAVE YOUR CONTRACT!”
Cold dark eyes of Stoneslasher look to the Chamberlain. “My contract is to the ruler of Griffonstone. That ruler is now Doctor Doom. Now shut the hell up before I twist your scrawny neck.”
Gilda looks down “Grose he just pissed himself!” Jumping off of the Chamberlain she back stepped not wanting to get urine on herself.
That was when Chamberlain took off flying again only to be struck with Doom’s atomic blast. The heat was intense enough that not even bones remained as the ash fell.
Gilda blinks and looks back to Doctor Doom. “Now what?”
“Now bring the others inside. This time the Idol of Boreas is returned to its proper place.” Doom picked up the Idol and walked to the door.
The strange creature Hans opens the doors of the castle and bows before doom. “Forgive me for not being able to tidy up my ledge.”
Doom stopped and looked at the strange creature. “Hans, you going to take the role of my Butler?”
“Ah, well as I said before. Life's a stage and we all play our parts. I was a janitor in my former life and only fitting I take up a role similar. Till I perfect my role in this life please forgive any errors.”
Gilda wonders what was going through that mind of his. Looking around she hurried to move beside Stoneslasher. Instinct or innate knowledge nudged her to make sure she was seen as one of Doom’s inner circle.
“Very well Hans. I doubt there any other butlers I would trust at this time. Even with your new body, our essence is still intertwined. I die so shall you.”
“Yes sir. I have no desire to see you harmed. It's like destroying one of my works of art.” Gilda wonders at the strange tone of voice as she follows Doom into the building.
The throne room was round with a pedestal in the center. Around the room were panels covered in art.
“Gilda, Hans, Stone. Tell me what is wrong with this room?”
Gilda looked around. “Um… it's the same it always has been. Thought I only have seen it twice.”
A laugh “A throne room normally brings everyone’s eyes to the throne. It is customary to have the throne up high. Those steps to the throne for the Griffons are too high. A few steps perhaps, or even one level up. Your throne is far too high; it is not the center of the view. The pedestal is.”
“That’s where prisoners stand when on trial,” Stoneslasher states as he looks up to the throne. Even though he worked for the Griffons for three years he didn’t give such placement much attention. He wasn’t a fool he wasn’t paid to think.
Hans chuckles as he catches on. “That’s the point. The throne isn’t the focus of the room. The pedestal is, or more precisely what should be on that pedestal.”
Gilda looks over “What do you mean?”
“The secret Gilda. Something I’m even impressed by. The Idol isn’t some treasure of gold and gems.” Doom places the Idol on the pedestal and it lights up. “The Idol is the heart of Griffonstone. IT IS THE GRIFFON STONE!”
The center Redstone started glowing and soon a blast of magic swept over them all. Dead gray wood started changing gaining a warm tan shade as bark long dead was rejuvenated.
Outside the crowd gasped as the magic swept over them. Fresh leaves grew in seconds as the long-dead tree came alive once again. The knots Doom noticed burst with magic as the tree absorbed the long cluttered holes. Waste holes once used to dump the biological waste of the Griffons, jammed shut when the tree died. Now they were working again, absorbing the nutrients of the fertilizer that been sitting there for hundreds of years.
Water fountains long-empty started filling as the tree drew water up into its trunk. The fountains tap into the trunk to provide drinking water.
“Take note, Gilda. The true pride of the Griffons, your history!” Doom motioned as the art covering the walls fall to the ground. The panels of the wall started moving displaying carved glowing figures.
Gilda walked to a panel and touched it. Along the side words formed. “I can’t read it…”
“It's in ancient Griffon girl.” Grandpa Gruff walked in hobbling with his walking stick. Following him were the two fledglings, Gallus and Faina. The old Griffon looks up. “Yup it’s our history alright. Don’t need to read it the text match the pictures.”
She looks at the pictures and saw the different Griffon bloods fighting among each other. Eagles, Owls, Ravens, Hawks, and Falcons were killing and raiding the others. She moves to the next panel and repeated her touching the display. It too came to life.
The display was of some kind of underground den. The chicks were kept inside where they were safe from raiding teams of the other griffons. It seemed there was a well for water, a shoot to get rid of waste, a chimney for a fire, and an entrance. No other means of entrance or exit, a fortress. A death trap.
The next panel showed an eclipse and the ground shaking. One hill splitting in half due to the quake. The hill they now live on. She gasps seeing the dens. The exits were caved in, or the entire den caved in. Trapping those within. “No.. the chicks… a whole generation.”
Tears flowed down her cheeks as she watched the near extinction of her kind. The next panel was something she was familiar with. King Grover leading the survivors to the split hill.
Another figure she didn’t recognize lifted his talons in the air and the great tree grew. The City Tree formed right before her eyes. A new home for the refugee Griffons.
The last panel was King Grover crowned with the Idol of Boreas in his talons. A united species, the Griffons were one people.
Grandpa Gruff snorted. “Then it all ended when the Cyclops took the Idol.”
Doctor Doom walked over placing his armored hand on Gilda’s shoulder. “It is rare that I am impressed. You didn’t lose your pride when the Cyclops took the Idol, you lost your History. Old habits of fighting among yourselves resurfaced however this time you didn’t have the clan or tribe unity among your types.”
“We will rebuild again. I swear, nothing is going to let us forget. The Griffons will rise again!” The determination was bright in her eyes. In her hand, a sphere of magical light appeared. “Not only do we have the Idol back, but we also have our magic back!”
“Yes Guilda, I will show you how to wield that magic. From this day forward you are the Apprentice of Doom!”
Outside the castle, cheers were heard. Thousands of griffons celebrating the City Tree returning to life, the return of the Idol of boras, freedom from the corrupted council. Thousands of voices calling out.
“DOOM, DOOM, DOOM.” Their new king, and liberator.
Written on the walls of the grand chamber (throne room).
I am Boreas the last sage of the Griffons. With my last breath, I record these words for you, our descendants.
We were greedy, selfish, and cruel. Our lands have few fields to grow crops. Farmland is a prime territory. What meat we get is fish, goats, and sheep, grazing animals that can survive in the harsh rocky hills.
In those early days we fought over our food supply, so much fighting we perhaps destroyed more food then we ate. Our fields were bathed in blood.
There are five great tribes. The mysterious and cunning Ravens, The swift and savage Falcons, The sharp and territorial Eagles, The high flying Hawks, and the silent stalkers of the night the Owls. All share in our guilt; all our talons are coated in the blood of those we slew.
Because of the fighting, the different griffon types grouped together. Our community homes were our dens. Dug into the great hills, we don’t know who started this practice, nor how it began. We believe it was a group of griffons that hid in a cave, then expanded the cave into the first Den.
The Dens had only three openings. A chimney so smoke from our fires could escape, a waste shute to dump our trash and wastewater. There was only one entrance large enough for a Griffon to enter or exit. The opening was guarded at all times by the strongest of us. Strong doors of wood protected the young from raiders. Those same doors doomed the young.
Our sin… greed. Our punishment, our cubs. The bright sky turned dark as the moon moved unnaturally over the sun. The day became night in an instant, and the ground shook and rolled with its anger.
We all made mistakes, and we all suffered. The Ravens in a rare moment fled into their den perhaps knowing what was happening, they went to get their young. They were not fast enough as the very den collapsed crushing all within. Those that died instantly were the lucky ones.
Owls reacted flew out of their Den thinking they were under attack. The strongest and bravest, none were strong enough to dig open the doorway once the tunnel collapsed. Boulders block the passageway. Those on the outside could hear the screams and cries of those trapped within. Until they couldn’t.
Similar events happened at the other Dens. Not one cub, hatchling, or fledgling escaped. The Eagles even saw some cubs were shoved down the waste shute in an attempt to save them. Grover confessed that he broke down seeing a young talon hand sticking out of the dirt. So close to safety, the shute collapsed on those within.
Grover in his grief, he lead a group of surviving Eagles to the Hawks. He didn’t attack he commanded the others to try to help dig out those trapped within. He took charge and commanded others to the other dens. For the first time in our known history, no one cared to fight.
We were one group fighting against dread with nothing but our faint hope to save some of the young no matter what blood they were. All were Griffons, and all were lost.
Four days, we dug, four days we heard the cries, four days our talons bled with our struggles. Till the crying stopped.
We still tried, but we knew it was too late. One day Grover leads the survivors to the Shattered Hill. Together we shared our food, together we grieved. Together we planned.
I am the last of the sages. My magical learning was plant craft. Growing the food faster then the crops would grow normally. I was not taught magic to affect the ground. All my power, all my spells, and they were useless. I was helpless nothing I tried could move the rocks trapping the others. The protective enchantments to stop casters from blasting into the den with spells stopped my attempts to save the trapped.
Magic was hoarded. Without magic in our bodies, we couldn’t fly, we spell casters were always careful not to waste a single spell. I gave everything I had for the grand project.
All my power all my knowledge, and here at the end of my very life. A great tree grew to provide shelter to our kind. A new city all tied to a magical artifact crafted by the best metalsmiths we had. Every enchantment tied to the Idol, it just needs one last thing.
The enchantments will fade without an offering. So here in the great chamber of the new castle, I give everything I have, using my own life force to make these enchantments permanent.
Griffon magic casters are rare. Only few times in our history were our numbers higher than five to a den. The others died in the great quake. Griffon spell casters need there magic awakened, without me there no one who would know the signs of a caster. I hope one day when there are enough griffons a caster’s magic is reawakened. If you are this caster I’m sorry I would not be there to see you cast your first spell and let the magic dance among your talons.
Griffons do not forget. Greed and hate are easy, we instinctively seek to hunt alone. We are not animals slaves to our instincts. Please with this my dying wishes never forget we are more than savages WE ARE ALL GRIFFONS!
Well, it seems you are our new ruler or something. I’m Odin of Eagleblood, I been yelling at those incompetent council leaders for years. Perhaps you aren’t as hard-headed.
Military Proposal 1A: Reformation Our advantage is our flight. Every member of our species can fly. We naturally form a V pattern when in groups. Our fighting force should be built around this.
Flight team: Flight Teams will be composed of three or five soldiers of the Griffonstone Army. Flight Teams are managed by a corporal.
Squad: Squads will be composed of twelve to fifteen soldiers of the Griffonstone Army. They are managed by Sergeant.
Platoon: Platoons will be composed of twenty-five They are managed by Lieutenants and the Unit Corporal. The Platoon will be the maximum of forces we can manage until more soldiers have come into the fold.
Due to the five sub-species we Griffon have, I have decided to categorize the types of soldiers we have for our Griffon army into three groups: Regular, Elite, and Leaders.
The Regulars are the main group of the army. They are specialized in many roles but they are either weak or strong depending on their roles.
Warrior: The mainline soldiers of the army. They wield a multitude of melee weapons and are the most numerous types of soldiers. Hawks are recommended for this type but other sub-species can join.
Archer: The main ranged soldiers of the army. They wield bows and arrow to fight in long-range and a small knife for close range. Eagles are recommended but other sub-species can join.
Healer: Combat Medic of the army that heals their fellow soldiers but can fight as well. Ravens are recommended but others can join.
Air Fighter: Griffon who can fight in the air. They wield the same types of weapons as Warrior except for heavy weapons. Falcons are recommended but others can join.
Infiltrator: Soldiers who sneak inside enemy bases and either steal important information and/or kill a specific leader. The owl is recommended but others can join.
Elite is the most powerful type of soldier, being so few. A single Elite can be strong as a hundred Regular.
Praetorian Guard: The elite guard of the Leader and important members of Griffonstone. Recruited from members of Regular that showed much promise for the guards. All sub-species can join.
Military Proposal 2: Beast of War
Due to the constant problems, the Talzlwurm has presented to us. I believe we can turn those wurms into beasts of war. Using them to ambush large groups of enemies from the ground.
However, there are a few problems related to this proposal, one of which is a containment unit to cage these wurms until they can be trained. Another is who is qualified to train these wurms until they are ready for combat.
Though several proposals relating to this have shown other animals being used for warfare or construction.
Talzwurms could be bred for meat, and the tough hide could be used in armor if training them proves too difficult.
Odin City Guard Former… Commander. Bloody idiots fired me for being annoying. HA, you showed them If I was in charge the guard would have been better organized and armed!
-------------------- Project Golem There is one flaw in every social system, capitalism, socialism, or any other type. No one wants to do the hard and unpleasant work.
Farming in any society is necessary and back braking labor-intensive. Cultures with no advanced machines are even worse. Sanitation, construction, and all the hard labor mind-numbing thankless tasks that keep a civilization going. Many cultures have dealt with these different ways. Slavery, Feudalism, and even social and communism resorted to just forced labor.
Capitalism has resorted to slavery as seen in the Americas. Once the Americans had their Civil war they used methods of suppression or offering better pay or benefits.
The old U.S.S.R. resorted to suppression of the people, the same as North Korea. Even my own Latveria had its time being suppressed by the tyrant I overthrew.
My solution to this fundamental problem was automation. Even when I took over Latveria my Doombots were more advanced than any robotics system on the planet. Unfortunately here on Equis, I don’t have the tools to manufacturers, my Doombots, even the primitive versions. I don’t even have the tools to make the tools to produce basic robotics.
This planet has something Earth doesn’t have, the oversaturation of magic. Utilizing the Traumic Energy of the planet I can utilize other means of automation.
The oldest stories of golems date to early Judaism. The art of Golem making was lost, that is not an issue to my brilliance.
They would not be as resilient as one of my prized Doombots, but to reorganize and rebuild the Griffon, culture Golems will suffice.
Golems could even help in combat. Unlike the Griffons a mound of magically enhanced clay can take more punishment then organic life. When I see that brute Ben Grimm I must remember to insult him by comparing him to a lump of animated clay. It seems my old foe is inspiring me, perhaps I should design the combat variation on that uncultured Thing.
By using hardened metal as the base frame and reinforcements my improved Golems would be more effective than the animated clay golems that came before.
The only issue is the brain. Golems I know about are primitive more animated puppets then programmable units. One of the main reasons I haven’t resorted to such inefficient types of automatons. This I solved by studying the crystals. They are alive, the large gems the Dragons eat, as well as other such large crystals, seem to be a form of Silicon life. A life that can be trained and taught.
I will be doing more research into the Crystals, it does explain the Crystal tree of Harmony, and perhaps the powers of the Crystal Heart.
Making sure my Crystal controlled Golems don’t rebel will be a challenge.
Act II: Rise of the Griffons. Chapter 9: Coming Storm.
Frustration was coursing through him and he slammed his fist down on the desk, shattering the desktop.
Hans looked over “read something unsettling sire?”
Doom stood up and looked down at the ruined desk. “Frustrating, I have been going over these books for the last week. Those nobles were corrupted. Food and wealth hoarded more than a Dragon’s. What is frustrating me is, I know I have done this before when I took over Latveria, but I can’t remember how.” He heads out of the office “Come Hans I need fresh air and a chance to view my new domain.”
Hans looks to the desk. “No one writes the boring paperwork stuff.”
“What was that Hans?”
“Just thinking to myself, my lord.” Hans then follows Doom out of the office. Only looking to a falcon maid. “Get a new desk for our sire, and clean up. Make sure the papers aren’t lost.”
As Doom continued on a scream was heard and a chair came flying out of a room braking against the wall. Doom reached out and caught one of the chair’s legs as it bounced off the wall
Doom walks into the room seeing Gilda looking away from them. His eyes move along her spine seeing the clear anger stance. “So you lost focus again?”
Gilda’s wings shot up before she folds them down and turns to look at Doom. He was glad for his mask, the grin on his face would be hard to explain.
“Doom… Master… This stupid spell not working.”
“Gilda there is no excuse. It is not a matter of the spell, all a spell is the means of remembering what you want magic to do.” He tosses the leg at her. “Catch.”
Instincts and reflexes of a predator sprung into action and she easily caught the chair leg.
“Now Gilda how did you catch the wood?”
“I reached out and caught it duh.”
Doom shook his head. “Think, your ears heard my words, your eyes saw the chair leg, your brain processed all that information, saw the projected path of the wood. Then commanded your arm to move to catch it. All in the time for the wood to reach you. Do you think a hatchling could do the same?”
Gilda looked down at the wooden leg. “No, its muscles aren’t developed enough nor hand-eye coordination.”
“Exactly, a spell is the same. You have to learn how to move the magic to produce an effect.”
Her anger rises again and she throws the wood at the wall. “All I do is flashes of light!”
“That more than any Griffon sense Boreas could do. I know learning the spells is difficult, partly due to your hands having one less digit then my own. Not only do you have to learn a new way of thinking, but you also have to adapt the magical motions to your body.”
He looks to an unlit candle sitting on a table. Taking his time he moves his fingers showing Gilda each move. Once finished the candlewick lights. “Why do you think we need to use such magical language?”
“Um… we don’t have horns?”
Doom shakes his head. “We train our minds to recognize the motion to create the effect of the spell. Unicorns cheat, their horns are directly manifesting the spells. But they still have to think of the steps of the spell. We channel our magic into our hands. Spellcasting would be slower for us, but our advantage is we can channel more than one spell at a time. If we have the spells properly memorized so we don’t have to concentrate on both spells at once.”
“Sire, if I may make a suggestion?” Hans’s voice spoke out.
Doom and Gilda look at him. “Very well Hans what do you think could be of assistance?”
“Well, I have no knowledge or skill in magic. I do know of some lore, perhaps a focus, a wand, or staff perhaps?”
“No, I will not have my apprentice using a crutch. Once she uses a wand she will be unable to use magic without it. Without relearning another way to cast magic. This is a handicap all you have to do is knock the wand out of her grasp.”
Doom then looked to Gilda. “The truth is once you train your mind to use a word or motion as the trigger, you can cast a spell just like you caught the wood. Just think of the word or motions and learn how memory reacts. You could even use meaningless words like Abracadabra, or Bibbidi Bobbidi Boo.”
Doom’s head turns hearing a snort from the faceless form of Hans. “This is serious Hans. If you can’t control your annoyances I will banish you from this chamber.”
Hans bows “Forgive me, my lord, Gilda. I was just remembering something from my former life.”
“So why can’t I just say the word light or fire to get the spell working.” Gilda puts the candle “If I can just will myself to cast the magic like that?”
“You want to set everything on fire? Using complex motions, or meaningless words make it safe. If you just use something you say or do normally, you could cast a spell without meaning. The thaumic energy in your body will be wasted, and you will be unable to fly if you use too much.”
“It is true this planet has an abundance of thaumic energy I only encountered in other realms like Mephisto’s realm or the realm of Nightmare.” He looks down then moves his hand under her jaw and lifts her beak to look at her eyes.
“Your world is flooded with magic, but it still takes time to collect into your body. I do not wish to see you vulnerable because you waste the magic within you.”
Unseen by both, Hans' head tilts to the side if he had a mouth a small smile would have formed.
Doom then steps back and heads to the doorway. “Come, Gilda, perhaps you need a break. It is time I visit the people I now rule.”
A shiver shot down her spine but she quickly dismissed the sensation. Fear? Doom was a merciless killer. That was a sound reason she should have shivered at his touch, “Yes, a break. Where should we go?” She needed a break, time to understand why she was fighting her wings tightening up. Fear, yeah it was fear why else would her body want to display her wingspan.
“I wish to see where the masses live. The Upper Root District.” The three head out of the castle.
Once out the door, Stoneslasher grunts. “Sir, don’t you need an escort?”
“No, Stoneslasher. If I run into a problem I can’t handle, your duty, is to get as many away as you can.”
“I have the duty to guard the ruler of the city.”
Doom spins around. “Your duty is to guard the Idol. That is the keystone of the entire city. There will be no repeat of the Cyclops. Am I clear, Stoneslasher?”
“Yes sir.” Stoneslasher crosses his arms and snorts. “I might not like it, but I understand.”
“Gilda, tell me about the Upper Root District as we walk the trunk road.”
“Well, it's sectioned into five parts. Primary for housing for each group of griffons. We intermix alright but still tend to group up according to what type we are. Unlike the branch districts where wealth separates you from others, down here we are still segregated into types. There are some oddities of each group.”
“Oddities? What do you mean?” Hans asks as he walks two steps behind Doom and to the right. Gilda was walking to Doom’s left.
“It would be better to see. I don’t know enough to explain it.”
“The first section is where most of Eagleblood live, that’s where my house is located. There is nothing much to say, you show strength or you are shunned. My father was one of the guards, till my mother died of feather flu, then he… he started drinking. One day he left and we found his body a few days later.” Pain filled her voice as they walked among the homes of the Eagleblood griffons.
Doom looked around a plaza with one of the now functional water fountains bubbling with fresh filtered water.
He saw signs of the might equal right pecking order. The strongest child was the leader of the group of cubs playing. Stronger males joke about weaker males. Doom was glad he didn’t see the primate habit of males and females have different roles. From what he could see the culture of the Eagleblood Griffons was family driven. Parents with one or two offspring. Any grouping after that was based on who was stronger and thus should be healthier.
In his calculating mind, he saw how this developed. Even before the great quake there was fighting for survival and resources. Weaker griffons were a drain on food, so the pecking order developed the strongest get to eat and breed first. To prove you should get the food you demonstrate that you are strong, or that someone else was weak.
Doom kept control of his anger seeing one of the runt orphans running away from a group of larger fledglings.
The social restructuring would be needed, schools, and focus on other traits besides strength. The young one Faina demonstrated cunning, perhaps he should aim the future school system to focus on cunning and problem-solving.
As they pass a bar the window shatters as a griffon is thrown out of it. The griffon collapsed at Doom’s feet. Out of the bar’s door came a mostly gray griffon. Doom could detect signs of aging, feathers weren’t as vibrant, more white hairs in the fur. Even with the signs of aging the Griffon was an example of strength. Firm toned muscles, his body was scarred in various spots from fights, his right eye was gone, the socket hidden by an eye patch. “That teaches you to call me a weak old bird!”
Gilda sighs, “Oh no, Odin.”
Hans raised a brow. “The same one that sent Doom those military proposals?”
“I can hear you talking about me.” Odin looks over to the three. “So I finally get to see the big tough ruler huh? Gave those spineless chicken shit council a whacking. I start working as commander tomorrow.”
“I’m not here to hire you,” Doom spoke up his arms behind his back hidden by the cloak. “I give the proposals some thought, but I will not be having you as my lead general.”
“Give it up, you lost the guard command to Stoneslasher for a reason.” Gilda huffs.
Odin turns his head to look at Gilda. “Gilda, you're as pathetic as your father was. Weak.”
Gilda growled and in her hand, a burst of light appeared. “I’m stronger than you, old one!”
“So it is true, you can cast magic. Well, show me what you can do besides make pretty lights.”
Doom’s hand landed on her shoulder stopping her from leaping at the elder griffon. “Don’t waste your magic on him.” Then Doom’s face looks at the former guard commander. “Odin, I will respect your former rank. However, insult my followers again and I shall make an example of you.”
Odin’s eye twitches. “So you're as pathetic as the chamberlain was. Surrounding yourself with spineless followers to boost your ego.”
Hans speaks up “Allow me to demonstrate the error of that statement, your majesty? He reminds me of my former father. I've been sparing with Stoneslasher.”
“Very well Hans, Don’t kill him he could be useful. Just not as my general.”
“Understood my liege.” Hans stepped forward “Your flaw is you see strength as toughness, hard as a rock.”
Odin snorts then lunges slashing with his talons.
Hans leaned away from the strike at a nearly impossible angle for a vertebrae creature.
The rest of the fight follows suit. As many times Odin tried to hit the thin creature called Hans, his target seemed to be just a half-inch out of reach. “Water is fluid, always shifting, always bending. No matter how heavy, or tough stone is...”
Hans stopped moving and Odin’s talon hit cutting long slashes in Hans’ chest. “A pond it's thrown in doesn’t care.” Then Hans backhands Odin, sending him flying a few feet knocking him out. “Given enough time or right conditions, water can shatter stone.”
“That enough Hans. We made our point. None in my inner circle are weak.” Doom then started walking away leaving the knocked out Odin laying in the dirt.
“Yeah, he was a jerk, always made it hard for my father, got worse after my mother died. Well anyway, the next section is the Falconblood section.”
Between the two sections was the massive roots of the great tree. A natural wall isolating the groups. “It seems King Grover expected conflict among the different types of Griffons. Each group has its dedicated housing.” As they passed under the building thick root Doom noted areas where doors were once attached. Not a defense for creatures that could fly, but if a land attack happened they could close the gates. Perhaps as the city expanded into the lower roots, and now the fringes the idea of that type of security was lost.
The Falconblood section was much like the Eagleblood. The main difference was the behavior of the Griffons. The cubs and fledglings were running and chasing each other, but not in an aggressive way like the cubs chased the runt. No these cubs were racing to play, he saw a run trip and fell on his wings, and got helped up by a normal-looking fledgling. Another group of young were playing some kind of game, the only thing he could compare it to fetch. An adult was throwing a ball as hard as they could and the young went running or flying after it and retrieving it.
Speed and agility seemed to be the strategy for the Falconblood. Much like how Hans fought Odin, the falcons went with being so fast they were rarely hit. Rush in snatch the food rush out. This tactic is mirrored in the fetch game he saw.
The biggest change was the sounds. Eagleborn was challenging or yelling at each other, the falcons were daring each other pushing each other to different types of showing off. Another sign of the survival strategy was speed and cleverness. “Gilda, that fledgling Gallus he was a falconblood correct?”
“What? Oh yeah, Gallus the sneak, yeah he’s a falcon, I think the other fledging Faina was an Eagle.”
Hans looks about “There are a lot of interesting color variations. Gallus had that blue tone feathers and fur.”
Doom nods “I have the feeling that the Runt condition and the vast variety of color patterns are from the genetic bottleneck condition after the great quake.”
“Oh, you think so?” A voice came from behind the three and all three turned to see the grayish griffon Gabby. “HI! I saw you three walking, and I thought to myself that she looked familiar. Then I remembered selling sandwiches for you. Did you like the special ham? I baked those crickets myself.”
She then sighed “Thought I lost my job, something about being overly anxious, or annoying, or was it both?”
“Well then come to the castle tomorrow and we can discuss a job post,” Doom commented to Gabby. Hans noted Gilda’s feathers ruffled a bit hearing Doom offer Gabby a job.
“Oh wow really? I’m Gabby! Wait… what would you have me do? One boss wanted me to pose for pictures on a desk. I told him no so he fired me.”
“Nothing like that Gabby, I just would like a fast reliable messenger.”
“Okay then! See you tomorrow.”
Gabby takes off as the three watch her go.
“Why did you have to do that? She’s annoying.” Gilda asks, crossing her arms over her chest.
“Gilda, there are a few things I’m aware of that you do not.” Doom looks up at a bunch of clouds moving overhead. “I’m going to see if she can walk on clouds for example.”
Gilda tilts her head and looks at Doom. “Why?”
“Haven’t you been curious why you could walk on clouds? It is something I believe few Griffons can, or even try.”
“Well I was kind of surprised I could when I went to Flight Camp, but I haven’t given it much thought.”
“In order, to walk on clouds, I believe you need to be able to channel large amounts of magic to your hands and feet. Channeling magic to the hands is vital in our method of casting magic. Using the images on the grand chamber Boreas used gestures to cast magic as well. One of the signs of a caster could be cloud walking and manipulation of clouds.”
“Oh no, you are not taking that flying feather duster as another apprentice!”
Hans looks over so glad he didn’t have a face to show the grinning he would have. “What the matter, Gilda?”
“Don’t be jealous Gilda, one day I will find another Griffon spell caster. By that time you might be the one teaching. Even if Gabby, can cloud walk, given how hyper she seems I doubt she has the mental focus to cast a spell.”
“I’m not jealous! She is just annoying.”
“Come there still three more sections for me to see. Next, are the Ravens correct?”
“Yeah, this way…” Gilda stomps her way to the pathway into the Ravenblood section. Mumbling under her breath “I’m not jealous.”
Raven’s section was a dramatic change. The walls of every home were painted in vibrant colors, as many as possible. Swirling twisting patterns of colors and shapes gave each home and building an abstract look. Every wall had pegged for hanging decorations. Some were flower pots, others feathers with beads, and large numbers were wind chimes.
Just inside the section right in front of their path was a young adult female griffon. Perhaps two years younger then Gilda, this griffon was of the Raven’s and her head was down in a bow.
Dressed in nothing but a loincloth keeping her modesty and beaded necklace with small animal bones among the beads. It was clear she was waiting for the three. “Greetings King Doom, she has been expecting you. Please come, she is waiting in her home.”
Doom raised his brow “Who been expecting me?”
“The Flight Mother of course. Come, she was most insistent.”
Glancing to the other two he nods. “Very well lead us to this Flight Mother.”
As the four walked through the plaza Doom noted there were more runts among the Ravens, there were even fewer color variations. He even spotted some runts that were clearly from other types of griffons. He did see variations among the raven blood colors, some ravens seem to look more like blue jays, or cardinals with bright blue or red coloring. The majority were black with white markings, or like the young woman ahead of them no markings or gray markings.
“I note more Runts among the Raven’s. Is the runt birth disorder more common?”
“It is said that a runt is the reincarnated spirit of one of the lost generation. For this reason, we accept and even cherish those born with the ailment.”
Hans was surprised. “Wait, ravens knew about the lost generation? The great quake?”
“The Flight Mother will explain.” She came to a beaded curtain and parted it. “She waits inside.”
Doom entered the hut-like building and within he could see many bottles glowing with some unknown luminescent chemicals. Bottles of various potions lined shelves along the walls. Feathers and animal bones decoration was about and on the other side of the chamber was an elderly raven headed griffon. Mostly black she had white markings on her beak and forehead. Her eyes were blue and there were gray hairs in her fur.
“You're late. Haggatha died the day before you took over the castle. Oh, how she would love to brag that she was right. Doom indeed came to Griffonstone.” The elderly griffon snorted and motioned before her. “Don’t just stand there come sit. We have much to talk about unfortunate events that have transpired.”
“Our escort mentioned the Lost Generation. So the Raven’s remembered the great quake?” Doom asks as he sits down crossed legged. Behind him Gilda, and Hans followed suit.
“She talks too much, but to answer your question. Yes, we remembered. Even before the Cyclops arrived some lords and nobles thought the history was… unseemly. A painful reminder of shame, not a reminder of why we should not fight among each other. Bla Bla Bla, it was a natural disaster not some supernatural event, our ancestors weren’t being punished.”
She started laying down cards. Doom noted they were much like tarot cards thought the symbols were different. The death card for example was an image of the Shattered hill with an eclipse overhead, clearly representing the quake.
“Our numbers were the lowest after the Great Quake. Some of our best fighters rushed into the den to save the young, only to share their fate.” As she spoke she laid down the cards, each one matched her words.
“So yes we recorded the history in ways the fools didn’t see, our games, our habits. We kept it hidden when the first council after king Guto’s fall. They started slowly, removing some books with the history recorded, then some griffons who knew the history vanished. It was a few decades but, eventually, the majority of the griffons became unaware of the truth of our past. Greed once again took over the other’s hearts.”
“Wait how did the Raven’s remember if the councils were removing any traces of the lost history?”
Doom laughed “Same with how Jews in my world remembered their traditions. They made them into games.”
Hans nods “Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel I made you out of clay.”
“Hans, don’t insult a proud tradition by trying to sing it.”
“Sorry, my sovereign.”
“Please Flight Mother, continue”
“Indeed we hid the truth right under their noses. Card games played in a way to tell the story, Can you lay down the cards, in the right pattern to save the young… by the time a cub grows up, they figure out you can’t. We have hidden other traditions in similar ways, just in case the councils got wind of our little cards.”
She then looked at Gilda “They also destroyed records of magic. If some griffon found out the secret to casting magic, it would be a threat to their control. So, if a young griffon was found that could cast magic, they vanished. Of course, I have no proof of this, just old stories from other flight mothers before me.”
“Knowing magic was possible for griffons, we looked for other ways.” She motioned to the bottles of positions behind her. “We searched, and found from the Zebra alchemy. Of course, we kept this secret as well.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
“Time for us hiding our knowledge is over, you change things, alter destiny, and challenge fate itself. This shifted the pattern of the weave. Chaos walks the world again.”
Hans might not have lungs but if he did he would have sucked in a breath. “You don’t mean…”
“Yes, Discord is free, and he’s early. He will be drawn to those whose fate and destiny’s pattern is spun around. That is no longer the ponies, it's you three. Discord will be coming to Griffonstone.” ----------------------------------------
Canterlot - Celestia’s POV
Celestia slams the newspaper down. On the front page were the words ‘WEATHER OUT OF CONTROL, Cloudsdale Unable to stop wild storms.’
“This is all Doom's fault. With the sun and moon no longer under our control, the climate is changing.”
Luna sighs and puts down her paper. This one was reporting a blizzard hitting Manehatten. “We already have some of our best Unicorns and Pegasus scientists working on the problem sister. Not much more we can do.”
Celestia stood up and headed to the window looking down at the gathered ponies. She noted the signs they were holding. “Just a year ago they were cheering my name. Now they are protesting. Yesterday I saw a filly hide behind her mother when she saw me.”
She turns tears in her eyes. “You know how painful that was…”
Luna rolled her eyes “At least they don’t believe you would eat them if they didn’t give you any tribute. Really why did you let that horrible Nightmare Night tradition continue?”
Celestia sighs and looks out the window again. “Well, it can’t get any worse could it?”
“Oh, my dear Celly… it can get much worse.” A voice calls out causing both princesses' ears to fall back and eyes widen in fear. Slowly they turn and see the figure sitting on a lounge chair feet propped up on a footrest. In his taloned hand, he held a smoking pipe that was releasing multi-colored bubbles that floated down to the ground. His right lion’s paw he held a newspaper with the words ‘Celestia on a rampage, killed three’. The mismatching form of Discord appeared relaxed, even if he was upside down sitting on the ceiling. His tail moved and snapped and in a flash of white, he was standing before the two Royal sisters. “Things can always get worse.”
“DISCORD! SO you are the reason for the out of control weather.”
“Oh no, I would never do something mundane as cause a normal snowstorm in Manehatten. Now chocolate rain perhaps.”
“What are you doing here?” Luna says as she stands taking a fighting pose.
“Nothing, I’m doing nothing. So settle down Luna, we all know you two are helpless without those Elements of Harmony. Or do you want a repeat of me using you as a Waifu pillow?” He snaps and a binder appears labeled Scrip. He started flipping through the pages. “It seems I’m early. You ponies lose the Sun and Moon, the wild weather, and Celestia killing her poor ponies. This all caused enough Chaos for me to break out way before the season final.”
“What are you talking about Discord?” Celesia asks as Luna blushes and looks away crossing her arms.
“The fact is Celestia. Fate is no longer centered on you or your precious ponies. As far as Destiny is concerned you are not important. You aren’t worth my time.” With that, he snaps and vanishes.
Luna looks at Celesia. “What do you think he means Celestia.”
She raises her hand and rubs her temple. “It means he’s going after Victor Von Doom and the Griffons.”
“Should we warn them?”
“I truthfully don’t want to. We know we can defeat Discord with the Elements of Harmony, hopefully, he can remove Victor von Doom and his pet Nightmare Hans.”
Luna looks out the window seeing a cloud bank moving in as the sun sets by itself. “I don’t know what scares me more, Discord winning, or Discord losing.”
“I’m afraid for both outcomes. Sometimes there is no winning, only losing."
Standing up he takes a deep breath. “This changes my plans. We need to hurry back to the castle and my lab.”
The Flight Mother nods “Indeed, I wish we had more but premonitions are… questionable at best.”
“I understand Flight Mother, my own people. The Gypsies have members among us with the gift. Too many use what little they have to swindle others creating lies and fear.” Doom didn’t look to Hans or Gilda as he turned and headed out of the hut-like building.
Hans and Gilda hurried after their sovereign. “Sire? You already had plans for Discord?”
“Indeed Hans, much like Mephisto or the Nightmare I know. Discord seems to be a demon of similar abilities. More consciousness of the realm of chaos, then a being that was born. Though he does show to have extreme levels of reality-warping power, he doesn’t appear to be this universe Lord of Chaos avatar. My only conclusion is we are so far from the known multiverse I know of that the very cosmic balance is vastly different. For in my old universe there was Lord Chaos and his brother Master Order. Ultimately Good and Bad may be alien concepts to him.”
“We can also take comfort in that the Discord of the universes I know of is rarely destructive. There is somewhere he was a true monster-killing mortal with ease. I remember one story where he turned Chancellor Puddinghead’s head into real chocolate pudding. Killing her instantly of course.” Hans spoke up drawing on the knowledge of the many fanfictions he read. “Wish I could remember what story that was…”
“Fanfictions? Multiverse? You two are really from another reality.” Gilda shakes her head sure she figured the truth awhile back. Hearing it confirmed so nonchalantly as if talking about other realities was as normal as talking about flavors of tea. “Is Discord that destructive? We don’t have any stories about him that I know of. He was something that happened to the Ponies.”
Hans shrugs “Mostly he is seen as more mischief then true evil, killing no fun, after all, broken toys are not as enjoyable. At worst he made things so unpleasant people or beings would kill themselves rather than endure it. At best he treats mortal life forms like we might treat insects, watched, studied, tormented, experimented on, or squashed.”
“As I was saying. I do have a few plans, unfortunately, they all require prep time that I did not have. We know from other universes that Discord could be drained of magic, have his magic nullified, or even banished to a state of being a spirit. I was planning on using part of the Changeling throne to nullify his magic, then my technological superiority would have the upper hand. This plan I have to scrap, I haven’t identified a Changeling disguised as a griffon yet.”
“Something that might not even be, given how Changelings feed off of love. Ponies are their primary source, coming all the way to Griffonstone might be too far from the hive to be a bother for slim pickings.”
“Hey, my mother and father loved each other. So much so my father basically gave up living after she died. Once a Griffon finds a mate they never find a second if the first dies. We mate for life, if that not love what is?”
“No offense meant Gilda, just that overall your kind aren’t that loving to each other. Ponies display strong feelings for each other even when they aren’t mates.”
Gilda looks up at the castle as they walk up the trunk road. “How about that gauntlet thing?”
“Using the Gauntlet to move the sun and moon into proper orbital mechanics, I learned the infinity stones aren’t as powerful as I remember. This by far doesn’t mean they aren’t powerful, they just take more focus and knowledge then I recall. Without knowing Discord’s true nature and abilities there are variables I can not account for. I desire to use them as a last resort, but if Discord leaves me no options I will use them as I see fit… Hans, Gilda, Something’s wrong, look!” Doom starts running for the castle.
The following two saw what Doom meant seeing three guards and Stoneslasher running into the castle. It was better to say they should have been running into the castle. All four figures were frozen Stoneslasher’s hooves were off the ground in mid-run.
“What happened to them?” Gilda asks, coming to a stop and waving her hand in front of one of the guards.
“Their time has been slowed down. My armor’s sensors still measure movement but it’s just a small fraction of time.” Doom spoke as he thrust open the doors to the grand chamber. There hovering lazily in the air much like an Asian style dragon was Discord. His eyes were on the Idol of Boreas.
Doom wasn’t going to take a chance. He lifted his left arm, it moved just two inches before there was a snap sound.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you. That is if you want your friends back.” Discord smiles and lands on his mix-matching legs.
Doom turns seeing both Gilda and Hans missing, turning back discord was holding two comic books. One in each hand his bird talon hand held a comic titled ‘The Griffoness’ The other was just a black blank cover with the title ‘The Creeper’. Doom notes the confused look on Discord’s face before he tosses both comics up and vanishes.
“Release them Discord!”
“Oh? They are just insurance. Can’t have you snapping me into dust, or worst, turn me into stone. I assure you they are safe, as safe as a mint conditioned comic in a nerd’s vault.”
He thought of a thousand things to do to Discord. Each one is more aggressive and cruel than the first. “If you harm…”
“I will give you my word. I will make sure they are safe and protected.” Discord pulls out a magnifying glass and walks around Doom as if he was studying a bug. “Very interesting…”
“What do you want Discord? Why are you here?”
Discord blinks “You know I don’t think anyone asked me that. What do I want... Revenge mostly.”
“I nor the Griffons have done anything to you.”
“Oh… you meant what do I want with you?” Discord taps his chin “As for why I’m here that’s curiosity. I want to know what kind of being got Celly’s panties in a bind. You really need to be clear with your questions, but I forgive you given how much of a mess someone has done to you.”
Doom’s eyes widen “What do you mean? You know what has been done to me?”
Discord snaps his tail and a table appears before Doom. Discord was dressed in a leather black jacket and moving five shells around. With a smile Discord speaks “Step right up mister, take a chance. Follow the ball and win a prize… or two.”
Two balls appear one with the name Hans and the other with Gilda written on them. He slips the balls under the shells and spins them faster and faster till his hands and the shells are blurs.
“I refuse to play your games Discord.”
“You already are. Want your friends, you need to find them, I even add a bonus prize. A bit of my history, and a bit of yours, but find the black ball… well, that one could be game over.” Three more balls appear and vanish within the shells.
The shells stop all five sat there on the table. “The odds are in your favor.”
“Games with you Discord, the house always wins.” He picked up a shell and it was empty.
“Oh… you thought I meant these shells?” Discord rises up and motions to the panel displaying the dens of the Griffons. “Your friends and the other things are in those shells. Find the lost Dens, and you might find your friends. Find the wrong one… and face dread.” Then a flash and Discord was gone.
The sound of hooves charging into the grand hall “HONOR!... What..” Stoneslasher stagers looking around for the serpentine entity that dared get past him. “Doom! Where… what happened my majesty? One moment there was this serpentine being flying past us, the next.” Stoneslasher’s eyes narrow. Then he draws his battle-ax. “Tell me how did you win our spar?”
Doom was looking to the panel trying to ignore the strange feelings he was having then turned to look at Stoneslasher. “It was a duel, not a spar, nor did you lose, it was interrupted by Blueblood.”
Stoneslasher put his ax away “I had to be sure it was you and not some trick.” He knelt down and bowed his head. “Twice now my honor has been stained.”
Doom taps his shoulder. “Stoneslasher, there is no dishonor in having a force of nature overrun you. Discord is a being of power itself, a mere mortal unused to dealing with such beings has about as much chance challenging him, as a bug has a chance against the heel of my boot.”
“You are too kind, my ego is still bruised.” Stoneslasher looks around. “Where is Hans and Lady Gilda?”
“Lady Gilda?”
“Aye, she's your apprentice and clearly has an interest in you.”
Only the will to not show weakness prevented him from showing a reaction. That and his mask. “Discord took them as a means to prevent me from destroying him.” Doom looks to the panel. “They are in the old Dens of the Griffons.” Doom’s mind went into high gear “Stoneslasher send for the Ravenblood’s flight mother and Grampa Gruff, have them meet me in the castle’s library. Seems I’m on a treasure hunt.” --------------------------- Gilda’s POV
Gilda staggered, she was in the grand hall one moment and the next was standing on a building. She judges it was about seven stories tall and was one of many such buildings around her. Within moments she gasps seeing the vast metropolis of the huge city. In the distance were skyscrapers rising hundreds of stories up.
Looking down she noticed she wasn’t in her typical outfit. She was in some kind of form-fitting garment of black with gold highlights. For some reason, it had padding on her chest mimicking the chests of female ponies, or minotaurs. She poked her now breasts seeing they were indeed just fake additions to the garments. “What the ****” She blinked as the cuss word she spoke came out as a beep sound.
“Sorry for the censorship there Gilda. See I promised Doom I will keep you protected.”
Gilda turned to see discord sitting in a chair with a funny hat on and a blow horn labeled Director on it. “So this little adventure is rated PG-13.”
“AGHHHHHH!” Gilda leaped and smacked her face on an invisible wall.
“Oh… ouch, do be careful of that fourth wall dear. It’s harder to break than you think.”
Rubbing her beak she displayed the living embodiment of ‘If looks could kill’.
“Now, I could have had you be in suspended animation but where the fun in that. I chose to give you a taste of what Doom remembers. Welcome to the Marvel universe… or a fake mockup of it for my entertainment. In this story you are what is known as a mutant, use your wit and skills to avoid the anti-mutant haters, the sentinels, and perhaps find the X-Men and safety. Stop some minor criminals, or not, your choice. Now for the official intro… Cue the Stan Lee Cameo!” Discord snaps his fingers.
A human-like Doom appeared. Unlike Doom, Gilda noted this man had no massive scars and his face was normal. She takes notice of what a human nose should look like, this only highlighted how scarred Doom really was. This man had on a pair of tinted glasses a mustache under the nose that was white, his hair was thinning with age and white hair was on the side of his head with darker gray on top. He had the wrinkles of age.
“Well, they say that in comics no one really dies. Seems that true even for me.”
“Mr. Lee, if you please. We got readers that want an adventure!”
“You are right. Now let’s see… Ah yes. Greetings True Believers, this is Stan Lee. We’re about to embark on the fantastic adventure of Gilda the Griffoness! She's going to have to...”
Discord snaps Stan Lee back to the realm of the dead. “I already gave the synopsis! ACTION!” With that Discord vanished leaving Gilda on the rooftop.
“Really what the ****” She growls at the censorship. Suddenly the rooftop she was standing on shattered as a giant purple hand rose up out of it.
“MUTANT DETECTED! ASSIGNMENT CAPTURE AND INTERROGATE.” With the hand came the head hard and cold. It was the largest Golem she has ever seen.
Taking off she starts flying as blasts similar to Dooms fill the air after her. “I'M GOING TO GUT YOU DISCORD!”
She flew among the buildings, figuring they would help hide her. “Okay… so where are these X-men?” ----------------- Hans’ POV
‘Looks like a mind without a true body’ Dodge thought, as she used her Omniscope,
“Mihi vero sine corpore veniunt.” Dodge said in runic Script, to bring this shadowy displaced to her.
Hans appeared looking around in a dark black suit white gloves, red tie, and that faceless white head. “What did you do Discord!” The truth of how Hans saw the world was strange even to him. What his vision and sense saw was a large room and nothing beyond it.
“Well, I wish this wasn’t such a common sight for me, yeah being the Lady of Tartarus.” A voice came from behind him.
Appearing looking away from the ‘Lady of Tartarus’ his head turns around 90 degrees to look at the voice. “You aren’t Discord. Well, I hope for your sake this wouldn’t be messy.” He then reaches up and rubs his temple. It should be impossible given his head was on backward and his arm seemed to bend in the wrong way.
“Well this is certainly an interesting meeting Names Star-swirl, but you can call me Dodge.”
“Star-Swirl… hmm, interesting. I go by the name of Hans. Some would call me Slender man, Boogieman, or even perhaps a Japanese Noppera-bo.” He turns all the way around, as in his head stayed stable and his body twisted to face the woman. “Now please explain why I am here. It might be best for you to return me, my master would be most displeased at my being taken.”
“Dang it, I thought you were the displaced I was sensing, either that or you’re a void echo, and if you are a member of the void then I have to kill you, which is something I really didn’t want to do today,” Dodge said rubbing your head as she thought of a way to figure out which one he was.
“tell you what Hans, you answer my questions for me and I will tell you why I brought you here. Otherwise, your death will be instant and my day will be ruined.” Dodge said as she touched a rune and a pot of something appeared on the table in front of her.
“I doubt you could kill me. This body was forged via the Infinity Gauntlet wielded by Doctor Doom. What did you mean by Displaced or Void Echos”? Thoughts about his fractured memories crossed his mind. At the same time, tendrils of blackness slide out of his back forming blades of various types.
Oh, darling, it’s cute you think you can hurt me. Dodge said stifling a laugh “Now to answer your first question I am displaced and what I am and presumably what you are going or What I hope you are,” Dodge answered as she poured a cup of the green-ish black liquid in the pot.
“That still doesn’t answer the question of what is a Displaced. As for harming you, no that wouldn’t be my goal. Distracting you till He shows up, that is possible. Miss Swirl.”
“Please, call me Dodge Miss makes me feel old,” Dodge said after taking a sip from her cup. “Now to answer your question I must ask a question: is that your original Body?” Dodge said.
“Ah, I understand now. So sure of your superiority, did you not hear me? This body was forged by the Infinity Gauntlet. Or using simple words, no it, not my original body.” Hans folds his hands together as his head moves in a way as if he was smiling.
“Any chance were you human at one point?” Dodge asked.
“Humans are such pathetic creatures, trapped in their life of enduring day to day survival. I am glad I am free of that pathetic existence. To answer your question, I suspect yes I once was. There are boring mundane memories of mindless labor or hate-filled days of dread.”
“Don’t discredit humans all right, well sure that your master is one?” Dodge said.
“That really depends on what you would consider human. He broke out of that way of life, or he believes he did. Doctor Doom is not one you call normal.”
“Oh you were an unlucky one indeed; your own body stole, your own consciousness ousted out, And never ever discredit the ability of a human, humans are the most adept beings I’ve ever seen when it comes to the use of magic as you have well seen probably by Victor Von Doom your master,” Dodge said.
“A person or individual can rise above the common drudge. This I do agree with, but many are happy with just enough to get by. Either its culture or ingrained humans have kept their heads down ignoring the abuse. They turned up the T.V. volume when they hear screams of a man beating his wife or child. Yes, a human can be more than a grunt. They can also be lower than slime, or worse indifferent.”
“As for Doom, he’s something more, he’s a masterpiece. Perhaps created from those memories that are now gone from my mind. Oh, I know what I am, I’m the trash left behind, but he’s more than I could ever be. Just like every real father hopes for. If that cost me memories, so be it.”
“This is where you have it all wrong you were not trash, you were not the infection, you are the one who should be in the body, Doom currently possesses. You should be the master not him. He is egotistical and overly confident to the point that he is careless. He's indeed been a great man but it is overshadowed by his ambition, but this is off-topic.
“Pot calling the kettle black, miss Star-Swirl. We will not agree with our views. I remember suffering from human arrogance, indifference, or ignorance. Nor do I care if I am in that body. I’m having my enjoyment with this one just fine. Besides the face under the mask isn’t mine even if I was in that body is not the one I had.” His tendrils wiggle as he fights his desire to lash out. “So what else do you want to ask? I’m sure he will be tracking your spell soon.”
“Oh but that’s the beauty of this you have runes were hidden all over your body I am a master rune Smith. I simply use the ruins that your master would use to summon you, the truth I’m not keeping your here, your master just hasn’t summoned you back yet,” Dodge said.
“The time is ticking if you have more questions, ask them.”
“Just a bit more. Will you tell your master he has an ally with me as long as he fights to help the griffins, that and would you like to be free and have your own body or be an immortal shadow?”
"I already answered the body question. This is more who I am then what I was born with. We do not need help, nor would Doom ask for it. His plans for the Griffons rebuilding are going along fine, even if we were confronting Discord in the Grand Hall. I do believe I’m a hostage, so Doom wouldn’t just snap Discord into stone.”
“Wait, Doom hurt Discord?”
“No, but he was about to. We raced our way to the castle after hearing that Discord was free. Saw the Minotaur guard Stoneslasher running inside, in slow motion. Inside was discord looking at the Idol of Boreas. Then he smiles and looks at us. I remember Doom raising his left arm, but Discord was faster on the snap I guess and I’m here.”
“Well, back to your master with you.”
Just then a hole in reality opened and a lion claw reached out and grabbed Hans' shirt collar and yanks him through. Discord’s head looks into the pocket dimension “Sorry, I can’t have a treasure hunt without one of the prizes.” Then the hole closes.
Once again reality shifted and warped so Hans found himself standing in an alleyway. Nighttime and judging by the trash and rubbish a poor part of the city he was in. He also could tell he was in a modern human city. The newspaper that smacked his face proved it. He lowered the newspaper taking note of the name. The Daily Bugle with a splash page of Spiderman fighting Doctor Octopus in some lab. The article was titled ‘Mask vigilante destroys cancer research lab!’.
Setting down the paper he tilts his head. “If I’m in the Marvel universe… Where should I go? Ah, Discord two can play this game. Doctor Strange, here I come.”Tendrils of shoots up and grip the walls.“I always wanted to do this… SLENDERMAN, SLENDERMAN…” He just had to sing a twisted version of the spiderman theme as he mimics web-slinging through the skyscrapers.
---------------------------- Doom’s POV
The Library was more of a museum for the wealthy to show off their wealth. Luckily there were enough books for him to get an idea of this world history. He slams down the book he was reading. “Just like the Flight Mother said. Records are lacking in any leads to the Dens.”
“I did tell you that.” The old griffon walked in. She had mischief look in her eye much like a grandmother. “That bull of a guard Stoneslasher told me what happened.”
“I need to find the lost Dens. Any clues you have will be most helpful.”
“Sadly that was something we even lost.” She settled down in a chair.
“Any lore or stories you have might help me find a clue.”
“If that's the case I might have what you need.” Grandpa Gruff walks in. “But it will cost ya.”
“How much do you want Gruff.”
“None… I deal with two things, coin, and knowledge. I want to go with you to the dens.”
“It will be dangerous. Discord hinted that there was at least one with unknown danger.”
“I’m old what do I care if I die fast, or slow. I will be able to see the ancestor’s home. If it cost me my life so be it.”
“I wish to see the old dens as well. Unlike this old fart, I can bring some potions that will help in any combat we come across.”
“You need to smell yourself, under all those mothballs you smell worse than a guard’s undergarments.”
“SILENCE!” He slams his fist on the table and stands. “Discord has Gilda and Hans. I don’t have time for your squawking. Gruff, what is this information that can lead me to the Dens?”
“Well, like I said I deal in knowledge, the old dens were being studied by an Owlblood named Grayworth.”
“So, this information isn’t even your own.”
Gruff smiles “My information was of Grayworth.”
“Be careful Grampa Gruff. Sometimes when you make a deal, you might end up with the bad bargain.”
Gruff stood up. “Fiana and Gallus are outside they can take you to Graywoth. I shall be at my shop when you are ready to leave. This moldy crow not the only one with tricks. I’m also bringing Kronk.”
“We will speak about this later Gruff. Flight Mother, we meet again at Grampa Gruff’s shop.”
“As you wish, our majesty.”
Doom had already dismissed them and headed out of the library and to the grand chamber. There he saw the two fledglings. They were looking at the panels.
“What does it say?” Gallus asks looking at the words beside the pictures.
“Don’t know, what makes you think I know how to read?”
“Your smart that’s why. We all know Grandpa Gruff trust you with numbers.”
Doom noted Fiana puffs up a bit with pride. “Well, I know some letters, but this is funny looking. None of the letters I know.” She points to one of the letters. “That looks like Urze, but it not slanted right.”
He makes note that he has to set up a public school system. Most schooling is either driven by trade apprenticeship or private tutors. “That because it’s accent Griffoneese.”
The two fledglings jump and spun around. “Gh.. how is a creature in armor so stealthy!”
“You two were quite focused on the writing and loud.”
“Grandpa Gruff always says that we need to be quiet and alert. Loud and careless fledglings get caught.” Gallus states nodding his head.
“Indeed, he’s correct if you two were up to something I would have caught you.”
Fiana punches Gallus’s shoulder. “It’s your fault, your a sneaker, I’m a watch!”
Doom shakes his head not sure if the fact these two children were being raised as thieves was good or bad. Repairing the social order of Griffonstone at this time will take months if not years. Using carefully-controlled selling of Aluminum; or as the beings of Equis call it Moon Silver, he was able to balance the budget of the nation. That and the government-funded construction provide the much-needed jobs. Those projects will take months to stabilize enough to begin social changes.
“Then you failed the most Fiana.” He could see the visible deflation of the girl’s pride. “As a watch, you should have been even more alert.”
“You won’t tell Grandpa Gruff would you?”
“No, when my plans are fully implemented his way of running things for your street urchins will change. I do not need thieves and watchers, however, those skill sets would be useful for spies and agents. What do you say? When I get my school operational would you two be interested in more learning to be my eyes and ears?”
Gallus rubs the back of his head trying to think things through. Fiana as Doom suspected was already done with the thinking. “How much do I get paid?” Sure enough, she was already in the dealing stage.
Doom crosses his arms and eyes the young capitalistic Eagleblooded Griffon. “You wouldn’t do it for loyalty to your Sovern?”
“Loyalty goes both ways and is earned not handed out because you can do scary shit. Loyalty by fear is not loyalty it’s cowardness. I refuse to be a coward!”
The saying ‘Out of the mouths of babes,’ sprang into his mind as he nodded with a touch of respect to the young griffon.
“Um… like she said what we get?” Gallus spoke up. Doom looks to Gallus and assesses the young male. He wasn’t dumb, just nervous outside of his area of comfort. Most likely prone to doing something to keep things the way he wants rather than risk unwanted changes. Something he would have to work on.
“Your rooms, with beds, here at the castle. Three meals a day, as well as proper training.”
“Pay! How many coins are we talking here?”
“How about one silver coin a month.”
The two Griffons eyes widen. Being orphans and used to surviving off of copper slivers this was big leagues. “YE…” Gallus beak was clamped shut by Fiana. “We will think about this offer and get back to you.”
Indeed the young Fiana was quite a mercenary. Gallus’ true loyalty would be easier to gain, kindness and praise could do it. Fiana mind was more predatory in her way she always looking for options. Getting her loyalty beyond just monetary loyalty will be a challenge. Doom smiles behind his mask it will be a worthy challenge.
“Very well enough business talk. Gruff told me you will lead me to this Owlblood Grayworth?”
Fiana slaps her forehead “AGh... I forgot! Wait… no Gallus forgot to tell me!”
“NO, I didn’t!”
“That right you didn’t remind me. It’s your fault.”
Doom was now wondering if picking on each other as a form of flattery, Gruff, and the Flight Mother seemed to pick on each other as well. Shaking his head he spoke out. “Enough, we got work to do.” He noted that the children were indeed told to take him to Grayworth. That meant Gruff had anticipated him getting the knowledge. He had to wonder what angle the old griffon planning.
“Right! Um.. can you fly? It is faster that way.” Fiana asks trying to think of how a wingless being fly.
“Of course he can fly he did when he cast that magic that summoned the army of nightmares.”
“That’s magic stuff! He walks around when he not casting spells.”
“My armor can fly. Lead the way.”
“See I told you,” Gallus smirks as he races outside, avoiding the swat to the head Fiana tried. Then she ran after him leaving Doom behind.
“Children.” He headed out of the castle and activated the anti-gravity disks on his belt and the thrusters in his boots to follow the two children.
His eyes noted how Fiana flew differently then Gallus. With her smaller body and proportionally larger wings, she had an easier time gliding. He noted that the smaller form would need less magic to keep airborne. Where Gallus' flight pattern was more for speed. He was racing ahead only to have to fall back for Fiana and him to catch up. The truth was Doom could easily reach Mach-1 the anti-gravity reducing the effects of gravity, and his force shield creating a more streamlined form he could push Mach-3. Something in the back of his mind thinks this might be wrong as if he had multiple different calculations to his speed. Perhaps it was different upgrades and setups to his armor.
Doom looks down as the three came to land in the plaza of the Owlblood section in the upper roots. The first thing he notices was the difference between the other sections. Between the buildings were colorful fabric cloths layered in integrate patterns over the streets and alleys providing permanent shade. The fabrics give a colored rainbow effect to the light that does filter through. It was a beautiful display of using shadow and light to make a canopy of colors. One spot where the fabric canopy wasn’t was the plaza. The other difference was it was quiet.
In a much softer voice then she used at the castle Fiana states “We need to be quiet, owls can be very annoying if awoke before sunset.”
Gallus nods confirming Fiana statement. It was clear she was telling Doom not Gallus about the Owls’ sleep habits. The fact these two fledglings were thieves working for Gruff he wondered how many times they were caught, or heard of someone caught making too loud a sound trying to break into an Owl’s home.
As they zig-zag among the buildings to they come to one that was in even more disrepair than the others. Doom didn’t even think such a thing was possible but the evidence was before him. The building was small with one wall plaster wall destroyed and a wooden shack-like room was build as an addition. He couldn’t help compare it to a shack house build in the latest Fallout game.
Fiana walked up to the door and knocked. A few hisses came from other buildings as the sound of the knocking echoed off the walls.
“Keep it down… I’m coming.” A mumbled voice called out as Doom picked up the sounds of someone moving inside. Soon the door open and the face of a Burrowing Owl headed Griffon peaked out. Doom also noted this adult was one of the Runt varieties. Shorter than most griffons he was a whole foot shorter then Gilda. “What do you want? I already paid my mortgage.”
“Grandpa Gruff calling in your debt Grayworth. Let us in or Kronk coming next.” Fiana stated easily. Interesting how a short young girl could inspire such fear in the older Griffon. Then again perhaps it was the threat of Kronk coming next, or whatever debt Gruff had over this Grayworth.
“Oh… um… yes… coming, I mean come in.” The Owlblood Griffon opened his door and backs up. “I… Don’t have the funds for Gruff. I need more time, my research isn’t complete.”
“Relax Grayworth, Gruff calling in a favor. His words, Tell that overgrown feather duster to tell Doctor Doom everything he knows about the Dens. If he forgets anything… well, I might make him remember later.”
“But… the council. They kill me if they find out I know about the…”
Gallus speaks up. “Where have you been? The Council was overthrown a week ago. Heck, the Chamberlain was blasted into dust!.”
Outside the building a loud. “QUIET We trying to sleep!”
“Shut up yourself Gregory!”
“Up yourself, Norman!”
“QUIET ALL OF YOU!”
Fiana wacks Gallus upside the head. “First rule of business in Owlsection?”
“No yelling.”
Doom turns to look at the crouching adult Griffon. Compared to more so-called normal griffons he wasn’t much taller than Gallus was now. Indeed if he figured right Gallus would have a growth spurt soon reaching adult size in a few years.
“Grayworth, it is true I took over the nation I am now your sovereign ruler. Given your interest in the Dens, I’m surprised you haven’t heard that I restored the Idol of Boreas and it revealed the history of the Griffons.
There was a flare of interest in the griffon’s eyes “That so? I have been seeking our history, a bit of research. Seems before Griffonstone we had at least five main habitats our former Dens built underground in hills.”
“Yes, I know all that. What I don’t know, and need to know now. Is where are they?”
The cowardness returns as Grayworth fiddled with his talons. “Sure… hmm.” Then he went rapidly among books and scrolls scattered around the chamber. If there was any order in the place Doom couldn’t decipher any. Books were left open in one area, in others they were stacked up to the ceiling. It possible the ceiling sank some and the only reason it still stood up was the book pillar.
With a wave of his arm, Grayworth cleared a table that had perhaps the clutter of three former meals on it. It seems that this Grayworth was a hoarder of scrolls and books. Valuing knowledge… no not knowing if he did he would have kept it more protected. This Griffon valued research, once he was done following whatever curiosity feed his research he discarded the books or scrolls as he chases a new research subject.
“I got in debt from Gruff getting my Talons on this… A map.”
He unrolled a scroll revealing an old map of the area. “Even this didn’t have the Dens listed, but I noticed oddities.”
“Explain.” Doom looked down at the hand-drawn map. It was a map that should be in a museum where it would be studied safely. He made a mental note to collect Grayworth’s collection. Perhaps allow this Griffon to visit the castle library anytime he wanted would be reasonable compensation.
“If you noticed there are six locations that are in more detail then other areas. Including possible food sources.” Grayworth motions to the south near where the land is broken by the channel from the other landmass south. “Here there records of fishing areas and details of the cliffs.”
Gallus yawns and fiddles with a book. “How can griffons read this? It has no pictures.”
“I can read it,” Fiana says puffing up her chest in pride.
“Oh? Try then.”
Fiana looks at the words only able to understand a third of them. “It’s boring. Do you think he has Daring Do somewhere in here?”
Both Doom and Grayworth ignore the children as they look at the map.
“We see similar things here near the mountains. Details about trees and the deer that could be hunted.”
“Yes I see that, what does it have to do with the Dens?”
“That’s it… why would the griffons know this unless it information gathered from Griffons that lived there.”
Doom’s eyes widen then he hid the flash of surprise and insight. “I see, yes indeed the survivors would still remember hunting and where the crops were, even if the Dens were inaccessible.”
“There more... “ He laid down another paper. “This is from Cliffside. A town right near where the map records fishing locations. It’s our primary port city. Around thirty years ago there was an attempt to expand the city. Then for some unknown reason, the Council at the time shut down the project. Even outlawed anyone going to that location. A week later a massive landslide happened, that was when they said they canceled the project due to the unstable rocks. From what I can find, there no other mention of a landslide in that area, nor were there any beforehand.”
“Only logical conclusion is they found something they didn’t want others finding out.”
“Right where the map records where the best food is located.”
Doom nods, “good work Grayworth. It seems this is valid information. Try to find other locations, I want to find all five of the former Dens.” He turns and heads out. “Gallus, Fiana, stop fooling around. My next stop is Gruff’s shop.”
He stops and looks to Grayworth. “I will be sending castle personal here to retrieve your records. You will continue your research at the castle library. This isn’t negotiable, refuse and you will find being in my debt far worst then Gruff’s”
Doom didn’t think feathers could go pale but Grayworth did a passible reaction to his degree. “Y..ye...yes your majesty.”
The three soon were flying again heading to the Eagleblood section. There they landed at the storefront. Kronk had on a backpack and even some pouches on belts. Doom spotted what could only be a black powder keg.
Yelling inside the store and the two Crowblood Griffons outside informed Doom that the Flight Mother was there as well. “You can’t take that with us! You blow the whole hill up!”
“It what in the hell I’m worried about blowing up. You hear him that Discord guy got something nasty in one of those dens. Well, I got my nasty surprises as well.”
“Grenades are no surprises! Besides they are unstable everyone knows that!”
“I have been making improvements. See the outside shell is segmented making the explosion easier, as well as adding shrapnel to the discharge. It’s a work of art.”
“Work of a mad griffon you mean.”
“More reliable than your bottled hocus pocus!”
“My potions are the result of hundreds of years of study from Zebra shaman! Your stuff just ground rock and lit on fire.”
“Enough!” Doom walks into the shop sure enough Gruff and the Flight Mother were faces to face. Really what is it with these two old griffons.
“Our first location is near the city of Cliffside. We are leaving in an hour from Old Decker’s workshop. If you aren’t there you have to catch up.”
He then left and flew for the castle. There where he needs to get his preparations ready, as well as send staff to Grayworth’s for those old books and scrolls. As well as any other possible valuable knowledge he had hoarded.
-------------------------- Hans POV
Stopping on a building’s edge he looks down. “Let see, if I remember right the Sanctum Santorum was located in Greenwich Village. ****, where am I exactly?” looking around he could see the statue of liberty to the west. “Spiderman… of course I’m in Brooklyn. Spiderman’s operating grounds.”
Looking down he spotted a few shops. “Right, information gathering. Damn wish this was a game I would have some hud map.”
He leaped down to the ground level. The people on the street stop, stare and then started pointing. “Excuse me, can someone tell me how to get to Greenwich Village?”
Nope seems the Populus chose that time to panic and run. After all, a 7-foot tall thin creature that had tentacles out of it’s back just landed on the sidewalk. Even in Marvel’s New York, that’s not a good sign.
That when Hans’ noticed what was in one of the stores. Moving closer he saw a DELL computer. Not a new 2020’s Dell but a 90’s ugly tabletop style complete with 3 ¼ inch floppy disk drive, an Optiplex.
“Those things were for sale during the ’90s… wait.” He looked around and spotted a phone booth. “Not only am I in one of the Marvel Universes, but I’m also in the ’90s?”
“What are you suppose to be a new symbiote?” A voice says from behind and to the right of him. As well as slightly above.
Turning his head he looked up. Typical of Hans his head turned a little too far for a human to be able to and angled just a little wrong to be normal. There on the wall of the building was the red and blue spandex suited Spiderman.
“Ah… now I understand. Judging by the costume… what was this earth called in the database? Earth 92something, Discord sent me into the Animated Series didn’t he?”
“I don’t know who this Discord fellow is but, you are not human” Spiderman fires a web at Hans only for Hans to leap up and dodge it.
“Hold up there webhead. I know typical comic behaver for this is some fight between the main character and the guest happens, then we join together for some adventure or something. I just don’t have time for that crap.”
“You came to my neighborhood and cause trouble, and complain?”
Hans mumbles as he leaps again this time using his tendrils to block the webbing. “Either I have to fight back due to some stupidity or… yup here comes the distraction.”
A large black and red spider-like robot fly overhead. “The Black Widow. I wonder is this the mark one or mark two?”
“It’s back! But I destroyed that thing in acid!”
“Ah, that would be the updated version then. The Black Widow two… AGH!” Lasers shot through his shoulder. Unlike Celestia’s sword, he was still magically taking shape when she struck. Now that his form had stabilized he developed a weakness to heat and cold. The Lasers were strong enough to melt his physical form.
“Yup so a symbiote, weakness to heat!”
“I’m not a Symbiote. I have no host, this is all just me.” Leaping up and away from another blast of laser fire. “Smythe would have improved the design. Its computer brain is still simple though if you provide a distraction I should be able to remove its head.”
“How do you know all…” doges a blast as the giant robotic spider lands. Crushing two cars in the process “That?”
“I was on my way to the Sanctum Sanctorum home of Doctor Strange. I’m a magical being, and from another reality. I know things.”
“Okay, now I believe you aren’t a Symbiote,” Spiderman says as he uses his webbing to sling a tire into the robot’s face.
Hans sprang up using four tendrils like Doctor Octopus’ arms to rise in the air. Then two more came down aiming for the spider’s head as they fell they shift forming a curved ax blade. The robot was designed to fight Spiderman, It was armored against most attacks even bulletproof. Hans was made by Doctor Doom using the Infinity Gauntlet, made to fight against magically enchanted armor. The Spider-Slayer didn’t stand a chance.
As the giant robot crashes to the ground the sounds of police sirens were heard racing to their location.
“So… Spider-man care to lead me along the way? I’m new to New York and your reality after all.” Hans picks up the head of the Black Widow. “So keeping this as a keepsake!”
“Okay, well where is this Sanctum?”
“Oh, that’s 177A Bleecker Street in Greenwich Village.” The two start swinging away as the cops’ cars stop at the scene.
“I need to ask Doctor Strange, who lives in 177B Bleecker Street.” -------------------------
Gilda’s POV
“**** **** ****** *** “A string of curses both in Griffonese, Ponish, as well as a few other languages escaped her beak as she was fired on by three of those giant Golems. “Leave me alone you giant ***” Little did Gilda knew she was flying out of the Bronx and heading north.
She spun around so she was looking up and cast the only spell she knew and a flash of blinding light appeared. It might have distracted an organic foe, but to the calculating AI in the sentinel, it was not even a minor blip. “****”
Spinning around again she noted clouds forming rapidly ahead of her. Perhaps she could use them? She angled her flight fleeing the giant mech not even wondering where the clouds were coming from.
“AGHHHHH” A blast hit her in the back and she started falling only to be caught by a woman with brown hair that has a white stripe in it. “Careful there sugar,” The strange human says with a bit of accent. Gilda noticed then she was flying without wings. Her outfit was yellow and green, her jacket was forest green.
“It’s still coming!”
“That’s alright my friend is handling it.”
A second human woman was flying from the storm. Dark skin and white hair, dressed in a white outfit. As they passed Gilda noticed the woman’s eyes were white. The storm was also now all around them. “LIGHTNING FURY I CALL UPON THEE!” Suddenly the sky lit up with lightning striking the giant golems over and over till it exploded. Out of the clouds, a bright red beam was seen slicing one of the Golems in half.
“See Sugar, Storm has it all under control.”
“Let… me go, I can… fly.”
“Oh no, you don’t I saw that blast. I’m surprised you are even breathin’ ah there our ride.”
An airship, unlike any Gilda, has ever seen came out of the clouds. Black with swooping wings, almost as if it was a predator of the night sky. The side opens up and a large blue hairy creature stood in the doorway. “Bring her in I already prepared the medical bench.”
Her vision was weakening as she fought against passing out. “Need… to find… X-men.”
“Sugar, you already found us, or should we say we found you.”
Once in the X jet, Rogue set her down on the bench with her back up.
“Interesting mutations. Her form is similar to the Gryphons of mythology.” Beast puts on a pair of glasses as he examines the wound. “Low energy blast wound, they were trying to capture her and not terminate.”
He went to work and looks to Gilda. “Forgive me I need to damage your garment a bit further.” He cut the jumpsuit more clearing it of the burns. “Fur growth as well as feathers.”
“Beast treat her, study her physiology after.” Cyclops states from the pilot chair. “We are already home and coming in for a landing.”
The jet settles down landing horizontally into the hidden bunker. Once the door opens the X-men see Charles Xavior entering the chamber. “Well done my X-men. I dread to know what would happen if she got captured.”
“The Sentinels seemed to be even more determined to capture her. I wonder why?” Cyclops says as they exit the plane.
“Before she passed out, I got a glimpse of her mind. She’s not from earth, she’s not even from this universe. What was at the forefront of her mind was more surprising. It was Victor Von Doom, Doctor Doom.”
“Whatever her secrets are, we need to defend her. If the Sentinels find out how to access her reality, I fear they could become more powerful then we can ever imagine.”
The Carriage was a work of art. Designed mostly on the Western Stagecoaches with modern additions. The suspension system was an improvement the riders inside barely felt the road under the wheels. What was the biggest difference was the horses. Two Golems modeled on earth style horses drew the carriage along the road.
Gruff snort “Can we trust those clay constructs?” He looked out and scratched his now bald head looking at the carriage escort. Four huge mounds of magically enchanted clay. Unlike traditional golems, the joints were fine crafted metal, within the clay body was a skeleton of hardening steel. Similar construction methods were part of the Golem horses drawing the carriage.
Doom looked out at the dark gray figures, a part of him wished he found orange clay or had time to color the clay. They were physically modeled off of Benjamin ‘THING’ Grimm the muscles were sculpted from the clay. Doom was even able to mold a life-like replica of the Thing’s face.
In his experiments in utilizing the crystalline life within most of the gem clusters, he found they worked best if exposed to sunlight. This means the DoomGolems had a large crystal embedded in the center of the chest. This was the optimal location giving the enchantments less travel to the joints, however, it also made one easy location of weakness. Each gem was both the heart, brain, and power source of the golem. If broken or disconnected it would stop functioning. So each gem was held in place with magically enchanted steel. The design needs improving, even he has to admit he was limited on time.
“The DoomGolems are working properly. They will also become more efficient as I improve the design.”
“I was more worried they would turn on us.” Gruff snorts and raises a brow. “I can smell the ocean now.”
“I have several safeguards built-in them just in case someone tries to take control of them. Or they become self-aware.” Doom stated.
“I never did understand the idea that the scent of the sea is pleasant. I much prefer woodlands.” Flight Mother replies as she looks out the window as well.
“Are we there yet?” Gallus huffs out the complaint having got bored with traveling long ago.
“We get there when we get there,” Faina says as she reads from a book. Doom had noted that the book was meant to help improve reading skills. It seems the complement that she was smart affected the young fledgling.
“It has been forever!”
Faina “you Falconblood have no patience.”
Kronk who was driving the carriage called out then. “Well… if ya want something to look at we are near the spot where you can see the city.”
Gallus got up and stuck his head out. Soon followed by Doom himself wanting to see this cliffside city.
Sure enough, they turned out of a canyon pass and came to the ocean city. Still about a mile away before homes were built the place was smaller than Griffonstone by half. Its construction reminded him of Rocamadour of France with a mix of Mesa Verde of Colorado in the Americas. Some buildings were in caverns where others built on or carved out of the cliff walls itself. Zig zagging steps and paths snake among the buildings. Many seem to be only accessible by flight.
There was a thriving port where many seagoing ships docked. A quick calculation and Doom could tell the docks were built for many more and larger ships. He had looked into the economical collapse of the nation. It seems it was once again the fault of the Equestrians, but he doubts it was intentional.
East coast of Equestria imported metals from Griffonstone as well as other trade. This changed when the Equestrians finished their train network. When that happened they could easily transport metals from the west coast and from Fillydelphia to other parts of the nation. So importing was no longer necessary.
The unimaginative council had focused their trade on the metal industries and when the major customer of Equestria no longer needed to import metals, Griffonstone’s economy collapsed. Leaving them desperate for more undesirable business to move in, like Dreamweed farming.
Doom made his visual examination of the city. What surprised him was the diversity, it wasn’t just griffons in the city. He spotted a few dragons still in the bipedal stage of their life cycle, old enough to fly, young enough that they can still support themselves on two legs. He made a note to examine one of their members in the future. He also spotted a few ponies walking about of all the major types as well as a few of the rarer bat types.
“Hans…” then he realizes Hans wasn’t there. “Flight Mother, what do you know about the ponies here? As well as those bat-winged ones.”
“Them? Oh, those are bat ponies, or as they prefer Thestral or Nocturnals. The ponies live here, they aren’t equestrians. They are citizens of Griffonstone.”
Faina looks over “is that a problem?”
“Not really. They could be spies, but I don’t have any real state secrets going on in this city.”
“So a good spy, doesn’t have to look a specific way, but needs to be in a good operating area?” Faina asks her eyes looking at Doom in that predatory way.
“No, Faina a spy could be very clever even in a location away from any area of interest. A spy that operates in that method normally has lots of friends, or more like stooges, those who they know and talk too often. Where they ask their friends little bits of information. For example, asking some janitor at a lab if anything is going on. Most of the time it is useless information, but there is a chance that Janitor would remark about hearing some Scientists got a grant to research something.”
“Or another example: a dock worker would notice more shipments heading to Griffonstone then normal. There is a possibility a few of these Ponies are doing just that type of spying.”
Gallus scratches his head “Are you okay with them doing it?”
“A spy you know or expect is a spy you can manipulate, remember that if you are discovered doesn’t mean you are arrested or attacked, you might be fed fake information. I could order items to be transported to Griffonstone, but I just send somewhere else because it is not really important. I could also order items I do need via other locations.” He looks at the two children.
“So how does the other method of spying work?” Gallus asks again.
“There are multiple methods, but for this lesson, we keep it to just two. Another method is insertion. A spy either targets someone in an organization or tries to get into the organization themselves. The risk in this method is higher, you are taking a direct risk of trying to get information directly.”
The carriage came to a stop in front of the Mayor’s manor. “Enough lessons for now. We have arrived.” Doom made a dramatic exit from the Carriage. “Mayor Valmor, your sovereign has arrived.”
There at the manor was a middle-aged Falconblood standing with a female about the same age as well as a young fledgling about the same age as Gallus. With them were a few guards in dressed uniforms and Gabby in her messenger uniform.
Doom headed to the family. “I see things are going well.”
“Yes your majesty, there was little resistance to me taking over city operations. Seems the former mayor, left suddenly soon after news of your victory over the council.”
Doom nodded and followed the mayor into the manor. "As you requested, I sent a professional rock expert to survey the site," Valmor said, opening to door to a side study, "they should be back shortly with, oh," and stopped. Standing beside a neat stack of papers on a hardwood desk was perhaps the blandest pony Doom had seen. She wore a simple, dull, blue pull-over frock over her unassuming grey coat, while her slightly faded violet mane fell to her shoulders in the back while a pair of sparkling turquoise eyes were focused on a map of the region.
“My Majesty may I introduce you to Maud Pie. Expert in rock science.”
Maud spoke in an almost flat voice, “I have yet to earn my Rocktorate. I was here on a school research grant.” Maud looks back at Doom, “Titanium alloy.'' The pony’s voice was still bland.
Doom raised a brow “you identified my armor metal on sight?”
Maud’s head just moves a slight bit in a nod. “Have you finished examining the area of the landslide.”
“That I have.” She motions to a location on the map she was looking at.
“Well, what have you found.”
“Igneous rocks, Granite, 30% quartz, mineralogy content provides a more whitish-gray shade to the stone in this region.”
Doom sighs… “Was the landslide natural?”
“No. The settlements of the granite structure should have been stable. There were locations much higher where explosives were placed to rupture the rock. The fragmentation of the rock split was unnatural.”
Was he imagining the flash of anger in this odd pony’s face? It was so subtle even doing a quick replay he almost missed it.
Doom looks to Valmor “Can she be trusted?”
Valmor looks nervous and loosens his collar. “Well, you see… she is an Equestrian, so… but she is the best in the field of Rockology.”
What was it with the strange terms of this reality? Then again what was really the difference between Geology and Rockology? Thinking of it Rockology could be focused on just the rocks where geology could technically include soil.
“Maud Pie, are you perhaps related to the Bearer of the Element of Laughter, Pinkie Pie?” He already knew from what Hans informed him from the show but like with Gilda he wanted to keep the show’s knowledge secret.
“Yes, she is my sister.”
For a moment he thought about killing her. Then dismissed the idea, earning the unending anger of one of the more fighting mane 6 ponies might be a bad idea. There was also the knowledge this Maud Pie has. Not to mention the episode where she displayed a Maud Sense. Getting the pony geologist, or was it Rockologist, assistance would be the best option. This would in truth even benefit him in later plans.
“Very well, as your leaders Celestia and Luna no doubt know. Discord is free, and he has taken two of my associates. They are hidden in two of the five former dens of the Griffons. We believe a Den was buried under that very landslide. Your teaching in rockology would help us dig open the entrance to the den.”
Maud looks down “There were signs of massive natural geological disruption estimated around a thousand years ago. Yes, I shall assist you.”
Two hours later southeast of Cliffside the group came to the location of the landslide. Similar to Cliffside the area was along the coast unlike Cliffside there was a nice stretch of beach.
Maud pointed to the sand. “Sand is not native to this area, this beach was brought in by the tides.”
Doom has to wonder about this strange pony. All the Pies seem to have some physiological condition. Out of the mane 6, it seems perhaps Rainbow Dash and Applejack were the most normal in human terms. Of course one has to account what is considered normal to a sapient equine mind.
“Somewhere under this landslide is the entrance to the Den. Everyone starts searching.”
Maud starts walking among the rubble tapping the boulders from time to time. The others look among the rubble. Gallus and even Faina looked confused as they just looked. “What are we looking for?”
“Some clue that there is a way in.”
“Found it.” Maud states matter of factly as she looks at a gap between two boulders.
Gallus looks over “How can you be sure?”
“Air movement, there is an opening behind these boulders allowing moving air.”
“We have three options. Explosives provided by Grandpa Gruff, blasting via magic or my technology, or we smash our way through. My armor strong enough to crush diamonds, and I assume being an Earth Pony you can use your magical enhanced strength to help remove the boulders, Miss Pie. What do you suggest?”
Maud looks up the cliffside. “Landslide too unstable, explosions will just cause further collapse. Similar to physical removing the rubble. The most logical means of getting through is using magic to melt the rock face above then make our way through. The only negative to this is we have to wait as the rocks cool. If they are still hot they could still collapse if we move to fast.”
Doom wanted to blast his way through as fast as he could. However, the flat toned pony was correct if he moved too fast he could be encased in stone. Not a problem that he couldn’t get out of, but could all that disruption cause more damage inside? Could he risk the life of Gilds or Hans?
Turning around “Make camp we be spending the night on the beach.” Moving back he looked at the cliffside. “Step back my blasts can get hot.” Raising his fists he starts sending a steady beam over the cliff face heating up and melting the stone slow enough that they don’t move, but long enough the rock starts melting together.
Behind him, a camp was set up. Complete with tents and campfire. He notices it was a mixture of Grandpa Gruff and the Flight Mother preparations. A slight ting of self-anger that he hasn’t thought about staying longer than a few hours. His armor could kept him alive and tended to for days, the others, not so much.
Maud spoke up beside him. “Anything more and you risk causing more damage to the Den and entranceway.”
“I agree” Doom ended the blasts noting that the tough pony was still standing near even with the increased heat of his atomic blasts. “You not harmed by the heat of the blasts?”
“Minor singing, nothing that would leave marks.” Turning she headed to the campfire and sits down removing a small rock from her pocket.
“What’s that?” Gallus asks.
“It’s a rock… his name is Boulder.” She states as she sets the rock down beside her.
“HA… you got a pet rock!” Gallus laughs pointing at the rock.
“Yes. He’s my best friend.”
Faina hearing Maud looks over to the still laughing Gallus. Then shoves him. “Shut up rock for brains. If she has a pet rock who cares.”
Doom looked to the normal-looking rock. Then he magnified it, the rock itself was granite but within the rock was a cluster of crystal microbes living off of the quarts. A colony large enough to form a basic hive mind. Nowhere near large enough for intelligence, but an awareness of a basic animal was a logical possibility. He also noted the microbes were of a different variety than the type that dwells in the Crystal structures. Was it an offshoot species? Or a different variety altogether. “Where did you get Boulder?”
“My family rock farm. He related to Houlder’s Boulder. I named him Boulder after Boulder because he came from Boulder.”
“Holder’s boulder… hmm, I will have to see this Houlder’s Boulder one day.”
The group sat there on the beach as they watch the sunset slowly and the moon rise. Both as they should do unlike the fast pace from when the ponies controlled the orbits.
----------------------
Hans POV
The Brooklyn Bridge spanned across the east river. Spiderman and Hans stopped on a building looking across the expanse. “We are easily exposed as we cross the river. I would think that be a prime spot to be attacked.” Hans stated as he looked around.
“We just destroyed that Black Widow Spider-Slayer, we are in the clear.” Spiderman then started using the suspension cables to swing across the river.
“Really, you should pay attention to plot motivations.” Shaking his head. “90s cartoons…” He leaped off the building and his tendrils extend once again mimicking how Doctor octopus uses his robotic legs.
Sure enough just as he expected the Scorpion Spider-Slayer showed up. The attack came with a blast of laser fire severing one of Hans’s tendril legs. “****, I knew it!”
Both Hans and Spiderman stop on the second support heading to the manhattan side of the river. “Already? What are they doing sending out all they have against us.”
“Look out!” Leaping to the side the Spider-slayer fires again as it circles around. Unlike the Widow the Scorpion was able to target more than one target.
Hans swings down to use the cables as cover. It didn’t work the Spider-Slayer started blasting the cables.
“HANS IT CUTTING THE CABLES! If too many the bridge could collapse.”
“I’m up to ideas! This one’s neck more armored and that tail preventing us from using the distraction method. It must have its own targeting system.”
Hans got an idea he moved to one of the cables and pulled using the structure to increase tension. When the Spider-Slayer fired it weapon it sliced into the cord, then snap Steel cord sprung with devastating force smashing into the Scorpian Slayer.
“What have you done? You risked the bridge collapsing.”
“It was the most effective means of dealing with it, on top of that the bridge still stands. If we continued to fight it could have damaged the bridge even more.”
Spiderman shook his head. “Let get going, I see a Police chopper coming this way.”
Heading into the manhattan island the way was easier with the higher buildings provide better means of web-slinging. Soon the two land in front of the Sanctum Santorum home of Doctor Strange.
“Well, this going to be interesting.” Hans steps forward and knocks on the door. “This is so cool.”
Spiderman looks over and shakes his head. “I just hope he can do as you expect. I have those Spider-Slayers to deal with.”
“Perhaps you can use a bit of magical backup.”
The conversation ends as the door opens revealing a shaved man of Chinese descent. Spotting Hans his body tightens up preparing to fight.
Instead, Hans makes a bow “Please excuse our intrusion, we have business with the Sorcerer Supreme.”
Wong relaxed and then moves back to invite them in. “Wait here. I shall inform the Sorcerer Supreme that he has guests.”
Hans couldn’t help himself as he looked about the hall. “This is so awesome.”
“Look, Hans, you really did risk those people’s lives on the bridge.”
Hans looks back at Spiderman. “Hmm, I understand the whole protect the innocent thing. I help you, but my goal isn’t to protect others. If I have to risk someone’s life I shall. This is not me being evil it’s me being indifferent. I am not human, I’m not sure I’m mortal. Those people lives mean nothing to me. All the more reason for me to leave this reality.”
“Just so you know if you try to harm anyone on purpose…”
“Yes, yes, yes… you being a hero you have a need to protect others.” Shaking his head he looks up seeing.
John de Lancie in the Doctor Strange outfit? “I see Wong was speaking the truth. A strange being from another realm.” A smile, one similar to Q from star trek.
Hans had enough “Discord what game are you playing!”
“CUT!” Strange/Discord yelled and Wong, as well as Spiderman, stop moving. Hans looked back and the wall vanished reviling a television studio. Complete with an audience who was booing him.
Discord still in the form of John Lancie Strange came down the steps. “Really Hans, you have to be such a party pooper. Here I went through all this trouble setting up a fine adventure for you as you wait to be rescued.”
“You put me in the Spiderman the animated series. How the hell do you know about this show?”
“I’m a being of chaos from a pocket reality. I have access to other realities, including T.V. from other universes. Not all realities follow the same time speed so I had time to watch a few things including learning this Victor von Doom who outdone Celly. Oh, how she fumed!”
“So why are you doing this to us, Discord?”
“Nope, I already told that manufactured Doom that fact. Now let get on with the play. You are nothing but a side character in your own story after all.” Discord/Strange snaps and it as if time was rewound to where Doctor Strange first appeared.
John de Lancie in the Doctor Strange outfit? “I see Wong was speaking the truth. A strange being from another realm.” A smile, one similar to Q from star trek.
Hans was not amused but realized that he has to play along. “Doctor Stephen Strange I presume. I… seem to be trapped in this reality cut off from my own.”
Stephen Strange walked down the steps. “I was aware of two separate dimensional distortions not that long ago. Did you come alone?”
Oh, how he wanted to cut this spirit of chaos head off. “There a chance a friend of mine has been brought here as well.”
That was when the ground shook. Turning around Hans spotted a Sentinal standing just outside the building. “SCANNING FOR MUTANT SIGNATURES.”
“Well, this looks interesting. Wonder what got into the Sentinal’s programming.” Discord smirks still acting as Strange. “Well, Gentlemen shall we show this intrusion that he should have called for an appointment?”
“First Spider-Slayers now Sentinals what’s next Doctor Doom?” Spiderman says looking out of the window.
Hans knowing when a character brings up a Plot point turns to look at the still smirking Discord. “I doubt the Ruler of Latveria would be showing up here.” Doctor Discord Strange says as he opens the doors to the Sectum.
Hans removed the Widow spider head from the tendrils that were keeping it secured to his back. There on the back of the head was a disk with prongs attaching it to the robot. A disk with a stylized D. The stylized D of Victor von Doom.
Hans sighs meaning that Plot-wise Doom would show up for Gilda. Unable to curse out loud he settled for insulting Discord in his head. Then he returned his prize to his back and headed outside. He has some anger issues to work out and there was a large target to hit. ----------------------- Gilda POV
Gilda wakes up in a room unlike any she seen before. Smooth metal and material she never has seen before thought anyone in a modern civilization would identify plastic. There was a large lit panel with images of bones? It was strange how they appear she could tell it was images of bones but she could see faint outlines of muscles. As well as it was black and the images were white.
She then noted a figure hanging upside down dark blue fur covered the figure’s body. It was looking at the images of bones. Something must have alerted the figure because it moved around gripping poles mounted on the ceiling with its hand-like feet. “Let her sleep, for when she wakes, she will shake the world. ― Napoleon.”
“What?” Gilda asks looking around confused.
“My apologies, I’m Henry McCoy. I’m a tad bit of a poet. For now, I’m your doctor, you been wounded by stun blasts from a sentinel. What is curious is why.”
Gilda looks around “where am I? Are they coming for me?”
“Be at ease. You are in the home of the X-men, you are safe. As well as sound, your wounds were minor. It was impressive you stayed conscious for as long as you did.”
“I don’t understand why are they after me? Why are those things after me I’m no mutant.”
Henry scratched his head “That is the curious part. I had run a scan and you have no Mutant X gens. To be truthful you have no genetic signatures I recognized, though I do identify some similarities to bird or feline, but only remotely. The programing of the Sentinels only seeks out the Mutant X gens.”
“You mean those giant Golems.”
“Indeed we are still investigating. As you were resting Rogue and Gambet went to one of the crash sites of Sentinel. Until then the mystery answer might still be limited.” He let go of the ceiling and landed to the ground. Then smiles “As I stated I’m Henry McCoy, what may I ask is your name.”
“Gilda of Eagleblood.” She moved to stand up.
“Please rest, I send one of the ladies to assist you to dress.”
“Why?” Gilda stood up her top fully exposed, but without the annoying catsuit with breasts, she doesn’t feel any reason to cover up her top. “I could use some trousers thought.”
“Sit, perhaps enjoy some water. I send Gabrel in with some garments for you.”
“Please nothing with those fake breast things.”
Henry raises his brow “Why would you be against something you had on.”
“I came too on top of a building with that suit on. Then a Sentinel attacked and I didn’t have time or means to change.”
Henry nods and headed out of the medical room. ----------------------- Elsewhere in the world Earth-92131 universe.
Armored fingers folded together and the figure leans forward. On the computer screens before him were images of both Gilda and Hans.
“You may have avoided those inferior robotic forces, but soon I will know your secrets, beings from another reality. So says VICTOR VON DOOM!” The dark brown eyes of Doom looked on from the metallic masks. x
The morning started early for Victor von Doom, having set his armor to wake him before sunrise. He got up and headed to the entrance of the Den.
“Why am I driven so?”
“If you ask me, those two became important to you.”
Doom turned hearing the voice of the Flight Mother. She was leaning on her staff as she approached. “Nonsense I rejected such weakness in me long ago.” His mind went to Valeria, the woman he once loved, the woman he sacrificed.
“These old eyes miss little. Tell me what was her favorite scent? All females have a favorite scent. Even if it's just a single flower in the hair providing it.”
Doom looked down, unable to draw the memory up. “It must be something I lost with my memory corruption.”
Then Doom notices something, her eyes are yellow with red pupils. “Or were the memories there in the first place? Are you sure you are Doctor Victor von Doom of Earth 616?”
Doom spins and grabs the fake Flight Mother by the throat. “DISCORD!” His scream got the others awoken, some rising to their feet as fast as possible, others just grumbled.
Discords flight mother disguise twists and flexes out of Doom’s grip. “Oh did I touch a nerve? Remember Doom, get rid of me and doom your friends. They are your friends, aren’t they? Go ahead then. Prove you hardened yourself against such weakness, free this little planet of me. I let you have a free shot.” Discord leans forward and taps his chin and closes his eyes.
Doom’s fist shook with his anger but he kept it in check. “I do keep my word Discord.”
Discord smiles “I know, I just wanted to know if you did. Now, how about we see what under the shell? Allow me.” Discord snaps and the boulders blocking the way turn into soap bubbles. One by one they popped till the path was clear. “There all…”
A hole in reality appears and a second Discord’s head comes through and whispers in Discord’s ear. “Where is he going? The sanctum, oh go and greet him it will be fun seeing how he behaves.”
The second Discord retreats into the hole, in reality, then it closes with a pop. “I am so jealous of myself. If you excuse me I have to prepare the surprise!” With a snap of his finger Discord vanishes.
“Did anyone understand that loon’s blabbering.” Grandpa Gruff snorts as lights an Oil lantern Kronk was holding.
The Flight Mother had a jar filled with a blue fabric and she adds another fluid before sealing the jar and shaking it. Soon a soft green glow from the jar starts. She ties the jar to her staff. “Alright, I’m ready and unlike stinkpot over there I won’t be smoking up the place.”
“Yeah, you're stinking up the place with your crackpot potions.”
“Crackpot! I'll show you a crackpot!”
“Silence! We have a job to do.” Doom cast his light spell and headed into the long-abandoned den. The rubble on the ground wasn’t cleared by the bubble effect, however, it was not so bad they couldn’t walk through it. Then Doom steps stop there in the light of his magic orb as skeletons. The onboard computer calculated over a hundred seen in the glow of the combined light.
“Are those skeletons?” Gallus asks looking around at all the bones. Faina moves up beside him and grips his hand barley keeping her shaking in check. “Ye...yeah, they look like Falconbloods.”
“How can you tell?” Gallus asks his grip on Faina’s hand a little tighter, he tells himself he is reassuring her.
“The beaks, they are like yours.”
Walking further into the Den revealed more bodies. Some were curled up in groups others farther apart. The Den itself was circular in a construction similar to the Grand Chamber where the Idol of Boreas rests. What was different was a fire pit in the center. Once Doom’s light fell on it he spoke out. “Kronk take the fledglings out.”
“Oh come on, we already saw the bones,” Gallus says with a pout in his voice.
The Flight Mother spotted the fire pit as well. “No arguing against our ruler. Kronk, lead the fledglings out of here now.” Grandpa Gruff snorts “Do, as they say, Kronk, don’t argue Gallus, Faina.”
Once the younger members are back outside Doom moves forward to light up the full fire pit. In the pit were more bones, some were cracked open and charred.
“They started eating the dead…” He looked around and evidence of the terror of those left inside was even more horrors. Some bones laid with weapons clearly in the bones. Behind him, Maud Pie was examining the ceiling.
“Arching structural support, very stable. The quake must have been very strong.” She points to one arch that broke. “That’s the weak spot, the area of the Granite has Gneiss Rock that produced a section where the structure was flawed. You can see the bands of different rock.”
She then turns to look at Grandpa Gruff and the Flight Mother. “Why did they build this underground? Being able to fly wouldn’t living above ground be better like you do now?”
It was the flight mother that answered “Long ago we were nomadic. Hunting and gathering as we moved. Then we started raising the animals we hunted, we tended the flocks of sheep and goats. To feed them we started planting feed plants, as well as plants for our food. We stopped being nomadic and built above ground.”
It was Grandpa Gruff who continued. “Most of the land around here is poor, the winds coming from the north hit the mountains and then continue south. So farmland and large flocks were signs of wealth and power. There were five major tribes, one for each of the Griffonbloods. Some offshoot tribes did form but those were just cast-offs of the larger tribe. We don’t know who started it; we think it was those offshoots that started the fighting. Young idiots full of hormones and driven by hunger started raiding other tribes for food, and mates, willing or not.”
Doom sighs “Misunderstanding that the raiders were part of the main tribe those who were attacked retaliated against the larger tribe’s village. Now the larger tribe already suffering enough they sent some of their members away was robbed, homes destroyed. They declared open war. There were now two hungry and suffering tribes, they went to the other tribes either to get allies or to raid for food and supplies. That continued the cycle of destruction. Sometime during this, a group of Griffons found caves to hide the young. From there they dug out the first den to live in. The rock provided shelter and protection. Until the great quake caused by Nightmare Moon using her magic to bring the Moon from the other side of the planet and creating her Eclipse. The Den’s were built to be fortresses only one way in or out, easier to protect, but the quake caused all five known dens entrances to be blocked, as well as other damage.”
Doom headed over and looked at the rubble. “It must have got very bad here. The rubble jammed up the water well.”
“They died horribly, but we knew that. I want to know what I can sell from this place.” Grandpa Gruff snorted as he looked down a passageway. “Looks like sleeping and family chambers might be down this way.”
“Coin grubbing nitwit. This is a sacred land, our kind died here. We should preserve it, it’s our history.”
“History that could help us recover from the council’s stupidity. The worth of Moon Silver is already starting to go down, we need new means of income for the nation.”
“Fight outside you two. Somewhere in this tomb is a clue Discord left behind.”
The four then headed down the passageway. It slopped down and was narrow forcing the group to walk one by one. Soon they came to another round chamber.
“Not as many bodies down here,” Gruff stated as he entered one of the smaller chambers to the side. “Family units, one room chambers. Looks like the ground floor was the living space.” He flaps his wings gaining height and looks into the loft above the family living room. “They slept in the loft…” He snorts and lands wiping tears off his face.
“You saw something up there?” Flight Mother asks.
“Younglings, three of them. One fledgling his remains were before two younger ones in the back. Looks like he was guarding them.”
The flight mother looked up. “Name’s Mona. You don’t have to call me Flight mother anymore.”
Doom looked at the two elderly Griffons then turned and left them to their introspection. That when he saw it, a doorway that wasn’t there a moment before. Bright red door no handles just hinges, the type of door one would see in a theater. “Well seems Discord is going to put on a show. Stay here if you wish, for whatever reason Discord is only interested in me.”
Doom then headed into the theater and sure enough modern style movie theater seats were set in front of a large IMAX screen.
Expecting to be alone Doom was surprised when not only did the Griffons join him but Maud Pie as well.
“What is this place?” Mona asks as she settles down in a seat.
“There's no rock, the walls are… something I never have seen before.” Maud Pie states as she taps on the wall.
“It is a form of construction from my universe called drywall. There are various kinds and I don’t have the desire to analyze what form that Discord chose to mimic. For all, we know we could be standing in what was a communal bathroom.”
Maud Pie thought about it then left the strange wall material aside and sat down.
Once everyone was seated the ‘Movie’ started. The screen lit up revealing the planet Equis then Discord voice broadcasted through the air.
“This small planet is one of the countless others in space, vast and immeasurable, but also a bubble of limited possibilities. A universe among countless universes in the Multi-verse. There is a space between the universes a Void where the logic of space and time has no meaning. The Beyonders you faced Doom were beings from this void, they in truth were minor bugs, barely even noticeable to the dwellers of the void. Other entities are Bat-mite and Mister Mxyzptlk. All minor insignificant nearly all-powerful beings. Of course in the list of beings that warp reality as they see fit, I am the grand and glorious Discord are among them.”
“Doom your first Prize is my History! How I came to being and now dwell on this little planet. Long ago in the realm of Chaos, I came to be. Even in a chaotic system patterns emerge, among those patterns was my brilliant mind.” Doom recognized Discord's pocket dimension he saw in Hans’s memories of the show.
“He has an ego,” Maud stated matter of factly as she watched. “Very boring.”
“Time and space have no meaning so saying how long it was before I was dragged out of my private home I can’t say. It happened one day when a point of light caught my attention. Once the light touched me I felt myself being dragged into darkness.”
“Bound, chained, and tortured! For over a hundred thousand years I suffered. The reason was the Alicorns… those who were the ancestors of the Unicorns. Every day, all day, all the time my power feeds the Sun and Moon keeping life living on this little pathetic world.”
Maud’s eyes widened, the only sign of shock she had as she watched the now crayon drawing animated movie.
“Over time I was able to whisper to the Unicorns, tempting them, luring them. Then one day one was stupid enough to listen. He dismantled the mystical device that kept me trapped as a living battery.”
“I was still weak, dreadfully so. I still wanted my revenge, so with what magic I could use I created three beings. The Windigos, one for each Tribe. Tools to get my revenge, my creations went out to bring turmoil and chaos to the Ponies.”
“That was a miscalculation on my part. The Windigos did their job too well. One can’t have vengeance without breaking a few eggs.”
“For the first time in two hundred thousand years, the Ponies were one group again. What was worse was the two Alicorns who moved among them. Celestia, and Luna the last surviving Alicorns.”
“When I recovered I began my version of revenge. The first reign of Chaos has begun. It ended when those very same Alicorns used those Elements of Harmony on me. That act of heroics solidified their rule and doomed me to being trapped by Alicorns for the second time in my existence.”
Doom noted a hint of shame in her voice as Maud asked a question. “Why did they trap you in the first place? If there were so many Alicorns they should have had the magic to do what they needed.”
Discord snapped his fingers and the room was now a classroom, he was now dressed in a woman’s blouse, long pleated skirt, his hair in a bun, and sporting wire-framed glasses. “Good Question Miss Pie.” He motions to the Chalkboard that appeared. Chalk drawings of alicorns appeared. They were talking and in speech bubble words appeared.
“We need a sun, without one life will die. To create a new sun would take all the magic we can get. This spell could drain more than one of the casters, perhaps even kill them.” A blue alicorn says in its speech bubble.
“What if it wasn’t us? If we find a magical source great enough we can channel that magic via a heavily enchanted artifact. One that could function all day to make sure it stable and won’t go supernova.” Said a Green alicorn drawing.
All the alicorn drawings nodded and spoke at the same time. “We make a grand device to help create a new sun and control it.”
“Of course it failed. The device they made tapped into the Chaotic realm and pulled in the magic it needed, me. The sun they made was too small and needed to be put in an orbit so the day and night will be normal. Its gravity disrupted the Moon’s natural orbit so they chained the Moon to the device as well. All using my magic, that is why I could control them during my reign. The Sun and Moon were chained to the planet by my magic.”
The teacher Discord snaps and the now Anime Cartoon style Discord came over and hovered in front of Doom. “You freed me Victor von Doom. Stripped those Alicorns of their oh so precious sun and moon. Brought Celestia to the brink of madness, and caused enough chaos to break my prison.”
Doom stood up to look at Discord who now appeared as a CGI cartoon version of himself. “Then why did you attack me?”
“Attack? Oh no Doom, I’m helping you. You were fiddling in your lab, running your little nation, and ignoring those around you when you could. Now you know they mean something to you. You can’t ignore you do care for Gilda and Hans, well maybe just Gilda. Tell me what scent of perfume does she like? Do you know?”
A violet leaf scent with a hint of strawberry came to his mind. “I… don’t know.”
“Sure” A knowing smile came to Discord's lips as he snapped and the theater itself vanished in a flash of light.
The four found themselves in a storage room.
“You sure you can’t kill that annoying thing?” Grandpa Gruff snorted as he looked around changing the subject. “Falconblood doesn’t seem to care much for art. This place kind of plain.”
“I like the plain rock face.” Maud Pie spoke her mind as she looked at the wall of granite.
Mona nods “I suspect it due to their active nature. Hard to focus on painting or carving when your mind is running so fast.”
Doom slams his fist into the wall. He knew the others were distracting themselves from Discord’s antics. He turned and cast his light spell, small bits of stone fall from the new cracks in the granite wall. Even Maud knew not to say something as the four left the Den.
“The Flight Mother is correct, Gruff. This is a historical site, and a tomb, it would be wrong to sell anything inside.”
“Not much to sell anyway. What we could sell was too degraded to be worth trying.”
Outside they saw Kronk cooking. “Breakfast is ready. Chilaquiles with Blistered Tomatillo Salsa and Eggs just like mama used to make.”
Gruff raised a brow “you cook?”
Faina and Gallus both nod, their beaks full of food.
“YAY food!” A voice called out from above the group looked up, seeing Gabby flying in. “Oh wait… duty first.” She turns and salutes Doom. “First class message to you, your majesty.” She then pulls out a scroll and hands it over. “It's from Greyworth.”
Doom takes the scroll with a nod. “Go eat and rest up.” He then unrolls the scroll.
‘Your majesty.
We have a possible candidate for the Raven’s Den. I started thinking about why the Raven’s have potions like the Zebra. Why would they have such a relationship that the Zebra would teach them the art of Alchemy? From this, we figured the Den would be in the Valley of Mist. It’s a valley that cuts through the mountains on the southern side of the ridge. Close enough to the Zebra lands that some trade could have been established.
Your servant Greyworth’
Included with the note was a smaller map of the region showing the direction to the Valley of Mist.
Mona the Flight Mother looked to Doom. “Good news?”
“Perhaps, we might have the location to the Ravenblood’s Den.”
Her eyes widened hearing that, but it was Gruff that said something. “Perhaps they had something worth selling.”
Gallus, Faina, Kronk, Gabby, and even Victor von Doom flinched as Mona smacked Gruff over the head with her staff. “YOU WILL NOT TOUCH MY ANCESTORS PROPERTY!” ------------------------ Hans POV
Hans ran out of the door. Nearly as soon as his feet hit the sidewalk the voice of the Sentinel called out. “Mutant detected. Operation capture and interrogation.”
The Sentinel reaches down but Hans leaped to the side. Behind him, Spiderman fired some webbing at the eyes of the Sentinel. “Sorry big guy, but wide load traffic is not allowed on this street.”
“Good move Spiderman. Now it’s my turn.” Strange/Discord smiles as he makes a complicated hand motion. “So unnecessary, behold the power of the Sorcerer Supreme. Bolts of Bedevilment!” Magical bolts were then flung from his hands as if he was throwing daggers. The energy bolts even took up the appearance of throwing daggers.
Hans made the razor-sharp blades on his tendrils. He moved behind the Sentinel as it focused on Spiderman and Strange. Then he started slashing at the back of the sentinel foot. He was aiming for the giant humanoid robots Achilles tendon. Or in the case of a robot the hydraulic system.
Perhaps it was because these Sentinels are the basic design for a cartoon his blades were able to cut through the metal. The towering figure then staggered and fell into the building across the street from the Sanctum.
“What the heck are you doing? You could have hurt someone!” Spiderman lands in front of him.
“Watch out, it's not deactivated yet web head.” With that Hans sprang up and landed on the Sentinel’s back. He could feel the machine trying to stand up again but he hurried to the base of the neck seeing the Doom-tech control disk and yanking it off. “Doctor Strange, fire on this spot I found Doctor Doom’s control disk!”
Levitating up Strange/Discord fires a magical blast at the now damaged neck. “By the flames of Faltine!” From the sorcerer's hands came blue flames that funneled into the base of the sentinel melting the internal components. “It is done.”
Spiderman then goes up to Hans “That’s twice now you put innocent people in danger, what the heck is wrong with you.”
“I told you I don’t care about them. Now either follow me or not it’s your choice.”
Spiderman sighs and even facepalms. “Doctor Strange, this being is from another universe. It’s your expertise. Are you alright watching him?”
“I shall keep an eye on him, you have my word, Spiderman.” Spiderman didn’t see the twisted smile on Strange/Discord. “You could say I have a personal interest in keeping track of Hans here.”
“Alright, I have to find out if those Spider-Slayers are going to keep coming at me. Please keep an eye on him. I don’t want to see that he killed someone on the News.” Spider-Man then shot a webbing and leaped into the air swinging away from the scene.
Hans looks to Strange “Well Discord going to lead me farther down this rabbit hole?”
A mad chuckle came from Strange. “Oh, this is just a game, a simple means to spend time. I could have just held you in stasis. You already know the next action in this drama. The Doom of this universe is heading to the X-men mansion for Gilda. If I were you I would hurry up. You do have about 50 or so miles to get there.”
“I hate you Discord.”
“For now perhaps, but I have a plan.”
Hans looks over “You have a plan?”
“Okay fine I’m making this up as I go. Thought I have a really good idea!”
Hans sighs and then starts running as police start arriving at the scene of the battle. Similar to how he was moving before he used his tendrils like large legs moving rapidly across Manhattan Island. “I just hope this plan is better than the cartoon’s Discord plan to reform the terrible trio.”
----------------------- Gilda POV
Gilda looked around the medical room, not sure if it was better or worse than she was alone in the unknown environment. Then the door opened and a creature like Doom walked into the room.
“Hey! Beast said you needed new clothing. I’m Gabrielle by the way.”
“I’m Gilda. Yeah, I need something to wear that horrible outfit”
Jubilee laid down the clothing on the bed. “I can’t imagine what it would be like going to another universe and finding yourself in an outfit unfamiliar to you. Oh… how worse it could have been if you had a body you weren’t used to. Wait… that is your normal body right?”
“Yeah, this is me, and yes there is a whole species like me I’m nothing special.” She looks down sighing. “Can’t even do anything more than sparkling lights.”
Jubilee shakes her head. “You're not the only one. Some of the kids here nicknamed me, fireworks.” She waved her hand creating flashing lights and sparks of rainbow colors.
Gilda waves her hand and an orb of light formed in her palm. “So you can use magic too?”
“Magic? No this is my mutant ability. Sparkly light girl. Though sometimes I can make them more powerful if I’m in a stressful situation. Not like I try to get myself killed regularly to make my powers stronger. Not even the danger room can fool my subconscious.”
Standing up Gilda finally dropped the sheet covering her.
“Umm... Kind of revealing there aren't you?” Jubilee turns around.
Getting picked up the trousers she saw were some touch blue fabric with thick threads. Jubilee would have told her it was a pair of blue jeans but she didn’t ask. “From where I grew up, clothing was a luxury.”
Jubilee flinches “That bad?”
Singing Gilda put on the poncho-like top she noted it was designed with buttons on the side to keep the front and back connected. “Nice top.”
“Yeah, it was made for a guy named Angel. He has wings as well.”
A sound from Gilda’s gut alerted the two to how hungry she was.
She then claps her hands. “Alright let's get to the cafeteria. I'm guessing you want to meet the others.”
“This Cafeteria has food in it?”
Jubilee sighs “That depends on what you consider food. If Gambit cooked their gumbo galore, if Wolverine was cooking we have barbeque mystery meat.”
Heading into the underground complex Gilda saw only halls and odd round doors, but soon they entered another door and Jubilee opened it revealing a large room with tables and benches.
“Ah, our guests have arrived.” Beast states as he was once again hanging from the ceiling a bowl of Gumbo in his left hand.
“Gambit! Gumbo again? This is the second time this month.”
Gambit was smiling as he scooped Gumbo into a bowl. “It comforts food. A perfect meal to fill the belly and soothes the soul.” He then came over and handed the bowl to Gilda. “For you lovely. Don’t tell Rogue she might get jealous.”
Jubilee “You wish Gambit.” She shakes her head and motions to the others. “Everyone, this is Gilda, Gilda, you already met Beast, the shameless flirt is Gambit, The grump in the corner drinking a beer is Wolverine, Rogue, Cyclops, and Storm are out looking at those Sentinels that were attacking you.”
A side door opens and two more figures enter. One was a woman with red hair the other was a bald man in a wheelchair. It was this man that spoke up. “Greetings Gilda, I am Charles Xavier owner of this complex and founding member of the X-men. This is my assistant Jean Grey.”
Jean smiles “I hope you are doing well, Gilda. You can relax here, you are safe.”
“Why were they after me? I’m not a mutant… whatever that means.” She sat down and tried some of the gumbo.
“That's why Cyclops and the others went to examine the debris. The Sentinels shouldn’t have been going after you if you didn’t have a mutant X gene.”
The door opened and in came Cyclops with his trademarked red ruby glasses. “We have an answer. It is not the sentinels after her.”
“What do you mean Scott?” Jean asks of Scott Summers aka Cyclops.
“He means the Sentinels were being controlled. With this.” Rogue tosses a disk onto the table. Wires were still connected to the back where the device had drilled and integrated itself into the Sentinel’s computer. The Stylized D easily identified.
Gilda saw a dark skilled human woman walk in with white hair. “For one so brilliant, you would figure Doctor Doom wouldn’t mark his tech with obvious identification.”
Beast picks up the device. “Pride goes before the fall, and few have Pride as high as the elusive King of Latveria.”
“Doom! So he’s coming to rescue me!” Hope bloomed in Gilda’s chest.
Charles shakes his head. “I’m sorry Gilda, this is our Doctor Doom, the one from this universe. The Victor von Doom you know is another person.”
Gilda looks over “How do you know?”
“Please forgive me, I am a telepath. I can read minds, I saw your memories, I assure you this is not that man you remember.”
That hope swiveled up and died. “You sure? Perhaps he can help me get to my Victor?”
Professor X sighs the only thought in his head was ‘poor love-stricken girl’
------------------------------- Location: LaGuardia Airport, New York.
The heavily modified private jet of Doctor Victor von Doom touched down on the tarmac and headed to the waiting terminal. Once all the end of flight checks were done the lone occupant stood up and headed to the exit of the craft. Once he was off the ship he took notice of the security, special forces, and Nick Fury of Shield.
“Ah, Nick Fury I did not expect to be given a grand welcoming.”
All business Fury went right to what brought him here. “What are you doing on U.S. soil Doom?”
“That’s Doctor Doom. Mr. Fury, I understand you Americans lack sophisticated manors, but if you must address me do it properly.”
“You haven’t answered my Question, Doom.” the brash leader of Shield made it clear he was not being civil.
“All the paperwork is correct, isn’t it? This is an official visit, I happen to be heading to a private school in Westchester County. A place called Xavier’s school for gifted children. He has a young lady that caught my interest. Everything is proper isn’t it?”
“Yes, believe me you know if the paperwork was invalid.”
“Then this talk is over. Have a good day Mr. Fury, I would say it was a pleasure, but Doctor Doom doesn’t lie.” With that, the ruler of Latveria passes the Shield agents.
Once he got into a waiting limousine he relaxed. The limo was custom made as well complete with beyond state of the art computers. He activated the system and looked at the figures the scenes showed. One was a strange black-bodied creature with tendrils. The other was a humanoid gryphon; both didn’t exist in this reality yesterday.
“Whoever you are, it seems the anonymous intelligence I received was correct.” He closed his eyes thinking. “A whole world with more magic than I ever heard of. Enough magical power to move the very heavens. That power shall be mine and mine alone.”
“Gruff, you said the Moon Silver price is starting to fall?” Doom asks the elder griffon as he ate some of the breakfast Kronk had cooked.
Grandpa Gruff swallows his meal and looks to Doom. “Yeah, it's not much we are careful, but the market is starting to fluctuate. Those I sent out to sell the metal are reporting our moon silver is in higher demand elsewhere. It’s the purity of our metal, and it lowers other sources of moon silver.”
“Alright, Gabby, I have a task for you.”
Gabby stood up and saluted. “What can I do for ya?”
“Head back to Griffonstone and…” Doom stopped talking as Gabby leaped into the air and flew away a few yards before coming back.
“Um… Okay, after I get to Griffonstone?”
Doom rolled his eyes and then looked to Gabby. “Go to Brokkr and Sindri workshop and tell them to start operation Stainless Steel. Then head to the airfields and tell Surtr to make sure the airship construction is underway.”
“Yes, sir!” She then leaped up and took off flying back to Griffonstone.
Faina tilts her head, “Is she always that hyper? She’s worst then Gallus.”
“HEY!” Gallus calls out then crosses his arms over his chest.
“So your majesty, what is this Operation Stainless Steel?” Mona asks as she watches Doom.
“Stainless Steel is a type of steel that doesn’t rust. Very useful in various items, for example, cooking pots and pans. I already have some shipped to Canterlot to a griffon named Gustave Le Grand.”
“Him? That crazy cook? Why did you ship something so useful to him?”
Doom smiled behind his mask and looked to the fledglings. “Another skill a spy could use. Instead of getting information, they can release controlled information. For example, start a shopping craze by bragging about his brand new cooking instruments.” Doom headed into the tent already prepared for him. “Get some rest; we will be leaving for the Valley of Mist at first light.”
It took five days of travel till the carriage reaches the real mountains of they traveled south till they came to the valley of mist. The tropical rainforest area was growing even more and more claustrophobic as the trees bunched up together.
“The trees are healthy here? What gives?” Gallus looks out the window as they followed the road they found among the trees. Flying among the trees were bright colored birds and what doom would classify as Archaeopteryx.
“The winds that prevented storms from staying in the area of Griffonstone aren’t powerful enough to blow the storms away here. Storms meet the high heat of the caldera across the channel and stop moving, so this area gets rain regularly.”
Faina looked out of the window as well. “Those birds remind me of the paintings the Raven’s do on their walls.”
Mona chuckles, “Why you think we paint those images. Like I told Doom, we remember our history. However, this forest is far more extensive than just a valley, and the valley itself is several miles long. We knew we came from this area, just not what part of the southern forest.”
Doom thought for a moment. “It also explains your primary colors; unlike the other griffons, Raven’s tend to be more uniformed. More useful to hide in the shadows of the trees when hunting.”
“Guys, we got a situation,” Kronk called out as he looked forward down the road at the group ahead of them and bringing the carriage to a stop.
When the carriage stopped, Doom got out, followed by the Flight Mother and the two fledglings. In front of the carriage were six Ravenblood griffons. Unlike the Flight Mother, these were all runts with leaves and bones woven into a form of camouflage. The spears were stone-tipped and primitive in make. Once the primitive runt Ravens spot, Doom then gripped the spears in a threatening manner and bunched up, ready to fight. Clicking, shrills, and croaks in a clear speech pattern that Doom couldn’t devise.
Mona stepped forward, taking up her role of Flight Mother she raised her hand. She issued her own set of similar sounds.
“Flight Mother, what is going on?” Doom asks as he watches the natives settle down.
“It’s a tribe of what we call wild ones. Not every griffon joined those who built Griffonstone; they just so few of them that most others don’t even know they exist.”
Faina looks over, “Are they all runts like me?”
“Yes, child, we don’t know why but all the wild ones are runts.”
“I can tell you why. It’s an adaptation, much like how Ponies are smaller than the Alicorns, runts are becoming the standard for Griffons. Smaller bodies need less food and less magic for flight or other abilities.” Doom looks down, Faina. “It’s not a defect, Faina; your body is an adaptation.”
He then looks to Mona, “Well, what do these Wild ones want?”
“It turns out that the path ahead got washed out, we have to go farther in on foot. This group has been sent from their village to see what has been happening. You caused some unrest with the whole moving the sun and stopping the quakes. Their tribe sent these warriors to the land to the tall ones, us, to find out if we knew what is going on.”
“Very well, Kronk unload the carriage and have the Doomgolems transport our supplies. It seems we are going to visit these tribal natives village.”
They moved among the trees walking along a narrow path. The need to go on foot was the Golems being unable to fly. It was a bonus for Doom, who was able to see the wide variety of life in the rainforest. Soon they came to a cliffside, and the path started going up; it wasn’t long till they reached above the canopy, and the valley came into view.
“Wow… okay, now I understand why it called the valley of mist,” Gallus says as they look out at the valley, the trees rarely poke out of the mist that hung in the air. The mist white was from time to time, interrupted by the random burst of color from the birds and Archaeopteryx.
The village was hanging nest like buildings tied to trees and the nearby cliffs. Doom noted how the very path they used protected by guards. “Flight Mother, is there something dangerous in the forest?”
“Oh, many things. The mist beasts are nocturnal and seem to avoid sunlight. For this reason, they were called the mist beasts. They are more of a problem when in the water out of it, they hide in the trees. They hunt by snatching, passing prey with their arms. The real danger is not being able to see them till they strike. The mist hides them, as well as they blend into where they hide. So one moment you think you safe the next, you are being choked to death. They live mainly near, and in the lake, other beasts are mostly dangerous by poisons and venom, for example, snakes.”
The natives were welcoming already used to dealing with other Griffons; they didn’t show any fear of Doom and the Doomgolems. Doom chose to call this tribe pygmy Ravens, due to the size difference.
An elderly female raven started talking to the Flight Mother. Judging by the outfit of the elder griffon, Doom figured that she was the Flight Mother of the tribe. He noted a change in tone, suddenly the nearby pygmy griffons knelt and began praising him. “Mona, what are they doing?”
“I told them you stopped the daily shakes and fixed the sun. So, they are worshiping you.”
Doom nods and raises his hand. “Translate for me, Mona.” Then out loud, “I thank you for your praise. The world has been broken now, I have fixed it, but there is much I need to repair. I do not ask much of you; I respect your way of life and wish only to make it easier for you to continue. For now, let have a feast and celebrate our new friendship.”
Once the natives relaxed, a feast and celebration filled the evening. Doom soon found himself sitting cross-legged at a fire. “Mona, you said the Ravenblood been seeking out the last den. Do you have any more information?”
“The valley is five miles long and has a three-mile-long lake in the center.”
The voice of the Pygmy’s Flight mother spoke up. Then Mona turned to Doom. “Their fight mother tells me that what we seek is forbidden. That was why they never told us what they knew. Of course, for a being that can stop the quakes and change the sun, these secrets she willing to tell. At the far end of the lake is a cave, one guarded by a large Mist Beast. They call the cave the Den of the dead.”
Doom nodded. “So all this time, these natives knew where the old den was and refused to tell you.”
“Seems we all became skilled at keeping secrets. Even from our fellow Ravenblood.”
“Tomorrow, we go to the Den of the dead. It’s too late to go now, so we rest and celebrate our new friendship.” ----------------------------- Hans’s POV
Hans was moving along the road like a freaky insect. Long tendrils serving as legs propel him over the way. Alongside him flew the disguised Discord.
That was when the ground exploded in front of Hans. The cause was the blast that shot past him, a blast so close he could feel the heat.
Looking behind him, he saw three sentinels land and lift their arms and fire three blasts at the same time right at him. The world went white.
He expected pain; he expected to die. He didn’t expect to be a fire hydrant in front of a brick wall. “WHAT THE ****.”
A laugh to his right brought his attention to a dog with Discord’s eyes. “AFTER THESE MESSAGES! WE’LL BE RIGHT BACK!”
“F****** Commercials!”
Then the world shifts again, and he was standing in a jungle. Beside him was a monkey, “What’s for Lunch?”
A bamboo fence collapse, and four colorful Hippos came dancing in. “It’s Hungry Hungry Hippos!”
“CRAP!” Hans got hit by a flying banana as the Hippo conga line continued their dancing mayhem. The yellow one hit him with it’s overside rear and sent him flying with cartoon physics.
He splashes down in the ocean he notices a shark swimming below him. Then he swam up, and his head breaks the surface, and he spots a woman in a black one-piece bathing suit sitting on an innertube.
Then the woman went flying, and the shark was in the center of the innertube. “Hey, where the cream filling?”
The world shifted again, and Hostess cupcakes were now was shown. A voiceover says, “Hostess now that the stuff!”
The commercial was interrupted with Pinke Pie shoving the cupcakes into her mouth. “BLA… I can do better!”
“Pinkie!” Discord pops into the scene. “You not suppose to be in this chapter, heck not even in this act.” Discord snaps his fingers, and a bunch of papers appears in his hand. He shows one to Pinke Pie. “See it says here in the author’s notes. Act three takes place in Canterlot. He is going to …’
Pinkie Pie shoves a Hostess cupcake into his mouth. “NO SPOILERS! NOW get back to the action.” Then Pinke Pie snaps her fingers, and the world shifted again.
He was in a field of flowers and dancing together coming to him was four figures. They were Pikachu, Mario, Yoshi, and Donkey Kong. Then they started fighting, “SMASH BROTHERS!” Hans had to leap away as Donkey Kong slammed Pikachu.
Then the world shifted again. Hans found himself on a floating platform in a dark room with cheering people. A voice calls out, “It sometime in the future the ultimate challenge! Crossfire.”
He was sent spotted two children playing a game below. The crossfire game of shooting metal marbles at a target. “Oh, fu….” When one of the players lost, he was sent spinning and then vanished.
Back in the world of the Show, Discord smiles. “Well, it seems this show has been canceled. Have fun in another Equestria Hans.”
Discord dropped his Dr. Strange disguise and rose into the air, taking the shape of a cloud and started to follow a Limo.
In that very Limo, Doctor Doom smashes a computer screen. “HE GOT AWAY! Driver hurry to the school! I want that Gryphon!”
Following the Limo were the three sentinels and five others coming from other directions.
--------------------------- Gilda’s POV
In the underground cafeteria, a siren starts blaring. For a moment no one moved then Professor X wheelchair moved to the hall. “Everyone to the monitoring room!”
“Come on Gilda, that means you too,” Jubilee says as they all went to another large chamber. Gilda has never seen such a place large window-like panels were on the wall and each lit up showing an image.
Those images showed Sentinals a total of 8 of them on a flight path for the mansion.
“This doesn’t look good. We haven’t fought that many at once before.” Jubilee says seeing the images.
“Have faith Jubilee, we shall prevail.” Storm kept a positive note even when she felt much the same.
“I might have a solution to this situation. However, it will take time.” Beast jumps into a seat and started activating programs. “If those Sentinals are being controlled, I could hack into the signal and take them over.”
He turns and looks at his fellow X-Men. “Doctor Doom is one of the most brilliant minds on the planet. His encryption will be difficult to decode.”
Cyclops taps his visor. “Then all we need to do give you that time.”
“Well bub, I have a bad feeling it won’t be that easy.” Wolverine’s claws extend, “But it will be fun to try.”
Professor X reaches over and hits a control panel. The lights turn red as outside the mansion went into combat mode. Windows closed with steel shutters, defensive weapons deploy and turned to aim at the incoming threat. “I dread the day I had to activate this system.”
Gilda looks at the images “Is it worth it? Maybe I should just go out there?”
Rogue puts her hand on Gilda’s shoulder, “Don’t worry sugar, the X-men don’t abandon their friends just because of a little trouble with Sentinals. Believe me, I enjoy smashing those things apart.”
Once the Sentinals come into range missiles launch at the closet three. “X-Men get ready for battle.”
“If you going to fight I’m coming as well. I’m tired of not fighting back.” Gilda.
“Are you sure? Sentinels aren’t easy to battle.”
Gilda extends her talons “I sure for the last year I hoped and begged for someone to save me. Then he did. He didn’t treat me like a fragile thing though, he was always pushing me to be better. Driving me to not be the one to save myself. I won’t be staying here and let you all save me.”
Jubilee smiles “I fell the same. I remember when the X-Men rescued me from Sentinels, I just hate being on the sidelines after.”
The group headed up to the first floor leaving Professor X and Beast behind.
The Sentinals’ defensive system blast the missiles out of the sky with ease. What they didn’t register was those missiles were armed with smoke devices so when they exploded the sky was filled with a cloud of smoke filled with microparticles designed to disrupt sensors.
As the first Sentinal came out of the cloud a blinding blast of red energy smashes into its artificial face slitting the head in half. “X-Men! The back of the head is a control disk. We can exploit the disk having cut into the Sentinal armor! Target that location if you can!”
“I hate not being able to fly!” Wolverine says as he extends his claws.
Storm rose into the air. “Then let me bring them down to the ground.” She raises her hands “Rain and Sleet heed my call!” Clouds form and freezing rain start falling on the sentinels. Soon after ice was seen forming on the metal forms and the jet keeping them airborne give out and the remaining 7 sentinels land in front of the mansion.
“Rogue give me a lift!” Wolverine ran forward and Rogue picks him up and throw him at one of the Sentinals. His claws cut into its face slashing the optical sensors.
Jubilee was sending her pyrotechnic blasts at another sentinel. Gilda raises her hands and focused her thought she spoke in accent Griffon “FIRE”. In her practice she was safe, she was protected even when she was trying to cast spells. This was real life, a real threat, a real reason to ignore the doubt.
A fireball erupts from her hands blasting the face of a sentinel. “YES! Finally something more than a ****ing light!”
She then gets shoved out of the way by gambit as the ground she stood on was struck by an energy blast.
“Keep moving deary unless you want to be a cooked goose.”
“STORM! I Got the can open!” Wolverine was on the back of a Sentinel and had sliced the disk off. The machine had stopped moving as the computer rebooted. He jumped off as the very spot where the disk was got hit by lighting frying the interior circuitry.
“Two down!” Jubilee called out as she doges another sentinel attack. A bit of metal flew over her head as Jean Grey sent it flying at the attacking forces.
“Lightning head my call!” Another Sentinal was struck and jerked to a stop falling over. She turned trying to change her flight but was struck with a blast.
“STORM!” Rogue swoops in and catches the falling Storm. “Good Catch beautiful!”
“Stop flirting and start flighting Sugar.”
Gilda came flying past. “Let me try that Lightning attack!” She then cast her spell forcing the magic to take a form she wanted and using the accent griffon word for “Lightning”. The magic took form and a blast of lightning struck the Sentinal that attacked Storm.
“Good work my X-men. Beast has got the encryption code and shall shut them down…” Just as he telepathically sent that the other sentinels stop moving “Now, please back away from them Beast will be activating the self-destruction.
Gilda flew back to the manor but got hit by a blast of energy. Out of the clouds swooped Doctor Victor von Doom grabbing her.
“Doom! Release her!” Rogue flys up to the offending Doctor Doom. Only to be knocked out by Doom’s connection blast.
“No… Doom they help me.”
“Foolish girl. I was the one that sent the Sentinals. They hindered my goals.”
That when she saw his eyes. Cold, piercing, domination, and heartless eyes, unlike the Doom she knew the one who was calculating but also one who was rebuilding her home, the one whose eyes were filled with determination and compassion. The eyes she was falling in love with, this was not the same man.
“FIRE!” She called out in accent Griffon and a blast of fire engulfed Doctor Doom’s head. Only for the flames to fade revealing they done nothing.
“A mear parlor trick.” A second stun blast and then as the X-men attacked he activated the Nerve impulse Scrambler knocking them all out. “Doctor Doom will not be denied.”
He turns just as his modified jet came into view. Behind it two Shield Quinjets in pursuit. It doesn’t matter the Doomjet could outfly the inferior jets. He boards with ease and as the jet seals up it speeds away.
Unseen by Doctor Doom was a small figure of Discord sipping a martini under the computer console. “Ah, first-class flight indeed. I hear Latveria is lovely this time of year.”
Early morning in the village and the natives were already busy. The mountains were darker longer thanks to them blocking the sun. Even before the natives awoke Doom was awake standing on the cliff edge looking down at the valley.
Morning the mist faded during the night as the colder air didn’t react to the cold of the water of the lake. Doom was scanning the area taking note of how the trees were smaller than the rest of the rainforest, a clear sign the growth of the tree was stunted by the regular mist. The valley mist was a perfect cover for a hidden camp. It would hide any searchers from above, and below the mist would make it hard to see. It would be a good place to hide the Raven’s den. The only thing that didn’t add up was the Mist Dwellers, how did they fit into the picture?
“We are ready Sire.” Doom turned his head to look at Mona the Flight Mother of the Griffonstone Ravenblood. “Good my patience is growing thin. It has been close to a month that Discord banished Gilda and Hans.”
Mona nods and heads to the group preparing to leave. The Doom Golems will remain behind, there bulk would be too much to reach the valley of mist. “Kronk keep an eye on the fledglings.”
“We are going!” Faina calls out even as Gallus yawns behind her.
“No, you are not Faina. With the possibility of the Mist Dwellers, I will not risk your life, nor Gallus.”
“Okay,... I get to sleep more.” Not arguing Gallus yawns again and heads back into the tent.
“It’s not fair! We are on this mission too… Why do we have to stay behind? I'm not a weak hatchling! Just ask gallus I beat his tail more than once!”
“I let you!” Came the voice of Gallus from the tent.
“Did not!”
“ENOUGH! Faina, I made it an order, no negotiations. You, Gallus, and Kronk stay behind, that final.”
“Perhaps Mona should remain to keep an eye on them.” Grandpa Gruff huffed as he looked at the pouting Faina.
“And leave you to pillage my ancestors' remains. Not even an Alicorn will keep me away from those holy grounds, Gruff.”
Doom turned and leaped off the cliffside using his armor flight ability he hovered in the air as the Pygmy guides flew ahead soon the others flew to follow. Behind them, Faina kicked a rock as she pouted.
The only one that didn’t fly was Maud. They solved this by rigging a harness and Doom carried her through the air. “I do not like flying, I can’t feel the vibrations of the ground.”
Doom blinked as he looked down at Maud “You feel the vibrations in the ground?”
“Yes, though I can be distracted I often feel things. It’s stronger near Holder’s Boulder and Ponyville.”
Thinking about it “Is that how you hear your pet rock Boulder?” It took a few moments before Maud spoke “yes… but I am more familiar with Boulder’s accent.”
The Pie family might have lived on a farm that grew rocks infested with the microbes to become sensitive to the microbes form of communication. Was Pinkie Sense just her body responding to the crystal life hive mind under Ponyville? He shook his head there was more to the Pie family special senses than such a simple answer. Pinkie in the show had a level of clairvoyance and Maud wouldn’t be connected to a hive mind in Manehatten. Doom then shelved the idea that he hasn’t seen either event happen in this reality.
The lake was oblong shaped similar to a peanut or kidney pool. He could see two small waterfalls feeding the lake from the cliffside and a small river leading out of the valley at the far end. Geographically it would lead to the Zebra lands on the other side of the mountains. Doom could easily see how trade between the plains dwelling Zebras and the forest-dwelling Ravenblooded Griffons could form.
Pygmy guides land in a clearing created where one of the forest trees had fallen over. Once Mona landed they started speaking, Doom noted they were being quiet as they talked, almost whispering.
Mona turned “They say we are now going on foot. The way to the Den of the Dead is impassable above the trees.”
Doom nodded as the group headed into the forest. By the time they entered the forest the sun did rise above the mountain peaks, however, the way was still dark as the canopy from the trees was so thick it blocked almost all the natural light. The wild plant growth in the clearing vaded as they went into the trees. There wasn’t any underbrush, there wasn’t enough light.
Normal plants wouldn’t grow on the forest floor until one of the trees fell over and long-dormant seeds would fight for dominance in the clearing till the canopy once again blocks the light. The forest floor had a green tint as it was filtered by the leaves. Mushrooms growing on trunks had bioluminescence of faint green and blues.
Mona jumped as some monkeys leaped away when the exploration team spooked them. A few colorful birds took flight as well. The insects’ life was abundant and variety was vast. Some large as footballs scurry around. Lizards scurry up tree trunks chasing after ants.
Just as Doom was starting to think it was peaceful one of the Pygmies cried out as what looked like a vine lashed out and wrapped around its throat.
Doom went into action and lifted his hand blasting the vine severing it just above the Pygmy’s head. The ear-piercing scream that no mammal could ever produce echoed from above. Doom looked and got his first look at a Mist Dweller. Though at the time he didn’t know what it was. The creature had a bulbous head and eight arms. It was an octopus, one adapted for both land and water. Four arms were extra long for snatching passing prey, the octopus ability to change color and texture made it easy to blend into the tree bark. Four other arms were thicker for supporting weight when on land. A second blast at the head killed the creature sending it charred remains to the floor. Walking over he kicked the creature to make sure it was dead.
Then he noted the chanting he turned and saw the Pygmy Raven griffons bowing and worshipping him.
“Well your Majesty, seems you are earning the reputation of being a god. A Mist Dweller is very difficult to kill, they are resistant to most magic and blunt force trauma, and you killed with ease.” Moan chuckled then she turned to the Pygmies.
Doom nodded “I was a god, it bored me.”
Once the pygmy was calmed the group continued on their way. Soon they came to the lake and Doom went to the edge and he saw that the lake was formed in a cave, a collapsed lava tube. “There's no telling how deep this lake goes. Perhaps even a mile or more.” He knelt and examined the water. It was fresh. “Interestingly there are octopuses in this water, I wonder if it was once connected to the ocean and in time lost its salt content, the cave system must be massive.”
He stood up and walked away just as an octopus arm snaked out of the water to try to grab him. Once it connected his suits, automatic defense activated and an electric current shocked the creature. It released instantly and fled the armored being.
“Those Mist Dwellers are indeed aggressive.” gruff huffs as he leans on his staff. “Couldn’t we just fly? I’m not used to all this walking.”
“Lazy fool, you saw how fast that dweller attacked Doom? Their primary food source must be monkeys and birds. That was fast enough they could snag a bird right out of the air.” Mona reminds the grumbling fool.
“Mona’s right, the reflexes of the Mist Dwellers are indeed fast enough to grab birds out of the air. You would just be a large buffet if we flew over the lake.”
The group then continued to one of the two waterfalls Doom spotted. The Pygmy looked at each other than to Mona and chatted in their language.
“They are saying this is as far as they will go. The armored god might not fear the dead, but they do. The den of the dead is behind the waterfall.”
“Makes sense, your ancestors were clever. First, the mist hides them from above and the waterfall makes it hard for the dwellers to swim close to the den. The other Griffons wouldn’t even think to look behind a waterfall for an entrance.” Gruff started hearing Mona.
“Gruff was that a compliment?”
“Of course not! Your ancestors were clever, you are just an old hag.” Gruff snorted as he looked to the thin path behind the falls.
A sudden yell from behind the falls stopped their approach. “GO AWAY THIS IS MY DEN!” A rock came flying out of the falls just to be swatted away with a backhand swipe of Doom.
Out from the falls came a purple dragon with red scales. A female or Doom figure was older than Smolder but not by much. “I said Go away!”
Doom motioned for the others to say behind and moved forward. As he did he noted something was wrong with the dragonet. The scales were wrong, some were bright where others were faded and seemed sickly. “I am Victor von Doom, Ruler of Griffonstone these are Griffon lands, and so you are trespassing on sovereign land.”
“I don’t care, I found this cave, it's mine!”
“Very well I won’t force you out, but I need to look inside. So…” He removes some gems from his armor storage. Then held it out “I will pay my way.”
Hunger, it was hunger in her eyes, but not a hunger for food. Physically she was healthy, what wasn’t healthy was the microscopic lifeforms that had formed a symbiotic bond to the dragons. “Your protection against heat is gone isn’t it?”
“How did… no, I can handle the lava pools fine.” The Dragon swiped the gems and shoved them into her mouth.
“I can fix the problem. I’m a Doctor.”
The dragon sighs “Names Tinder. Sure whatever, go ahead and look inside.” Tinder crosses her arms acting as if she was acting tough, but Doom saw it as her hugging herself.
Then Doom walked into the den. It was a large opening hidden by the falls, one-room no passage, no doorway.
“Well welcome to my home sweet hole in the ground. Over there the bedroom, over there the kitchen. Now, are you happy?”
Doom casts his light spell. “This is it? The Den of the dead is an empty cave?”
“Oh? Is that what do the shrimp griffons call this place? Kind of make sense of how it howls from time to time.” Tinder asks as the rest of the group comes into the cave.
“Where does the sound come from?” Mona asks as she shakes one of her jars producing her light.
“Over there in the back. I stay away from it myself.” Tinder watches the odd beings visiting her home.
Doom noted the place was more a camp than a home, nothing settled. He went farther back of the cave and noted the large stones with cracks in it. “Maud, what do you think?”
Maud came up and touched the stones. “Primary this is a granite cave, with limestone up higher, this stone is limestone that fell from higher up. Angles of cracks allow air currents to flow through. That produces the sounds.”
“If we remove that stone is it stable enough to not cause the cave to further collapse?”
“It appears safe to destroy this blockage.”
“HOLD UP! No breaking my home!” Tinder moves up and Doom’s hand flashes out and grabs her throat. Her eyes grew wide with fear as she struggled to get her breath.
“Silence girl! I said I will heal you so I won’t kill you but don’t get in my way again. Do you understand?” He releases his grip and Tinder backs away.
“Yeah… yeah. You're the sovereign or something. Whatever you say.”
Doom then moved to the stone motioning to the others to step back. As he did so Mona went to Tinder.
“Here drink this. It will ease any pain you might still have.” Mona handed the dragon girl a vile of potions.
“I… I’m fine. He wasn’t hurting me, just made sure I knew he could. Dragons do the same thing all the time.”
“Griffons are much the same but don’t think he is the same. I saw him be gentle to fledglings, then he shows signs of brutal aggression but never without a reason.”
With a devastating punch then another, on the third strike, the stone shattered. He then simply gripped the shattered fragments and tossed them out of his way. On the other side has a large door frame. The wood of the door had long ago rotted. “Mona, how about you go first. It’s your ancestors after all.”
Mona nodded and headed into the Den. Followed by Doom himself. The layout was similar to the den of the Falconblooded Griffons. Thought with key differences. The inside was decorated with cave paintings of various colors. The hearth was to the back in an alcove, a large pot was still sitting on the ashes of an old fire. The water source was a small stream of fresh water flowing to the right of the entrance. The main differences were the bodies.
Unlike the Falconblood there was no sign of panic. Bodies were laid out in orderly rows covered with now long rotted sheets of fabric.
“Ugh… okay I don’t want to live here anymore.” Tinder replied seeing the bodies.
Mona went to the side alcoves seeing the bodies of younger griffons and signs of some form of burial rites have been performed. She then went to the large pot and rub the edge. “This residue… a form of poison I'm familiar with. They made enough for everyone.”
Doom looked to another alcove and noted the bodies. “Almost everyone.” Mona came over and noted the bodies of five griffons each with a weapon. All seemed to have been sitting and judging by the poses they killed themselves.
“On the wall… ancient Griffon” Doom motions to the wall. “I was Gala last Flight Mother of the Mist valley tribe. We were fools, why did we not think of having more than one entrance and exit. When the quake happened it blocked our way out. Our cleverness leads to our downfall. Our food was running out, we made the choice. I made a deadly brew and gave it to the young first, then the non-warriors, then the warriors. There wasn’t enough the last few of us gave last rites and then I watched the others slice their wrists. Then I wrote this message, to those that find us, we Griffons aren’t meant to live underground. I spoke to an Eagleblood named Boreas through the rocks. He swore there were enough survivors that we will continue. Don’t forget us…”
“That's the last.” Mona sighed and nodded to the remains of the former Flight Mother.
“Um… how come they didn’t dig out. They made this place right where are the tools at?” Tinder asks looking at the carving letters on the wall.
“Here’s your answer girl…” The others turned and looked to Gruff who was lighting up a second tunnel one blocked off by rocks. “My guess is the food and supplies are behind these boulders.”
Doom walked over and made a fist to punch his way through.
“Stop… the ceiling above those boulders are more unstable. You bring it down on us.” Maud's voice spoke up seeing what Doom was about to do.
“Then where is Discord’s trick?”
“Um… try turning off the lights?” Tinder spoke up.
Doon looks over “Why? What do you know.”
“Well, I've been noticing a bit of glow the last few days….”
“Do as she says turn off the lights.” He canceled his spell, followed by Gruff blowing out his lamp. Mona had a bit of trouble with her glowing jar but she got it hidden in her garments. That when the luminescence glow above the doorway appeared. A glow in the dark greenish shade of a mathematical calculation.
“What is it?” Gruff asks, seeing the complex math above the door.
“I know what it is, Gruff. It’s the mathematical equation for dimensional travel to another universe. It’s a quantum address. Mona, Gruff, everyone including Tinder, return to the village. I will return soon.” He doesn’t run but his walk was a bit fast. Once he was outside the den he soared into the air. Once he calculated he was high enough that he wouldn’t appear in rock or even a flying bird he activated the dimensional travel system in his armor. A flash of blue light and he was gone.
Gruff claps his talons and relights his lantern. “Now let's see what we can sell.” With a loud wack, Mona’s staff smacked across gruff’s head. “I told you before you bald buzzard no robbing my Ancestors! “
“Would one of you feather brains tell me what in Tartarus is going on?”
----------------
Latveria Gilda’s POV
Her head was hurting slowly and she opened her eyes. The first thing she took note of was she was bound to some kind of table. No, a bed that was moving? Four odd-looking Golems were carrying for the bed. “HELP!” She saw they entered a lab-like chamber. Similar to the lab Doom she knew had set up, and yet not.
A voice she remembers, but one she didn’t remember either. It was the same sound, same tone, but there was more… coldness to it? It was as if the owner of the voice didn’t even have any compassion at all. “Good you are awake. This will make it easier to interrogate you.”
She looks to the side seeing Doctor Doom walking alongside the bed. “Let me go, Please Doom. I don’t know how long I will be here, but I will be going home soon. It is a waste of time to hold me.”
“That’s Doctor Victor von Doom to your creature. Your cooperation is irrelevant.” They passed four sets of pillars. Doctor Doom looked down at Gilda “Besides you aren’t important, my prey has been following us since I captured you.” Louder “COMPUTER OPERATION DESTINY!”
The four pillars lit up and on the ceiling, an integrated magical circle formed of gold seems to start to glow, matched by another circle on the floor. A swirling vortex of mystical force formed and soon a screaming voice echoed as the trap caught its prey.
Discorded materialized in the center of the vortex. “What? There's no way I could be captured!” He banged on the spinning vortex of magic. “Impossible!”
“What is impossible is your belief I wouldn’t notice you.” With a wave of Doctor Doom’s hand monitors lit up. Some displaying Discord disguised as Strange. Others of him hiding on the plane. “I know Doctor Strange, I studied magic all my life. The spells you used as Doctor Strange were wrong, that's what tipped me off. Then I compared the voice of the anonymous tip to the face of Doctor Strange.”
Doctor Doom walked up to the vortex looking at the mismatched serpentine creature trapped within. “You told me about these two transdimensional entities. It was only logical to figure out you are a third.”
Gilda watched on in fear this Doctor Doom had captured Discord. Judging by the shock on Discord’s face as he kept trying to snap his way out of the vortex he was just as surprised and yes she saw fear on his face.
“Let me go you hairless ape!”
Doctor Doom went over and put on over his armor a harness like a device. “I might just do that. Once your power is mine!” He then reached over and pressed a button on the control panel. The vortex changed.
Gilda watched in horror as the golden circles started to glow white-hot and she could see the magical energy of Discord flow out of the Spirit of Chaos and into the four pillars. Then flow through the air into the harness device on Doom… no Doctor Doom’s chest. His eyes started glowing and he let out a laugh.
“BEHOLD! NONE SHALL STAND IN MY WAY! FOR THIS DAY AND FOREVER MORE DOCTOR DOOM IS A GOD!”
Gilda looks at Discord unconscious in the center of the device faded of color, just shades of gray. “Oh.. no… Doom save me… please.” Gilda once went to get help from Rainbow Dash, she thought that was the lowest feeling she could feel. Her most helpless, she was wrong. Strapped to a bed, in another universe, with a Discord empowered Doctor Doom laughing. She was now sure she couldn’t feel more helpless then now.
Chapter 16: Hans and the Smiling Monster of the Everfree.
After the fight everypony headed back into the foyer once they came up from the arena. Along the way the princesses had explained to Gar that they said he'd get, Twilight offered him the Everfree Forest as no pony regularly goes in it outside of the elements and a few others for certain plants. Due to the dangerous plants and fauna as well as the uncontrollable weather patterns, the land couldn't be developed anyways. He was already living there and was able to survive fairly easily, and if the Fairy King's title held, then the forest would listen to him.
"Are these terms acceptable to you, sir Gar?" Princess Celestia asked nervously.
"Very much so," Gar nodded as he returned to his Zebra form. "But, I have a request, specifically for you, Princess Luna."
"I will make it so if it is in my power," The Princess of the Night stepped up.
"I wish to use your observatory from time to time," Gar humbly bowed to the sock of everypony there. "Even though I do not know your skies, I would very much like to. Perhaps my skills as an astronomy major can still be put to use mapping the constellation of your night sky."
Princess Luna blushed heavily at his request as no pony had ever requested to study her night sky, let alone try and map out the images she saw in them. Though everypony thought she’d created the stars, she didn't, but she did help them shine down on the ponies at night, so they could be seen more clearly in the hopes that her subjects would also love the but of the sky.
Luna's bush only grew more at the way Gar had praised the stars, "A-ah... I see n-no harm in-n letting y-y-you use it f-from t-time to time Gar," She took a deep breath and calmed herself, steadying her speech, though her face remained thoroughly flushed. "I just hope you won't mind my company some time, it is my observatory after all."
"Not at all highness," Gar said as he returned to his monotone demeanor. "Now, I must rest. Is there a garden here? I feel as though I need to be surrounded by nature."
"I'll show you the way... that is if you don't mind," Fluttershy hovered in front of the mock zebra.
"You are more than acceptable, Fluttershy," Gar remarked flatly. "Lead the way, please."
Gar followed Fluttershy out to the gardens, where she began to introduce him to the animals. It didn't take long before Philomena joined in the fun, taking up a spot of the Fairy King's shoulder. He was right at home amongst the wildlife of the castle gardens and spent the rest of the day into the night there.
"Gar, it's getting kinda late," Fluttershy said in a soft sweet tone.
"Indeed it is," He looked up and saw the stars come out, "Magnificent. The nigh's here really do put the ones of my homeworld to shame."
"Would you mind telling me about your home," Fluttershy sat down next to the mock zebra. "What were the animals like there?"
"Much like the ones of this world, many of the same species, but we didn't have hydras, cockatrices, and many of the other magical creatures that you ponies have here. Most of the creatures here I refer to as magical are myths in my homeworld," Gar looked to the mare who was starry-eyed.
"It must be a wonderful place to live," Fluttershy smiled.
"In many places it was, but in many, it wasn't as well," Gar deadpanned. "The human race like ponies has its flaws, but I would say they are worse than ponies. Caught up in our negativity always at war with one another. Most not even realizing that we have so much in common but that it is our differences that connect us and could make us better as a whole. We are so against one another that instead of trying to understand one another that we'd rather just outright destroy it altogether."
"That's horrible," Fluttershy places her hands over her muzzle.
Gar took a deep breath and sighed. "Yes, humans are horrible creatures, but there are those amongst us that try to help and better others. My oldest brother was like that in many ways. Though he still was selfish in others. But he managed to balance his life. He helped others but also took time to pursue his selfishness, even using that selfishness to help others in ways."
"You loved your older brother, didn't you," She looked at him as he enjoyed the sky.
"I love both my brothers," He said outright. "I wish I could have been like them at times, but at the same time, I'm glad I'm not BECAUSE I wouldn't be me if I HAD been like them."
"You... the way you think is nice," Fluttershy shivered slightly. Out of nowhere the Baquias wrapped around her in the Emerald -Octo form. She didn't even flinch or shake. "Why did you..."
"You shivered from the cold, and the Octo will keep you warm while you remain out here," Gar stated. "And I thank you for your comment."
They stay outside for hours simply watching the stars until Fluttershy dozes off and gently falls against Gar. Most of the animals had already returned to their dens, and only a few of the nocturnals remained. Philomena had returned to her roost in Celestia's bedroom hours earlier. Gar decided it would be best for Fluttershy to sleep indoor to keep her from catching a cold, so he got up and walked into the castle.
Meanwhile, Princess Luna had just finished the last of her meetings and wrapped up Night Court and was heading down the hallway going through some paperwork. She was on her way to her room so she could see to her dream duties but wanted to stop in the kitchen for some hot cocoa on this brisk night. That and she anted a raspberry tart. Celestia loved her cakes a no pony touched them, but those only bold enough to know they could get away with, but no pony missed with the moon princess's tarts.
Luna soon came upon Gar in the hallway on the way to her room, and the poor creature was looking from side to side as he scratched his main. She then notices the mass of vine floating next to him and heard soft snoring from the bundle. Raising an eyebrow, she walked closer, and to her confusion, she saw Fluttershy snoring comfortably in the vine ball with a soft smile on her face.
"Ah... Sir Gar?" Luna said getting his attention
"Good evening Princess Luna," Gar turned around as he hovered over the ground.
"Call me Luna, you've more than earned that. Is there something I can help you with?" Luna asked curiously as to why Fluttershy was in his vine bundle. "And my I inquire as to why you have Ms. Fluttershy in your... spear vines?"
"I was originally using them to keep her warm outside. I didn't want her to get sick from the cool night air," Gar explained. "We were outside for some time, and she fell asleep. Again not wanting her to take ill, I brought her inside to put her to bed but soon got lost as I've never taken a tour of the castle."
"Ah, and the vines were already around her, and you didn't want to disturb the young one," Luna looked to the snoring pegasus. 'That looks like it would be quite comfortable. "Shall I show you to her room, and would you join me for some hot chocolate afterward?"
"Lead the way, your majesty," Gar did a humble bow and followed the lunar diarch.
In the sky, a flash of light and a figure came falling to the ground. Black in the body, he was just about 2 meters or 7 feet. His head was pale; almost egg white, no nose, mouth, eye, or ears, only a vague imprint of where his face should be. If anyone has seen or heard a description of the Slenderman, the falling figure was a reasonable replica. As he fell, tendrils spread out, forming web-like wings guiding his fall. “DISCORD IF I DIE I’M GOING TO KILL YOU!” It wasn’t enough as he was still falling too fast.
Meanwhile, in the castle, Luna had led Gar to Fluttershy’s room where he gently tucked the sleeping butter-yellow pegasus in using the Baquias. The duo had made their way through the halls of the castle again to Luna’s private observatory.
“You know you’re a lot more in touch with your emotions than you think Sir Gar,” Luna commented as she boiled some water for their hot chocolate.
“How so your highness?” Gar asked flatly as he looked at Luna’s equipment.
“It’s not in the way you speak but in the way you act around others,” Luna smiled. “Like just minutes ago with Fluttershy.”
“I do not understand,” Gar turned around. “I only did what made sense to do. Fluttershy was cold so I provide her with the means to keep her warm, and she fell asleep so I brought to her room where she would sleep better.”
Luna let out a soft giggle and looked at him with a warm smile. “That may be true but not many would try to do it on their own at first and then ask for help. I am only stating what I have observed from you, Sir Gar. You have helped the Elements, Cadence, myself, and my sister greatly in your time here. Our citizens still have the makeshift flag of your face waving in the place they put it during the revolt. Even the nobles that were here refuse the others that weren’t in the city at the time of the invasion to have it taken down. You are a beacon of hope for our ponies.”
“Hmm…” Gar looked out through Luna’s balcony.
“Coco is done,” Luna brought a tray over. “All I‘m saying is keep doing what you’ve been doing and thank you for all you’ve done.”
Gar nodded silently and then perked up as he heard something on the wind as well as smell a new scent, a scent he didn’t recognize and not from this world.
Unable to correct his flight he crashes into the ground, if he was still human he would have a few broken bones. Being a magical constructed being he didn’t have the bones to break. Soon after the wings withdraw reforming into his body and slowly stand up, groaning. “Okay, that's a crash worthy of Rainbow Dash.” He reaches back and removes a basketball-size robotic spider’s head. Sighing he spots a new dent in the metallic head.
“Alright, thank god there aren’t any hippos around.” He looks around trying to figure out what is going to happen next. Tilting his head up he saw the city of Canterlot, “Well, it’s Equestria. Might as well say hello to the Princesses.” Wings sprout from his back once again, they were webbed much like a Dragon’s or Bat’s all black like the rest of his body. This time he didn’t have the force of freefall to counteract his flight and he went up into the air.
Looking back he spotted Ponyville and Twilight Sparkle’s castle. “Ah, so it’s after Tirek... So either he cast me into the future or this is another version of Equestria.” His flight was wobbly at first but soon he got used to the rhythmic pattern of flapping his wings.
Luna looked over to see the Gar had drunk his coco and walked out onto the balcony. She noticed that Gar’s attention wasn't here but out in the distance in the sky instead of on the stars in the star in the sky.
“Sir Gar,” Luna tried to get him to look at her but he never showed any sign of turning his head. Luna pouted as she puffed out her cheeks.
“I can hear pouting, it's very unbecoming of a princess,” Gar said flatly. “I wasn’t ignoring you Princess but I caught the scent of something strange on the wind. It was brought here from over the top of Ponyville by the wind currents and it's getting stronger.”
“What could it be?” Luna looked out.
“I don’t know but I intend to find out. Basquias First configuration: Basquias,” Gar made a hand sign and his thorn necklace changed into his spear but at a much larger size than the when he’d used it in the underground arena.
This thoroughly shocked Luna, “How did it get so big?”
“I can control the size of my spear by how much magic I put into it but I can only manage two sizes at my current level of control. At this time, I need a ride as my flight skills also in need of a lot of work,” Gar aimed his spear in the direction that he picked the scent from with his hand while changing back into his true form.
Luna flew up and sat behind Gar wrapping her arms around him. “I’m coming too If this is a threat you’ll need help to face it. Especially, how after that fight with Blue left you drained.”
“Very well,” Gar said as they shot off the spear.
The normal sight of humans wasn’t what Hans had. The closest logical explanation was echolocation or using Dungeons and Dragons terms Detect Magic or Mage sight. In a world full of magic night and day was the same. Sure in the Marvel world he was limited magic wasn’t as pronounced as Equestria, but it was there. So seeing the coming bright spotlights of magic coming from the castle wasn’t hard for him to notice.
Being able to fly enough to hover wasn’t in his skill set so he started circling down to the base of the mountain where he once again messed up on the landing and crashed. “Okay, I will never call Rainbow Dash, Crash. Landing is harder than it looks.” Standing up he brushes himself off and retracts his wings.
Then he looks to the incoming figures “No guards, hmm so sure of yourselves Princesses?” With a tilt of his head, he focuses, “That’s not Celestia… wrong color… Luna my dear, who is your companion?”
“I smell him just ahead of us Princess,” Gar said with a bit of curiosity in his voice. Adjusting his eyes to better see at a distance he got a glimpse of what it was that they were going to meet.
“Hmmm….”
‘What is it?” Luna asked as she hung on. “Is it dangerous?”
“It can be,” Gar said flatly. “It appears to be a Displaced and he is a creature of horror stories from my homeworld known as Slender Man. Hopefully, he’s friendly. It appears he is waiting on us to get there, I will slow Basquias as best I can and then we jump off and fly to him the rest of the way ourselves.”
“I’ll follow your lead on this Sir Gar,” Luna agreed.
Gar nodded and slowed the giant spear till the wear about two hundred yards out and the duo jumped off the spear and with a flap of their wings started to fly on their power. The spear shrank down but hovered near its master as Gar and Luna flew down and met with the odd creature.
Looking up from the ground to the two figures “Well, given that you haven’t attacked me, Princess Luna, it's safe to assume I’m not on the Equestria of my origin.” He bows “Greetings Princess I am Hans, servant butler to his Royal Majesty Doctor Victor von Doom of Griffonstone.”
He then looked to the much larger Gar. “At first I thought you were Celestia, but the magic I can detect from you is far stronger than both Royal sisters combined. You are also quite… impressive physically. My meta knowledge doesn’t include anything like you. This is also encouraging because I can see that Princess Luna doesn’t see you as a threat. So the Princesses in this reality aren’t specialists.”
Looking back at Princess Luna “I humbly apologize intruding into Equestria territory. The Discord of my reality decided to remove me from his meddling and I ended up in your reality. For the time being may I have shelter until I find a means back to my Liege?”
“You may come with us to the castle,” Luna spoke up. “But you will remain at sir Gat’s side. A Displaced that was sent here by Discord is unnerving and an unknown factor.”
“I don’t sense any hostility from him, Princess,” Gar added. “I shall keep an eye on him at all times if it eases your mind.”
“Thank you Gar,” She looked over her shoulder. “I don’t think either my sister or I combined could handle a creature like him,” Her attention turned back to Hans. “Follow us. I will alert my sister to your presence. Perhaps our Discord could send you back.” They all went back to the castle as swiftly as they could.
He spread his wings and followed them to the castle. Once landing he withdrew his wings and looked to Gar. “Luna called you a Displaced… that was the second time I heard someone call me that. Truth is I still don’t fully understand, the other person rubbed me the wrong way so I mostly just stopped listening.”
“Then listen well for I will tell what Displaced are by also telling you a bit of who I was,” Gar said as he shrank down to his zebra form. Hans was surprised by this sudden change in shape. “I am Gar, though my real name is Garet Ferris and like yourself, I was once a normal human being,” Hans was even more shocked.
“When I was still human I bought a set of DVDs for the Anime Parasyte The Maximum and was here to this Equestria buy the shop owner, a man that wore different cosplay every day,” Gar said and Hans could hear a bit of irritation in his voice. “Those who are sent to an Equestria or another world like this in some manner come to be Dimensionally Misplaced or Displaced as we prefer to be called. We can summon other Displaced across the Void to our worlds by using what are called tokens,” Gar held up a hand, and from his body came an old spyglass.
“We use an object that we think will best represent us and will while thinking of a saying then send the token out across the Void to other worlds so other Displaced can find it and call upon us,” Gar gave Hans the spyglass as the trio walked into the throne room.
“You stay here with our friend,” Luna looked at Hans, Gar nodded. “I will fetch the others.” She walked away leaving the Displaced to speak.
“What is the point in summoning others like us?” Hans asked intrigued, also excited to let Doom know of this.
“Point, there is no one point in summoning another Displaced,” Gar said flatly. “The point is that we simply do it for our reasons. In the process, we can also grow stronger as Displaced by sharing our power if we choose.”
“I wouldn’t lie that news would be problematic if Doctor Doom found out. He has the problems of his comic book counterpart, I fear he would follow the comic version and chase power if given the option.” He takes the spyglass and looks it over. “I’m not quite a Displaced, or I am. It’s confusing but I believe I've figured it out.”
He set the spyglass to his leg and it got absorbed into his thigh. “I do not know the Anime you spoke of, however, it seems who or what does this displacement takes inspiration from something we have when displaced. I created a replica of Doctor Doom armor for cosplay. Then I saw an Infinity Gauntlet for sale and bought it. When it arrived I got dressed for some photos. Next thing I was a voice in the back of Doctor Doom’s mind.”
“Do you know about the Doom armor? If someone other than Victor von Doom wears the armor it rewrites the person’s mind to believe they are Victor von Doom. So if whatever Displaced me made the armor real it started to rewrite my mind. At the same time, I had the mind stone from the Infinity Gauntlet protecting my mind. That makes sense the Mind stone protected me and the Doom armor was rewriting my mind. I’m a copy of the man that was Displaced, saved via the Mind Stone. Victor von Doom or my original body created this form to house my mind.”
He draws a card from his chest as if there was a suit pocket there. On the black card with silver writing. Hans von Doom, Battle Butler “So I inject some of my power into this token? Hmm,” He held up the card “I am Hans von Doom, the right hand of his majesty Doctor Victor von Doom. I seek not wealth, power, or heroism. I serve my Lord and my lord alone, and am willing to hear your offer for his benefit.” He then flicks the card and it vanishes into the multiverse. He then creates a second card token and hands it to Gar.
“It seems you landed in a much better Equestria then I did. The one we arrived at Prince Blueblood is a drug dealer, and had the Griffons growing Dream Weed, basically a form of Opium. Doctor Doom used the Infinity Gauntlet to reset the Sun and Moon into proper gravitational orbits, and Celestia went berserk and fired a magical blast that would have killed a group of Griffons if Doom didn’t teleport her away.”
“Right now we are preparing to invade Equestria, to help them when the Changelings are due to invade during the Royal Wedding. I can tell you already had that happen thanks to Twilight’s Castle in Ponyville. So has she opened her School of friendship yet?”
"No," Gar said plainly. "And I appreciate that offer but I must decline. I only wish to live in Everfree and be with my friends when they need me. I am soon to be knighted and granted authority over the forest," Gar sighed. "I can feel something off about this world since my return as the Fairy King. I gained demon power and fairy power last time I was summoned since then my connection with nature has been stronger. This world, many are descended from demons, and few from the clan of light, or goddess clan.” Gar paused to form a moment, wondering how he knew the last bit of information that he spoke of. ‘I must consult Zeldris on this.’ Gar thought as the Princesses arrived with the Elements.
"What the hay is that?" Rainbow Dash said abruptly.
"I don't know but I love its clothes," Rarity giggled.
"I've never seen a creature like you before," Fluttershy said in soft confidence getting close to Hans.
"Ya sure are spindly lookin’ thing aren't ya,' '' Applejack crossed her arms with a look of concern. "Do they feed ya at all where ya come from?"
Turning he spots the four. He makes a bow “Greetings and Salutations I am Hans von Doom. A pleasure meeting you.” Standing fully he nods to Applejack “I do fear that I haven’t been able to enjoy the pleasure of a proper apple from Sweet Apple Acres. I do not eat material foods so that one treat that I will not enjoy. I do however live off of the ambient magic for I am a magical creature known as a Slenderman or a noppera-bō a faceless spirit from Japan in my world Rainbow Dash.” -- He looks to Rarity “I am honored you approved of my butler tux, not often am I complemented by a lady of such refined taste.”
“I am very honored you aren’t afraid of me Fluttershy.”
“Excuse me,” I heard Twilight speak up, Hans already noticed that she had a quill and scroll float next to her and sparkles in her eyes. “Are you another Displaced like Gar, and what exactly are you?”
“No offense dude, but you look like something out of a nightmare, a really, really, scary horror story,” Spike finally cut in.
Suddenly Pinkie Pie popped up out of Hans’s left top jacket pocket. “Too bad you don’t eat like regular ponies, oh do you like parties?” She said with a gigantic smile.
“Please one questioner at a time. Alright Twilight, yes I'm still trying to figure out what I am. My best theory is I am a mental copy of a Displaced. He now goes by the name of Victor von Doom and he forgot who he was. I am the memories that were saved, and those are patchwork at best.”
“Yes, spike I do look like a monster of horror. Then again can you say Gar true form isn’t scary? Appearance is not a reflection of what is inside. A sweet innocent-looking filly could be a twisted villain. If this reality follows the one I know of you knows this personally thanks to a Changeling named Thorax, is that correct?”
“Now Pinkie I can’t say I like or dislike parties. As I said my memories are a patchwork. I remember trying to paint, draw, and make clay figures. I remember making outfits and costumes and even got awards for such work.” He looked to Rarity “I’m no fashion stylist, it was just costumes for contests.”
“So that brings me to the parties, I went to comic cons, similar to a Daring Do Convention but for comic books.” He looks to Spike “If I have to stay here long enough I would love to read one of your Power Ponies comics.”
“So back to the party thing. No, I haven’t done parties like a Pinkie Pie party. Or at least can’t remember.”
"Urm…" Celestia cleared her throat, "All good question my little ponies but I'm afraid I must interrupt for the important one." Celesia looked at Hans. "Hoe is it that you came to be in our reality Mr.Hans? Luna mentioned in passing that you'd said something about Discord sending you here? As well as something about sock puppets?"
Everyone looked at Hans with raised eyebrows.
“Ah, yes please forgive me, Princess Celestia. The Equestria I ended up in is very similar to yours. One difference is time. Discord had just escaped his Stone prison and caused some trouble for us. To separate me and my friends he sent me through a few realities and I landed in this one. As for sock puppets… wait did you have a Grand galloping gala where Discord showed up with a Smooze as his plus one? Or am I remembering events wrong? I am aware of more than ten different versions of Equestria. Some are farther in time than others, some are way back a thousand years ago. Events do get confusing, for example, the Prince Blueblood from my Equestria was growing a drug in Griffonstone called Dream Weed. In another, he had a stroke and became a kind and humble prince. Sorry, I’m rambling the sock puppet was in another universe that a Discord was going to banish Treehugger to when he was jealous Fluttershy took her to the Gala. I’m guessing that didn’t happen here.”
“We are familiar with the Smooze and its globy self,” Luna huffed. “And except for having to clean up slime that night went rather well.”
“Discord was a little jealous but not enough to banish Tree,” Fluttershy cut in.
“I remember sending an extra ticket to you,” Celestia added. “I’m very glad I did now.”
“And that news on your version of Blueblood is appalling,” Rarity said in outright disgust.
“Well, I mean if there are several versions of Equestria out there then it would only make sense that there are several versions of us and other ponies we know in them,” Twilight pointed out. “There may be somewhere the princesses are princes, or one may be a prince while the other is a princess,” She remarked causing the princesses to blush slightly.
“Can we get back on topic, “ Gar deadpanned.
“Yes,” Princess Celestia agreed, especially wanting to change the subject. She looked at Fluttershy. “Would you please ask Discord to come?”
“Discord, we need some help, please,” Fluttershy called. That is if you wouldn’t mind.”
There was a sound of trumpets and then a roll of red carpet pushed open the doors. Soon a spotlight shined and in walked a man who looked to be in his late thirties walked in. He had spiked white hair and very bush eyes and a gnarly chin beard with a singular fang stick out of his mouth. His attire was of a sand brown dovetail coat with a lighter brown vest underneath, black suede wingtip shoes, and a pair of brown plaid pants. On his right arms was a heavy golden gauntlet and on his left hand was a single white glove. A sign that said applause in fluorescent light flashed.
“You rang my dear,” he popped over to Fluttershy then looked at Hans and Gar. “Oooo…. I smell chaos!” He pooped over to Hans. “You’ve had a bit of a mess happen to you my spindly butler of a horror show haven’t you.” Discord learned at a right angle and looked at Gar. “Been a while since I’ve seen a high-level purebred demon but that’s not all you are is it King of the Everfree.”
“What do you mean?” Gar raised an eyebrow.
“Well,” Discord walked over and leaned on Gar’s massive form. “Fairies domain is nature and Everfree is a natural place, not even my chaos magic can affect it, and seeing as how you have the power Disaster, a power only given to the King of Fairies. It would only make sense that you take up the seat of power where nature is the most prevalent in Equestria.”
“Hold up there Discord,” Applejack cut in. “Are ya saying that the Everfree is wild and uncontrolled like it because it’s supposed to be like that? And what do you mean ya can’t affect it? What about those plunder seeds ya’ll planted?”
“Things in nature happen because they happen. It’s just like chaos. Nature does what it wants and it has to happen, no stopping it,” Discord explained on a chalkboard, then a doodle of him popped up. “Yes I can help out and put things like plunder seeds in the cycle but I still have no say so if they’ll grow or when they grow. Nature in itself also causes its form of chaos, which is why I can’t affect it. “ Doodlecord walked around the chalkboard. “Everfree is a prime example of nature at its truest. It does whatever it does and it can’t be stopped. You ponies think all this weather and farming you do has always been that way, Eeeennnn,” a busser noise sounded. “Wrong, nature just made it so you could do this. Just like how my kind was made to spread chaos. Nature does whatever and be it order or chaos, that’s for nature to decide. Which is why I affect Everfree. It’s to… natural.” Discord pouted then turned to Hans. “But back to you. Tell me about yourself?”
“Well said Discord. In my Equestria, the Everfree was left free for a reason. Hence the very name ever free of Pony manipulation, a heart of nature when the world was dying.”
“As for myself, not sure what you want to know. I’m from a different reality, one where that Discord hasn’t learned what it means to be a friend. He thinks he’s helping my liege Victor von Doom.”
“I must warn you, my little horror show,” Discord pulled out a pair of glasses and unrolled a large scroll. “We Discords, we’re not supposed to meddle with the chaos of each others’ worlds. Though you ended up here by chance but still on chaos power so that technically falls outside the Treaty of NON-OUTWORLDLY INTERFERENCE. He is clearly in the wrong in this and I would be all too happy to get back at him by sending you back,” He chuckled like ‘Goof’.
“Well, chaos theory states the first rule of Chaos is that it follows no rules, including its own. So it is only logical that a Discord somewhere wouldn’t follow that treaty. Given how Blueblood was into manufacturing drugs, and Celestia was willing to fire a blast of magic that would have killed several Griffons, I conclude the Equestria I came from is not as law-abiding as this one. Now to be a devil's advocate given I’m Displaced and don’t originally reside in that other Equestria does that Non-out worldly interference treaty count entities like myself and sir Gar here?”
“On top of that I wasn’t in that Equestria when he sent me here but in a third reality one where comic book characters are real. He was also impersonating or possessing one of those figures, one who is a great mage the Sorcerer Supreme. So one has to wonder if that Treaty counts using magic or a being of another reality?”
"Oh my, he has been a naughty boy about this," Discord took off his glasses and started to snack on them. "One mishap now and then is alright, we're beings of pure chaos and don't stick to rulebooks after all. The treaty is more of a guideline than anything. You Displaced are more outliers than anything. We can affect and mess around with you but we can't outright kill you. The last thing any Discord wants is a Merchant or Displacer on our tails. Don't even get me started on the Void Dwellers. Biggest pains in the backside you'll ever come across, yeesh." Discord rolled up the scroll and it vanished. "Long story short, we can mess around and maim you but not kill you. But it still counts against him as he did follow you and continue to meddle. If there is a point of some kind then nothing can be done. Though we are in chaos, we still have to have a reason, especially when it comes to Displaced."
“Hmm, then I have to believe my theory is correct. The reason he did mess with me is I’m not a true Displaced. That would explain why Gilda and I were targeted, but Victor von Doom wasn’t sent to the Marvel universe as well. He is bending the treaty, but not truthfully breaking it. Because I’m not a Displaced, I’m a mental clone. He messes with Doom who is the true physical Displaced, the man whose mind was reprogrammed. I didn’t create Doom, in some subconscious way Victor von Doom used the Infinity Stones to recreate the original mind the Doom armor overwrote. I have to accept the idea I am not the creator, I am the creation. Hans von Doom, son of Doctor Doom.”
“A very interesting view on things to say the least,” Gar said in his casual tone. “But this still leaves us with the issue of you being in this world without being summoned. Normally, after we’d be done with whatever it was I’d summoned you for I'd end our contract by saying ‘our business is done.’ or something along with those premises, and then a portal would form back to your homeworld to which you would return through. As you were forced here, there is no contract to end, and therefore, no way to send you back through normal Displaced means. We must have Discord send you back.”
“Um, Gar,” Twilight interrupted. “What about your oldest brother? You said he saw you while passing in the Void while you were summoned and how he opened a portal on his own. Then you mention he told Zeldris how his token can be used to call other Displaced that found it,” She flipped through her notes.
"Last time I encountered my older brother I got the feeling he wasn't a Displaced you want to mess with Twilight," Gar said flatly. "He's still very kind but at the same time, he's very dangerous. I'd rather not pull him here to deal with my problems, no offense." He looked at Hans. "Or get any of you involved any more than necessary."
“I’m more here as a time out than a real issue that needs to be addressed right away. This body was created to combat magical forces, it’s unique so I’m sure Doctor Doom could find me once he knows what dimension I am in. One thing I understand is that Discord rarely lies, he might trick and manipulate but telling a full untruth is rare. Something I approved of, a weak mind resorts to lies, and I never heard of a dumb Discord in all the variations of Equestria I know of.”
Somewhere in the Griffon lands
A sphere of blue energy appears high above the land. In the center, a figure manifests dressed in full armor with a green cloak. Doctor Doom has arrived in the universe. He looks into the west “Equestria again… they better not have harmed Hans.” Doom then starts flying at a max speed reaching Mach 2.
Meanwhile in Canterlot everypony was still discussing how to send Hans back to his world. Gar's ears picked up the sound of an object moving incredibly fast and making a b-line straight for the castle. He didn't know what it was but he knew it didn't belong here and is reeked of hostility and killing intent.
Zecora and Tempest noticed Gar was siding on the air of caution much like he did before he prepared for a fight or when he went hunting.
"Gar, what's wrong?" Zercora asked with worry.
Suddenly the Basquias flew to its master's side. "Get back and stay with everyone else. It'll be here in under a minute." He gave a grinning scowl at the doorway.
The sound of a sonic boom erupted above the castle as Doctor Doom came to a stop. “EQUESTRIANS! Release Hans or suffer the wrath of Doom!” His voice was amplified via his armor he hovered over the Castle courtyard in full might.
Inside Hans facepalms “Speaking of Doctor Doom.” He turns and heads to the balcony “My Liege I am not being held against my will. These Equestrians are not like the ones from the other reality!”
“I shall be the judge of that.” Doom lowered down no doubt the royal guards were up in arms at his sudden arrival.
"Tell them to stand down right now, or they'll be dead in less than a second," Gar advised while all Princesses nodded.
"Everypony is to stand down, NOW!" Luna ordered and the guards looked at another then to the Princesses who scowled causing them to obey.
"Gar, please be careful," Zecora looked at her friend but he didn't return her gaze but instead patted her head and walked forward.
Gar now stood in front of Doom, the Doctor mildly intrigued by his form. "Doctor Doom, I must ask you to cease your hostilities against my friends. We have done nothing to harm Hans, we were currently conducting a meeting on how we might send him home," Gar explained in his monotone voice. "Forgive me for my late introduction. I am Gar, soon to be Knight of Equestria, Smiling Monster of the Everfree Forest, Vanquisher of the Storm King, and Fairy King."
“I see Hans speaks true. The Equestrians of this reality aren’t as specist as the ones I’m familiar with if they accept an entity such as you among their numbers.” He looks to the balcony and Princess Luna. “It is rare for Doctor Doom to apologize. This is one of those moments, I offer my apologies for scaring your civilians.”
Hans nods noting how Doctor Doom was developing as a character. “I was here just a short time my Liege, I was accepted with friendly treatments.”
Doctor Doom then looks to Gar “You are not in my knowledge of Equestria your majesty. Let us land and converse, I've been under stress this past month.”
“Month? It only took a few hours at most for me.” Hans reached up and rubbed his chin.
“Hans, not all realities have the same time scale. As of now I only found two of the accent griffon dens. Discord has hidden answers to your and Gilda’s location in two of them, and other prizes in the others.”
A blur of cyan and rainbow color and Rainbow Dash was hovering in front of Doom. “Whoa whoa, Gilda in trouble? TWILIGHT POOF US OVER THERE RIGHT NOW! No one messes with a friend of Rainbow Dash!”
“Rainbow! That Gilda isn’t even the one we know. She belongs to that other universe.” Twilight calls out.
“It doesn’t matter if a friend of mine is in trouble I’m going to help no matter what universe.”
"Even if Twilight had that power at her disposal we have no right to interfere with another world unless invited there Rainbow," Gar cut in. "You ponies are not allowed to cross-dimensions willingly unless forced or you have the power. Even I can't force my way to other worlds. There are Displaced that can, like my brother, but at this time I must be summoned, but," he turned to Doom. "If you allow us passage to and back from your world we'd be more than willing to help. I can't offer much in payment as I can't grant abilities, though perhaps a sample of my flesh would help in your medical studies."
Hans looked over to Gar “Is that true? My Meta knowledge has info about a mirror portal to an Earth-like reality with Equestrian human counterparts. It was also the reality where Star Swirl sent the Sirens. If that mirror was here I’m sure my Liege knows how to modify it to transport to multiple realities with just a change of settings.”
“That depends on how the Mirror portal functions. My armor has transdimensional tech integrated already all I need is the dimensional quantum signature to transport. It would be possible to build a dimensional gate, that was my goal once I find my home reality again.”
Hans was glad he didn’t have a face or else he would have shown his feelings. He looks at Gar “Sir Gar, I fear that Doctor Doom still hasn’t learned the nature of a Displaced.”
Doom narrowed his eyes “Explain yourself, Hans.”
Hans looks over and sighs “Victor von Doom, what happens when someone, not Victor von Doom puts on the Doom armor?”
“The equipment overwrites the person’s mind. My armor is my own!”
Hans shakes his head “Can you check to see if such a system was used?”
It took just a thought. A simple request mentally to the onboard systems. Then it was a clear sign that he saw the truth as he staggers as he lands on the balcony. “No… It can’t be.”
“I’m sorry my liege, that's why you couldn’t return to Earth 616. You aren’t from Earth 616 that armor was created by magic by some being like a Beyonder made it real. It overwrote your mind, but the infinity mind stone saved the original mind. My mind, that's why when you tried to use the mind stone to banish the intruding mind. It attacked you giving you that headache.”
"You are like me, a Displaced," Gar explained flatly. "Someone who bought an item from an unknown being and was sent across the gap in between worlds, some call it the Void, to a new world with new powers to live a new life. We can summon others like us by finding tokens, items attached to us sent across the multiverse. You are only the third encounter of a Displaced for me. The other being a demon who summoned me and the second being my oldest brother. He can travel to other worlds willingly, I must warn you Doctor Displacement, will shatter what you know of realities."
“Your majesty, if I may. This is a good thing it gives you an advantage the Doom of other realities doesn’t have.” Hans speaks up seeing that Doom’s anger was on the boiling point.
“What advantage does being a cheap copy have to me.”
“You can be the hero you desire to be. Doctor Doom saved Latveria, you saved Griffonstone. You will not face the heroes of Earth 616 as you expand your empire across the globe.”
“I need to sit down and plan. Worrying about the nature of my existence will not rescue Gilda.”
“My liege, the situation is worse than you fear. The reality I and Gilda were in before I was sent here… it’s a reality with a Doctor Doom. He is seeking out Gilda.”
“Hans thou has poor timing. Give Doom time to recover from his shock before delivering another blow.” Princess Luna spoke up. “Doctor Doom was it? Come and sit and calm your mind.”
Doom moved to a seat and sat down. “My original plan was to use the abundance of magic to take over Earth 616. If my counterpart has learned of Gilda origins then his plan will be similar. He will perform tests to find her quantum signature then use his dimensional transportation equipment to reach the Equestria she belongs to.”
"Why do things the way the old Dr. Doom would?" Gar cut in. "Why not be better than him? You were given a chance to walk down your path, why not do it. My oldest brother had a saying, 'Red hands are idle for the black deeds that are of the devil's work. Though they fuel my resolve for I know they must be done, the trophies seemed like stone and sink like stones rotting in the halls of Davy Jones'."
“Of course there is also the fact Doctor Doom failed. You Haven’t, there are no Fantastic Four in your history. There are no Squirrel girls.”
“Do not mention that name… Fine, I stop focusing on my identity. For now, there is still the issue of Gilda being held by an original Victor von Doom.” He looks to the Equestrians. “I noticed Princess Twilight’s castle, that means you fought Tirek, now Imagine a Tirek that has advanced technology, and has the intellect to not let him become a muscle-bound moron trying to destroy everything. Doom will not be lost in a power high.”
He looks to Twilight Sparkle “Have you traveled to the world of the Humans? Canterlot High?”
"Yes I have, but we can't reconfigure that mirror. It's tied to that reality with a spell and if we reconfigure it then we'll lose that connection and never get it back," Twilight explained.
"I'm sorry Doctor but that's a risk I'm not willing to take," Celestia spoke up. "We can provide you with all of Starswirl's notes, designs, plans, and journals as well as whatever materials you'll need. You can also examine and scan the older portal but I don't want it tinkered or tampered with in any way. For the sake of my former student and adopted daughter."
“I can do that Princess Celestia. Working on a project is one way I handle stress, something me and Tony Stark have in common. Having to build a dimensional portal from scratch will take time.”
“Sir what about our reality? If this Equestria time is slower than the reality we are from… it will be months or years before we get back.” Hans spoke up with a bit of worry.
“You are forgetting Hans my armor does have temporal travel as well. It will drain the armor's power, but we can return just a few moments after I left.” He looks to Celestia “Lead the way your Majesty to where I can build this device. Security should be a high priority, I know you have a habit of leaving highly dangerous artifacts in easily to get locations. Like a stone statue of Discord in the garden, or a book of dark magic in the ruins of the castle of the two sisters.”
Hans coughed “If those events happened in this reality.”
“You are correct Hans I am assuming those events happen in this reality.”
The lab was a chamber deep in Princess Twilight’s castle, equipment was set aside; many machines weren’t even invented two months ago when Doctor Doom started working on the new dimensional gateway.
Blackboards filled with equations spanned the room. In one corner Twilight was snoring among notes and scrolls having finally fallen asleep after trying to record the equations.
Doctor Doom thanks to his armor still was awake after working 30 hours. “Sire… even you can’t go much longer without sleep. You have been working on this for two months, a night rest will not change things. You said it yourself we can use the time travel equipment in your armor. Please go rest.”
“Hans I am in the middle of the final assembly. This is very delicate work, any mistake could cause the portal to be unstable.”
“Statistical odds of those mistakes increase by lack of rest. Sire please I know your brilliance, but you are only human. Remember it was rushing things that led that other Doom to ignore Reed Richards when he said there was an error.”
“Hans I have come to accept that the man in this Armor isn’t Victor von Doom, but my mind is… be careful not to anger me.”
“Forgive me my liege, however being your butler it is in my duties to look out for your well being. That includes making sure you get your rest.”
Doom set down the soldering iron and sighed. “It is true that we still have time to spare. Very well Hans I will go to sleep.” Doctor doom noted Twilight Sparkle. “Make sure the Princess gets some sleep as well.”
“Spike and I shall get her to bed as well my liege.” Hans looks over to Spike as Doom headed for the bedroom he was sleeping in. “Shall we?”
“Sure, Remember to get the ink well away from her, before we wake. Last time I woke her after a binge of note-taking she splattered ink all over the basement… in the Golden Oaks that is.”
Spike poked the sleeping Twilight. “AGH!!! Spike don’t scare me like that.”
“You were drooling on your notes again.”
“What! Oh... it's not that bad. Spike! Amazingly, Victor broke Starswirl’s ninth law of dimensional dynamics!”
“Forgive me Princess please explain,” Hans asks internally, smiling at the display of Twilight having a Nerdgasm.
“Oh... Hello Hans. Okay, Star Swirls’ ninth law of Dimensional Travel states the realities circle through various vibrations only when two dimensions are in rhythm or synced with each other can dimensional travel is possible. When dimensional travel is tried without syncing it leads to a limbo a timeless void. This is why the Mirror Portal only functioned normally every 30 moons. The rest of the time the realities are out of sync. Using the journals we artificially sync the portal to the other reality. That’s only possible because the two journals are permanently in sync, and only because one is on both sides of the portal.”
“Twilight breath!” Spike calls out catching Twilight right before she hyperventilates.
“Thanks, Spike. So because we can sync the portals with the Journal we can travel when I put the Journal here on the pedestal. The journal acts as an anchor keeping the portal stable for travel. I think that how the Tokens work as well they act as an anchor for dimensional travel when a Displaced is summoned. Thought that just a theory Gar hasn’t let me study the token he has. Doom’s Dimensional technology accounts for the out of sync rhythm! So as the dimensional traveler goes through his gate they are automatically synced to the target reality! No need to anchor the portal at all DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS! Safe dimensional travel any time, anywhere! Well if we know where to go… still need the reality quantum signature before you can travel at all.”
Spike rubbed his ears. “Twilight… get some rest if I was hearing Doctor Doom right the gateway will be ready to test tomorrow. You want to be wide awake for that.”
“Oh… yeah… sorry for yelling in your ear Spike.” Twilight yawns and walks off.
Hans looks at Spike, “What would they do without us, Spike?”
“Most likely pass out in the middle of some endeavor and either blow themselves up or turn into some superpowered mad scientist from a comic book.”
“Too late, that's what Doctor Doom already is. Let's hurry up, I want to get one last game of Ogres & Oubliettes in before me and Doom head home.”
The Next Day
Gar walked through Ponyville in his true form. Thanks to the knighting ceremony, his heroics in Canterlot, and his time spent training with Captain Blueblood the last two months he’d become a regular figure in the eyes of the public and no longer required his zebra disguise to move around. Though this did not stop him from using from time to time as he did put some work into making this form.
It was well known that Gar was the new lord and king of the Everfree Forrest and in his time as the new king of the forest, it had seemed to calm down quite a bit. Most ponies were still afraid to go into the forest but those that were more familiar with Everfree actually found spending time there was much more pleasant as most beasts would leave them be and would only approach to investigate what they were doing.
Gar had learned much in his time training with the Prince Captain and the two grew to greatly respect one another, though they did butt heads on methods here and there. Gar had also learned a great amount of magic control under the tutelage of Princess Luna. The two would often spend some together most nights studying the stars and constellations. Princess Celestia helped Gar learn about the different demon blooded races of the land on some occasions. Gar still spent most of his time in the forest, mainly helping Zecora or the forest itself.
One day he followed a voice in his head that led him to the ancient castle where Celestia and Luna once ruled. He followed the directions until he found a seed glowing with the same colors at his wings. Gar couldn’t explain it but he had the urge to plant this seed in the very center of the Everfree, so he did. In the short span of two months, the seed grew into a massive tree/ Though one can’t see it unless the mist that surrounds it allows, even if you entered the forest itself.
Gar walked along and soon came upon Twilight’s castle. Not wanting to be rude, he knocked.
“Gar,” Spike answered the door with a yawn.
“Did I wake you?” Gar asked unemotionally.
“AWWWW! Yeah,” He rubbed his eyes.
“Another late night with Hans, Discord, and Big Mac,” Gar said flatly as he did find the game the three enjoyable when he did play, but find staying up late was night ideal for him.
“Yea, you should join in more often,” Spike stretched. “I’ll wake Hans. Doom and Twi will want breakfast as soon as they come down, then they’ll be back at that portal.”
The little dragon walked over to the slender-man butler and slightly shook him but got no response. “Guess he ate too much of Chaos magic again. I’ll try again after I get Twi up.”
“Allow me,” Gar said as a red rose grew from his thorned necklace. He plucked it and blew the petals over the sleeping Pony and Butler. The two suddenly shot up wide awake.
“Woah, what you do?” Spike looked at the smiling monster king.
“Just a bit of floramancy to invigorate our friends,” Gar said. “I simply infused the erose with a bit of magic and had it give them a quick wake up call by transferring its photosynthetic energy to them.”
“Wha-” Spike tilted his head.
“I gave them a shot of coffee straight to their bodies,” Gar remarked flatly.
Hans rose and held his head “Discord’s magic way too much like alcohol... complete with hangovers.”
"It would be best if you got moving," Gar said in an apathetic tone of voice. "The spell will continue to reinvigorate you and help with any hangover, but you must move to work it through your system. Doctor Doom will also want to get back to work as soon as possible, so he will need to be woken and fed."
Standing up he nods “Indeed the gate is almost finished, we should be able to return home soon.” A ripple of shadow seems to flow over him straightening his appearance that of his prim and proper butler. “I shall awake my liege.”
“That wouldn’t be necessary Hans. I was awake for the past hour. Having breakfast before I return to work is desirable. It seems I will have to devise a way to import Sweet Apple Acres apples to Griffonstone.” Doctor Doom spoke up walking into the room.
“Yes, my liege I shall go prepare a meal right away.” Hans headed for the Castles kitchen.
Doom then looked to Gar “I have devised a means of attack. When Hans and I return it will be months or perhaps a year from the time I left. Once I arrive in our home universe, my temporal other-self will send me a message where the other Dens are, and what is within. This would cause a paradox because it’s information I would gain through the normal course of events.”
“Then Hans and I will time travel back to when I left. With the other’s of my party, we will head to the Den where I find the quantum address of the universe she’s in. Once I’m in that… What did Hans call it? Marvel universe I will send you a message via the Dimensional gate giving you the address to that universe.”
“A direct battle between me and him will be a stalemate, however, he will have a movie I can’t counter, that will be threatening Gilda’s life. It is a move he would see as cowardly, but when there are no other options he will take it. This is where I request your assistance if you remove that option during my confrontation with that other Doom. Gilda’s life will not be threatened.”
He looked around then more softly “Please, I found that she is important to me. Only one other person came to this close, Valeria. I killed her… no the real me killed her. The Doom my mind is modeled from killed her for mystical armor he eventually lost. It seems I have the conscience he lost. I don’t want to think about what I would become if I lose Gilda. He will not hesitate if he thinks it will give him an advantage.”
“I will help you, Doctor,” Gar placed a large hand on Doom's shoulder. “I know that pain of losing someone. Though I know now my older brother is alive, that still does not undo the pain I felt and feel. I also can not stand for your Griffinstone to continue without nature to give life there. I will come, and he will die.”
“Killing isn’t the goal. Saving Gilda is, we will have to delete any data he collected on her as well. It seems universes bunch together in clusters. We are in the Equestria cluster; the realities are variations on the Ponies universe. Jumping to another cluster needs, even more, fine-tune alignment. He wouldn’t be able to arrive in any Equestria universe if he didn’t have a sample of our quantum signature. In more simple terms it's like finding a needle in a haystack in a field in another country without even knowing what kind of needle. Now let's get some food before Pinkie Pie arrives and tops everything with frosting.”
"Indeed," Gar agreed as the pair marched along. "Any estimation on when the portal will be done?"
“Two hours. Then we can test the token system that will let you know how many universes your token has reached and the quantum address of those signatures. That would include any token you placed on the pedestal. Speaking of which.”
Doom took off his face mask revealing that scared face. “I am Victor von Doom, Sovereign ruler of Griffonstone, World Equestria-16497/23. Don’t bother me unless you have no choice.” He then pushed the mask into the multiverses creating his token.
He looked over to Gar. “I’m sure you are wondering why I knew about the tokens. Hans hasn’t realized that we still have a mental connection. When he was getting drunk off of Discord’s power I was absorbing his memories of his time separated from me. He also would just return to my mind if he died.”
"I figured that you two might share a link of some form," Gar said flatly. "You two are technically the same being, and I theorize that Hans is not a mental clone by the remnants of your original mind from your time as a normal human." He explained. "That is on a theory of mine of course. I was never one for the belief in gods, but since becoming Displaced I have had to be much more open to things. Perhaps whoever sent you across the Void didn't want you to ever be truly alone as many Dooms are. I am still coming to terms with my Displacement. I still have my emotions inhibited, though I still feel. Especially the urge to protect Twilight, her friends, my frIends, the forest, and the princesses. This was something that I never had before, a will to protect. It may seem silly to one such as yourself, Doctor but it also seems that I was given a purpose that I severely lacked in my old life. I think most Displaced are sent to attain or achieve something along these lines. What are your thoughts on this matter Doctor?"
“That assumes that all Displaced have a desire to defend or protect. It might be more than the Displaced have a desire to do something, the desire to take action be it good or ill. For example, the ponies of… my universe aren’t as cooperative as yours. I have been investigating them via spies and just general knowledge. Not evil the world me and Hans arrived at are more shades of grays. Hans has pointed out Celestia tends to be afraid to use her full power; out of fear of collateral damage, for example. The one I faced showed no such hindrance, she was willing to blast me even though there was a group of Griffons behind me. So what purpose would I and Hans represent? Hans had killed his own Father by using potassium to trigger a heart attack. I have memories of sacrificing the only human woman I could say I loved. It is more logical to see that those who become Displaced have a desire to be active, to do something, but lack the real power to be motivated. Many people have power in one way or another but choose to not be proactive, billionaires, politicians. The list goes on, the opposite is also true, some people desire to do something but lack the tools or understanding how to achieve their goal. We Displaced are given forms we see as powerful, we are given tools or abilities that we see are powerful.”
He looked at Gar in the face “When you were human were you feeling powerless, a deep desire to do something, even if it just punched someone in the face. A hunger to do more than just sit around and watch T.V. and be proactive but lack a true focus of that desire. There are many reasons for people to not do something, lack of power, lack of focus, or lack of desire. The girls as you say are your focus, the power you now possess is tied to the forest, the Princesses represent peace of this land so your drive makes sense in this reality. Did you feel like you had the power to do something effective in your old world? Did you feel you were able to change things? My guess is you felt helpless in that other world. A feeling of being adrift, no focus to drive your desire. I know Hans felt that feeling of being adrift, lost. Then he was turned into someone he admired. A man who sees what he wants and takes it, a man who refuses to sit back and feel helpless, a physical representation of power, me.”
"Hmm… '' Gar thought. "What you say about our kind is true from what I know. We Displaced can be heroes or villains if we choose, some even in between. In my homeworld, I was the youngest of three brothers and I was doted on more than my siblings. I was happy and many say I was the smart one and would go far. I wanted to be an astronomer but you are right, I had no real desires. I merely did the same things day in and out. As for my form, it had nothing to do with desire other than it was a show my brother suggested I watch at some point."
Later in the lab
Doom closes the panel. “That’s it the dimensional gate is finished.” He then went to a pedestal that was in front of a display. “Gar if you be so kind, place your Displaced token, or any token you have recovered on the pedestal. A list of realities will show up on the display, the top will be highlighted in blue that is the reality of origin. For example…” He takes off his face mask revealing his scarred and deformed face.
Then places it on the pedestal. A list appeared at the top revealing Equestria-16497/23. “The first is the planet of origin if known. Equestria, for worlds of our equestrian allies. Even if they call the planet Equis or some other variation. Next is the number address mine is 16497, followed by the slash and a second number.”
He removes his mask and puts it back on. “The second number is the multiversal cluster. I assigned the Equestria cluster the number 27. I had a long discussion with Hans about the possibility the stories and myths of Earth are all part of the Omniverse. In one cluster there are giant transforming robots, for example, another a Federation of Planets and Starfleet explore the alpha quadrant. I had assigned each a cluster number for easier classification.”
“Now this is very important Gar, dimensional travel to another cluster is extremely difficult. Far more than just normal dimensional travel. The gate has only enough power for one two way trip per ten years to another cluster. The computer system will assign new address numbers as it finds new realities.” He then picks up a dependent device. “This is your way back to this reality. When you go to another reality bring this with you, once you are ready to return open the case and press the button. It will activate the gate and bring you back.”
“I also included a temporal shift device, so no matter how long you spend in another reality you will return within 5 hours of your original departure. That five hours is needed for the gate to recharge.”
He looks to all gathered “Any questions?”
Pinkie Pie waves her hand “OH OH! Can you come next Nightmare Night? It will be so much fun if you scare the foals! They will love it!”
“No” Doom deadpanned.
“Awww… okey dokey!”
“Once you arrive on your side we’ll be ready here,” Gar said. “The girls have elements. Once you’re ready, use my token and summon us. This way we’ll have two escape routes if needed.”
“Hmm, contingency plan… I need to work on that. To have a fall back plan means you have some expectations of the first failing. That something my other self will never accept. Doctor Doom never fails, even when I can now see the memories and see I have, or should I say that other Doctor Doom has.”
He put his hand on Hans’s shoulder. “We will have to be outside, don’t want to materialize inside a wall. Till we meet again fare thee well.”
Hans bows “Till next time my friends” The two then head out of the castle and then lift into the air. Where both vanish into a sphere of blue light. ------------------- Back in Equestria-16497
Doom and Hans appeared over Ponyvillie three miles in the air. “Um… Doom I don’t know how to hover.” Hans tendrils grip onto Doom as they hovered.
“Understandable, your body absorbs magic so can’t use magic to hover.” He looked down and noticed two lines of ponies at the Sweet Apple Acres. “Hans, what your meta knowledge tells you about what’s going on.”
Hans looked down and noted the two unicorns standing beside a strange machine. “Oh crap, it's the Super Cider Squeezy 6000 episode. Doom we might be able to gain a bit of positive press. From what I can see they are about over, the Flim Flam Brothers had already started destroying the trees in a rush to increase production. They tricked Applejack into a contest. The deal was for the rights to sell Cider, but she ended up turning the deed of the Acers over.”
“Did they trick her that much?”
“No she kind of tricked herself.”
“I see. Let get some Cider.”:
The two came down, as soon as the ponies spotted them three screamed out “Oh, the Horror!” Even before they landed. In typical fashion, the main 6 moved to stand together.
“Hey isn’t that, that Doctor Doom guy?” Pinkie Pie asks as she drinks a mug of cider.
Rainbow Dash rushes up “Here to cause trouble huh!”
“In truth Rainbow Dash I came to buy some Cider.” Doom lowered and landed on the ground where Hans got down from him.
“Wha…” not expecting that Rainbow dash blinks as Doom looked to AppleJack. “It seems the line left, so AppleJack is there any Cider left. I don’t have any bits, does a Silver Griffonstone Sliver work?”
“GOOD SIR! Why bother with that inferior cider. Try the Flim Flam brother’s super speedy cider Squeezy 6000 Cider!” Flim didn’t wait and took the silver and slapped a mug into his hand.
Doom smirked behind his mask and he could see the remnant of a leaf in the brown liquid. He took a sip and then splashed it at Flim’s face “Are you trying to poison me! Did you just toss any apple in there? Look there a trig and leaves in this much you call a cider. How many insects did you ground up in this slop!”
“All this time I heard the quality of Sweet Apple Acres was the best in the world. This slop I wouldn’t let the pig drink.”
“Now hold on one minute their partner. Sweet Apple Acres is the best, but that cider from that darn machine.”
From the Super cider squeezy 6000 granny smith’s voice spoke out. “That armored fella right. All this cider is contaminated.”
“Hold on now! The Deal was if we made more Cider, not the quality! We won fair and square.”
“Ugh… A deal a deal. Fine, you win, guess we have to move.”
“Excuse me Applejack why do you have to move?” Hans spoke up, glad his face didn’t display his grin.
“OH, he’s smiling!” Pinkie Pie calls out randomly. A heartbeat later and everyone else returned to what they were talking about.
“Well, we make our bits from the cider sales, and without the rites to sell cider, we wouldn’t be able to stay here. We lose the farm.”
“I came for a cider. So… I buy every cider you have and share it with everyone.” He removes some Double Gold coins and puts them on the counter. “Rainbow, because your friends with Gilda you and your friends can have the rest.”
He drinks one of the mugs then Looks over to the Canterlot castle. “Seems Celestia finally noticed I’m here.”
“Celestia coming here?”
“Wait! You know Gilda?” Rainbow Dash.
Doom smiles and nods “Yes she’s learning magic as my apprentice.”
“What? Griffons can’t use magic.” Twilight blurts out.
“You are wrong, Twilight. Gilda the first spell caster among the Griffons in generations. Perhaps we can speak about this later.” He lifts his Infinity Gauntlet covered fist and in a flash of white light, he and Hans vanished.
Within a few moments, Celestia landed. “Where’s Doom! What did he do?”
Twilight looked at Celestia. “Princess Celestia… he bought some cider and left.”
“What…. That’s it?”
“Yeah, that’s it he just came and bought some cider and… Oh, these two unicorns were scamming Applejack…” Twilight turned and saw that Flim and Flam were gone. “Where are the Flim Flam brothers? They were just here.”
“He trespassed on Equestria borders, and bought… apple cider?” Celestia stood there confused.
---------------
In Griffonstone Ravenblood Pygmy Village
Doom and Hans appeared at the edge of the cliff. Their sudden appearance caused a slight disruption as a few of the Pygmies started praying to him.
“They are taking this whole god thing a bit seriously aren’t they,” Hans commented to Doom as he saw a full-sized Griffon raven blood walk over. “Your Majesty. The research of the Ravenblood Griffonstone Den has revealed some interesting facts. It seems they kept the mist dwellers as pets and guards to the den.”
“That is good, but I’m busy,” Doom stated not even knowing who this fellow was.
“Oh of course, please forgive me.”
Doom then moves his arm and a hologram image of a map comes up. Then marks appeared showing where all the dens are.
“Hans, change of plans.”
“What is it, my liege?”
“It seems Gilda has been taken by my Marvel counterpart, as well as Discord.”
“Wait, that was months ago…” the researcher Raven Griffon looked at the two oddly.
Doom looks at the fellow. “Don’t say any more. We are from the past, time travel is complicated and we don’t want to have a paradox.” He then looks to Hans “Grab hold we are going directly to the Marvel Universe. My future self provided me with the universe address.”
“Yes sir. Should we send it to Gar?”
“I have the token to summon him.” Once Hans grabbed onto Dooms back Doom activated his armor dimensional travel equipment and they vanished. Leaving the Pygmies and Researchers looking on confused.
High above the Lavtvarian castle, a sphere of blue light appeared. Within the sphere appeared Victor von Doom with Hans held in his arms. For a moment the weapon systems of the castle aimed at the intruders. However, they identified the man in armor as the ruler of Latveria and disarmed.
Landing in the courtyard “Odd I don’t remember some of this... “
Hans looked over to Doom “Well this version was never seen on the show. On top of being in another universe there bound to be variations. Not to mention your memories are from comics and shows.”
“Do you have to remind me of those flaws?” The two then started heading for the entrance to the castle.
Then the ground exploded and rising out of the hole rose Doctor Doom. However, he was not as he was. His armor had melted and seemed to bond to the flesh of the man within. His eyes glowed yellow and electricity flowed along his body in lighting bolts. “WHO DARES TRESPASS ON THE DOMAIN OF DOOM!”
Doom looked up at the now Discorded DOOM. “I dare!”
Glowing yellow eyes snap to the other Doom. “You dare! There is only one true Doctor DOOM! With my new godhood, I can see you are a fake, an imitation!”
“I prefer to think of myself as an Improvement! I have something you will never have!”
“I’m a God, what pathetic thing could I want more.”
“Godhood is overrated. I have friends,” He removes the telescope token of Gar’s “GAR! It’s the time! I SUMMON YOU TO MY AID!”
“DOOM DOES NOT ASK FOR HELP IMPOSTER!” The Discorded Doom opened his fist and sent a blast of power at Doom. Only to miss catching Doom’s cloak as his target dodged.
The effects of the blast were Doom’s cloak turning into a rainbow tie-dye pattern. Hans leaped at the Discorded Doom his arms shifting into blades.
He gets swatted out of the air with a backhand by the overpowered megalomaniac.
Just then a black portal opened up and outshot the Smiling form of the Everfree Fairy King. He wasted no time and grabbed onto Hans with an enlarged hand and set the butler down as the Elements of Harmony came through the portal. Gar’s first returned to normal and his spear turned from its turned necklace to its weapon form. Gar took hold of it and spun it around slightly then rested it on his shoulder.
The Discorded Doom looked on and was caught off guard by this new arrival. “WHO ARE YOU AND HOW DARE YOU DEFY DOOM?!”
“I AM FAIRY KING GAR AND WE ARE HERE TO HELP MY FRIENDS!” The king roared as he let out enough bloodlust and killing intent to make any normal creature pass out.
Discorded Doom slightly flinched but quickly recovered and sent a blast at Gar. Gat countered as he morphed his hand into a shield and protected them all.
“Let that be a listen to those who defy the will of Doom,” Discorded Doom snarked and started to walk away but stopped and looked over his shoulder to look in shock as Gar and the other stepped out white the shield morphed back. “IMPOSSIBLE!”
“Looks like Discord was right,” Hans let out a sigh of relief, glad that his friend’s gamble paid off in a big way. “Nature has its own chaos.”
“Gar he's tapping into our Discord power. It’s chaotic, He can barely control it. One thing Doctor Doom is and that is Control! We Despise being out of control. The more chaos can we generate the more confusing it is better!”
Hans looks at Twilight Sparkle. “Twilight! Get into the lab and find the magic tech equipment you need to reverse it. Rainbow, Gilda somewhere in the castle. You're the only one fast enough to search.”
“Oh! I can search, I'm good at hiding and seek Mr. Hans!” Pinkie Pie starts jumping up and down.
“No Pinkie you heard Doom. The more chaos we can generate the better. There is no other pony better at chaos then you! Pinkie, listen closely. Doctor Doom’s mother and father died when he was very young. He hasn’t had a birthday party for over thirty years.”
“No… birthday… party…” Pinkie seemed to blurred into pink sparkles then she was hovering in front Discorded Doom. “YOU NEED A BIRTHDAY PARTY!” Out of nowhere, she slaps a birthday crown on top of his head.
“We must keep him occupied and the more opponents the better,” Gar said as he shrank down and spit into five identical smaller Gars, each with their own spear. “I wonder,” One looked on but they all thought the same. “Basquis form four: Increase!” One held his spear up and it split into thousands of singular spearheads.
“Twilight,” One of the other Gars got the attention of the princess. “ You’ll need protection and as your knight, it falls to me. “I’ll go with you, the rest of me will stay and help.”
“Right, let’s go,” Twilight nodded as the duo started toward the hallway.
“Shall we,” the other Gars took up stances. “Yes,” the fourth one said as he pushed his hand forward and shot a bombardment of spears controlling them with his hands. “If you have ideas now is the time to use them as in this form the spear drains my magic rather fast.”
“We need a distraction for Twilight and Rainbow!” Hans calls out as he leaps into the air streams of razor wire as cords shoot out lashing against an arm of the overpowered Doom.
“PARTY CANNON!” Pinkie Pie out of the blue pulls out her Party Cannon and fires a blast of fireworks, streamers, glitter right in Discorded Doom’s face. “Get Going Twilight, We got this!”
“THIS DOESN'T MAKE SENSE! How she pulls a cannon out of her hair!” The Marvel Doctor Doom called out as the very sky turned green with purple polka dots.
“That’s it, he's losing control. It’s fitting, an inferior Doctor Doom.” The Displaced Doom calls out as he lifts in the air. “You are a loser DOOM! All your life, no matter the plot you lost! The reason isn’t some flaw in your thinking, it's what you are. An antagonist, just some plot for some Author to throw at the Protagonist.”
“YOU Cheap imitation!” A blast of magical fire shot out at the Displaced counterpart. Only for Hans to swoop in and catch the blast.
“... Oh…. man the colors… dude I so get it! Like the answer to everything is 42!” Hans turns a shade of pink instead of black as the chaos magic affected him.
“Hans tripping on Chaos magic!” AppleJack calls out as she lifts a boulder and tosses at the Discorded Doom. Only to have it turn into a rubble ball when struck by a magic blast.
“Right… come on Gar, three? Doom well our friend Doom said to go into the hole.” She raced forward and dropped down into the underground chamber.
There in the large chamber, four Doom Bots turn their heads to see Twilight. “INTRUDER ALERT!”
“Pathetic machines,” The Gars said in unison. Three of them split their arms into bladed tendrils then proceeded to tear through the robots.
“Oooo… Doom Bots, I know just what to do!” Pinkie bounced up and down while she clapped. She then started to zip around and gather usable robot parts. “GO GET ‘EM PINKERTON!”
“IT’S PARTY TIME!” The pinkie shaped robot said as it began to pelt the robots with cake batter, confetti, sparkler birthday candles, and balloon animals.
“Good move Pinkie!” Twilight lights her horn and blasts the four bots. She wasn’t as strong as she was fighting Tirek, but her power was still quite powerful and focused into a small beam concentrated that blast into a laser of substantial cutting power.
Once the bots fell apart Twilight rushed into the lap. “RAINBOW! GILDA IS DOWN HERE!”
“GILDA?” A blur of rainbow light rushed past Twilight to the bed “Gilda you okay?” Rainbow Dash started undoing the straps holding Gilda down.
“Rainbow? Wait you aren’t Rainbow, who are you.”
“I know I don’t look like the Rainbow Dash from your universe, but I am Rainbow Dash. Look I talked with Hans I know you and your Rainbow Dash had about the same thing happened to my universe. I can’t say for her, but... I’m sorry Gilda. I and my Gilda made up, I pranked her during a Pinkie Party. I overdid it, and she was stressed because of how Pinkie was jealous of us. Not sure what happened between you and her, but I hope it was something similar. She is still the Element of Loyalty, she wouldn’t mean to be mean.”
Gilda looked away “I was in Ponyville to ask for help, every time I built up the courage to ask for help. Pinkie Pie showed up, it’s humiliating to admit that I needed help. Then, yeah pranks, the whole hot sauce, tube snakes, it was too much.”
“When you get the chance, Gilda, try to forgive her. I know that your friendship was important, it was important to me.”
“OKAY, Enough emotional stuff! There's a battle going on!” Pinkie Pie appears and hugs Gilda.
“Get away from me you pink freak!”
“Awww, but we are friends too, Gilda! All three of us like pranking others. Yupperoonie we all buds!”
Gilda blinks and looks at Rainbow “is she for real?”
“Yeah… see you saved our lives. I was going to try to recover the Idol of Boreas for the Griffons.”
“Are you nuts? The wind in the abyss is too high to fly in.”
“Aww see Rainbow this Gilda still cares as well!”
“We were using some climbing gear, almost got it too but I and Pinkie were about to fall, and you… er, our Gilda chose to save us rather than the Idol.”
That was when the ground rumbled and the roof ripped open as a Rock Candy boulder the size of a small car came crashing in. From above “TWILIGHT SPARKLE HURRY UP!”
Twilight shook her head having stopped to see the bonding moment but now as the fight above came to her mind, she looked around. Seeing the gray and still passed out Discord in the vortex of magic. Her eyes quickly trace the power circles to the power transfer equipment.
"Gilda, are you in need of medical treatment?" Gar asked.
"Yea I- HOLY HELL! WHAT ARE YOU?!" Gilda cried in terror.
"I am Gar," he said flatly. " I am Twilight's knight and the fairy king of our world. Nothing more. Now, where are you injured?"
"Just about everywhere," she sighed. "That Doom really did a number on me, not to mention those robots that hauled me in here."
"Baquias Moon Rose," Gar said while moving his hand to transform his spear. "Now, Droplet of Life." a drop of condensed magic hit Gilda and immediately restored her to full health. "Good as new." He turned to face Discord. "There is no way he'll survive the transfer, again Droplet of Life," Basquias once more gave healing mana to Discord and restored the former lord of Chaos but Gar was slightly huffing. "I can do no more while separated from the others. I must merge," he went over and fused with one of the other Gar.
More Doom Bot flocked to them.
"I WILL END YOU! Martial Art: Dynamic Thrust!" Gar yelled as his spear glowed red at the blade and he thrust the weapon forward crashing through the robots.
Twilight followed the circulatory and then looked at the console. Letting out a growl she magically rips off the paneling and flung it like a frisbee at one of the coming Doombots. The magically charged metal sliced into the doombot chest causing it to short out.
“This.. is AMAZING! Magical circles so small it is near the atomic level of…”
Rainbow Dash smashes into a doombot at top speed. “GEEK OUT LATER TWILIGHT!”
“Oh right! Um... coolant… processor… ” Twilight says as she looks into the inner workings of the power transfer system. “AH Got it!” She reaches in pulling out a fuse like crystal and turns it upside down and puts it back.
“What? You just flipped that thingy?” Gilda asks looking at Twilight.
“To be fair if I flipped the wrong one, I could have triggered an explosion that would have destroyed this castle, world, and maybe this entire universe… We are talking about Chaos Magic here. Oh, and there are twenty such gem fuses in this thing.”
“Okay, taken that way… yeah okay you are awesome in a dorky sort of way.”
Above the battle was heating up as the other Gar’s struck at the same time. The Discorded Doom turns its attention to Doom. “Enough of this!” He aims for another blast of magic. The magic beam came out and then stopped in a cartoonish way. Then all the reality changes begin to fade returning to normal.
“NOOO, my power! Fine taste my Atomic Blast full power!” He then sends a blast of atomic energy at Doom, just for it to be stopped by Hans who leaped into the way. “AHhhhhhhhhhh… it burns…”
Hans' body seemed to boil and then turn to vapor.
“HANS!” Fluttershy flew up to get in front of the other doom. “YOU MEANY! WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY FOR YOURSELF!” The power of the Stare was felt even to those who weren’t faced to face with her. That wasn’t all somehow her cry alerted the wild animals. Out of the woods came hundreds of birds, insects, rodents, and other creatures.
It began with the woodpeckers pecking at the head, followed by squirrels and rodents crawling on the Marvel doom. “Get these accursed creatures off of me!”
Suddenly, vines sprang to life from every nook, cranny, and crevasse of Marvel Doom’s armor quickly binding the villain’s. They rapidly grew while also tearing apart and damaging his armor making it fall apart. Their roots reached into the internal component keeping it from activating any of its repair function and weapons systems turning Doom into nothing more than a mortal man in scrap metal.
“How is this possible? I can move!” He roared in anger as he tried to free himself to no avail.
“Don’t bother,” Gar said as everyone gathered and he fused back into one Gar. “Each individual vine is stronger than the strongest woven steel cable on its own. To a normal human, they’d be unbreakable. These were grown from the seeds and plant bits that were deposited on your armor from when the animals swarmed you. I simply reached out with my magic power to help them grow. Now that you can’t move,” Gar took hold of his Basquias and pointed it right at Marvel Doom's eye. “You will be judged!”
“Like I said Victor Von Doom. You are a loser, always will be, unable to grow beyond your own limitations.” Doom removes his face mask revealing the scars. “As long as you see yourself like this… you will always be flawed. Not because of the scars, but because you don’t see yourself as Human.” He replaces the mask. “Girls! Give him a taste of Harmony.”
Rainbow, Twilight, Pinkie, Pinkatron, and Gilda came up from the lab. “Alright, Doom! Ready girls!”
The Six girls got together and one after another the Elements of Harmony activated. “CURSE YOUUUuuuuuu….” The blast of magic hit Marvel’s Doom and slowly he was turned to stone complete with the vines holding him in place.
“DOOM!” He heard her voice calling out to him and then felt Gilda tackle to hug him. “Wait… you’re my Doom right?”
“Your Doom? We will have to have a discussion about this.”
“Yeah, you're my Doom. Where’s Hans?”
Fluttershy spoke up then “He… he was … he was killed. That…”
Doom sighs and walks over to Fluttershy. “Don’t cry Fluttershy, Hans is just resting. Hans' life is tied to mine, as long as I live so shall Hans.”
“I think he just needs to sleep it off,” The last Gar came in with Hans, still pink, on his back. “Too much Chaos magic again. Perhaps Discord can take some back?” He stated before fusing with the main Gar. “I can repair your skin for you Doom, this way you don’t have to bear unnecessary scars.”
“That body can’t function anymore Gar. I just make a new one when I have access to the infinity gauntlet. However, it is best to destroy that body completely, or at least I should take it with me so it won’t be used to find us or used as means of creating a weapon. Hans’ mind is already in mine. I can feel his thoughts even if they are still asleep. He’s dreaming about cotton candy for some reason.”
“That sounds like Discord’s magic alright<” Rainbow chuckled. “Look Gilda, It may not seem like much coming from another Rainbow, but I know you really still mean a lot to your Rainbow. Doom told me about your Equestria and I understand if you don’t like ponies at all, but I do know that back in your world you need your friends.. Look at the proof here,” she motioned to everyone here.
“She is right,” Gar added as he looked down at the gryphoness. “If it was not for friends I would not be able to be here or have them by my side. I count Doom among my friends. He has been most helpful in the magic arts.and by extension, he would not be here for you.”
“Alright already! I get it, forgive and bla bla bla. I try to make up with the Rainbow Dash of my reality. So you can stop acting like dweebs.”
“Gar, I am fine with my scars. Think about it, after all this time with all the magic and technology I know. Or should I say the Doctor Doom memories I was made from, I should have the knowledge of repairing my face. Just a little plastic surgery right? That or the wounds were demonic in nature. Either way, I am fine with the scars they are a testament to what I survived.”
Out of the lab, the form of Discord rose and recovered when his magic was restored to him. “You… saved me? Why? It makes no sense.”
"You were saved because it was necessary. Chaos magic needs a vessel, or it will run rampant without a course and cause much dismay," Gar said flatly. "You are the only vessel outside Pinkie Pie who can properly wIeld Chaos Magic with its true prepuce intended. And you are not such a bad guy either, just random and good at playing tricks. Lastly, I was asked by my Discord. He said and I quote, "He has much to answer for breaking the treaty by going around and zigzagging through it." This is for you," Gar gave Discord a fifty-cent piece. "He said you know what it means."
Discord took the fifty-cent piece. “Really this isn’t fair. I was trapped in the Alicorn magical artifact for two hundred thousand years. Fine... “ He looks over to Doom. “Guess you going to trap me as well.”
“No, I have no interest in such foolishness. If you have the power, open a portal so we can return home. Then you are free to go, just don’t bother the Griffons too much and we can consider you a friend.” Doom then went to the hole leading to the lab. “But first I have to delete my counterparts' data. We don’t want him finding his way to any Equestria.”
Looking over to Gar. “I think we can handle the rest on our own. Thank you, Sir Gar, and Ladies you helped save.” He looks to Gilda. “One of the only true friends I have.”
“Silly Doomie! We are your friends as well!” Pinkie Pie called out.
“Right Partner, if ya need help again. Or just want to visit ya always welcomed.”
“Of course you are welcomed to return to our reality, Victor! There is so much I want to ask you. Your knowledge can help lead Equestria to a new Golden age! With what you can teach me we can go to the moon even!” Twilight adds eyes gleaming with a desire for knowledge.
Fluttershy was not paying attention to Doom but to the body of Hans. “You sure… Hans going to be okay?”
“Yes Fluttershy, he will be better than normal once we return.”
“That good…” She leaps up and flies to Discord. “I know you don’t know me in that other reality. But please try to make friends. We all had such good times together, and our tea time every Tuesday is so enjoyable.”
“Yeah, Discord! Try to make friends with us in your reality. The Orange joke is going to be a blast!”
“Orange joke?” Discord asks.
Twilight Sparkle sighs “You had to be there… trust me I tried.”
“OH! Don’t forget the Plunder Vines! Those are nasties things you planted a thousand years ago.”
“Wait… the plunder vines haven’t bloomed yet? I mean I thought they were destroyed given they were my backup plan when Celestia and Luna turned me to stone.”
“Nope! The Tree of Harmony kept them from growing until we started using the Elements.”
Doom sighs “Girls its time for you and Gar to head home. Gar our business is over fair well, my friend.”
A large swirling black portal opened behind the group.
“If you ever need my aid again Doctor, simply call,” Gar bowed.
“Can I at least speak with him some more about the technologies he has knowledge of?” Twilight begged.
“Sorry Twilight but it's already night time back home,” Aj cut in. “Y’all are always welcome at the farm.” She smirked as she pulled Twilight through the portal as she desperately clawed at the floor trying to stay.
“Next time we meet we need to do Battle Bots,” Pinkie hopped. “Come Pinkie Tron. There are parties that need us,” As she pointed dynamically as she rode the robot through the portal as the machine used its rocket busters.
“Advice to you bud,’ Rainbow fluttered nearby speaking to Doom. “Don’t let that other Doom get to ya. You’re like ten, no twenty times cooler.”
“I have to agree with her on that Doom,” Gilda pointed out.
“Very well, thank you for the advice Rainbow Dash,” Doom gave a slight nod.
“Try and be a little more patient with creatures too,” Fluttershy added. “Most of the time you can talk it out. If they don’t want to listen then wear them down and let them cool off before you talk…. That's is if you want to.”
The two pegasuses follow their friends into the portal.
“If you ever need a decent tailor look me up, or your Rarity if you ever smooth things over with Equestria,” Rarity smiled. “Also look into gems. Many have innate magical properties that would help you with your armor. Ta-ta,” she sang as she walked into the portal.
“Good luck my friend,” Gar looked at Doom and shook his hand. “One last piece of advice. Be wary of the Void and the Void Dwellers.” Gar said as he then turned and walked into the portal.
As he left the portal collapsed in on itself leaving the Doctor with his own group and much to think about.
“Only one thing left for me to do. Then we can head home.” Doom headed over to the hole to the lab and leaped down.
“What’s that? I want to go home.” Gilda walks over and looks down. “I… um… wait here.”
“Very well Gilda. I shall return in a moment.” With that Doom leaped down and head to the computer system. Like before the security system recognized him as Victor von Doom. With a quick command to the computer. “Primitive. Seems this universe technology is decades behind the one I recall. Good, that means it has no defenses against my virus.” He took a moment to look at the floppy disk drive. “Hmm… really he’s still using floppy disks?”
With a few more commands he accessed the systems wireless network. “At least he has some form of wifi.” Once the upload was complete the computer started running the virus program deleting every saved file on the system. “Given how Doctor Doom’s don’t think they ever loose, I doubt he would have backed up his data, but I not that foolish.”
He looked around and saw one of the Doombots still mostly intact. After repairing the damage it reactivated. “Doombot! Seek out any recording, records, and files I have made in the last year and destroy them. Then activate order Omega.”
“Comand acknowledged, order Omega understood.” The Doombot starts dismantling the remains of the fellow Doombots. It’s programing now running the Order Omega, a program meant to remove evidence.
He rises up out of the hole and lands near Hans’s body. “We don’t have time. I got one of the Doombots to run Order Omega. Doctor Dooms doesn’t think they will lose, but we do plan to abandon locations from time to time. The Order Omega will activate an explosive that will destroy any evidence remaining. Including whatever remaining records.”
Looking to Discord. “Mind getting us back to our Universe? Even my vast power has a limit and I’m nearing that limit.”
“Hmm… sure” Discord reaches down and picks up a butter yellow feather. “No Evidence right. Not like I’m letting that Pony get to me or anything.” Discord snaps his fingers the group vanish with any traces of their being.
End of Act II: Chapter 19: Awaking the inner Alicorns
Grandpa Gruff pokes at the campfire. “Second den and still no profit options.”
“Gruff you really need to stop thinking in such a limited way, there an entire forest of potion-making plants.”
“Yeah and animals that can kill you. None of us saw that Mist Dweller until it attacked the guide, not even Doom.”
Mona saw a flash and looked back seeing Doom with the now pink body of Hans, Gilda, and Discord appeared. “Discord!” She jumps up faster than one would think a griffon her age could and grabs a bottle tied to her belt. Around her the pigmy ravenblood grabs weapons.
“Lower your weapons, the situation with Discord is over.” Doom states then look at Discord. “It better be over.”
“Yeah, this isn’t fun anymore.” Discord sighs floating in the air leaning back and yawning. “Truth is I feel a little drained.” Chuckles at his own joke.
Doom nodded “Alright, just know I have one of those power-draining devices and mine’s portable.”
Discord eyes widen. “I get it no messing with you.”
“Don’t think I made it to capture you, unlike my counterpart I know your chaos magic is by its own nature uncontrollable. I made mine for a pair of Alicorns.”
A slow smile came to Discord’s face. “Oh, what a lovely idea, but for now, I’m going to greet a few ponies.”
Doom chuckles “Want to really mess with Celestia, how about just being friendly and nice to the girls. It would drive this Celestia nuts as she would expect you to do some chaotic mayhem. The one thing chaos should never be is predictable.”
Discord taps his chin “That might be fun… ta ta!” Discord vanishes with a snap from his tail.
“What happened to Hans?” Faina asks looking at the body. Doom lowers the burnt pink form to the ground. “I have to make him a new body, he’s not dead so don’t worry.”
He stands back up and aims the infinity gauntlet at the body. The blast of cosmic energy reverts the body to a mass of black, then the white head rose from the puddle oozing up till Hans was standing in a stall and looking normal.
“Ouch, could you have done something for the hangover my liege? Chaos magic gives me a buzz, but leaves such a headache.”
A chuckle from Doom “No, consider it a punishment for getting drunk off the other universe Discord.”
Maud Pie steps up to Doom. “I wish to stay here. That Lava tube that forms the lake is interesting. It would be good for a research paper.”
“Very well Miss Pie, I will allow you to remain here. I will also send other researchers to investigate the Den fully, a team of guards to help with the Mist Dwellers.”
A loud rumble was heard and everyone in the village looked to the entrance of the valley. High above a silver-painted airship came down from the clouds. Unlike any airship in the world, this was a Zeppelin the housing for passengers is fully integrated within the rigid body. Near the back were the controlling propellers. The tail fins were decorated with Doom’s stylized D.
“What is that contraption,” Gruff asks, looking at the Zeppelin coming down and then hovering over the forest.
“That is the Dauntless, the first cruiser class ship in my new fleet of airships,” Doom said matter of factly.
The side of the Zepplin opens “Sir! There is no room to land, you have to fly into the entrance!”
Doom turns to the Doomgolems “Doomgolems guard and serves Miss Pie. Authority level 5.” He then looks to Maud Pie. “You can order the golems to serve basic tasks. They will protect you from threats like the Mist Dwellers, they won’t attack unless they detect a direct threat to you or themselves. You will not be able to order them to attack a target otherwise.” “I understand.” Maud looks to the four Golems standing in wait.
Gallus looks at the ship then at Doom. “Um… sir what about the carriage?” Doom smiled behind his mask hearing the question.
Doom looked down “Good thinking Gallus, the carriage has a built-in command to return to home after a week. I had already requested the Airship once it was airworthy to take us to the other Dens.”
Faina smiles “That’s the boss, always thinking three steps ahead. I knew you had good ideas, Gallus, this brings you up to one idea a week!”
“Agh… Shut up.” Gallus playfully shoves her.
The group minus Maud who stayed behind studying the rocks around the village. Her lips were just a little bit higher than normal, she might have been smiling.
The Dauntless wasn’t just the first ship finished in the fleet, it was built to be Doom’s private yacht. The interior was lush redwood polished to a shine, with white walls, and a redwood floor with green carpets. The floor plan was open to allow room for wings, no tight corridors in these ships. He wanted a ship that screamed class and wealth. The other ships of the line would be more mundane. There was no such thing as mundane for Doom.
The entrance leads to the main chamber with large viewing windows on both sides of the craft. Lush green carpet and cherry wood interior. There were even chandeliers hanging above lit with glowing gemstones. There were couches and tables with views out of the windows. The whole room was meant to inspire and impress.
Sanding at attention was the crew and two flight teams of Griffons in the new dark dyed Tatzlwurm leather armor. Seeing Doom they bowed their heads in respect. “At ease warriors, Captain change of plans get this vessel out of the mountains and head to Equestria. I will give you a location once we are underway.”
“Yes sir.” The captain turned “You heard our sovereign!” The crew and the waiting flight teams split up.
“There are sleeping chambers to the rear of the ship, Stay on this deck, the higher decks are for the flight teams and the crew. The one with my stylized D of course is mine, choose a room for yourselves.”
The two fledglings went off to claim their own rooms. Doom smiles even a whole other species; they are still universal constants. The young still act young.
Doom turns and walks up a flight of steps to the command deck. The entire ship was made for beings with wings, enough room for them not to feel claustrophobic. The bridge was two stories high. Below was the pilot lounge with the steering wheel and controls, navigation desk, and communications including intercom.
Then there was the captain’s chair with its own panels giving the Captain full information of the ship. Unlike other ships of the line, above and behind the captain was the royal box. Doom had a throne-like chair with its own display of instruments. To the right of the throne was a couch and to the left was a full bar.
“Sire, are we speeding up the invasion?” Hans asks as she settles onto the couch.
Doom sat down and folded his fingers together. “Hans tell me why is it only Ponies have Cutie Marks?”
“I think the Zebra might have them.”
Doom just looks over. “No Hans, when the ancient alicorns made the system to save the planet they needed a way to keep their descendants on track. Just a one-day mishap could have ended the world. Just look at how much chaos Nightmare Moon caused a thousand years ago. The answer they figured out was the Cutie Marks.”
“So the cutie marks are mind control?”
“Not so crude. The spell analyzes a Pony’s knowledge, mindset, potential, and skills, a child is too young to have developed the fine motor skills needed. Once their minds stabilize, a cutie mark appears. It is based on what is already in the pony brains, the apple family for example knows a lot about apple farming, so there is a higher chance the cutie mark is apple-related.”
Doom took out a notepad and wrote a message then pulled a silver cord. A few moments later a crewman came in. “Deliver this to the captain. It’s our new destination.”
“As I was saying, Hans, the ancient Alicorns were clever they knew forcing a destiny on someone would make them rebel. So they came up with a system to encourage ponies who have talents needed to maintain the system to continue, even if the ponies themselves forget. Only a few times it failed, the war of the three tribes, and the coming of Nightmare Moon.”
“I didn’t think about it that way, very well my liege what is your plan?”
“There is only one pony who researched Cutie Marks to craft a spell to manipulate them. Though she doesn’t have the understanding of their origins like I do.”
“Wait… you mean.”
“Yes Hans, this time I deal with Starlight Glimmer.” He turns and looks at Hans “On top of that there a whole town Celestia doesn’t have under watch. A town full of subjects ready to be truly equal.”
“Would it be wise to get rid of Cutie Marks?”
Doom turned and smiled behind his mask. “My dear Hans, whoever said I was going to get rid of them. Like I said it is a very clever way of establishing order, I just have to rewrite the spell to suit my order.” It started with a small chuckle, then a laugh, a laugh worth of a Marvel Villain.
Starlight Glimmer was looking over her domain. Our Town was working all her hard work to get rid of those horrible Cutie Marks. She was in charge, she was in power, she will never be left alone again.
“What’s that?” she heard one of the local ponies asked and turned to see a large airship. A style unlike any she had seen before. “What…”
Out of the side of the Dauntless, the thirty warrior griffons came flying out. The flight teams flew overhead, then came around. One group landed near Starlight’s own home, the others went to land on each of the houses.
“What is the meaning of this!” She yells at the griffons, all of which hold baton-like weapons that had a strange blue glowing tip. Showing no fear she stormed up to one of the Griffons, “You heard me! What is the…”
The griffon used that glowing baton. He didn’t even hit her just a light poke but her train of thought stopped and fell to the ground her body unresponsive. The last thing she saw was an armored clad figure.
Her awareness came back slowly, blinking as she lifted her head to see a strange creature dressed as a butler. Its faceless head leans forward. “Ah good, you're awake. That stun baton was set a tad too high, but then again you are one of the most dangerous ponies on the planet.”
“WHAT… What’s going on, who are you?”
The creature bows “I’m Hans, and we are here to start taking over the world. The first step is you, look around you Starlight Glimmer.”
She took the moment to access her situation. Tied up sitting on a chair in the center of town, and she could feel a magic blocking ring on her horn. The other ponies were in a group guarded by the Griffons. Standing beside the faceless creature was the Armored creature.
“There is no one to save you, no guard, no aid, no help. Now I shall introduce you to your new lord and master, he who took the sun and moon from the royal sister, he who returned the world to a natural order. From this day forward your sovereign Doctor Victor von Doom.”
The armored figure moved closer and gripped her jaw. “You made this so easy. Pathetically easy, I almost chose to let you be till after I take over Equestria. However, I want something from you Ms. Glimmer.”
She looked defiant into the eyes of the armored figure only to swallow as her instincts screamed at her that this armored creature was a predator and she was its prey. “I.. don’t know what you are talking about.”
“It's simple I want your spell, the one that removes Cutie Marks.”
“That’s not me, it’s a magical artifact. The staff of sameness!”
“Don’t insult me Starlight, that’s just a stick” Doom spoke up loud enough that the ponies in the group started talking to each other. “A stick?” “What does he mean it’s her spell?”
Doom leaned forward “Seems I need to make a demonstration.” He stands up and looks at Gilda. “Gilda my dear mind giving her a bit of a wash?”
“One wet pony coming up.” Gilda moves her hands in the pattern Doom taught her, then in the accent griffon language she calls out “Water”.
A sphere of water forms above Gilda’s hand and then she tosses its baseball-style at Starlight Glimmer.
Starlight unable to move gets splashed by the water orb and the fake equal sign melts off of her flanks.
“But… a griffon using magic? Impossible.”
The shock of seeing Starlight Glimmer faking her equal sign caused the commotions of the ponies to rise. Only to be silenced as the Griffons guarding them got the stun batons ready.
Doom taps the communication system on his gauntlet. “Mona if you please free the Cutie Marks.”
The voice of the Flight Mother came from the micro speaker. “Yes, your majesty.” A few moments later the sky was filled with the magical cutie marks streaming from the cave and back to the Ponies they belonged to.
“NO… Cutie Marks are wrong! They destroy lives!”
Doom looked down at Starlight Glimmer. “I know all about you Starlight Glimmer, you are just a child pouting about a lost friend. I know that you and Sunburst were playing when a bookshelf of books almost fell on you. Your friend Sunburst surged and saved you. That was when he got his cutie mark.”
“Yes… and he was taken away! My only friend is gone because of his Cutie Mark.”
“Stupid girl, it wasn’t the mark. Never was, think. His mother always wanted the newest, most modern the best. She sent him to Celestia’s School of gifted unicorns, not some cutie mark.”
Hans leans in from behind Starlight Glimmer. “Tell me Starlight Glimmer why didn’t you go to the same school? You are powerful, one of the most powerful Unicorns in Equestria. You are also smart, smart enough to make your sameness spell. If you had applied to the school you would have got in easily. Then you would have been there with your friend Sunburst.”
Her head felt as she remembered the past, how did they know? “My father wanted me to be raised in the town’s school. Called it traditional schooling and that I didn’t need to be taken to some boarding school.”
Doom’s hand brushes her head now showing some tenderness. Off to the side, Gilda's eyes flash with jealousy.
“Starlight Glimmer, all this time you've been blaming the wrong thing. A cutie mark didn’t take your friend from you, Celestia did. Her drive to find a Unicorn with enough magic and understanding of magic she created the School that took him away.”
Starlight looked up at the metal face. “What? What does Celestia have to do with this?”
Doom chuckled Starlight’s will was breaking and she was open to his manipulation. All made it easier because it was the truth. Well, the truth from a certain point of view.
“It is simple, when she banished Nightmare Moon a thousand years ago she lost her connection to the Elements of Harmony. The hardest Element to bond with is the Element of Magic. So she created her school to find the one pony it would accept. It took her a thousand years and many Unicorns going through the school before she found one.”
“You mean Sunburst? He’s the one?”
“No, your Sunburst barely could keep his grades above passing.”
“Impossible he’s brilliant!”
“He is, he is also weak in magic. That surge that saved you was the most magic he could channel. To Celestia he was a failure, he was now nothing more than a researcher. Alone, because his only friend never bothered to visit. When he did return home you had already left.”
“He… he came home.”
“He did and you were gone. Have you ever tried writing to him? Pen Pals are a thing after all.”
“No… his mother never gave me the address.”
“You see Starlight Glimmer. It was never the Cutie Marks, you should have gone to the School of gifted Unicorns with him. You should have been the one Celestia chose, you are powerful, cleaver, and you know the value of Friendship.”
With a nod, Hans untied Starlight Glimmer from the chair. Doom held out his hand to her. “Join me Starlight, and we will find your friend, and get even with the true cause of your broken heart, Celestia.”
Starlight looked at the offered gauntlet then reached out and stood up. “Alright, I work with you.”
“No Starlight you work for me. But first, let's make this town truly equal.”
She blinks “What do you mean? You returned the cutie marks.”
“Oh no, you misunderstand I mean equal as in one tribe. No more Pegasi, no more Unicorns, no more Earth ponies.”
She stepped back in terror in her chest. “What are you talking about?”
Doom raised his left hand revealing the Infinity gauntlet. “Long ago, there was one tribe of ponies. All Ponies were Alicorns and in every pony there the means of reversing the diversion.”
“No way, there are only three Alicorns!”
“Cadence was once a pegasus, she's proof it can be done, here now in this village, the lost tribe will return. SO SAYS DOOM!”
The infinity gauntlet flashed and every pony in Our Town rose into the air as magical forces encased each in a sphere of magic. Within each sphere, the pony within morphed growing wings, horns, or both as each became one tribe. The spheres lowered down and faded revealing a whole village of Alicorns.
“Welcome Ponies of Our town to your ancestors' legacy, welcome to the tribe of Alicorns.” He smiled behind his metal mask waving the griffon guard's way.
“Remember ponies I am the one who granted you this true form of your species. I can remove it with a snap of my fingers. Serve me and you will help spread unity over Equestria as every pony will return to their ancestral roots. Your kind true power was restored under my leadership. For I am Doctor Doom your Sovereign and it is my destiny to rule this world and restore the natural order!”
He looks at a newspaper one with the title Royal Wedding Announced! He looked in the direction of Canterlot. “Your time ruling is coming to an end, Celestia. Next time we face I will have my own Alicorns with me.”
Starlight Glimmer looked out the window of the airship Dauntless. Far below Our Town got smaller and smaller. She spent years, plotting, planning, manipulating, all of it was a waste.
Looking down at the table she picked up the records Doom collected on Sunburst. The reports only started a few months ago, but it traced all of Sunburst’s life. He was a genius when it came to Thaumaturgy and Spell Theories, however, when it came to Spellcasting he struggled all through his schooling.
The bullies in Celestia School reportedly teased him often about his lack of magic. The result was Sunburst retreated into researching, he was friendless for years, only interacted with one other pony, a Moondancer, who was also a fellow researcher and loner.
There were also records of train tickets for when he went home, one was just two months after she left. She missed him, both literally and figuratively. Her crusade against Cutie Marks caused her to miss seeing him again.
She ignored the wet drops hitting the reports and turned to look out the window. They were going to Canterlot. Doom stated clearly his goal, to take over the nation, no… his goal was to take over the world.
Could she help him? She looked back to her new wings. One wave of his jewel gauntlet and he changed everything. No Unicorns, no Earth Ponies, no Pegasus, we were equal, but not hindered. One tribe, the Alicorn tribe.
She reached down and picked up another report on Celestia and Luna. Their Immortality is due to the connection to the Sun and Moon, not to their Alicorn hood. There were some factors he didn’t know, for example why weren’t the Unicorns granted a long life when using their magic on the sun and moon. One note theorized that the combination of two different deep magical effects caused the two Celestial sisters to have such a long life.
The Magic joining them to the Sun and Moon, at the same time being Alicorns stabilizes the cells and halts the aging process. If more Alicorns bond to the sun and moon, the amount of this cellular rejuvenation is reduced. He even noted a side effect of this constant rejuvenation results in a larger size, this is why Celestia is so much larger than a normal pony, Luna missed a thousand years of growth, so her body is smaller. The new Alicorn Princess Mi Amore Cadenza did not have this connection so was normal sized if on the tall side. There was another addition, a question. “Is this why Celestia didn’t make other Alicorns? Did she not want to risk losing her youth?” Side note included the reports of how Luna appeared after returning from her banishment, but before she was reconnected to the Moon. She was smaller, her mane and tail were no longer blowing in an ethereal wind, and her colors were of a lighter blue. Once the bonding was reconnected her color shades deepened, she grew larger, and the ethereal mane returned.
“So to be immortal, or at least long-lived an Alicorn would need to join magically to a source of power, but the more Alicorn’s are bound to the same source the weaker the effect.”
She picked up another paper, this one was talking about the Elements of Harmony. Gems were alive! This was a shock to her, but it made some sense that items could be imbued with magic, but need a pony to activate the magic. Enchantments have a steady effect even when no pony is around. This is due to the gems acting as the control of the magic, replacing the need for a Pony or magical creature to activate the magic. This is why a magic comic book would take a reader into the world of the comic, but the magic isn’t pulling everyone in when the comic hasn’t been activated.
She laid down the papers and then laid her head on her arms. It was too much, her entire world view upended, then turned sideways, and possibly inside out. Her anger at the Cutie Marks has brushed aside with a simple fact. Sunburst’s mother sent him to school, and her father didn’t send her. Why didn’t she see it before? Sure she had her teenage rebellious, and embarrassing goth phase, but she never blamed her father or Stellar Flare.
“He does that.” A voice said as a taloned hand placed down a glass of water on the table. Starlight lifted her head and saw it was Gilda the Griffon spell caster.
“Who does what?”
Gilda sat down on the other bench, “Victor, or I should say Doctor Doom. He upends everything in his wake. One day, that was all it took him to overthrow the council and take over Griffonstone. He united us Griffons again when he found the Idol of Boreas and restored our historical archive.
“It just so much… and” Starlight looks down “it all here, explained step by step. The Elements being alive and choosing the partner to use their magic. This Tree of harmony is just the tip of a massive Crystal lifeform that came from another world. How Cutie Marks are part of our awareness to express our abilities. How when I took their Cutie Marks I suppressed those very abilities, in effect setting their minds back to a child’s when it comes to skills.”
Guilt came over her face “I was damaging their brains, I wanted ponies free of Cutie Marks, but instead, I was forcing them to be mentally foals. Guess that's why it was so easy to manipulate them… they were foals in adult bodies.”
Gilda takes a drink from her glass of water. “Now he wants you to tell him how, so he could use it on criminals.”
“And what makes a criminal to someone with the absolute power of a ruler, anyone that challenges him.”
“Indeed, and the first target of the spell would be Celestia and Luna. He might spare Luna, but Celestia has been ruling a thousand years using other nations like Griffonstone to build up Equestria and keeping the other nations from becoming a threat.”
“I know, I read the report on how they used Griffonstone’s metal to build the train system, then cut trade to Griffonstone, once it was possible to ship steel from Fillydelphia to the rest of the country over those same Griffon steel train tracks.”
“With the other nations not needing such a high amount of steel, and the council being morons never diversifying. The Griffon economy collapsed.”
Starlight drank her water, then said “All justifiable, all easy to dismiss, unless you read the step by step plan over 20 years worth of treaties and negotiations.”
“The only one who had the foresight and time to do that is an Alicorn with a thousand years experience of manipulation or a megalomaniac from another reality.”
Starlight looked at the papers. “You know, I can see myself being manipulated by Doctor Doom now. He chose these files for me to read, I can see where some information was left out.” She sighs and looks out the window. “But what I read I know is true, I can see the results, I can understand step by step. I feel like I'm playing against a grandmaster playing chess, seeing how each move forces me into a move that He wants, but unable to make any move otherwise.”
Gilda knew what she meant. “He’s an Apex Predator. Even when we try to fight against him, he already anticipated it and planned for it. I’m just happy under that armor, under his scars, is someone that does want what is best for the world.”
“And Harmony forbid anyone that stands in his way.” The two looked out the window, as they crossed over the mountains other Zeppelin type Airships came into view, the rest of the fleet of the Griffonstone air force.
Intermission 4: Notes on Crystalline life, and Dragons.
The crystalline life forms are not native to this world. They were in a chunk of debris from the rogue planet that disrupted Equis orbit. The impact site in the center of Equestria the crystals themselves form the center of Canterhorn.
Each cluster functions as a hive mind, the larger the crystal cluster the more intelligence it has. At what point does a cluster develops sentience and sapience I have yet to determined, nor do I know if each species develops differently.
Identified species and classifications.
Canterhorn cluster crystal species. This is primary still the original life form with evolutionary changes for Equis. The prime cluster is vastly intelligent but processing thoughts as we know them is very slow. Its native habitat was often cold and only endured heat when nearing a star. Adapted for long-term survival on an otherwise lifeless world this species spends countless years in suspended animation, similar to how tardigrades can endure long periods of inactivity.
Tree of Harmony offshoot species, this cluster was altered by the Pillars of Equestria. They used a “seed” from the Canterhorn cluster and imbued it with their magic. Thought primary similar to the Canterhorn cluster, the Tree of Harmony Cluster is more consciously aware of the world around it, faster thought process, and able to store and even use magic. Feats the Canterhorn Cluster hasn’t demonstrated. Like any tree what is above ground is only part of the overall life. What is underground is a fast complex of crystal roots, that reach under Ponyville. (redacted information from notes given to Starlight: We see this root complex in Season 8 Episode 22 What lies Beneath. Another example is Twilight’s Castle grew from a branch of the Tree of Harmony root system. The destruction of the Tree trunk and branches would not kill the Roots it would just grow a new tree Trunk, possible Twilight’s Castle is such a second tree of Harmony.)
Variation two Crystal Empire. At this time I have no examples of Crystal Empire Gems to study. Given the descriptions, I believe the Crystal Ponies also altered a “Seed” from the Canterhorn cluster to grow the Crystal Empire. The Crystal Heart functions much like an Element of Harmony. The Heart is imbued with new LOVE magic during the Crystaling ceremony. At this time this is still speculation.
Stone Clusters a version of the crystalline life form diverged greatly from the Canterhorn cluster. This variation lives in granite and other stones. The largest known cluster of this type is Holder’s Boulder. Unlike the Tree of Harmony species, this type does not demonstrate magical abilities, it does possess the ability to communicate to certain ponies. Holder’s Boulder maybe just selective on who it communicates to, or the members of the Pie family are unique and can just understand it.
The Pie Family lives on a Rock farm growing this type of crystalline life, rolling the rocks from field to field spreads the microbes, as well as allow for greater genetic mixing of the microbe stock. The Pies also consume the microbes via Rock soup.
Black Crystal Clusters, just like how the Tree of Harmony Cluster was imbued with magic, Black Crystal Clusters are also affected by magic in more negative means. Appearing as dark black stone these black crystals can use the magic imbued in them to affect the outside world.
Sombra black crystals, this form of crystalline life is forced to grow at a rapid pace. Feeding off the magic of Sombra they are both used as offensive and defensive weaponry by the Tyrant King. (redacted information from notes given to Starlight: A black crystal left alone can influence beings around it, inducing hallucinations of deep fear, to block magic, as seen when Shining Armor horn was infected in the cartoon.)
(Redacted information from notes given to Starlight: Black Crystal Changeling Cluster. The ability block and absorb magic are somehow amplified in the cluster used as Crystalis throne. This cluster has a wide field of magical absorption only the magic Changelings use seem unaffected. It’s also possible that it kills all life in that area draining it of the very magic it needs to survive.)
Symbiotic Clusters. These clusters live on or in an Equis life form, as of this time I have identified one such life, as well as a second possible.
The Cragadile seems to be a type of Crocodylidae, similar to a crocodile in appearance they however developed a rock-like armor. After studying the body of one such creature I have discovered the armor is a form of the Stone cluster type. It developed a symbiotic lifestyle with the Cragadiles providing extra armor and the Cragadiles act as a defensive, as well as means of transport.
The second possible symbiotic pairing is the Crystal Ponies, at this time this is just speculations.
Natural Predators.
Dragons have developed into the natural predator of the Crystalline lifeforms. I originally believed that dragons were symbiotic with the Crystalin life, however, having studied the dragon Tinder I corrected my assumptions.
Dragons hoarding is their version of rock farming. By having a stash of gems, they let the microbes multiply and grow, farming the microbes for future feedings.
The Dragon Greed Growth is a defensive means of defending the Hoard from stronger Dragons. This quick growth helps younger weaker dragons fight off any threat to their food supply. Once the hoard been restored, or the perceived threat is gone the young dragon would revert to its original size.
This however is instinctive and can be triggered by any greed and assumed threat to the Dragon’s hoard. (Redacted information from notes given to Starlight: For example someone taking a prized heart fire ruby from a baby dragon.)
Another Crystalline lifeform Preditor is the Dimond Dogs. Highly adapted to digging and their sense of smell have developed to detect large sources of gems.
Unlike Dragons, they don’t horde or grow gems. Possessing minimal sapience intelligence. Dragons often threaten them and force them to dig up Gems, for themselves.
Dragon biology.
Dragons appear Predatory with their dagger-like teeth, armored hides, and sharp claws, the truth is these are not tools for hunting prey. Their diets are omnivorous, even more than humans.
The dagger-like teeth to cut and crush Crystal Gem Clusters, Sharp claws for digging dens as well as digging for gems.
They live in a very hostile environment compared to other carbon-based life, this is due to them having learned the heat of the volcanoes speeds up the growth of their primary food source, the crystalline life found in Equis gems. It's possible the fire breathing and higher body temperature of a dragon developed as natural means to increase the growth of the Crystalline life forms when natural heat sources aren't accessible.
Their stashes of gems grow as the microbes absorb heat (inferred radiation) much like how plants use sunlight. To resist the intense heat of the volcanoes, the dragons utilize the crystal structures of their primary food source. A dragon’s scales and hide are crystalline in makeup giving a dragon heat resistance. So much so they can easily endure the heat of lava flows.
There is a downside to this, if a dragon doesn’t consume enough crystalline life, they lose this protection. New scales come in weak and are easily broken. This is what happened to the young dragon Tinder I meet at the Ravenblood Den.
Side note: Tinder is recovering from Crystalline deficiency thanks to my supply I donated to her, for her swearing loyalty of course.
A dragon would continue to grow throughout their life. As they mature they enter long stretches of hibernation-like sleep. It is my belief they do this so their hoard of gems can grow large enough to provide a full meal.
Side Note: It very possible a dragon’s growth is directly tied to how often they get enough gems. This would explain why Spike is so small but has the same mental maturity as Tinder, and Smolder. This would take further study.
Act III Doom comes to Equestria, Chapter 20 The Coming Swarm.
On earth blimps fly between 1,000 and 7,000 feet, this was unacceptable for Doctor Doom. He needed airships that could reach above the height Pegasus could fly. So when he designed his Dauntless Command ship, and the other airship of the Griffon fleet he designed them to fly at 30 - 40 thousand feet. This wasn’t possible without the abundance of magic in Equestria.
“It’s so pretty” he heard the awe in the voice of Faina. Doom turns his head to look at the runt Eagleblood was gazing out the window to the world below.
He smirks as he sees Gallus’ head tilted, a confused look came to his face. He turns his head spotting Doom. “Um… Doom, something wrong with this window. The ground looks curved.”
Doom stands up from his seat in the grand chamber and walks over to the fledgling. “The glass is fine, what do you think is wrong?”
“The ground, do you see the curve, it should be flat.” Faina sports the curvature of the planet as well then points to the ground, her talon tracing a line on the glass in a slight curve.
“Who said the ground is flat?” Doom couldn’t help it under that mask, he smiles.
Faina spins around “What do you mean of course it’s flat?”
“Really? Are you stupid or something? Of course, it’s flat, if it wasn’t a toy ball would keep rolling around.” Gallus stated.
Doom thought about his reply “How far can you see? Can you see Griffonstone from here? The reason you can’t is that the curve of the planet puts it out of sight.”
“No, why should I. It’s like across the ocean.”
“How about Baltimare? Or Manehattain, it should be in that direction.” Doom motioned to the northeast.
“Um.. the mountains?”
“The world is a very large sphere, and it pulls everything down. That's called gravity, think of it as a form of magic. It wants to pull everything to the planet, you use your magic to counter gravity to fly, same with pegasus. I even use such magic to make these airships. Gravity is also why it gets harder to breathe the higher you are, there is less air because gravity pulls down the breathable air closer to the ground.”
“You are pulling our leg. The world isn’t a sphere.” Gallus huffs and looks out the window.
“Faina, would you like to see the whole world one day? I knew how to make a craft that can go beyond the air, so high up you would be able to see the planet as a whole. It’s one of my goals.”
Faina's gaze returned to Doom’s. “Would I be able to fly like this more?”
Victor von Doom nodded “Yes Faina, you have my blessing to be the first astronaut of Equis.”
“Hey! No calling me names!”
Doom smiled behind his mask “Not a name Faina, it’s a title for the very best those who go beyond the air and reach for the stars.”
“Oh, alright I will be this astronaut thing.”
From behind the two, a third voice is heard. “Doctor Doom, Sir, Equestria is in sight.”
Doom turned the moment where he showed compassion is over, it was time to be a sovereign again. Time for a conqueror. “Report, what is the situation?”
The Griffon airship sailor saluted. “Canterlot’s city magic shield still up, no sign of the Changeling swarm.”
“Very well give the order to halt our approach, we attack only after the swarm assaults the capital.”
“Yes, your majesty.” The sailor saluted then headed back to the bridge.
Doom then returns his view to the fledglings “I look forward to how you explain seeing a curve of the land. For now, I have an invasion to plan for, you two stay aboard understand. This is an order.”
“Um… Okay.” “Yes Sir.” The two fledglings spoke up as he headed to the bridge.
Once on the bridge, he heads to the communication officer. “Link me to the fleet.”
“Yes sir.” The communicator was a modified crystal radio unit. Easy to mass produce thought limited in function. Doom had to remember that he still needs to progress in steps. It will be years before he can produce truthfully advanced technology.
Taking the microphone he spoke up. Onboard the fleet ships his voice was broadcast out of the speakers. “Griffons of Griffonstone, for years, decades Equestria have been growing thanks to the hard work of Griffon miners, and Steel smiths. The buildings of Manehattan skeletons are Griffon steel. The trains run thanks to your blood, sweat, and steel. What did Equestria do to pay you back? Nothing. When the leader Celestia got what she wanted she cut all ties and let the festering boil of corruption run wild. Her nephew used what valuable land he could buy to grow drugs. Proclaiming it a privilege to work for him!”
“Soon Celestia’s weakness will come to light, as I speak a force of shapeshifters known as Changelings have infiltrated the city. The very Queen of this insect-like race is in the very castle.”
He stops a moment to let the Griffon’s think about that. “Soon the full force of Changelings will attack the city, there will be panic, fear, and the Ponies will be looking for their heroes to save the day. Those heroes will fail.”
“The Bearers of the Elements of Harmony will not have the Elements with them, due to Celestia’s foolishness of keeping them in the vault. Celestia will fail to defeat the Changeling Queen. The Ponies heroes will fail, the guard will fall, and that is when we will arrive.”
“On this day we will come and save the day, we will save Equestria. Yes, you heard me right, we will save Equestria. I will declare Celestia, and Luna unfit for rule. Celestia’s weakness and failure to stop the Changelings, and Luna is a thousand years out of touch with her people.”
“Your orders are to defend the ponies, show them that they were wrong to abandon you. We are warriors, we are fighters. The Ponies are weak; they are herbivores who use manipulation and weakening their foes to stay in power. This ends today.”
“Use restraint when fighting, I want to spare as many Changelings as possible. Like you, they are victims of the Ponies. They are predators who barely had enough to eat, they are starving. To them, this is a win, or die event. Like you, I will show them a new way forward.”
“Use your visual scanners, the energy signature of a Changeling is different than a Pony even when transformed. You are authorized to use stun Batons, and if you need more lethal weapons. Remember I want to spare as many as possible, but casualties are acceptable if you are overwhelmed, or have no other option.”
“Above all, Celestia and the Changeling Queen are mine to take care of. The fate of Equestria changes today, one way or another, that is all.”
He handed over the microphone then moved to the large front window looking down at the city of Canterlot in the distance. His arms behind his back left hand in his right.
The Dauntless Captain came over. “Sir we spotted bogies at 2 O’clock.”
Doom didn’t even turn his head as his gaze moved to see a group of Pegasus guards he counted 20 pegasuses in the group and the lead one dark blue Alicorn. So that is what she was doing during the invasion. He thought to himself.
“Captain, prepare we might get a guess soon. I don’t want the crew to panic.”
“Yes Sir.” Doom turned and headed to the observation deck. Once he’s at his onboard throne he taps the onboard intercom. “Hans, Starlight, Mona, Report to the bridge. Operation Blue Moon about to begin.”
A flash of white alerted him to another guest. He turned his head spotting Discord sitting in a blue Lazyboy recliner and eating Popcorn. “Ah, Doommie this is going to be fun. Such Chaos!”
“I do hope you are planning to just watch and not interfere.”
“Do I look like a creature that plans?”
“Discord, you indeed plan.”
Discord laughs, “Ah true, but do I LOOK like I do. Don’t worry I won’t interfere, well unless my friends get hurt. I found I do care for those ponies.”
“I’m sure, double when it comes to Fluttershy.” Doom was rewarded with seeing Discord choke on the popcorn.
“Doom, I have no idea what you mean.”
Doom looked to four Pillars set up right behind his throne. From the corner of his eye, he noted Discord seeing the very same pillars and swallow with nervousness.
“I think I skip this part” Discord said then snapped his fingers vanishing from the bridge. A few moments later Hans, Starlight Glimmer, and Mona walked in.
“Princess Luna was spotted flying in our direction. It’s unclear if we were spotted but once we are she’s the only one on the patrol that can reach us. I want you three to be prepared for her.”
“Well, What would I be doing Doctor Doom?” Starlight Glimmer nervously asks, sure running a town was one thing, fighting an alicorn. Even if she was one now, was something she never expected.
“Starlight, you do have your spell to weaken her. Remove her cutie mark and Mona can seal it in one of her spirit jars. However, this would be the last option dealing with Luna. Hans, I want you to be ready to grab her and drain her of magic. If that fails, I had set up the power drain Pillars here. Only after those two methods fail will Starlight strip her of her cutie mark.”
From the bridge, a voice spoke out. “Your Majesty, The flight pattern of the Patrol has changed. They are heading in our direction.”
Doom commands. “Very well Navigator. Starlight, Mona, enters the side chamber. Hans on the roof!”
Doom then turned and sat down on his throne. Hans melts into a puddle of black goo that oozes up the wall to form a circle on the ceiling.
Starlight Glimmer looks at the throne and then heads to the side chamber with Mona. The chamber was set up like an office, a place where Doom could work in private when onboard.
There was a threat to Canterlot, the warning was vague but it was clear there was trouble. Celestia, Cadence, and Luna herself chose to continue with the wedding. It was so the Ponies would know that even under max security there was no reason to worry.
The only problem was Luna couldn’t be there and patrol at the same time. She wanted to gain the population’s trust again, show them she was there to protect them. So she was out with a squad of Pegasus.
They were moving southeast when the guard on the right moved up. “Princess, there's something up there above the clouds.”
Luna looked to where he was pointing. High above to the southwest were large oddly shaped airships, ships that shouldn’t be able to fly so high. “Change course we are going to investigate.”
“Princess, we can’t fly that high.” the commander of the squad announced.
“I am aware of that Commander. If they are a threat I will go alone.” Luna stated as they headed in the direction of the durables. As they came closer Luna spotted the green stylized D of Doctor Doom.
“Commander! It appears we found our threat to return to the city. I shall confront Doctor Doom myself till my sister could join in the battle.”
The pegasus looked at each other with confusion on their faces, their eyes flashing green as the changelings thought about this. The airships could be a threat to the hive, so they chose to head back to the city. The Queen needs to be alerted to this situation.
Princess Luna starts climbing for the airships and is surprised to see the lead ship coming down closer as she approaches.
25 thousand feet in the air she was right upfront of the airship she could see the bridge crew and there overlooking it all was Victor Von Doom on a throne staring right at her. With a flash, she teleports to the open area behind the throne.
Doctor Doom smiled behind his mask, she took the bait. With a press of a button, the throne turned around to face her. “Princess Luna, welcome aboard.”
Luna stood before him dressed in blue and black armor with a war hammer. “Fiend, How dare thou threatens Equestria!”
“Threaten Equestria? What do you mean?” Doom noted that she slipped into the Equestrian accent.
She gripped her hammer “Thou has led an invasion force into Equestria!”
“The Sombra Accord, a document was written after you and your sister failed to save the Crystal Empire. The keywords in that document “During events of possible world threats the borders can be crossed to defend life and the planet. We have come to help save Equestria that is why we were waiting high above, till the threat appears. After all, only a world-level threat would be stupid enough to attack Three Alicorn’s at once.”
Luna for a moment halts then she draws her hammer forward. “I don’t believe you.”
Doom sighs “I didn’t expect you to, just note you and me will survive a battle. The fledglings, and perhaps most of the griffons on board will not.”
Perhaps it was her battle instincts, or her hyperreflexia thanks to the Pegasus magic, for whatever reason Luna spun around to face Hans hanging upside down from the ceiling. “Well, it seems I couldn't surprise you. Then again I’m the distraction.”
The pillars activated and luna had just enough time to look down seeing circles of magic light up under her. She took one step, just once before she fell to the floor losing consciousness.
“Hans, your performance was flawed,” Doom commented as he looked at the depowered Luna.
“Forgive me my liege, I don’t know how she sensed me.”
Doom looked to the side room “Starlight, Mona, bring out the shackles. I want Luna awake when the City of Canterlot falls.”
Mona walks out of the chamber and looks at the glowing runes on the pillars. “You are truly terrifying my sovereign.”
“Believe me, Mona, this is just the tip of what he could do,” Hans replies as he takes the shackles from Mona and walks into the power drain field. Hans’ having been made twice now to absorb magic was immune to the power drain effect. Carefully he puts on the shackles and magic hindering ring on her horn.
“Hans, that is the very reason Doctor Doom is fighting, knowing that he is not even trying.”
Starlight Glimmer looked on as the Princess of the night was bound. In her mind, the comment of Mona was very true. Doctor Victor von Doom was terrifying.
Once Luna was secured the pillars deactivate. “What… NO!”
“I am truly sorry for having to restrict you, Princess Luna. You are my favorite princess” Hans commented as he yanks her up “However for the greater good you are under arrest for transpassing on a Griffonstone airship and attempted assault of our liege.”
Hans then pulls Luna to the seats on the observatory balcony. “Let me go, creature.”
Sighing he did just that shoving her into the seat “Now don’t yell too much I hate to muzzle you.”
Starlight Glimmer walks in front of Luna letting the Princess get a good look. “Princess is for the greater good.”
“Another Alicorn! How? Why are you serving these villains!”
Leaning forward “Because Luna, they are fixing the world. What do you think happens to the weather of the other nations where there is no Pegasus to control the seasons? The town I lived in for years was outside of the borders of Equestria. We didn’t get regular rain, Griffonstone was constantly battered by wind, to the south of Equestria is a vast desert.”
She stood straight again “That changed when Doctor Doom took the sun and moon away from you and your sister. The valley where I lived is now green with fresh growth. Griffonstone’s valleys are growing more food than ever before. Just recently Doom visited us, and changed the entire town to Alicorns.”
“Think about it Luna, no more tribalism, the unicorns will no longer have the advantage of magic, every pony strong and healthy as Earth Ponies, and fast as a pegasus. We are one tribe, one people. As it was before, so shall it be again.”
The voice of a Griffon cut into the talk. “Your Majesty! The Changeling Swarm coming from the Everfree! The attack is underway!”
Doom nods “Thank you private, return to your duties.” Then he looks to Luna “Behold Princess, the end of Equestria as you know it.”
Luna’s eyes widen as she saw a black cloud move to the protective shield. A cloud of pony shaped black insect-like beings. “No, Celestia will stop them.”
“I am afraid not Luna, by now Celestia has already been defeated. The Queen of the Changelings was disguised as Cadence. I suspect she has been drugging Celestia’s food, perhaps yours as well. It would explain how Celestia was not aware of things.” Hans commented as he sat down.
Doom calls down to the bridge “Commander sends the message to the fleet. It time for the world to know the might of Griffonstone.”
“Celestia!” Twilight rushed over to where Celestia fell. Her crown laid to the side and her horn was burnt. Twilight knelt down and lifted her mentor’s head.
“The Elements of Harmony, you must get to them and use their power to stop them.” Celestia then passed out in Twilight’s arms.
Standing up she looks at her friends. “You heard her girls let’s go.”
“Right” the other bearers spoke then the group took off running out of the door. Rarity hiking her skirt up with her hands.
Behind them the monster that defeated Celestia laughed. “You never escape! Mah ha ha ha.” The voice of Crystalis echoed off the grand hall.
Once outside they saw the swarm striking the barrier. “We got to hurry!” Twilight yelled just as the shield collapsed.
The swarm descended on them with such force one cracked the ground beneath it.
Rainbow Dash cracks her knuckles. “Alright girls, looks like we have to do this the hard way!”
“Right ya are RD!” Applejack chimed in punching a Changeling in the jaw.
“RAINBOW LOOK OUT!” A voice from above called, Rainbow turns to see a changeling was behind her. Just to see a magical blast hit it right in the face.
“Thanks, Twilight!” Rainbow says as she spins kicking another changeling.
Twilight blinks and looks over “That wasn’t me Rainbow.”
“If it’s wasn’t you then who?”
A seventh figure draped down dressed in red Tatzlwurm armor, and some kind of strange pair of glasses. “Gilda? What are you doing here?”
Gilda smiles and looks back “Saving your tail.” She cast another spell and sends a blast of freezing air at some of the changelings.
“But…” Rainbow blinks not sure why her former friend was now fighting with them.
“Look, I know we had a fight. I explain everything after we save your stupid city.” A sad look came to Gilda’s face “We had a fight, but friends make up, right? Can we still be friends?”
“Um... Yeah, first fight, then talk.” Rainbow turns just to face another Gilda, who punches her in the muzzle.
The Fake griffon was then punched by AppleJack. “How do we da real us from these copycats?”
“I have that taken care of Applejack” The booming voice of Doctor Doom answered her as the armored figure landed in the center of the combatants. “Duck!”
“Get down!” Gilda yelled as she yanked Rainbow Down. Just as Doom released an electrical attack at the gathering Changelings.
“Good. That would give us some time to hand out the scanners.” Doom added seeing the changelings were now knocked out with the electrical discharge.
Twilight Sparkle turns and looks at Doom. “You! What are you doing here?”
“I believe the term is Saving the day.”
“You took the sun and moon from Celestia and Luna, causing the weather to go out of control! Not to mention causing a disaster when you teleported Celestia to the middle of the city during a fight!” Twilight’s nostrils failed as she looked angrily at the first creature that defeated her mentor.
“Oh don’t get your panties in a bunch Twilight. Your Precious Celestia almost blasted a whole group of Griffons with that attack. What did you lose? Four? It would have hit 20 of us.” Gilda added her own thoughts as she handed Rainbow Dash a pair of glasses. The lenses were carved gem lenses with smaller gems set in the frames. “Put these on Rainbow.”
“Don’t do it Rainbow, it’s probably a brainwashing device!” Twilight calls out.
“Twilight, focus on one threat to your kingdom at once. I can take over your minds with a snap, I don’t need some silly device. The Scanners let you see the magical energy of the changelings no matter what disguise they have on. You can tell who or what a changeling is by the green aurora. Now stop choose Twilight Sparkle, save your nation, or fight me for your mentor’s bruised ego.”
Twilight looked down then stuck her hand out “Fine but we aren’t finished with this, but for the good of Equestria I give it up for now. We need to get to the vault!”
“Really, the idea of having valuable and powerful items, in a location separate from the castle was not very bright” Doom commented as he headed to the location of the vault. He lifted his arm and used a low-powered concussion blast to knock out a fake Rainbow Dash.
Gilda knew her role, Doom explained it very well. It was surprising that such powerful tools like the Elements of Harmony were kept far away from the Bearers. What more the ponies seemed to not even be aware of how powerful they were.
Taking a breath she spoke out “So what we getting from this Vault place? Some kind of weapon.”
“We getting the Elements of Harmony duh.” Rainbow chipped in as she flips kicked a Gilda copied Changeling.
Gilda sighed did Rainbow always had this snarky attitude? Then she remembered their past, yup snarky and egotistical.
Doom stopped walking and turned “We are retrieving the Elements of Harmony? It’s idiotic to not have the Elements with the Bearers, for emergencies just like this.”
Twilight spun and yelled at Doom “Celestia had a good reason!”
Gilda flinched, she still remembered seeing Doom’s anger. Was she about to see the death of Twilight Sparkle? What she heard was almost as frighting, Doctor Doom’s laughter. “Twilight… oh poor, poor Twilight. Your leader is a fool, and I can prove it with one question.”
“Oh, what question is that?”
“How did you get the Elements of Magic?”
Twilight blinked her mind replaying the events. “When the five elements are present a spark would cause the sixth to be revealed.”
“Yes, but Nightmare moon destroyed the five didn’t she.” Doom dramatically spun around pointing to the other bearers. “You said so yourself Twilight, the Elements are right here! Applejack, represents the spirit of Honesty, Fluttershy is kindness, Pinkie Pie is laughter, Rarity is Generosity, Rainbow Dash represents Loyalty” with another turn he points at Twilight, “And you are Magic. So tell me again why are we heading to the Vault, to get the trinkets? Just like the Element of Magic appeared when you felt the spark, so too would the magic of Harmony allow you to summon those gems whenever you need them.”
He then lowered his arm “But your Friendship been damaged hasn’t it? When you warned Celestia about the fake Cadence she dismissed you.” Then he turned to look at the bearers, “your friends still haven’t apologized for not listening either.”
He looked at Applejack, “You were so driven to prove your Sweet Apple Acres apple dishes are worthy of royalty all you thought about were the bits you could bring home. When Twilight needed you to trust her, as she trusted you on the cliff, you failed.”
“Fluttershy, your timid nature, and fear of showing aggressiveness caused you to follow the others and if you felt doubt you remained silent and didn’t support your friend. Sometimes not speaking up is crueler than saying something someone might not like.”
Gilda watched on, Doom had planned this she looked around and noticed that the majority of Changelings were now out cold. Griffon teams with magic-resistant armor, scanners, and shock batons were easily taking out the foes.
Changelings were by nature infiltrators, they operated mostly by stealth and shock. Against a force that had means of rendering the shape-changing magic useless, the Changelings were being quickly overwhelmed.
“Rarity, the idea of having one of your dresses on the bride was too tempting, you forgot that a wedding takes a month or more to plan, nevermind a wedding of a Royal Princess. That dress would have been ordered months if not a year ahead of time. You abandoned your friend for pride and desire to rise in Canterlot society.”
He then looked at Pinkie Pie “Pinkie Pie, you should have known as well that something was wrong. How many parties have you planned? How many times have you calculated the best means to make every pony happy?” Pinkie Pie’s hair went flat and hung down straight as her head lowered, all the bearers were now showing signs of similar shame and sadness.
Gilda looked to Rainbow Dash. It was her turn, Doom told her what to say. “Rainbow, the bearer of Loyalty. You heard Twilight and you ignored her, but she’s not the only friend you ignored. The day I came to Ponyville, I came to beg for your help. Every time I got you alone, Pinkie Pie showed up.”
She looked over to Pinke Pie, “I’m sorry Pinkie Pie, I made you jealous but I really was desperate. So desperate and frustrated…” Gilda then looked to Fluttershy “I couldn’t keep my cool and yelled at you Fluttershy, I’m very sorry for that.”
“Um… it’s alright…” Fluttershy fiddled with her mane.
Rainbow Dash looked at Gilda “You, were seeking my help? Griffins never ask for help.”
Gilda looked back, “Yeah, I was losing my home. I couldn’t pay the mortgage and I pawned my mother’s Equestrian Games medal, just to make due. I used my last coin to get to Ponyville I didn’t even have the funds to buy an apple.”
Doom then spoke up again “Well, seems there more than one friendship lesson to be learned today. The first step is to apologize, then we head back to the castle. If you all look around, my Griffins have taken down the majority of the swarm.”
“Twi… I feel like ah been drag through the pigpen. Ya ever forgive me?” AppleJack took her stepson hat off and held it to her chest.
“You aren’t the only one Applejack. Twilight if becoming famous means losing you as a friend, to heck with being popular.” Rarity added her own apology.
Pinkie Pie didn’t say a word instead she rashed Foreward crying tackling twilight in a hug. “I… I’m… so… SOOOORRRRYYY!”
Soon the other mane 6 join in the hug crying as Twilight forgave them all.
Then Rainbow Dash took a step back and looked at Gilda. “I guess I overdid it with those pranks huh. Gilda, I didn’t know you needed my help back then. We still pal?”
Gilda wiped her face free of tears. “If you tell anyone I was crying I punch you out got it.”
Rainbow Smiles “Sure, but I think this time we can accept that crying is cool.”
“Yeah, Yeah, sure. Now let’s get to that castle, we still have the Queen bug to swat.”
High above in the Dauntless Hans looked down at the city. “I do believe phase one is complete.”
“Oh does that mean the real fun part begins?” With a sigh, Hans turns to see Discord smiling dressed in a baseball jersey with Doom’s stylized D on the front, a green foam hand with the words Team Doom is #1 printed on it.
“DISCORD! Thank Harmony you are here get me out of this!” Luna being behind the Dracquaniqis couldn’t see the sports fan items.
That was until Discord turned with a wide smile. “Help you out? Just when is this story getting to the grand climax?” He rose up and slid his lion-claw finger under her chin. “Who do you think talked me into becoming friends with the bearers instead of causing chaos?”
“No…”
“Oh yes, dear Luna. Doctor Doom has been using Friendship against you Alicorns! He right now making friends with Twilight and company. Really how he doing it is pure Magic! Ah, get it Friendship is Magic.” Discord flys back laughing as he goes. “What wonderful chaos, and all in a way that makes you all warm and fussy inside.”
“It’s true Princess Luna, Victor von Doom is saving Equestria and the world.” Hans looks to Luna, “It’s not the Changelings who he’s saving the world from. It’s your Sister, she been manipulating everything behind the shadows for generations. Do you think it just chances all six bearers were in the same town at the same time to stop Nightmare Moon?”
“But yet she didn’t plan for my escape, nor this Changeling Invasion. See Luna, she was so focused on saving you, she lost sight of being a ruler.” Discord smiled and snapped his fingers the Element of Magic with crown appeared in his paw.
“Do you see it? A crown. Twilight is fated to rule Equestria, Harmony itself declared her the next ruler. For her to rule, Celestia and you have to step down.”
Luna’s head fell, it was there right in front of her face. Twilight’s crown, twilight the time between Day and Night, the cutie mark a perfect representation of the Element of Magic, It was true Twilight Sparkle was fated to rule Equestria.
Chapter 22: To Change the Changelings, Doom style.
The group turned and headed for the Castle, around them the battle was coming to its end. Many ponies were still hiding, but a few had come out of buildings to look at the chaos and the Griffons who were rounding up the Changelings and chaining them together.
On the way, Twilight looked at a group of Griffons going door to door. “What are they doing?”
Doom glances over “Ah, they are compiling a list of all the Ponies, and other beings in the city. We don’t know how many Changelings were in the city before the shield went up. So, with a proper list of missing Ponies, we can start figuring out who was replaced or taken out of the city before my forces arrived.”
Twilight Sparkle looked at Doom. “You had this all planned, not just the battle but organizing the recovery? How could you be so prepared?”
“Starswirl is not the only one who studied Time Travel, Twilight. Unlike Starswirl’s method, I can go back longer than a minute and though I have come across self-correcting paradoxes, I have found methods to alter time. Yet, even I can’t plan all the ways time can change if altered, so I normally avoid it. Preventing Queen Chrysalis from having access to two, if not three Alicorns as a means to boost her own magical power was worth the risk.”
He stopped and held up his hand. “Wait, something is not right.”
“What is it, partner?” Asked Applejack looking for something wrong in a city that just suffered not one but two armies fighting in the streets.
“It’s the Castle, look at the windows, I can see that my Griffons are still fighting at the main entrance.” He looked back and said; “We need to hurry!”
Then Doom lifted in the air and flew over the city headed for the castle, leaving the others behind.
Rainbow Dash looked to Gilda “Is he always like that?”
“Oh, no. He’s having fun with this. You should have seen him when he stormed the Castle in Griffonstone. There are nights I still wake up in a sweat remembering that night.” Gilda replied, leaping into the flight herself.
“That’s the day he summoned all those Nightmare beasts and fought Celestia, right?” Twilight asked as she ran for the castle.
“The very same, Egghead. Believe me, he went soft on Celestia, the counselor was incinerated with one blast. Just ash and bones were left, he kept the skull as a trophy.”
“EEP!” Fluttershy stopped her flight, shivering at the thought. She wasn’t the only one afflicted however they all pulled through and returned to their chase after Doom.
At the castle grounds, Doctor Doom lands before the gathered Griffons. “What’s the situation?”
“My sovereign, the remaining Changelings retreated to the castle, they have sealed up all the windows and entrances with some green resin that’s very hard to break. The only way in now is the main entrance and they have gathered there.” A commanding griffon saluted and reported the situation.
Doom nodded “I see, are the shock batons aren’t effective anymore?”
“No sir, they are effective, but they drag every changeling we knock out back into the castle to revive. I hate to say this but we aren’t effective enough in close quarters, our battle strategy is hit and run attacks using mainly airstrikes. The files we have on changelings stated that they dwell in a massive hive of tight tunnels, add to that they climb on the walls and ceilings. For every one of our fighters we get in, they have three to counter.”
“Be at ease Commander it seems they have the natural advantage in close quarters. For now, keep them occupied, but don’t venture into the castle.” Doom then turns and sees the rest of the group arriving. “It seems the Changelings have sealed up the castle and are blocking this way in, so we'll go another way.”
Twilight catches her breath before asking “Wait, if the changelings sealed up the doors how would we get inside? That doesn’t make sense.”
Doom turns and starts walking along the outside of the building. “Doors? Twilight, Doom does not need doors.”
Within the castle, a loud echoing voice reverberated off the walls. “WHAT’S HAPPENING!” Chrysalis screamed at the cowardly changelings bowing before her. Just a few minutes ago she won, the changeling swarm was rounding up ponies, Celestia was bound up in a cocoon. She wasn’t winning, she won.
Then a patrol of Changelings, ones she sent to distract Princess Luna, came back reporting that strange silver airships have appeared high in the sky. She looked out the window just in time to see Griffons descending on the city.
“We don’t know my Queen. The Griffons are attacking with strange weapons that knock out any being they touch. Somehow they can see through our disguises.” The lead Changeling replied.
“Get the word out! We won’t lose to a bunch of birdbrains!” She stomped her hoof into the ground. The changelings scurry back, they see those same hooves crush those that displeased her.
In the back Cadance was worried, Twilight and her friends were out there. There was no other hope. She blinked, her eyes looking at Shining Armor. If she could get to him and use her magic to help him. Perhaps then everything wouldn’t be doomed after all.
As if these thoughts themselves summoned a monster from Tartarus, an armored fist punched its way through the wall. Then the wall collapsed fully and an armored being.
She heard the reports, she saw the spy photos, Cadence knew who this being was “Doom”.
Doom smirked behind the mask “Indeed Princess Mi Amore Cadenza. It’s Doctor Victor von Doom.”
A green blast of magic struck him in the chest. Doom glanced down then to Crystalis. “Foolish insect, you used too much of your magic reserves to take down Celestia. Gilda, Twilight, everyone else; take care of the other Changelings. Crystalis is mine.”
Gilda went into action yelling out the ancient griffon word for ice, creating an ice ball, and throwing them at the Changelings.
“How are you casting magic? I never heard of a griffon that could!” Twilight asks as she casts her own magic blasts at the changelings.
“I’m afraid griffon spell casting is rare, very rare. I’m the first in a thousand years to have my spell casting awakened. Turns out one of the signs of a Griffon could use magic is cloud walking. Think about it, we need to channel magic into our limbs to cloud walk and shape clouds. Few of us can cloud walk, it also explains why we don’t have weather-making abilities or cloud houses. Only a small handful of Griffons can manipulate clouds, I’m just one of the rare few.” Gilda replied as she held out her palm forming a white magical shield as the changelings retaliated.
Twilight thought about it “Pegasi and Earth Ponies don’t cast magic and they have similar abilities. Earth Ponies channel magic to farm and improve their strength, where Pegusi have the weather abilities.”
Doom smiled seeing the gears in Twilight’s head turn then he spoke up. “Think about it Twilight, your Library, a living tree, and a whole building? I bet that’s some Earth Pony magic in there. If they can do that, why can’t they cast spells and project magic like you Unicorns.”
“But...I've been studying magic for years! There is no record of non-unicorn magic casters!” Twilight stopped fighting as the thoughts ran wild in her mind.
“TWILIGHT! Stop Twilighting and focus!” Cadence yelled as she leaped into action casting a shield spell just as a Changeling rushed to tackle Twilight. Twilight blinked as the changeling slid down to the floor. “Right… battle first.”
Chrysalis stepped back as the armored figure of Doom approached her. She cast the very same spell she used on Celestia and it bounced off of the armor as if it was nothing. “HOW!”
“I have faced far greater threats than you. Unlike Celestia I’m prepared. That said Crystalis, I’m not here to fight you. I want to help you.” Doctor Doom stopped and offered his hand to Crystalis.
“WHAT! I knew it! You were working with them.” Twilight spun around her horn charging up to attack.
Gilda swoops in and blocks the shot. “Twilight we aren’t going to betray you. Trust me like you trust Applejack. Doctor Doom has the fate of not just Equestria, but the whole world in his mind.”
“Sugar Cube, Ah think we should trust him. If he wanted to do somethin’ crooked he could have waited for the Changeling's to take us down. He had no reason to have us make up if he was up to no good.” Applejack said as she moved up beside Twilight.
Twilight’s horn dims “I don’t know what to think anymore.”
Doom continued as if he didn’t hear a word Twilight said. “Crystalis, you are attacking the ponies because you need their love. What if you don’t need it anymore? I know you despise these ponies, even as a food source. Think of it, no more needing to gather love from them, no more hunger for their love. The Changelings will be free of the reliance of ponies.” Doom took a mere moment to look to his communicator system. One thought and the external speaker was cut off.
Doom then connects to a griffon’s communicator. “I got your message Captain, have your griffons bring the two prisoners.” Then he sends a message to the Dauntless “Hans, come down with Luna, and Starlight Glimmer.”
“I don’t need any help!” Chrysalis screamed and tried another blast of magic, this time however she slumped visibly drained.
Doom just let the blast hit him. “I've been monitoring your blasts, you’re losing power, face Queen Chrysalis, you are almost out of love. Perhaps a demonstration of what I offer is in need.” He turns to look at the entrance hole he made. “BRING THEM IN!”
A group of Griffons came in carrying two changelings. One had a neck fin of Deep Crimson, a very dark gray chitin, and Moderate blue-violet eyes. He was also sporting many signs of battle damage.
“I told you I wanted as minimal harm as possible!” Doom yelled seeing the condition of the changeling. Even in this anthro form, Doom had no trouble identifying Pharynx.
“I’m sorry your majesty. He was very difficult to apprehend” The responding Griffon replied with a salute.
Pharynx impressively produced a string of mumbles and grunts through the gag in his mouth. Even heavily tied up he was still trying to get free. The other changeling was harder to tell the difference from a normal changeling.
Even in this state, there were few features like dark arctic blue back chitin and eyes of vivid opal that did make him stand out from the regular changelings. Doom saw the fear in Thorax's behavior unlike the aggressively struggling Pharynx, Thorax was not struggling, instead, he was looking around. Though he wasn’t aggressive, Doom could see Thorax figuring out the room and thinking of options. Even if he was timid Thorax wasn’t dumb, Doom knew that this Changeling could rule a nation. Not with threats but with careful planning.
Crystalis yelled out “Let them be, they are nothing but ordinary drones!”
Doom turned his head “Really? You don’t seem to worry about the other drones' safety.” He turned to Twilight Sparkle. “Twilight Sparkle, tell me what is the difference between these two changelings and the other changelings in the room?”
Twilight tilted her head then made a quick scan of the changelings being bound by the recently arrived Griffons. “Um, their color. The others are more uniform in appearance.”
It was at that time Crystalis rushed at Doctor Doom. As she did she grabbed a chair to swing. Doon’s armor was designed to fight The Thing, it withstood blows from the Hulk, a mere chair splintered into chunks without him even flinching.
Gilda then yelled out “Crimson Bands of Cyttorak!” her hands moved into set motion and crimson ribbons of magic manifested then flew to Crystalis binding her into a red cocoon, only her head was free.
Rainbow Dash blinked then looked at Gilda “You could have done that the whole time?”
“Yeah, but Doom wanted to see what she was capable of.” Gilda smiled, glad she pulled off the spell. It wasn’t a Griffon spell, so few of those were found in the accent Dens, only a few notes survived the thousand years of decay. This was a spell Doom had taught her, a spell from the Marvel universe. Gilda knew the source of the pride she felt wasn’t that she cast the spell, it was the memories and the feeling of connection to him that feed her pride now.
Then his voice brought her back to the situation in hand. “Good, Twilight. The only other changeling that has different colors from the normal drone is Chrysalis, a royal Changeling. The evidence is clear, Twilight Sparkle I introduce you to Chrysalis sons, Prince Thorax and Prince Pharynx.”
Even Pharynx stopped in shock hearing the Doctor's statement. He then looked to his brother, seeing the shocked expression, finally, he looked to his Queen. For a moment their eyes met, he saw worry, doubt, and fear. Then his queen, his mother took on a determined face.
“They are just males! A hive needs female royals, again, they are not important.” Chrysalis hisses at Doom.
Dramatically Doom spun around “Then you should have no reason to worry when I do this!” Doom lifted his left hand, the one with the Infinity gauntlet on, and snapped his fingers.
Both Thorax and Pharynx lifted into the air and a sphere of the light hid their forms. “NO!!!!!!!!!!” Chrysalis yelled out in shock.
The shape of both Thorax and Pharynx reappeared as their forms landed standing upright, both were changed sporting the antler-like horns, however, Doom made a few improvements to the reformed Changelings. Both no longer had holes in their limbs, both were tall and healthy, unlike the cartoon both kept their original color patterns.
“Your sons are fine.” He turned to look at the two. “Thorax, do you feel any hunger? Do you feel empty of love? How about your Pharynx, any hunger left? Do you see that I can help the hive? You will no longer need to feed off of ponies, just accept my offer.”
As the two looked at themselves still shocked at the change and no longer feeling that agony of love hunger, Doom looked to Chrysalis. “Do you see what I offer you? Your plan was spawned out of desperation. True you could survive off the city population for a time, but the other cities will be on high alert from now on. They will be retaliation attacks for revenge, and hope of rescue of your prisoners. Let’s not forget the other nations now seeing Equestria as weak, they will attack to get the lush land and resources for themselves.”
“In other words Chrysalis, you doomed your race to a time of constant war. Eventually, the city supply of ponies would die off and you would be surrounded by hostile forces. However, I still offer my assistance. Just like your sons, I can free you from your need to feed off of Ponies. Your whole race will no longer suffer hunger, with my tech and assistance we can turn the hive into a garden paradise.”
Chrysalis looked to her two sons. “You are still you?”
Thorax nodded “I… I’m fine. No hunger at all, I feel good.”
“I feel powerful,” Pharynx said, then looked at Chrysalis “My Queen should I attack?”
A slow shake of Chrysalis head “No… son. We lost” then looked to Doom “But maybe it’s better this way. Very well Doom, I accept your offer.” She saw the look of her sons, but the truth was she felt defeated, nothing she tried had even phased the armored being before her.
With that Doom snapped his fingers again and every changeling in the world was reformed, including their Queen.
She stood there much like her sons; she had two antlers-like horns, however, her body was emerald green and she had two gem-like butterfly wings.
Rarity gasps “So beautiful.”
Doom turned to Twilight Sparkle. “Now Twilight, it is time to inform you that you were right. I had alternative reasons for being here. By right of the Sombra Accord signed by Celestia herself, I have the authority to charge her with crimes against the world. I came here to arrest Princess Celestia and Princess Luna for endangering the planet.”
All the ponies and even a few of the griffons gasped.
Chrysalis blinked surprised by the statement “Okay, I have to stay for this.”
The truth is there is not much left, Doom took over Griffonstone and he was going to give Equestria to Twilight and her friends. Just like in the comics Doom doesn't want to rule the world. He has taken over the world a few times and ended up quitting ruling for one reason or another. Basically, he got bored of being the absolute ruler, there was no challenge left. I also developed more as a writer and spot so many errors in this!
I started writing this as first I wanted to explore the "Displaced" gimmick and wanted to write a story where there were no added powers. Everything Doom does in this story is something he has done in the comics or other media. I looked up him on the Marvel Database and other wikis to make sure.
Second I wanted to explore the idea of someone getting a character's knowledge implanted into their brain. In this case, the Doom armor rewrites a person's mind, so logically the same would happen to the displaced fellow that ended up in the armor. Hence the Hans/Doom sharing a mind situation.
Ultimately this was a side project I was doing in my spare time. The time I no longer have, so I was forced to limit myself to one story, and that is Prince of Dreams.
