I end up buying a chainsaw at Comic Con and the next thing I know I'm in a world with pony human as Ashley Williams. And to make matters worse I'm the Princess's Slave while they fight the reanimated dead and the possessed. And they're losing
So as of late me and my friend Samantha have been hearing rumors of people disappearing at Comic Con's around the US; we dismissed this as just rumors.
After buying a chainsaw and a book at Comic-Con, the next thing I know, I'm in a world with pony humans as Ash Williams. And to make matters worse I'm a goddamn slave to the Princesses while they read from the book and are forced to fight the reanimated dead and the possessed. And they're losing a fight they can't win, not without the Jefe, the Chosen One. the one destined to fight off this bloodthirsty evil
I know now, that there is such a thing as a living evil. A dark and shapeless thing, That lives not in the space that we know, but between them.
In the Dark.
In the Night
Now listen carefully because there isn't much time. Listen and Believe. Because it's all true
My name is Jacob Ashley Williams. My friend usually call me either Ash or Will. And you know something sad? My friend Samantha and I had been hearing rumors about people vanishing at Comic Cons around the United states. And yet, the naive past me just dismissed them as rumors; nothing more, nothing less.
Well, let's just say I changed my tune fast. Though I wouldn't have had to, if I hadn't bought anything from that Fucking Bastard!
But, you're probably wondering how my adventure started. Well...
Sam and I weren't cosplayers like other people. We went to Comic Con for one reason and one reason only: to find and buy items for our growing anime and movie collections.
Currently I have items from One Piece, My Hero Academia, Fairy Tail, Bleach, Evil Dead 1 and 2, Army of Darkness, and Ash Vs. The Evil Dead. Sam has items from Highscool of the Dead, Dr. Stone, Hellsing, The Rising of the Shield Hero, and the Harry Potter.
So the two of us were wandering the booths, seeing what there was to see, when we came across a booth run by a man dressed like the merchant from Resident Evil 4. I only knew the character thanks to my brother Sean. The zombie fanatic plays that game all the time.
Looking over the mans booth I noticed Zoro's three Katanas from One Piece, Ichigo's Hollow mask along with his true Zanpakto from Bleach, and All For One's black mask from My Hero Academia. While it all looked exactly like the ones in their respective animes, I already had them at home in my game room. I was about to walk away when something finally caught my attention.
It was a modified chainsaw and a leather bound book with a grotesque face on it. Immediately I recognized them: the Book of the Dead from Evil Dead, and the chainsaw Bruce Campbell used to fight it.
"Find something ya like?" asked the merchant.
"How much for the book and the chainsaw?" I asked instantly.
"The chainsaw is four hundred dollars while the book is one hundred," he replied.
I didn't even hesitate. Reaching into my wallet, I pulled out five hundred and handed it over. He accepted the change eagerly, while I grabbed the book and chainsaw. A maniacal grin spread across my face as I put my chainsaw over my right hand. The thing fit like a glove!
My smile didn't last long, however, as the merchant started laughing.
"Good luck... Ashley Williams."
I look at the merchant with a confused look on my face. Then, I suddenly felt the floor fall out from under me.
It should’ve been a normal day in Canterlot. The guards patrolled the palace sculpture garden, expecting everything to be just the same as they left it.
They certainly didn’t expect a portal to open up and drop a screaming figure to the ground.
The patrolling guards immediately converged on the figures' location, staring at the creature in shock. It was a hairless ape; wearing long khaki pants with a leather straps across it's chest over a torn dark blue shirt. On his right hand was a contraption that the guards had never seen before. On the ground next to the human was some sort of book, bound with odd leather that resembled a face.
Curious, one of the guards picked up the book and opened. He yelped and dropped the book.
"Sweet Celestia," he whispered, backing up and making signs to ward off evil. The other guards followed his gaze, shivering and making their own signs at what was scattered across the pages, written in an ominous red liquid.
"What do we do?" another guard asked the sergeant among them.
Before the sergeant could respond, the human groaned. The guards shifted their attention to him as he sat up, his left hand over his forehead.
"I feel like I just got hit by a train," the figure muttered. "Hey Sean, did you make coffee yet?"
No one answered him.
"Sean!” The human groaned. “Did you...?" He turned, finding the guards aiming spears at him.
For a moment, both sides took in each other. The human staring at the pony-human hybrids, and the ponies staring back at the pureblood human.
"Fuck me,” the humans muttered. “The rumors were…”
But the sergeant took action, and slammed his spear into the back of the humans head. The human crumbled, the rise and fall of his chest the only sign of life.
"Report this to the Princesses," the sergeant said, his horn flaring up and grabbing the human in a magic aura. Glancing at the book, he shuddered. “And seal that book up and contact Princess Twilight Sparkle. She might know what it is.” He gave a more curious look to the creature. “As well as this creature.”
Thank god, it was only a dream. Yeah if only it was that easy, I knew I was still wasn't home. As I came to, I heard the familiar voices of Tara Strong's Twilight, Tabitha St. Germaine’s Luna and Nicole Oliver's Celestia.
"The Guards said he fell from the sky,” Celestia said in concern. “Carrying these odd weapons… and this book. It seems to be bound in some poor creatures skin!”
"Perhaps he is a creature who escaped from Tartarus?" Luna offered.
"I don't think so," Twilight answered. "During my early years of being your student, I researched the creatures you sealed away in Tartarus. There’s no record of a one-handed hairless ape ever being sealed in there."
Opening my eyes, I found myself bound by Celestia's golden magic aura, Unfortunately I also noticed I was missing my right hand. I wanted to scream in panic, but it did no good; Celestia’s magic had also come with a gag. The only parts of me that were free were my legs and feet.
Looking up, I saw the three alicorns conversing with each other. My chainsaw and shotgun lay at their feet. Twilight was flipping through the Necronomicon, her eyes growing wider in fear.
"C-Celestia,” she whispered, showing her mentor the book. “I think I know where he came from.”
Celestia gave me a suspicious look and pulled me closer. From my new position, I could see the page Twilight was showing the sun princess.
It was the prophecy of Ash Williams fighting against the Evil of the World. But judging from the harsh looks Luna and Celestia were giving me, I doubted they understood that.
Thankfully, they seemed interested in finding out, as Celestia removed the magic gag from my mouth.
"What are you?" Celestia asked.
Looking back, I probably should have just politely and calmly told her what was going on. But the problem with her guards knocking me out and her restraining me like an animal? It ticked me off. Closed my mind to reason.
So, I decided to politely and calmly hock a glob of spit in her face.
"Piss off!” I added on top of it.
Sam always said I had a bit of a anger problem. But at this moment it was justified. And hey; seeing her back up as my spit hit her eyes proved to be rather amusing.
But I could already see the rage boiling to life on Twilight and Luna’s faces, and could assume they were going to make my life miserable for spitting at their princess. Which led me to a more… violent course of action.
Before they could attack me, I attacked first, slamming my head into the Princess’ face. Her magic wavered from my blow, allowing me to break free.
Luna and Twilight moved to subdue me, but I managed to snatch up my shotgun with my good hand. Luna lunged at me, drawing a silver sword from her belt, but with one shot, I blew her sword to bits.
The echoing gunfire silenced any curses or anger the alicorns had for me, leaving me free to snatch Luna up in my right arm and keep their curses buried with a shotgun barrel to her temple.
“Alright, no one move,” I warned. “I don’t want to kill you three beauties, but I will if I have to.”
At first, they appeared to obey. But I caught the faint glow around Twilight’s horn. Without hesitation, I fired at her feet. She jumped back with a yelp.
“No magic either, sweetheart,” I growled, placing the gun back to the midnight blue Alicorns head. “Now give your sister the other weapon, sweet cheeks." I pointed to the chainsaw, glaring at Celestia.
Her eyes wide with fright yet wanting to narrow in anger, she reluctantly picked up the weapon and handed it to her sister.
“Attach it to my stump, sweetie,” I told Luna.
The alicorn complied. I gave my wrist a twist, and the mechanism locked into place. I quickly looked behind me, ensuring no one was about to sneak up on me.
“Good girl,” I said. “Now pull the string.”
Luna gave a hard yank of the chord, and my chainsaw hand roared to life.
With my chainsaw active, I moved to reload. However, as I cocked it open, the used shells popped out, revealing new ones already in place.
“Alright,” I said, cocking the shotgun closed and aiming it at Twilight. “Now, sweetheart, you’re messing with powers you don’t understand. Which is why I’m gonna ask nicely: hand. The book. Over. Now.”
Without warning, pain flared from my leg. Screaming in pain, I lost my grip on Luna, and she knocked me away from her.
Swinging my chainsaw around, I made contact with something. At first, I didn’t see what I had hit, but then a spray of crimson red followed by a blood curdling scream revealed the source. A unicorn guard shimmered into visibility, writhing on the ground. His butter pale coat splattered with blood streaming from his throat.
My skin went cold. I had just killed some pony! If the back of my shin wasn’t burning with pain, I would’ve lost my lunch.
A THUD drew my attention back to the alicorns. Twilight had dropped the Necronomicon. Her hands were over her mouth in horror. But I didn’t have time for her reaction! Luna and Celestia were already going from horror to rage.
I dove for the book, but a golden aura snatched it away, depositing it in Celestia’s hands. Judging from the look of disgust and anger on her face, I knew I couldn’t sweet-talk her into giving it back. Which left two options:
Option 1. I could fight Luna, Celestia, and Twilight. Not a good idea; I’d probably have to kill one or two of them if they didn’t kill me. And who knew what that would do to Equestria. Who would manage the Sun, Moon and Friendship?
Which left Option 2: I make a run for it and pray none of them know how to read and speak the ancient Sumerian text.
Of course, I could risk being captured. But that was beyond out of the question. If the book was anything like it was in the movies and the show, then Equestria would end in ruins. My Little Pony had never been my favorite show, but these ponies had done nothing to deserve the Hell that book would unleash.
"Fuck it,” I decided out loud. “Taking the risk!" With a battle cry, I charged, firing my shotgun and swinging my chainsaw.
The only thing I hit was the ground. A wave of exhaustion held me better than any guard. My eyes fluttered, the need for sleep overwhelming my senses.
“Excellent time with the sleep spell, Twilight,” Celestia praised.
Faintly, I was aware of someone tugging my arm.
"Sister, it won't come off" Luna cried.
"Leave it,” Celestia declared. “This creature has killed a pony in cold blood. He will be thoroughly restrained. At least 10 unicorn guards at all times! Twilight, read through this book. See if we can't send this...Demon… back from whence it came."
You don’t want to do that! Was what I wanted to scream at the top of my voice.
Instead, all that came out was, “Zzz…” as I finally succumbed to Twilight’s spell.
I'm not sure how long I was under the influence of Twilight's spell. All I knew is that when my vision returned to me, I was in even deeper hot water than I was before.
Ten different magical restraints covered my body. I was in the equivalent of a magical straitjacket. Forget moving my legs or my head; I was lucky I was still able to breathe!
Yet, instead of being in a padded cell, I found myself in what I assumed was the Royal Canterlot Archives. Ten unicorn guards surrounded me, their horns flaring and spears aimed at me. Beyond my circle of guards, several books were levitating around Princess Twilight. Her eyes kept darting between the flying books and the Necronomicon, her smile slowly widening as she translated the text.
"If you’re figuring out how to read from that book,” I said, surprising both her and myself with my ability to talk through the restraints. “I would advise you forget it now."
Twilight glared at me, and I felt desperation enter my voice. I silently pleaded that this Twilight was smarter than she was in the show.
“I’m serious,” I insisted. "Read from that book and you will unleash Hell on Earth!"
"Like you were going to do, Demon?" she snapped, turning her back on me. I growled, ready to protest, when she gasped in glee. “I got it!”
Twilight took the book and left the room in a hurry. Struggling against the restraints, I noticed one of the guards aiming at me with my own shotgun.
I didn’t get long to fume about it before Twilight returned, her fellow princesses by her side. And not just Luna and Celestia. Cadence was there as well, Shining Armor practically stapled to her side.
"And you are positive this is the passage to send this thing back?” Luna asked.
"Ninety-five percent sure," Twilight assured her, placing the Necronomicon on a pedestal before me. "The text written in this book is ancient Sumerian. Lost eons ago, but rediscovered by Starswirl the Bearded before his disappearance."
“Stop!” I demanded, starting to panic. “Seriously, don’t!”
But Shining Armor hit me with a gag spell, leaving me only able to simmer in growing panic as Twilight opened the book and cleared her throat.
"Now bear with me,” the Princess of Friendship admitted. “This is a lost language and not that easy to translate. It could have some side-effects; it may not even send him back.”
“As long as it’s to another plane of existence,” Shining declared. “I think we will be fine.”
“MMM!” I screamed through the gag. But everyone’s attention was on Twilight, as she began the incantation.
"K...Kunda," she began. Her notes began to blow around the room
“No!” I wanted to yell through the gag. “Stop her! She’s bringing evil onto you!” But all that came out was, “MM! MM MMR! ME MMING MMVL MPM MMM!”
“Silence, demon,” one of the guards declared. “You’ll be someone else’s problem soon enough!”
"As..Ast...Astrata," Twilight continued, the candles around the room extinguishing and sending us all into darkness.
I knew something was happening. Somewhere, probably in the Everfree Forest, a spirit long dormant was emerging from his slumber. Racing towards those who had awakened the Great and Terrible Evil!
“MMMMMMMMMMM!” I wailed, thrashing against my bindings.
“It must be working!” Celestia declared. “Finish it, Twilight!”
"C..Can...Canda," Twilight finished. She gazed at me expectantly, but all I did was glare at her darkly before hanging my head with a sigh.
This stupid unicorn had just released evil onto her world. And even worse, none of them knew what they had done. They just stared at me, disappointment warring against confusion.
"It didn't work,” Luna was the first comment.
"Maybe… It needs to be repeated to work?" Twilight offered, picking up the book to read again.
But before she could utter another syllable, each and every window in the room shattered simultaneously.
I glanced up almost apathetically as I heard the sound; the groaning wail of the evil spirit that had plagued the original Ash Williams in Evil Dead and all its sequels.
Just as in the show, it vanished as quickly as it appeared. I felt the restraints on my left hand dissipate.
The sound of armor hitting the ground drew everyone’s gaze. One of the unicorn guards restraining me had hit the ground. She was convulsing and spasming. I would’ve warned them, if the gag spell wasn’t keeping me from uttering a single word.
"Crystal!?" the guard with my gun screamed. His magic restraint faltered, as did his grip on my gun, as he raced to his friend’s side. “Crystal, what’s happening?”
For a moment, Crystal stopped moving. As her friend tended to her, the unicorn’s eyes shot open. And they were a ghostly white.
“Crystal?” her friend asked.
Crystal responded by ripping off his head. His spine came with his head, everyone screaming and backing up as the head blinked and gagged, probably wondering where the heck his body had gone.
"Aw͟ww, ̕Lo҉̷v̷̨er̸̷ ̧́B̧̡o͝y,” the Deadite Pony mocked. “Y̍͂o͇͂u̓̌'ͩ̊r̥͌e̬̬͗ ̄s̥o ̹ͮ̉s̆͐wͬe̻͐̄ͅe͒t̤͉ͩ!̈”̰͈̓͌
Sounds of disgust split the air as she began making out with the head. Their magic flickered and faltered, slowly freeing me from their spells. But I was the least of their worries.
Drawing their weapons, the unicorn guards charged the deadite with a roar.
The deadite spared them a contemptuous gaze before cackling in glee. Swinging her former lover’s head and spine like a sword, she cut down the Royal Guard one by one.
As the guards fell, the magic holding me finally faded. I dove for my shotgun, only to be yanked back by one final restraint. The one held by Shining Armor, who stood alongside his family in stunned silence as the deadite finished off the last guard and turned to them with a vile grin.
"Yͤo̘̘ͣ̚ụ̟ͤ̽'͉̋r̥͉͗͋e͖͔ ̭̺n͉̐e̓̒xt̉̍!̃” the deadite declared.
Breaking from their stupor, the royal family charged, weapons drawing, and magic flaring to life. Luna fired a spell, destroying the head the deadite was holding. As the deadite reeled, Luna tried to follow up with another spell to the deadite’s chest. However, the creature caught her wrist and back-handed her away, sending the midnight alicorn flying across the room and crashing into several book shelves.
Celestia drew a golden sword, but the possessed pony caught the blade with a leer. Seizing the sun princess by her arm, the deadite snapped the bone with a cruel crushing grip. Swinging her by her broken arm, the deadite hurled Celestia into Cadence and Shining Armor. With all four out of commission, the deadite turned her ghostly white eyes to Twilight.
Twilight backed away, only to slip on a book under her feet.
Her vile grin growing, the deadite slammed her fist into the center column. Pulling out a chunk of marble the size of a small window, and holding it over her head with no effort, the possessed pony bore down on the lavender alicorn.
Fear had taken hold of Twilight, she could do nothing but whimper and shiver, a puddle of urine growing wider and wider around her body.
"Save her!”
I turned. Shining Armor was crawling towards me. His hand raised to the last restraint on my body, and it vanished with a ‘pop.’
"Di̅͊ë̒!͕̞̾ͪ!̿" yelled the Deadite, lifting the marble chunk to cave in Twilight’s skull.
Grabbing my Boomstick, I unloaded both barrels into the stone, blasting it to pebbles. The deadite looked down at the shards still clutched in her fists, probably wondering where her weapon went.
"Yo, She-Bitch," I boomed, reloading my shotgun and revving my chainsaw. The deadite whirled on me, and I lifted my weapons. “Let me have this dance!"
The Deadite shrieked, jumping at me. Flipping my gun, I whacked her in the face like I was playing baseball.
The deadite wailed, staggering back before whirling back on me with anger.
"Ĩ̝̦'͌͒l͊l ͉̏s͍w̼̩͑a͖̒ll̯̦o͑w͇ ̰ͣy̌o̘̺u̹̞r̳̍̓ ̰̼ͫͪs͛̆o̱̎ú̥̪l͇̖ͬͭ,͍ ̳̐m͓͆ͅor̤͊ͣtͩa̤ḷ!̪ͨ͑" the deadite promised, jumping at me again.
Flipping my gun back to the trigger, I blew her legs off before thrusting my chainsaw forward, right into her chest. Undeterred, she tried to bite at my face, but I slammed her to the ground, pinning her on her back.
"Ra̧͟g̛͠ģ́hh̶͜h̡͠h͡͝,̶͠” she snarled, struggling against the blade in her stomach. “I̸̷'ll͏͏ ͜͡s͢͢w̶̧a̧͢ll̵͠ow͘ ̴y͠our s̢̡oul̷̛!̧͢ ͘͏Ì̀'̧̛ll͝ s͘͝wall̢͟ow҉͝ ̴y̕̕o͞u͏͟r̢̕ ̵͠s̢͢o͏u̵͢l̶͏!̴”
As she continued to chant her vow, I popped out the spent shells, grinning as the new ones once again appeared in their place. Flicking it closed, I silenced the deadite’s chant by stuffing her mouth with the barrel.
"Swallow this,” I growled. And with a pull of the trigger, I blasted her head clean off. Kicking her off my chainsaw with a grimace, I turned to the beaten alicorns.
“I warned you,” I snarled, cleaning the blood off my chainsaw. “I warned you what would happen if you read from that book!” I glared at Twilight, who was staring at me in awe and a bit of horror. "Never seen a chainsaw hand before?" I asked, showing off the weapon.
"Who…” she stammered. “Who are you?"
"Names Jacob Ashley Williams,” I declared, hefting my shotgun over my shoulder with a grin. “But you, sweetheart. You can call me Ash."
I groaned as I opened my eyes. Instead of finding myself being lavished with praise for saving everyone, I instead found myself in a dungeon cell. The princesses were gone, and replaced by two guards standing by the bars.
My entire upper body was covered in iron restraints which kept me a few inches from the ground. My arms pinned towards the walls and ceiling by thick iron chains. Even my mouth had been restrained like Hannibal Lecter.
"Let me in,” Twilight’s voice ordered. Of course, I didn’t see her, but there was no denying that voice.
"Princess Twilight, with all due respect..." the guard started to argue.
"He's completely restrained," Twilight insisted, as I saw her peering at me through the bars. "The worst he could do is glare at me.”
Reluctantly, the guards opened up the cell, and let the princess of friendship in. Instead of royal robes, I noticed she was dressed in a casual purple blouse and a pair of dark blue jeans. With a flash of her magic, Twilight summoned a chair and sat before me. It didn’t take long for me to break the silence.
"What happened?" I got out, the mouthpiece muffling my voice, but not making it completely inaudible.
"You don't remember?" Twilight asked with a raised brow of concern.
For a moment, Jacob Ashley Williams had stood proud and tall in front of the lavender alicorn. Blood spattered over his chainsaw hand, and smoke wafting from the barrels of his broomstick. Blowing out the smoke, the human spun the shotgun on his finger before placing it in a sheath on his back. Leaning over, he offered Twilight his hand…
And was immediately hit with three different colored beams. Light blue, golden yellow, and dark blue.
“Stop!” Twilight screamed, but by the time the beams shut off, Ash was embedded in the stone, his head slumped in the throes of unconsciousness. Cadence, Celestia and Luna stood side by side, their magic auras covering their hands, and Celestia holding her broken arm gingerly.
"I want him completely restrained," Celestia ordered Shining Armor, cradling her broken arm as she covered it in a golden aura. "I don't want him to even move a finger!”
“Princess!” Shining Armor protested. “Whatever that creature is, it just saved Twilight…”
“I still want it restrained,” Celestia snapped, leaving the room and cradling her arm with a wince. Luna followed after her, her own aura trying to wrap around her sister's arm.
“Well,” I muttered with a sigh of frustration. “Celestia certainly has a great sense of appreciation.”
Twilight grimaced. “Well…” she started to say.
“Let me guess,” I said in exasperation. “She thinks I caused the whole thing.”
She shifted her gaze downward. “She does.”
I rolled my eyes. “So, what are you doing here?” I asked. I remembered how loyal she was to Celestia. Which is why she surprised me when she used her magic… and removed the restraint covering my mouth. The restraint fell to the floor with a clang.
“To learn,” she said, settling back in her chair. “If you didn’t cause it, tell me who did. What was that… thing?”
“A demon,” I replied. “A force of great evil.”
“Like you?” she snarked.
“I AM NOT A DEMON!” I boomed.
She jumped, waving her hand at the guards that stormed in.
“I’m sorry!” she said quickly, putting herself between me and the guards. “I’m sorry.”
“Princess?” the guard asked.
“I’m! Sorry!” she insisted, pointing for the guards to get out. She let out a small sigh. “Then what are you?” she asked. “We… never gave you time to explain.”
“Well, I’m not a demon, sweetheart,” I snarked, anger still burning in my gut.
“Yeah, we’ve established that,” she snarked back, pulling up her chair and settling back down. “So, what are you?"
I took a breath, amused by her snark. “A human,” I replied.
Twilight shifted her gaze to my chainsaw. “Do most humans have a large blade for a hand?” she asked.
I glanced at my chainsaw and chuckled. “Not normally,” I admitted.
She tilted her head. I couldn’t deny she looked kinda cute like that. Like a curious puppy. I suppressed another chuckle.
“Before I came to this world, I had both hands,” I explained. “But then I bought a chainsaw and a book from some asshat.”
Twilight shifted and cleared her throat at my language, nearly causing me to chuckle again.
“And the next thing I know,” I continued. “I'm in a new world. With one hand and a chainsaw attached to the other.”
“And this?” With another flash of magic, Twilight summoned the Book of the Dead and held it out to me. I nodded, and she peered at it’s flesh-like surface. “What is it… exactly?”
“The Necronomicon Ex Mortis,” I said. “The Book of the Dead.”
Twilight’s eyes widened, and she set the book down as carefully as if she was handling dynamite.
"That book is a gateway from their world to this one" I said.
“So… when I read the passages…” Twilight figured, her lavender skin paling. “I… summoned that…”
“I did warn you,” I noted.
Twilight hung her head in shame. “Crystal…” she whispered. “Those… poor guards…”
“Well, if you’re as smart as I know you are,” I noted, grinning at the blush that came across her face. “You’ll seal that book somewhere the demons of Kandar can’t get at it.”
She looked up with a nod. “I will,” she promised. Taking the book, she drew several complicated runes over it. I felt the thrum of magic, before she tossed the book into the air. With a multi-colored flash, it vanished.
“There,” she said. “I put some seals over it, and sent it to one of my personal storage spaces. I’ll be able to put some more runes on it later, and I can ask Celestia for a place for it in the Royal Vault. But for now…” She scooted her chair closer to me. “Tell me about this world you come from. What’s it like?”
Part of me worried about the runes she had placed on the book, but another part of me couldn’t help but smile. She looked so genuinely excited to learn more about my world.
"Well for starters,” I began, “Our sun is completely stationary as the planet circles around it.”
"And your moon?" Twilight asked, a quill and parchment appearing with a flash of magic, stars glittering in her eyes.
"It revolves around the planet due to Earths gravitational pull.”
I don’t know how long we talked. Just… talking about the world I came from. She drank in every detail like a woman dying of thirst; always eager to learn. And, why not deny it, it was nice to have some company in this cell. Especially a girl like her.
But, of course, she had to leave soon enough. And as she sent the chair back to wherever she got it, I remembered the Book.
"Remember,” I insisted, as she moved to leave. “If the demons get ahold of that book… then you can kiss Equestria goodbye.”
"I know,” she assured me with a nod. "I'm going to have Celestia place it within the Royal Vault. It's the only place I can think of that is safe enough.” She moved to head out.
“And one more thing!” I called, getting her attention. "If you don't mind…” I asked with a grin. “Do you think you could come by again tomorrow? It’s nice to have company down here.”
That blush came back, but with it an intrigued grin.
"I... don't see a problem with that,” she replied. And with that, she left the cell, the guards giving her uncomfortable looks as they sealed the bars behind her.
For the next week, Twilight held to her promise. Every day, for the next week, she came and we talked. I told her about Earth, she told me about Equestria. About herself.
Unfortunately, I had a feeling in the back of my mind. A feeling that I inherited more than the original Ash Williams’ good looks and skills.
And all too soon, that bad feeling was proven right.
It started when I was awoken by the sound of metal slamming against stone.
"Captain Armor?”
"MOVE!!"
Suddenly, the door was yanked open. Almost off its hinges. Twilight’s brother raced in. For a split second, I wondered if he was going to blast me through the wall. But even though he slammed a magically charged hand into my chest, the restraints snapped and released until I was on the ground, free again.
I whistled, struggling to get up. “You must be pretty desperate to release me now,” I noted.
“Right-right… sorry,” Shining stammered, rubbing his cheek. “They got the Book.”
“What?!” I seized him by the armor, slamming him against the wall before another thought stopped me. “Wait-a-minute… how are you alive if the demons read from the book?”
“It didn’t,” he said. “It just looked into the book, roared in anger…” He blinked, and tears slipped down his cheeks. “And he made off with Twilight.”
I stared at him in horror. Dropping him, I backed up, slowly piecing together why they would take her.
“Okay-okay…” I muttered, running a hand through my hair and pacing. “I think I know why they’d take her… but first.” I turned back to him. “Tell me exactly what happened.”
Last week Twilight had Celestia place the book into the royal vault, and I had guards stationed there twenty-four seven. And with good reason.
Lately the princess has been recieving reports of ponies attacking each other, similar to what happened to that guard. She had no way to stop it. She had considered if reading from the book could stop all this, but Twilight had taken all books relating to the Ancient Sumarian text.
Nothing really happened - save for Twilight running off to your cell every day.
“You mind skipping the embellishments?” I asked the Captain, who had taken a moment to glare at me with that oh-so-familiar look any father (or in this case, brother) has towards a guy making the moves on their daughter/sister.
Shining rolled his eyes. “I make no promises,” he said, before continuing.
This afternoon, I heard screaming at the vault. I rushed to help, but when I got there, the vault was broken into, and one of the guards was dead. I do not mind skipping embellishments when it comes to what was left of him.
Then the other guard stepped out, covered in blood, his eyes milky white… and the book in hand.
“T̄h̴͊ë́ b́o͆o̴k̾ i̷s m̵̏in̨e̛ͥ!̈́” the possessed guard gloated with a laugh.
I tried to stop him, but I might as well have been fighting one of Twilight’s regular foes. He tossed me and my guards aside and opened the book. But the minute he began to read, his eyes grew wide and he bellowed in anger.
I tried to take advantage and hit him with a beam spell. All it did was alleviate him from whatever bad mood the book had put him in. At least, that’s what I thought, judging by his laugh.
"Y̢ou̶ŗ ̵mo͞rt̶a̧l͞ ̷m̧agic͞ d̀òe̴s ͝nơth͞i̸ng̡ ̸to͜ m͟é!” the demon gloated, his fingers turning to claws.
I already said I wouldn’t embellish what he had done to the other guard, but let’s just say I was not interested in letting those claws get near me.
Unfortunately, while my guards and I managed to avoid getting what the first guard got, it also meant letting the demon get away. And as we chased it through the castle… well, several ponies weren’t as lucky as we were.
Eventually, the demon made its way into the throne room, throwing the door off its hinges. By the time we managed to chase it inside, Celestia, Luna and Cadence were down… and the demon’s claws were around Twilight’s neck.
"Twilight!!" I screamed. My magic flared, but the demon held her in front of it like a shield.
"N̛i͐́c̓e ͒t̐r̐y ̶po͡ny̽͢,” the demon mocked. Briefly, it’s expression shifted to pain, as a pair of large bat-like wings sprouted from its back. "B̿u̡ͣt͜ t̛hͪiͥs ̨p̢̄reͬ͟t̕t͘y ͞l̴ͫįt̊͝t̽͝le ̚t̵ͤh́̚i̶ngͪ͡ ̊i͘s̀͘ ̒o͒u̎͢ŗ͆ ̷sàl̉v̍͏aͬt̒į̿ón̵!̓”
Twilight tried to flare her own magic, but was stopped when the demon dug its claws into her arm.
With a flap of its wings, we were knocked off our feet as the demon soared out one of the windows.
“ASH!” I heard my little sister say. “SHINING! SOMEPONY HELP ME!”
Struggling to my feet, I lifted my magic and took careful aim, selecting my spell carefully.
Don't you dare miss, Armor, I thought, before letting the spell fly.
It hit the demon in the back, but it didn’t stop his flight. And in seconds, he was gone. My sister and the book with him.
"And you just let it make off with your sister?" I demanded, my voice oozing venom.
Shining glared at me, insulted. “Did you not notice how I used magic?” he demanded. “I hit it with a tracking spell. Wherever that demon goes, I’ll know.”
My anger faded by a margin. “Alright, then,” I said, moving out of the cell. “Let’s go.”
"Wait," Shining said. "You might need this.”
I turned, and a smile lifted my features. Shining Armor had my boomstick and sheath. He tossed it to me with a grin, giving me a chance to check the ammo.
“You ever consider practicing with this?” I asked.
“I did,” Shining replied. "Bit of a kick, but much more powerful than a destruction spell."
“Good,” I said, strapping the shotgun to my back. “You may need to use it.”
Together, Armor and I strode out of the castle. But, of course, we had to run into a certain sun alicorn.
“Shining Armor,” Celestia said sternly, blocking our way out of the castle. “What is the meaning of this?”
"He came to his senses,” I replied, one hand on my boomstick. “ And got the only person who can deal with this evil!”
Celestia’s wings flared, and she nearly grabbed me by the shirt before Shining Armor got in her way.
“Captain Armor…” Celestia growled.
“He’s the best chance we have to find my sister,” Shining said. “With all due respect, Princess… stand aside.”
“But this is all his fault!” she insisted to Shining, turning to me. "Because of you, Evil plagues my world! My ponies are dying and your vile kind have taken Twilight!”
Did I mention I had a pretty short temper? Well, it came up again when I shoved past Shining and seized Celestia by her royal robes.
"I haven't done anything," I snarled at the sun princess. “You told Twilight to read from the book! You told her to finish the incantation. And you stationed guards to watch over the book so the demon could possess them.” I shoved her back. “Twilight was taken because of your mistakes. All I’m trying to do is fix those mistakes."
Words seemed to hit her harder than my head or spit, because her eyes widened, looking like her heat was getting hit by a white-hot knife. She backed up, holding a hand over her heart.
"Now if you don't mind,” I growled, shoving past her, “I’m going to save Twilight before she become another result of your mistake.”
The regretful look faded. Looks like I pushed her a little too far. And, I made the mistake of turning my back on her.
A purple aura suddenly shrouded me, and I wondered for a second if she was going to throw me into the castle again. But instead, the purple aura shrank and condensed around my neck. With a flash of light, I found a metal collar around my neck like a dog.
"What the Hell?!" I screamed, pulling at the collar. “What is this?”
“Enslavement spell,” she replied. “It will prevent you from killing any pony else.”
I tilted my head at her before testing it. I thrust my chainsaw towards her chest. The collar grew heavy, and my chainsaw stopped a full foot from her body.
"Go,” she ordered. “Save Twilight. And I command you not to kill anypony while doing it!”
"Like Hell…” I growled. But the collar increased in weight, sending me to one knee. I growled, fighting it, before realizing I was wasting time. “Fine!” I spat. Instantly, the collar got lighter.
Lifting myself up I sheathed the shotgun and grabbed Shining, storming out of the castle grounds and away from Celestia before her smug look tempted me to try something bad.
"She better pray I don't find a way to remove this collar," I growled, shooting dark looks at the residents of Canterlot. All of them backed away from me in fear, and for good reason. "Cause when I do I'm shoving my chainsaw so far up her ass she'll be wearing the chains as braces.” I revved the chainsaw for emphasis, sending several ponies scurrying away like rats.
“You… do realize she’s under severe stress, right?” Shining asked. When I glowered at him, he wisely put his hands up. “But… I am sorry for her attitude.”
My glower faded.
"You don't need to apologize,” I assured him. “But my sister figure tells me I need to vent to best handle my UNYIELDING RAGE!!" More ponies scurried away, and I’m pretty sure if Shining wasn’t a Captain, he’d have joined them. But yelling calmed me down enough to talk to him in a level voice. "Alright. So, how about you use that tracking spell of yours and tell us where we're heading?”
Nodding, Shining Armor closed his eyes, and his horn lit up. A 3D image of Equestria flashed before us. And a small blinking light appeared, moving fast across the landscape.
"Okay,” Shining Armor said, opening his eyes. “According to the tracking spell…” He watched the blinking light move over some kind of city. “They’re passing above Manehatten. Judging from the speed and trajectory, they seem to be heading to…” He traced towards a small village. “Ponyville?” His eyes narrowed, and he peered at a dark forest near the village. “No… more likely the Everfree Forest.”
"Oh Fuck!" I cursed. Even I knew that place was bad news. "Alright. Use your magic to teleport us there.” I paused. “But if we see a wooden cabin in that forest… Turn the Fuck around!”
“Right, but, um… one small problem.” Shining Armor blushed. “Teleporting only works if we've been there before.”
I deflated. “Great,” I muttered nonchalantly. “So, we ride the train?”
Just as I had predicted, trouble started the moment I tried to get on the train.
“Why don’t you go ahead, Armor,” I told the Captain, noting the stares from the other ponies.
“You sure?” he asked.
“Yeah,” I said. “This is my problem.”
Shrugging, Shining Armor climbed on. But the moment I tried to follow him, the conductor blocked my path.
"I'm sorry..um...sir,” the conductor stammered. “But we're all full.”
“Really,” I mused. “Then why do you still have a car only half full?”
I pointed out the empty seats, but the conductor didn’t even give me an answer. With a panicked look at the empty seats, he slammed the door closed and locked it, racing away. An instant later, the train gave a loud whistle.
Rolling my eyes, I pulled my shotgun and blasted the door lock. Before the train could pick up speed, I hopped on, quickly finding Shining Armor staring out a window.
Sheathing my boomstick and making sure my chainsaw was off, I took the seat next to him. As we sat in silence, I noticed the concern and conflict on his face.
"You okay, Armor?" I asked.
"I'm worried about Twily," he replied, lowering his head. "I couldn't protect her. A-and she called for you first over me. Over her own brother.” He sighed. “Then again…”
"We'll get her back," I assured him. I noticed the glint of a blade coming behind us. “Assuming these idiots don’t get in our way.”
Before Shining Armor could ask what I meant, I whipped my gun out, pointing it at a grey pegasus pony with the armor of a royal guard, and a sword in hand.
“Step away from the Prince!” the pony growled, pointing his blade at me.
"Stand down, soldier,” Shining Armor ordered.
"But sir!”
Before he could protest, I adjusted my aim… and sent a round into his foot. The pegasus fell to the ground, shrieking bloody murder.
Tossing my gun to Shining, I yanked the guards helmet off and pulled him up by the straps of his armor. Slamming my head into his, I ceased his screaming and dropped his body to the ground. The rise and fall of his chest indicated he still lived, but every pony still stared at me in abject horror.
I glared right back at them. “Anyone else?!” I demanded.
The ponies jumped before squishing themselves into their seats, trying to make themselves look as meek and submissive as possible. Kicking the unconscious guard away, I sat next to Shining. The captain was holding my broomstick like a teddy bear, staring down at the guard with disbelief.
"How'd you…?” he began, but I just smirked.
"Celestia's order was that I couldn’t kill anyone,” I pointed out, watching as a nearby unicorn dragged the beaten pegasus away, and started using magic to heal his wound. “I didn’t kill him,” I added with a grin.
Shining stared at his guardsman, blinking slowly as he processed that fact. “Huh.”
“There’s always a loop hole if you know where to look,” I concluded, before taking my gun from him. However, after a moment’s pause, I handed it back.
“What…?” He tried to ask.
“If Celestia’s spell keeps me from killing the things that took your sister,” I pointed out. “Then you’re gonna need to know how to use this baby.”
Shining Armor’s eyes widened, and he started trying to handle the boomstick like it was a spear.
“First things first,” I said, “Finger off the trigger.” He moved it in haste. “Now, there are two rules with weapons like this: Rule 1; don’t aim unless your going to use it. And Rule 2; never put your finger on the trigger unless you plan to pull it.”
Shining Armor adjusted his grip. “Got it,” he said.
I took the gun from him, popping it open and showing him the shells.
“This is a 12 gauge double barrel shotgun,” I explained as he examined the shells. “Those shells are packed with primer, metal pellets, and gunpowder.” I showed him where the switch was. “Hit this switch to eject spent shells. New ones immediately take their place.”
Sure enough, we both noticed new shells in place of the ones in his hands. Shining nodded, his eyes creased in concentration.
“Now for the most crucial part,” I continued. “When facing a deadite…”
“Deadite?”
“The demonic spirits who inhabit a human - or in this case pony - body.” I jabbed a thumb behind us. “The things that took your sister.”
He gulped. “Right. Sorry.”
“A piece of advice for you,” I continued. “Is that once they’re possessed, they’ll do anything to try and trick you. Lower your guard and make you easy to kill. And sorry to say it, but the only way to expel the demon is to kill the host.” I flipped the shotgun closed. “So always aim for the head.”
Shining Armor’s coat somehow got more pale, but he managed a nod. “Okay.”
A thought crossed my mind. “And also,” I added. “Don’t let them bite you. They can infect whatever they bite and take control of it.” I flashed the chainsaw at him. “That’s how I ended up with this.”
Shining Armor blinked at the sight, but before he could ask for details, we felt the train slow. And when we glanced out the window, we found the small town of Ponyville coming into view.
The instant the train stopped, every pony bolted off the train in fear.
“Gee,” I said mockingly. “I wonder what’s got them so scared.”
Shining Armor glared at me before rolling his eyes with a sigh.
Sheathing my shotgun and with Shining Armor by my side, we left he train and made our way to the Everfree.
"Remember what I said,” I added. “If you see a cabin in the woods, do not, and I mean do NOT, enter. Just find Twilight, kill the demon, and get out. Simple.”
Shining Armor’s gaze flicked to ahead of me. “I wouldn’t say completely simple,” he noted.
Before I could ask for details, I heard an odd ‘EEEEEEEE’ like a pinwheel. I spun, and found a pink blur launching at my face.
It was only thanks to my memory of the show - and more specifically, Andrea Libman’s Pinkie Pie - that I didn’t gut her the second she launched at me. Shoving her off me and trying to ignore her drone of chatter, I accepted the hand Shining Armor offered me, getting back to my feet.
“Sorry about that,” he said, even though the grin he had didn’t indicate that much regret. “I probably should’ve warned you about Twilight’s friends.”
I brushed myself off, glancing over at Pinkie as she bounced eagerly, still chattering like a squirrel.
“Believe me,” I said. “There’s no warning that can prepare me for that.”
It was honestly nice, in a weird way. Everyone else in Ponyville was just giving me the same fear filled looks, but Pinkie Pie just kept bouncing and skipping after us, acting like we were the greatest thing since cake.
Not that long after her enthusiastic welcome, we were graced with more neutral looks from four other familiar mares:
A white unicorn with styled purple hair and tail, wearing a light blue dress with frilled sleeves, a black form-fitting skirt, a sapphire-jewel bracelet around her left wrist and a pair of red heels. An orange earth pony with a Stetson hat atop her head of blonde hair, tied near the end with a red hair tie. Her attire consisted of a red flannel that was tied just below her breasts, a pair of jean shorts, and a pair of cowgirl boots. A cyan pegasus with a rainbow hair and tail, with clothing that looked like something from a airforce veteran; white shirt under a leather jacket that had a lightning bolt with wings on it with a pair of gray pants and plain sneakers. Sunglasses hung from her shirt collar right above a pair of dangling dog tags. And finally, a meek looking yellow pegasus shivering in the background, her long pink hair covering her face, and a long-sleeved green sweater covering her body. Fitting enough, since I could feel a slight chill in the air. Aside from the sweater, she also wore a pair of white pants.
"What in tarnation is that with ya, Captain Armor?” the orange earth pony asked Shining, in a voice I recognized as Ashleigh Belle's Applejack.
"Yeah what are you?' the cyan pegasus asked me, oddly enough also in Ashleigh Belle's voice. Though this time in the rough, scratchy tone of Rainbow Dash.
"Ugh,” Tabitha St. Germaine's voice shivered, now in the more delicate tone of her character Rarity, “And what are those horrid rags you are wearing?” She scrunched up her nose in disgust.
"Um…” Andrea Libman's voice whispered, now in the meek voice of Fluttershy. “I think there's something wrong with his hand.”
“Girls, if I could get a word in…” Shining tried to say.
"Shining, what are ya doing here?” Applejack asked. “I thought Twilight was in Canterlot with the princesses?"
“She was. But, you see.."
"She is,” I said over him. “But she needs me and Prince Armor to retrieve a special herb that grows deep in the Everfree Forest. So if you’ll excuse us…“
I pushed Shining Armor towards the forest, leaving the five mares discussing this new development among themselves.
"Why'd you lie to them?" Shining Armor whispered.
“I’m not causing anymore of a panic than I already have,” I whispered back. "If they knew that Twilight was in trouble, they would run head first into a danger that would make cancer seem like a zit.”
“They are loyal to her,” Shining admitted. “So… ignorance is bliss?”
"Ignorance is bliss" I answered, just as we reached the edge of the Everfree forest. I drew my gun. “Okay. Where are they?"
Shining fired up his tracker spell. The map of Equestria reappeared, and he zoomed it in on the Everfree, and a strange if slightly familiar ruin.
"It looks like the demon has stationed himself in the Castle of the Two Sisters,” Shining said pointing out a blinking dot with the confines of the castle ruin.
“Castle of Two Sisters?” I asked, trying to remember what that had been.
"It's Celestia's and Luna's old castle,” Shining Armor answered for me.
“Oh,” I mumbled. “Well, okay. Come on.”
Together, we headed down the path. Soon enough, we spotted the castle. But not without trouble that wasn’t deadite-related.
A rustling echoed in the trees above us. Without hesitation, I spun, firing a round and sending a rainbow blur out into the open.
“Dude, easy!” Rainbow Dash cried.
"Rainbow Dash?” Shining Armor demanded. “What are you doing?"
"Following you,” she replied with a shrug. “Got nothing better to do. And if Twilight sent someone with a sword for a hand, then it must awesome!” She lowered herself near me, glancing at my boomstick with intrigue. "What's that?” she asked, pointing at my weapon. “A wand enchanted with a destruction spell?"
“It’s the none-of-your-damn-business-wand,” I replied, pointing it back to Ponyville. “Now get the Hell out of here.”
Her grin faded. She flew closer and got in my face.
“Who are you to tell me what to do?” she demanded, jabbing at my chest. I grinned.
"I'm someone with a shotgun aimed at your chest,” I say.
She looked down, and noticed the barrel of my gun aimed at her chest. And yet, she still held her grin, glaring up at me defiantly.
“Nice try,” she said with a smirk. “But you’re with Twilight’s brother, you wouldn’t dare…”
“Alright,” I replied, dropping the gun and grabbing her wings. “How about this?” I lifted my chainsaw. “If you don’t leave right now, I’ll cut your wings off and mount them on my wall of trophies!”
She said nothing, but judging by the wide eyed stare she gave me, I could tell she wasn't willing to push anything that got her wings involved. Kicking out of my grip and flipping me a gesture that probably wouldn’t have flown with the studio censors, she raced away in a rainbow blur.
"Was that really necessary?" Shining asked.
"She's gone, isn’t she?”
Shining opened his mouth to say something, before reluctantly closing it in defeat.
"Alright come on," I said, picking up my gun and reloading. "We've got a alicorn to rescue."
We continued towards the castle. A few timber wolves and a manticore tried to stop us, but fled for the hills the minute I fired a warning shot at them. I reloaded and continued.
When we reached a rickety wooden bridge, we started to hear the familiar voices of demonic deadites.
“Sounds like he’s not alone,” I commented, silencing my chainsaw.
Creeping up carefully across the bridge, I glared into the castle courtyard. No one was there, but I could still hear that demonic whispering.
"Come on,” I whispered to Armor. “And keep your guard up. They can literally attack from anywhere."
We moved like soldiers into the courtyard, before an idea came to me.
"Hey! Can that spell of yours tell us exactly where he is in this castle?”
Shining brought up his tracker spell, which had zoomed in on the Castle of Two Sisters, showing it in careful detail.
“Hmm…” he muttered as he watched the yellow dot blink around several other gray dots. “I’m not as familiar with this castle as Twilight and her friends are…”
“Hang on.” I pointed to the grey dots. “What are those?”
Shining peered at them. “Dunno,” he admitted. “But it looks like they’re stationed in the throne room.”
Jogging forward, I followed what seemed to be the path to the throne room. Shining struggling to keep up. Though it was a good thing; when I reached the throne room, I saw…
I backed up, pushing Shining back against the wall. “Those gray dots were deadites,” I commented.
Shining sighed. “Great,” he muttered, as I peered back inside.
There were at least six or seven of the possessed ponies. 12 more were bound in a circle in the center of the room. Before two cracked and ruined thrones, Twilight lay unconscious on a large slab of stone.
“W͡hy̨ b͢o͢t̶h͞èr̛ wįth͢ t͏h̴e̸se ponie͝s̨?” a deadite with a red coat and black hair demanded. “Y͠o̧u ̷hav̛e͟ ͞t̸h̀e͞ b̸oo̸k!”
“Ǐ̗ ca̽n̍’̹͛t͋ ̑rea͒d̳̽ ̼̾i̗ẗ́!ͭ” the mutated deadite that had taken Twilight growled, throwing the book next to Twilight. “T̶h͠is ͜po͏ny͡ i̕s͏ ̛the͠ o̢n͟l̨y͝ oņe w͜h҉o̵ c͜aņ.͟ She̸ ̕refu̶s͞e̡s t͟o…̸ ̸even w̛he̕n͞ ͘I̸ ͡thre̷a̡t̴en o̴ther͡ ͞poni̵e͠s͘!̧”
With a chill, I noticed the slash marks across the bodies of the bound ponies.
"S͙o̲͢,͉ͯ͞ ͌͘w̡h̵aͪt̝’̨s̘ ̌́t̪ͬ͝h̤̃ė ̛̬̐p̪l͊͞ạ̸n̥̓?̗͊" what looked like a humanoid bug demanded. "Ò̷ŭ͟r̢ Quͭeen̚ do͏es̀n̄'̉͘t ͜l̇͜i̓k͐e̽ ̸̂f͟a̡iͮļu͢re͜!̑͠"
The other deadites glanced at each other with a mutual shrug. With a hissing growl, the walking bug pulled a dagger from a sheath on his thigh.
My eyes widened. The dagger was… Kandarian!
I tried to stifle my gasp, but Shining heard me.
“What is it?” he asked, peering inside. His eyes widened as he beheld Twilight. “Twi…!”
I forced my hand over his mouth and pulled him back, but I could hear the growl of deadites detecting his scream.
“Are you fucking stupid?” I hissed at Shining.
Before he could respond…
“Ẉh͖a̸͓t w̸aś̪ ̸that̕?” the mutant demanded.
“A͟ ̧v̨i̴s̡it̢o̷r,͜ pe̡ŗha̵ps̨?” the bug deadite replied. I heard footsteps. Approaching both of us.
“I don’t suppose you have an invisibility spell or something?” I hissed at Shining.
Shining’s eyes widened, and I could feel his lips spread in a smile. He shut his eyes, and his horn glowed a bright pink. Seconds later, we both faded from sight. And not before time; we had barely blended in with our surroundings when the deadite stepped out. Standing inches from us, smelling the air.
With the chance for a closer look, I realized the bug human was actually a changeling. There was probably a story to that, but I didn’t have time for details.
Removing my hand from Shining's mouth, I slowly and quietly pulled out my gun and took aim.
Yet, as I aimed at his face… my resolve faltered. His eyes were white, but oddly surrounded by a green sheen as well. Not only that, but while the changeling had the demonic tone of a deadite, it’s face wasn’t mutated. It was like it was a full demon!
The changeling huffed. “Only t̵hi̵n̕g ͘I sm͠elļ is ̧p͜o̕n̴y ̶bl͠oód͟,” he dismissed.
I gave a relieved look to my bloodied chainsaw. For once, I was glad I had killed those ponies. Still, we waited until the changeling was gone and out of sight before Shining canceled the invisibility spell.
"Never let a deadite know where you are," I hissed angrily.
"But Twilight..."
"I know!" I struggled not to shout. "But if you pull that stunt again, not only are you going to kill yourself, they’re going to make you kill Twilight, and maybe try to kill me!” I drew Shining Armor’s sword from his belt and pressed it into his hand. “Now, one rule you need to follow when it comes to Deadites? Shoot first, ask questions never!”
Pushing Shining behind me, I peered back into the throne room. But the scene had changed. The mutated deadite was stabbing the mouth of one of the ponies, emptying their blood into a big stone bowl. Meanwhile, the changeling was carving into the body of another pony, pulling out a thin strip of flesh. The other ten bound ponies watched, too scared to scream or even whimper.
"Oh fuck" I whispered, adjusting my grip on my gun.
"What is it?” Shining asked, following my gaze.
"They're making another book!" I said. And without further explanation, I tore into the room, firing my gun at the nearest deadite.
Unfortunately, Celestia’s restriction came into place. I was only able to hit it in the chest. And while it did hit the ground stunned, it’s voice still worked fine.
"M͞ort̀a̷l̡s̡!!" yelled the mutant deadite.
The others charged. I swung my gun like a baseball bat, clobbering a deadite with a green coat. But as I swung in another arc, the deadites jumped back from me, fixing their gaze on Shining.
“Oh, fuck…” he mumbled as they leered at him.
“Armor, catch!” I roared, throwing him the gun.
Thankfully, Shining must have played some equivalent of baseball. He caught the gun out of thin air. Spinning with his fall, he shoved his sword into the chest of a deadite, finishing it off with a shot to the head. As the deadite fell, I ran for Shining Armor and used my momentum to power slide, slicing three pairs of legs from three deadite’s bodies. Jumping back to my feet, I stood back to back with Armor as the deadites surrounded us.
"So…” Shining Armor struggled to keep his voice level. “Any chance we can just take Twilight and leave?”
"Well, there are only four left,” I noted, stomping in the head of a deadite that tried to bite me. “Leave the bug and mutant to me and we might have a chance.”
Revving my chainsaw I stood my ground. But the deadites didn’t attack yet. The changeling and mutant exhanged a look.
Nodding, the mutant raced to the lavender alicorn.
“Twilight!” Shining barked, before turning to me. “Give me your hand.”
Before I could ask, he threw my gun into the air, giving the deadites an open invitation to charge us. Without time to question him, I grabbed his hand.. and was lifted off the ground.
I recognized the maneuver!
Straightening my foot, I kicked all three deadites, throwing them back. With another spin, Shining launched me at the mutated deadite as he tried to grab Twilight. Aiming my chainsaw carefully, I plunged the weapon into his back. Turning back, I grinned as Shining caught the gun out of the air and shot another deadite’s head off.
"Twilight's the priority,” Shining barked to me, whacking the other two deadites with the gun butt like he was using a bo staff. “Get her and get out of here!”
I turned back to the mutant and prepared to pull the chainsaw up through his head… only for the collar to grow heavy again.
“Damn you, Celestia,” I snarled, before I pushed the chainsaw down, ramming it further into his body. The demon screamed in agony before falling to the floor. Ripping my chainsaw out of him, I raced over to Twilight. To my relief, her chest still rose and fell with life.
"Ash, look out!" Shining barked.
I turned… only to feel something stab my back. Knocking whatever had hit me back, I found myself dealing with the changeling. I swung at him with my chainsaw, but Celestia’s spell took over, and I only managed a glancing hit off his chest. The changeling laughed at my attempt and caught me by the shirt, throwing me across the ground. I hit the ground rolling, my eyes landing on Shining as he struggled agains the other deadite.
The changeling simply snarled and pounced, ready to claw my throat out. I readjusted my chainsaw, and once again, Celestia’s spell had no problems with impalement. But the Changeling didn’t scream in pain like others had. Instead, it pulled itself closer, snarling at me with those strange white and green eyes. Millions of questions plagued my mind, but only one got the chance to leave my mouth.
"How are you so much like a deadite, yet still in control!?"
"Be͞ca̕us̵e ţho̕śe ̕o̧t̛he̷rs͢ a̧re̡ ̷d͢ȩmo͜ns̡ pos̀s͞e͟s̵s̛iǹģ a̧ morta͘l̷ s̴he͜l̵l," The changeling explained. It grabbed me by the shoulders. “I̵ ͝am ̀a Trųe̡ D̸émǫn, g͞ive͡n͟ p̡h̡y̵s͜ica͘l fo̢r̢m!̴"
The changeling opened his mouth, displaying rows of razor sharp teeth.
"An̕d ̢o̧ur̡ ͡Q̷u͠e͏en s͏hal͝l f̷e̡as̴t͜ u͡pon̛ ̸yo͢ur so͟ul͞s!" the changeling proclaimed, before moving to bite my neck. But he paused as the ‘click’ of a reloaded shotgun sounded behind him. The changeling turned, finding himself staring down the barrel of Shining’s shotgun.
"Tell your Queen the kitchens closed," Shining growled, before pulling the trigger.
I was blinded by black-green blood, and hit the ground. Yanking my chainsaw from the demon’s remains, I wiped the blood from my face to find Shining Armor extending a hand to me.
"Thanks, man," I said with a grin, accepting the prince’s help in getting up. "Nice one-liner, too."
Shining handed my shotgun back with a grin. “I was hoping it’d work,” he replied, sheathing his sword while I sheathed my boomstick. While Shining raced over to Twilight, I went to untie the other living ponies. Unsurprisingly, the second I cut their bonds, they shot away from the castle, with barely any time to say thank you. Shaking my head at their antics, I walked back over to the siblings.
"Twilight?" Shining said nudging his sister. “Twilight!”
However, the alicorn did nothing
"Twilight?!" Shining started to yell, shaking her. "TWILIGHT!?” I went to touch him, but he spun to me, desperation entering his eyes. “Ash, she's not waking up! What's wrong with her?"
I looked over her. Her coat was a little pale, but she was still breathing.
“I… don’t know,” I admitted. My head lifted, remembering a certain shaman that lived in the forest. “But I might know who does.”
I unhooked my chainsaw, handing it to Shining Armor. Before he could demand an explanation, I picked up his sister bridal style before darting out. Leaving the castle ruins behind, we made our way through the forest until I found a familiar tree with a door and two windows. Without time for formalities, I kicked the door open, scaring the zebra inside almost out of her fur.
“What in Equestria could you be?!” Zecora demanded.
“Help!” I replied, holding Twilight out to her. Zecora’s eyes locked on her.
“Is that Princess Twilight Sparkle before me?”
“Yeah,” I gasped, struggling not to trip into her. “Help her!”
Zecora felt Twilight’s brow. Her eyes narrowed.
"She looks almost dead,” Zecora commented. “Quick put her on the bed! So, I may see what fills her with dread."
Obeying, I set Twilight on her bed. Shining Armor stood next to me, staring down at his sister with fear. But as Zecora tended to Twilight, a chill settled over me.
For a moment, Shining gaped at me in horror. I’m pretty sure he screamed, but not before vanishing in a flash of pink light.
Even then, I still heard his scream across the Everfree Forest before he reappeared, his eyes wide with panic.
"The book's gone!” he got out through his scream.
"And the daggers?" I asked.
"Gone too!” he shrieked.
I almost joined him in screaming - or at the very least cursing - before a massive piece of Evil Dead Lore returned to me.
"How many bodies were there?” I asked. “By my estimate, there should be nine corpses; two normal and seven deadites.”
Shining Armor’s eyes somehow grew even wider.
“Oh, Faust,” he swore. “There were only eight bodies.” He paused. “Wait… you’re not saying these demons can possess the dead as well, can they?”
“It’s bullshit,” I admitted. “But it’s true.”
Shining Armor buried his head in his hands, while I turned away with a growl. But as I turned away, I realized Zecora was undoing Twilight’s shirt.
Now I may be asshole, but I’d like to consider myself a gentlemen when it comes to some things. Like a woman’s modesty. Immediately, I left the room, dragging Shining with me. Though the second he saw what Zecora was doing, he followed me out without resistance.
“So,” Shining asked as soon as we were outside. “How do we get the book back?”
"I don't know" I say putting my left hand to my chin. "Maybe we could…”
But as I spoke, I looked up… and I saw someone familiar watching us from the shadows. Shining followed my gaze. He started to draw his sword.
“That’s not a deadite, is it?”
“No,” I growled, reattaching my chainsaw. “Stay inside,” I told Armor. “Keep your sister safe.”
Shining almost moved to protest, but something in my voice must have dissuaded him. He raced back inside, while I marched up to the same merchant who sold me the book and chainsaw.
"Long time no see Ashley,” the merchant said, his eyes flashing and crinkling as he probably grinned smugly at me under his mask.
The first thing I did was draw my gun on him. He easily dodged my shot and knocked me on my ass.
“Now-now,” he mocked. “Is that anyway to greet an old friend?”
“Why’d you do it?” I snarled. “Why’d you send me here?”
"This world needed your help,” he replied like it was obvious. “You’ve already seen it. The changelings are demons in this world. And they will throw this world into chaos if they find a way to retrieve that book."
“But they couldn't read from the book I bought,” I noted. “Why?"
The merchant’s eyes flashed with that smug smile again. "Because The one I gave you is written in Earth Sumerian. The book that Starwirl banished was written in Equestrian Sumerian,” he explained. “A small difference, there is. But just enough. Just enough.”
"And what's stopping them from creating another book?"
"They still need the flesh of the impure for the cover. As well as her blood to ink the passages.”
"Her?" I asked.
"The Alicorn within the Zebra's home,” he replied. “Twilight Sparkle, wasn’t it?”
I growled at his response, but I could already tell attacking him would do no good. He laughed at my anger.
“You can’t deny it,” he said. “The princess has read from the book of the dead. Her blood is tainted. She is the prime candidate to become the book.”
“So,” I growled. “Did you come all this way just to lecture me?
“I came to warn you,” he replied. “That if the demons of this world manage to get their hands on her, than you, along with this world, will die. I can't stop what happens in this world. All I can do is move between the worlds and send humans like you to the worlds that need them. And right now, this world needs you to kill the changelings before they plague this world.”
"And what's stopping me from taking Twilight away from all of this crap, and living in hiding?" I shot back.
Surprisingly, he shrugged. "Nothing,” he admitted. “I have little power here, and even less over you now. However I can do a few things for you.”
"Like what?"
In response, he placed his hand on my slave collar. The collar glowed and sparked, before snapping open and hitting the ground.
"What?!" I stammered, clutching at my neck.
"The real Ash Williams is a slave to no-one,” he reminded me.
I rubbed at my neck. It felt like a massive weight had been lifted off my body.
“And if that’s not enough,” he added. “I left you a little something by the train station.”
“What exactly?” I asked.
He chuckled ominously. “Now that would be spoiling the surprise,” he replied. Then he walked away, and was lost to the shadows.
I scoffed. “Asshat,” I muttered, before returning to inside the tree hut. Shining Armor was waiting right outside the door. I would’ve bet my chainsaw he was watching us.
“Who was that?” Shining Armor demanded. He looked down at my neck. “How’d he… do that?”
"That was the man who sent me to this world,” I answered. “And he is also the one who has freed me from Celestia's spell, which probably means I can’t be angry with him.“
I really couldn’t. I couldn’t believe how much of a relief it was to have that cursed collar off me. Yet, as I kept rubbing my neck, Shining suddenly tensed up.
"You're not…” he asked nervously. “Gonna… do the thing you said you were gonna do to the Princess… are you?"
I laughed, unhooking my chainsaw. “I thought I told you that was just me dealing with my anger,” I replied. “Nah, I think I’ll just punch the shit out of her. Maybe it’ll knock some sense into that head of hers.”
Shining Armor exhaled. “Well, if that’s all…” he muttered, before taking off a black ring and handing it to me.
I glanced at the ring with a half grin. “You proposing or something?” I joked. Shining rolled his eyes.
“Sorry,” he replied. “But the girl I proposed to was prettier.”
He and I shared a laugh before he dropped the black ring into my hand.
“That’s a magic repelling ring,” he explained. “I brought it in case the deadites could use unicorn magic. If Celestia tries to keep you from murdering them again, that should protect you.”
"Thanks, man.” I slipped the ring onto my middle finger before flashing the bird at him. “How’s it look?” I asked innocently.
"Funny,” Shining replied with a roll of his eyes.
I chuckled. These two siblings weren’t bad company; I had to give them that.
Our moment of levity passed, however, as Zecora’s gasp drew us back to the bed.
“How is she?” Shining asked.
“Not good, not good,” Zecora murmured gravely. “Nothing I have can fix this mood.”
"Calm down Zecora,” I ordered. “Breathe. And tell us what's wrong with Twilight.”
Zecora indicated the mare before us. “Take a look,” she declared. “For she is becoming the book.”
Reluctantly, I looked down. Her shirt had been removed, and the only thing protecting her modesty was a white bra, holding d-cup breasts.
So much for being a complete gentlemen.
But my sight was soon drawn to the black and red markings covering her stomach. Markings in the ancient Sumerian text. "Heed the advice I give, if you want her to live,” Zecora declared. “Now that you have taken a look, you must not tell anypony she is the book!”
You know about the book?” Shining Armor asked.
"Ancient text from home that I gave up on,” she explained. "Fortold the coming of the living Necronomincon. Tell not a soul, lest her fate turns most foul!”
As she spoke, she mixed herbs and berries, pouring them into her cauldron and mixing up a brew. After an hour of waiting, Zecora dipped a bowl into the brew and made her way to Twilight.
Tilting the alicorn’s head up, she poured the liquid into her mouth.
“This brew will make her wake,” she explained. “But you must help her, for her sake.”
"Thank you, Zecora,” I said, picking Twilight up. I rested her head on my right shoulder while Shining grabbed my chainsaw.
I know we don’t know each other that well, Twilight, I couldn’t help but think. But you were easily the best company I had here. And I’ll be damned if I let the deadites have you.
With Twilight hopefully about to wake up soon, Shining Armor and I left the forest and made our way to the train station. Unfortunately, we were cut off by the ponies of Ponyville, wielding pitchforks and garden hoes. All they needed were torches, and the angry mob vibe would be complete. Though they did have Rainbow Dash at the head of the mob, and she had plenty of fire in her eyes.
"Let Twi go, murderer!" Rainbow Dash growled, racing at me.
I managed to move out of the way, but Shining wasn’t as lucky. Rainbow Dash seized his sword from him and aimed it at me.
“Rainbow Dash!” Shining Armor barked, but she aimed his sword at him.
“Don’t start, Shining,” she growled. “I saw you and this… monster slaughtering ponies left and…"
BOOM!
Before she could continue with this nonsense, I drew my shotgun and blasted Shining’s sword into shards.
While Shining was used to the noise, every pony else flinched and cowered from the noise. I grinned as Rainbow Dash stared down at the broken blade, fear finally entering her eyes. I blew the smoke from the barrels.
“Alright, you primitive screw heads,” I declared. “Listen up. You see this?” I hefted my shotgun into the air. “This… is my BOOMSTICK!”
The ponies, including Rainbow Dash, jumped and flinched away.
"It's a 12 gauge, double-barreled Remington! S-Mart's top-of-the-line! You can find this in the sporting goods department." I grinned at the weapon. "Yeah, this sweet baby was made in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Retails for about $109.95. It’s got a walnut stock, cobalt blue steel and a hair trigger." I aimed the gun around. "Shop Smart, Shop S-mart. YA GOT THAT?!"
The ponies nodded vigorously. Not a single person dared to speak, allowing me to pick up the sound of dripping water and a low growl. But I only smiled at the challenge.
"Now the next one of you ponies...even touches me…?” I took aim, and the crowd scattered with fear, revealing a single deadite crawling from a well.
I blasted it’s left hand first, causing the possessed pony to reel back into the well. Reloading, I blasted off its right hand, sending it plummeting back into the hole in the ground. With a spin, I sheathed my boomstick, and glared at the ponies, who wisely backed up from me. Shining Armor walked up next to me, grimacing at the state his sword was in.
“I’m gonna need to get another one from Canterlot,” He murmured.
“C’mon,” I replied, easily making my way through the pacified mob… only to find another mob at the train station.
But this mob wasn’t waiting for me. They were gathered around what the Merchant had left me.
I laughed at the sight. “That guy’s an Asshat,” I declared. “But man, has he got style.”
A car sat before the train station. Sleek as a seal and with headlights glowing.
"What in Celestia's name is that?" Shining Armor gasped. “Some kind of chariot?”
“That is no chariot, my friend,” I declared, moving giddily to the driver’s side door. “This is a work of art simply called… The Delta!”
The ponies around us backed up, murmuring questions and stammers of disbelief, but I had no time for them. Opening the passenger side door, I set Twilight in the seat and fastened her seat belt. Turning to her brother, I jabbed a thumb at the backseat. He quickly jumped into the backseat.
I hopped into the driver’s side, my giddy smile going from ear to ear like the Joker. I may have been stuck in a new world with ponies that either hated me or were scared of me, but I was inside my Dream Car. And the keys were in the ignition.
I gave them a twist, sparking the engine to life. The roar made me shiver in glee, though it nearly sent Shining through the roof in fear.
"What in Faust’s name…?!” he stammered.
"Quit being a pussy," I said, shifting the car into drive. “It’s just the engine.”
As I shifted, I noticed that instead of just PRND, there was a fifth gear shift that said AoD. Part of me really wanted to know what that gear did, but we needed to head back to the castle first. Let Shining re-arm, let everyone know Twilight was okay, and maybe let me get that punch in on Celestia.
With Shining’s help, we were soon cruising through Equestria. We could’ve made it to Canterlot without any trouble, but the thing about taking a hour long train ride then fighting seven undead demons? It works up a appetite.
“So, where can we get some grub around here?” I asked Shining.
It took some time to find a place that sold both herbivore and carnivore species. But after a bit of searching, Shining and I found a small little fast food joint in the New York styled city of Manehatten.
Once we stopped there, Shining had to go in since they probably wouldn't serve me. I stood outside of the Delta, leaned against the side, and dissuading any passerbys with a glare.
Eventually, Shining returned with a menu. Instantly, I saw the item I wanted: Phily cheese steak sub. Of course, it was spelled ‘Filly Cheese Steak,’ but I wasn’t about to be nitpicky.
Shining walked back in and came out with three bags. Inside one was my sub. As I gorged myself, Shining reached in his and pulled out a half wrapped burger but instead of meat it had what looked like either hay or straw.
"And I'm assuming the third bag is for the princess?" I asked as we got back in.
"She likes hay burgers,” He explained. “So I figured I'd get her one for when she wakes up.”
We ate our food in silence for a bit, though I couldn’t help but smile as I thought of a question.
“So,” I asked. “What do you think of the Delta?”
Shining gave the seat a nervous if slightly impressed look. "It's a odd mode of transportation,” he admitted. “Stealth isn't possible with a chariot such as this, but it is far faster than one pulled by 10 of my fastest guards. Heck, I'd say this could go faster than Rainbow Dash herself.”
I laughed, patting the Delta’s hood. “She’s quite the beauty, isn’t she?”
“She?” Shining asked. “You… don’t mean the ch-The Delta, do you?”
“All cars from my world are ‘she’s,” I replied. “At least to the car fanatics like me."
Shining blinked like he didn’t understand, but just shrugged like he wasn’t about to demand explanation.
“Well, the… mm, car, is quite beautiful,” he admitted. “But like I said, we’re not sneaking up on anything anytime soon.”
“It's not supposed to be stealthy." I said, finishing my lunch. "Cars are good for doing three things:” I lifted my fingers on each point, “Going fast, looking absolutely badass, and getting chicks.”
Shining blinked, casting a nervous look to his sister. “Is that… really how things in your world work?”
I slumped. "Well no,” I admitted. “The main thing we use em for is to get from one place to another.” I grinned. “But that doesn't mean those things I said aren't true; some women from my world just love a hot guy with a badass car." My grin faded as a particular memory came to mind. "But those people only care about the car and the driver’s money.”
Shining finished his burger. “Really?” he asked. “You speak from experience?”
"Come on,” I said, grabbing Twilight’s hay burger and plopping it at her feet. “We still gotta get Twilight back to the capital. Get in.”
Blinking at my sudden change in subject – and probably the venom in my voice – Shining got in as I started the car. He didn’t even get to shut the door before I peeled out, the prince yelping as the door slammed shut from the whiplash.
"I take it, you spoke from experience!" Shining said over the engine.
Without hesitation, I slammed on the brakes. My arm kept Twilight from launching forward, while Shining was nearly thrown through the window.
“Another word,” I growled at him. “And I’ll kick you to the curb and take Twilight back by myself!”
Shining scrambled back into the backseat, and for a moment, neither of us spoke. When Shining finally broke the silence, it was with a sincerely regretful tone of voice.
“I’m sorry, Ash,” he said. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”
I glared at him through the rearview mirror for a moment, before my anger faded. I sighed.
"You're fine,” I admitted. “I just...don't like talking about people who stab me in the heart." I started to press on the gas again when we both heard a groan.
The two of us whirled to Twilight, twin grins lighting up our faces as Twilight’s eyes fluttered open. However, as she looked around, panic began to set on her features.
“Twilight?” I asked as she started to struggle against her seatbelt. “Twilight!” She whirled on me, her eyes like a cornered animal. “Twilight, it’s okay,” I said, undoing her seatbelt. “You’re safe.”
Recognizing my features, Twilight’s expression softened. Tears started to form in her eyes.
"Ash!" Twilight sobbed, lunging to me and wrapping her arms around my neck. “You saved me.”
Shining gaped at her. “And what am I? Lamb chops?” he asked. “I fought to save you too!”
“Oh! Shiny” Twilight stammered, reaching over to give him a hug as well. Yet, as she did so, her eyes darted around in confusion. “Um… where are we?”
"This is a mode of transportation from my world," I said. “It’s called The Delta.”
“Delta?” Twilight ran her hands over the dash. She looked ready to launch into another thousand question session, before her stomach let out a growl like a lion. Her face turned beet red.
"Sounds like someone's hungry,” I noted with a laugh.
“Luckily,” Shining declared. “Your BBBBFF got you a hay burger.” He pointed to the sealed bag, which had unfortunately hit the ground when I braked.
But when Twilight pulled out the hay burger, it looked completely fine. And probably tasted fine from the way she started eating.
While she ate, smearing her lips with the sauce, I couldn't help but smile. Yet, when I noticed Shining struggling not to glare at me, I felt my cheeks burn up.
Shaking my head, I pressed on the gas, and we drove out of Manehatten. We made it about halfway to Canterlot before Twilight finished her burger. Wiping her mouth with a napkin from the bag, she turned to the two of us.
“Thank you for saving me,” she said. “Both of you,” she added quickly, turning to her brother and kissing him… then giving me a kiss as well.
I tried not to look at Shining’s attempt not to grimace, while Twilight grabbed the seat belt and reattached it before turning to the radio.
“Oh, what’s this do?” she asked, hitting the radio, and causing music to start playing.
After an hour of driving (and a very entertaining hour at that; the merchant was nice enough to pack the Delta with all my favorite songs and bands. He was still a Asshat though), we arrived at the edge of Canterlot.
Inching closer to the city, I soon had to stop completely. The ponies evidently rarely used chariots in their own city, and thus, the streets were packed with ponies. And they didn’t make it any easier when they stopped and stared at us. I blared the horn, trying to get them to move, but that only caused half of them to keel over like scared goats.
“Goddamn…” I rolled down the window. “Move your asses!” I boomed at the possum-playing-ponies.
But not only did they somehow freeze up even more, a few decided to take action. Glancing up, I saw several guards running at the Delta with swords raised.
“Oh, Hell no!” I growled, bursting out of the car. They skidded to a stop when I leveled my boomstick at them. “HELL THE FUCK NO! You leave a single scratch on this car and I will blow so many holes in you, your own parents will say ‘Wow, that is the reddest block of Swiss cheese I’ve ever seen!’” I snarled.
The guards skidded to a stop, but weren’t as easy to cower as the ponies. They glowered at me, swords still raised. It wasn’t until Shining Armor popped out that they dared to show even surprise.
“Stand down, soldiers,” Shining Armor declared. “This… ‘gentleman’… is under my protection.”
“But Captain!?” one of the guards argued.
“I said stand down!’ he said sternly.
The guards glared at me, but reluctantly sheathed their swords. Shining turned to me with a grin.
"I think it's best we walk the rest of the way,” he suggested.
“Fuck. That,” I stated, still aiming at the guards. “I don’t trust these pricks with my car. What if they take it… or scratch it?” I shuddered, patting the immaculate paint of coat.
“Is it… really that important?” Twilight asked. “I mean…”
“Sparkle,” I warned. “You and Armor are easily the only two people I like in this world. Don’t you dare ruin that by saying it’s ‘just a car.’ This!” I pointed at the Delta. “This is my Dream Car. This is a car that I have wanted since I was old enough to know what a car is!”
Twilight rubbed her chin, glancing between me and the car. She nodded.
“Well, then…” she declared, turning to her brother. “Shiny… we’ll meet you at the castle."
"Twily?" Shining asked.
"Sorry," she said with a shrug. "But I think I've only got enough strength for myself and one other with this thing.”
Before either of us could ask what that meant, her horn shrouded in light. With a pop and a flash like a camera, I found ourselves right outside the castle.
I laughed. “Nice one.”
Twilight shrugged with a grin. “I am the Princess of Friendship,” she said. “I’d rather not ruin one of my friendships with someone else. Especially if that someone else doesn’t have that many friends here to begin with.”
I nodded. “Well, in that case… stay in the car real quick. There’s something I need to do.”
She blinked, but I walked around the car and grabbed my chainsaw from the back.
“Oh… kay?” she asked.
Thankfully, she didn’t move, and just watched as I walked up to the entrance. The unicorn and pegasus guards stationed their readied their spears, but I could see the tremble in their legs, and hear the stammer in their voices.
“H-Halt s-sir!” one of them stammered.
“How about, instead of pissing yourselves,” I replied. “One of you go get Celestia.” I jabbed a thumb at the Delta. “Tell her I got Twilight.”
The purple alicorn waved from her seat. The two guards glanced at each other, but just as the pegasus flared her wings… the unicorn was gone with a flash of light.
“Curse you, Private Quick Shot,” the pegasus cursed, before turning to me with fear. “Um…”
I just smirked at her, crossing my arms and waiting. For about two minutes, we stood there; the pegasus guard trembling before me, while I waited for Celestia. Shining appeared with a flash of light, leaning next to the Delta and engaging in some sort of conversation with Twilight. Before I could try to eavesdrop, a flash of golden light appeared before the pegasus, and the Royal Sun Butt herself appeared, complete with a regal golden dress.
“Well?” she started to say. “Where is…?”
She paused, probably taking in the fact that my slave collar was gone. But in the time it took her to process that, I had already walked up to her. And before she could speak, my fist was planting itself into her cheekbone and sending her to the ground.
“Ash, Celestia’s sake!” Twilight screamed.
Before I could turn around, there was a flash of purple light, and Twilight appeared, tending to her beloved mentor.
“Why would you do that?!” she demanded. “Didn’t she set you free?”
“Actually,” Shining said, stepping in. “I set him free.” He tossed the unclasped collar at his sister’s feet.
I blinked. I didn’t even think of what had happened to the collar afterward.
Bad move on my part, as Twilight picked it up with all the air of someone finding their parent’s secret porn stash.
"This is one of Sombra's enslavement collars," Twilight whispered, looking up at us. “These…”
“Well, Celestia?” I asked the ruler. “Care to tell her where it came from?”
Twilight turned to Celestia with horror in her eyes. But Celestia pulled herself up, rubbing her cheek and glaring at me defiantly.
“I put the spell on that demon,” Celestia replied. Twilight dropped the collar and backed away from her in horror, bringing a look of worry to Celestia’s face. “Twilight, it was so he wouldn’t kill another innocent pony.”
“Well that spell almost stopped us from saving Twilight,” Shining Armor growled, standing by my side.
“Celestia…” Twilight whispered. Celestia tried to reach out to her student, but the purple alicorn covered her face, running into the castle.
“Twilight?” Celestia stammered. Her arm slowly lowered. I smirked and walked past her, nudging her out of the way with my leg.
“You brought this on yourself,” I noted.
This time, I thought I was ready for her. As I heard the charge of magic, I whirled around. Yet even then, I was too late to keep Celestia from shooting another magic blast at me. Luckily, the ring Shining gave me was no fake.
With a flash of gold light, the golden spell bounced against my chest, and fizzled away into nothing. Celestia’s jaw hit the ground.
"Nice try," I said, flipping her the bird with the ring. “But not this time.”
With that, I set off to find Twilight.
Now, from my limited time with Twilight, I could assume she wasn’t like most women from my world. Most women would just go to their rooms and cry. But I figured Twilight would be somewhere a bit more comforting to her. And if I remembered her character from the show well enough, I’d make a safe bet that a library would be of far more comfort to her.
It took a bit of a search, but I eventually managed to locate the Royal Library. And inside, I could hear the faint sound of crying. Moving through the various bookshelves stacked with tome upon tome of endless information, I eventually found Twilight leaning against a bookshelf.
“Hey, Sweetheart,” I greeted. My voice was soft, and yet she still flinched as if I had shouted.
"Ash,” she said, looking to me with tear stricken eyes. “Why didn't you tell me…?”
“Because I have a policy,” I replied, sitting down next to her. “If it’s my problem, I fix it. You weren’t part of that problem, so you didn’t need to know.”
"But I am part of the problem,” Twilight insisted. “I summoned those demons. I caused all these problems.” Her voice cracked, and she buried her head in her hands.
"Ah,” I noted. “So, you think this is your fault?”
“What are you talking about?” she lamented. “Of course, it’s my fault! You warned me. So many times, you tried to warn me, and yet I still read from it.” She ran her hands through her mane. “Now Equestria is suffering for it.”
“That isn’t your fault,” I insisted.
“How do you know?” she demanded, her bloodshot eyes turning to me in anger.
"Because there’s a difference between Earth Sumerian and Equestrian Sumerian," I replied with a smile. A smile that got wider when Twilight’s tears stopped.
"What?"
I indicated the books. “I think you actually did have the right passage to send me home. But there’s a difference between our versions of Sumerian. A small difference, but enough to make your translation wrong.” I made her look me in the eyes. “So, no; no matter what anyone else says, none of this is your fault… Princess.”
Wipping her eyes Twilight started to smile
"Thank you," Twilight whispered.
She began to stand, but I put a hand on her shoulder, my frown making her ears flick in worry.
"Twilight,” I began unsteadily. “I… need to apologize.” I lowered my head. “I wasn't able to get there in time."
"What do you mean?"
"The demons started a ritual,” I explained. “Carved up a couple ponies and drained their blood.” I winced at the look of horror developing on her face. "But..."
"There's a but?" She almost shrieked.
"The worst of it happened to you." A shadow casted over my eyes as I lifted up her right sleeve.
She stared, uncomprehendingly, at the Sumerian text scrawled over her body. "W-What is...?" she began.
"The demons are planning to turn you into the next Necronomicon,” I explained. “Like it or not, you’re gonna need to be guarded twenty four seven.”
“I…” Twilight stammered, still staring at the text on her body.
“No ‘I’s,” I insisted. “If the demons get a hold of you, they will kill you, and use your flesh and blood to create the book. And if another book’s created…”
I stopped. She was growing more and more pale. She started to look more like her friend Rarity; if Rarity ever looked like she was about to suffer a heart attack, or keel over from fearful worry.
“Another book…” she stammered, clutching her head. “I… this is too overwhelming… I can’t think!”
“Easy,” I said, deciding to take a gentler approach. I put my arms around her shoulders. “You’ve got nothing to fear, alright. I’ll protect you. I promise.” As she looked at me, I regained my smile. “I swear, no harm will befall you as long as I’m around.”
She covered her mouth. For a moment, I feared she was sobbing. But then I realized she was laughing.
"You sound like a knight,” she pointed out. “You know that, right?"
“Can’t help it,” I admitted, chuckling myself. “Just don’t expect me to get fitted with shining armor.”
Twilight tilted her head, though her grin didn’t fade. “You’re going to get fitted with my brother?” she asked.
We both burst into laughter at that lovely image; a laughter that seemed to lift the despair, however briefly, from both of us. Leaning my arm against my knee, I noted a silver chain. I remembered having that even before I was teleported to this world.
“Hey, Twilight,” I said, struggling not to sound coy. “Close your eyes.”
She tilted her head at me again, but all I needed to do was grin at her. With a small roll of her eyes, she shut them, as I pulled the chain off my wrist.
“I don’t know if this will help,” I said, putting it around her neck. “But it wouldn’t hurt to try.” Once I got it fitted, I scooted back. “Okay, open up.”
Opening her eyes, Twilight peered around in confusion, before she spotted the silver jewled cross now hanging around her neck.
“It’s beautiful,” she whispered, lifting the cross.
“It’s been in my family for a couple hundred years,” I explained, as she turned the cross over, finding an inscription. “Though… it wasn’t engraved until my Great Grandad got his hands on it.”
"Habete fidem semper?” Twilight muttered, reading the inscription. Briefly, her eyes widened in panic. “Um… what does that mean?"
“Relax,” I assured her. “It’s not a demon chant. It means ‘Always have Faith.’ Y’see, in my world, that cross symbolizes faith and resolve.” I placed my hand over hers, lifting the cross up. “It also has the power to ward off the forces of Hell. Hopefully, it’ll help protect you when I can’t.”
“Oh, Ashley,” Twilight breathed, clenching the cross over her chest. “Thank you.”
I blinked. Normally, I hated being called Ashley. It was why I preferred Ash so much. But, for some reason, when Twilight called me it… I wasn’t as bothered.
Then my stomach growled. Talk about a mood killer.
"That wasn't me, I swear,” Twilight said instantly.
"Nah, it was definitely me,” I replied. “The only thing I had to eat today was a steak sub.”
“Goodness,” Twilight stammered, standing up. “That won’t do. We need to get you something.”
“Sure, just no hay,” I said, following her to the kitchen. “I’ll do vegetables and bread, but no hay.”
After a quiet dinner, Twilight headed off to bed. It took her half the journey to realize I was following her.
"Um...what are you doing?" she asked.
"Keeping an eye on you,” I said sternly. “Remember; until we send these demons back into the fires of hell, I’m going where you go.”
"But…"
"No ‘but’s,” I declared. “Sorry, but I'm your bodyguard now.”
Twilight opened her mouth to argue.
“Relax,” I insisted. “I’ll be just outside your room. All you have to do is scream, and I’ll be in there faster than a gopher on crack.” I flashed a smile.
Twilight’s ears were still flat in nervousness, but she seemed to realize arguing with me wasn’t going to work. Settling for a resigned nod, she continued to her room. Though she kept stealing glances back at me, as if having a bodyguard was odd for her.
Though the idea of not having a bodyguard was odd to me. Wasn’t she a princess? Didn’t the other princesses do this all the time? What made her different?
Eventually, we reached her room. She hesitated at the door, giving me another nervous look.
“Well… goodnight, Ash,” she said, shutting the door.
“Night, Princess,” I replied, leaning against the wall.
For the next couple of hours, I just… stood there. I tried to pass the time by checking my weapons. Interestingly, despite all the deadites I’d killed, none of their remains were left on the chain of my blade. Probably another gift from that asshat merchant.
As the time went by, I started to slump to the ground. And as the moon made its way into the sky, my eyes slowly slid shut.
“ASHLEY!”
I was back in my room. My father in front of me, his face red as a tomato. The vein on his neck bulging.
“What the hell where you thinking?!” he demanded. “For Christ’s sake, Ashley! What made you think starting a fight at Church was a good idea?!”
“But Dad…” I tried to protest.
“No buts!” he snapped. “I don’t want to hear what you have to say. You do not start a fight in the Lord’s House!”
“But…” I tried to cut in, my anger rising.
“I SAID NO BUTS!” he cut me off. “How are you so incapable of understanding? The Lord’s House is the most sacred place you could ever have the privilege to enter. Fighting; turning his house into some sort of…!”
“OH, FUCK THE LORD!” I snapped before I could stop myself.
I covered my mouth in horror. My dad blinked at me, almost like a deer in the headlights. But all too soon, his scowl returned. But his voice was no longer screaming. It was quiet. Almost tranquil. Honestly, that was even worse.
“Get out.”
“Dad…” I tried to stammer. But before I could get a word in, he seized me by the hair.
“GET OUT…” he seethed, dragging me out of my room. “OF MY…” he reached the door and hurled me out. “HOUSE!”
I hit the ground rolling, his words almost seeming to push me further away.
“And STAY OUT!” he snapped, before slamming the door with a BOOM.
For a moment, I trembled on the ground, trying to collect myself. Part of me wanted to cry; another part wanted to storm in and beat his face in with one of his precious Lord’s crosses. Even though I knew that would accomplish nothing; he’d easily beat my ass and then I’d be in even more trouble.
My fists clenched. Why did I have to have him as my father?
“Holy shit,” a voice muttered. “Ash? Are you okay?”
I looked up. Samantha was standing there. Her eyes were wide with concern. Yet her brow was arched; like she was holding something back.
I sighed. “Here to yell at me for causing a fight in church too?” I asked, shifting to a sitting position. “Cuz dear old Dad already took care of that.” The sarcasm and anger practically oozed out of my voice. I rubbed my head where he had grabbed it. But when I shifted again, Sam hadn’t started trying to lecture me. She was holding out her hand.
“Need a place to sleep tonight?” she asked, a small grin poking at the side of her lips.
I gazed up at her. Anger still throbbed in my heart, but I couldn’t help but smile back at her. I took her hand.
“I’d like that,” I admitted.
She started to respond. But instead of her voice, I heard Twilight.
“AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!”
My eyes shot open! I was on my feet in an instant, my boomstick practically springing into my hand. Smashing through the door, I sighted down on Twilight. She was thrashing and shifting but… there was no deadite. Her eyes were shut tight.
It came together. I sheathed my boomstick, crossed over to the bed and grabbed her shoulder.
“Twilight!” I barked. “Twilight, wake up!”
She bolted up, her pale fur soaked with sweat. Even before her eyes were fully open, she clung to me like her life depended on it.
“It’s okay,” I said softly. “You’re safe. You’re safe. Breathe, Twilight; no one is going to hurt you.”
I just kept up the stream of calming words as her breathing slowly eased up. Her grip tightened on my shirt.
“I-I’m fine,” she whispered. “I-It was just a nightmare. My friends…” her breathing quickened. “Oh, Celestia, my friends…”
I hushed her, stroking the back of her head. “It was just a nightmare. Don’t talk until you’re ready.”
Her breathing slowed. She nuzzled into my chest.
“Better?” I asked with a grin.
“Much,” she admitted, looking up at me gratefully. “Thank you, Ashley.”
There it was again. That odd… lack of concern over her using my full name. I became a little too aware of how close we were. How she wasn’t wearing anything but a bra and my cross. My heart beat a little faster.
“Okay, now,” I said. “Try to get some rest.” I tried to get up, but Twilight gripped my shirt tighter. Her skin paled again.
“Wait,” she pleaded. “Please don’t go.”
“I’ll be right outside the door,” I insisted. I tried to pull myself away, but I felt magic in her hands, fighting against the magic repel ring Shining had given me.
“Please,” she almost begged. “Just until I fall asleep.”
I wanted to protest. I wasn’t sure. But she gazed at me with sad, pitiable eyes like a puppy dog. My resolve broke.
“Alright,” I said, settling back in as her magic ceased, and her grip relaxed. “Just until you fall asleep.”
Careful not to hurt her, I unhooked my chainsaw and set it on her vanity. Laying back on the bed, I let Twilight put her arms around me and rest her head on my shoulder. My heart still pumped at our vicinity. And how little clothing she had. But, despite my nervousness, nothing happened. And bit by bit, I ended up falling asleep right alongside her.
I woke to find Celestia’s sun rising, it’s rays shining through the window. I moved to sit up, before I noticed a weight on my arm. Looking over, I froze. Twilight was snuggled up against my arm, still fast asleep.
“Shit,” I thought, “I was supposed to leave when she fell asleep.”
Gently moving out of the alicorns grasp, I moved off of the bed and made my way to the bathroom. Looking into the mirror I saw dried blood just under my collar and a little bit of changeling blood on my face.
Now I may be in a different body, but I still needed to take care of it. Looking around I was glad to find a running shower. Odd that they’d have a running shower and yet use swords and spears for weapons, but I wasn’t about to question it. Taking off my clothes and setting my gun on the sink counter, I proceeded to take a nice, long, way overdue shower.
Once done, I dried off and pulled on my pants before exiting with my shirt and gun in hand. Re-entering the room, I saw Twilight, up, yawning and stretching as she pulled herself from sleep.
"Morning, Princess," I greeted.
"Hm… good morning, Ash," Twilight said before she opened her eyes. Her eyes widened, and a blush turned her cheeks red as she stared at my shirtless chest.
I chuckled and tried to pull my shirt on. But, wouldn’t you know it, the door opened.
"Twily?” Shining Armor called. “It's time for..."
I winced as he came in. He froze in place, taking in the sight of me and Twilight, both shirtless. Immediately, I could see it in his eyes. The protective big brother mode. And, as my luck would have it, he had a new sword by his side. A sword he was already starting to draw out.
“Wait, Shining,” I said. “I can explain…”
I stopped, mentally face palming myself. ‘I can explain?’ How many times had men said those exact words to angry brothers or husbands? And how many times had those words been famous last words?
Judging by how Shining fully drew his sword, I could safely bet I was about to join those men.
“Williams…” Shining growled, storming towards me with his sword raised.
Briefly, I considered my boomstick. But even if I didn’t like Shining enough to use it, it was still wrapped in my shirt, and I didn’t want to ruin the only shirt I had.
Thankfully, Twilight stepped in. With a flash of magic, she caught Shining Armor in a force field, locking him in place as she jumped between us.
"Shining wait, I can explain!" Twilight insisted.
Thankfully, those words had a better effect from her than me. Shining Armor’s eyes lost a bit of their anger as he stared at her.
"I had a nightmare last night and Ash woke me up from it,” she explained. “I didn't want to be alone, so… I asked Ash to stay with me for the night.” She looked away. “I don't know why I asked him that. I just felt safe around him."
“But why are neither of you wearing shirts?” Shining asked.
Twilight tilted her head in confusion, before looking down. With a yelp, she covered herself, her face turning red again. With a flash of light, she vanished from the room. The bathroom door slammed shut behind me. Jumping a bit from the impact, I struggled to remove my shirt from my boomstick.
“Apparently, she just sleeps that way,” I commented.
“And your reason?” Shining asked, that protective brother look starting to come back.
"I just took a shower,” I replied, jutting my thumb at the bathroom. “I don’t know if you noticed, but I got a bit of blood on me from the last week or so.”
Shining sighed, waiting for me to put my shirt on. When I was finally covered, he motioned for me to follow.
“Well, when you and Twilight are ready,” he said. “The Princess requested an audience.”
“Which one?” I asked. “Please tell me it’s not Sun Butt,” I thought privately. “I can take Luna. Hell, even Cadence would be alright…”
“All three, actually,” Shining replied. A hint of nervousness entered his voice.
“Even Cadence?” I asked. “I thought she hated me for killing that one pony. I mean, she gave me one helluva death glare.”
"Oh, yeah, she hates you,” the white unicorn replied. “Still, she and the others want to speak with the three of us.”
I noticed the sweat forming on his brow.
“Can I assume freeing me wasn’t brought to your wife’s attention?” I asked.
Shining grimaced. “No,” he admitted. “Not until we got back. And she wasn’t happy about it either.” He lowered his head. “I had to sleep in the guard’s house,” he added with a whisper.
I winced. Oh, how the fairer gender punishes us.
“Well, if it helps,” I noted. “Had you waited any longer, we’d have been bringing back a corpse instead of a princess.”
Before he could reply, said princess came out of the bathroom, wearing a green blouse, a blue dress skirt that went down to her knees, and a pair of black heels.
“Thank you, by the way… both of you,” Twilight said, pulling us both into a hug. “I would’ve been dead if you two hadn’t come for me.”
Shining and I exchanged a glance, and a mutual smile.
“So,” Twilight said. “The Princesses are waiting?” Shining nodded.
"Go ahead," I insisted. "I need to re-strap my weapons."
Twilight gave me a knowing smirk before flaring her magic. In seconds, the sheath harness was back around me, and my boomstick safe in its sheath. The chainsaw locked into place on my arm.
"Come on Ashley," Twilight said happily.
“I still don't understand,” I thought, “Why doesn't it bother me when she calls me Ashley?”
But before I could think of asking, we reached the throne room. We all paused, glancing at each other nervously.
I couldn’t help but envy my two companions. They were only in hot water with one princess. I was on bad terms with all three.
But, there was no time for fear, and these guys needed a confidence boost. So, I flexed my shoulders.
“Well, like the Sweet Heart said,” I commented, flashing a smile at the flustered princess. “Best not to keep the princesses waiting.” And with that, I pushed the doors open.
Celestia sat upon the center throne of gold. To her right was Princess Luna, seated on a throne of silver. And on Celestia’s left was Princess Cadence, seated on a throne of pink.
“Welcome, My Little Ponies,” Celestia said, grinning at Twilight, before sneering at me. “And… Demon.”
Twilight’s eyes narrowed. “Princess,” she said in a clipped voice. “With all due respect, he isn’t a demon, and he has a name.”
“Twilight…” Celestia tried to interject, but Twilight spoke over her.
“His name is Jacob Ashley Williams,” Twilight snapped. “And I’d appreciate it if you would call him as such!”
Celestia grimaced like she had just been force fed a boatload of lemons. But, after a moment’s tension, she exhaled.
“Very well, Twilight,” Celestia said, before turning back to me. “Mr.… mm, Williams, according to the reports I’ve been getting from Spike…” A scroll flashed into being before her. “You killed 8 ponies and a changeling. Not to mention you threatened to pull off Rainbow Dash’s wings and kill anyone who touched you.”
She turned to Shining Armor, who struggled not to shiver as his wife glowered at him.
“And you, Captain Armor,” Celestia continued. “Not only aided this… ‘Jacob,’ in said murders. But you also stood idly by as he threatened the Element of Loyalty and the ponies of Ponyville.” She glared down at him. “What… exactly… happened?”
“Well…” I started to say, but before I could say any more…
“I wasn’t speaking to you,” Celestia boomed at me. “I was speaking to Shining Armor!”
Raising my hands, I backed up, as Shining Armor smoothed out his… well, shining armor.
"Princess Celestia,” he began slowly. “Ash and I tracked down the demon that took Twilight to the Everfree forest. Once we entered the forest we were unknowingly followed by Rainbow Dash. When she was found, she insisted on coming along, and…”
I gave him a very clear look when he started to say my name.
“Ash..." Shining said quickly. "…told Rainbow Dash to return to Ponyville. She refused to listen, so he… ‘motivated her’ by threatening to cut off her wings. When she left, I questioned his methods. He responded with..."
"She's gone, Isn't she?" I echoed, noticing a worried look growing on Twilight’s face.
"You didn't actually hurt her, did you?" Twilight asked.
“Course not,” I said with a smile. “Just a scare tactic. I wouldn’t actually harm a hair on her head.”
“Indeed,” Shining Armor admitted. “Even though he did threaten the Element of Loyalty, his method did work. And when we made our way to the castle where the demon had taken Twilight, we found that there was more than one demon. They had apparently pony napped others. And from what we gathered…”
“They were trying to create another book,” I finished.
Cadence narrowed her eyes. “Another book?” she asked, peering at me. “What about the one you had when you fell from the sky?”
"That one was written in my worlds' Sumerian. As I told Twilight, she had the correct passage to send me back. But since she was using Equestrian Sumerian, it went wrong. Now, if you're worried about the demons reading from my book, don’t. They can’t read it without someone well-versed in Earth Sumerian.”
A visible breath of relief escaped Princess Cadence, while Celestia and Luna exchanged a glance.
"Now, as Shining was explaining,” I continued. “The demons were performing a ritual by draining the blood and slashing the flesh, thus creating the pages and the ink for an equestrian version, which was banished to another world by that Wizard, uh… what’s his name… Starswirl the Bearded?"
“That’s the one,” Twilight agreed.
Celestia leaned forward, her brow knitting.
"However,” I glowered up at her. “Because of the delay you caused by placing that enslavement spell, we failed to completely prevent the ritual. Now for reasons I can't reveal…” I indicated Twilight. “She must be guarded at all hours.”
Celestia glanced at Twilight, and nodded.
"Very well,” she said. “Our best guards will…” But I waved her off.
“Not happening, Sweet Cheeks,” I said.
Her eyes flashed angrily. “And why not, ‘Demon?’” She hissed.
“Because your guards can be possessed,” I replied, like the answer was obvious. “I know how the actual demons work; I can keep myself safe. And I will protect her in every way.”
Twilight blushed, and looked away, which only seemed to make Celestia seethe even more. For a moment, she and I glared each other down. Finally, Cadence rose up.
“Thank you, Sir Jacob,” she said, causing Celestia to look to her in surprise. “I’ve been using a lie detector spell. And everything you’ve told us has been nothing but truthful. But I must ask…” Her eyebrows knit. “How did you know that Starswirl banished the book of our world?”
I held my head up high. “Because the man who sent me here told me,” I replied. “He said Starswirl saved your world from this torment… and now it’s my turn.”
The Love Princess nodded, the lie detector spell likely failing to catch any lies again.
"Thank you, Sir Jacob,” she repeated. “You have proven that we can trust you. Seeing as how you risked your life to save Twilight, I believe it only fair that you be rewarded.”
She looked to Celestia, who gained a look like she had been force fed another boatful of lemons, but she managed to force it into a simmering fake smile.
“Indeed,” Celestia agreed. “Despite our differences, I cannot deny that you have done us a great service. In return for your courage, we have decided to invite you to the upcoming Gala tonight.”
I blinked in surprise. I have never been to any short of dance. I didn’t even go to the high school prom. A nudge from Twilight broke me out of my stupor, and I collected myself enough to bow.
"You honor me with this reward… your Majesties,” I said to the princesses.
“Well, at least you have manners,” she noted, before rising. “This meeting is adjourned.” With a flash of light, she and Luna vanished. Shining, Twilight and I turned to leave when…
I didn’t know a lot about women. But I had spent more than few nights at Sam’s. And I could tell when a woman was extremely horny by the way they spoke to their man. Seeing the look of fear on his face I shook my head in pity for him.
"Sorry, bro,” I replied. “Your woman; your problem."
Shining Armor gagged in horror as Cadence appeared next to him, wrapping her arms around him gleefully.
“I have to say,” she said. “Letting you sleep in the guard house left me so lonely.” She leaned her head close to his ear. “How about you… make it up to me.”
And with a flash of pink in the shape of a heart, the two teleported away. I scoffed.
"Lucky bastard,” I scoffed. “Getting some tail while I'm left high and dry.”
“Come on,” Twilight said, entwining her arm around mine. “If you’re going to the Gala, you need a proper tux.”
With a flash of light, I found myself inside what had to be a clothing store.
"Rarity?” Twilight called. “Are you home?"
"One moment Darling!” A voice called from the lines of clothes. “I'm touching up a... Wait… Twilight?!”
In seconds, Rarity raced into the room. Joy briefly flashed across her face… before it faded into shock at the sight of me.
"Um...Twilight?” she whispered, pointing at me with an expression of fear.
“Oh!” Twilight giggled. “Rarity, this is Jacob Ashley Williams. Just call him Ash.” She grinned at me. “He’s my new bodyguard.”
“New… bodyguard… I see.” She gulped. “Well… what can I do… to help… you?”
“Well, the Gala’s tonight,” I replied. “And apparently, I need a suit.”
“T-The Gala?!” she stammered. “But Twilight… I don’t think the princesses would ever…”
“They invited him personally,” Twilight replied.
Rarity blinked in shock. “I… see,” she mumbled faintly, before giving my weapons a nervous look. “Um… c-can he at least not have any of those… weapons?”
I chuckled. “Smart girl,” I said, unhooking my chainsaw and unsheathing my boom stick. I handed them to Twilight. “Mind holding these for me, sweetheart. Don’t need anyone getting too close to something that dangerous.”
"Of course," Twilight replied, taking hold of my weapons.
“Alright,” Rarity declared, summoning a roll of measuring tape with her magic. “Well… if you could please shed those hideous rags…” she stretched the measuring tape out. “I need to get your measurements.”
I grimaced. “This is gonna be torture, isn’t it?” I noted.
At the gates of Tartarus…
A large cloaked figure trekked up to the Gates of Tartarus, flanked by several hooded figures.
In response, the leader blasted the figure with green magic. He disintegrated into smoke. As she turned around, the others bowed their heads before the Queen of the Changelings; Chrysalis.
Not a single one dared speak. Some didn’t dare to breath.
“Ğ͕̰̮ͤö̞̥̤͂o̹̿̃̓̊d̂̾̽.” Chrysalis turned from them, and with a flare of green magic, she opened the doors to Tartarus.
Immediately, the Mighty Cerberus lunged out, his three heads barking in anger.
However, Chrysalis stood her ground, her magic glowing as she glared the three-headed canine down. For a moment, the two stood there, glowering at each other.
However, Chrysalis had the aura of a queen. And all too soon, Cerberus backed down, whimpering like her glare had physically harmed him.
Crossing by the animal, she made her way through the jail of the damned. Creatures reached out for her, groaning for mercy or some form of escape. But her eyes remained on one particular cage at the top of a mountain. Inside of which, a centaur sat hunched and emaciated. Yet, as Chrysalis reached his cell, his eyes, gold with black sclera, shined with a dangerous light.
"Queen Chrysalis,” Lord Tirek’s voice oozed like a snake doused in oil. “To what do I owe this… unexpected pleasure?"
Tirek waved a hand. “Fine-fine,” he said. “But I should remind you; I can’t do much in this cell.” He waved a hand at his emaciated body. “Or how I am right now.”
Chrysalis flashed a fanged smile as she powered up her magic.
“L̤̬̀e̲t̫̯̔̿’ŝ͓̩̀ ̬ͩf͊ịͩx̃ͅ t̔ͣhȃ̳t̅,” she replied, before blasting Tirek with the magic.
Tirek began to laugh as the magic hit him. But his laughter faded as he failed to gain any strength. Instead… he looked down in rage as a collar formed around his neck.
"What is the meaning of this!?" he demanded, slamming at the bars of his cage.
She motioned to her changelings, who stepped forward – some reluctantly – to the cage.
Taking a great breath, Tirek sucked the magic and energy from the changelings, and grew enough to break out of the cage.
“Yes,” he hissed, admiring the temple his body had become. “With this power, I could destroy even the magic that Princess Sparkle and her friends used on me.”
“Alive and unharmed,” Tirek said before she could. “As you command… your majesty.” Tirek sneered the last words as he moved past the queen, storming out of Tartarus.
“You may have won this round, Chrysalis,” Tirek thought with a glower. “But if this means taking my revenge on Princess Sparkle and her friends… I suppose I can live with it.”
Rarity's tape measure hadn't moved from my thigh, Looking down, I saw her staring wide-eyed at my body, her face a bright red. I snapped my fingers at her, breaking her from her stupor.
“Almost done,” I asked with a grin. “Or d'you see something you like?”
Gasping, Rarity turned her head away, writing down the last of her measurements. “I believe I have everything I need.” She took another glance at my body before quickly looking away. Her face hadn’t dropped that shade of red yet. “Now, with your coat color, I’m thinking a nice light grey with a…”
“Black and Red,” I interrupted.
She blinked, turning back to me. “Pardon?”
"If I'm going to wear a suit or tux, it’s gonna be black and red.”
She let out a breathless laugh. “Y-You’re joking, right?” A simple stare told her everything. “Y-You’re not… you can’t be serious!”
I merely cocked an eyebrow. And yet, Rarity fanned her face, her red cheeks turning pale at the mere thought of a red and black tuxedo.
“I like red and black,” I explained, crossing back to my clothes and pulling my pants on.
Rarity looked to Twilight for help, but the alicorn just shrugged. Sighing, Rarity buried her face in her hands.
"I'll make this horrid tux for you,” she muttered. “So long as you never make me use those colors on anything else again!” And with that, she marched off to craft my suit.
Leaving me and Twilight standing alone in her measuring room. For a moment, we just glanced around at the clothing.
“So… red and black?” Twilight asked.
I shrugged, rubbing the back of my head. “I like those colors,” I replied.
Twilight hummed, looking away, before a thought made her eyes widen.
“Hang on,” she said, turning back to me. “Earlier, you said the man who sent you here told you the Equestrian Necronomicon was banished from this world by Starswirl the Bearded, right?”
“Yeah,” I replied. “Why?”
Instead of explaining, Twilight vanished with a burst of light.
"Aaannnddd you left me with the stuck up snob," I noted sarcastically. "Nice.”
"Another word from you, and I'm making your suit hot pink!" Rarity yelled from the other room.
For a moment, I fidgeted there. I didn’t like the idea of Twilight being out there on her own. What if the demons came for her, and I was sitting here with my thumbs in my ass? Thankfully, she alleviated my fears when she returned, completely fine and with a thick journal pressed to her chest.
"Okay so I have a theory,” she explained. “Since Starswirl banished the Sirens to the human world. Or... at least a human version of our world. So, what if he banished the book to the same place?”
I peered at the book, faintly recalling the Equestria Girls movies as Twilight opened the journal. “It’s… possible, I guess,” I noted.
“Right?” She grinned. “So, I contacted Sunset Shimmer and my friends in that world to search for anything that could be related to the book.”
I grinned. “That’s awesome, Twi!” I reached for the book. “The sooner we find that book, the sooner we can send those demons back to H-ELLO!”
The last part was due to several threading needles suddenly piercing my good arm.
“What the F-ACK!” I yelped as a bare mannequin knocked me upside the head.
“My little sister and her friends are upstairs,” Rarity declared angrily, poking her head back into the room. “And I will not have them picking up any of your foul mouth!”
“Geez… sorry,” I muttered, pulling the needles out.
“Just don’t let it happen again,” she declared. “Or else I’ll send those needles somewhere you can’t pick them out.”
I whistled, turning to Twilight. “Did I mention you have some badass friends?” I noted.
Twilight giggled, and Rarity came out, looking somewhat sated by my words. My tux was floating behind her, a perfect black overcoat with a bright red collared shirt underneath. Beautiful.
“Anyway,” Rarity said, floating the tux over to me. “Your clothes are ready.” She indicated a changing room. “You can change over there.”
I barely glanced at the changing room. “I’ll pass,” I replied, but I couldn’t help but grin as I held the suit, peering at it’s design. I narrowed my eyes at the tie. “Um… did you add a regular or a clip-on?”
Rarity blinked at me like I had insulted her. “Do I look like some pony who would ruin a proper suit with something as atrocious as a clip-on tie?”
There was a rebuttal to that, but it was beneath me.
“Fair enough,” I replied, tucking the tux under one hand. “Now let’s go, Twilight; I need to get some target practice in before tonight.”
“Right,” Twilight replied, her horn glowing as she waved at Rarity. “See you tonight, Rarity!”
The white mare waved us off, and with a flash of light, we reappeared in Twilight’s room. The first thing I noticed was Shining, leaning against the wall and panting like he had run through a war zone. His armor was half on, part of it falling over his shoulder like a girl with a loose shirt.
“You look like you had fun,” I commented.
He glowered up at me. “You suck, Ash,” he grumbled.
“That’s your wife’s job,” I replied.
“Will you two stop going at each other?” Twilight demanded. “You already went after Cadence’s throat.”
Shining Armor and I blinked at her. We looked at each other, before we burst out laughing.
"I can't believe my little sister just said that!" Shining cackled, holding the wall for support.
“So…” I asked, still grinning. “You hiding, or is she satisfied?”
“You don’t satisfy a Princess of Love,” Shining replied. “At least not forever. She’s snuggling a practice sword that I cast a clone spell on, so I can get a few minutes of rest.”
“Sounds like I’m hitting the targets myself then,” I replied, setting the tux on the vanity before grabbing my weapons from Twilight.
Unfortunately, as I went for the door, I was knocked back when the door was kicked open, a fake Shining Armor toppling me to the ground.
“Oh, no!” Shining squeaked, as a light blue aura seized him.
“Who said you could leave the bedroom?!” a husky, lust-riddled voice that sounded vaguely like Cadence boomed.
Shining Armor wailed as he was dragged away, clawing at the floor. As he vanished out of sight, I shook my head. Normally, I should’ve been jealous. Yet, I also couldn’t help but feel bad for him.
"Welp! I'm going work on my aim, as well as my blade skills,” I said, looking to the princess. “Promise you won't leave the room?”
"I promise,” Twilight assured me, levitating a book from a shelf as I left to train a bit.
~One Hour Before the Gala~
Twilight was getting ready in her room while I was changing in the bathroom.
I'm pretty sure if Rarity saw me right now, she would blugeon me to death with her fashion mannequins. My shirt was entirely untucked. My belt hung in the air around my waist. The buttons left undone leaving my chest completely exposed. My laces were a mess. And I had long given up on the tie which hung around my neck.
I was about to scream out my frustrations when a knock on the door distracted me.
"Are you done in there, Ashley?" Twilight asked.
Sighing, I opened the door, rolling my eyes at her surprised face.
What made it worse was that she looked immaculate, with a blue and lavender dress that showed off her figure perfectly. On top of it, she had a light touch of eye shadow that really made the purple in her eyes pop.
"Do I look done?" I muttered in defeat.
"How are you..." She began, only to look to my stump arm. "Right."
"Yeah," I agreed coldly, lifting the stump. "Kinda hard to do all this with only one hand."
Twilight sighed, but I could still see a smile behind her resignation.
"Here, let me help you."
With a flare of her horn, my shirt tucked and my laces tied them selves. As the magic worked, she buttoned up my shirt and overcoat with her hands. A hint of embarassment flushed my chest as she tried to avoid looking at my chest.
"I'm sorry you have to do this," I apologized.
"It's no trouble," she assured me, buttoning up my overcoat and moving on to my tie. A smile spread across her face. "In fact, I remember having to help Shining with his tie all the time. His wedding day, his graduation..." She giggled. "I even had to help him with his armor when he was promoted to Captain."
She tightened the tie and stepped back, and for a moment, we simply observed each other.
"You look great," I complimented.
"You don't look bad either," Twilight noted, inching closer to me.
Before she could say anything else, a knock sounded at the door, making us both jump. Twilight scurried over just as the door opened, revealing Shining Armor with a bright red military uniform and a box in hand.
"Am I interuppting?" he asked, trying not to sound suspicious.
Neither of us spoke, and he just sighed, handing the box to me.
"This is from Cadance," he explained. "As a thank you for saving my sister."
I opened the box to find a metal gauntlet waiting inside.
"It belonged to a soldier that Cadance saved once," Shining explained further. "When he passed, he gave it to Cadance so she could give it to another who might need it."
I lifted the gauntlet out. It was perfect for my stump. I grinned.
"Well, who am I to refuse a gift from a princess?" I commented, fitting the armor over my stump. To my delight, it fit like a glove. Which I suppose it was in a way.
My eyes widened when the gauntlet opened. I pretended to flex my hand... and the gauntlet flexed for me.
Twilight gasped in glee. "Now you can walk through the gala without your chainsaw," she noted. I looked at her in confusion.
"That doesn't mean I'm just gonna leave it here," I noted. "What if something happens?"
Her eyes widened. "Ashley..." she stammered.
"This may be a fancy party," I insisted. "But I'm still your bodyguard. I gotta be armed and ready in case we're attacked." I chuckled before I could stop myself, lifting the gauntlet. "Heh, 'armed' and ready... that, uh, pun wasn't intended."
Twilight chuckled as well, before resting her hand on the gauntlet.
"Ashley, please, we'll be fine," she assured me. "Besides. I was hoping we could use this opportunity to talk to some of the ponies so they don't fear you so much." I scoffed.
"My job is to kick ass. Not make small talk," I grinned and made a small bow. "But if you insist, I won't bring the chainsaw."
She relaxed, only to frown as I snatched the harness to my boomstick.
"However my boomstick is out of the question," I declared, strapping the harness to my torso before sheathing the gun. She sighed.
"Alright fine," she acquiesed. "As long as you don't threaten anyone with it."
I extended my arm, and she hooked her own around my arm.
"As you wish," I replied.
And together, the three of us left for the ball room.
It didn't take us long to come across the three princesses, all still adorned in fine dresses with regalia. Cadence crossed over to Shining and wrapped her arm around her husband, her silk pink dress having a slight transparency to it that really showed off her figure.
"Hey Twilight," the Princess of Love declared, before giving me a more flirtatious glance. "And hello, Mr. Williams." She glanced at my new armament. "How'd you like the hand?"
"It's awesome," I declared, forming a rocker's devil horn with it. "Fits like a glove."
"Welcome Twilight," Celestia said before sparing me an icy glance. "Jacob."
"Ash, if you would please," I replied, glancing to the lunar princess. "Can I speak with you a moment?"
Luna perked, but after glancing at her sister, she nodded. Unhooking my arm from Twilight, Luna and I walked out of earshot of the group.
"What can I do for thee, Sir Williams?" Luna asked.
"I would like you to keep an eye on Twilight's dreams," I asked. "Last night, she had a nightmare. It was... bad."
"Bad?" Luna asked, looking to Twilight in concern.
"She didn't want to sleep alone," I noted, my face turning slight red.
"Ah," Luna nodded in a gentle voice. "Truly, it tis my duty as Princess of the Night to watch over my citizens. Never fear, I will keep a watchful eye over Twilight's dreams."
I nodded in thanks. But before I could speak it...
SLAP!
The sound echoed through the hall. Luna and I whirled back to see Twilight glaring at a shocked Celestia, who was holding her reddening cheek.
Twilight seethed at her, whispering something I couldn't hear, before whirling around storming towards me.
"Dang," I noted. "What happened?"
Twilight fumed for a moment, her own face turning red. "I don't understand Celestia," she whispered. As Luna and I tilted our heads in confusion, she began to explain.
"So Twilight," Cadence noted to me, "You seem to be in better spirits as of late." She gave me a cunning grin. "Anything good happen?"
"Oh, just... glad I'm alive and all," I replied, smiling at my former foalsitter.
"Just alive?" Cadence asked, as my smile slowly faded to horror. "Or could it be your new bodyguard?"
My cheeks burned red. I glanced over at Ash. The way the red and black tux actually looked on his body. His toned, striking body...
Immediately I shook my head, trying to purge the thoughts from my mind.
"We're just friends, Cadence," I insisted. But it didn't sound right to me.
Ashley was strong, handsome, had a will to protect me no matter what. And he's actually really funny. Honestly, I don't think I'd have the nerve to ask him to dance with me.
But as I pondered the demon slayer, my eyes grew wide in horror as Cadence's grin widened. Her horn was shimmering with a pink light.
"Cadence!" I yelped, but she just laughed.
"You can't hide how you feel from me," Cadance laughed amicably. "After all, knowing when a pony is in love is my special talent!"
My face burned redder as I noticed Shining and Celestia grimacing. "She... projected what I was thinking over to you two, didn't she?" I mumbled, burying my head in my hands.
"I honestly want to strangle him now more than ever," Shining grumbled. He shook his head, but gave me a sincere smile. "But he has my respects for wanting nothing but your safety."
Celestia's grimace, however, refused to fade.
"She may have feeling for Jacob, but he isn't staying," she declared.
My heart stopped. "What?" I asked.
"Once we stop this evil, he will return home. Or at the very least into the world where Sunset resides."
My blood ran cold. "Princess Celestia," I insisted. "If you would just sit down and talk with him..."
"Twilight, he has killed several ponies trying to save you," Celestia insisted. "As well as the two he killed arriving here!" She shook her head. "As far as I'm concerned, he is no better than the demons he fights."
My fists clenched. My blood boiled. For once... I couldn't control myself. Before I knew what had happened, my hand smacked across Celestia's face.
Silence reigned. I should have been mortified, but my anger was still bubbling in my chest.
"You're wrong, Celestia," I seethed. "I've followed your guidance for years. But you're wrong on this!"
Then I stomped back to Ashley.
I couldn't help but feel Twilight had left something out of her and Cadence's conversation. But, judging from how she was holding her hands and the redness already in her cheeks, I decided now was a bad time to confront her about it.
"You shouldn't worry about it," I noted. "At this point, I'm used to her talking about me that way."
Luna flinched. "Still," she noted. "It is no way to speak to you, Sir Ashley."
I turned to her, my eyes narrowing in a death glare.
"It's Ash," I hissed.
Luna blinked, looking at Twilight. "But..." she tried to say.
"Twilight can do it," I said. "Shining Armor..." I glanced over at him, before shaking my head. "No, only Twilight gets that privilege."
Twilight swallowed. "Sorry, Luna," she said. "I didn't know..."
Luna nodded softly. "Ah." She bowed to me. "Apologizes... Sir Williams."
Twilight scratched her head. "Wait... why am I the only one that can say it?" Twilight asked.
"Because for some bizarre reason," I replied. "When you call me Ashley, it doesn't bother me."
Twilight blushed, turning away from me. I followed after her, even to the bathroom.
"Um..." she stammered when I continued to follow her.
"Bodyguard," I replied. "Remember."
"Oh... yeah..."
Twilight steered clear of the bathroom, before we parked ourselves at the nearest wall. Twilight glowered at Celestia as she conversed quietly with Shining Armor. The purple alicorn shook her head.
"I don't understand," Twilight lamented. "How can Celestia act like that to someone she knows nothing about?"
"You can fix some problems and some machines," I replied. "But you can't fix people." I glanced up as the band started playing, and hooked Twilight's arm. "Best not to dwell on it."
As the music filled our ears, Twilight noticed how her arm was wrapped around mine. I tilted my head, grinning coyly as she glanced back and forth at the dance floor.
"So, um..." Twilight swallowed. "Ashley, would... um... would you... or... if you'd like..."
She grimaced, fanning herself with her free hand. I, however, got her message, and took her free hand, moving my armored hand to her waist.
"Care to dance, Princess?" I asked smoothly.
She stared up at me, eyes wide and jaw agape. Her face was red as a tomato, but she managed a smile.
"I'd love to," she whispered, lacing her fingers around mine.
Music played. Ponies watched. But neither was important to me. All that mattered was the princess in front of me, as we danced for what felt like hours.
When the music stopped, I felt disappointment at first. Then I noticed the stunned stares of the nobles. Then her friends melted out of the crowd and made their way to us.
The minute I saw Rainbow Dash's face, I knew what was gonna happen. Reluctantly, I let Twilight go, and we stepped back from each other.
"Twilight!" Rainbow Dash stammered. "What were you doing? Dancing with that... thing?"
"Last time I checked," I replied, staying right by her side. "She's free to dance with anyone she wants. If she didn't want to dance with me she could have easily said no."
Rainbow Dash glowered at me, and Twilight put her hand on my shoulder.
"Allow me," she said.
Raising my hands and giving a small bow, I backed up as Twilight rounded on Rainbow Dash, the others chiming in with their own opinions. I backed up towards the food table, almost wondering if it would result in a cat fight. Or... mare fight?
Before I could even figure out what that meant... I felt my back bump into a pony.
"ECK!" a voice shrieked behind me. "How dare you bump into me, you commoner filth!"
I turned, and let out a groan. I had bumped into Prince Blueblood. Out of all the snobs at this place, I had to bump into the most disrespectful shit in the entire show.
"Sorry," I grumbled. "Didn't see you there." I tried to walk past, but his mumbling didn't just catch my ear. More like forced it's way into my ear canal.
"Murderous Freak..."
I stopped. Slowly, I started to turn around. Thankfully, Twilight had almost teleported there, and was glaring at Blueblood with all the anger that was bubbling in my own veins.
"Blueblood," she hissed. "Out."
Blueblood blinked at her. "B-But Princess," he objected. "This creature shouldn't be here. He's..."
"My bodyguard," Twilight finished for him. "And the one who saved my life." She jabbed a finger into his chest. "He goes where I go, and I will not have him insulted by the likes of you! Now you can either walk out, or I can have him throw you out. Your choice."
Prince Blueblood stared at her in mutinous rage, before casting a nervous look at my armored hand and muscular figure. Gulping down his anger, he scurried out of the room.
Twilight and I shared a grin, and headed to the food table. There was a plethora of food and drinks waiting for us, and we honed right in on the champagne.
We handed glasses to each other, and tapped them in a toast.
"To..." Twilight started to say, before grimacing in doubt. "Hm...?"
"To saving this party from snobs?" I asked.
Twilight chuckled. "I'll take it," she replied.
We started to drink, but I paused, staring down at my glass.
The liquid was rippling. Out of the corner of my eye, the other drinks were rippling too.
I set down my glass. My eyes flicked over the rippling glasses. Twilight followed my gaze, her smile fading.
"Ashley?" Twilight asked.
"Something's wrong," I said, watching the table shake. Twilight took a step back, glancing at the ground as it rumbled.
"What's... happening?" she asked, struggling to keep her balence.
"Whatever it is," I growled, reaching for my boomstick. "I don't like it."
A tinkling sound drew our gazes up; the chandelier was shaking. If the rumbling continued, it would fall. The others had noticed and were backing well out of the crash zone.
"An Earthquake?" Twilight guessed, as we moved to one of the walls.
I placed my hand on the wall, narrowing my eyes. The shaking was almost like footsteps. But they were in quick succession. Something was coming at us.
No, something was barrelling at us.
My eyes widened. Yanking out my boomstick, I fired into the air.
"Everybody run!" I boomed, just as the wall exploded inward.
My eyes widened. Yanking out my boomstick, I fired into the air.
"Everybody run!" I boomed, just as the wall exploded inward.
The destruction of the wall launched me into the center of the room as the ponies scrambled to the exits. Standing where the wall had been was the gigantic red centuar, Lord Tirek.
I grimaced before my gaze shifted to Twilight. She was on the ground, right in front of me. And she wasn't moving. But worse still, Tirek's eyes were right on her.
I didn't hesitate. I jumped up and ran at the centaur, reaching for the chord on my chainsaw.
It wasn't there. I had left it in Twilight's room!
Shouting in frustration, I seized the princess, yanking her away just before the centaur could grab her.
With an angry roar, the centaur swung at me. I couldn't dodge, and I winced as he sent us flying, my back crashing into the wall. Grimacing at the pain, I wrapped my arms around Twilight, trying to keep her from getting damaged. Though consider the cracks that formed on the wall from my impact, I wasn't sure how long I'd be able to protect her.
We hit the ground. My vision went blurry. Twilight swam into my view, looking me over in concern and a bit of panic.
"Ashley?!" she whispered in worry. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," I insisted, even as my head throbbed and my vision still blurred at the edges.
Despite the pain, I reloaded my boomstick, and put myself between her and the centaur, even as he busied himself with the nobles and Twilight's friends. Rainbow Dash and Applejack valiantly tried to fight him, only to get caught by his magic and drained of their own.
"Get out of here, Twilight," I demanded, only for her to grab my sleeve.
"No!" she insisted. "You can't fight Tirek by yourself!"
"It's you he wants," I insisted, as the centaur turned to us with a grin. "Go find your brother, and get out of here!"
Despite my pleas, Twilight stayed rooted by my side, staring up at Tirek with fear as he bore down on us.
"Twilight Sparkle," Tirek greeted, like they were old friends. "It's so good to see you again." He flexed like a posturing body builder. "As you can see, I've gotten much stronger since our last encounter."
Yet, as he flexed, I noticed a familiar collar around his thick, fat neck. Though this one was a dark green rather than a sun-gold. Before I could comment on it, he noticed me like I was Twilight's odd pet. He shooed at me.
"Move aside, odd creature," he ordered. "My master wishes to speak to Princess Twilight."
"Yeah, that's not happening," I replied, aiming my boom stick at him. "If your master wants to talk to her so badly, why send one of her pets?"
Tirek's eyes narrowed at the barb. "I won't ask again," he warned, his horns glowing as magic sparked between them. "Move... or die!"
Suddenly, Shining Armor appeared in a flash of light, teleporting above the centaur. With a battle cry, Shining shoved his sword into Tirek's right shoulder.
Bellowing in agony, Tirek lunged and caught Shining Armor by the head.
"Insolent filth!" Tirek boomed, squeezing Shining's head until he screamed in agony.
"Shining!" Twilight screamed, almost running forward before I caught her.
Under Tirek's fingers, Shining's eye turned to me.
"A-Ash!" he got out, throwing his sword to me just as Tirek threw him across the room. As the captain of the guard vanished into a pile of rubble, his sword pierced the ground before me.
I seized the blade. "Twilight, get the hell out of here!" I yelled as I charged the beast.
Tirek fired a magic blast, but three separate spells blasted his beam into dust. As the dust settled, Cadence, Luna and Celestia charged into battle, flying around Tirek like a mob of angry horned bees. As Tirek swatted and roared at them, I took advantage, slideing underneath his horse half and shooting and slashing at his legs.
But while Lord of the Rings made it look badass, it was another thing entirely when the horse wasn't actually big enough to run under.
My slide stopped right under his horse barrel, and my shots had only drawn his attention to me. Hopping like a nervous horse, he put one of his cloven hooves down right on my arm.
I bellowed in agony, Shining's sword dropping from my grip as I futilely tried to yank my arm out from under his cloven hoof.
"Ashley!!" Twilight screamed.
I glanced up as Twilight joined the battle. But all that did was end the fight faster.
His eyes glinting, Tirek snatched Twilight up with one smooth motion. The other princesses hesitated, looking to Twilight in fear, only allowing Tirek to blast them across the room. As the trio landed in a heap on the opposite side of the room, Tirek blasted another beam at them, collapsing the roof and wall down upon them.
"NO!" Twilight yelled.
I cursed and punched at Tirek's hoof, but the centaur gave me a smug look before lifting his hoof off. He didn't even have to worry; my fingers lay bloated and purple and useless, unable to grasp my boomstick.
We were beaten.
"You should consider yourselves lucky," Tirek mocked, as Twilight writhed in his grip. "If I didn't have to return with this pony, I'd take all of your magic."
As I struggled to pull myself up, he stomped on my chest. A burst of pain knocked the wind from me, leaving me gasping for breath as he strode to the nobles, who were feebly protected by Pinkie, Rarity and Fluttershy.
"But I can still feast upon the small fry in this room," Tirek noted.
Pinkie's eyes widened, and she tried to whip out her party cannon. But Tirek's magic flared, and in seconds, the nobles and the last of the Mane Five collapsed.
Growling, I forced myself to my feet. My arm was useless, but I still had the armored hand. Seizing my boomstick, I limped after Tirek as he stomped out through the hole in the wall.
"Hey, asshole," I seethed, firing a shot into his horse ass. He spun around, staring at me in disbelief. "I ain't done yet!" I snarled, reloading my boomstick.
He narrowed his eyes at me as I aimed the boomstick at him.
"Put. Her. Down!" I gritted out through clenched teeth.
For a moment, he took in my visage; beaten bloody, an arm that was turning purple and blue, limp at my side. Honestly, I wasn't surprised when he chuckled.
"How amusing," he laughed. "The pet wants it's master back."
I narrowed my eyes and fired again. But Tirek was faster. Whipping around, his hind legs bucked into my head. The world spun as I was hurled through the air, and I once again felt the hard whiplash of crashing into hard stone. The ground came up to my face. And before I could figure out what was up or down, stone rocks knocked me from consiousness.
Groaning, I slowly opened my eyes. My location had changed; I was now in a white room with multiple ponies; garbed in white clothes with red crosses. Shining Armor stood next to me, wearing a hoodie with a purple star in front of a blue shield, with three light blue stars on top. His horn was strangely concealed under the hood.
"Armor?" I mumbled, trying to get up, only for pain to shoot through my arm and chest.
"Whoa, easy there, Ash," Shining said, pushing me back down. "You're in no condition to move."
I glanced down, wincing as I saw my arm. Even though it was wrapped in bandages, I could still see the purple and blue flesh. Shining followed my gaze.
"Arm's broken," he mumbled, as if it wasn't obvious. "Along with several ribs."
"What happened, Shining?" I mumbled, my voice gaining cohesion as the pain slowly faded. "Where's Twilight? Where am I?"
"Royal Wing of the Cantorlot Hospital," he replied sadly.
"You emitted me?" I asked.
He chuckled. "Well, no," he admitted.
"But you're a Prince!"
"Technically, I'm a Royal Consort," he explained. "I don't really have the autority to emit anyone to the Royal Wing."
"Then who?" I asked.
"Princess Luna. She emitted you after what happened."
"And... what happened?" I asked, still a little woozy from the encounter.
Anger and sadness flashed across his face. "Lord Tirek," he growled.
Slowly, it came back to me. "Right," I grumbled. "The Centuar." Anger seeped into my voice as I adjusted on the bed. "What are our casulties?"
"Thank Celestia, no one was killed," Shining replied. "But most of the nobles attending lost their magic." His head bowed. "As did all of Twilight's friends."
"And the princesses?"
"Luna made it out with only a broken arm," Shining replied, though his voice got fainter. "Celestia broke both her arms and her left leg, and got a mild concussion on top of it all."
I could sense his voice threatening to crack. "And... Cadence?" I asked.
Shining dropped his head. His fists clenched. "She got the worst of it," he whimpered. "A severe concussion... three cracked ribs... both legs broken... her arm and spine..."
I tried to reach out my good arm, but Shining Armor crumbled, his choked sobs spilling out. With a shiver, I realized he was leaving one of the princesses out.
"Shining," I whispered. "What about Twilight?"
He flinched as if the name was a dagger. Another choked sob escaped him.
"Shining!" I insisted. "Where is she?"
He looked up at me, his blue eyes bloodshot with tears.
"Gone," he choked out.
Anger blocked out any pain. I seized the unicorn by the hoodie, throwing myself out of bed.
"What do you mean gone?!" I snarled. "You're her brother; you didn't...?"
But I stopped when the hood fell back, revealing his horn. With a gasp of horror, I stared at what was left; a small cracked ring of white just above his forehead.
His horn had been snapped off.
"Your horn..." I mumbled, releasing the captain. Faintly, Shining felt at the broken appendange.
"The doctor said it should grow back in a few months," he mumbled, though his defeated expression didn't fade. "I should be happy; a centimeter lower, and the damage would've been permanent."
"Shining..." I started to say, but when I reached out, he swatted my arm away.
"I'm a failure, and I don't need you reminding me!" he snapped, turning away. "I know what I did! You don't need to rub it in my face anymore!"
I tried to reach out again, but he moved out of my reach.
"I failed to protect the princesses," he seethed in self-loathing. "I failed to protect my wife! I couldn't even protect my little sister!"
I blinked in surprise. "But... you..." I started to say.
"I'm just average with a sword," he lamented. "My special talent has always been shields and protective magic." He indicated his horn. "And now I can't even do that!"
"Stop it!" I shouted, grabbing Shining by his shoulders with both hands. Though the pain wanted to make me black out, I forced myself to power through it, my teeth gritting and forcing me to hiss out my next words. "Stop feeling sorry for yourself, and pull yourself together! We got a princess to save!"
I used Shining Armor to pull myself out of bed... only to hear a low cackle. Followed by slow clapping.
"Looks like I was right to send you here."
Shining and I turned. A familiar figure dressed in a heavy cloak leaned against the frame of the door.
"Merchant," I snarled. "Unless you're here to give me something to find Twilight..."
"Finding her?" the merchant asked. "I'm afraid not. But you should know that it has been seven days since the centuar lord attacked and took the alicorn."
My eyes widened, causing the merchant to chuckle.
"Should I add that Lord Tirek is a slave to the Changeling Queen Chrysalis?" he asked.
I slumped back on the bed. "Then we're as good as dead," I mumbled in defeat.
"Not Necessarily," he replied, reaching into his cloak. "Even without you, the alicorn princess is protected by a force no evil can touch."
"And what would that be?" Shining Armor asked, his eyes darting towards the merchant's concealed hand with uncertaintly. His horn sparked with dead magic, and he backed up next to me, sensing his own helplessness.
The Merchant's eyes glittered, and he pulled out three crosses. Crosses I recognized: Moka Akashiya's Rosario from Vampire+Rosario, Alexander Anderson's silver cross from Hellsing, and Gray Fullbuster's cross from Fairy Tail.
"Figured it out yet, young Ashley?" the merchant asked, his eyes glittering in amusement.
I wanted to smack him - at the very least point out that all three had different meanings. But the answer clicked before I could get a word out.
"The Holy Cross," I noted.
"The what?" Shining asked.
"The Holy Cross," I said, reaching for my own necklace before remembering who I gave it to. "In my world, it's the symbol of God," I said with a grin.
Shining grimaced. Reaching inside his hoodie, he pulled out a silver necklace of an alicorn with a ruby at the base. Almost like Celestia, except her mane was more solid and flowing, with a red
"Most ponies believe that Celestia is God," he explained. "Though Celestia, and the Royal Family believe in the true God Faust."
"Either way," I claimed. "Objects of divine faith are strong against any unholy evil." My grin widened. "And I gave Twilight one such object before the Gala."
The sound of galloping hooves combated against the screams of the alicorn princess.
"Let me go, you... thief!" Twilight spat, firing a spell at the centaur's face.
"AUGH, will you STOP!" he bellowed, slamming Twilight's body into the cliff side.
"W͘hat a͝re yo͏u̶ ͝d̨o͘ing͡?̀!͏" the voice of Queen Chrysalis bellowed from behind him. Tirek glowered as the changeling queen angrily flew up to his side.
"Don't say you'd let this child get away with blasting you with magic every twelve seconds," Tirek argued. "We both know that's a lie!"
"Iͣ n̔e͉ͯe̖͗d̺ ̱̊h̝͆e̥r͎ ͍a̚li̯v̯̏e̠͋, ̊y͛ouͪ ̮̏b͑rā͙inͩlͩe͔ss ͆b̤r̿uͫt̜e̼͐!̩" the changeling queen seethed, her horn glowing and causing the centaur's collar to grow heavy. "W͉͐it̘ẖo͕ut̂ h́eͥr̞,ͭ ̤mẙ̳ ͙p͉̅l̽a͇̓ṋs͉ ͇̿a̝rẻ̬ ̖ũs̖e̐l̚ĕ̩s͙s!͖"
Tirek briefly tugged his free hand at the collar, before a devious smirk crossed his face. Pulling his hand from the cliff, he revealed Twilight, unconsious, in the palm of his hand.
"See," he noted. "She's still breathing. Nothing to worry about."
"Bͧarely͙,͍ ͉y͊o͐u ̇õaf̳,̝" Chrysalis grumbled, enveloping herself and her charge in a magic glow.
In a flash of light, they reappeared outside a massive, yet broken down Hive.
"Hm," Tirek pondered. "I pictured your hive as much... larger and grotesque."
Tirek paused as they reached the entrance. Though Chrysalis walked through with ease, Tirek couldn't even get one of his hooves in.
"Ah-hem?!" Tirek grumped as Chrysalis vanished into the hive.
Without a word, a burst of magic shot from the hive. In seconds, Tirek slumped to the size of a changeling. Unable to hold Twilight in one hand, he was forced to drap her over his horse half, glowering as he admittedly was able to get into the hive.
"What did you do to me?!" Tirek demanded, glaring at his smaller size.
Grumbling, Tirek followed after the changeling queen. Changelings peered out from the dark green walls to watch them pass. Glowering at the little bugs, Tirek busied himself with absorbing bits of their magic, increasing his strength as they delved into the Hive.
Chrysalis caught him sucking their magic, and zapped him with the collar.
Tirek scoffed. "What's so special about some book?" he grumped.
Chrysalis did not say at first, smiling as they reached a room with a table set before them. Various tools were placed across the table, ready for use.
Tirek hummed, having absolutely no idea what she was talking about. But, with the collar around his neck, he had no choice but to set Twilight down onto the table before her.
Taking a magic suppressing ring from the table, Chrysalis forced it onto the alicorn's head. She started to continue, before noticing Tirek was still there, rubbing his shoulders and grumbling.
"Le͗a͚̽v̙̏e͔,ͧ"͋ she ordered him, the collar flashing. "F̺e͕ͣaṡ̰tͥ ͤô̥n ̫̾a͕ fe̼ẉ ͇̆of ̥̌m̩y ̟c̥hil̞̏d̅r̥̅en͇ ̆i̐f ̂ÿ̪o͖ͤu ̯͋mͮustͫ.ͪ I ͍ha͆v̪ė̼ tͣhoͤu͓s̯̎a͖ͭnds̺̿ ̰m͎̒or̐e̚ a͖͆t̗ͪ ̦m͛y̍ ̒mͭa̪͊i̳n͙̓ ̯̇H͉̚i̼̒v̫̍e̙.͗ͅ"̘ͮ
"It won't matter," a voice snarled, followed by the rattling of chains. "You won't succeed, insect!"
Tirek glanced up in confusion. A figure bound in chains hung from the ceiling.
"I take it this is the specimen you spoke of?" the centaur asked.
"̯ͥA͖ͮf̪̓r̥ͧȁĭ͓d͛ ̠̚s̹͆o̼͒,̤"̞ Chrysalis replied, more focused on Twilight. "̜ͬH̩ͤe̜r̜͑ ̓a͍ͮb̈î̺l̺i͇tͤiͨe͙s ̥a̺ͧr̤e e͙͋xt͗ṙe͐me̼lyͮ v̆a̻luͬa͋bl͖̉e.̊"
"How so?"
In respond, Chrysalis pulled a dagger from the table and threw it at the creature. Tirek jumped as the knife embedded into the creature's skull.
"Augh!" the creature snarled. "Stop doing that, you bug bitch!"
Tirek stared in shock as, despite the mortal blow, the creature continued to glower down at them. Five minutes later, the dagger slid right out of the creatures' head, falling with a clunk at Tirek's hooves.
Tirek left, and the sounds of a magical feast soon emanated from where he had exited. Chrysalis didn't have the ear for her children's cries, however; she was focused on Twilight's unconscious form. Grinning ear to ear, she raised the dagger, putting a hand on the pony to steady her aim.
A sizzling sound filled the air. Chrysalis reeled back with a wail of pain. Staring in dumbfounded shock, Chrysalis caught golden light in the shape of a cross around her neck.
Tirek was practically pulled into the room, his collar glowing as Chrysalis' magic took effect. His gorging had changed him; his eyes had become a more ghostly white. Spikes adorned his shoulders, and veins bulged darkly on his arms and face.
"What now?" he demanded.
"S̀h̆e̯̾'s͆ wͬeär̊i̗ͦn͆g̩ ̪ͬsö̮́me̗ ̐k̔in̻̍d ̳of ̬ne̾ͅck͆la̠ce,̂"̀ Chrysalis seethed. "̳Iͫt'̈s ͇̔k̩̓eͯe̤p̌i̦͋n͍ͥǧ͎ ̋m̠e fr͙ͭo̫ͩḿ ̫tőủchͩi̗n̯g ̹hȇ̤r̮!̞"̼̈ She pointed at the golden cross. "̃Re͈mo̎vë́ ̞it̠! N̝o̓w!"ͅ
Raising an eyebrow at Chrysalis, Tirek nonetheless did his duty. Crossing over to Twilight, he tore the dress from her chest, and moved to remove the necklace.
Yet, the moment his fingers encircled the cross, golden flames engulfed his hand.
Roaring in shocked pain, Tirek reeled backward, releasing the necklace and howling in pain as he waved the golden flames off. As Tirek nursed his burned hand, the creature above them laughed in glee.
"Should have know he'd be sent to this world!" the creature commented.
"̙͂̋H̪e̼?̓" Chrysalis flared her insect wings and flew up to meet the creature at eye level. "Ẅ̻h̘̿a̼ͣt̙ͯ ͍͒'͕̾h̰e?̈'̣ Wͪȟo̎ ͈d͋o̚ ̱y̓o͕ͭu̓ ͙ͯsp̺e͛a̬kͬ ͎o̖ͫf̙?̓"̖
The creature smirked. "Like I'd tell you, bitch!"
The Changeling Queen flared her magic. As it enveloped the creature, it revealed more of her features. The left side of her body had a flawless patch of skin, a single brown eye, and a flap of short blonde hair cascading over half her face. On the right half, her body was more of a skeleton, with a ghostly white eye and a small bit of muscle tissue. Yet, as the magic enveloped the creature and Chrysalis seized her by her face, her brown and white eyes slowly turned green.
She released the possessed human, and returned to the ground, turning to Tirek. "B̓r̪ͭi̗̽ng̯̈́ ͎̐m͕̉e ̈t̟hi̻͒s͎ ͤW̹iͅll̗ia̗m͉ͧs̫ͬ.͖̊ ̉I͉ ́w̮̔a͉ňt̘͊ ̍h̅im ͖̆h̖e͆re̳ͤ ͚ͧn̝ow͎̉!"͖
With a small bow, Tirek turned and left the hive. Chrysalis turned back to Twilight, stabbing at her again, only for the trinket to repel her again, glowing brighter than before.
If I can force this Williams to remove this trinket, Chrysalis thought. Then my children shall be reborn into this world. She grinned evilly. "And Equestria shall once again belong to the changelings!" She let loose with a wild cackle of evil laughter.
"For now," the Merchant replied. He reached into his cloak and pulled out a bottle of glowing blue liquid. "But that's not important."
Shining blinked as if the Merchant had slapped him. "HOW IS MY SISTER NOT IMPORTANT?!" he bellowed, nearly sending me flying with his voice alone.
"Because you've got three injuried princesses, an injured human, and I've only got one bottle of Recovery Potion," The Merchant said plainly, wiggling the bottle for emphasis.
Shining Armor paused, unsure how to reply to that. Pulling myself up, I spoke for him.
"Give it to Celestia," I declared.
Shining Armor whirled on me, his brain looking like it had to reboot for a second.
"A-Ash, are you serious?" he asked. "After everything she's said and done?"
"Holding a grudge is as pointless as a broken pencil," I replied, moving back to the bed. "Bitch or not, she needs help." I turned to the Merchant. "Give her the potion."
The Merchant chuckled, nodding in approval.
"Bravery," he commended. "Courage. Selflessness." He nodded. "Yes, you are indeed the right person for this job." With a flick of his wrist, the one potion became four. He tossed the bottle to me; even with one arm, I managed to catch them all.
The Merchant gave Shining a sympathetic look. "Apologies, pony," he said. "But they can only mend broken bones. Not horns."
Shining sighed, before turning to me. "So... who's getting them first?"
I handed the potions to the unicorn. "Celestia first," I repeated. "The ponies need a pillar of hope. And you already mentioned she's God to these guys, so they'll need her now more than ever." Keeping one of the potions for myself, I tipped it back and downed it's contents as Shining raced off to the alicorns.
The drink was odd; like blueberries mashed into vodka. But as I forced it down my throat, the bones in my arms and chest began to heal, along with any other external injuries that had come with them.
"Anything else?" I asked, stretching my healed muscles. "Cuz I can guess ya didn't come here just to play doctor."
The Merchant chuckled again, fading into the shadows. "I'm not spoiling the surprise," he said. "Though... you should probably check the back seat when the chase begins."
I narrowed my eyes. "You love your cryptic clues, don't you?" I muttered.
All he answered with was another laugh. I charged after him, ready to seize him by his robe. But he was gone. Vanished without a trace.
"I fucking hate that guy," I growled, turning to go back inside.
"Sir Williams?"
I paused, and turned. Princess Luna herself stood before me, a cast around her arm and a sling around her neck.
"Princess Luna," I greeted. "Glad to see you're doing well..." I glanced at her cast. "...enough."
"Thank you Sir Williams," she replied with a bow, her head turning with slight shame. "I must apologize for my sisters recent behavior."
"Nothing for you to apologize for, Princess," I replied, eliciting a grin from her. "Sides, I'd rather hear it from old Sun-Butt herself."
Luna gasped, but had to bite back a giggle. "I fear that will be as easy as telling Discord not to create chaos," Luna noted, before giving my body an intrigued look. "But I must say with your injuries I'm surprised you're able to even get out of bed."
I chuckled, stretching my arm. "Let's just say an old... 'friend' came by today," I replied. "Gave me a recovery potion."
"Must be quite the remarkable brew," she replied, gazing at my arm with awe.
"I would have to agree with you on that, Princess Luna."
We turned. Shining Armor was walking towards us, Cadence and Celestia at his sides.
"Sorry we took so long," Shining admitted, handing the last potion to Luna. "The merchant played us; told us he only had one. And without hesitation, Ash told me to give it to Celestia."
Celestia looked away with a guilty expression, while Cadence and Luna stared at me in shock. I merely shrugged and walked away.
"The ponies of Equestria need something to have faith in," I replied as I left. "Sides. People need to believe in something."
Celestia hesitated before speaking. "And what of you?" she asked. "Where will you go?"
"Well in case that concussion didn't make you forget," I growled, glaring at the princess out of the corner of my eye, "Twilight got taken by Tirek. And according to my 'friend,' she's in the Changeling Queen's clutches. The sooner I find her hive, the sooner I can do my job and protect my... Princess."
Celestia and Shining glanced at each other, while Cadence grinned coyly. Luna just gazed at her royal family in complete confusion. Before she could have it explained to her, I walked away, quickly finding the exit. Yet, as I walked back out into the sunlight, I heard the clop of hooves behind me.
"Shining?" I asked, not wanting to look back and be met with Celestia's face, still trying so hard to be suspicious.
"You may be her bodyguard, but I'm still her brother," he replied, striding to my side. "If she's in trouble, I will be there to protect her. And you might want these back."
I turned and grinned. The Captain of the Guard had my boomstick and its harness. Taking the weapons from the unicorn with a nod of thanks, I fastened them to my body and sheathed the gun.
"Thanks, Shining," I praised. "So..." I extended my hand. "Partners in saving Twilight?"
He gripped my hand and shook with a smile. "Partners in saving Twilight," he agreed.
Together, we made our way through the streets and into the castle. Making my way through the castle, I found Twilight's room, and more importantly, my original clothes.
My tux had been shredded and mostly replaced with a hospital robe, so before Shining could take the bathroom, I dove inside and changed back into the blue shirt and khaki pants. Striding back outside, I seized my chainsaw.
"Come on, Armor" I said... only to find Shining gone. "Armor?" No one replied. I sighed. "Well... so much for partners."
With chainsaw in hand, I left the room.
Reaching the Delta outside the palace, I opened the backseat and placed my chainsaw in the back. However, I stopped, remembering the merchant's words, and took a closer look at the back seat. Some sort of crate sat on the floor just under the seat. As I peered at the box, the rest of the merchant's words came to me.
"You should probably check the back seat when the chase begins."
My eyes narrowed, and I went to open the crate. My fingers had just rested on the wooden surface when Shining's voice called out.
"Ash!"
I spun, unsure whether to think he was friend or foe. My thoughts quickly calmed as I found him approaching, having changed back into his armor, and holding a bundle of something metallic.
"That shirt you wear is torn," he claimed. "It lacks any protection."
He handed the bundle to me. On closer inspection, I saw it was a long sleeved blue shirt with a white chest plate.
"I figured if we're going back into battle," he said, "You could at least go in protected."
"Thanks, man," I praised, donning the armor before noticing the two swords at his side. I pointed them out.
"Put those in the back," I said. "I don't want you poking holes in the leather seats."
Shining glanced at his swords.
"Does it really..." he started to say, before noticing my death glare. "Right. Almost forgot. Dream car. Damage is punishable by death."
Despite him grinning jokingly, his sarcastic tone didn't make my glare fade. He wisely stripped off his weapons and stowed them in the back seat, alongside my chainsaw.
"Dear Faust," he mumbled as he did so. "That glare is worse than the three princesses combined."
I chuckled. "Rule one about Earth," I said, opening the door for him. "Never mess with a man's ride. Now get in."
Shining hopped into the passenger side, and I started up the engine. He flinched, but gave a slow exhale. He noticed my confused gaze.
"Still getting used to the sound this thing makes," he admitted, jumping as the motor revved.
"Trust me," I replied. "You'll get used to it." With a blare on the horn, we drove through Canterlot.
At least this time the ponies cleared a path for us.
"So," I asked as we left the capital. "Any idea where to start looking for the hive?"
Shining grimaced. "That's the problem with changelings," he admitted. "They never stay in any one hive. They're always moving; making new hives." He tapped his chin. "However, most hives are always near a place with a lot of ponies. So I'd suggest moving between the larger cities and towns."
"Such as?" I asked, shifting onto the major roads.
"Manehatten," he recited. "Fillydelphia. We'll start there, and move down to the smaller ones like Ponyville and Appleloosa."
An day later, I was glaring at Manehatten in the rearview mirror.
"Well," I declared. "Unless the changelings hid their hive in one of those abandoned buildings, I can safely say that we should've tried Fillydelphia first."
"Be that as it may," Shining replied. "I still suggest we search the upcoming city."
Before I could respond, something caught my eye. Cautiously, I hit the brakes. The car slid to a stop.
"What is it?" Shining asked.
I didn't respond yet. I opened the door and glanced around. Faintly, I could feel the ground trembling under my feet. It combined with an odd feeling in my gut.
The same gut feeling I had got at the Gala. The same place where I had heard a trembling like this.
Glaring around, I moved to the back seat.
"Driver's side," I growled to Shining. "Now."
Shining blinked at my tone before unhooking his seat belt and jumping into the Driver's seat. He stared at the wheel and pedals like they were wires on a bomb.
"Um..." he started to look to me, but I was way ahead.
"Just put your hands on the wheel, and step on the right pedal!" I said, pulling out the crate. I paused. "And If you put so much as a dent in my car, I will put a dent in your head!"
Shining sighed as he cautiously pressed the gas. "High stakes for my first time driving," he quipped.
His caution was appreciated, but we were only going five miles an hour. Meanwhile, I could feel the trembling getting worse.
"Step on the gas!" I barked, pulling my boomstick.
Shining flinched, his teeth gritted, but the Delta lunged forward. The momentum helped me crack open the crate. And inside... I couldn't help but smile.
Inside the crate was the Gatling gun from Evil Dead: Fistful of Boomstick!
'I take it back, you stupid merchant, I thought. I fucking love you'
I removed the hand prosthetic and attached it to my harness before attaching my stump to the gun.
"Ash!" Shining yelled, looking into the rearview mirror. "I see something behind us!"
I glanced into the car's back window. Right behind us, a massive cloud of dust was billowing up behind a red and black dot.
"The fuck?" I muttered, peering at the dot as it grew bigger and bigger. Eventually, I recognized what was following us. My eyes widened. "Oh, Fuck..."
"What?!" Shining Armor asked, before seeing him. "Oh..."
"ARMOR PEDEL TO THE METAL!!" I bellowed.
"Pedal to the what?!"
"GO FASTER!"
We picked up speed, hurtling back towards Manehatten. Meanwhile, Tirek was getting closer. From where we were, he only looked an inch tall, but I knew we'd see his full size before long.
"We need to get out of here as fast as possible," I said.
"I know," Shining growled, his foot pinning the pedal to the floor. "I'm trying to get us as far away from the ponies as I can!"
As he hurtled by the city, we soared into a patch of fields, perfect to fight this colossal asshole in.
"WILLIAMS!!!" Tirek boomed. He was only a yard away.
"Great," I commented. "Now he's after me." I sighed, rolling down the window. "Alright try and keep her steady while I start raining some bullets on this fucker!"
"I like my head undented," Shining replied. "I'd rather have that unchanged."
Grinning, I poked my upper half out of the car and pointed the Gatling at the centaur.
"Eat lead, fucker!" I bellowed, the gun spinning to life.
The centaur bellowed as the bullets struck him. Unfortunately, he covered his face with his meaty arms. The bullets peppered his biceps, but looked like they were doing about as much damage as snowballs.
I pulled myself back into the car, giving Shining a look of dread. If Tirek got ahold of Shining, he'd lose his magic and strength. I'd be down an ally, and Tirek would be even stronger.
Then a plan formed in my mind.
"Shining," I said, unhooking the Gatling and attaching my chainsaw. "I want you to follow Tirek!"
"Um, problem!" the unicorn noted. "He's following us!"
"Yeah, and I know how to fix that," I replied, pulling myself onto the Delta's roof. "I'm gonna let him catch me."
"What?!" Shining demanded, but I glared at him from outside.
"You want your sister back?" I demanded right back. I glanced ahead. "Or do you want a dent in your head?"
He grimaced before turning back to the wheel. With a smirk, I climbed onto the roof, struggling to keep my balance.
"Ash!" Shining shouted over the rev of my chainsaw. "Don't do this! Get back inside!"
"No can do, Shining," I replied. "We need to find Twilight. And this is the best way to do that."
Before he could protest, I jumped at the centaur with a roar, striking his massive arm. I got to take a little pride in carving a deep cut down his beefy bicep before his other hand came up and closed around my body.
He grinned down at me, picking up speed and racing past the Delta. But Shining did his best to keep up with us.
But it wasn't quite enough. As the Delta started to fall behind, I risked slicing Tirek's wrist.
The centaur snarled and squeezed me, nearly busting my ribs again. But it did the trick; the Delta did not fall out of sight.
Hours passed. We left the field for a desert-like area. Nowhere that I remembered from the show. At least until I saw a group of what looked like humanoid bison.
It clicked. Appleloosa.
Right as I realized it, the bison men spotted the centaur. Letting loose with battle cries, they fired a barrage of arrows at Tirek.
Growling, Tirek skidded to a stop, his absorbing magic flaring up as a dark ball between his horns. Acting fast, I drew my boom stick and fired. The orb of magic exploded, snapping his horns in two.
Furious, Tirek whirled on me. But before he could crush me into pulp, I fired again. He dropped me, wailing as he clutched at his left eye. As he wailed and staggered back, small orbs flew out of his wounds. Each had a different color surrounding a different image. I recognized a rainbow lightning bolt shrouded in a cyan aura. Along with a trio of yellow and blue balloons shrouded in a pink aura.
the auras of what had to be the Mane Five (along with a dark orb that looked like Discord's magic) flew away from the centaur. He barely noticed them, his remaining eye centered on me in pure rage.
"Vile Creature!!" he snarled. I moved to dodge, but he managed to catch me with his arm, swatting me into the ground like a fly.
My vision blurred. My ears rang. I vaguely felt blood drip over my face. I tried to move, but I didn't have the strength. I felt myself get lifted from the ground, my boomstick slipping from my limp fingers. I tried with all my might to hold on, but it slipped from my grip none the less.
"Shiiii..." I slurred, as my eyes fluttered shut, and I fell into darkness.
I awoke to the sound of chains. I forced myself up. I was in a dark room made from some kind of hardened slime or sludge.
"Ash?" a familiar voice rang out, followed by the rattling of chains.
I traced the source. All too soon, I saw her.
A bruised Twilight; chained to the walls of the room. I didn't hesitate. I fired up my chainsaw - which was thankfully still attached - and sliced off the restraints holding the princess. I wrapped my good arm around her.
"Thank God," I mumbled. "You alright, Twilight?"
"Fine," she said, looking up at me in gratitude. "Now that you're here."
But as I gazed into her eyes, I noticed some things.
She had called me Ash. She wasn't wearing the cross! And my head was aching.
Her head tilted as I stepped back. "Ash?" she asked, reaching towards me.
But I plunged the chainsaw into her gut. Green blood sprayed across the wall.
"You're not Twilight," I snarled.
Briefly, Twilight stared up at me in betrayal, tinged with surprise. Then with a burst of emerald flames, the changeling that took Twilight's appearance gurgled her last, her blue compound eyes dimming to nothing.
Using my foot, I pushed the Changeling off my chainsaw. I glowered down at the corpse.
"I fucking hate changeling," I growled.
A slow clapping drew my attention. I turned to find the Changeling Queen herself standing behind a barred door.
"̳̑I̟'̄m ͪim̉p̍r̂ͅessêd,"̱ she noted, her smug grin refusing to fade as I marched towards her. "͈̿N̪ot̿ ͩmͬa͙ͭn̖y͓ ̇c̝͆a̍ͅn͖ ̟̏see͔ ͕t̋ͅh̝ͤr̩̈o͍ụͮg̭͆h͖͐ ̹́m̂y ̮̃c̳h͖i̲l̑d̦rėn̲͑'̙s ̘͑d̩̆is̬g͕̾u̮̿i̔s͉̈esͤ.͉"̖
I swung my chainsaw at the bars, but they clanged off with a burst of sparks. Chrysalis didn't even flinch.
"Where's the real Twilight?" I growled.
"͈Ĭ̭ ̭̅c̲an͒ ̐s͓h͒ow ͇yo͔u,̀" she offered. Her horn glowed and her eyes shined green.
I felt my headache start to increase. Before she could complete whatever spell she was trying to pull on me, I rammed my chainsaw through the bars, aiming for her thorax. She jumped away in the nick of time, but it knocked the smug look off her face.
But, it quickly returned, along with an almost sultry look to her half-lidded eyes.
"̣̽Y͚̎our ̆w̖̍i̲ll̄ ͣis v̤ͬẹ̇r̤͌y̔ ̩͂s̫trͦͅo͉̚ngͦ,̙"̀ she commented quietly. She licked her lips with a laugh. "I̟'m g̾oi̙ng ̥to̅ ̞̏ë́n̝j̥̈́ọy bre̻aͮk̻ḭͥng͌ y̘̿o͓u͎͐.̬"̊
I seethed, sending another shower of sparks into the air. "WHERE IS SHE?!" I bellowed.
But Chrysalis smugly turned her back on me, and walked away into the shadows.
Celestia stood in the doorway, gazing upon the five ponies laid out upon the hospital beds. Their eyes were dull and their strength gone. All thanks to the effects of Tirek's magic.
Celestia shut her eyes, rubbing the bridge of her nose.
"This is all his fault," she lamented. "He never should have come to Equestria."
A voice laughed, echoing through the halls.
"Well, I know he's set on taking all the magic," it said in a sing-song mocking tone. "But you've never taken that particular tone with anyone, Celestia. Not even me!"
Celestia turned, glowering at the reformed Spirit of Chaos. Admittedly, he didn't look in the best of shape: his deer antler was broken off, his clothes were in shreds, multiple scales on his reptilian leg were gone, the fur on his lion arm and his horse-like leg were singed, and three of his five eagle talons were broken. But the light of mischief still shined bright in his dull red eyes.
"Discord, I am not in the mood for your games today," Celestia said, glancing down at his injuries with concern. "And I can't see how you can be in the mood either."
"For once, Celestia, I'm not," Discord replied, wincing as he lifted his broken talons. "But even if Tirek takes everything from me, I'll be consigned to Tartarus before I let him take my sense of humor!"
"He attacked you as well?" Celestia asked, concern creeping into her voice.
Discord huffed, leaning against the wall for support. "When I found out that he took the magic of my dear Fluttershy, I... went to have a little chat."
Celestia quirked an eyebrow. "Would that chat have included getting her magic back?" she asked. "Maybe even the others?"
He smirked. "You'd have liked that, wouldn't you?" His grin faded. "Unfortunately, he was even stronger than the last time we tangoed."
Celestia deflated, already seeing the dull look in his eyes. "He took your magic instead," she realized.
Discord laughed bitterly. "So astute, Detective Celestia. I'd offer you a treat, but you said it yourself!" With a huff, he started limping away.
"Where are you going?"
"Normally, I'd be at Fluttershy's side right now," he growled. "But showing up as this?" He indicated his battered state. "Forgive me if I don't want to add worry to everything she's dealing with. I'll see her once I'm a little more... presentable." He waved his talons, before remembering his magic was gone. Groaning, he limped his way to general med. "Ugh, I've never liked walking," he muttered as he limped. "How do you manage it so often? My feet are killing me!"
The princess sighed, turning from the chaos spirit and gazing at Twilight's friends again. After a moment of contemplation, she grit her teeth in anger, storming out of the hospital.
"This is your fault, Williams," Celestia seethed, her hair beginning to spark with small embers of orange flames. "And I swear to Faust that when these changelings are dealt with, I will throw you into the deepest pits of Tartarus where you belong."
She felt a shudder of pleasure run through her mind at the thought, leaving her unaware of several orbs of magic entering the hospital. As Celestia stormed away, she was unaware of the orbs gently settled into their respective owners. One by one, their eyes opened, the color returning to their bodies. Rainbow Dash's wings flared. Applejack's fists clenched. Rarity's horn glowed. Fluttershy's eyes narrowed. Pinkie Pie's mane puffed back up.
And when Discord felt the feeling of his orb settling into him, he experimentally snapped his fingers, and was rewarded with a cotton candy cloud. A wicked grin spread across his features.
"Oh-ho, Celestia, my dear," he whispered. "You should be careful who you blame for this."
~The Research Hive~
"Mother Fucker!!!" I spat, my chainsaw bouncing off the cell door. After an hour of sawing, I had only made a quarter inch cut. I kicked at the door again.
"Chrysalis!" I bellowed. "Let Twilight go!!! I know you can hear me, you Bug Bitch!"
At first, nothing happened. Silence was my only answer. I growled and paced around the cell, feeling like a captured wolf.
Then an idea came to me. Settling into a corner, I lay my head down and shut my eyes to slits, pretending to sleep. Still nothing happened. But I kept still and waited for something to happen.
Hours passed. I started to feel like I was drifting off. Struggling to pretend to sleep without actually sleeping was a challenge.
When I actually started to doze, I jolted awake. And saw the cell door ajar.
I scrambled to my feet, just in time to see Chrysalis lunging at me, her teeth bared like a vampire. Rolling out of the way, I revved my chainsaw as the changeling queen's head cracked against the wall. As she reeled, I brought my chainsaw up with a roar and brought it down hard on her neck.
Her blood splashed across my chest and sprayed on the ground as her head rolled across the floor. Smirking, I shut the chainsaw off and seized her head.
"You want to know something, Chrissy?" I asked it, my heart still slamming in my chest as I stared into her dead eyes. "I'm going to enjoy carving your children into sushi!"
Kicking the head like a soccer ball, I bounced it into the door, opening it completely.
"Bitch," I added, running out of the door and through the hive.
A few changelings lunged out for me, but my chainsaw made good on my vow. It only took about five of them getting sliced up for the rest to get the hint and back off.
"Twilight!" I bellowed. "Where are you?"
I eventually reached a set of stairs. At the bottome was a set of doors. At the very end was a set of double doors with ornate carvings on them.
"Yeah, you're probably in there," I noted, kicking the door down.
My blood ran cold at what I found inside. A table stained red with blood. Stained purple fur sat scattered across the mess. But what made my blood go cold was the pair of severed wings and broken horn lying next to it.
I slowly turned, struggling to keep my jaw from falling and a whimper of horror from escaping me. Queen Chrysalis stood before me, her head reattached... and a familiar book in her arms. A book bound with purple flesh. With a star on the back.
She opened it with a smirk, and began to read.
"YOU BITCH!!!!!" I shrieked. I lunged forward, ready to carve her into as many pieces as I could. But I didn't even get to take a step before pain exploded from my chest.
Looking down ,I saw a black clawed hand clenching my still beating heart. Looking over my shoulder, I saw a pair of pure white eyes with a black crown on his head.
"Y͗ouͪ won'͖ͮt ̤b̘e͚͌ l̩̽ay͈i͗n̹̒g̞ a͔ ̮s̆i̋ńgͅḽ͛e̠ ͗s͇c͕r̦a̓t̖c̦ḧ́ ͍ͤo̦ṇ͂ ̙͂m̠̃y̳ ̉Q̖̏uee̙ṅ͙,ͬ"̘ ͐the figure growled, crushing my heart into pulp and sending another spasm through my body. "̟Bͧu̝͂t̺ ̟do͐n͇̿'͙t͉͒ w̖ͬo̅rͥr̙̉y. ̺̅Y̝ͬo̳u̳ ca̋n͂ jo͇i̖n ̖y̮o̿urͩ ͉ͥp̅rin̹̆c̥ḛs͚̍s̙͌.͇̋"̝̈ The figure grinned. "İ̳̉nͧ̍ ́D̼͌ea̫ͥ̔ͅt̟̽h̰̘͒!͙͈͛̃"̲̋
He yanked his fist from my chest. The ground rose up to meet me...
And I snapped awake.
"Twilight!" escaped my mouth before I could stop it. Sweat poured down my entire body. My heart hammered, thankfully uncrushed and still in my chest.
"͚ͨ̔S͇̔o͙̯ͬ.̍.͚.̂"̞̫ a voice whispered.
I lunged towards it, glowering at the sight of Chrysalis. Smiling smugly as her horn glowed with a sickly green.
"̭̓H͓o̘w'd ͬy͚ͨoͫu̱ ̮liͩk̀e͔ ̞tḥ̑eͯ dͭrͫe̊aͯm ̓e͔ͯn͚̋c̞͆hant̔m̺ͧe͕n͉̽t̐ ̌I̫ ̮pͪla̱̓c̤eͨd͉ͬ ̺wͮi͋th̯i̤n͈̿ ̞t͌hi̹s̳ r̰oo͂m͍͋?͋ͅ"̗͒ she asked. "̪͛No̮ͤt̆ ͣẽ̹v̏eͧn a̘ ͍ͭm̊ag̈́ỉc̈́ ͓̓r̅e͈ͯpe̒l̚l̮ïń̦g̝͂ ̪r̻i͑n̠g̜͋ ͍ͣć̹an ̍s̩̀t̟o̚p̿ ͇itͯ,"̼ she added with a cackle.
"Go to hell!" I snarled, hating how shaky my voice was after that nightmare.
"̑Bͯe̎ê̪n͌ ̗̎t̟h̺̏e͐r͉̀e̪ be̯ͭf̤͋o̫͒r̎e̳,̘ͦ" she replied, checking her nails. "̹͒N̰ot̍ ̔my̫ ̫c̍ṵp ̗̓o̹͛f̦͗ ̓te̹a̬ͤ.̤ͫ"̍ She smirked at me out of the corner of her eyes. "I͕͛t͎'̆s̟̔ ͗o̮͗n͎ͯl͔y͐ ̝͛a m͈̂ãtt͊erͫ o͂ḟ t̃im̙eͦ ̥ͬb̙e̚f̈o̓re ̫yoǘṛͮ ̣͒wi̎l͚̈́l̠ ͍͒b͍ͭr͎ë͔́ak̲s͉ ͌ḁ̆n͇̔d͌ ̠ͩy͙̅ò̫ũ̥ shoẉ ͚̓m̼̌e ̎ͅwͅh͚a͂ẗ́ ̦I̖ ͪw͊aͣn̯t̲ ̗to ̽kń̦ow. ̔T͔͑r̝ǘs̭t͎ ṃẻ̮. ̼Evͭe͐ͅr̈́yṕ̪o̒ny͔ ̟̐has̰ ͕th̹ē̪i͐r b͑r̫eaͤk͆i͌n̅g̿ͅ ͚̑p͔̈o̮i̞͋ń̝t.̙"͋ She turned away. "͚̋You ̯̽ar̔e͕ ̂n͍͗o e̒x̘ċ͓e͉ptͫi͙̾o͇n̞̔.̿"
Her laugh echoed down the hall.
"T̎họs͓ͬe̒ n̘ig͍h̗͐t̥̀m̝ȧr̰e͑s͖ͦ ͓w̠͒i̇ll ͙̈hap̥pe̋n̝̆ ̺eͯvḛ̑r̟̒yͯtḯ͈m̬e͒ ̩yö̙u͓ ͑s͔̍l͖ͭe̼ep̼ͥ.ͩ ̱͂And̲̅ ͮt͎heÿ́ w͇i̳͋l̯l͇͆ g̺̓etͪ ̳w̅ͅo̹ͤȓ̺s̟e̪ ̭t̮͆ha͎n̂ ̱̃ṯh̫eͥ ͎̿l̬̑aͥs̲ͯt̍ ̳ͯe͛v̰e̽ȑ͙yͥ ͭn̺͑iͬg͚͊ht̮̿.̬"̹ She added, before she was out of my sight. I leaned my head against the door with a growl.
"Shining," I whispered. "You better hurry up and get here with an army."
For nine nights, I suffered. I struggled valiantly to stay awake, but even with nothing to do, my body found ways of shutting down. And the minute it did, I was plagued with the queen's magic induced nightmares.
Every time, I would see Twilight die. Disembowlment. Impalement. Burning alive as she screamed my name. And no comfort came from managing to snap awake.
On the tenth night, I failed to even jolt awake. I rode the queen's nightmare to its gruesome end, my eyes struggling to open through the crust of dried tears staining my face.
"Please," I whispered, utterly done. "Stop it."
I knew she was nearby. Enjoying my suffering. Watching me break. And at that point... I just didn't care. I had watched Twilight get disintegrated, torn apart, and worse. I couldn't take anymore.
"Just make it stop... Queen Chrysalis," I flat out begged.
She came out of the shadows, grinning smugly as her horn lit up.
Her aura settled over me. I felt my body move on it's own. I started walking. Following her out of the cell.
'Nows my chance, a tiny part of my mind whispered. I can cut her down right now!'
But my arm didn't move. Exhaustion pulled on it worse than gravity.
Damnit man, get a hold of yourself! my thoughts screamed. You have to resist. You have to pull yourself together for Twilight!
I started to slow down, but Chrysalis turned, frowning as I resisted.
"̘ͥFol͇l͔o̠ͯw̺ ̠͆ṁe͍,̼͊ ͇m̼̄y̦ ̍p̘e̓t͖," she ordered.
Her voice brought back flashes of the nightmares. Resignation pulled me forward. Forced me to say... "Yes, my Queen."
'What the fuck did you just say?! my thoughts screamed. FUCK!!! You can't be under her control!'
We ventured through the hive, passing changelings who watched my broken form in awe. They parted before Chrysalis, gazing at her with adoration.
Eventually, we stopped at a pair of doors that my nightmares had made me quite familiar with. I stepped inside, almost resigned to the sight of Twilight ripped apart or about to be ripped apart.
But she wasn't. She lay whole and unhurt on the table. Unconscious, admittedly, but still looking so peaceful, despite everything. It sent a surge of relief through me, chasing away the horror of those nightmares.
"Ash!" someone yelled.
I tried to look back, but Chrysalis slammed the door shut. Her spell pulled on me like a weight, and my head hung back down like a dog whipped into obedience. The queen pointed at Twilight.
"̚T̫̾akͯȅ͖ ̌i̻tͭ ̫off͉!͊" she ordered.
I sneered, struggling against the spell. "Take what off... my queen?" I growled, wanting to add, 'Her clothes? You pervert!' and wishing I could've left out the 'my queen.'
"̋ͅThi͐s͈ ͗pon͔ͧy̲ ̼ͮha̠s̜ ̊s̥om̘e͎̋ ͍̅k̔i̤nd̒ ͊o̹f t͐rͥi̪nͦk̍ë́t͉̒ ͕a͙ͪř͍ỏ̝u͙͊n͐d ̎h̞ͫer̋ n̩ȅ̗c̥k̦ͫ,͂" Chrysalis ordered, pointing at the cross sitting innocently on Twilight's chest. "̥Ta̐k͇̀ḛ̊ ̒it͚̿ ͗o̩͌ffͩ!"̳
"As you wish."
God, I sounded like Wesley from Princess Bride.
I had to resist. This wasn't me! I couldn't let that cross be taken off. But my body moved against my mind's will, reaching out for the cross.
'Don't you dare!' my thoughts screamed. 'No... no-no-no-NO!'
But then... white bolts of electricity shot from the cross. My attempts slowed. The cross lay undisturbed on her neck.
'Oh, thank God!' I thought with relief. 'As long as I'm under demonic powers, not even I can touch it!'
But despite my thoughts, my hand was still struggling towards the cross. It was still going to try and pull it off! My movements were slow, but they were still making progress.
'No, stop you idiot! Don't!' my thoughts pleaded, wanting to look up to heaven. 'God please help I need a miracle now more than ever!'
Apparently, the Almighty was listening. Suddenly, the building shook. Sounds of gunfire and magic blasts emanated from outside.
"Ash!" Shining Armor's voice cried. "Twilight!"
"̰͐NO!̫"̼ͨ Chrysalis stammered. For once, she looked panicked. "͊Iͧ ̟can'̀t̙͆ ̙f̅en̤d͔̈ ̘ͫtͭh̙eͫm̰ ofͬf͛ ͌ and ͔̽m̖͛ai̭n̼̒tăi͒n ̙t̖ͩh͕e ̑c̪ͩon̆t̻r̝o͂l̐ sp͇e̼ḽl̋!" She looked around, before her eyes landed on me. "Gͅȍ!̖ͦ ̟Ki̩l̄l͋ ̠͒thẽm̫ a̞̔ḻlͅ!̬"̭
I sighed in relief as my body turned from Twilight's still protected body. My relief faded as I yanked the chord, and my chainsaw roared to life.
Leaving the room, I climbed the stairs against my will. It didn't take long for me to run into Shining Armor. Twilight's friends were right behind him. Strangely, he was also in cuffs.
"Ash?" Shining asked, staring at my eyes in surprise.
'You gotta run, man!' I tried to speak. I tried to send the message through my eyes. But I think he also go the message when my body placed the tip of the chainsaw against the wall. The chainsaw revved, sending sparks flying behind me.
His eyes widened in realization. "Oh, Faust..." he whispered.
'Sorry, man,' I thought as he turned from me.
"He's under Chrysalis's mind control! Run!"
My body lunged forward, ready to pursue them. My chainsaw's roar was worse than a dragon.
~Five Days Ago~ ~Appleloosa Sheriffs Office~
"So... that wierd contraption out there belongs to that creature Tirek was carryin'?" The Sheriff of Appleoosa asked.
Shining Armor ran a hand down his face. "For the sixth time," he growled. "YES!"
"But... how does he pull such a contraption?" the Sheriff demanded. "I don't see reigns for any of those fancy smancy mounts!"
"For the last time, Sheriff Silverstar," Shining Armor struggled not to growl. "The car belongs to Ash, but it isn't important!"
"Right," Silver Star stammered, noticing the anger in the prince's voice. "Ahm sorry Prince Armor, eh... what'd ya need again?"
Shining Armor snapped his fingers at the Sheriff, keeping him from straying back to the Delta. "Just tell me where Tirek went." He glanced back at the boomstick. "I lost the both of them trying to retrieve his boomstick." His anger faded as he blushed. "And... figuring out how to brake." He gave a sheepish but relieved glance at the Delta's thankfully undented hood. "So, I just gotta know if you saw where he went."
"Right... right..." the Sheriff said, bopping his head as he motioned one of his deputies over. Together, they brought Shining Armor over to a large map on the wall of their office.
The deputy - a red pegasus with a gray mane and an cutie mark displaying an orange sun over a pair of black wings - peered at the map in intrigue.
"Now listen here, Solar," Silver Star declared. "I want you to show the Prince where you and that native girl lost sight of the centuar."
"Well Sheriff," Solar explained. "Me and Little Strongheart followed Tirek here." The Deputy pointed at a spot about forty-seven miles from Appleloosa. "Then Lord Tirek up and just... vanished."
"Vanished?" Shining Armor asked.
"Um... yes sir. That's what I said, sir," The Deputy answered, his eyes darting around nervously.
"Then if that's true than the hive is somewhere around... here," Shining figured, pointing a little bit ahead of where Solar had pointed. "But that doesn't explain how Tirek just vanished."
"Actually it does."
The stallions spun, their eyes widening in alarm. Princess Celestia stepped through, followed by Princess Luna and the Mane Five.
"C-Celestia," Silver Star and Solar stammered, quickly bowing before her.
"What many don't know about changelings," Celestia continued to explain. "Is their ability to hide their more larger hives. The magic substance that comes from their body when making a hive gives the stone-like slime the ability to hide the hive within a range of thirty feet in all directions."
Shining glanced over at the Mane Five. All of them were decked out for battle. Even Fluttershy held a very thick shield that had to be enchanted with a weight spell so she could wield it.
"And I'm assuming you're going to take it on," Shining guessed.
"Correct," Celestia replied with a smile. "Thank you for locating the hive, Captain Armor." She adjusted the golden armor on her figure. "Now we can lead a raid upon the Hive. And rescue our fellow princess."
Shining hesitated. "What about Ash?"
Celestia's eye twitched at the sound of his name. Shining stepped back, but Celestia forced her smile back into place, turning to the others.
"Tell the army the Hive is forty-seven miles north-east from Appleloosa," she declared. "We move out as soon as possible."
"Right away," Luna agreed, ushering the Mane Five out.
"Princess," Shining insisted, going after Celestia. "What. About. Ash?"
Celestia shivered again, her grin turning into more of a glower.
"We are only here to rescue Twilight," she said firmly. "Her bodyguard is not the priority." She turned to him. "Now come. Join us in the attempt to rescue your sister."
But Shining Armor stood firm. "Celestia, with all due respect, Ash is just as important as Twilight."
"Shining Armor," Celestia said, struggling not to snarl. "Williams is nothing to us, and you are a foal to waste any energy worrying about him. Now, you will lead this raid..."
But she was cut off as the sound of metal rang at her feet. She looked down; Captain Armor had thrown the star shield badge that signaled his rank at her feet. She glared up at him.
"Captain Armor..." she growled. "Explain."
"I never thought I'd ever have to say this," Shining said, glaring right back into her growing glare. "But... you're wrong, Celestia. Ash is my friend. More importantly, he's done more to help Twilight than you ever have. And I'd gladly lose my rank and title before leaving him to die."
Celestia's eyes narrowed, briefly flashing gold. A shiver of red sparks went through her mane.
"Sheriff Silverstar," she declared, causing the sheriff to stand at attention. "Arrest Shining Armor."
Silver Star blinked, looking between the two. "B-But..."
Celestia shot a dark glare his way, and the Sheriff yelped.
"A-At once, Princess," he whimpered, he and his deputies racing to Shining's side. "Sorry, Captain," he whispered, pulling out his cuffs.
Shining backed away from them. "Celestia!" he barked. But she had already turned her back on him.
"I will deal with your treason when we return with your sister," she said coldly. She walked out, her hair scorching the roof as she walked under it.
"Celestia, you can't do this," Shining yelled, being held back by Silver Star.
"Sorry, Captain, but the Princess said..." Silver Star insisted. But Shining pressed him regardless.
"You don't know what you're bringing my men into!" Shining Armor yelled, the deputies struggling to pull him towards a cell. "You bring them in there without Ash, they'll die!"
But Celestia was long gone. And even if she heard him, she likely didn't care.
For the first time since he had met Ash Williams, Shining Armor finally understood how he felt when the princesses imprisoned him. He leaned against the back of the cell, shutting his eyes in guilt.
"I'm sorry you had to go through this, Ash," he admitted, before glancing at the outside of the cell. "But I need to GET OUT OF HERE!"
"Ah'm sorry, Cap'n," the sheriff's voice said regretfully from the other side. "But we can't go against the Princess!"
Shining growled. Never before had he been in this much trouble. Even without the guilt of knowing he'd be fighting innocent ponies just doing their jobs, he wasn't sure he could take on the law of Appleloosa with only his swords. He needed magic. At the very least Ash's boomstick. But his horn was broken, and Ash's boomstick had been left in the Delta.
Though, Shining didn't consider himself out of the game just yet. If there was one thing he prided himself on as a captain, it was noticing routine. Figuring out when his men were slacking on their duties.
It admittedly took time, but with four days, he managed to memorize the daily routines of the sheriff and his deputies.
Sheriff Sliverstar checked into the station at the crack of dawn, only leaving for the bathroom every four hours for 5 minutes. He stayed until lunch and dinner and left an hour after Luna raised the moon. His pegasus Deputy Solar Wing arrived a full three hours after the Sheriff. And unlike the Sheriff, he left the station to go to the bathroom every six hours. Otherwise, he left only for lunch and dinner. His other two Deputies, Fetter Keys and Star Spur, arrived one and two hours respectively after Solar Wings. And due to Fetter's old age, his bathroom schedule was rather erratic.
Fortunately, lunch and dinner remained consistent: all three would go for food like clockwork, leaving only one to watch the prisoners for a full half hour before returning with food for the fourth. And even better for Shining, the younger deputy Star Spur tended to fall asleep in five minutes, giving Shining twenty-five minutes to escape.
On the fifth day, Shining waited patiently for dinner. Just as he predicted, Silverstar, Solar Wings and Fetter Keys left for dinner. Five minutes later, Star Spur was fast asleep. The minute he heard her snores, Shining placed his hand against the back wall and closed his eyes.
'Need to focus,' he thought with determination, charging up a destruction spell. 'Even without a horn I can still use magic. However, without a proper source, I could cause more damage to my horn. He looked up with a grimace. 'But to save Twiliy and Ash... I will gladly take that risk!'
Unfortunately, the spell backfired. With a loud POP, Shining slammed against the door, knocking it over. The wind knocked out of him, he was helpless as Star Spur jarred awake, yelping at the sight of him and fumbling for her keys to restrain him. Shining struggled to his feet, but the deputy was nearly upon him. Knowing he couldn't fight, Shining instead started to pray, as he desperately charged his magic again.
"Please Faust," he prayed out loud as he charged one more spell. "Give me your strength. Just this once."
The deputy was about to leap onto him. He had no time. Shining released his magic, desperately trying a teleportation spell. Light flashed, blinding both him and the deputy. Another loud POP temporarily deafened him.
But when the blobs of light faded from his eyes, Shining found himself... right in the driver's seat of the Delta.
"YES!" he screamed in glee. "OH, THANK YOU FAUST!" His joyous shouting was put on hold as a sharp pain went through his horn. He touched the broken nub, feeling a small hairline fracture along the bone like fragment. "Still worth it," he insisted, starting the car and peeling out from Appleloosa.
Pressing his chest against the wheel, Shining desperately drove north-east, following the plan Celestia had taken. At first, nothing appeared before him. But his eyes narrowed as he recognized the shimmer of a cloaking barrier. Driving straight through it, the idyllic scene melted into a battlefield.
Celestia's army surrounded the Hive. Unicorns blasted at the base while pegasi fought flying changelings in the air. As Shining took in the solid stances of the unicorns and the way the pegasi were intercepting the flying changelings, the strategy clicked in his mind.
Block off all routes of escape and then send earth ponies in to raid the hive. A favored tactic of Celestia, specifically during the formation of Equestria, and the revenge attacks on Chrysalis' other hives.
"Celestia," the unicorn growled. "You are a fool."
Gunning the engine, he shot towards the hive's base. The unicorns wisely parted before the Delta, allowing him to skid to a stop mere feet from the Hive's entrance.
Shining seized Ash's gun and his swords. Briefly, he glanced back at the gatling gun. But logic stayed his hand; he had no idea how to use the thing. And trying to figure out how in the middle of a battle would only get him killed.
Leaping out of the Delta with his swords and gun, Shining sprinted into the hive. Sure enough, he found a collection of earth pony guards desperately fighting against the changelings.
But they were losing. Several ponies lay dead in pools of their own blood. The others were swiftly being cut down as the changelings flanked them through holes in the hive. Shining raced to help, only to skid to a stop as one of his men was knocked down before him.
"Captain Armor?" the guard whimpered, before a changeling pounced at him. "Help!"
Without hesitation, Shining seized his Faust idol and slammed it into the changeling's chest. White flames erupted from the holy idol, and the changeling shrieked in agony, leaping away from Shining as its body was consumed by the divine flames. Turning back to the soldier, he offered his hand, and the soldier took it gratefully.
"Thank you so much, Captain," the soldier whispered. "I... When Celestia said you had committed treason, I didn't..."
"Celestia is blinded by rage," Shining replied. "She should not risk your life as well." He grabbed the soldier's sword. "Give me your weapons and your Faust idol."
The pony handed both over without hesitation.
Taking both items with a nod, Shining exchanged them with the boom stick.
"Hang onto that for a second," he said, tying the chain around the hilt and guard and doing the same to his own sword. The guard blinked in shock, staring at both the boom stick and swords before the captain handed one of the swords back to his soldier.
"What is...?" the soldier tried to ask.
"Objects of divine faith are strong against any unholy evil," Shining explained, pointing at the sword. "That should help." He seized the boom stick. "Tell the others. I'm going to find my sister."
The soldier saluted. "Yes, sir," he declared, charging back to his fellow soldiers with a battle cry.
Briefly smiling as the soldier's first slash sent a changeling up in white flames, Shining raced through the hive, cutting down changelings with his sword or blowing their heads off with Ash's boom stick.
Before long, he reached the lower levels of the hive. There, he encountered the Mane Five.
"Help!" Fluttershy screamed, cowering behind her shield as a changeling clawed at it. Her friends tried to help, but the changeling kept knocking them away; redirecting Rainbow Dash's charges into Applejack, and causing Pinkie Pie's party cannon to splatter Rarity with pink cream.
Racing towards his sister's friends, Shining plunged his blade into the demon's back. The changeling screamed as white flames enveloped him. As he struggled to get away, Shining threw him against the wall and stopped his struggling with the boomstick's barrel at his chin.
"Where's Twilight?" Shining snarled.
The changeling merely spat, the flames scorching his body as he managed a malicious laugh. "Go to hell, mortal."
Shining narrowed his eyes. "You first," he replied, pulling the trigger. Fluttershy yelped as the blood splashed over her shield.
"You... killed him" Fluttershy whimpered, her shield falling from her side.
"And if I hadn't, he would've killed all of you," Shining replied, reloading the boomstick. "Now c'mon; Twilight needs our help."
"But what are ya doing here?" Applejack asked, picking up her war hammer. "Celestia said you went back to Cantorlot. Ta protect from any future invasions."
Shining narrowed his eyes. 'Is that what you told them, Celestia?' his thoughts growled.
"Well first and foremost," he said out loud. "I'm here to save Twilight and Ash." Before he could answer the second comment...
"Sorry Shining," Rainbow Dash cut him off. "But Celestia gave us express orders. Save Twilight and leave the demon behind."
She tried to move past him, but Shining seized her by the shoulder.
"Ash isn't a demon," he said. "He is my sister's bodyguard, and we are not leaving this hive without both of them!"
As he shoved Rainbow back, the cuffs on his wrists jingled, drawing Rarity's gaze.
"Um...Captain Armor?" Rarity asked nervously. "Why are you wearing cuffs on your wrists?"
Shining glowered down at the manacles. "Because Celestia had me arrested for wanting to save both of them," he growled.
"Well... Twilight is the one that really matters here," Rainbow Dash pointed out. Shining turned to her slowly.
At that moment, a changeling lunged out at them, but Shining redirected his anger at the changeling, bashing it in the brain before gunning it down with shots to the chest and head. Rainbow Dash backed up at the fury in Shining Armor's actions.
"I can't believe one of my sister's friends would say that," Shining fumed. "As a protector of innocents, you should know every life is important." He turned back to her. "And Ash's life is especially important to Twilight's!"
Pinkie tilted her head, before her eyes widened. "Oh!" she cooed. "Is Twilight in love with her bodyguard?"
Shining blinked at her bluntness, before turning away, his face red.
"Ash!" he called out. "Twilight!"
Behind him, Pinkie cackled. "Twilight's in love!" she cheered.
"Save yer party plans for later, Pink," Applejack replied. "Look alive!"
Indeed, a new foe was climbing up the stairs towards them. But as Shining drew closer, he noticed that even though it had the green eyes of a changeling... it was human.
"Ash?" Shining asked.
Ash lifted his chainsaw arm up and placed the tip of the blade against the wall before revving, sending sparks behind him. The whites of his eyes glowed green, and his face was wracked with pain. Shining's eyes grew wide.
"Oh Faust!" the unicorn whispered. He whirled on the others. "He's under Chrysalis's mind control! Run!"
As the human lunged forward, four of his group obeyed. Rainbow Dash, however, lunged to meet him.
"Still think he's worth protecting?" she snapped, trying to deflect a shot from his chainsaw... only for his blade to snap through her sword.
Rainbow stared down at her sword in horror before Shining yanked her back, deflecting another swing from the possessed human. Flipping the gun around, Shining swung the stock into Ash's head.
The human staggered, but recovered too quickly. As Shining tried to follow up, Ash caught him by the throat. Rainbow Dash tried to aid him, only for a boot to the chest to send her to the ground. Stomping on her chest, Ash lifted Shining off his feet, as the two men locked eyes.
"Ash..." Shining choked, his weapons falling from his grip. "Snap... out of it."
"Go..." Ash muttered, lifting his chainsaw. "Kill... them all..."
Shining pried at his friend's grip, his eyes widening as Ash prepared to impale him. Ash's grip was like iron. Shining couldn't break it in time. Rainbow Dash pummeled at Ash's boot, but she couldn't jar herself loose.
"I'm... sorry Twilight" Shining whispered, shutting his eyes as Ash thrust home...
Only for the chainsaw to stop inches from his chest.
Shining Armor's eyes snapped open. Ash dropped him to the floor, and stepped off Rainbow's chest.
"Tw...Twilight..." he growled, the green in his eyes flickering. "I... swear... no harm... will befall you... as long as... I'm around!"
Rainbow Dash took advantage. Scrambling to her feet, she caught Ash by the head. Moving with her momentum, Ash let his head bounce off the stone-like slime with as much force as he and Rainbow Dash could muster. Blood dripped from his forehead, but the glow in his eyes vanished.
Ash blinked a few times, clenching his head and cursing. He lifted his chainsaw, causing Rainbow Dash to jump back, but her glare faded as Ash took the chainsaw off and replaced it with the gauntlet.
Shining moved forward, pushing Rainbow Dash behind him.
"Careful..." she whispered, but Shining motioned for her to be patient.
For a moment, he glared up at his friend, as Ash wiped the blood from his head.
"Armor?" Ash asked.
Shining jumped up and punched Ash across the face, knocking him off his feet.
"OW! Mother fuck...!" Ash snapped, holding his cheek.
"Sorry Ash," the unicorn noted, glaring at Rainbow Dash when she giggled. "Had to make sure you were you."
He offered a hand, which Ash took gladly. Though it allowed him to notice the cuffs on his wrists.
"Um... care to explain that?" Ash asked, indicating the cuffs.
Shining glared at them with a sigh. "Celestia arrested me for caring about what happened to you," he noted.
Ash shook his head. "Figures," he grumbled, picking up his chainsaw. "Okay, spread em."
The girls yelped behind him, but Shining spread his cuff links, allowing him to slice through the chains. Picking up his boom stick, Ash reloaded.
"Get your weapons ready," he noted to the others. "Twilight's just downstairs."
"Twilight?!" The Mane Five eagerly followed Ash and Shining Armor down the stairs and down the hall to the ornate doors.
All together, the seven fighters bashed through the door... and skidded to a stop.
"What?!" Rainbow Dash snapped.
The room was empty. No Chrysalis. No Twilight.
They were both gone.
"Um... sugarcube," Applejack noted. "I don't see Twilight."
"Maybe... she's invisible?" Pinkie noted.
Ash's chainsaw dropped. He stumbled up to the table that had once held her form.
"No" Ash whispered, his fist hitting the wood with every word. "I. was. just. here." He slammed his gauntlet down, splintering the table. "DAMMIT!!!"
For a moment, the others stood there, not knowing what to do. Suddenly...
"Ash?"
Ash spun, firing his boomstick at the ceiling. Chains rattled before a body plummeted to the ground with a SPLAT!
"Wait..." Ash stammered, blinking in realization. "I knew that voice..." He yelled and raced over to the body. "Oh, shit... I didn't kill you, did I?"
He poked at it before the body glowed. Pushing its upper body off the ground, it gave a giant inhale of breath.
"You asshole," it hissed, clutching its chest as it rose. "You shot me in the chest!"
But as its face came into the light, it's anger faded, as Ash gazed into it - or rather 'her' - eyes.
"Samantha?" Ash asked.
Samantha narrowed her eyes. "Yeah? Who...?" Her eyes narrowed. "Jacob?"
"Yeah," Ash insisted. "But..." he peered at her. "You have the same features as Sam from Evil Dead: Regeneration?"
Samanatha rubbed her head, her eyes widening in realization.
"That fucking merchant..." she hissed.
Ash deflated. "He got you too, huh?" he asked.
"I bought that Sam figure that you were missing from your Evil Dead collection," she explained. "And the next thing I know, I'm in another world, missing half of my skin, and being killed over & over & over again by that bug bitch Chrysalis!" Samantha took a massive breath before she flew into a rage. "But, other than that, it wasn't bad. How'd your experience go?"
Ash chuckled. "Well, I spent plenty of time behind bars," he admitted. Shining turned away with guilt in his eyes. Ash turned to him with a grin. "But, I think I'm on pretty good terms with at least three of the four princesses."
"Four?" Samantha asked, glancing at the ponies before looking around. "Wait, what season are we in?"
"Um... Spring?" Pinkie asked.
"Pinkie, sh," Applejack hissed.
"I think Season Five," Ash explained. "Twilight and her friends beat Chrysalis before. Though..." he turned back to them. "Hey, you guys don't know a... uh... weird communist pony, do you?"
The ponies glanced at each other in complete confusion. Ash nodded.
"Between Season Four and Five it is," he declared.
"Um... I'm a little lost here" Shining finally said, stepping forward. "Ash... how do you know this creature?"
"Sorry Shining," Ash replied, indicating his odd friend. "This is Samantha Turner. She's my best friend from my world."
Shining Armor glanced between the two of them.
"Oh... kay, then," he said. "So, if she's your friend..." he looked to Sam with a light of desperation. "Do you know where Chyrsalis took my sister?"
Sam grinned.
"Well, lucky for you, I resurrected in time to hear her plans," she replied with a grin. "The bug bitch told Tirek to meet her at the main hive before teleporting away with Twilight. And that hive's somewhere in the frozen north. West of of the Crystal Empire."
I walked outside, taking in the first breath of fresh air I had gotten in... I didn't even know how long. Behind me, I saw Sam basking in her new freedom as well, even as Twilight's friends watched us like we were crazy.
However, my focus wasn't fully on the Mane Five. My focus was on Shining, who walked out with a much more somber expression. In his hands were countless Faust idols; no doubt belonging to the soldiers who fell at the hands of the queens demonic children. As I walked over to him, I noticed names engraved on each of them. Shining Armor's face contorted with despair as he held the idols to his chest.
"How many?" I asked.
"Fifty-seven," Shining mumbled, tightening his grip on the chains. "We lost fifty-seven good soldiers to this raid."
I lowered my head. Part of me wanted to apologize... but what good is 'I'm sorry' for such a loss? Shining Armor probably trained those fifty-seven soldiers himself. They were probably just as much his family as Twilight and Cadence.
"Well," Sam replied. "Come on, guys. The sooner we kill this bitch, the sooner we get to go home." Sam started to turn away, before a thought turned her back to me. "Um... how are we getting there?"
"Well, Shining's horn is broken," I replied, "Which means we're probably walking to the nearest train." I lifted my hand, blocking the rising sun. "And I can guess that's gonna mean a ride with both of us getting stared at." Sam groaned.
"Great... come on, Jacob, you know I don't do trains!" Sam complained.
I cursed. "That's right; motion sickness," I remembered.
"We could always take the Delta," Shining replied, walking around the hive. "I parked it as close as I could."
"You parked it close?" I asked, racing after him. "I swear to God, if you..." My voice didn't even get the chance to die in my throat. Sam shoved me out of the way, catching sight of the Delta as it came into view.
"No way!" Sam screamed, practically teleporting around the - thankfully unharmed - vehicle as she took it in. "A 1973 Oldsmobile Delta 88 Royale?! How in God's Great Earth did you get this car... in this world?"
"The Merchant," I replied. Sam raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "He said I could have it if I promised to protect this world."
Sam chuckled, gazing at the car in awe. "He drove a hard bargain, didn't he?" she noted.
"That he did," I admitted, heading to the trunk and putting my chainsaw in the back. I added Shining's swords on top, and crossed to the driver's seat. Shining was trying to get into the passenger seat, but stopped when he saw me glaring at him.
"Backseat, Shining," I said, pointing to the back. "We're not heading to the capital just yet."
Shining rolled his eyes and moved to the back, while Sam happily settled into the passenger seat with an excited laugh.
At the last second, I remembered the five mares outside. Rolling down my window, I grinned out at them.
"I can give you ladies a ride to Ponyville, but I only have room for two," I said.
Before I could even finish, Rarity practically teleported into the remaining seat.
"Rarity!" Pinkie complained.
"Sorry, darlings," Rarity said, taking out a makeup kit and dabbing at her mascara.
"RARITY!!" Rainbow complained, nearly knocking angrily on the window before a death glare from me made her back off. For my sake, Rarity rolled down the window to argue with her friend.
"The sun is coming out and I can already feel sweat forming," Rarity snapped. "My makeup takes priority above all else."
As Rainbow continued to argue with her, they failed to notice the pink haired one - Fluttershy, I think - silently walk around the car. With a doe-eyed look to Shining, he opened the door, and she took the final seat. She gazed around the interior with an awed look.
"Yay," she whispered.
"Alright," I declared, as Rainbow Dash threw her hands up in defeat, and she, Applejack and Pinkie started the trek home. "Next stop? Ponyville!" I rolled up the window and looked back at the ponies. "You might want to fasten your seat belts"
"Seat what?" Rarity asked.
"It's this" Shining clarified, showing them his belt. "It works like a bungee jumping harness."
With his aid, the two mares figured out how to fasten their seat belts. The two 'click's almost sounded like music.
"This vehicle goes pretty fast," Shining added. "I learned that the hard way when Ash stopped it without warning."
"Oh... my," Fluttershy mumbled, looking like she was starting to reconsider taking the Delta.
Her expression faltered even more when I turned the key and the engine roared to life. Even Rarity yelped in fear.
"Oh, Celestia!" Rarity stammered. "Was that a dragon?! A manticore?! A..."
"Quit screaming like little children!" Sam snapped, silencing the two. "It's just the engine, what's wrong with...?"
"Sam!" I shouted. "They don't have stuff like this. Like I said, I only got it from the Merchant." With Sam sated, I looked back at the two quivering mares apologetically. "Sorry for not warning you. But I promise, this baby's completely harmless."
"It... It's okay," Fluttershy stuttered, thought she seized one of Shining's Faust idols and held it to her chest. She noticed the name, and her frown deepened from fear to sadness. "Oh, no..." she mumbled. "Iron Gear?" She lowered her head to the idol. "He was so nice..."
"You knew Iron Gear?" Shining asked.
"Not really," Fluttershy admitted. "But he gave me his shield. He was so kind." She handed the idol back to Shining.
Meanwhile, I pulled away from the hive and spun towards Ponyville. Just as we passed Appleloosa, something caught my vision. I stopped the car, drawing attention from the others.
"Something wrong, Jacob?" Sam asked.
"Nothing's wrong," I replied, stepping out of the car. "Just... need to get something."
"In the middle of nowhere?" Rarity asked.
I didn't reply, heading to what had caught my attention. Bringing it back, I revealed what I had found: a pair of broken horns.
Shining gasped. "Wait... aren't those...?"
"The horns of Tirek," I said with a grin, dumping them into the trunk before returning to the driver's seat. "I want a trophy to remember him by after I blow his brains out with my boomstick."
Rarity flinched, and not just from the engine starting up or me peeling out again.
"Must you always be so violent?" Rarity asked in irritation.
"Well, let's see," I said, listing off his crimes on one hand. "He kidnapped the princess, stepped on my arm with his massive cloven hoof and slammed me into the ground." I turned back to Rarity, who glared out the window in defeat. "I'd say that is the right amount of violence."
She sighed. "Ruffian..." she muttered under her breath.
I chuckled. "It's cute that you think that bothers me," I noted, reaching for the radio, and letting the soothing sound of Evanescence fill the car.
"Eww," Sam protested. "I hate this song!" With a yank of the dial, she soon had the percussion of AC/DC's 'Highway to Hell' blasting through the radio.
I gave her a glare, before switching back to Evanescence. She glowered at me.
"Jacob, you know I hate Evanescence," Sam said, reaching for the dial. I gripped her wrist.
"What's Rule Number Three?" I asked, glaring at her.
Sam exhaled before pulling her arm away. "You're the DJ," she muttered. "You control the music." She crossed her arms. "I hate it when you drive. You always make up these stupid rules."
"You'll get over it," I replied, as I gunned the engine and let the Delta and Evanescence's voice carry us to Ponyville.
Celestia stood on the balcony to the Hive. Once, the room the balcony went to might've belonged to Queen Chrysalis.
Now, however, it belonged to her. Princess Celestia.
"Princess!" Announced a pegasus guard, gaining Celestia's attention.
"Did you find her, Gale Storm?" Celestia asked with concern. "Were you able to find Twilight?"
The guard bowed his head in despair. "I'm afraid not, your Majesty."
Before Celestia could voice her disappointment, a pair of unicorns dragged in a severely injured Changeling. His horn was snapped off at the base, his wings were ripped from his back, and cuts littered his body. When he looked up, she saw one eye gouged out, the socket dripping green and black blood.
"We did manage to nab one," one of his unicorns captors said, throwing the changeling at the Princess' feet. "Got it right before it could disappear with the rest of them."
Celestia smiled grimly. Reaching into the folds of her robes, she produced a silver object.
"Excellent work, Gale Storm," Celestia said, before tossing the silver object to the pegasus. Gale Storm caught it, and stared down at the object with shock.
"This... is..." he stuttered, blinking as he beheld the badge of the Captain of the Royal Guard.
"Shining Armor has resigned from the Royal Guard," Celestia said. "We're going to need a reliable replacement... Captain Storm."
Gale Storm swallowed, the title sounding odd on his ears. He managed a quick bow/nod before springing to a salute. Celestia turned to the changeling, her smile growing colder.
"Now," Celestia declared. "I wish to be alone with the Changeling. Teleport back to Canterlot. I will return with further instructions soon."
Gale Storm swallowed. "A-As your new Captain, Princess, I must advise... it's still a changeling."
"It's horn and wings are broken," Celestia pointed out, as the changeling glared up at her with it's one working eye. "Flying and magic are out of the question, and its shapeshifting would be pointless at this time."
Gale Storm still gave the changeling a nervous look. "But..."
"This is not up for debate, Captain Storm," Celestia growled, her voice making the new captain back up with a shiver. "I am 'ordering' you to take what soldiers we have left and return to Cantorlot."
"A-At once," Gale Storm said with a quick bow. Then, he ushered the two unicorns out.
Leaving the changeling with the Princess.
The changeling's defiant gaze narrowed as Celestia bore down on him, her smile fading into a sneer.
"Now," Celestia said. "Where did you bugs take Twilight?"
The changeling cackled.
"You might as well kill me," he replied. "It'll be easier than getting me to betray my Queen."
Celestia's eyes narrowed, only for one to shut as he spat at her.
"Once our queen kills the tainted Alicorn," he continued. "We changelings will rule this planet once more."
Celestia merely wiped the spit from her face. Smirking, she seized the changeling by the neck, a magic aura enveloping her hand in a golden sheen.
The changeling's grin faded as the carapace around his neck grew red hot. Smoke began to hiss from his flesh. At first, the changeling tried to resist. He hissed and squirmed as she burned into his neck. His eyes widened as her mane began to shift from a gentle green, blue and pink aurora to orange red and yellow flames.
Finally, unable to bear it, his jaws parted, and he wailed his agony to the stars. Celestia smiled in sheer sadistic pleasure, before slamming his head into the balcony.
"Where!" Celestia boomed, smashing his head with every word. "Is. She?!"
Something caught her eye. She turned, grimacing at the shadows of night. With another flare of her horn, she lifted the morning sun, illuminating...
Her eyes narrowed. Ash Williams was walking out. Followed by another like him. The Element Bearers followed them out, and the rear of their little group was brought up by Shining Armor.
Celestia's grip tightened. The changeling tried to scream, but the heat of Celestia's hand welded his throat shut. He feebly kicked and hit at her arm, only burning himself, as she glowed with fiery rage.
"Armor," Celestia seethed. "You were supposed to be in jail!" Her slowly darkening eyes turned to Ash. "And you..."
Her other hand gripped the railing, causing it to melt as her knuckles turned white.
"You. Were. Supposed... To..." Celestia said through clenched teeth. "DIE!!!"
As she screamed, 'die,' her body changed: her coat turned pale white. Her teeth sharpened into fangs. Her mane and tail ignited into flames. Her eyes turned orange; the pupils slitting like a dragon or a cat.
But just as quickly as the nightmarish version of her appeared... it vanished just as fast.
Taking a breath, Celestia gazed down at the railing. She blinked in shock; the railing had melted. Pooling on the ground in molten bubbles.
Stepping back from the mess, Celestia tried to turn to the changeling... only to find herself holding a hunk of ashes. The changelings' body had hit the ground, it's head rolling away. Her grip had burned right through his neck.
"Faust above..." Celestia mumbled, clutching her head as she felt a sense of light-headedness. "This... place must be messing with my emotions."
Trying to shake the shudder in her heart, she flared her magic and teleported to Canterlot Castle.
A few hundred miles and many songs later, I finally caught sight of Ponyville in the distance.
"I must say," Rarity commented with a smile. "This is quite an impressive mode of transportation: able to travel at such impressive speeds, keeping us cool... And it has the ability to play various forms of music." She smiled at me. "You have my utmost gratitude for giving us this privilege, Mr. Williams."
"Thanks," I replied with a grin of my own. "The Delta is a great car."
"Any particular band you enjoyed?" Sam asked, glancing back at the mare curiously.
Rarity hummed, frowning in thought. "Well, I don't suppose I'll ever be a fan of... what was that band? 'Slayer?'" Her eyes brightened. "But I will say that 'Evanescence' group is just a delicacy for the ears."
Sam rolled her eyes with a groan, before Fluttershy lifted her hand like she was in class.
"Um, I... I liked it as well," Fluttershy said softly.
Sam groaned even louder and leaned her head forward. "Back-ass-ward ponies..." she muttered, softly enough that only I heard. "... Wouldn't know good music if it hit them in the back of their heads."
I lowered the volume. "Why don't you say that again," I offered. "I don't think they heard you."
Sam didn't even turn to me, but her tone was cut through with defeat. "I hate you."
I just grinned. "No, you don't," I replied, increasing the volume as I decreased my speed. Because we were entering Ponyville.
Now, while most would perceive me as a unbearable asshole, I will not have it be said I am not without manners. I turned back to Fluttershy.
"So, Miss Shy," I offered. "You went me to drop you off at your home?"
"Oh! That's alright," Fluttershy replied. "The Delta might scare my animal friends. Y-You can drop me off at Rarity's... if you want." She hid behind her mane. "A-And you can just call me Fluttershy..." she squeaked. "A-Again... just if you want to."
"Very well," I said. "And you can call Ash or Will if you want." I glanced at Rarity. "Never was too fond of being called Mr. Williams." My grip tightened on the wheel. "After all," I grumbled. "That's what everyone called my father."
Sam glanced at me like she wanted to make a wisecrack, but decided against it. And for a moment, silence reigned as I brought the Delta to a full stop in front of Rarity's home/workplace.
"Thank you for the ride, Mr... Ash," Fluttershy said, stepping out and giving me a bow. "It was... nice."
"So much better than riding the train," Rarity agreed, stepping out with a flip of her hair.
"Anytime," I replied, giving them a two-fingered salute before pulling away from the boutique. Sam glared at me.
"How come you don't talk to be like that?" Sam asked.
"Isn't it obvious?" I asked, giving her a half smile. "They're women, and you..."
She tilted her head, a spark entering her eyes. "I'm what?"
"...you're just a bitch."
The spark immediately left her eyes. She slugged me in my arm, but she couldn't stop herself from laughing.
"You're an asshole!" she said through her chuckles. "Such a asshole!"
"Just like old times?" I asked, driving towards the Castle of Friendship.
"I'm not talking to you," Sam replied. But though she turned away, I could see her smile reflected in the window.
"Hey Ash," Shining Armor asked. "Why are we heading towards my sister's castle?"
"Call me crazy," I replied. "But last time I checked, Twilight had this little dragon with her that can send letters to the princesses."
"Spike?" Shining asked. "Yeah, that's him."
I stopped in front of the castle. "So, I figured you'd want to inform your wife that you're heading home and she should meet us there with a couple beers in her hand."
Shining blinked at me, before exiting the car. "Wow, you really are an 'asshole Ash."
"I consider it one of my most redeeming qualities," I replied with a shrug.
Rolling his eyes, Shining sighed and headed into Twilight's castle. And for now, Sam and I were left alone in the Delta.
"So...." Sam began.
Uh, oh. I knew that voice. The voice that shouted how much she wanted to know something. A voice that irritated me to no end. I shut the radio off.
"What is it Sam?" I asked.
"What's the deal with you and the Princess of Friendship?" she replied.
"She read from the Necronomicon," I explained. "And the deadites and changelings caught her and tried to start a ritual. I stopped them, but they managed to get these markings of Summarian text all over her coat. And until we get everything straightened out, in short I'm her bodyguard."
Sam raised an eyebrow. "That all?"
I raised my eyebrow. "Pretty much."
Sam still didn't look convinced. But before I could ask what she was getting at, the front doors of Twilight's castle slammed open with a BOOM!
Princess Cadence stood in the doorway. And despite supposedly being the Princess of Love, she looked more like she was ready to take the title for Princess of War. A aura flickered around her like she was about to transform into a super mode. Her eyes were narrowed with righteous fury. And Shining Armor stood before her - almost about to kneel - with the air of a man trying and failing to sate a wrathful goddess.
"Cadance, this isn't her fault!" Shining protested. "Please, let's just go home."
"She had you ARRESTED, Shining," Cadence boomed. "How is this NOT her fault!?"
"Shit," I muttered, jumping from the Delta. Despite Sam gasping at my idiocy; despite me knowing I was making easily the dumbest decision a guy could make - I got between the married couple.
"Woah Woah Woah!" I said. "Let's just breath for a second."
"Stand aside, Williams," Cadence growled, glaring at me with a fury that matched Hell AND every other woman scorned. "I won't ask again."
"Not until you promise you won't kill Celestia," I said, firmly as the stance I had taken. "She's still the ruler of Equestria. Your aunt! And during a time such as this, she is needed as a beacon of hope for others."
Confusion entered Cadence's glare. "You'd still defend her?" she demanded. "Even after everything she's said and done to you?"
"Don't get me wrong," I replied. "I may be 'defending' her, but I am in no way going to protect her." I motioned to the Delta. "Heck, I'll personally bring you to her."
Cadence's glare faded, but I could see the fires of war still burning in her core, and pointed to her warningly.
"But I'm driving you there," I said. "And you better take that time to mellow out."
"Please Cadance," Shining practically begged from behind me. "Don't do anything we'll regret."
Cadence fumed, looking more like she wanted to teleport to Canterlot and kick Celestia across Equestria. However, after a very-VERY tense pause, she let out a breath. Her aura faded, and she walked past me and Shining, stepping into the backseat of the Delta. She didn't even comment on Sam's appearance, while Sam herself glanced at me and back to Cadence with confusion.
Shining sighed. "This is going to be a long drive," he mumbled. "Isn't it?"
"Extremely long," I agreed. "Regrettably."
I flinched as Sam offered her hand to Cadence. The alicorn glared at her hand before taking it... and promptly crushing it, eliciting a shriek of pain from my friend. I winced.
"And awkward," I finished, returning to the car with Shining behind me. I got it as Sam shook feeling back into her arm, watching as it regenerated.
"Son of an emerald whore!" Sam swore, turning to me. "What is up with this B...?"
I covered her mouth before she could speak. Sam glowered at me, but I could feel Cadence's glare on my back. And honestly, I preferred Sam's anger to what I was rapidly starting to consider the Princess of War.
"Start driving, Williams" Cadance ordered.
"As you wish, Princess," I said. Turning the Delta towards Canterlot, I turned to the radio, hoping for the calmest, most soothing music I could find.
Driving to Canterlot with the enraged Princess of War - I mean Love - was like driving down a pothole covered road with a rabid dog on your lap carrying a loaded nuclear weapon filled with Nitroglycerin.
However with a massive amount of praying to the Lord Almighty, I was able to find a plethora of relaxing songs.
We covered the drive listening to calming songs such as 21 Guns by Green day -much to Sams displeasure - Behind Blue Eyes by The Who, and The Sound of Silence by Disturbed.
We just reached Welcome to the Black Parade by My Chemical Romance right as we arrived at the capital city. Glancing back, I was rewarded with the sight of a much calmer princess, staring wistfully out the window.
'Heh, you called this the Devil's music, old man?' I thought smugly. 'Looks like the Devil's music saved the Princess from a early grave!'
"Thank you Ash Williams," Princess Cadance said, undoing her seat belt, and leaving the car. "The ride was quite relaxing. Wait for me here. I will speak with my aunt. Alone," she added to Shining, who tried to climb out with her.
"Of course, Princess," we both said, with me rolling down my window as the princess left the Delta. "And please don't kill her."
Cadence gave me a warm smile. "Not to worry, Mr. Williams. I'm not going to kill her."
Despite her words and relaxed stature, I couldn't help but notice a slight aura of menace churn around her as she walked into the castle.
"I'm just going to slap the absolute shit out of her," I faintly heard Cadence declare.
Sam and I exchanged a glance. My friend grinned. "How much do you wanna bet we'll hear the slap?"
"That's a suckers' bet," I replied, reaching into my pocket and placing a ten onto the dash. "Ten bucks says we hear it echo."
"You're on!" Sam agreed, putting a ten of her own on the dash.
"Are you two really placing a bet on the actions between my wife and Princess Celestia?" Shining Armor demanded.
"You want in?" I asked with a grin.
At first, Shining tried to look indignant. But our mutual grins caused his expression to crumble into a half grin. He reached into his own wallet, and pulled out a stack of coins.
"Twenty bits says part of the castle breaks off," Shining said. Eagerly, the three of us rolled our windows down and watched the castle with anticipation.
"And now... we play the waiting game," Sam whispered gleefully.
For a moment, we heard nothing but the faint hustle and bustle of the crowd of Canterlot. The castle stood tall and unbroken above us.
As our patience waned, we started to glance at each other.
"So..." Sam started to say.
But just before I sighed in defeat...
"WHAP!" sounded faintly from the castle.
Sam cheered, reaching for the pot only for me to stop her.
"Listen-listen-hang on!" I said. I grinned as the WHAP was followed by the softer whap-whap-whap of an echo, rebounding across the city.
Sam moaned in horror while I cackled. "My win, bitch!" I cried triumphantly.
However, before I could grab the pot, Shining tapped my shoulder. With a grin, he pointed towards the castle.
A huge crack was running up the side of castle. A small chunk fell from the building. My grin faded.
"Well, shit," I muttered, handing the pot over to Shining and putting my forehead on the wheel, copying Sam, who had put her forehead on the dash. Shining grimaced as he held up the two tens.
"You both know your money is useless in this world, right?" Shining asked.
"Which means what?" I asked. "We owe you twenty bits?"
We glanced back, to find him shrugging with a grin. Sam groaned.
"Son of a bitch," she cursed.
At that moment, Cadance appeared before the Delta with the pop of a teleportation spell. Her aura was stronger than before, and a glower was painted across her face.
As she climbed inside, my curiosity got the better of me.
"I take it the Sunbutt still lives?" I asked.
The princess merely glared out the window. Humming, I drove away from the capital.
"Care to tell the rest of the class what happened?" I prompted.
"Well, we're no longer welcome in Equestria," Cadance replied casually, glaring out the window. "As a start."
I hit the brakes. Every eye in the Delta turned to her.
"I'm sorry, come again?"
Princess Cadence entered the castle and made her way to her aunt's throne room. Throwing the doors open, Cadence was greeted to an empty throne.
Narrowing her eyes, Cadence turned to search the entire castle for Celestia, only to run into Gale Storm.
"Princes Cadance," Gale Storm greeted with a bow. "It's a pleasure to see you again."
Cadence, however, glared at the silver sheild on his chest. "Where's Celestia?" she growled.
Gale's grin faded at her anger. "Um... she's... in her study. Doing some paperwork."
Cadence brushed past the pegasus, not trusting her already livid temper around the guard. The sight of Gale Storm of all ponies, with Shining's badge?! Cadence practically slammed the door to Celestia's study open, startling the sun princess out of her seat.
"Celestia, we need to talk," Cadance said, struggling not to snarl.
Even then, Celestia gazed at her with caution, removing her reading glasses. "What troubles you, Cadence?"
Cadence tried to hold back, but the sight of Celestia looking so confused - so utterly unconcerned with what she had done - proved to be too much. Striding forward, Cadence reared her hand back.
"WHAP!" echoed through the castle and down to the town below. Cadence's slap spun Celestia off her feet and into the wall behind her. Cracks spider-webbed up the walls - and as Shining Armor had noted, caused enough damage to the outside as well.
"C-Cadence!" Celestia stammered, holding her already reddening cheek with shock.
"You had my husband arrested!" Cadence boomed, her magic sending a shockwave that threw Celestia back against the wall, and smashed her desk to pieces. "You had my husband FIRED!" she boomed again, knocking the sun princess back against the wall, and sending her bookshelves tumbling to the ground.
"Because he refused to save Twilight - his own sister - over that creature!" Celestia protested, her own magic stilling the damage Cadence was doing to her study. She brushed the dust and debris off her clothing. "That 'Williams' beast is a danger to both us and all of Equestria. He was to stay with the changelings!"
"And what about Gale Storm?" Cadance demanded. "Why is he wearing Shining's badge?"
"Shining Armor relinquished his position as captain when he refused to participate in the raid," Celestia replied, turning away as her magic rapidly repaired her study. "He said that he'd gladly lose his rank and title before leaving Williams to die."
"With good reason," Cadence snapped, though she knew another magical shockwave would be useless against the now prepared Celestia. She sighed. "Auntie, Ash is more important than you realize!"
"He is a monster who kills monsters and ponies without discrimination!" Celestia refuted, returning to her desk. "Once this changeling threat is taken care of, Gale Storm and the rest of the guards will see him sent into the deepest pit of Tartarus."
Cadence stared at Celestia, dumbstruck. "You can't be serious!"
"As serious as day becomes night."
"Celestia, Jacob is important to Twilight!" argued Cadance. "Tia, she loves Jacob." Cadance yanked Celestia away from her desk. "Are you really willing to break her heart like that?"
But Celestia's gaze was unremorseful. "She'll move on," she dismissed, wrenching herself away from Cadence. "She'll find somepony to truly fall in love with."
Cadence gaped at Celestia in disbelief, before her rage overpowered her again. Magic covering her horn and hand, Cadence seized Celestia by the neck, and smashed her into the already cracked wall.
"You horrible bitch," Cadence seethed, before noticing Celestia's horn starting to glow in preparation for her own attack. Hearing the sound of approaching guards, Cadence reluctantly threw Celestia to the ground. "If you ever step foot in the Crystal Empire, I'll treat it as an invasion."
Before Celestia could respond, Cadence vanished away with the pop of a teleportation spell.
"Shit," Sam mumbled, shaking her head. "And I thought my family had problems."
"Wait, did you say 'Gale Storm?'" Shining Armor asked in a panic. "Please tell me you did not say Gale Storm. Gale Storm can't be the Captain of the Royal guard!"
"I wish it wasn't true, but it is," Cadence grumbled.
"Has Celestia lost her mind?!" Shining Armor yelled. "He's the worst person to be the captain."
"Why?" I asked. "Is he like a dirty cop?"
"If by 'cop' you mean 'soldier,' than yes!" Shining answered angrily. "He is by far the dirtiest soldier I have even met! I was planning to dismiss him the second the new recruits came in, but I never got the chance!"
"Um... Ash!" Sam repeatedly tapped my arm and pointed behind us.
My own eyes widened in horror. Numerous guards wielding swords and spears were coming at us.
"Take out the wheels!" one of them commanded.
"OH HELL NO!" I roared, slamming my foot on the gas.
Keeping my eyes in front, I tried to not to hit any ponies of as I raced out of Canterlot. Roaring out of the city, I pressed harder on the gas, and we zoomed out of Canterlot, heading straight for the Crystal Empire.
“Princess, with all due respect” I say, swerving to avoid the spears from the pegasus guards. “Not your best course of action.”
After evading the Pegasus guards, Ash and the others made it to the snowy plains of the Crystal Empire. Ash put pressure on the brakes and slowed to a full stop.
“Why are we stopping?” Shining asked as Ash left the Delta. “The Empire isn’t far from here.”
“Well, for starters” Ash said, opening the trunk and finding a jack and a set of snow chains. “My tires aren’t made for traveling across snow.” Ash set the jack underneath the car. “Which is why I need to attach some snow chains to the wheel.”
“Need some help, Jacob?” Samantha asked, hopping out of the car.
“Can you get the rear wheel?” Jacob asked, lifting the car with the jack
Samantha moved around the car before screaming out a curse as she held her foot.
“Problem?” Ash asked looking over.
“I just stubbed my toes on a rock,” Sam said, putting her foot down. “Fucker took my shoes when he sent me here.”
“If you're barefoot, why isn’t the snow bothering you?” Ash asked, finishing attaching the chain to the tire.
“Because of this body," Sam said. "I can't feel hot or cold, but I sure can feel pain."
Sam looked down and saw a hint of orange within the mounds of snowy white. Reaching into the snow the half deadite pulled out an orange orb with five red stars.
“Jacob,” Samantha said. “Isn’t this a Dragon Ball?”
Ash got to his feet. Taking the orb from her, he immediately heard a voice.
"I'm the Saiyan warrior of Equestria. If you need help or someone to talk to, then call out I will come, but if you are evil or a threat then you will see why I'm the legendary super saiyan."
“Saiyan?” Ash muttered with a raised eyebrow. “Well, I could really use some help at this point”. He held the Dragon Ball in front of him. “I call upon the Saiyan Warrior of Equestria!”
“Um... Ash?" Sam asked. "What are you doing?”
Before he could reply, a green and yellow portal opened up in front of Ash and his friends. A person stepped out, wearing the dragon armor from high school gods and the black bulls cloak, with the Dante sword on his back and Ebony and Ivory on his side's.
"Who called me in the middle of a Hokage meeting?" the newcomer demanded with some anger in his voice.
Shining drew his sword. "Who are you?" He paused, glancing at Ash. "And... why do you seem alike?"
"My name is Jackson Williams," the newcomer declared, an aura of power shining around him. "The monkey king of the hidden Leaf Village." He narrowed his eyes. "And who are you?"
Ash shook his head with a laugh. “Nice to meet you Mr. Fancy Pants, name's Jacob Ash Williams.” He extended a hand to the Saiyan.
Jackson smirked. "I see what you did there," he noted, shaking his hand. "Nice to meet you, Ash."
“If I may?” Princess Cadance said, exiting the Delta to approach the two. “Why is this creature so similar to you Jacob?”
Ash glanced back at the Saiyan. "Let me guess; Resident Evil 4 Merchant?”
Jackson stared at Cadence for a moment before glancing at Ash. "No, Master Roshi from Dragon Ball Z." He grinned at Cadence before bowing. "You look as beautiful as ever, my princess of love."
Cadance raised an eyebrow. “Um... Forgive me, but have we met before?”
"In my Equestria, yeah," Jackson said, grinning evilly. "Also, I wanted to make Shining Armor angry; he's hysterical when people flirt with his wife."
Indeed, Shining Armor's knuckles had gone white on his sword, and he looked like he was trying to hold back an angry tirade.
“Wait... Your Equestria?” Ash asked.
"You think there was only one?" Jackson asked. "There are millions upon millions of Equestria's throughout the dimension." With a wave of his hand, he conjured chairs out of thin air. "Have a seat, and I'll tell you all about it."
Exchanging intrigued glances, Ash and his friends complied; Shining kept Cadence inside the Delta, while Sam and Ash leaned against the hood.
“Please enlighten us because I’m confused Six ways from Sunday” Sam said.
"What she means is," Ash said, nudging her. "We’d like to know what you know,” Ash says to the Saiyan.
"Well," Jackson began. "For starters, you, Ash, and your friend there are Displaced. Dimensionally Misplaced. There are tons of us across the omniverse, and most of us end up in some version of Equestria with the power of who we're dressed as. Sometimes more. Most of us lose our identities. You never know who'll you'll run into either. Once our business is done the summoner will say our business is done, the portal opens up and the summon goes home," Jackson said.
“Okay...” Ash lifted the Dragon Ball. “And the Dragon Ball?”
"It's my token. Calls me when you need help or to talk to someone that can relate to you. The only thing you need is something that represents you. Then you say a creed and throw it into the air, and a patrol will open up sending it through the void."
Suddenly, Jackson paused, standing up in alarm.
"Do you guys know that Princess Celestia is coming this way?" Jackson asked.
“Shit,” Ash hastily put the chains on the other tire. “Sam, start jacking the other side!” Quickly lowering the car, he tossed the jack to Ash before turning to Jackson. “Do you know how to put Snow chains on a tire?”
"No, but I do have something better," Jackson said, getting behind the Delta. "Everyone get in!"
“Sam, put the jack in the trunk” Ash ordered.
His friend shoved the jack into the trunk before throwing herself into the passenger side.
"Alright hold on," Jackson said, putting two fingers on his head, and his other hand on the Delta. "I'm going to Instant transmission us to the Crystal Empire!"
“Do it fast!” Ash said, already spotting a small white dot in the rearview. “I do not want to deal with her right now!”
Jackson obeyed, and when Ash blinked, he found himself in front of the Crystal Empire castle.
Ash breathed in relief before looking to Cadence. “Think you could put up a barrier? Keep Sunbutt from messing with us?”
Cadance was already a step ahead. Her horn lit up in a pink glow before a magical dome covered the Empire.
"I'm not sure how long it will hold, though," Cadence noted. "She's not going to stop until you're in Tartarus."
"Pretty much," Ash admitted, resting his armored hand against his forehead.
The group exited the Delta, Ash looking to Jackson.
"You saved me a migraine and a half," Ash said gratefully, before looking over his car. “And not a single scratch either." He chuckled. "If you can get Sunbutt out of here entirely you’d be my new best friend."
"Mind telling me why she's after you?" Jackson asked, following them as they walked for the castle.
“Oh, she thinks I brought the demon apocalypse and blames me for the Princess of Friendship being taken by said Demons,” Ash said, pulling his boomstick from his back. “In case you haven’t realized it yet, I’m Ash Williams from the Evil Dead Series.”
"WAIT, WHAT?!" Jackson said, his eyes turning into Sharingan.
“Long story short, she hates me, and now I have to kill Chrysalis, her Deadite fueled Tirek, and her demon changeling spawn,” Ash continued, glancing up blankly as something collided with Cadence's barrier. “Any chance you can get rid of her without killing her?”
Jackson hummed, powering up to Super Saiyan 3. "Mind her having a few broken limbs?" he asked.
“So long as she’s not here, I don’t care,” Cadance said causing Ash to crack a small smile.
“You heard the Princess,” Ash said with an evil grin. “And you’re not going to refuse an order from a princess, are you?”
Jackson just grinned before flying out of the barrier and up to Celestia.
Celestia barely got time to turn to him before he struck. As Ash and Cadence watched, unable to suppress their smiles, the Queen of Equestria was flung straight into a mountain. The crater she left was quickly swallowed up by a small avalanche.
“Yup, it’s official," Ash declared. "I have a new best friend." He grinned as Jackson reappeared via instant transmission. “You seriously have no idea how much pain and irritation you just saved me.”
"Don't worry about it," Jackson said, powering down. "But as for Twilight we need to find her."
“Yeah, that's the problem,” Shining said to the Saiyan. “Changeling Hives have the ability to hide themselves. No spell or magic can find them.” Shining paused, shifting his hood so it covered his broken horn. “Unless you can use that teleportation thing you did to bring her back?”
Jackson hummed, tapping his chin. "I can't teleport her to us, but I can sense her life energy," Jackson said looking to his right.
“That’s perfect,” Ash said, turning to the Delta. “We’re going need to prepare a bit.” He began to apply the snow chains to the other half of the car.
"First I have a gift for you," Jackson said, pulling out a jar with a pair of Sharingan.
Ash stared at the eyes in shock. "That is creepy as fuck! Who carries a pair of eyes inside a jar with them?”
“Who carries a bloodied chainsaw in the trunk of their car” Jackson retorted with a smirk.
Ash went to argue before his expression drooped. “Damn. Got me there.”
"Anyway, do you want to wait until after we save Twilight, or now?" Jackson asked.
“Hit me with them now,” Ash said as he put the chains on the last tire. “Never know, I might actually need something of this caliber.”
"Whoa, hold on there," Jackson said, lifting a hand. "We will have to hold you down first. Can't have you thrashing around while I pull out your eyes. before Ash knew it he was encased in crystal stone.
"Wait... say what now?" Ash stammered. But in the time it took him to turn, he found himself encased in crystal stone. Unable to move.
"Try not to struggle," Jackson said, putting a piece of stone in Ash's mouth. "You'll just make it worse." He indicated the stone. "Bite down on that; it'll help with the pain."
As the procedure began, Ash bit down so hard, he almost cracked his teeth. But it was worth it: after a moment or two of darkness, his eyesight returned. Blurry, but slowly re-focusing on Jackson. Spitting out the stone Ash glared at him with his newly acquired Sharingan eyes.
“You could have knocked me out first,” Ash grumbled.
"Sorry about that, but you now you have your very own pair of Sharingan" Jackson replied.
Ash broke out of the stone, but before he could retort, Jackson glanced at the empire borders with a look of annoyance.
"Looks like Princess Celestia brought her sister," Jackson commented. "Along with the rest of the elements." He moved towards the entrance of the city.
“Well Celestia's more of a problem than Luna," Ash said, rubbing his eyes as he followed. "And Luna's more of a problem than the Elements. Without Twilight, they might as well just be wearing jewelry."
"Good to know" Jackson replied. Doing some hand signs, he bit his thumb and slammed it on the ground. "SUMMONING JUTSU!" A large wolf appeared out of the smoke and looked to Jackson with white eyes.
“Don’t Kill them," Ash said, even as he replaced his armored hand with his chainsaw. "Even a single Princess missing would spell chaos! Same goes for Twilight’s friends. They're important to this world. And more importantly they’re important to the Princess of Friendship.”
Cadance smiled, though Shining grimaced, resisting the urge to run his sword through the human.
“You have no idea how much I want to kick his ass right now” the unicorn whispered to his wife.
“You don’t mean that, Besides…” Candance gazed at the human. “...I think he could bring out the best in your sister”
“Sam, you ride Shotgun,” Ash said, tossing his Boomstick to her before turning to Jackson. “You taking back or flying?”
"Why do you think I summoned my pet wolf?" Jackson replied, jumping onto his summon and patting his head. "Also the elements are coming along with the princesses."
“You do realize the moment Sunbutt sees me she will try to kill me, right?” Ash argued.
"Don't worry," Jackson replied. "As long as she sees me she won't try anything. After the ass whooping I gave her, she will be less inclined to attack you," Jackson grinned at the approaching princesses. "Besides, as much as you and I both hate her, we’re going to need all the help we can get."
With that, Jackson rot his pet to the edge of the barrier, Ash and his group right behind him in the Delta.
“Fuck” Ash cursed at the barrier, leaning back. “Candance! Let them in!”
“Beg pardon?” Cadance asked with a quirked eyebrow
“Let Luna and her bitch ass sister in,” Ash ordered with a groan.
"Yes Cadence, let them in," Jackson agreed, hopping off and standing right in front of the barrier.
Reluctantly Cadance dispelled the barrier. Celestia gave a long glare at Ash, before switching her glare to Jackson and Cadance.
“So have you come to your senses?" Celestia asked. "And decided to hand the demon over to me?”
“How bout you stop with that shit,” Ash barked out, his eyes shifting to the Sharingan pinwheel. “We let you into the barrier to help save Twilight. Keep acting this way and I’ll just let Cadance kick you back out!”
“Who are you to talk to the Princess like that?!” Rainbow yelled approaching the Delta
Ash took the shotgun from Sam and pointed it at the pegasus, stopping her in her tracks. “Someone who’s trying to save your world." Ash handed the gun back to Sam before looking to Celestia. “Jackson knows where Twilight is. You lot can either stay behind or follow. I don’t care either way.” He turned to the Saiyan. “Lead the Way Saiyan”
"Hang on," Jackson said. He stood still for a moment, before opening his eyes, showing his sage mode. "Sage mode will help me find her more better. Also it will tell me where exactly she is and she's not far away neither." Jackson turned his attention to the Elements. "Pinkie Pie. Fluttershy. How about you join me?"
Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie glanced at their princess, but Fluttershy couldn't resist the allure of the wolf, and raced over, Pinkie Pie shrugging and joining her with a grin.
“Alright. Everybody ready?” Ash turned the ignition causing the Delta to roar. “Rarity, Applejack hop in the back!”
The ponies complied. And Jackson's wolf took off, with Ash in hot pursuit. The two traveled across the snow at fast speeds until they crossed the perimeter of the Changeling Hive. Jackson and his wolf skidded to a stop, forcing Ash to stop as well.
“Ho-lee shit…” Ash mumbled, turning his gaze to the Galactus sized hive.
"Yea I thought the same thing too," Jackson admitted, dispelling his pet. "But don't worry. I have a plan."
“Does that plan involve dealing with a mutated Tirek?” Ash said pointing at the entrance, and the snoozing Centaur guarding it.
"I will deal with him first before we go in so we don't have to worry about him later on," Jackson assured them, turning super saiyan.
“Aren’t you guys forgetting something?” Sam said getting both of the Displaced attention. “Chrysalis isn’t stupid enougn to just leave Tirek to guard the Entrance!”
Looking ahead and activating his Sharingan, Ash immediately noticed the horde of Changelings around the beast.
"What you think I won't be able to handle it or something?" Jackson said, stretching his arms and legs.
“I think I have something that could take out the small fry,” Ash replied, reaching into the back seat. “And it’ll leave big red all to you.” Ash pulled out the gatling gun given to him by the merchant. “Now this may not have affected Tirek, but something tells me it’ll more than do just the trick for the Changelings.” Ash replaced his chainsaw with the gat.
"Well then," Jackson replied. "Let's get this party started!"
Jackson flew at Tirek, jarring him out of his sleep with a mile wide throw.
"All of you help Ash while I deal with him," Jackson said, making three clones and charging Tirek as he let out a roar.
Nodding, Ash raced up to the entrance. Sam right behind him with the chainsaw and shotgun in hand. Reluctantly, Celestia joined him, firing beams of magic as Ash and Sam unleashed a barrage of lead.
"Stay behind us, my little ponies!" Celestia declared, firing at the supports.
"Whoa-hey!" Ash yelled. "You're gonna destroy the whole damn thing if you do that!"
Celestia grit her teeth and ignored him. Shaking his head, Ash mowed down a line of changelings, turning them to mush. "Sam! Keep the Element’s safe!”
Sam nodded and turned her shotgun on a changeling about to attack the girls, but then Jackson appeared, tearing the changeling's head off with a casual look.
"Twilight's straight up ahead and to the left," Jackson said, walking ahead.
"And Tirek?" Applejack asked.
Jackson jutted a thumb, revealing a crater with two broken hooves jutting out of the ground.
“Thank you... again” Ash said, running past Jackson.
No changeling could stop them; any that came out were gunned down by Ash. Following the Saiyan's direction, Ash soon found himself in front of a sealed door. A green glow poured from the borders of the door, Slamming his shoulder into the door Ash attempted to break it down but to no avail. Aiming his Gatling, Ash began to fill the doors with holes until it looked like a chunk of swiss cheese. Ash jarred the door open with a kick... and found his cross on the ground.
With black burnt flesh on it.
Gazing up, he found Twilight bound to the wall. A green magic circle around her.
Ash jumped to his feet, only to be tackled back to the ground by the Changeling Queen.
“̗ͯY̟͑o͖u̻ ͩwil̰l͚ ̻n͉ͯot ͓s̓t͒o̱p̌ ̲t͕h̐i͖͆s̹̈ n͔̓ow”ͭ Chrysalis shouted, keeping the human from moving. “̱M̋y ͗ͅC̍hil̩dren̚ ͐w̝̽iͅll ̮r̟̍o̯a̠̍m͎ Eq̫uu͕̚s̓, ̬A̠n͕̓d͌ ̚n̗ȯt̬ y̭̋o̚u̪ ̙̌oͯͅr ͛yͤoȕr̤ f̭̐r̪e̟̽ak̞̎ ͩw͗i̍ͅlͥl͙̃ ͐ͅst̅op̅ t̐h̓iͫs͎̔!͛"
“And what makes you think I’ll just lay down and let you win?” Ash growled, slamming his head into the Queens.
Chrysalis recoiled, allowing Ash to slug the Queen in the face with the gatling. Rolling out from under the Queen, Ash kicked her to the ground and aimed his gatling to her face.
Fear plastered her snout as the barrels began to spin.
“I’m going to enjoy blowing holes into that bug face of yours, you bitch” Ash said.
And with those words, his gatling fired... only to be blinded by a flash of light.
Regaining his vision, Ash saw Chrysalis gone. Whipping his head around, Ash was met with Jackson removing Twilight from the wall.
"I got Twilight before Chrysalis could get to her," Jackson assured Ash. "But I can't sense queen bug bitch energy anywhere near here. She must have fled."
“Chrysalis wasn’t our priority,” Ash replied, retrieving his cross and taking Twilight from the Saiyan. “So long as she doesn’t have Twilight, that’s all that matters.”
Ash and Jackson grimaced. "Bug Bitch must have grabbed him when she fled," Ash muttered. "Looks like we'll still have to deal with him later."
But all thoughts of Tirek left Ash's mind as Twilight's eyes fluttered open. Carefully, he helped her stand. And together, they headed back for the entrance... only to find Applejack with his boom stick. And Sam lying on the ground.
A hole in her chest.
Rarity looked like she had been screaming at Applejack, but the farm pony turned, spotting Ash, and aimed the boom stick at the group.
“Give us Twi Back ya Demon!” she declared.
“That gun scatters," Ash growled without fear. "You shoot me you shot the Princess.” He stepped right past the farm pony. "And the only way I’m handing her over to the Sun Bitch is if you shoot me.” Glancing down, Ash saw Samantha’s wounds were already healing.
Applejack aimed at Jacob’s back. But before she could fire, Jackson seized her from behind, while Sam jumped up and wrenched the shotgun out of her hands. Applejack writhed with a growl, before Jackson knocked her out with a chop to the back of her neck.
“Ms. Belle," Ash asked the unicorn. "Would you kindly take Applejack and rest of your friends back to Ponyville?”
Rarity looked at Twilight with hesitation. Ash sighed.
“Or the Empire," he offered. "I’m sure Twilight would like to see all of you once she’s awake”
Rarity’s eyes lit up, and she began to teleport her friends to the castle. “And Ash” Rarity said, gaining his attention. “Just like you prefer Ash, I’d like it if you just called me Rarity.” With a smile, she teleported away along with her friends.
Before either Ask or Jackson could so much as blink the hive began to tremble and crumble, the result of Celestia's magic.
“Dammit Celestia," Ash muttered. "Jackson, we need to get out of here!”
Jackson's fingers were already at his head. And before Ash could blink, he, Sam and Jackson were right next to the Elements. At the same time, Twilight fully woke up, staring up in shock at Jackson.
"Um... Ash?" she stammered. "Why is there another... you?"
Jackson grinned. "Glad to see you're okay. Even if you're an alternate version of my Twilight... it's good to know that one of my herd mares is okay."
"Herd mare?" Ash's eyes narrowed. "Wait a minute, Jackson... where's my car?"
Jackson pointed to the castle. Sure enough, the Delta was sitting right next to it, a Jackson clone saluting them before vanishing.
Ash sighed in relief. But before he could thank the Saiyan, Twilight wrapped her arms around his neck in a hug.
“I never once gave up hope” Twilight whispered. “I knew you would save me.” Twilight tightened the hug. “Thank you Ashley”
Ash slowly returned the hug. “You’re welcome, Princess.” Ash looked back at the Saiyan. “And thank you Jackson, for everything.”
"You don't have to thank me," Jackson replied. "As long as she is safe, it's good enough for me." He grinned. "Besides I think you and I need to talk to the princesses and the girls about this whole 'calling you a demon' thing." His gaze darkened as he turned to the mares. Specifically Celestia. "Because if they say it one more time I won't hesitate to rip one of their arms off."
Twilight broke the hug. "Please don't," she said.
"Yeah, and don't bother trying to change it," Ash added. “They’ll just keep doing it. Besides, name calling doesn’t really bother me”
Jackson's death glare at Celestia didn't fade. "I still don't like to hear my new brother-in-law being called that."
Celestia merely crossed her arms and glared back.
“Talking isn’t going to change anything," Ash replied. "Some people are just too stubborn to admit that some people are different than they appear to be,” He started helping Twilight into the castle. “Jackson Williams; our business is done. Again, thank you for your help.”
Just then a portal opened up behind Jackson. He glanced at it before looking at Ash one more time. "I hope you have a good life, Jacob. Because the road ahead of you will not be pretty if you are the same as the real Ash Williams." He smirked at Twilight. "And try not to have kids with her too early."
“Over my rotting corpse,” Shining growled, drawing his sword.
Jackson just laughed, turning to Shining. "That's what my Shining Armor said but guess what? Me and my Twilight are about to get married, along with Pinkie pie and her sister Maud pie too."
“Damn,” Ash muttered with a laugh. “Jackson you are a damn player." He paused. “Oh wait, You said I could make a token? How exactly do I do that?”
"Oh yeah I almost forgot," Jackson pulled out a mini-version of the Delta, carved out of crystla. "I had one of my clones make one, I think you might like it." He tossed the mini-Delta to Ash. "All you have to do is focus your energy through it, say a Creed to it, and it's thrown into the air."
Ash thought for a second before speaking. “If you seek the Aid of the Chosen one, speak my Creed, Hail to the King, Baby!” Ash then tossed the mini Delta into the air
The small delta vanished into the air with a ripple like a stone in water.
“I hope we cross paths again, Jackson” Ash said to the Saiyan
" I hope the same thing too, Ash Williams of Equestria," Jackson replied. Then he walked through the portal, and out of Ash's Equestria.
For the next couple of days, Twilight spent her time in one of the bedrooms in the castle. Ash never left her side, because of her recent days in the Changeling Hives her nightmares had gotten worse. She woke up screaming every ten minute, and not even Princess Luna could stop them.
Yet, all she had to do was scream once, and Ash would be there to wake her and ease her mind. However, despite Ash's support, Twilight's current amount of distress didn’t come from her dreams, it came on her own body.
As Twilight woke from the Princess’s sun, she slowly got out of bed so as not to wake her bodyguard. Once out of bed, she hastily entered the bathroom and closed the door. Unlike the first time she had fallen asleep with Ash, Twilight was now wearing a long sleeved shirt and a pair of pajama bottoms. Twilight looked into the large bathroom mirror before taking off her shirt as she closed her eyes. Hesitantly Twilight opened her eyes and looked at her body. Dark red Summarian symbols littered her body. Her face and hands were the only part uncovered.
Fear gripped the Alicorn as she put her hands on the bathroom counter. “It’s gotten worse” Twilight breathed out, glancing at the door. “I can’t let him know.” The Alicorn hastily put her shirt back on before fixing her appearance. “I don’t want to be more of a burden on him than I already am.”
Twilight left the bathroom and went to wake Ash. However, she stopped. She couldn't help but notice how peaceful he looked when asleep. Walking up Twilight brushed a single hair from his face before smiling.
“Take away the jokes, the anger, and the distrust of the ponies... and you're really just... a beautiful creature” Twilight said with a smile.
Ash smiled, despite his eyes being closed, and spoke.
“That’s the nicest thing anyone has said to me.”
Twilight backed up, her face turning red in embarrassment. Ash sat up.
“And the nicest thing I heard up til now was from my father,” he added.
“What did he say?” Twilight asked.
“He called me a Bastard coated Bastard with Bastard filling” Ash said, leaving the bed and retrieving his harness. Twilight blinked at him.
“That’s horrible!"
“Well, my father was a complete asshole," Ash replied, his voice darkening in anger. "Cared more about his precious God more than his own wife and son.” Ash strapped his harness on with a sharp jerk. “I should've lived with my mother.”
“Was she... nicer?” Twilight asked, stepping out of the room.
"Compared to my father?” Ash asked, following behind. “My mother was the Holy angel of God.”
Twilight smiled as they made their way through the castle. "It sounds like you really cared about her."
“I did,” was all Ash said before the pair found the dining halls.
Sam and Twilight's friends sat at the sides, with the head of the table occupied by Shining Armor, Cadence and Celestia and Luna.
Ash gave a courtesy bow to the princess of Love and the Night.
“Your Highness’s” Ash shot at glare at the solar princess. “Celestia…”
“Demon...” Celestia replied in the same tone he had used.
“Celestia...” Twilight started to order, only to stop when Ash put his hand on her shoulder.
“Let’s go find somewhere else to eat,” Ash said.
The Princess of Friendship exhaled in frustration.
“That’s actually a good idea, Ashley,” Twilight replied, before leaving in the flash of a teleportation spell.
With Twilight gone, Ash turned to the Princess. “You do realise the more you continue with your current behavior, the faster you'll lose Twilight.”
Celestia stood, her voice cold and dark.
“My behavior is the cause of you bringing Evil onto my world!” Celestia growled.
"Yeah," Rainbow agreed, while Applejack gave a solemn nod.
“I never released the Demons of Kandar,” Ash barked. “I warned you time and time again not to read from that damned book! Fix your attitude or you will lose Twilight forever.”
Celestia slammed her hands on the table before teleporting into his face.
“I’ll only lose her because you are brainwashing her!” Celestia yelled, stabbing a finger at the human. “You've tainted her to where she can't tell between right and wrong anymore.” Her jabbing finger left a small scorch mark on his shirt. “You’ll warp her into a murderous monster who kills without discrimination like yourself."
Ash merely swatted Celestia's hand away.
“As I said," he repeated. “Keep this up and you will lose Twilight” He then turned and walked away, leaving Celestia smoldering behind him.
As the human left the castle, he failed to notice a pair of violet eyes, watching the whole thing.
I stood at the entrance waiting for Twilight. Fortunately, I didn’t have to wait long. She left the castle wearing a white long sleeved shirt and a purple long dress-like skirt, around her neck was my cross, which had the Changeling Queen’s flesh removed and cleaned. As she moved past in a huff I couldn’t help but notice something on the back of her neck. Her anger, however, prevented me from commentating. I knew where she was coming from.
“You overheard me and Celestia’s conversation?” I asked.
“I did,” Twilight said, turning to me with tears forming in her eyes. “Why can’t Celestia just admit this was our fault and not yours? You’ve done everything in your power to fix my mistake!"
I stepped towards her, as the tears fell down her cheeks.
“You... You're not the one to blame…” Twilight cried. “... We are! We did this because... because we never gave you a chance to explain!”
I pulled her into a tight hug. "Please don't cry," I asked. “I’ve told you none of this is your fault. So please stop blaming yourself.”
Twilight pulled herself from the hug, but wiped her eyes with a sigh. "I know," she said. "But it helps when I hear it from... well, you." She briefly smiled up at him before looking away. “To be honest... after everything that’s happened this morning, I... think I lost my appetite.” She grinned and glanced up at me. “So why don’t we just explore the Empire? Just you and me?”
“Sure,” I say before an idea came to mind. “Like a date?”
Twilights' eyes widened, and she turned away from me with a nervous stammer, her face turning as red as a tomato. “N-No! I-I wouldn't say... I mean... it's not a... a date, really! It's more..."
I lifted a hand. "Cool it, Princess, I'm only teasing."
Twilight stamped her foot, pursing her lips and struggling not to laugh. "You're awful!" she pouted, though the slap she gave to my shoulder still had a playful edge to it.
And so, for the rest of the day, Twilight and I walked around the Empire. At one point, we stopped in front of a jewelry vendor. Twilight purchased a silver necklace with an alicorn on it before handing it to me.
“Here” Twilight said, tapping at my cross. "Now we can be even. Faust will protect you... when I can't."
I wanted to reject it - after all, my faith in Faust was even less than my faith in God - but seeing her wide smile... I couldn't bring myself to say no. I lowered myself to her height, and let her put the Faust Idol around my neck.
“Thanks, sweetheart,” I said, glancing at the idol so Twilight didn't need to think I noticed the small blush shifiting across her cheeks.
We continued to explore until the sun began to set and our stomachs started growling.
Despite being in a much better mood, Twilight still gave the castle a conflicted look before turning to me with a grin. “So... where do you want to eat?”
“Preferably someplace that has meat,” I said, before noticing the uneasy look on the Princess. “But I’ll settle for some fruit or a regular salad."
Immediately, Twilight took my hand and pulled me in the direction of a restaurant. The Emerald Front was written across the top. Inside, it looked like a high class Fancy Restaurant; the Kind of Restaurant that I’d be charged for just by looking at the place.
“Twilight, I don’t want to be rude, but are you sure about this place?” I asked.
She smiled. “I’m positive."
A hostess approached us. “Princess Twilight," she greeted. "It’s an honor to have you dine with us.” The Hostess bowed before noticing me. “Um... May I ask what that thing is?”
“That Thing…” Twilight said, slightly irritated. “Is my bodyguard. Where I go, he goes.”
"Oh?" The crystal pony glanced up at me again before it connected. "Oh!" She gave an apologetic bow. "My sincerest apologies; I didn't realize... please accept my forgiveness, Princess."
“How about a table for two... please,” Twilight replied.
The Hostess scrambled to settle us at a table and get us menus. While it was amusing to see the pony scramble about, my humor faded when I saw the prices on the menu.
“Umm Twilight, I should let you know," I noted nervously. "My money is useless here."
“Don’t worry about it Ashley,” Twilight said with a smile. “I’ve got it covered."
Part of me was afraid to ask this but I didn’t want her to go broke paying for both of our meals. “How?” I ask.
Her smile became vengeful. “I’ll send the bill to Canterlot Castle, so order anything you want. The pricier the better, After all” her smile became more warm. "Somepony needs to compensate all the good you’ve done.”
I widened my eyes in surprise. “Well, Well, Well; Who knew a princess could be evil?” I say with a grin of my own. “Are you sure you’re the Princess of Friendship and not the Princess of Petty Revenge?”
Twilight just put a finger to her mouth and jokingly shushed me.
And so, Twilight and I ate a very expensive meal while drinking from their most expensive selection of wine. After our meal, we just talked to one another, learning more about each other. Twilight listened to my experiences intently, and I listened to her with the same enthusiasm. Eventually we were told to leave for a number of reasons. Reason one: we had cleared five bottles of their best selling wine. Reason two: we were being extremely loud with our laughter. And reason three: They were waiting for us to clear our table for another couple.
We left the restaurant... I'd say a little tipsy, but that was a major understatement. We nearly tripped over each other all the way back to the castle. Once inside the Castle, we made our way to Twilight’s room. Once at her door, we noticed Sam sleeping on the floor.
“W-Will she be good?” Twilight asked with a slur.
“She’ll..." I stuttered, opening the door. "She’ll be fine."
As I opened the door, Twilight smiled and grabbed me by the shirt. She pulled me into her room and right onto her bed.
"Ashley..." Twilight moaned, her face a dark red. “Can you..." her voice took on a seductive purr. "...Help me out of my shirt?”
In my drunken state, I saw no problem with her request. Briefly, I noticed strange markings across her belly. But my drunken mind pushed any worry from my brain, focusing me more on her soft breasts, pressing against my chest.
“Ashley…” Twilight breathed in my ear. “...I love you…” She kissed my cheek. “Please... Make me yours!”
For a moment, I froze. My eyes were wide. But then I heard evil laughter in my right ear. Turning, I saw a mini me with red clothes, wielding a pitchfork and horns.
“What the Fuck are you waiting for?” Devil me demanded. “You heard what she said! Reach into your pants, and pull out your cock! Bitches love that kinda shit!”
Evil Laughter filled my left ear. Turning, I saw another devil.
“Yeah, I know; I should be the angel, showing up to tell you not to pull your dick out.” My left Devil joked. “But we bitch slapped that mother fucker and sent him packing, so it’s smooth sailing. Let em rip boy!” Both devils vanished in a burst of fire.
And you know what? I followed their lead. I pressed my lips against the alicorn's, while at the same time undoing my belt. But right then, the sound of angels singing filled my ears, accompanied by a harp.
“Jesus loves the little children”
Looking right, I saw an Angel version of me with white clothes with a halo over his head. Wings fluttered on his back, and he strummed a harp one handed, the other hand over a black eye.
“Sorry I’m late,” the Angel apologized. “So what’s the deal here?” the Angel saw Twilight in her Drunken state. “Oh shit; don’t tell me you're thinking of whipping your dick out on this fine piece of woman are you?”
"Uh..." I mumbled, my hand already down my pants.
The Angel hit me upside the head with his harp. Holy sparks flew.
"Damn, man, what the...?" I stammered.
“Look man, I want you to look deep inside yourself and think about this!” the angel insisted. “You’re about to have sex with a 'literal' princess. You’ve got no condom, and I doubt she’s on birth control. Do you really want to be the guy who got a princess pregnant before she’s married?”
His words reached me. Twilight moaned in dismay, but her eyes were fluttering shut as I pulled away, and buckled my pants back up.
“That’s right, put the dick down.” the angel said with pride. “You got to go from the heart yo. Be smooth. Be Don Juan de la Nooch. Now I gotta go beat the shit out of two sucker punching little bitches. Remember: don’t pull it out until you both are ready... and sober.”
Despite his words, Twilight tried to reach up for me again. I pushed her away.
“Twilight," I said firmly. "As much as I want this... I Can’t.”
“You...You’re right..." Her head slumped. "I..Don’t...” Her eyes slid shut. "Zzzzzzz...”
I chuckled, easing her into bed. "Sleep well Princess." I crawled in next to her. “I don’t want to hear you scream anymore. I’ll make sure you sleep easy tonight.” And with that, I closed my eyes.
I awoke the following morning to find Twilight’s arms wrapped around me. I couldn’t help but smile at her. Unfortunately that smile faded when I noticed the markings. In my drunken state I hadn't realized...
"Twilight?" I whispered. "Twilight!"
Twilight sat up with a yawn. “Good morning Ashley,” Twilight said before her smile faded, and she realized her shirt was gone. With a yelp, she tried to cover her markings, but I pulled them back.
“Chrysalis worsened your markings” I said, my eyes moving from mark to mark. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I didn’t want to burden you more than I already have” Twilight stammered, looking away in shame.
“Twilight, this is serious!” I say, making her look directly into my eyes. “I’m going to protect you no matter what, but I can't do that if you don't tell me when these get worse, okay?"
“Oh... Okay” Twilight said, getting out of bed to get dressed.
Together, we left the room and headed to the Dining Hall. This time however nobody was present, which hopefully would make for a peaceful meal. We sat down as the servants came out with food. Twilight got a Daisy sandwich, while I was given a Crystal Fruit salad. It wasn’t red meat but I was willing to take what I could get. About halfway through our breakfast, I saw Sam approach, looking at us with sadness.
“Sam?” I asked, but she ran back through the castle.
"What... happened?" Twilight asked.
I stood. "Nothing good," I said. Already, my gut was telling me things were going to go south soon.
~Yesterday Night~
Outside the restaurant, Samantha watched Ash and Twilight eating their meal. Thoroughly enjoying each other's company. Laughing. Joking...
Sam bit into her hand in frustration.
"Just a bodyguard, huh Jacob?" Sam growled, digging into her hand. "Does a bodyguard sleep with his charge every night? Does he share a meal with her?" She nearly tore her hand in half, her blood dripping to the street.
“͙͒If̳ ̓y̘̾ou̞ͯ ͚̂w̪ͥa̜ͩnt́ ̱̎t̟͆ö ̼k͙n͔̿ow͕ͧ,̘ͪ"͗ an eerie voice came from behind the half-deadite. "͉T͖h͙e͙n̝ ̓f́o͉ḻlͧow̦ m̃e̜ͤ.͙̃"̝
Whipping her head around Sam caught sight of a black cloak disappearing behind the corner of the Restaurant. Glancing back at Ash, Sam broke into a jog in an attempt to catch up with the mysterious figure. However, just as she rounded the corner, she saw the figure's cloak vanish around another corner. And each time Sam reached said corner, she only got an agonizing glimpse of that cloak vanishing around another corner.
Eventually Sam found herself standing right in front of a deadend. The figure was nowhere in sight. At first.
Whipping her head around, Sam finally saw the cloaked figure. Reaching up, the figure pulled down her hood. A familiar fanged smile flashed in the shadows.
“Chrysalis!” Sam charged the Changeling, only to be thrown back by her magic.
Sam jumped up, ready for another attack, but stopped as the Queen's words registered to her. “Start talking, Bug.”
The Queen grimaced at Sam's insult, but just barely kept her smile intact. "̬̍Th͛ͅe P͚ͬriͣnces̮ͮs̞͆ ͖ͣo̮ͫf̯ ͦF͕rịe͕ͥn͙̅d̲s̿h͖̄i͖ͮp̺, ͦTw̟ͬi͓͆ḷ̑i̝͌g͎h̤tͨ ͇̍S̆pa͊r̃k͖le?̠̊ T̃hͩe̥rė̗ ͑i̭ͦs͓̾ ͕ă͕ de̜ë́p̤ ̖a̤f̭f̗eͪct̔iȍ̹n̫ in ͕her͂ ͎̋he͆a̅rt ̇f͋o̓r ̬M͓r͋.͊ ͍ͦW͕̾i̼ll͓í͙a͓̐ṁ̥s͉.̿"̺
Sam rolled her eyes. "You don't think I've noticed? I may not be some Princess of Love, but I can tell when someone has a crush on someone else."
"A̩͋n̖ͥd̝́ ͇̐c̰än̳ͨ ̩y͈ỏ͍u̘ ̓t͙͗ẻl̝̚l̉ ̹̽w̍hen̘͒ ̂t̩ha̗̎t̔ c̈rͅu͔s̫h͊ i̠s̲.͆.̬ͮ. ̳̄r̜e̪ͭci͑prọ͌ċ̠a̲ted?͖̇"̪̐ Chrysalis asked, her tongue flicking like a snake. "͖̈I͊ ̜cͮa͚n.̜"̿
Sam cracked her knuckles, shaking her head. "Not possible," she growled. "He's human. She's a pony. She's not even that good looking! If Ash was going to fall in love with someone it would be...”
"ͥY̚ọu?"͍ The Changeling Queen's horn glowed, and she laughed in glee. "̈A̤h̯̏,̠ͮ ̹ͦI͌ u͍nd̖̃e͖ͬrs͕̓t̖̚a̳̐nd̔.͇ ̥ͮY͉es̤,̮ ͌I ̱c̽ͅan͍ ̞s͐e͔n̘̋s͍ͬe͚ͥ ̜t̟̾h̎e̬̓ ͫĺov͙ͫe ͔ͬyͬou̯̿ ̦͑ho̖̎l̩̎d̺ ̻ȉň̟ you̳r̓ ̰͂hea̫ͨrt͙ f͇oͬrͦ h̲̿i̲ͥm͙.̥"̲
Chrysalis vanished in a flash of green light, her laugh echoing in the alley.
Sam shook her head before racing back to the Castle. “She’s wrong! Ash would never fall for a pony,” Sam thought as she stormed into the castle and hid herself close to Twilight’s room.
Unfortunately, they didn’t return until late at night and by then Sam had fallen asleep. Sam awoke that morning and entered the princess’s room, only to find it empty. The Half-Deadite went to the dining hall. And there, she finally found them.
And with the Changeling Sight... Sam's hope was shattered into despair. Above Twilight was a pink cloud which held an image of Ash. Sam’s heart dropped even further when she looked at Ash. In a cloud above his head, there were multiple images of the Princess of Friendship.
Not even hearing Ash or Twilight call out to her, Sam fled the castle, racing into the empire. Without realizing it, she found herself back at the alley where she had spoken with the Changeling Queen. Sam leaned against the wall before sliding to the ground, curling into a ball.
“You asshole...” Sam whispered, the tears escaping her eyes.
Time lost meaning to Sam. She didn't notice when Luna raised the moon. She barely noticed when the cloaked figure returned.
She only noticed when the changeling sight left her eyes. Turning, she saw Chrysalis, trying to hide smugness behind a facade of pity.
Sam rose up, wiping away her tears. “You said I could get Ash for myself.” Sam said, her voice monotone and dead. “How... exactly... would you do that?”
Since our day out, Twilight and I grew closer than ever. Not a single night went by where I didn’t fall asleep in her arms, and not a single night did she let out a single scream. The Princess of Friendship was finally able to enjoy her sleep. However, over the course of the next week, Sam had been acting… I want to say strange, but I couldn’t.
Samantha seemed to act the same as before, but now there’s was this... I want to call it a 'malicious aura,' around her. Every now and then, I’d see her sneaking glances at me and Twilight. In all honesty it was making me increasingly uneasy.
“Ashley?” Twilight said, pulling me from my thoughts and back to the castle library. Which was where we were at.
“Sorry bout that,” I apologized, leaning against the table. “I’m just worried about Sam.”
“You’re not the only one,” Twilight admitted, closing her book. “Ashley, can I ask you something?”
“Fire away, sweetheart."
She paused. “Do you love Sam?”
“No,” I replied, no hesitation. “Even if she has feelings for me, I've always just seen her as a sister." I kept my eyes on the various entrances, before adding in a whisper, “Which is why I never told her about any relationship I had.”
Twilight nodded, a small smile creasing her face as she tried to lift her books.
“Here," I said, taking half the books. "Let me help, Princess.”
Twilight's smile widened. "My, aren't you a gentleman."
“Don’t tell anyone,” I say with a grin. “I’ve got a reputation to keep.” Moving down the aisles, I placed the books in the gaps left behind by Twilight.
“Well, I find it one of your most redeeming qualities,” Twilight said, causing me to pause. I couldn't help but smile.
“You honor me with your kind words, Your Majesty.”
She stifled a giggle; I knew immediately that I made her blush. As I put one of the books back on it’s shelf my body froze as I felt someone pull my boomstick from my back.
I spun, but I wasn't fast enough. The walnut stock of my shotgun slammed into my face. I hit the ground, books falling around me as spots danced in front of my eyes.
“Ashley!” I heard Twilight yell.
I tried to pull myself up, but the shotgun hit me again, and everything faded to black.
Twilight covered her mouth in horror as Sam knocked Ash unconsious. Turning from her friend, Twilight backed up at the fire in Sam's eyes.
Twilight turned to run, but the half deadite was faster, and tackled Twilight to the ground. She broke Twilight's nose with a brutal strike, but Twilight fired back with a beam spell, hurling her opponent into the bookshelves. Scrambling to her feet, Twilight fled the library, as Sam burst from the fallen books with a growl.
Thankfully, a guard met Twilgiht outside the library. "Princess Twilight," he said. "We heard your screams. Is something..."
Twilight only had to point, but even then, it wasn't enough. With a loud BOOM, the guard was flung into the wall, buckshot riddling his armor. Twilight covered her mouth again as he went limp and didn't move again.
“You... killed him!” Twilight uttered in horror. She turned to Sam. "Why did you kill him?!"
However Sam wasn’t in the mood to speak. She slammed the walnut stock into Twilight's face, and the Princess of Friendship hit the ground, too stunned to move as Sam lifted her by her collar.
“You should have stayed away from Ash,” Sam growled, glaring at the princess as her eyes fluttered shut. “Once I hand you over to the Bug Bitch, Jacob and I can finally be together.”
The sound of rapid footsteps registered to Sam's ears. Hefting Twilight over her shoulder, Sam leaped out the nearest window.
Which turned out to be a mistake, as the fall broke her legs and part of her back.
“FUCK!!!” Sam screamed, dropping the Princess and glowering at her lower body. “Hurry up and do your thing!”
Her half-deadite nature complied, and her limbs healed themselves with a bright glow.
Shaking off her fall, Sam collected the princess and Ash's shotgun, and sprinted out of the empire.
Towards the Changeling Hive.
Back at the castle, Shining Armor, the princesses, and Twilight’s friends stared in horror at the dead guard. Shining knelt down to remove his Faust Idol before shutting his still open eyes.
“Rest, and my Faust guide you into the next Life,” Shining whispered, rising to his feet.
“Princess, look at them wounds,” Applejack said, pointing out the wounds on the dead guard. “That's the work of the demon's weapon!”
“Applejack!” Rarity shouted.
“So the Demon is finally showing his true colors,” Celestia declared with a smug smile.
“Celestia, Ash wouldn’t do this,” Shining insisted.
However, Celestia ignored the Royal Consort as she approached one of the surrounding guards. “Find the Demon and kill him on sight!”
“Celestia,” Cadance growled, standing in front of the Princess of Equestria. “You are in my Empire. You have no authority to make such an order” Cadance turned to the Guard. “Find Twilight’s Bodyguard and bring him to me.”
The guard nodded and raced off, causing Celestia's hair to flicker with embers.
“Cadance, when will you learn the longer we keep the demon alive, the more Equus will suffer!” Celestia demanded.
“Ash has done nothing but help!” Cadence argued, right as the guard returned.
“Princess,” the guard reported. “We found Princess Twilight’s Bodyguard in the Library."
Everyone ran to the Library and found Ash unconscious on the ground, books covering his body.
“Ash?” Shining Armor said, checking the human’s vitals. He sighed. "Thank Faust, he’s only unconscious.”
Luna approached, casting healing magic on the Human. Ash's eyes briefly fluttered, before he bolted up.
“Twilight, run!” Ash yelled, before noticing the others before him. For a moment, confusion shined on his face, before it was replaced with realization... and then anger. “I’m going to kill her.” Ash growled.
He rose, but Celestia stood in his path. "Kill who exactly?" she demanded. "I don't think you should be going anywhere."
Ash seized her by the collar, dragging her after him. The others, too stunned by his rage, could only mutely follow along.
“You hate me," Ash said. "I know that. But right now, I don't care." He dragged her out of the palace. "Twilight's been caught again, and I'll need your help to get her back!” He all but threw Celestia into his Delta. “So shut up and help me prevent the end of both the princess and the world!”
"I..." Celestia stammered, but Ash got into the driver's side, and slammed on the gas. The roar of the engine drowned out her yelp of shock, and he peeled out towards the Hive.
In the Changeling Hive, a six and a half foot tall bipedal form with eight inch long curving claws stared out of the shadows. "Good. The herbal blend is working. Soon, the cybernetic horsefly will deliver the control chip, strengthening your hold on your little spy, as agreed," the cloaked form growled, the liquid nitrogen fog curling around his claws. His baleful gaze shifted to Queen Chrysalis.
“Yes,” Chrysalis said as she paced around, waiting for her desperate puppet. “The more of her I control, the better,” the Changeling Queen turned to the cloaked figure. “And you’re positive this chip of yours will work on her? She’s recovered from almost everything I’ve used on her almost instantly.” Chrysalis scowled. “She truly has a remarkable form of regeneration.”
A slight smirk crossed the lupine's countenance. "Even if she does, the chip will be planted. If anything her enhanced regeneration will work in our favor, hiding the chip from any scans… not that your enemies will even know what to seek out. The technology level is downright archaic."
Privately, he smirked. He knew he'd merely identified himself as 'one who could help with your pony trash problem'... of course… after freezing a half dozen of her Changeling Drones solid from one slam of his claws. Two more had tried to attack him from a distance, only to be hit by shards of ice that not only froze their blood in their veins in seconds, but perforated their bodies from within with close to two hundred wounds
“You never did mention what you get out of helping me... Wolfang?” Chrysalis asked glaring at the Lupine with concern
"Who says I want anything? I find ponies to be remarkably weak… not even worth fighting."
“They are far stronger than you believe,” Chrysalis argued
Before Wolfang could speak, the doors burst open. Sam stood tall, the Princess over her shoulder.
“One Princess, as promised,” Sam threw the Princess at the Queen's feet. “And don’t worry about this little thing” Sam flashed Jacob’s Cross around her neck with a grin. “It’s right where it belongs."
Wolfang cocked his head, his pale golden irises very noticeable against his dark emerald sclera. His gaze rose slightly as the cybernetic horsefly shot out of the darkness, landing and sinking its tiny mandibles into Sam's skin as the control chip, no larger than a quarter the size of a grain of rice, was implanted. He knew it was likely she'd notice the sting as it also acquired a blood sample at the same time. He had acquired it from Yammark. He knew the dragonfly Maverick had a very strong grudge against Zero… as did he. However, when they'd been sent here, they had been commanded to watch for darker hearts. It made no sense to him, but if it brought especially Zero or X into his claws, he'd be satisfied, though any Hunter would do.
Sam’s eyes shone a light pistachio green which made Chrysalis smile. “Very impressive” the queen praised, turning to the lupine. “But how do we know it’s affecting her?”
"You claimed there was a Hunter. She can delay him…. as for killing him… that, we will do," Wolfang growled. The chip would make her a bit more resistant to damage, however, if the chip itself were destroyed before it merged with her neural network, it wouldn't matter… not that he would reveal that fact. Of course…. if it successfully ingrained with her neural network… only killing her would break its hold. As to his knowledge, there was no knowledge of electromagnetic technology in this backwards world.
Chrysalis smiled as she returned her gaze to the Half-Deadite. “Stall your mate. Do not let him interrupt me again.”
Sam nodded and left the room, leaving Chrysalis with the lupine. “She won’t hold him long, and I need a safe place to finish the ritual.” Chrysalis groaned in frustration. “I’m going to have to return home to finish my book.”
"And how do you plan to go home without your book?" Wolfang growled.
Chrysalis just smiled as she approached the unconscious princess. “I don’t need a book,” Chrysalis lifted Twilight by her hair before gripping her clothes in her claws. “After all…” With a quick pull Chrysalis relieved Twilight of her clothes revealing the Sumarian symbols across her body. “...All I have to do is read from her body.”
Wolfang grunted, shrugging as he didn't care much. "If you can," he growled. "Though there are other Mavericks more linguistic than I," he growled.
“Then bring them,'' Chrysalis ordered, looking over the Sumarian Text. “I’ll need all the time I need to open the portal between worlds.”
"That implies I have such an ability, bug,"Wolfang growled with a roll of his eyes.
“My Queen!” a changeling shouted, entering the room. “The Hunter! He’s approaching fast!”
“Stop him! Do whatever you must” Chrysalis ordered her spawn. “He does NOT interfere!”
Chrysalis teleported to the Hive entrance. A pedestal stood tall, and Chrysalis put Twilight on top of it. Running her hands over her body, Chrysalis sought out the right series of symbols.
"If you want to return home you better start reading," Wolfang warned.
“It’s not as simple as that!” Chrysalis barked at the Lupine. “I need to find the right text otherwise it won’t work!” She turned back to Twilight's body. “Aberuhauke,” Chrysalis began as the wind began to pick up speed. "Tarutoudari, Isabebe, Risutouru.”
In front of Twilight and the queen a massive green portal began to open. Twilight began to stir which made it harder for the Queen to finish.
“Aburuze” Chrysalis’s voice echoed, completely awakening the princess.
Twilight tried to blast at Chrysalis with magic, only for a dagger to press against her throat.
“So much as move and I’ll start carving my pages now!” Chrysalis threatened as gunfire thundered in the distance.
Wolfang rolled his eyes before his auditory sensors picked up the roar of an engine as well as ballistic gunfire. "Plasma bullets are far more elegant than flying metal… and far more effective…. even if I prefer a good liquid nitrogen bullet within a helium gas shell," he mused as one of his palms rotated as the claws shifted into a more 'starburst' appearance, revealing three slowly rotating barrels leaking frigid fog.
The bullets fired from the Lupine hit the human’s car in the front, freezing the front along with the front wheels causing it to flip over.
“Sutoumanu, Aberuge” the center of the portal began to slowly open up revealing a black hive surrounded by green flames.
Twilight looked through the portal and her eyes widened in Horror. “Ashley!” Twilight screamed out
Chrysalis plunged her dagger into Twilight's arm, eliciting a bloodcurdling scream from the princess.
“Twilight!!” Ash roared, pulling himself out of the Delta.
Equipped with his Gatling and chainsaw Ash was ready to carve and mow down every changeling in his path. But the bugs didn't dare confront him. Not when there was someone they hoped would stand a chance.
They parted before Ash, and he soon found himself face to face... with Samantha.
“Stand down, Jacob,” Sam said, pointing the Shotgun at him.
Ash aimed his own gatling at her, the barrel beginning to spin. "What are you gonna do?" he demanded. "Shoot me?"
Sam hesitated, and in that hesitation, Celestia was able to rip her way free of the Delta. With a beam of golden sun magic, Sam was sent hurtling into the hive.
Celestia and Ash glared at each other, before Celestia returned her attention to the changelings.
“Go get Twilight,” Celestia ordered
“Thanks,” Ash said rushing through the changelings
"Still as arrogant as ever, Sun Bitch," Wolfang growled firing off several volleys of glacial bullets at the Hunter and the Alicorn.
The bullets heading towards Celestia were immediately melted by her magic aura, however Ash was hit in three places on his left shin. Ash turned his gaze towards the cloaked Lupine, closing his eyes Ash reopened them revealing his red Sharingan eyes
Wolfang cocked his head. He wasn't an organic creature, nor did he have anything organic. However, he was just as vulnerable as any machine to EMPs or extreme electrical voltage.
Ash charged the Lupine as his opponent fired his bullets at the Human, fortunately Ash was able to evade his strikes. His Sharingan made everything feel like it was going in slow-motion, and once close enough, Ash body checked the lupine hard, sending him off balence.
Wolfang rolled with the impact, retracting his Glacial Gatling upgrade into his arm before he slashed out with his claws, the air becoming supercooled in their wake. "Very few humans could hit a Maverick off their feet… your kind are too easily broken." he snarled as he tossed his cloak at Ash.
Without hesitation, Ash blasted through the cloak and found his opponent gone. “True, but our will to survive can never be stopped,” Ash said, dodging on instinct, and avoiding a thick shard of ice fired from Wolfang.
Rolling forward, Ash opened fire with his gatling, turning the ice to snow in seconds.
Wolfang sneered as he dropped down, his claws trailing blue light as he leaped at Ash, a half dozen thin knife-like shards forming between his claws before he threw them. Within moments, he saw two of the shards hit the Hunter.
Ash closed his eyes from the pain when dropped to his knees as he dropped his Chainsaw and gripped the shards. “I told you..” Ash said, raising to his feet. “A humans will to survive...” Ash opened his eyes.
"Ha. Humans are weak in mind and body. Reploids are superior… and Mavericks superior to them," Wolfang snarled.
Ash focused his gaze on a single point on the Lupine, without warning the Lupine’s hand was engulfed by a raging black fire, to which Wolfang snarled, thrusting his burning fist at the Hunter, ignoring the glowing molten metal falling to the chilled floor and sizzling loudly.
Ash had no way to avoid the attack as his eyes began to bleed, Blinking several times Ash regained his sight in time to see Sam’s lower half crash into the Lupine before her upper half knocked him off his feet. Rolling with the fall, Ash grabbed his Boomstick from Sam's remains before going straight for Chrysalis.
“Uru, Mahoraba” Chrysalis said, holding Twilight’s thrashing body. “Tsure..Raggh!!” Chrysalis howled in pain as Ash shot her leg.
Throwing the queen to the side, Ash lifted Twilight's naked body off the pedestal, as lightning flickered and coursed around the portal.
"You IMBECILE!" Chrysalis roared. "You've doomed us all!"
Ash glared at her, before he noticed the snow shifting towards the portal.
"Shit..." Ash grumbled, trying to race towards the castle.
Unfortunately, the portal's pull was too great. Changelings and outworlders alike were sucked into its grasp. Ash tripped, and was immediately behind pulled towards the portal. Just before they could be dragged in, Ash and Twilight slammed into the pedestal, Ash embedding his chainsaw into the stone and hanging onto Twilight for dear life.
Unfortunately, cracks begin to form in between them as Celestia, Chrysalis, and Wolfang were dragged through the portal. The stone holding Twilight gives way forcing Ash to grab hold of her hand. Barely able to fight the pull of the portal, Celestia and Twilight exchanged a sad look of resignation, before Celestia fired a tracker spell at Twilight. The tracker spell hit just as the stone gave way, and Twilight and Ash vanished through the portal.
“I got you,” Ash said, hanging on for dear life as both of them tumbled through space and time.
However, gravity seemed to have a mind of its own. It pushed, pulled and ripped at them. Almost like it wanted them apart. Despite their best efforts, Twilight’s hand began to slip from his grip. Both of them stared at each other in mounting horror.
“Ashley!!” Twilight whimpered, before her hand was torn from his grip.
“Twilight!!” Ash screamed, but in seconds, she was gone. “God Damn it,” Ash roared, before he saw his car fly past him. "How do we stop this!"
Almost as if fate was answering him, he heard a loud Crack. “Oh, shit,” Ash muttered, before the pedestal flew at him from who knew where. There was a white flash, and everything went black.
A portal opened above the Everfree before expelling a white Alicorn into the forest, the Alicorn plummeted to the ground close to a tree hut. As Celestia lay moaning on the ground, a familiar zebra appeared over her.
“Princess Celestia," Zecora greeted. "At the Everfree you’re never near. What are you doing here?”
Chrysalis fell to the ground covered in demonic blood. A group of changelings approached her.
“Chrysalis?” one of the changelings said, helping her up. “What are you doing out this far from the Hive?”
The Queen was unresponsive. Exchanging worried glances, the changelings lifted their queen, and carried her back for the hive.
"Doesn't she look bigger to you" One of them asked
"Probably was too weak to change back"
The citizens of Ponyville moved through their days before they all heard the sound of screaming. Looking up, they yelped and dodged as the Delta plummeted into their town. The car crashed to the ground a full second before Ash and all his weapons followed after it.
“Tw..Twilight…” Ash mumbled, before he blacked out.
A portal opened up in the Canterlot mines. Princess Twilight Sparkle emerged from the portal. Aside from the stab wound in her arm, she was relatively safe and alive. However, her wound still leaked blood, and the portal travel left her disoriented and very weak. Twilight slumped to the ground, barely caring about the dirt around her.
Just before she lost her grip on consiousness, she heard footsteps... and a voice.
Numerous Royal Guards encircled the unknown stallion that had slammed into the eastern edge of the Sweet Apple Acres farm. Several held chains heavy enough to hold a small hydra or manticore. Others had magic restraining cuffs as needed. They did not know what sort of threat he was, but from the foreign magical resonance wafting off of him, it was clear he did not belong.
Just as he began to stir, they pounced. By the time Ash opened his eyes, he was covered in chains.
“I am getting a major sense of Deja Vu,” Ash groaned out as the guards gazed down at him with frightened, suspicious eyes. “Look let’s get this over with.”
Glancing at each other, the guards motioned for Ash to follow, and he obeyed without resistance. Off in the distance, a caged wagon was pulled towards the Demon hunter. Ash knew he could have easily gotten out with the aid of his Mangekyou Sharingan, the price for freedom being a bit of sore eyesight for a couple of seconds. But he also knew that resisting would just allow these ponies to see him the same way Celestia did. Sighing, he hopped into the caged wagon, noting the guards beginning to relax as he obeyed their commands.
“So," Ash said conversationally. "Where are we going?”
"To Princess Celestia," one of the guards replied.
"Nothing personal," a second replied quickly. “We appreciate you going along with this. I'm personally assured you won't hurt any pony. We just want to let the Princess know the same thing."
Ash grinned. "Well, I appreciate you being open-minded," he replied, settling into a sitting position. "Unlike 'some' guards I've met thus far."
The kinder of the guards tilted his head. "'Some' guards?"
“Well, the first moment I awoke, I was struck in the back of the head and knocked out” Ash explained. “Then I was presented to a real bitch who accused me of unleashing evil onto the world... when in reality it was her and the others.”
The second guard shook his head. “Damn, that’s cold."
“Tell me about it,” Ash agreed. “And on top of it, no matter what I do, she views and refers to me as a demon!"
“Sounds like somepony who needs some sense knocked into them,” the first guard said, as Canterlot appeared on the horizon.
“Don’t let her hear you say that,” Ash joked leaning against the cage.
"Why?" the first guard asked. "Who is she?"
Ash glanced at Canterlot with narrowed eyes. "No one important," he replied.
Alexis Carmichael, unwillingly a Reploid-Human hybrid, as far as she was aware, yet willingly the Protector of those who could not defend themselves, was moving through the Canterlot mines investigating a series of tremors. As she moved deeper, she activated her lance, a soft reddish pink glow radiating outward before she came across a rather unexpected sight: a nude young woman with blood trickling from a minor cut on her throat just shy of her trachea and numerous bruises.
Alexis noticed numerous tattoos that did not seem natural. Unfortunately, she didn't have time to check on the young woman as she spotted numerous Pantheons. Both long range 'Blaster' Pantheon Reploids, as well as closer ranged 'Spear' Pantheon Reploids.
"Hostile numbers?" she muttered.
"Thirty five," came the low reply from her Phantom Zero.
"Hmmm… I have an idea… Leviathan… Dai Daikon Sandanjū," Alexis murmured softly. She heard Zero inhale sharply in surprise, likely realizing the reference to his birth Clan.
As they focused elemental energy into the tip of the Lance, water streamed into an inch diameter orb that swiftly shifted from clearwater to a four inch diameter rippling, glowing blue sphere. Two dozen orbs shot from the main one, acting like a cross between .50 caliber bullets and buckshot. Explosions of dust, shards of saturated metal, and sparks exploded from several tunnels.
She saw a thicker blast of dust follow from two of the tunnels as muffled explosions followed. She crouched, concentrating the remaining water into a swirling barrier that caught the dust, shielding herself and whom she realized was apparently a double of Twilight.
Though it didn't make sense, Alexis thought internally. Twilight was supposed to be a young filly in her first of six semesters in Celestia's School of Gifted Unicorns. Which frankly, to Alexis, was a rather stupid name for a school.
She let the barrier drop, the mud sliding away from them. "Twilight? Wake up," she murmured quietly.
Twilight's eyes fluttered, a soft groan escaping her. She shivered as Alexis' magic coursed into her.
Alexis grimaced, focusing. She was far from skilled in healing magic, and even then, was better at small injuries. Not whatever this version of Twilight had been through. But, she focused all the same, as the alicorn reached for the dagger embedded in her arm.
“Ashley...” Twilight groaned out.
Alexis took the older Twilight's wrist. "Let me," Alexis said, tugging the dagger free. Twilight hissed in pain, but Alexis quickly started trying to heal the cut. As she worked, she tilted the blade curiously.
However, her focus went to Twilight, as the alicorn's pain faded, and she managed to lift her head up to regard Alexis with gratitude. "Thank you..."
Alexis chuckled. "No problem. Although, I don't know an Ashley. Admittedly, it's much like my name… could be inclined either way," she commented. "Though I still need to find out the source of those tremors… I rather doubt it's an accident… seems way too coincidental..." she muttered.
Her ponderings were cut off when Twilight began to shiver again. Not surprising, considering her lack of clothes and the already cold mines.
“I don’t suppose you have something to wear, do you?” Twilight asked with an attempt at a smile.
Alexis cocked her head before focusing as silvery metal flowed, soon darkening into a lightly armored leotard. "Best I can do at the moment," she replied.
“Dear Faust,” Twilight said, slightly mortified as she held the outfit. “This looks like something Cadance would wear”
Alexis shrugged. "I wouldn't know," she commented.
Reluctantly, Twilight garbed herself, before glancing around the mines with a flustered air. "W-Where am I?"
"Canterlot Mines. Though from the look of it, you hit the ground pretty hard… and worse, on the rocks. Come to think of it, I've never been down here… though clearly you're not the same Twilight as I know. She's a few months into her first semester in that school Celestia runs." Alexis glanced around before adding conspiratorially, "Though between you and me, 'School of Gifted Unicorns' seems a bit overly exclusive. I mean, I'm not a unicorn, yet I can likely employ Magic that most unicorns would have difficulty with."
“A few months?” Twilight questioned before putting a hand to her chin. “Does that mean interrupting the incantation of the text sent us back in time?”
Alexis cocked an eyebrow at that. "I... guess? From the residue I'm picking up from Phantom… the vibrations are really foreign. It's more than likely not the Equestria you know. For example, the stained glass windows in the Palace show Celestia, Luna, and Vrachnás fighting Discord. Sadly, I cannot say much of my past… as I don't have conscious access to it." she sighed.
“You’re a Displaced?” Twilight guessed. “Like that Monkey tailed creature?” Twilight went to stand but still found herself too weak to do so. “I suppose that's better than the alternative,” she exhaled softly.
"The alternative being whomever tried to cut your throat, right?" Alexis noted as she helped Twilight up.
“That," Twilight agreed. "And being sent to Hell, having my blood drained, then having my flesh peeled away to create a book that will end the world.”
Alexis cocked her head, a nagging memory surfacing. "The Necronomicon… so Ashley is…. Ash Williams," she said carefully, trying to keep hold of the memories.
“You know Ashley?” Twilight asked.
"No…" Alexis touched her head. "I-It's strange. It's like a ghost of a memory…" She sighed. "But I've already lost it again," Alexis grimaced. "It's almost like reading off something, yet you can't quite remember everything about it… only parts."
They were cut off by a much stronger tremor. Clearly, they were closer to whom or whatever was causing it.
“We need to leave,” Twilight said, flaring her magic covering them both before, in a burst of magic, they both were gone from the mines.
Twilight and Alexis appeared before Celestia who was sitting atop her throne. Immediately, Twilight glared at the princess.
"Not the same Celestia," Alexis reminded her. "Whom I'm guessing has not been tolerant?"
“No,” Twilight answered. “She blames my bodyguard for unleashing demons onto my world and refuses to admit our mistake."
"Sounds like she needs a good ass kicking…" a voice purred. "Or a good fucking."
Twilight turned. The speaker was a pale, crimson haired woman with reddish violet eyes wearing rather ragged and slutty clothing.
“Probably needs both,” another voice called out.
Ash's voice.
Twilight spun, excitement shining in her eyes... only to frown as she saw Ash in chains. “Is there ever going to be a moment where you aren’t in chains, Ashley?”
“Hey don’t blame me," Ash replied. "Blame the guards. I fell in Ponyville, and the next thing I know, I’m on my way here in a cage with chains around my body.” Ash looked down then up over the Princess’s current attire.
‘Sweet Merciful Jesus! I thought she was a princess, not a fucking goddess’ Ash thought as he saw the pure embodiment of a Sex goddess. But what he said out loud was, "Looking good, by the way." Hoping his smirk would cover his blush.
Embarrassed, Twilight covered herself before using Alexis to hide her body.
Alexis sighed softly. "Is he always an idiot who talks before he thinks?" she murmured to Twilight.
“He is,” Twilight said with a blush. “But I wouldn’t ask him to change,” she added with a smile.
Alexis shrugged before stepping closer to the cage containing the Deadite Hunter. "Okay, so... interrupting whatever you did landed you here and…. eh?" she started before a ruby aura flared up over the exit and the windows before her eyes narrowed. "Ugh… demons?" she sighed. "Nevan… let's rock!!" she barked.
The pale woman laughed before her form was engulfed in bright purple lightning. She shot at Alexis.
“Holy. Hell.” Ash said as his eyes shifted to the Sharingan eyes.
Alexis caught the electrified spear before twisting on the balls of her feet, revealing Nevan's Devil Arm form as she impaled one Hell Sloth through the chest. "Ooops… hope that hurt," she commented before she strummed a sharp riff that made the demon shudder as electricity surged over its body as it turned into a glassy statue.
From inside his cage, Ash forced his eyes to shift in his mangekyou sharingan, with it he engulfed the other demon in an ever-burning black flame. However, all too soon, Ash had to shut his eyes from the strain.
"Don't strain yourself, boyo… you'll need your sight to deal with the Bug Bitch," Nevan purred teasingly through Alexis, spinning as Alexis felt her influence fade to a waiting strength.
“Why am I not surprised?” Ash said, using his Mangekyou Sharingan to burn the locks on his cage.
"From what I've found, Nevan can 'read' recent events from the minds of others. Something to do with the electricity in their minds," Alexis deadpanned as more Hell Sloths emerged from dark rifts.
“Then you should know there is no way to extinguish those flames,” Ash said, kicking open the cage door and leaping out of his chains.
"Actually, I don't care to… though Nevan doesn't always share with me what she reads from others," Alexis quipped.
A small smirk crossed her mind as she could feel Nevan whispering, guiding her fingers.
She absently noticed the shadowy bats that formed, blocking shots of acidic slime as electricity danced between them before they shot at the demons, inflicting Shadow and Electric damage to the demonkyn. "I would call them ugly, but that implies that there are attractive demonkyn… and those are few and far between," Alexis commented wryly.
Everfree Forest
Zecora sighed softly, watching Princess Celestia sleep. "What reason would you have to open a portal? Is this a portent of potential doom of all? Unlikely, I think, but bathing her would be wise, as she does rather stink," she murmured quietly with a small smirk.
She did suspect that this was not the Princess Celestia in the distant city of Canterlot. Though the concept of 'alternate selves' was rather foreign to most ponies. She, however, knew of the concept.
She was able to contact one or two other versions of herself, which had proven quite… interesting to say the least. "It appears to the market I must go. To prevent my stores of fruit and vegetables from running low," she sighed.
As the Zebra left, Celestia began to awaken, the princess of the Sun’s eyes snapped open revealing the eyes of a dragon. Celestia blinked a second time causing her eyes to return to normal. Celestia reached for her forehead and found it burning up.
“Must...” Celestia said, getting up. “Kill... that Demon...” However, Celestia soon found her fever too hot to handle and collapsed barely a few steps from the bed.
Zecora sighed, shaking her head as she hadn't been far from the hut when she'd heard the shuffling of the Princess Celestia lookalike. "Fortunately for you, I have a fever reducing remedy, though it would be safest for you to drink slowly and steadily. I do not know what you call 'Demon', unless it is those life force consuming beasts deeper in the Forest uncommon," she sighed as she swiped a vial filled with pale purplish pink liquid. She wrote a note near it.
'This remedy will reduce your fever if you drink half every three hours. If you drink it all at once, a migraine you will have for hours four.'
She rolled her shoulders as she departed the hut, activating her wards which would kept the denizens of the forest from noticing or caring about the hut.
Alright my people, I have Finally returned from my Crossover with KukriRyuTsukino and now I can finally continue with my Fanfiction. Since I already have an entire Arc written and completed in The Shadow of Equestria. I feel like I can let it breath and work on this.
And a little heads up in case you didn't read the crossover. Ash awakened his partial Susanoo[ribs and arm/sword] Ash acquired two new guns The Heavy Shotgun
The Delta dropped onto the streets of the Empire. Ash slammed his foot on the brakes, barely managing to avoid hitting any pony as he skidded to a stop in front of the castle. He took a moment to breath in relief before he unfastened his seatbelt and exited the Delta. Twilight barely stepped out of the car after him before two flashes of light blinded them both. Before they knew it, the princess was enveloped by the arms of Shining Armor and Princess Cadence.
“Twily...” Shining whispered, holding back tears. His wife had no such hesitations, and was openly crying.
“You have no idea how happy we are to see you again,” Cadence bawled. “You guys have been gone for days!”
“I’m sorry we worried you guys,” Twilight apologized, bowing her head.
Shining looked past Twilight, and his gaze hardened as he noticed the Half-Deadite exiting the car. “What is ‘she’ Doing here?” Shining asked, venom lacing his voice as he clenched his fists
“Just ignore her Armor,” Ash ordered, taking Twilight’s hand and walking past them.
Samantha looked down, before Celestia teleported in front of Ash.
“Hand Twilight over, Williams” Celestia boomed.
Ash narrowed his eyes at the Princess of the Sun, his eyes shifting to the Sharingan.
“Since you’ve failed several times to keep Twilight safe from your kind,” Celestia continued, “I’ll be personally keeping watch over her.”
“Not gonna happen,” Ash said, moving Twilight behind him. “If you want to take her, then you’ll have to kill me”
Celestia and Ash glared at each other for what felt like eternity, like at any moment a fight would break out. Fortunately, before anything turned violent, Cadence put herself in between the two.
“That’s enough,” Cadence said. “Celestia, I’m asking you out of respect as my aunt go back to Equestria.”
Celestia and Ash continued to glare before Ash backed off, going back to his car and grabbing the gauntlet. Fitting it over his stump, he flexed the fingers a bit before looking towards Twilight, who had followed him.
“Any chance you can send us somewhere where we don’t have to deal with the royal Sun-butt?” Ash asked.
Twilight nodded before placing a hand on the Delta and his chest. Her horn glowed before a bright flash flooded Ash’s vision. Once the light faded, he found his small group right in front of Twilight’s castle.
“Homesick?” Ash asked.
“Sorta,” Twilight admitted, slouching slightly. “We’ve had a rough couple of weeks as of late. Tirek attacking the Gala, Chrysalis nearly sending me to what I can only assume is hell, and this whole ordeal with the other Equestria…” Twilight closed her eyes and let out a heavy sigh. “I just want to go to bed.”
“I second that” Ash agreed, following the princess into the castle.
Twilight pushed the door open. Immediately a purple dragon wearing a pair of black baggy pants shot out, trying to give Twilight a hug.
Twilight, however, caught him in the purple glow of her magic, setting him to the side with a tired groan.
“Spike… I love you,” Twilight said, stumbling past him. “But please let me sleep first.”
“But Twilight what about…” Spike began, pointing at Ash, before the human was covered by the Princess’s magic.
“He’s my bodyguard Spike,” Twilight assured the dragon. “He’s fine.”
Ash smirked, leaning back in a relaxed pose as Twilight carried him. However, upon reaching her bedroom, the princess dropped her bodyguard unceremoniously at the foot of the bed, before plopping face first onto the mattress.
Pushing himself to his feet, Ash tucked the princess in, before leaning against the bed. As the day’s events caught up to him, his mind began to drift off to sleep. Just before he lost consciousness, he felt something lift his hand, before a soft palm grabbed it.
A portal opened in the Dragon Lands. A figure hit the ground, pain filled pants wheezing from their mouth. She clenched her chest, dropping several parchments of purple fur and dark red Sumerian text. Chrysalis struggled to lift herself as her remaining children emerged from the portal.
“Cuŕs̨͠e̷̢ t̡hem!” Chrysalis hissed through her panting. “I͘'̶l͏l ͞us̀ȩ ̡thȩi̛ŗ şki̶n͘s fo̡r c̡l͠ot̵h̢e̷s!”
“Pl͡e͏ase ̡do̡ ́n͏o͠t ͞pu͠sh ͜y̡ourse͝lf,̛ M̵y͢ Que̕e͠n̴” one of the changelings said helping Chrysalis to her feet.
But Chrysalis barely noticed her children’s efforts to help. Her fangs glittered, no longer hidden by the flesh of her jaw.
“Ẃę’ve suffere̢d ̕a͏ ͠m͢ajor ͢d͢e͝fe͠a̢t ͞a͝t̴ th̨e̡ hand̴s͞ ͢of Wil̷l̷ia̴ms̶ ̨and Ale̛xi̡s͏,” Chrysalis muttered, glaring down at her ripped up hand. “She w̶il͢l ̸suff̨er wh̸en͘ ͢I͠ g̀et̵ ̢my͝ ̢h̵a̢n̨ds ͠on m̛y͡ Boo̧k.”
Chrysalis looked around at the red rock fixtures before turning to her children. “W̷her̕e̷͟ a̕͢r͢e w̨e,̴ ̴͠m͘͞y͏͟ c̸͏h̷i͘l͠d̵͏r̡̡e͏́n̛?”
“F͞͏r̶̡o͡m ̛́t̀͟h̴̡e҉̧ ̛͝ĺook͠s ͜͝o͏f̶͠ t̨he͠ ͢s̶u̴r̸͟rǫų̕nd͝in̛̕g̵ ̴̡ar͟ea̡͜” one of the Changeling Mavericks said,. “W̶e s͢e͜e̷m ̨to̴̕ ͡b̸̨e ̧in̨͟ ̀t̸͢h͘e D͢r̵̶ag͘͏o͟͏n͝ L̡̧à̸n̨͠d̛͜s.” He looked back to his Queen. “Y̵o̧u̧r̀ ̶or͏ḑ͜e͞rs ͟͡My̶ Qu̵͝e͏̛é͏n̨?”
Chrysalis gazed upwards to the dragons flying ahead. Her ruined mouth split into a cunning grin. “W͜e ń̨ee͡͠d̡ ͜t̴o͞ ̨r̵̛ega̸i̴͞n ̷wh̶a͘͡t ̷we̶͢’v̸͟e͢ ̡l̶̕o͡s̴t̡,” Chrysalis said, before looking at her children. “Wȩ́͝ ņ̧͠eed̕ a̡ ͡n̸e͟w hive ánd͟ ̴t͡o c͟a̛p̕t͡ùr̵e any͢ ̨dra͡g̷on w͞e c͡a͠n ̀get̶.”
“Ą͟s҉̛ ̕yo̶͜u͘ ́c̵om̛m̨̕á̴n̸̷d̷͢,̧̧ ͠͠M͟y̷̨ ̛͡Qu̧e͜en,” the changelings said in unison
“Ma̕͞n̶t͏̨is͞,” Chrysalis said, getting the attention of the Maverick. “K̶eep̀͡ yoų͜r ̴͠s̡ib̸͡l̢͘ing̨͢ś ̡sàfe̷̡.”
“I̷̸ ̀͞w̕įll..̸̡.̕M̵o̷̴t̨h̸͘e̷r…”
The Princess of Friendship slept with a pure smile, holding Ash’s hand in hers. However, her slumber was interrupted by a constant vibrating sound going off every two seconds.
“Ashley…” Twilight giggled. “Not… there…”
However, the noise was not Ash. And as the grating vibration began to annoy her, Twilight let go of her bodyguard’s hand, and slammed her hand on the book by her bedside. The book tumbled from the table and collided with Ash’s head, waking him immediately.
“OW! SON OF A BITCH!!” Ash yelled.
Twilight jolted awake, quickly realizing what she did. “Ashley! Oh, I’m so sorry…”
“Not your fault,” Ash assured, rubbing the lump on his head before lifting the vibrating book. “You got a book to read, Princess?”
Twilight took the book from Ash. Cracking it open, the two found a message writing itself.
'Twilight I believe we may have found something relating to that book you mentioned, we found an old cemetery that had a type of bizarre markings across the entrance.’
“Sunset thinks she found the location of the Necronomicon,” Twilight whispered, gleefully jumping from her bed. “Come on, Ashley; we need to get to the human world!”
“You don’t want to straighten your appearance first?” Ash asked, grinning as Twilight looked up at her rat’s nest of a mane.
She rolled her eyes, before going to her door. “Spike?!” The purple dragon was there in a second. “Is Rarity in Ponyville?”
Spike chuckled. “Yeah, she returned about two days ago.”
“Good,” Twilight breathed. “Take Ashley over to her to give him some new clothes.”
“What’s wrong with this?” Ash pointed to the clothes and armor Shining gave him.
Twilight cocked an eyebrow before pointing at the demon blood. “Humans in Sunset’s world don’t walk around spattered in blood.” She gave the armor plate a nervous look. “Or armor for that matter.”
Ash grimaced, before rolling his eyes. “Alright, probably a good idea to get changed anyway.” Rising to his feet, he followed the purple dragon out of the castle and into Ponyville.
“I take it you’ll be joining us to the human world?” Ash asked the dragon as the walked.
“Naturally,” Spike said as the ponies of Ponyville made the extra mile to avoid the human. “Doesn’t seem like you’re the most trustworthy guy,” he added, nodding at how the ponies were avoiding him.
“Trust is earned,” Ash replied with a nod. “And until I earn yours, you have every right to not trust me.”
Spike nodded, relaxing by a fraction as they approached the Carousel Boutique. As Spike opened the door, a bell rung, though Rarity was busy with another pony.
“Welcome to Carousel Boutique,” Rarity said, oblivious to her client spotting Ash. “I’ll be with you in just a second.”
Her client did her one better, vanishing in a flash of light. Rarity blinked at her client’s sudden disappearance, before setting down her sewing needles with a sigh of frustration.
“Jacob, I presume?” Rarity grumbled, turning to the human… before her eyes alighted on Spike, who puffed his chest out and grinned at her smile. “Oh, hello, Spikey Wikey. What can I do for you two?”
“Twilight is going to the human world,” Spike explained.
“Your human counterparts may have found the book to rid your world of these demons” Ash added. “However, I need clothes to blend in.”
Rarity grimaced, but before she could speak...
“And don’t worry,” Ash added. “I won’t ask you to make it red and black. Just a simple blue shirt and khaki pants.”
Rarity sighed in relief. “So long as we understand each other on that,” Rarity agreed. She smiled at Spike. “Care to assist me, Spikey Wikey?”
Within seconds, Spike was by her side. “I’d love to.”
“Please tell me we don’t have to measure again?” Ash asked.
“That won’t be necessary,” Rarity assured him. “I still have your measurements from when I made that… horrid tux of yours.” Rarity gagged as she got to work with a series of fabrics.
As Ash patiently waited for Rarity, his gaze was drawn to a white unicorn girl – around 14 or 16 – who descended the stairs. She was wearing a tank top and a pair of shorts, her hair was knotted and utterly messed up, and she rubbed her eyes with a moan. Rarity gave the girl a side glance.
“I see you’ve finally pulled yourself from your bed,” Rarity noted dryly.
“Sorry Rarity,” Sweetie Belle yawned. “The other Crusaders and I were playing Equestria Legends Online last night and by the time we cleared our quest it was nearly dawn.”
Rarity rolled her eyes, pulling a pin from the pincushion Spike was holding for her. “Thank you, Spikey” Rarity said, putting the finishing touches on Ash new shirt.
“Wait? Spike is here?!”
Rarity and Ash rolled their eyes, but the knowledge of the dragon being there was better than coffee for the young teen.
Quick as a flash, Sweetie disappeared back upstairs. When she returned, her hair was neat and tidy, and her clothes were much more fitting for catching eyes.
“H-Hi Spike,” Sweetie greeted, striking a pose.
“Hey Sweetie,” Spike said nonchalantly, not even glancing at her.
Sweetie growled in anger, before stomping back upstairs.
“Lord help that child” Ash said, shaking his head at her failed attempt before glancing at the dragon. “Out of curiosity, how old are you Spike?”
“In pony years? About 15, almost 16” Spike answered, glancing down sheepishly. “In dragon years? Barely 8.”
“So, you’re a teen” Ash nodded before moving closer. “And yet, your digging a women five to seven years older than you?”
“And?” Spike said
Ash smacked the dragon upside his head. “You’re an idiot! You have someone who has feelings for you, but you're too blind making goo-goo eyes are her?” Ash waved at Rarity. “So, see it clearly.”
Spike glowered, rubbing the back of his head before Rarity called him over and pulled another pin.
Soon enough, Rarity finished with the human clothes.
“Thanks,” Ash noted, grabbing the clothes and retreating into the changing room.
Once changed Ash thanked Rarity again before taking his old clothes and leaving the boutique with Spike following behind.
“So,” Spike noted. “Care to explain what you meant?”
Ash shook his head. “You are one dense mother fucker.” He pointed back, speaking slowly. “Someone. Close to you.. has a massive crush on you.”
Spike smiled in hope. “Rarity?”
Ash face palmed and turned away. “Oh, my fucking god, you’re utterly hopeless!”
“Wait, who then?!” Spike insisted, running to catch up. “A-Applejack?”
“You need Jesus, Dragon” Ash barked over his shoulder. “I’m not going to spell it out for you if you can’t see it!”
“Rainbow Dash” Spike insisted, as the two walked into the castle. “Is it Rainbow Dash?”
“Give me one more name and you will learn how hard my armored hand is,” Ash said, pushing the doors to the library open.
Inside the library, a mirror was hooked up to some sort of machine. Twilight stood in front of the mirror wearing a white long sleeved shirt, a pair of blue pants and purple shoes, placing the journal in the machine. The machine whirred to life as it siphoned off the magic of the book.
“We’re almost ready to depart,” Twilight reported as the pair joined her. She walked over to a table holding Ash’s weapons. “I can help hide your weapons in the human world, too. However, you’ll probably be limited to two.”
Ash hummed, looking over the weapons. He had a good number of options: the Heavy Shotgun and Bore Pistol that he received from Alexis, his Boomstick and Chainsaw, and the Gatling Gun the Merchant gave him. After a moment of thought…
“I think I’ll go old school” Ash said, grabbing his trusty Boomstick and Chainsaw.
Twilight nodded, grabbing the weapons up in her magic glow. In a flash of light the crate that held the Gatling appeared in Twilight’s magic, turning black and changing shape.
“She’s using a transfiguration spell” Spike explained before Ash could nod. His words were proven true as the crate shifted into a cello case.
Twilight placed both weapons into the case - the weapons fit perfectly – before sealing the case and handing it to Ash.
“Shall we?” Twilight asked as Ash slung the case across his back.
Ash nodded, and followed the alicorn and dragon into the mirror.
The experience of crossing worlds was much more pleasant than the last time. Unfortunately, Ash was not accustomed to the portal. And while Twilight and Spike smoothly stepped out to greet the friends awaiting them on the other side… Ash tripped and tumbled into the group with a less than ideal yelp.
Opening his eyes, Ash found himself face to face with two objects that Samantha’s father referred to as ‘Globes of Love.’ Closing his eyes Ash picked himself up and prayed that the owner of the ‘globes’ was not Rarity. Regrettably, his prayers fell on deaf ears, and the human was met with an open palm striking his cheek.
“Nice to meet you too, Rarity,” Ash growled, holding his reddening cheek.
Are you okay Ashley?” Twilight asked helping her friends off the ground.
“Besides being slapped?” Ash muttered. “Peachy.”
“I’m sorry Ashley,” Twilight stammered. “I forgot it was your first time using the mirror.”
Before Ash could respond, he heard a snicker. All eyes turned to Rainbow Dash, who was trying and failing to hold in her laughter.
“Wait-wait,” Rainbow snickered. “You’re name is ‘Ashley?’”
Ash’s glare was enough, and even as Twilight tried to silently warn her friend, her warnings went unheeded, and Rainbow Dash exploded into laughter.
“That’s a girl’s name, dude,” Rainbow Dash got out through her cackling.
Ash’s eyes narrowed and he walked up to her.
“Ash, please wait…” Twilight pleaded, before Ash pointed to Rainbow Dash’s shoes.
“You laugh at me when your shoe has dog shit on it?” Ash asked.
Rainbow’s laughter shut off like a switch. “Wait? What!” She looked down, but just as she realized Ash was lying, he flicked a metal finger at her nose causing blood to drip. The girl yelped in pain, clenching her face. “That hurt!” she started to shriek, only for Ash to fix her with a death glare.
“Never. Call me Ashley” Ash growled, before heading back to Twilight. “Ash or Jacob. Never Ashley.”
Rainbow Dash glared away, rubbing her nose, while Rarity continued to stare at him in awe.
“Twilight… darling,” the fashionista stammered. “Who… is this… ‘Ash?’”
Twilight glanced at Ash. “He’s my…”
She paused, pondering. Who was Ash to her. A friend? A bodyguard?
Or perhaps something more? He was kind to her, he was funny, the way he smiled at her made her heart skip a beat. And in her eyes he was quite handsome. Shaking her head, Twilight pushed the thoughts from her mind for later.
“He’s my bodyguard” Twilight decided, though she couldn’t stop a slight blush appearing on her cheeks. Applejack noticed, raising an eyebrow.
“Since when d’ya need a bodyguard, Twi?” the farm girl asked.
Twilight turned to Ash as her hand gripped her sleeve.
Ash nodded. “Better that they stay in the loop.”
Nodding herself, Twilight lifted her sleeve. Her friends gasped at the sight of the dark Sumerian text running up her arm like a tattoo.
“What… is that?” Fluttershy squeaked out in worry.
“Changelings are attempting to kill Twilight,” Ash explained. “And use her blood and flesh to create a book that will end the world.”
“Changelings?” Rainbow asked.
“They’re creatures that take the form of someone you love and feed off your love for them,” Sunset explained. “Our Chemistry teacher? Dr. Chrysalis? She’s a changeling in Equestria.”
“Normally,” Twilight admitted. “But the changelings have changed; they’re now more like demons.” Her voice grew more determined. “Which is why we’re here to find the Equestrian Book of the Dead. To send them back to where they belong.”
Sunset nodded. “If that’s the case then you’ll need a ride to the Cemetery.” She walked the mirror and towards an orange muscle car with a yin yang sun on the hood.
“Holy Shit!” Ash exclaimed, approaching the car with a missive smile on his face. “Is that a 1970 Dodge Charger?”
“Yeah it is,” Sunset said, before blinking in confusion. “How do you know that? Aren’t you from Equestria?”
“Yes and No” Ash answered, lifting the hood and gawking at the beautiful engine. “What’cha running in here? A 225 cubic-inch six cylinder or a 440 Magnum V8?”
Immediately Twilight’s friends began to groan hearing Ash’s question, Twilight looked at her friends with confusion in her eyes, before noticing the smile growing on Sunset’s face.
“Neither actually,” Sunset said walking next to Ash. “I put in a 440 Six pack engine. This beauty of mine can go from zero to sixty in six seconds flat.”
“Great…” Rarity groaned out, before glancing at Twilight. “Patience, darling; this is going to take awhile.”
“What may take awhile?” Twilight asked Rarity.
“Sunset’s rather… enthusiastic when it comes to cars,” Applejack explained. “Once someone starts talking about all that car and engine hullaballoo, Sunset will never stop.”
Applejack froze as she felt the pair of eyes glaring into her very soul
“Car and engine… what?!” Ash and Sunset growled, malice lacing their voices.
“Every man for themselves!” Pinkie Pie shouted, lifting several pink balls. She threw them at the ground, and they exploded in a rainbow of colored smoke and confetti.
Taking advantage, the rest of Twilight’s human friends scattered and ran.
Sunset drove her car down the streets of Canterlot as she talked to Ash, about cars. Twilight sat in the back of Sunset’s car, crossing her arms in jealousy. They sounded so animated about what they were talking about, but from Twilight’s perspective, it was another language entirely.
“I’m telling you if you hooked the Dodge Charger up with a 426 Street Hemi,” Ash said, “This beauty would gain a good thirty-five additional horsepower.”
“Yeah I am aware of that but it’s expensive,” Sunset replied. “I work at a Sushi restaurant. After rent and utilities there is no way I can afford something like that.”
“Yeah, I guess you got me there,” Ash crossed his arms as they reached the cemetery.
Sunset pulled up to the cemetery entrance as the sun began to disappear across the horizon. Stepping out of the car, the three approached the gate of the graveyard.
“Ah… Cemetery Gates,” Ash mused jokingly. “Where’s Pantera when you need them?”
“Pantera?” Twilight asked as she pulled the cello case from the back seat.
“They’re a band in this world,” Sunset answered with a nod. "They're pretty popular."
The moment Ash touched the metal bars a ghostly chill ran up and down his spine. He let go of the bars. “Yeah...Something is definitely here.”
“Ashley,” Twilight opened the case, revealing his weapons to Sunset.
“Wait, is that a chainsaw?” Sunset asked with an uneasy look. “Covered in blood?”
“Chainsaw? Yes,” Ash replied, taking off his gauntlet. “However the blood is Deadite.” He placed the chainsaw over his stump and gripped his boomstick. “Thanks, Princess. Both of you wait out here.”
“Don’t you need our help?” Sunset asked.
“Trust me, you don’t want to see what I fight,” Ash said.
Twilight glanced at the markings around the gate.
“Curse be those who disturb the rest of the book. They that shall break the seal of this unholy place shall meet their death,” Twilight translated the Sumerian text on the gates archway.
“Yeah…” Sunset said, backing up to her car. “Why don’t we let you handle this?”
With a nod, Ash entered the cemetery and began looking around. The sunset slowly made way to night as the hours passed, and yet there was no sign of the book’s location.
After several hours of fruitless searching, Ash threw his hands up.
“Seriously, Starswirl!” Ash shouted in anger. “Could you throw me a fucking bone here and give me a fucking sign?!”
As if the wizard himself heard the human's words, a gust of wind blew before a pair of torches erupted in an eerie green flame.
“Thanks… I guess,” Ash murmured, approaching the crypt. “Self-igniting torches with green fire? That is definitely not a red flag.”
Entering the crypt Ash was met with multiple coffins stored within the walls. In the middle was a single stone coffin which had a stone statue on top of the lid. The statue was a bearded man holding a book in one hand and a scepter in the other.
“This must be the resting place of the Starswirl of this world,” Ash said, sheathing the gun before placing a hand on the stone lid. “Forgive me for the disrespect, but I'm taking that book.”
Pushing open the lid, Ash’s eyes grow wide seeing the lack of a skeletal corpse. In the coffin was a set of stairs which led deep into the earth. Ash let out a frustrated sigh as he entered the coffin and descended the stairs.
“Of course, there’s a hidden passage…” Ash groaned as he followed the path. “Why make it easy for me?”
Ash followed the path as a series of torches lit the corridors. Eventually, the corridor opened up into a large room. The room was covered in fresh and old cobwebs. In the center, a table sat on top of a raised platform.
“Oh,” Ash groaned. “I’m getting major Army of Darkness vibes here.”
Scaling the steps, Ash let out a loud anger filled shout: on the table sat three identical Necronomicons.
“You sorry sack of horse shit!” Ash screamed in pure rage. “Why? Why did you need to plant three books here?”
Once his burst of anger left him, Ash took notice of something underneath all three books. Under the book in the center was a rune filled circle, while the ones one the left and right were inside of squares.
Ash grinned, placing his boomstick on the table next to the center book before reaching for the book. “Thanks for making it obvious…”
Ash stopped a full inch from the flesh bound book, remembering a crucial scene from Army of Darkness.
“Right, can’t forget the words,” Ash said, backing up and clearing his throat. “Klaatu...Barada...Nikto!”
With a grin, Ash went to grab the book. However the moment Ash’s fingers touched the flesh bound book, the eyes of the book shot open before clamping its fang filled mouth on Ash’s fingers. The Demon Hunter shrieked, losing his balance and tumbled down the platform's stairs, blood poured from his middle and ring finger as the book clamped down harder.
Thinking quickly Ash began slamming the book into the ground. After several attempts the book finally let go. Glaring at the book, Ash rose to his feet before pulling the cord of his chainsaw causing it to roar to life.
“Time to send you to the shredder!” Ash roared, bringing the chainsaw down on the book.
However, the book opened itself and dodged, flying around the room like a bat straight from the depths of hell. Raising his hand to his back Ash went to take hold of his trusty boomstick… forgetting that he had dropped it on the platform. As Ash realized his mistake, the book took advantage of his shock and bit his nose. Screaming in both pain and anger, Ash punched the book -and himself- in the eye causing the book to let go. Scrambling up the platform Ash yanked his boomstick off the stone altar, spinning around Ash thrust his shotgun into the mouth of the fast approaching book.
“Burn in hell!” Ash yelled, pulling the trigger. Burning pages flew everywhere, but the book ceased to be an annoyance.
In a huff of anger Ash threw down his boomstick before turning back to the altar. “Hated that damn book.”
Ash looked between the left and the right one before reaching towards the left one. Ash however stopped halfway to glance to the one on the right, retracting his hand Ash reached for the book on the right. The moment he touched the books cover it snapped open, revealing a vortex to some other, ominous dimension.
“Shit!” Ash cursed as the vortex tried to pull him in. “Starswirl. I’m. Going. To. Kill. You.”
Ash started to slip further into the book causing him to brace his feet against the altar, however even his footing began to slip.
“No, no, no, no, no, No, NO, NO!” Ash screamed as he was sucked into the book which shut itself, sealing the human inside.
Silence reigned throughout the secret catacomb as the book lay motionless. However, eventually, the cover started to tremble before a chainsaw blade lifted it open. A strong gust of wind began to suck into the book as Ash’s hand gripped the book's pages, but slowly, he managed pulled himself from the vortex’s grip. Unfortunately, his face was altered by the book's magical effects.
Ash hit the ground and used his chainsaw to shut the book, causing the wind to cease. For a moment, he lay there, his breathing heavy from the exhaustion of pulling himself from the vile book.
“Wrong Book,” Ash groaned, rearranging his face, picking up his shotgun and shoving it in the back of his shirt.
With his predicament handled, Ash glared at the book before turning to the real Necronomicon. Fed up with the wizard's false books, Ash snatched the last book and cracked open the cover.
Ash nodded as he closed the book. “Groovy,” Ash grumbled, going to leave the unholy place.
The room began to tremble as cracks formed as chunks of rock from the ceiling. Ash realized he forgot to recite the words again.
“Not groovy,” Ash said as the room caved in. “Absolutely not groovy!”
Ash ran as fast as he could out of the secret passage. He barely managed to make it out of the catacomb, tripping on the exit and hitting the ground hard. Storm clouds covered the night sky as bolts of lightning streaked through the air. Regaining his footing, Ash ran through the cemetary. Without warning a Skeletal hand burst from the ground and grabbed hold of Ash’s ankle, sending him back to the ground. As he recovered, another hand erupted forth and grabbed hold of his face. More and more hands burst from the earth and started grabbing at the air and ground. The Book of the Dead was knocked from Ash’s hand as the skeletal hands start grabbing the human’s body.
Fighting the skeletal arms, Ash ripped himself free of the clutching fingers. One skeletal hand held onto his jaw as he pulled free, but the man spit out the bones with a groan of disgust.
“Keep your damn filthy bones outta my mouth.” Ash growled, breaking the boney arm in two and running from the sea of limbs.
A bone arm ripped from the grave and reached for the Book of the Dead, but Ash got to it first. Leaping over another set of arms, Ash bolted out of the cemetery and slammed the gate shut.
Twilight and Sunset ran up to the exhausted human.
“Ashley!” Twilight shouted in concern. “Are you okay?”
“Peachy,” Ash drawled, rising to his feet. “Here’s the book.”
Sunset looked at the grotesque book cover and shivered. Glancing at her terrified face, Twilight quickly took the book and shoved it into her backpack.
“What was that?” Sunset asked the princess with fear.
“The Necronomicon,” Twilight responded while zipping up her bag. “It’s the book we need to save Equestria.”
“Not to be rude,” Ash called out, having walked back to the car and removed his chainsaw. “But considering the sun set and I just spent the last couple of moments being groped by a couple of handsy skeletons I’d like to call it a night.”
“Right,” Sunset mumbled. “Sorry.” She joined him at her car.
Ash pulled out the Cello case and placed both the gun and chainsaw inside before putting his gauntlet back on his wrist. Sunset pulled out her phone and began texting Applejack as Ash and Twilight entered the muscle car.
After a moment, Sunset’s phone buzzed. The former unicorn nods and turned to her passengers.
“Okay, so Granny said you guys can crash at Applejack’s,” Sunset responded. Ash noticed her uncertain expression.
“I’m sensing there’s going to be a ‘But’ coming up,” Ash pointed out.
“You have to sleep on the living room couch while Twilight sleeps with me,” Sunset said as she got into the car and started to drive the two to the Apple family farm.
”Are you sleeping at Applejack's?” Twilight asked the former unicorn
“My apartment building is being fumigated because Dr. Chrysalis lives in the same building,” Sunset said, tightening the grip on her steering wheel.
“So… why’s your apartment being fumigated?”
“Dr. Chrysalis has a home lab,” Sunset answered. “And her experiments tend to get a little…”
“Explosive,” Ash finished the girls sentence with a nod of understanding.
“I was going to say dangerous, but explosive is good too,” Sunset nodded in agreement as she pulled next to the Apple family barn.
“Wow,” Twilight said, stepping out of Sunset’s car. “This is the first time I’ve actually looked at the barn. It’s exactly like the one in Equestria”
“It is?” Sunset asked as she and Ash exited the muscle car.
“I couldn’t tell you to be honest,” Ash said to the former unicorn. “Equestria’s Applejack pretty much hates me and sides with Celestia and thinks I’m the very demons I’m fighting.”
“Yeah, I don’t think this Applejack is a fan either,” Sunset said walking towards her friend's house. “You did break her girlfriend’s nose.”
“First, I had no idea she was dating Rainbow,” Ash said following behind Sunset. “And second she called me Ashley.”
“Right,” Sunset said, walking into the apple family's home. "Just be prepared to face the consequences.”
“What conseq...” Ash was cut off when a clenched fist crashed into his nose. “Mother Fuck!”
“Ah think that makes us even,” Applejack said, dusting off her knuckles.
“Even Steven,” Ash growled, clenching his nose.
“Ashley,” Twilight called out in concern but stopped when Ash stopped her.
“I’m fine,” Ash said, straightening his posture. “Just need to use the bathroom.”
After Ash’s makeshift first aid - stuffing tissues in his nose - he sat at the table with Applejack and the rest of her family which consisted of the hulking Big Mac, the bubbly Apple Bloom, and the elderly Granny Smith. Fortunately, nothing happened during dinner besides the middle child of the group smirking at Ash’s makeshift first aid. However much to Twilight’s surprise, Ash never so much as glared at the farm girl.
As the Apple Family ate dinner, none of them knew of the growing danger that was growing within the cemetery. However their troubles would come sooner as a hand burst from a grave on the Apple family farm. An undead corpse with white eyes and orange hair arose from the grave with its sights on the Apple family’s home.
“T͆ͪh͑͒́͢e͜ ͒b̶ͬ͆oo͏k̢̽̉…” the corpse groaned as it pulled itself from the ground and started to limp to the house.
Apple Bloom returned to her room after using the bathroom. Immediately she took notice of a dark figure sitting on her bed. In a haste, Apple Bloom flipped on her lights... and froze in shock.
Turning towards the little girl with a warm heartwarming smile was Pear Jam – her mother.
“M-Mom?” Apple Bloom squeaked out as Pear Jam approached the young teen.
“Yes, my Little Bloomer,” Pear Jam said to the red-haired teen.
Hearing her old nickname spoken by her mother caused Apple Bloom to hug her tightly with tears as she bawled her eyes out. Pear Jam returned the hug as she lowered herself to match the teen.
“P-Please don’t leave us again,” Apple Bloom begged as Her mother pulled away.
“I apologize sweetie,” Pear Jam apologized to her daughter. “But I can’t stay,”
“No please don’t go,” Apple Bloom sniffled as she begged the older woman. “I’ll do anything to keep you here.”
“Anything?” Pear Jam asked with a raised eyebrow and a growing smile. “I can make sure we never have to be separated again if you find something for me.”
“What is it?” Apple Bloom asked in desperation.
“A book. A leather-bound book with a face on the cover,” Pear Jam said with a smile. “Bring me the book and we will be together forever.”
Apple Bloom wasted no time in leaving her room to find the book. Pear Jam grinned madly as her eyes turned white.
“Foơ͒l͑ͫ҉̵i̴̋s̷h͠ c̀͟h̷̆i̔l͟d҉̨,” Pear Jam whispered as she stayed hidden in the child's room.
Apple Bloom searched the entire house in the dead of night only to find nothing. “We don’t have….” Apple Bloom began before remembering that Ash and Twilight were talking about a book during dinner.
The first place Apple Bloom looked was the Cello case that Ash carried with him. Opening the case the teen’s eyes widened in fear as she saw a shotgun and a blood covered chainsaw. The red-haired teen slowly closed the case as she quietly made her way to Twilight’s room. However, she failed to notice Ash slowly sitting up to see her enter Twilight’s room.
“I don’t like this,” Ash muttered. He felt something tug at his gut before jumping from the couch and removing his boomstick from the cello case. “I really don’t like this.”
Back in Twilight and Sunset’s room, Apple Bloom rummaged through Twilight’s bag before pulling out a book that sent chills down her spine.
“This must be it,” Apple Bloom whispered as she quickly made her way back to her room.
She glanced back to make sure nobody was out of bed. Unfortunately for the young teen, she ran into someone who snatched the book from her grip.
“So…” Ash said, shouldering his gun and turning his gaze from the book to the little girl in front of him. “Mind telling me why you want to take this unholy book?”
“I…I…” Apple Bloom stammered out when Ash heard a growl coming from the teens room.
Immediately, Ash aimed his gun into Apple Bloom's room and soon realized why the girl was trying to take the book of the dead.
“Ah…Now everything makes sense,” Ash said looking at the sight of Pear Jam, gazing at the human with slight fear. “Well, time to return you to the hell you crawled out of.”
Before Ash could fire, however, Apple Bloom got in between him and her mother.
“NO!” Apple Bloom screamed, protecting her mother. “You can’t take her from us!”
“Apple Bloom, get away from that thing," Ash ordered the teen. “She’s not who you think she is.”
“NO!”
“GET AWAY!” Ash shouted.
But Pear Jam took advantage. Scooping up Apple Bloom, she held extended nails to the young girl’s throat.
The screaming of both Apple Bloom and Ash cause everyone in the house to rush out into the hall. The Apple Family however just saw Ash pointing his shotgun into Apple Bloom’s room.
“Why are ya pointing that gun at mah…” Applejack shouted before spotting the demonic form of her mother in her sister's room. “M-Ma?”
“That isn’t your mother,” Ash said moving his free hand to stop the farm girl from entering the room. His eyes remained on the deadite. “Put her down and return to the depths of hell!”
“How are there demons here?” Twilight asked, causing Ash to wince at her words. “Did they follow us through the portal?”
“This… may be... my fault” Ash admitted with an uneasy shrug.
“What’d you do?” Twilight asked nervously.
“I… may have unleashed Evil onto this world.”
“What!?” Twilight screamed out before noticing Apple Bloom in the deadite’s arms.
“Not important right now,” Ash said, not tearing his eyes from the deadite. “We have more pressing matters at the moment.”
“Ṫ̃͜h͑͜e̷ͥ͋͟ ̷B̎͊͟͞o̒o̒ͫ͞k,̉ͨ ̇͛͞M̈́͑͟o̿rͧ̏t͏à̀͡l̶̊̀̚!” Pear Jam ordered digging her nails into the teens neck.
Apple Bloom gasped in fear.
“Threaten her all you want,” Ash said, causing The Apple Family to glare at him. “But if you kill her then there’s nothing stopping me from blowing your brains out.”
The deadite let out a low growl as Big Mac stepped up to Ash and grabbed hold of his shirt. “That’s mah Sister! We need to get her away from that thing!”
“I’m aware, but right now, we can’t do a thing,” Ash said before flinching at the sight of all the windows shattering. “Oh shit…”
The Deadite grinned as the front door was flung from the hinges. The demonic spirit roamed the house before rushing the two men and knocking them into the walls. The impact Ash caused to drop the book. The spirit then went after Twilight and Applejack. It would have possessed one of them had Twilight not pulled her friend into her room. The spirit did however manage to possess Granny Smith. Seeing the book on the floor Pear Jam threw Apple Bloom away and jumped for the book. Ash immediately tackled the Deadite and held her down while trying to grab his boomstick, however Ash saw the now deformed form of Granny Smith eyeing the Necronomicon.
“TWI, THE BOOK!” Ash shouted as Granny lunged for the book.
Fortunately, the princess managed to snatch the book into her room as Granny hit the ground. Granny recovered and rushed into Twi’s room causing all three to let out a scream.
“Macintosh! Get in there and protect the girls!” Ash ordered as Pear Jam headbutt him, causing him to stagger.
Big Mac ran into Twilight’s room to protect her and the others. Unfortunately Ash couldn’t focus on them as he had a dead broad to deal with. With a grin, Pear Jam lunged after Ash before sinking her teeth into his hand. Fortunately for him the hand she bit was the gauntlet that Cadance gave him.
“Thank you, Princess of Love,” Ash said slugging the deadite with his free hand before quickly picking his shotgun off the floor.
Unfortunately, Pear Jam recovered quickly and threw him out of the hall and into the living room. When Ash slammed into the back of the couch he quickly tried to circle around to grab his chainsaw. However in a quick motion the Deadite kicked the couch. The furniture launched into the air and pinned Ash against the wall. Ash tried to free himself, unfortunately the deadite pushed the couch further against the human.
“Wh͞ó̵ ̕͞wi̧l̶̀l͟͞ ́b̢̡low͝ wḩ͘o’̷s̨ ͞b̸ra͘͠i̴͠n̴s̨͠ ̢̕n͜o͡͡w,̡ ̷M͏o͞r̀ţ̷a̵͞l?” Pear Jam asked, smugly pushing the couch into Ash’s abdomen.
Ash grinned as his eyes turned red with a black pinwheel. “Your daughter.”
With no warning, the Deadite hunched forward as multiple pellets hit her in the back. Turning around in anger Pear Jam saw Apple Bloom with Ash’s boomstick in her hands. Pear Jam let out a scream as she rushed the teen.
“Shoot her!” Ash said using his Sharingan to ignite the deadite’s back.
Apple Bloom fired again, knocking the Deadite back, but failing to kill it. Hurriedly, the teen reloaded… just as the Deadite retook the form of her mother.
“Ĺ̛it̸t̵͢l̶͟e̶ ̀̀B̕ĺ̡o̶o҉̷m̶er,” Pear Jam pleaded to her daughter. “P͜͞l̀e̵as̕͜e ̸d͝r̶o̸p͢ ̕̕t̷h̢e ̀͠gų͜n̸͟.”
“M-Mom?” Apple Bloom whimpered, tightening her grip. “I’m sorry…”
Angered, the deadite lunged.
“I’M SORRY!” Apple Bloom screamed as she pulled the trigger.
The Deadites head was blown from its body causing a splatter of blood to spray the teen. Ash struggled a bit as he pushed the couch away. Immediately, Ash went over to the teen who was staring at her mother's body in absolute horror.
“Apple Bloom, are you okay?” Ash said, turning the teens head towards him.
“Ah… Ah killed my mom...”
“She was already dead,” Ash said, looking away from her. “You shouldn’t have gone through that.”
Without warning a scream ripped through the house. Twilight was hurled into the living room with the book held tightly in her arms. Ash ran over to help her, only to get hit by the flying form of Big Macintosh. Moments later Sunset landed right in front of the group with blood dripping from her head. Ash turned his gaze up to the hall and found Granny Smith standing there with a smug grin across her face.
“Seriously, Macintosh,” Ash growled, pushing the man off of him. “You can't handle one possessed old lady?”
“She’s stronger than she looks,” Big Mac grumbled rising to his feet.
The two men ran forward to attack the possessed granny. Ash tackled Granny who simply threw him to the ground. Meanwhile Big Mac circled around and wrapped his arm around Granny’s neck. Ash scrambled to his feet, trying to find his weapon.
“Mister!” Apple Bloom called out throwing the shotgun to Ash.
Ash caught the gun and returned his focus to Granny Smith. Before he could tell Big Mac to move, the possessed granny struck first. The deadite swiftly kicked Ash in the stomach causing him to drop his boomstick. Granny then slammed her head into Big Mac’s. The possessed woman grabbed the muscular man's head before flipping him over her. Before Ash could recover Granny grabbed the front of his shirt and threw him across the room. Ash crashed through a locked door which led into the master bedroom. The human’s head collided with a fan on the ceiling before crashing on a dust covered bed. Ash fell unconscious as Big Mac did his best to protect the girls. Granny simply grinned as she watched her eldest grandchild struggle.
“Granny…” Big Mac said as Applejack started to sneak up on the old lady.
Big Mac rushed the deadite as Applejack locked Granny Smith in a full nelson, however Granny easily slipped out of the head lock. Granny elbowed Applejack in the stomach before backhanding Big Mac. The massive man spun in the air before crashing on Ash’s cello case. Big Mac struggled to get to his feet when he noticed the chainsaw, Granny had pinned Applejack to the wall and was trying to force her nails into the girl's eyes. Big Mac saw Ash lifting himself from his parents bed, before turning to the weapon.
Ash blinked the haze from his eyes. He saw Applejack in trouble, before noticing Big Mac staring at him, chainsaw in hand. Quickly Ash removed his gauntlet to make room for his chainsaw.
Big Mac nodded before hurling the weapon to Ash.
Ash leapt forward with his numbed arm forward to intercept the chainsaw.
The Chainsaw landed perfectly on his arm and locked into place. The Human landed with a roll.
“Yo, Granny!” Ash said, whacking her away from Applejack.
The Deadite hissed at him as he pulled his chord.
“Hope you took your Geritol,” Ash said, as the weapon roared to life. “'Cause it's time to dance!”
Granny let out a scream as she lunged for the one-handed man. Ash let out a scream as he swung his chainsaw into the old lady's neck. Blood splashed everywhere as Granny’s head hit the ground along with her body. Ash’s legs buckled, and he took a knee of exhaustion.
“I hate this,” Ash groaned, trying to catch his breath.
“Ashley, are you okay?” Twilight asked the exhausted human.
“I’m fine,” Ash exhaled. “How are the others?"
“Bleeding and bruised,” Twilight sighed before kneeling on the ground next to the man. “But they’re all alive.”
“That’s good,” Ash said, closing his eyes.
“Umm… guys?” Apple Bloom called out causing everyone to see her staring out the living room window. “We’ve got company.”
Ash's eyes snapped open as he jumps to his feet. Everyone ran to the window and immediately saw the horde of Deadites approaching the Apple Family home.
“There… There's more of them?” Applejack said with fear.
“Son of a BITCH!” Ash shouted kicking the wall before turning to the eldest brother. “Do you guys have guns?”
“Ma ‘n Pa had a shotgun for thieves and intruders,” Big Mac said, running into his parents’ room and returning with a double barrel shotgun and a box of shells.
“Good,” Ash said, reclaiming his boomstick. “Keep the girls safe.”
Ash started to make his way towards the door. However, Twilight stepped in front of him.
“Are you mad?!” Twilight shouted at her bodyguard. “You can’t kill that many deadites by yourself.”
“Then who else is going to?” Ash said, lifting his chainsaw-clad arm. “You show me one person with a chainsaw hand, and I’ll let them handle it.”
“But there’s too many for you to…” Twilight was cut off when Ash wrapped his lips around hers.
“Sweetheart, you worry too much," Ash said, pulling away from the shocked and blushing Twilight. “If I can’t do what I was sent here for, then I can't call myself your bodyguard, can I?”
Ash walked past the princess before flashing a grin of confidence. “Time to do what I do best,” Ash said, revving his chainsaw and reloading his shotgun. “Kick some Undead Ass and send them back to Hell!”
Ash gripped the stock on his shotgun as he watched the horde of Deadites. Steeling his nerves, the chainsaw-wielding human advanced on the horde.
“This is stupid-this is stupid-this is absolutely stupid,” Ash muttered before his eyes turned red. “But I have to do this.”
One of the Deadites let out a roar as it charged the chosen one. Ash swung his chainsaw into the deadites neck, causing the body to collapse.
“Heh, reduced headcount,” Ash smirked.
“Less talking and more killing,” Applejack screamed from the door.
Ash flinched. “Sorry,” he shouted back before his eyes switched to his Mangekyou Sharingan.
However, before he could focus his gaze and summon forth the Amaterasu flames, his eyes burned like they were on fire. Drops of blood dripped from his eyes.
“Dammit,” Ash cursed, shutting his eyes and wiping away the blood. “Looks like Jackson’s gift will need a cooldown.”
When Ash opened his eyes, he was met with the sight of a deadite mere feet away from him. Ash let out a panicked scream before swinging his chainsaw into the deadites side. The chained blade didn’t even make it halfway before Ash shoved his boomstick into the possessed corpse's rotting face and pulled the trigger.
Three more deadites charged the lone human. Ash fired another shell, knocking the left deadite back. Kicking the headless corpse from his chainsaw, Ash swung his blade into the other deadites. He missed, and one kicked the human to the ground, standing over him with a grin as the other deadite approached behind.
“I͐ṭ’ͩš̪ ͔o͔v̰eͅr̯,̅ M͓oͨṛ͌t̬̓a͑l̔,” the deadite grinned as it knelt to end the human's life.
Ash swiftly drove his chainsaw into the deadite’s mouth before squinting his eyes to focus his Sharingan on a single point on the approaching deadite. Pain beyond any other flared in his eyes as the deadite was engulfed in the searing black flames. The deadite couldn’t even let out a scream as the flames reduced its body to ashes. Ash rose to his feet before picking up his shotgun and kicking the deadite from his chainsaw; Ash looked ahead only to see a blur of his surroundings.
“Dammit,” Ash said as he closed his eyes. “When this is over, I’ve got to get these under control.”
Ash furrowed his brow as he heard the roar of several deadites. Concentrating on the surrounding sounds, the human listened to the fast-approaching footsteps. Ash raised his chainsaw before swinging it in an arch. The deadites' movements slowed to a stop as their dark blood dripped from the human’s chainsaw; one by one, their heads slid off their necks and rolled across the ground.
“Heh, first rule when facing deadites: go for the head.” Ash grinned as the bodies hit the ground. “Second rule: Shoot first, think never.”
“G͈ͤet̷ͧ͘ ͜h̢͉͢i̧m͆̏͡͏,” one deadite shouted.
Ash stood his ground and moved like lightning as the possessed corpses charged the human. One by one, the Deadites fell at the hands of the princess’s chosen protector.
Inside the Apple family home, Twilight watched, fear plastered on her face, as her bodyguard fought off the horde of the undead.
“He’s winnin’,” Apple Bloom said with a growing smile.
“For now,” Twilight said, watching from the window of the apple’s home. “After his fight with Granny Smith and Pear Jam, he’s gotta be exhausted.”
“Ah, reckon he’s running on pure adrenaline,” Applejack said, matching Twilight’s worry. “Ah, don’t know how much longer he’ll last.”
“Are we gonna die?” Apple Bloom asked, her grin fading.
“Not while I’m around,” Big Mac said as the grip on his parent’s shotgun tightened.
Back outside, Ash was letting out haggard breaths as he reloaded his shotgun. True to the farm girl's words, Ash was starting to slow down as his muscles screamed for him to stop and rest. Ash’s strength faded at a rapid pace, and the horde started to deal damage to the human. Ash looked down at the scars and slashes across his torso, groaning in pain as he felt a deadite slash his back, making him drop to one knee. A deadite grabbed him by the shoulders, a sadistic grin on their face.
"I̵̴ ̷͠got́ ̷̧tḩ̧e͘͜ firs̀t͢͢ ͟bì͝te!" The deadite unhinged its jaw like a snake and prepared to devour Ash until Ash spat in its eyes, "G̶a̢͝h!" The deadite grunted. Ash used this opportunity to pierce the deadite in the chest with his chainsaw and revved it up, carving his way up until its head split open, blood spewing forth and covered Ash in blood, his own and the deadites.
"I ain't on the menu today, you bastards!" Ash shouted as he forced himself back up to stand. Though the human was losing strength and could tell that he wasn't going to last for long, he wasn't going to let these fuckers put him down! He would choose when he died, and it was not today! "C'mon! Who wants a face full of lead and steel!" Ash provoked them as he heard them roar out, a deadite lunged at him, and Ash ducked, bringing up his chainsaw as he sliced the deadite down the middle. Its inners and blood showered down onto Ash as he shoved his boomstick inside a deadites mouth and blew its brains out.
Ash groaned as a deadite tackled him and bit down on his shoulder, making him scream out in pain. Ash growled in anger as he bit the deadites ear and ripped it off.
"Yeah, how does that feel, asshole!" Ash mocked as he pushed the deadite off him and shot it, blowing half its head clean off as it fell back. Ash picked himself up and flipped his shotgun around, using the butt of his gun to bash a deadite over the head and smack it across its face. Ash kicked it against a tree and banged its head with the butt of his gun. He quickly reloaded his shotgun and backed away as two deadites tried slashing at him with sharpened claws.
"H̛old̨ ştill̷ s̸o ͝we̕ ͏c̷an͢ ̨eat y̛ou̡!" One deadite demanded.
"W̵̧e͟͞ p͞͞rǫ̸m̨͜i̢̨s̸͏e t̷ò͢ ̶l̡ea̕v͝e͜͟ n̨͟oth́͢i҉̨n̴g tǫ̷ wa͡ste!" The other cackled.
Ash tripped over a root and fell back; firing a shell, he tore off one of the deadite's arms, but the other pounced on Ash, snapping its maw at him as it tried to tear his throat out. Ash punched the deadite and rolled on top of it, sawing its head off while turning back at the other deadite with his shotgun.
"Chew on this." Ash pulled the trigger and killed the one-armed deadite. Ash turned around and saw two deadite making their way to the Apple's homestead. "NO!" Ash tore a branch off a tree and threw it, hitting the two deadites in the head. Fortunately, it was enough to draw their attention away from the homestead. Unfortunately, it also drew their attention back to him. Ash reloaded his shotgun and yelled as he stood his ground.
"I'm the one you want! Over here!" He shouted.
His defiant shout turned into a scream of pain as a deadite slashed at his right arm and another deadite bit his calf. Ash gritted his teeth and backhanded the deadite biting his leg and sawed off its head. Aiming his shotgun at another deadite, he blasted its head off. Another deadite pounced on his shoulder, but Ash shot it; he felt his ears ringing from the blast and shook his head, trying to focus. He saw the two deadite from before charging at him, and he charged back at them, delivering a clothesline at one and stomped on its neck.
Crack!
The sound of its neck-snapping brought a smile to Ash's face as he turned to the other deadite. It lunged at him, and Ash smacked it with his shotgun, stabbing it in the head and revving up his chainsaw as he sliced its head open. Ash panted heavily as he used his shotgun to help him stand; he felt his body aching and screaming for him to rest. He looked over at the horde of deadite charging at him and sighed heavily. Despite his fleeting strength, Ash reloaded his shotgun.
"Fuck, is there any end to these fuckers?" Ash thought out loud. He glanced back at the homestead and groaned, "The things I do for these people." He chuckled weakly as he took a deep breath and readied himself. Ash let out a war cry as the deadite closed in on him. Ash slashed a deadites head off and head-butted another before impaling it on a tree branch. One deadite bit into Ash's left arm, causing Ash to scream out in pain; he gritted his teeth and used the deadite on his arm to bash into another deadite and slam them against a tree. Then, lifting his shotgun, he fired and blew their heads off.
Ash felt something grab his leg and soon found himself tossed like a ragdoll, crashing into Granny Smith's rocking chair on the porch. Ash forced himself up and groaned; he winced and held his chest, one or more of his ribs were definitely broken.
Again, Ash complained and faced the horde; as the one-handed man stepped towards them, four more deadite charged at him. Ash smacked one across the face with his shotgun and stabbed the other with his chainsaw. Then, mustering what little strength he had left, Ash tore through the deadite and slashed another deadites head off. Finally, the last deadite jumped on his back and sank its fangs into his shoulder, tearing off parts of his skin.
"AAAAAH!" Ash screamed and glared at the deadite, that son of a bitch was smiling as it ate the skin that once belonged to Ash. His eyes changed into the Sharingan, burned the deadite with black flames, and turned it to ash. Ash fell to his knees as he held his right eye. Blood dripped down as all vision on his right side was reduced to a blurry red. Ash groaned as he tried to get up, only for a deadite to kick him back down.
"Y͡͏ou'͘re̢͘ r͟u̶nn͝i͝n̶͠ǵ̀ ou̴͡t f͟um͟͞e̛͡s̛,̴ As̕͜h̵͘y͜~" The deadite mockingly sang while lifting Ash up and slamming him back down. The deadite knelt down and gripped Ash's head, lifting it up to face the homestead. "W̴hy̷ d͟o̸n't ͢you ̧h̡av̴e ͝a͟ fr̨ont-̢row ̨seat ̕t̸o o͏uŕ di̕nǹe͢r?" The deadite laughed as Ash's eyes widened in fear. He watched as the Deadites headed towards the homestead, laughing and cackling. Boasting about all the sick and twisted acts they planned to do to the residents inside.
"No! No, no, no! Wait-wait! No, wait!" Ash cried out, seeing Apple Bloom screaming in fear through the window. Ash yelled out in pure rage as he hit the deadite with his shoulder and got up. The deadite wrapped its arms around Ash and lifted him up, squeezing the life out of Ash.
"P̈oͮ̌p̷̉̃ ̛̄g̴͑͟o͆҉̸ẻś̈҉͟ ̧̛th́͘͝é̴͟ A҉̡͝s̴͝h͠y͘!" The deadite laughed. Ash glared at the deadite, leaned forward, and bit off a chunk of its throat clean. The deadite gurgled and choked on its own blood, letting Ash go, but he wasn't finished yet. He sawed off its head and used it to throw at another deadite that tried breaking down the door. Ash charged forward and fired his shotgun, blasting a deadite in the head. The deadites all turned and roared at Ash as they swarmed him. Ash let out a mighty roar as he felt a deadite slash the right side of his face. He may not be able to see on that side, but he could feel where they are whenever they struck. Ash hacked its head off and fired another shot at a deadite.
Beads of sweat rolled down his face as his limbs began to feel heavy; Ash struggled to raise his chainsaw as the deadites attacked his ragged form. Panic gripped his chest as his breath grew heavier and heavier; Ash gritted his teeth as he tried to remain standing.
“C-Can’t die,” Ash growled. “Not Here…not by these undead FUCKS!”
Little did Ash know that his violence and anger had drawn the spirits out of the dead corpses.
“Ashley, look out!” Twilight screamed out.
Ash snapped his head around and found the green glowing orbs floating above the slain deadites.
“Oh shit,” Ash groaned weakly as the spirits converged on him. “Not again!”
The spirits of the dead entered Ash’s body, sending him into a spasming fit. The remaining deadites grinned as they saw their enemy joining forces with them.
The evil and tainted energy of the spirit surged through Ash, causing him to fall to his knees. Ash slowly rose to his feet as his eyes turned white and his wounds healed. The human’s body gave off an unnatural orange glow as his body mutated from the demonic spirits inside him.
Once the transformation was complete, the possessed human let out a primal roar. Ash turned and looked straight at the Apple Family farmhouse. The occupants of said house looked into the former human’s ghastly white eyes with fear. The Demonic Williams walked towards the house and stood at the door, only to be met with the sight of the barrel of the shotgun Big Mac was holding. The large farmer aimed at Ash’s head. Ash just grinned madly and pointed his weapon at Big Mac.
“Don’t make me do this, Williams,” Big Mac growled as he prepared to fire.
“Ashley!” Twilight screamed, causing the possessed human to snap his gaze to her
A terrified Apple Bloom stood behind her sister while Twilight slowly approached Ash with caution. Unfortunately, Ash moved his gun away from Big Mac and turned it on Twilight.
“Drop the gun, Williams!” Big Mac ordered, tightening his grip.
“Ashley,” Twilight said gingerly, placing a hand on Jacob's cheek, causing his expression to soften.
“Williams!” Big Mac shouted as one of the Deadites rushed in.
In a flash, Ash spun around and fired his Boomstick; his demonic-fueled shot tore through the Deadite and sent him flying out of the house. Ash paid the current occupants no mind as he stepped back out the doorway; a feral growl escaping him as he glared at the Deadites.
“G̵̛̉͊ė͟҉͘t̵̷̆͠ ̶ͥĽ̸̴͛͡oͭͤ̋͝sͤ̍̂͝ţ̸͌͑͞!” Ash growled at the remaining dead
“Ńòt̵̛͆ͮ́ ̅̈͢͞wi͌̾t̵̴̽ͣ͠h͢o̷̡̢ͥ̈́u̢͐͢͜ţ͢͡ ͬ͟t̶́͟ĥ̛͑e̅̀ B̷̸ͦ̏ͧ̀ǫ͆ͮ̕͢oͥ̾kͪ͛̌͢͟,” one said to the mutated human. “G͡et ̡͞͝t͘͠he ͢͏B̢̛͜oo̷̶̕k̨̧,̡͢͞ ́y̴͟͟o̴u t̨͜r͡a̴̢í̴t̵̕͟ơ҉̕rơ̡us ̷̢̀ba̡͟͡stà͏̀r̶d҉҉̶.”
He charged forward with his chainsaw reared back, a mad grin on his face as he let out a war cry. Swinging his chainsaw, he carved and sliced through the deadites like butter. Ash thrust his shotgun forward and pierced straight through a deadite’s chest.
"B͎̫͓̀ö̸̦́͢o̢̡͇̳̗ͤ̃m͕̱̉̊͏͜." Evil Ash smirked as he pulled the trigger and blasted another deadite. Evil Ash reeled his head back and head-butted the deadite he stabbed with his shotgun. The force was so powerful that it completely destroyed the deadite's head, leaving nothing but a puddle of blood and brain matter.
Evil Ash ripped out his shotgun just as a deadite pounced on him from behind. Evil Ash merely glanced at it before opening his mouth wide and tearing off half of its head right off. Blood spewed like a geyser as it tried screaming but let out gurgle noises as it choked on its own blood and had half its head blown off! Evil Ash spat the deadite head out and stomped on it for good measure, blood covering the ground and door of the homestead.
The deadites roared, but Evil Ash let out an even more ear-shattering roar as his body grew and his eyes glowed. He ran towards a group of deadites and started tearing through them.
Evil Ash laughed manically as the possessed human butchered the deadites. His body was soon drenched and soaked in blood, guts, intestines, and other parts he didn't even know of. Bits of flesh and hair stuck in his teeth as he bit off many of their heads and limbs. His chainsaw sounded like a banshee as the revved-up hunk of metal sliced through bodies and bones as if they were nothing. Mutilated, chopped, and splattered bodies of deadites surrounded Ash as he was literally standing on a hill of bodies.
"I̦͊̈́̚!̧̧̣͉̓ͣ͜ ̡̐ͦA͔̬̦̾͋͘Ḿ͠!Y̨͔̅̎O̝̜͔͌̒Ü̷̝̟͛̍͢͡R̨̪͆͋!̀͡ ̴̯̀͠ͅR̟̠̩̓͑E̓̕͝C̷͉̻ͩ̍̃͞K̈́̕Ơ͙̋ͅǸ̡̜͢I̗̞͡Ṉ̛̫̭ͥ́͝G̸̝͒̿͟͞!" Evil Ash roared as he blasted a deadites head off and bludgeoned another with the butt of his gun. Then, seeing a deadite jump at him from behind, Evil Ash turned and swung his chainsaw, tearing his way up from the deadites crotch to its head, the two blood halves falling and being added to the hill of the dead.
Many Deadites surrounded Ash and piled on top of him. The others in the homestead watched in horror as they saw Ash getting swarmed. The sounds of flesh being torn off, bones breaking, and the sound of gunfire could be heard. Then…. Laughter was heard as Evil Ash's chainsaw hand burst through a deadite, and his head popped out from the pile.
Evil Ash fired off multiple shots, blowing apart limbs and heads as more and more of the spirits entered his body. Evil Ash roared louder, creating a gust of wind from his roar to blow out. Suddenly a bone popped out from his elbow, but it changed, almost becoming like a sharp blade as he used it to stab a deadite in the head and pushed it off his back. Next, evil Ash put his shotgun on his shoulder and blew off a deadite's head clean off as it fell back. Evil Ash laughed as a strange aura surrounded his chainsaw, and suddenly it burst into a fiery green blaze, sawing his way through a deadite. It burst into flames and screamed out in agonizing pain before turning to ash. Evil Ash cackled wickedly as he continued his onslaught of the deadites. Their mutilated corpses and limbs scattered all over. He even threw a limbless and headless corpse at the homestead, which crashed against the window.
“Watch where yer throwing 'em!” Applejack shouted.
Evil Ash snapped his head around and glared at the farmgirl with a ghastly white death glare.
She wisely shrunk back inside. “Sorry”
Evil Ash clenched his jaws around a deadites skull and snapped his jaws shut, laughing madly as its headless body fell limp to the floor. Throwing the headless body through another window for good measure, Evil Ash then lifted his chainsaw and cut through a group of deadites, turning them into a green blaze of fire. The strange aura surrounded his shotgun, and he fired a few shots, each round burning the deadites as they screamed in utter pain.
Cries for mercy and screams of pain rang out, but were drowned by the sound of Evil Ash’s laughter as he bathed in their blood and guts.
Finally, realizing there was no way to combat their opponent as he was, the last remaining Deadites turned and fled.
But retreat would not save them: Evil Ash let out a feral growl as he chased after his prey. Ash managed to sever the head of one of the remaining deadites. Ash looked ahead and found three more deadites running off the grounds of the Apple Family Farm. With a low growl, he left the farm and chased the dead into the streets of Canterlot.
Twilight tried to chase the possessed human only for Big Mac to grab her arm.
“It’s not safe,” Applejack said, grabbing Twilight as well. “Not while he’s like that.”
“But he needs my help.”
“Unless you can match his speed,” Big Mac said, observing the distance between Ash and the home. “Which looks to be somewhere between twenty to twenty-five, ain’t no way in hell you catching up to him.”
Twilight still gave Ash a worried look, but her head slumped in resignation. Applejack left for her room and returned with her phone pressed to her ear.
“I’ll give Rainbow a call and explain everything,” Applejack explained as she heard the phone ring on her end. “Rainbow’s Ma is a lawyer. She’ll help your boyfriend if he gets in trouble.”
“He’s not my boyfriend!” Twilight shouted before forcing herself to calm down. “And are you sure her mother will be able to help him?”
“That woman loves her daughter too much,” Big Mac replied. “If Rainbow asked her to commit murder, she’d ask with what weapon.”
“No, she wouldn’t,” Applejack argued.
“Oh yes, she would,” Big Mac replied.
“She would, honestly,” Apple Bloom said with a nod.
The deadite ran at top speed into the streets of the city. Jumping over cars and running past the citizens, the Deadite did all it could to avoid its current pursuer. Unlike the Deadite, who swerved through the people, Ash tackled through the people with a vengeful gaze that never left the demon's backside. Ash followed the demon corpse to the alleyway behind Sugar Cube Corner. The deadite turned to escape only to find Ash blocking the way out. The Deadite gritted its rotting teeth as it looked around for a way out; the corpse's attention was turned back to the possessed human when his chainsaw revved its blade.
Out of options, the Deadite rushed forward to attack the possessed Human. Once within range, Evil Ash swung his weapon in a horizontal arc. However, the deadite foresaw this and ducked down before sliding under his legs. The Deadite slashed at his Ash’s legs before jumping to its feet, and the possessed human let out a pained growl as he swung his blade behind him. The deadite backed up and barely evaded the razor chain on his blade. The possessed corpse grinned as he turned and bolted back onto the streets; however, the corpse took one step on the road and was immediately hit by a car which screeched to a stop.
Ash Jumped up and landed on the hood of the stopped car; the human let out a roar as he leaped at the downed Deadite. Evil Ash slammed his left foot onto the deadites back before shoving his shotgun into the deadite’s mouth; with a vile grin, the possessed human squeezed the trigger.
"B͎̫͓̀ö̸̦́͢o̢̡͇̳̗ͤ̃m͕̱̉̊͏͜," Ash said, unloading both barrels into the deadites
The sight of the brutality caused everyone who witnessed the scene to run away in absolute fear; Ash pulled his chainsaw and shotgun from the headless corpse as he heard the sound of sirens fast approaching. Then, the possessed human turned and was met with the sight of several police cruisers; Ash let out a growl as the cruisers came to a stop.
The police jumped out of their cars and immediately pointed their firearms at the possessed humans; however, one of the officers stepped forward with his taser in hand.
“Hold fire,” The officer in question has two shades of blue hair, and as he spoke up, his free hand was on his primary firearm.
“Captain Armor, you can’t be serious?”
“I am,” Shining Armor said, turning his gaze to Ash. “Lower your weapons and get down on the ground.”
Ash just glared at the captain as he stepped towards the police squad.
“Don’t come any closer,” Armor ordered, pulling out his gun.
Ash continued to advance toward the captain; however, he froze as his gaze turned to the east. The first rays of the morning sun peered through the building gaps; the possessed human was standing right in the sun's rays which caused his body to twitch as he bellowed out an agonizing howl.
Shining Armor fired his taser at the human as the spirits left his body. Once returned to normal, Ash blinked before noticing the metal spikes enter his body.
“Oh, f…” Ash was cut off when fifty thousand volts coursed through his body. His body stiffened as he fell backward onto the ground. “I… Fucking…” Ash jittered out past the voltage. “Hate this world!”
Shining gave the downed man another shock; Ash’s body spasmed violently before passing out.
Due to his injuries, the unconscious Ash was taken to Canterlot General Hospital. The police handcuffed him to his bed despite being treated and unconscious. While Ash recovered from his injuries, a woman with graying orange hair and a black suit conversed with Captain Armor.
“Mrs. Whistles, I understand what you’re talking about,” Shining Armor responded with a nod as he crossed his arms. “Ever since Canterlot High Fall Formal two years ago, this city has seen its fair share of bizarre and unexplainable events.” The captain looked around to make sure nobody could hear him. “Most of which had your daughter and her friends involved,” Shining whispered to the lawyer. “However, unlike said events, this time it was observed by several eyewitnesses who saw ‘a crazy man with a chainsaw murder someone…’” Shining then lowered his voice again. “Someone who was more skeleton than flesh.”
Shining rubbed his eyes from the oncoming headache. “And because this was seen, I can’t just let him go.”
“I’m still calling in my favor,” Wind Whistles said nonchalantly.
“You can’t be serious?” Shining asked, waiting for the joke. “I can’t break the law over a favor.”
“You owe me, Armor,” Whistles hissed. “Had my husband not hacked the crystal prep cameras, Cadence would be in prison, you’d be flipping burgers, and your daughter would’ve grown up calling some stranger daddy.”
Shining Armor sighed in defeat. “Alright…The best I can do is send him to one of the underperforming mental hospitals. It’ll be easy enough for him to break out.”
“Thank you, Armor,” Windy proudly smiled as she left the officer by Ash’s door.
“Honestly, I’m glad she cashed it in now” Shining shuddered at his next thought. “I don’t know if I could have handled her using that favor to hide a body.”
Ash opened his eyes and groaned as he rolled out of the uncomfortable bed and onto the floor. Ash slowly got on his feet and immediately noticed the lack of a chainsaw and the loose pure white clothing.
“What the hell am I wearing?” Ash shouted before looking around. “And where the fuck am I?!
With no warning, the door opened up, revealing a man in a white with a black baton attached to his hip.
“You’ve got 10 minutes, lady,” the guard said to the side, shoving a wad of cash in his back pocket. “Make it fast.”
An orange-haired woman walked in, wearing a suit that screamed ‘lawyer.’
Ash gritted his teeth; he was never a fan of Lawyers. Especially since his bastard of a father was one of the best lawyers in town.
“Mr. Williams,” the woman approached with her hand outstretched. “My name is Windy Whistles, and I’ll be the lawyer covering your case.”
Ash glared at her right hand before raising his nub.
“I’m not really in the mood to shake nubs, lady,” Ash said. “Just cut the bullshit and tell me where the hell I am and what the fuck you want?”
“Straight to the point, I see” Windy nodded in understanding. “You’re currently in Sunny Meadows Mental Hospital. I managed to put you here after your little…Episode.”
“I didn’t have an episode, I was fighting….”
“I know,” Windy cut him off. “My daughter explained what happened on her girlfriend's farm.” She took a deep breath and lowered her voice. “You were put here so you can break out.”
“And if I can’t,” Ash asked with a raised eyebrow.
“If two weeks pass and you haven’t escaped, I’ll build a case to get you out of here.”
“No pressure, then,” Ash scoffed.
“I’ll see you when you get out of here,” Windy said as she turned and left.
As Windy Whistles left, Ash couldn’t help but shale his head.
“I hate lawyers,” Ash said, balling his fist up. “The most greedy and self-centered creatures on the planet.” The human made himself breathe. “However, she seems to care about her daughter.” The thought brought to mind the one man Ash hated above all. “Fucking bastard,” he growled.
Ash Williams was not happy. As a matter of fact, he was absolutely livid. Over the course of the next couple of months, Ash had tried to escape from the mental hospital. Each and every time, he was met with failure and an excessive amount of beating from the guards. To make matters worse, the case Mrs. Whistles was building was not doing any better than he was.
Ash sat against the couch, waiting for his time to kick in. Instead, however, the Guard called out to him.
“Williams!” The guard opened the door revealing a woman with purple hair streaked with violet. “Your Sister is here.”
“Sister?” Ash muttered before laying his eyes on Twilight. “Ah.” He nodded, before slumping back. “Six months, and I’m still here. Mrs. Whistles is doing great on my appeal case.”
Before Twilight could enter, the guard took the book she was holding. “Sorry, lady, but this book stays.”
“It’s nothing more than my college algebra textbook,” Twilight said, taking the book back and flipping the pages, showing nothing inside. “The worst this’ll do is put my brother to sleep.”
The guard nodded and let her into the room; the purple-haired woman sat on the couch next to Ash.
“Hey Ashley,” Twilight greeted with a smile. “Doing okay.”
“Well enough,” Ash admitted, before quirking an eyebrow. “Sister?”
“Sunset’s idea,” Twilight replied with a roll of her eyes as she reached into her pocket. “She managed to make this for me.” She pulled out an Id card.
“Twilight Sparkle Williams?” Ash read.
“Again. Sunset’s idea,” Twilight admitted with a slight blush. “Anyway, I figured out a way to get you out of here.”
Ash laughed. “Oh, really. Cuz I’ve tried every escape plan from every movie I’ve seen,” Ash jutted a thumb at the guard outside. “Apparently, these fuckers have foreseen a Shawshank escape.”
“But they won’t be expecting this,” Twilight said, showing the book to Ash.
Ash gave her a skeptical stare. “You’re going to get me out with an algebra textbook?”
“Use those eyes of yours,” Twilight replied. “Peer through the illusion.”
Understanding, Ash narrowed his eyes as they turned into Sharingans; his eyes widened as he saw the Necronomicon under the Illusion spell.
“You cannot be serious!” Ash barely avoided shouting, so as not to alert the guard.
“I’ve managed to find a page that lets me summon a demon,” Twilight said with slight pride. “I’ve also found a way to keep it sealed within an arcane spell circle.”
“Twilight!” Ash grabbed the book. “You know what happened the last time you read from this thing. I’m begging you, don’t!”
“Ashley, we’ve been gone from Equestria for six months!” Twilight insisted, pulling the book back towards her. “We need to get back, and I refuse to leave without you!”
Before Ash could utter a word, the guard came back and called out. “Alright, Lady, times up.”
“Twilight, please,” Ash begged, desperation leaking into his voice. “Just wait a little bit longer.”
But all the princess offered was an apologetic look. Then the guard closed the door, separating them.
“Great,” Ash groaned as he ran his hand through his hair. “Now I need to save Two worlds.”
Unknown to Ashley Jacob Williams, Twilight listened to her bodyguard's plea.
For a full week, she researched, investigated and scrounged for any other solution. But nothing else came up. The book was her only option.
In that time, she also tried to help out their friends. After the Apple Family farmhouse wreck, the Apple family went to stay with their Aunt and Uncle Orange. After helping them get settled in, Twilight and Sunset found temporary residence with Pinkie Pie. Much to the princess’s ire, the party pony insisted that she hold a sleepover to cheer her up, just like the time they had to face the Sirens.
Once everyone had gone to bed, Twilight snuck out and made her way down to Pinkie’s party basement. A place that Twilight still found odd, regardless of whether it was in either world, but it allowed Twilight to find a space in the middle of the room where she could summon and contain the demon.
“Okay,” Twilight said to herself, opening the Necronomicon. “So, the book says that the circle needs to be drawn with salt…” Twilight looked around the room and saw many blank jars and bottles. But none of them were labeled. Twilight pondered over a jar that could’ve easily been sugar just as much as it could’ve been salt. “How does Pinkie find anything that isn’t labeled?”
“I just grab what feels right,” A pink hand passed Twilight’s head and grabbed a jar off the shelf.
Twilight nearly jumped out of her skin when she turned around and fumbled over the Book of the Dead. “Pinkie!? What are you doing here?”
In response, Pinkie lifted her right arm showing a pink watch that was flashing red. “I was alerted that someone entered my Party Room.” The pink-haired girl pressed a button on her watch, quenching the red light.
“Um… you didn’t….”
“I did,” Pinkie said with a wide grin. “So, what kind of circle were you going to draw?”
Twilight just stared at the party planner with pure confusion. “You… want to help me?”
“At the chance to meet somebody new? Absolutely!” Pinkie gleamed as she handed the jar to Twilight.
Now more than ever, Twilight found that Pinkie Pie was easily the most bizarre of all her friends. “T-Thanks, Pinkie”
Twilight opened the jar and began pouring the salt to form a circle; the princess glanced to the now opened book and back to the circle. The Princess started to add more detailed runes and marks within the circle; once the circle was complete, Twilight stood back and admired her accuracy.
“OOO!” Pinkie awed. “So, what now?”
“Candles placed on each of the star points,” Twilight instructed. She barely got time to look up from the book before Pinkie had set seven lit candles exactly where Twilight had specified. The party planner bounced on her heels eagerly.
“What’s next?” Pinkie said with an ever-growing smile
“Well… we read from the Book,” Twilight said, taking a deep breath to steady her nerves.
‘Calm down. We have the barrier. No matter what, this demon can't hurt us.’
“illud non moritur quod polleat usque morari” Twilight chanted as a powerful gust of wind blew through the basement, tossing many of Pinkie’s files all over the room. “temporibus miris, Mors, potes ipsa mori.”
At the same time, a chilling wind blew into Pinkie’s room, causing the rest of the Humane Six to wake up.
“Woah,” Applejack mumbled. “Does anyone else feel like death warmed over them,” Applejack said to the others.
“You’re not the only one, AJ,” Rainbow said, already shivering.
“Um… girls?” Fluttershy whispered. “Where’s Twilight and Pinkie?”
Another gust of wind blew past them and cracked Pinkie’s window. The lights flickered on and off as the walls oozed green slime! No. Wait? That’s another show!
A chill ran down Applejack’s spine as she heard chanting from somewhere in the house.
“We need ta find Twilight and Pinkie,” Applejack said, jumping to her feet. She rushed out of the room as the sound of chanting increased.
“Izg voco lat un threm tok ob threm slaiug; ghashkrum izub bugd; Pharynx,"
The chanting grew louder as the group found Pinkie’s party basement glowing with a dark and sinister light.
Twilight’s friends descended the stair and were met with a glowing circle in front of the chanting Twilight.
Anger welled inside Applejack as she saw Twilight reading from the book that wrecked her home and killed her grandmother. Applejack stomped over with an intent to stop whatever the princess was doing.
However, Pinkie stepped in front, blocking the farm girl in her tracks.
“AJ, wait!” Pinkie pleaded.
But Applejack shoved her aside. “What in God’s name are ya doing, Twi?!” Applejack shouted, grabbing Twilight by her shirt. “I lost my Granny and my home because of those demons, and you want to summon another?”
Twilight said nothing to Applejack; all she did was finish her incantation. “ghashkrum izub bugd; Pharynx!”
The Candles erupted in massive pillars of dark red flames, smoke filled the inside of the circle as a series of blood-red eyes opened.
“W̙̥h̼̜͎̰͐â͉̙̇̏t̲ ͚̒̍ͬf͚͕̳͊ͅo̺̝̬͖ͥͭ̃o̘̺ͯ̅ͧl͗ͩ ̬d̗̹̹̤ͨ̒̿̚a̬̟̰̰ͨ̚r̦̘͑̋̾ͯe̙̩̭s̘̭͐ͅ ͙̞̎ͦ̆̒s̪̗̙͓ͧ̿̒u͓̅ͪ̓m̰͖̫̌̓ͭ̎m͎̺̰̖oͥͫ́̓ṇ̻́̈̑ͤ ̲͈̳̼t̪̃̒h̊e̟̰͙͆̎̀ ͕̈lï̞̲̞ͪk̐ͭe̬̜͑s̗̺̠̺̐̈͛̄ ̞͈̎o̝̺̣͚ͫͬ̓̂f͎̂ͪͤͅ ͪ̊m̤̊̋̏͊e͈̝̥͒ͅ ̂t̖͕̱̰͊ͪo̪ ͚̘̥͙ͫt̗̓h̰̦̀̄ͭͣis̓ ̖̟m̎o͐ͯr̳̹̞̼ͤ̅̍̅t̤̩̖͈a̫͕ͤl̝ ̄ͤp͔͗̇ḽ̞̟͚̽͒a̲̎ͪ̌͐n̻͐̎̿̚e?” a dark and insidious voice called out from the smoke.
Fear gripped everyone – save Pinkie and Twilight - as the smoke dissipated, revealing a demon that towered over everyone in the room. The demon stood on a pair of canine-like legs as a pair of boney arms protruded from its arched back. Nine scorpion tails jutted from its backside, each dripping venom. Chains adored its body, and it glared at the human with six angry eyes. His eyes narrowed as the demon smiled, revealing rows of sharp teeth. From his mouth came a freakishly long tongue which slithered towards the girls.
“W͉͔h̘o̱̲̓ͦͤ̓ ̺̭̯͍̊D͙̥͋ͪa͉r͎̠͙̹ͬ́̽ḛ̽sͬ̍ ͙͔̩͉̎̍S̩̱̩͐u̗m̖̘̣̔̂̉ͮm̥͇ōn̻̙̊̓̍͌ ͔͆ͨͨͨP̗̖̏ͯh̗̗͚͈a̦̓ͅr̹͚ͩͬtṇ͆x͌̽,͓̠͔͑̇̈́̊ ̞ͩ̈́̈́t̫̻͎ͯ͑ͅh̫̓ê͙͍̾̽̑ ͖̲̯̉̃C͎͖̺ͪͭ̄a̻̻̩͌ͩ͂̃t̳a̎̂c̠̔ͫ̿̚ĺͦ͗ͮy̒͒ṡ͛̐̉m͖ͨ̅́̔i̙̬̺ͮͮ̎c̩̹ ̲̟͕ͤͯ̊̉D̠͉̮̐ém͉̖͖̐o̻̭̖̣̊n̙̣̭͕ ̱͈̆̑̃o̗̙̯̠f̝ͦ̚ ̬̪̫͋Ḋ͈̉͋e͊̊̿̔ș̳͂̑ͯͤͅö̺̠̱ͯ́ͩl͉̿͋ͦa͇̰͑t̬ͣị͓̱͛ͤö̩̞̗ͮ̀͐n͇͓̬̄?” the demon grinned as he stepped to the edge of the barrier.
The girls backed away in growing fear of the demon. Twilight, however, walked up to him.
The demon’s smile faded at her lack of fear. His eyes widened when she spoke.
“I summoned you, Pharynx!” Twilight declared.
“Y̼̱ͪo͕̩͔͎ŭ̦̙̀ͅ.̹̯̤.̞̫͋.̘d̤̏oͧn̠'̝ṭ̥̹̲.͔.̬͕ͨ̐̄.” the demon stammered in disbelief. “D͔͉o̼n̪̲̭̺͒ͪ'̟̒͒̽ͤͅṱ̬́ͅ ̹̱̗̰ͮ͌̇ÿ̤̬̑͆ȯͯ͌͐u͑̄ ͉̉̓́f̥̊e͚͆͒ͧa̫̭̲̲̽̐r̜̹̳̣ ̻̞m̱̼̖ͣ̔̓ͅe͍̭̙̼͌͂͐?”
Twilight glared the demon down. “No.”
The demon matched Twilight’s glare… before blowing a raspberry. “Ŵ̃ĥ̝̫́â͋t͗̅'s̔̂ ̙̳t͕̯h̼̦e̘̟ ͖̥̓ͦf͑̐ṷ͉̓̊nͣ ͙̯̓́i̮n ̘us͍ͬi͈̰̒n̒̾g̾̓ ̝̍t̹̲̒̓h͉̾̍i̘̭s̄̊ ͙̱f̊̚o͉r̞͈͛̎m ̤w̃h́e̞̘͊nͩ ͙it͖ͤͫ ̤̞͆̎d̏o͉ͩes̳n̖͓'͍ͥ̾t̩̐ ̯̍s̱ca͉͛̒rͫ̾e͙̱ͨ ͙͂ͨa͎ͯ͆n̅ỳoͥn͆e̞̦?” Pharynx sighed in frustration as the smoke returned, covering him almost like a wardrobe.
When the smoke dissipated, Pharynx now stood as a more humanoid figure; he still towered over everyone, but he still resembled a human. With obvious differences: his skin was a midnight black similar to his previous form. A long-jagged horn jutting from his forehead, and a glowing gem hung from his left ear. The chains that had once covered his body were replaced with a pair of dress pants and a white long-sleeved shirt. Pharynx opened his eyes, showing black sclera with pure red pupils. His sharp teeth remained, as he proved with a smile.
“W̘ͨ̀e̦͈̥̗͛ͬͯ̒l̫̠l̞̰̔͆ ͨ͋ẗ͎̜͙͈́̐̋h͈̯̼͍ͯ͊́e͉̅n̈̓ͭ̓,” Pharynx said, clearing his throat. “A̞͇͈͊l̮̖̻̒̈l͈͋ͨ̍o͎̫ͨ̌̆̄w͇̭̬̓̐ ͚̍̍m̾ė̯͖̮ͫͩ ̓t͎̞̳ͮo͖̔̽ͪ ̭̝͖i͈n̖̯̽͂t̥͕̝̹ͩ̏r͇͗o͓ͯͯ͒d͓̲̝̏̐ͩ̋u̩̦c͙̠̣̓̚eͥ̚ ̠̙̱̥ͪ̍̈́ͭm͕̄͆ͦy͆s̻̏̑̋ͅe̪̹̜͋ḻ̹̥̱ͫ͊̊̊f̳̱̒̓ ̟̺̪̿͌ͯ̈́m͍̰͆ͬͅo͐́ͪ̚r̄̉̃e̻ͦ͑͆ ̗ͫͣͣͅf͚̱̼̎ͣ̀o̫̱͑r̤̰ͪṁ͕͓̳ͥ̈ͅḁ͈͋l͖̞̰̗ͣl̝̥̋ͥ̌ỷ͓̪̝͉.” He placed his right hand over the left side of his chest and lightly bowed. “Ị̉͆ͅ ̼a̙̭m̯̠̌ ͕͓̓́D̠e̋̓m͈͉o̰̺nͥ ̭̼K̞i̭͑n͇͉g͂ͮͅ ͤͦP̬̊̌ḣ͇ͫã̘̿r͚̞ͩ͌y̰̘͗̈́ṉͮx,̻͂ ͓̓̂T̝̠ͤh̠͇e͓͇ ͛ͬD̅e̱m͕̺ͤo̰͔͌n ̦̅of̞̳͂ ͓̲C̟͑a͇̺ͮt͙a̼̮ͭ̊c̦̝͋l̦y̥̻ͯs̞̳̀mͣi̩̗̔͊c͔͑͌ ̥͔̈D͖̫es͇ͣͨͅl̼̦ö͇͖aṭͭi̜o̦n.”
“D-Demon King?” Fluttershy stammered out in fear.
“W̘ͅe͇l̈́̍ḻ̦̎̾,͇ ͈̖̂òṋ̪ͯl̂ý̥ ̫̜u͐̆n̝ͩ̏t͐ilͦͅ ̼͚̾̽m̪̞͋ͫy̭̰ͤ̚ ͎b̘͚r̖̐ͬo̭t̮ͦhe͂ͩr̹̎ͫ ̗̔r͙̮͑e̤͌̓ͅțu̱̎r̠̟̒n̄s͔,” Pharynx said, rolling his eyes before returning his gaze to Twilight. “No̘͗̒w̼̉.̮͖͐ͧͪ.͊͆̔.͈̝̗̋̆̓Wh̖̳̀̇̉ͅâ͙̭͆̚t͉͍ ̙͔͕̒do̝̿ͨeṣ̭̠̄ͫ ̜͍ͯ͌̚t̓ͤ̎h͊e̻͇͐̍̃ͅ Ǐ̫̊̓m̰̫̠͆m͎̻̔or͔͇ͮ͊ͅt͔̠͙ͮ̑͋ă̟̋̃l̲̤͌̓ w̹an͙͊̓͂t̲̱̫ ̘̻̱f̦̯̉r̺͍o̓͗̓m͕̤̙ͤ ̭̹͛me̟̎ ̱͕̦̉̃â̫͛ṉ͍̩̐́͒d̩̾ ͚̠ͪmy͉̥͖ͨ̋͌ ̪͚̬ͭͪk̔i͕̠̜͒ͪn̪ͨ̿?”
Twilight was taken aback by this. “How do you…?”
“K̏͋n͔̠̙ͦ͛o̯w̟̦̖̎̂̿ ̝͛̉y̮o̤̠̮u̗̜̾̇'̦̉̈ͥr̮ͨe̟̱̲͋̂ͬ ̻̺̤̓Î̌̊m͎̭͙̚m̜̻̺̌o̘̹̹r̥t͉ḁ̺̅l̫͍̅͐̆?” Pharynx asked with a grin. “Y̖̻͌ͯ͌o̓̄u̺̲̓̑ͅr͕͙͓̃ a̤̙̱̐u̫r̙̯̼ͦa.”
“R̘̩͍̔̓é̙͍̞̈́ă̦̗̘͓ͤͪ̅l̜̹̣ ͉̬̲̔a̫̼̩s͎̣͌ ͕͇t̹h̟̿̅̀ͭẹ͉̝̗ͬ̍̓y͔͇̲͑ͭ͑ c͙ͪo͍̟̰m͕͚͕̘̅e͚ͧ̇,͎͚̟͓ͮ̅ ͐ͨ͗l̚iͣt̝̗̤̞̋̓́̑t̙͙̅̌̌l̪̞͎̓e̯̞͇͍ͦ̓ ̝̈g̞̗̘̻̓ir̬̹̯ͦlͬ,” the demon’s voice echoed in Rainbow’s mind, causing her to gasp and swat at her head.
“I’d like to make a deal with you, Pharynx,” Twilight said, pulling the demon’s attention away from the others.
“Ḁ̽h̐̀̾̚,” Pharynx grinned and clapped his hands. “S͛̆̂o̥͕͂̋ ̱̰̹t́h͇̤͈̒̎a͎̫ͨ̚t̗͔̋̎'̽͐s̻͗̾̽͂ ̈́̀̽̃ŵ̭̤͂ͧͩh̜͊ÿͬ̒ͫ ͕͔̣͓ȳ̹̮͇͑o̜͋ͫ̆̄ǘ̼͓͈̫̓̚ ͇̳͔͍͐͋sͩ̇ͥ̊u͍̩͔mm̩ͪ̍ͩͤoͣ̃̉ͩn̝͆ͪĕ̙̳͈d̠̹̯̟͋ ͇͈̼ͣ͋̐m̫̲͍͑ḙ̮̌̓ͅ?” He got down to meet the princess’s height. “S̮̀ͅo ͉̅th̬ͧͥe̱͉ͦ̐n̄̈́,̒̔ L͖̗̍ͭi͛tt̪̋l̫̋̚e͉ ͇I̬m͖̝ͤͨȯr̟̬ta̝͖͒l̞̅̋,͖̼ ̱̑w͙͊ha̻̍t͔̰ ̥ͨ̎de͋a̻̺ͤͭl̺ ͙̗ͦ͋ḓ͎ͭo̟ ͓̹͑̀y͐o̞̥ͦu̮̩ͭ ͇̗w̚a͉͇̚n͉͔t̟ͯ ̯t̟̤̂o̰͗̑ mͯake̻͐̃?”
“There is a man locked in a mental hospital,” Twilight explained to the demon. “Jacob Ashley Williams. I want him out.”
“No!” Twilight barked, matching his glare. “Ashley is to leave that place with no harm to him or anyone around him.”
“S̥̳̏͆o͇̲.̖̐ͮ.̩ͅ.̤̤̿̌ ̥͋̚Y͍o̎u̒̇ ͧ̿w̅a͗n͋̚ẗ̮͔ ̇hí̳̹̈m̑̆ ô̠u̺̭̿tͦ̋,̍̇ ͍̆̚ǎ̠ͦn͈̑d̼ͨ ̗y͊̚o͍̣̾u ̲̋ẃͤa̤̾̇ṇ͈̿t̏̾ ̥͆h̠͋̎ỉ͕̲̐m̰͔̎̋ ͙ͪá̪nd̑͛ ̼ͯͅan̙̋̄y͓̗ͯͮo̳̲̓͗ne̩ ̘͊gu͖ar̽ͅd̖͌í̼n̻͚̂͊g̳͎ͩ̽ ̝͖ͣͦh͓̾i͐̆mͪͅ ̞̤̃͂uͣn̤̘͆h͍͉a͑͆r͕̐me̲dͯ?” Pharynx gave the princess a vile grin. “T̓̿ȟa̼̬̓͆t̖͔ͥ'̱̍s͖̣̅͑ ̩̂̆q͎̪̽u̠ì͉̋t̹̲e̻̦ ̯̖̈̉ạ̏̂ ̩̮̄̑fe̓w̠ ̣ͫṯh̟̓͒iͥ̊n͚̭g̏s̋ ̗y͕͎̿ǒ̔uͩ ̼ͯ͐w̦̟a̓n̠t,̦̂̽ ̱a̖̱̐̒ń͉̠ḋ͑ ̆å͌s͎̆ͯ ͂ͪy͇̍o̱̻͆ͪuͅ ̫ͣk̤̿ͣnͥͭo̤̩̔w̺ͧ̇, ̖͓̈́͌n̹̟ͦͤo̥͔̓ͤth̫̱i͉͆̄n̦̹̑̌g̭͛ ͖̒í̞ͅsͬ ̖̳ͧͮf̟̑r͉e͈͈͒ͩe̳͙ i͍͙ͪn ̅̃tͤ̐hͦ̒i͈̯͑sͅ ̺o̼r̓͑ ̙̙a͉n͉̹̄ͣy͋ ̩ẉ̂̎or̮͑ḷ͑d̯̹.”
“Whatever you want, you ain’t gettin’ it!” Applejack snapped.
“B̹͔̞̼͒̄̍̍e ̎ͭ͌s̩͚̑ͫ̓̚ḭ̼̤̓ḷ͙̗̙͗̃̊ͣe͇̻͈ͧ̋̎n͔̭͒t͚̋͛̑;͖̠̓ ̯̫m̯͓͕͋o̩̩̳ͮȑ̻̄t̝̮̝ͥ́̉ͅǎ̆l̗͙̃ͮ͛͊,” Pharynx said, his fierce gaze causing Applejack to tense up.
“I will handle this, Applejack,” Twilight said, only sparing her friend a brief glare before returning her fierce gaze to the demon. “What do you want, Pharynx?”
“Twilight, dear!” Rarity protested. “You can’t seriously trust this demon.”
“For Ashley,” Twilight said, placing a hand over her heart. “I’d give up my life to ensure he’s safe.”
Pharynx chuckled. He rose back up, his chuckle rising as well into a full-blown laugh. The others tensed and shivered at his ominous amusement.
“I̥ͭ ͥlͤḭ͕̽k̮̜e̪̪ ͕̝y̼͎ͦo͊̚u̪̩, ̆L͍͕it̼̃͗t̟l̬̫̆ẻ̘ ͓̻͑I̲̰m̠m̂̎oͯr͕̠̎ṯ͖̽ͥa̮l!” the demon declared through his laughter.
Twilight merely jutted her chin as the demon collected himself.
“A͖ͩͣl͖̲r͔i̿̏g͙ͫh͓̺ͫtͯ,” Pharynx said once he had calmed down. “Le͙ͫt̐’s̝ s͇eͤt̻̄tle t̮h̜is ̋in̲̔ ̼rě̙v̜̾e͕rs̮ͬe;ͫ ̩̃i̦n̪ͮ ĕ͓x̖͆cͅh̙͆aͦn̉g̰e f͂o̳r̙ ̙͌y͔ou̖r͊ ̳lͤi͕ͦt̻t̾le͉̋ ͔b͍ö̦y t͋oͬy͖ le͕àv̠̾ing̅ ̈́w̞̎ith ̰lͭitt͙͒lͭe tͦǒ ͇ͪno̳ ͛h̫̍a̜r͇̆m̚,̝ͫ ͉I̞ ̄w͍͊ant̲ ̾y͈ͣȏ͔u̙ ͣto ͕̌b̤r͓e͇a͕̎ǩ̘ ͆t̋hǐs͕͒ ̯͊cịͣrĉlͮeͅ ̯͌a̟ͨnd͒ l̺e̯ͪt͙ͩ ̝m̳̑ė̺ ̣̐o̲u͔t̞.”
“What!?” Applejack shouted, pulling Twilight back. “Twilight, no! Think of the last demons we met! Ya can’t!”
Before Twilight could say a word, the barrier around the demon broke, and all eyes turned to Pinkie, who stood in front of the demon with a bright smile and her hand outstretched.
“Hi, I’m Pinkie Pie,” Pinkie beamed before being tackled by Fluttershy.
“What have you done?!” Fluttershy squeaked out.
However, Pharynx didn’t attack. Instead, he looked around. His nose scrunched up, before he covered it with a hand. “Ȉ̐t̚ ͭ̎s̫̓t̪̽ͯin̖͎k̩͓̉̉s̬͇͊ ̭i͚n̝̰ ͫ̅h̼͚̾̆e̲ͭr͈̹ͩ̉eͫ.”
“Hey!” Pinkie protested, knocking Fluttershy off her. “I’ll have you know that my party room is always clean and smells like cupcakes and candy!”
“Pinkie, Sh!” Fluttershy begged, trying to pull her away from the demon.
“N͐̓o̳t̲͙̑ͦ ͍̪ṱ̰h͉ͦ̚e̹͍ ̽ṟ̚o͙̳͆͆ōͣm̜,” Pharynx said, looking at Twilight’s book. “Y̮͚͐͆o͍ͫu̞r̘̲ ͔͙ͤͩw̥̱oͭ̐r͈̟̂l̅d̥͋ ̣͐̈́i̤̗̓s̬̞̃͆ ͔̿̿fī͖l͎l̳̂̈́e͑̉dͯ ̦̩ͭͥwͯi͙th͉̃ ̝͋ͨͅe͍ͩv̜i͌ḻ!” He snatched the book up.
“No, wait!” Twilight called out.
But the Demon was already reading.
“K̫ã͇͉n͑̅d͔á͉̣͌ ̂H̘̮a̫z̫ͦỏ̘͊n̦ͅ S̳̑e͕ͩc̹̚t̫o̮͑r̀ͯiṅ̦ͩo̭͊ ̤̥͊̑B͇̽̌aͧn̈g͂e̻m̻̒ͯ ̊̒Hͣå̲͛n͆g̅ͥẽ͓m̭̬͗̓ ̺̜W̥ͮͤa̫̯̋̔n̞͐ͨg̭ͪ,” Pharynx chanted as a small portal opened next to him.
Applejack gasped as she saw thousands and thousands of green, spiritual orbs enter the portal. Once the demonic spirits disappeared with the portal, the Demon inhaled deeply through his nostrils.
“Ṃục̭͔ͪḫ ͕͙ͦ͆be̻̅t̞̹̊t̮̊̿è̞ͪr̮̪,” Pharynx closed the book and handed it back to Twilight. He then fixed Applejack with an irritated glare. “A̟ṋ̽ͬd̾ I͓̮ͪ̏’mͪ ̤ȃ ͫde͈͆̉m̯o̝n͆ͦ ̇oͯͨf ͇Ca͇t̞̬͂̀acͅl͙y̅̏s͚̮mi͖̣c̤ ͣ̚f̣͚ucḵ̱ͤ̆iͅn̉ͤg ̘̣ͩ͛D̳̎͐ẹsͣͬo͍͆̚l̪ͮͤa͌̀t̰̭̉i͉̰oͭ̚n̩.̠͓ ̙͉̔͋Iͧf̬ ̭̒͋I̹̪ ̆w̤̎̉ä́͆n̹ͮ̊t͆͐e̠͊d͕̱ͧͦ ̺̹̓ͪt͕̲ͦ̉o̝ ̤̜͒̒cö̬̹͂n͔̦qu͊͑e̠͉r̮̜̈ ͔̣̑̊th͉̮i͎͉s̘ͣ ̘̮w͕͌o̘̿̒r̋l͓̥d̘͖,̯͆ ̹̫͒͊I̝ ̽ͦw͙ͦo̝̥u̐̔l̿̄dͦͭn̺̼ͩ’͇̌t̖̺ ̣u̼͂̚sê͑ ͗so͍̓m̥̹̔̾e͉̝ ̖̘s̝ͩ̽tuͧpi͉̤͌̇d͓͔ͤ ̗b͑̊oỏk̦̲ͣͣ.” Pharynx turned his irritated gaze to the Princess. “Â͗ ͓͔͂b̙oo̮̒́k͗ ̏t͖̞͌h͎̑̿aͩ̾t ̰ͥ̑dͨ̅ö̔es̱ no̰̤ͤ̈t͉ ̫͇b̻e͇̘lo̙̣n̊͌ͅg ĭ̹n̞̩ͭͭ ẗh̎̅i̾ś̼͇ ̥͇͒ŵ͊o͈ͥͤṟ̀̐lͫd̞͚̄, ̳̓Iͥ̿ ͆m͓ͬi̅g͐ḫͧ̆ṫ ͦa̘d͔͇̿̅d͙͂.”
“I know,” Twilight shrank back as she gripped the Necronomicon. “Now, what will it take to get Ashley out of that hospital.”
“Th̗ͭa̤t̻ͫͯ ̭̄p̻ͯ̆ri̹ͨͅc͖̼ẹ̞̆̆ ͈͇w͙̅ͪḯ̞̯̇l̑͂lͩ ͍ḇ̩̽è͈̠͒ ͪͤq̪ui͐ͦt͔ͤ̋e ͔̒̀s̬̿ͫi̬͈m̹̙p̱̉l̖̤͋̋e̼̼͑͆,” Pharynx settled in the closest chair. “I̭ ̯w͙̮ͩaͪn̪̞ͦ̃t̩͙ ͎̥ͯyͤo̯ũṟ̻̐ ͉͓ͤi̝͓m͈ͯm̻ͪͪọ̚r͆̚t̟̫̑a̜ͅl̓ ̞͚s̳o̗̹uͯ͑l.”
Not a sound came from anyone in the room. The weight of the demon's words caused everyone to remain frozen in utter shock.
“T̮h͉̊e̺re̝ ̮̪͛ͯa̟̐r̻ͮëͭ o̿n̚ly͓͌͂ ťw̠o͔͇̾̃ ͚ͧ͊t̙y̒p̼e̤ͨ̄s̮̓ ͈ͩo͍f̼̣̍ ̜ͅḯ̤ͅm̤̍̚m̖̈́o̘͂̍r͙̓ta̱͚ͭl͇ͮ͌ͅs͖ͅ,” Pharynx explained as he got up from his chair. “Pͅu̘r͍ͣeb͙or̫̃n̞ imm͖o̗r̚tal̙s͌ li̬kͅe̩ ̍m̳̄y̳̎s̯̋êl͗ḟ,̽ ̪wh͑o̮ ͬare̮ bͪoͥrn ͕i̔m͖m͈or̻ͧt̜a͔ͩl͆sͭ…̲” The Demon walked up to the princess and pointed at her. “A̜̓ndͤ ̃th̖e̺͐n̗̋ ͔̿t̲h͂ḙ̔r͌e̒ ͍ͤȁ̬r̖ͨe ͬD̦̂e̼m̑ͅi-̎I̺ͭm͇mo͚r͂t̎aľs.̉ ̠͊Tḥeͮy ͗s̈top̈ a̘g̟̓in̲͂g ̄tͩḧ̘e ͣm̹͑om̥͐e͗n̥ť t̤̃h̤e͇y ̋a̙r͎̃ḙ͋ tu̩r̫̐ne̥d Imm̗or̼͛tal̯ͯ.” the demon leaned closer towards the princess, his sharp teeth showing in his smile. “An̝̅d̝̀ ̯̋Dë́m̳i͖̅-̝I̚m̖ͭm̦o͈r͈t͈a͖l̐s ̘ͦh̅a̓v͇ẹ̐ ̎t̙woͪ ̐s̓oͤùl̯s͓͐,̮̾ o͇n̒è ̺moͫr̂tͫal an̐d̋ ̙o͓̅ne ͭi͌m̱mo̮̊r̼̐tͨa̘l̖̽.”
Twilight pondered it. “So… if I gave you my immortal soul… I’d still have my mortal soul.”
Pharynx then grinned. “̘̰̣͐͑̈́Dͤö̖́ ̻̤̯w̾ͧe̥̣̺ ̂ͅs̥t͎̓i̘̘ḻl͍̳̲ͣ̏ ̱́́̉h͇a̩̦v̿̔͊e̼ ͤa̲̤͔̅ͫ̃ ̭ͩd̞̥̥̆ͣe̹̦̲̐̃̔a͒͂l͗̂̾?”
Fluttershy hesitantly stepped forward. “And… if she gives you her immortal soul… w-what will you do with it?”
“E͚a͍ͭt̞̮͕͊͌ i̻̦̎ͬ̅t͔͍͑. ͪJ̃ủs̝̏ͬ̚t͇̬̩ͫ ͖̭͓l͈i͈͋k͚̪̾ͮͮe̩̰ ͐̏h̤o̖ͣ̂w̮̥̯ ̲͂͐ͯI͓ ̉ā̞tͯ̅̽e̙ ̖̔̏t͙̱̟̑͊̽h͓̜̙͒̓̈́ě̙͓͖ ̝͉̠ͥ̒͛ṡ̟͊ͩo̪̥̐͋ŭ͓l̳̠ͥ͆ͫ ̩̣̱ͨő͚̋ͯḟ̦͕ ̮th̬̗ê͙̺͖ͤͣ ̬̱̫̏ḯm̝mͥo̙͕ṛ̗̞̋̎́t̳̼aͤĺ̥̤͇ ͉̈́G̙͊r̦̱o͓̺̊g̼̫a͈̟ͩ̽͐r͗.” Pharynx closed his eyes as he relived the memory. “A͕h̦ͯ, ̦̆t͗he̩̾ ̠́f̦́l̲͂ǎvͫor̺ w̠̆a̔s̾ ̠e̐x̟q͈ui̝s͎͑iteͬ.́ ̗Iͥ’̣̌d͎ ͓̓lͬove̬̍ ̿t̳o̔ ex̭̉p̯e͈̍r̙ͮịenc̎e ͅt͙ĥạt ͑t̹a̯s̝tͅe͕ͮ aͥg͍ại͖ͪn.”
Twilight took in a deep breath, before walking past her friends. “As long as you keep up your end, then we have a deal,” the immortal princess held her hand up to the smiling demon.
Pharynx grinned widely as he took the princess’s hand. “B̉y ͕â͎cco̓r̻dͦa̫͋ǹcͯͅe ͕̾w̱͋i̗̍t̆ḥ ͤẗ͍hͭeͬ ̰̔An̥ͫci͑ẽ͙nͦt͕ ͤLͮȧ̗ws̏ ͎t͉h̯aͨtͮ ̫g̦̓o̪̒v͍eͦr̖n ̗̚t͌h͋ë͓ ̼̄u͇̎ṋ̚i̚v̀e̘ͫȑ̺s̺e̍, ͪẗ̼́h̠ẻ͕ ͔D̖ͤea̟̚l̰ ̹isͫ ̦S̿e͋aͩlͭed͔.”
A bright glow blinded the inhabitants of Pinkie’s party room. When the light faded, everyone froze at the sight of Twilight’s body on the ground. Pharynx stood above the princess with a golden soul that showed Twilight’s true alicorn form; the Demon began to drool as he marveled at the soul.
“Š̞͖ͨͅo͉ ̦̃pͤͫͤu̖r͕ͦ̓̚e͍͚…̯͙̇” he whispered. “Y̮ͤ͌̓oͩͨ͐u’̎̂ͤv̤̩̭̍e̻ ̼̥ͨn͖̻̳͗̒e͊v̘̼̖ͬ̉̏e̮͖ͤ͛ͮr̥̲̱ͩ̓ ̗͙̏̊ͭc̞ͯ̃om͎̺̱̓m̊ĩ̪t͎͐͗̍t̬̮̜e̯̮d̮̺̎ ̖̱a͍̫ ͔̓ͩ͊ŝͣ̇ī̭̱̘n̬g͖̃l͎̑̎e̳ͣ ̌͑s͕̜̣ͩi͇͙͗̿ͅn̜̟͗̔̎ ̮ͦ̓ͅi̤̫͌̒͋n̒̒͊ ̭͍y͚ͅo̘ù͕̱ͫ͋r ̯̬̗́l̠͓̈̈́ͫḯ̦ͮ̆f̤e̻̩ͫͮ͑” the Demon smelled the aroma the soul gave off. “Ȃ͛n̝͑d̳̍ ̦̿ͬt͖̑́h̺͍̓e͓ͅ ̉s͂ce͉͍n̺̍tͭ ̹͂o͉̭̒ͥf̈́͗ ̜ͥ̈́Ḛ̦̂v̠̼̉i̫̿l̄ ̻̰m̝̞a̫̼͌k͇͎̽́e͉̋͗s̀ ͍̰ͮ͌m̘ͯe̥̰̊̀ ̘̤̑ͩw̮ͯͅaͯṋ͋t ͨt̔͐hisͧ ̬͙s͎͔̐͋oͥu͚l̹̖̒̓ ̮ëv̜ͪ̓e̺͒n̬͚̽ͯ ̪̣m͙̺ͮ̓oͥ͆r̮͋ẹ͔.”
Pharynx’s breathing got heavier as his drool grew. Then, to everyone’s horror, the demon devoured the soul with no mercy nor remorse. Once finished, the Demon let out a satisfied sigh.
“T͔̲͚ḧ̬́ͅe͈̱̓͋ ̺̫̬fͭl̦͙̎̇a̅v̦̒̐oͫ͑ͯr̪…͖” Pharynx shuddered in pure ecstasy. “S̳̜͆̚o͚̗̅̊̌,̙͎̹̓͛̇ ͭ̃ͪg̯͖̘͂r̓̎å͚͌n̓̇d̜̜,̠͖̬͆ͫ ̹̟̩ͬs͚ͤ͌̂o͓͎͚ͭ̏ ̝ͬͮ̿w̱͉̥ͧ̉ȯ̥̲͈n̏ͪd͒͒ĕṝ̃f̩ͬ̀̀ul!̗̪ ̜͔̑O̪ͧ͊f̰͖ͦ̏ͅ ̺m̦͎ͬ͐͆y̦ ͈̮s̠̫̓t̼͎̎͊ā̔̚r̍s̞͍̙͑̋,͖͚͇ͣ̏͂ ̞̲̯̾͌i̩t͕̣̓’͔́s̫ ̲̮ͬ͐̋bḛͥ̂ẽ̪͎̤̓n̞̻̽́̒ ̠͍̳ͫs̭͎̱̈́̉o̜̦̊̚ ̥̻l͒̓̆o͕͇ͥng̣͍͈ ͯ͐š͊͂i͆n͓̩̺̽̑̊cͦe ̖̇I̬̜̞ͨ̅͐’͊̄v͚̩͉͐eͫ ̺̜̫̍̅f̫͐e̞̐̾́a̹ͥs̲ͦṱ̩ͣ̓̀ě̀ͦd͉ͯ̆ ̗͚̎̇ͅo̞̪ǹ̲̙ šu͓̠ͥͥ̚c̊h̹͈̠̃͊ͪ ̠̰̰̒̐́a̬̗̯ͤ̒ ̹͉͇d̤͛e͎̲l͕̲̪͗ḭͬ̋͊c͕̺à̭̹̹ͨc̩ͨͯ̋y!” the demon laughed in glee. “M̙̰͔̎a͍k̙es̓ͦ ͙ͤ̃͋m̳ͬ̉e̼̍ͣ ̤͓fͯ̏e̠̐̆ͅé̼͗͊l̗ ̹ͬ̈l̦ͅi̅k̼̞̻ȇͥ ̖̅̈a ͇͎͓̿new̪̹̼ḅ̈̏͐o̩̹r̲ň̲͕ ̩̭͙D́̈e̯̒ͅmo̩̘̬ͯn̺͔̣ ̜̂̑͛A̦g̘̖͒̃͗ả͛iͣn̬!”
“And…” Twilight struggled to get to her feet. “You’ll keep your end of the deal?”
Pharynx grinned down at her… and bowed.
“M̥ͅy͈͉̠ͣ̾ ̗͐͐̉w̜͕o̾̒ͪr͖d̻͍̱̃͗ ̖b̠̬i̦̖̼n̪͇ͤ̇́d̹ͥs͇̞̫ ̻͇̂ͬm͆ͧè̹.” Pharynx said, before grimacing in what appeared to be concern. He looked to the others. “Y͈ou ͈s͗h̍o̲̍ụl̃d ̈tak̹e̦ ͆h́e̠̋r̗ t̰̓õ ̯ͣb̞e̥d͓̏;̫̔ los͍̔i̯̽n͖g ̖o͕̓n͌e'ͅs͚̈ ͙soú͉l̦ͩ ̀i͖s̳ ͗vͪe̙ry̭̌ ̺ḓra̮ͫi̮n͕ͬi̖n̞͒g.”
Rainbow nodded, walking up and helping support the princess to her feet. “C’mon, Twi,” he said. “Let’s get out of here.”
Pharynx watched the humans leave one by one before he laid his eyes on the pink-haired female; the last to leave. The demon narrowed his eyes before unsheathing his talons. Pharynx rushed the woman with the intent to kill.
The world around the two turned grey as time stood still. “You’re no fun, Pharynx,” Pinkie complained, turning in the frozen world to face him.
Pharynx stopped when he saw the female's eyes were red and black. “Yͅo͙u ͔wͧe̞re̔ ̼ͯa͙ ͦdḙ̏m̲o̓ͅn̳ͣ all͇ alon̠ͧg̞ͫ?”
“’She’ wasn’t.” A pink spirit left Pinkie’s body, causing her to turn grey and freeze with the rest of the world.
A red-skinned demon stood before Pharynx; unlike the Current Demon King, this one had a pair of wings on its back. Adorning the demon’s body was a three-piece black and red pinstripe suit, a pair of black pants, and black dress shoes. The Demon had cherry red hair; clipped to his ears were earrings that looked like mini party poppers.
“A̤ͫs̏̉m͓̫̿̃ỏ̦̺dͮe̪̣͗̆̇u̠͍̽̄̚ṣ̓,” Pharynx grumbled with ire in his voice. “W̠̗ͪ̍ͅh̻a̮͖͐͋tͭ ͇̂ͩâ̏r̬e͖͚̽ ̲̘̽̍̅y̥̫ͣͤͬo̦̪͖uͥͬͧ ͉̫͇̾͗d̮̙͂̿̂o̞͕̒i̳̣̋nͦg̈́̊ ̹̮ͬ̋ͪh̬̐̉e̘ͧr̙̱̊̚e̞͖̊ͬ?”
“What else does a Demon of Mischief do in the mortal realm?” Asmodeus asked. “I’m causing playful mischief.” the demon then let out a cough as he turned back to Pinkie. “I made a deal with this woman, and to ensure she keeps her word, I’m inhabiting her body.”
“Y̭̠̏o͈ủ’̄́v̜̙͋e͖̲ ͩ͗n̩̲ĕ̎v̑ẹͩr͖ͅ ̼̟be̬ͩ̅e͆n̯̊͆ ̞̤i͖̲ͦͩṉ̣̍t͉͖ͣͤe̯͋r̗ͪ̈ĕ̄s͉̄ṫ̇ĕ̑d̗͎̎ ̻͉ͨ͆ȉ̟͛n̟͋̾ ͨd͕̣ͧ̈́ẽa̳͖l͙̳̋̏sͧ ̱̙i͙n̠̒ͦ ̟tͫ̓h̖͛̐e͈͚͛ pa̜͓̎͂s̳̣ͤ̃ẗ̖̮.” Pharynx commented with a raised eyebrow. He crossed over to Pinkie and touched the top of her head. “W̻h͇a̲̲̽ͭtͧ̐ ̽͛m̲͌̚a͙͐̂k͊ĕ̍s̪̻ͧ͒ ̼̎t̲̊h͔̩̄i̔s̼̥ mͥ̿o̳ͦͅr̦ͮt̠a̰͆l ̯̏̒só̖ ͫsp̼ͧe̼ĉ̪̠ͥiͨaͯ͗l͇?”
Asmodeus pondered the question, brushing his chin with his finger. “I guess… I simply took pity on her”
“P͕̥͈̣ͧi̲̜͉̩̓̌̎t́̃̍ͩ̈́̇y̯̦̱̗̝̿̿̐̅ͅ?”
“She’s a brave soul,” Asmodeus grinned as he fixed the messed-up hair on Pinkie’s head. “She would take anything, either good or bad, and just flash that charming smile of hers.”
“In order to explain that, I’d need to explain how she came to call upon me,” Asmodeus said with a warm smile. He sat back and began to retell the tale:
“Pinkamena Diane Pie: Age 7. The second oldest daughter of a family that found and sold rare and priceless gemstones and minerals. Despite finding no joy in her family's career, she always smiled. Even when things were terrible for her, Pinkamena had a different way of looking at the world, earning the ire of school bullies. Every day she was tormented and teased for her individuality. But no matter what they did to her, she never lost that smile.
One day the bullies were getting bored of seeing her constant smile. So, when school let out, they started to bully her sister, Marble. This infuriated the little girl to no end. In response, the little mortal shoved one of her bullies. Her older sister's instincts kicked in as she shouted for Marble to run and find Maud. With her sister gone, Pinkie pushed the other two to the ground before running in the opposite direction.
She ran as far as her little body could carry her. However, the boys eventually caught up with her in front of Canterlot High. Two of them grabbed hold as the third started to punch her in the stomach. The boy grinned as he reared his fist; unfortunately, a grey hand wrapped around his wrist.
“Get your hands off my sister,” growled Pinkamena’s sister - Maudileena(Maud) Daisy Pie.
Fear gripped the boys as they saw the scowl on the older woman’s face; without hesitation, the bully's friends abandoned him. Both fled by throwing Pinkamena to the ground; Pinkie fell backward before tripping on the curb. The child stumbled onto the road and right in the path of an oncoming car; Pinkamena didn’t even have time to register what happened when she soared through the air. Her sister immediately rushed to Pinkamena’s side, miraculously, the small child was alive, but she was fading fast.
Her sister called nine eleven, and during that time, she weakly asked her for help. When her weak pleas fell on deaf ears, she begged her precious God to save her. But by the time she was loaded into the ambulance, she was moments away from dying. Then, I heard her pleas, begging anyone who could listen to her.
“Pl..please…anyone…..I….I…Don’t..Want..To..Die…” Pinkamena begged as her heart stopped
Time around the world came to a stop, and Pinkamena couldn’t help but blink and look around the best she could.
“Begging like that could lead to getting help from unsavory characters,” I said, stepping in the child's line of sight.
“Please…Help…”
“Yes, yes, I know,” I said before flashing a smile. “However, you don’t seem exciting enough to make a deal with,” I grinned before sitting next to Maud. “If I’m making a deal, then the person must dazzle me.”
“I… Don’t…”
“Want to die, yes, so you’ve said,” I waved her off. “But as I said, I don’t make deals with the common folk.” I leaned back and kicked my feet onto her gurney. “So why don’t we talk for a bit? What do you like?”
“I, uh… I…”
I frowned. “If you say you don't want to die again, I’ll leave.”
That got a reaction. What little life was left in her sparked, like fireworks. “I like parties!” she got out.
“Parties, huh?” I thought with amusement. “I suppose that’ll work.”
“I make the best parties!” she insisted, her voice weak, but fueled by desperation. “My parties dazzle and razzle. They glitz and glam! I can show you!” She coughed, her second wind fading fast. “Please… let me show you…!”
I rose to my feet and leaned forward to look the child in the eye. “What will you give me to save your life? To show me these… razzling dazzling parties?”
“Anything.”
This surprised me, to say the least. Nobody has ever offered anything to a demon before.
“That’s not very bright, you know,” I told the child. “I could easily ask for your soul and turn you into an empty shell. Do you still want to proceed?
Pinkamena weakly nodded her head. “I do.”
I hummed, scratching at the back of my head. “You’re a peculiar one, to say the least,” I admitted, pondering her offer. “Okay, so in exchange for giving you a second chance at life, you must give me your ‘Everything.’”
The price confused Pinkamena. “My... Everything?”
“Your Everything,” I smiled at the child. “Your heart, your mind, and your body. Everything about you will belong to me,” I lifted a hand. “But don’t worry, I won’t take away your free will. As long as you willingly obey my every command.” I grinned as I sat down. “If I tell you to change jobs, you change. If I tell you to murder, you slaughter. And If I tell you to kill yourself, then you kill yourself.”
She swallowed.
“But most importantly, if I tell you to change friends, you drop the old friends like hot plates.”
My smile faded as tears formed in her eyes.
“I don’t… have any friends,” Pinkamena admitted with tears forming in her eyes.
I grimaced, before grinning again. “Let’s change that,” I offered, giving her a warmer smile. “My name is Asmodeus; Demon of Mischief and Trickery.” I offered my hand to the mortal. “Would you care to be friends, little miss?”
She weakly lifted her arm, her smile coming back. “I’m Pinkamena Diane Pie… and I would love to be friends.”
“Pinkamena Diane Pie? Hmm… well, I’ll call you Pinkie Pie.” He took the mortal’s hand. Her fingers wrapped around mine. “By accordance with the Ancient Laws that govern the universe, the Deal is Sealed.”
I turned into a pure spirit and entered her body. “Oh… I forgot to mention that if you ever tell another mortal about me and what I did for you, the deal is off. Okay?”
As life returned to her, Pinkie’s smile brightened. “Okey Dokey Loki.”
“And we’ve been bound since,” Asmodeus finished with a smile.
“Hmm…” Asmodeus thought for a moment. “Well, I only made a deal with her so I wouldn’t need to return to the Demon realm. But now I can’t help but look at that beautiful smile of hers” Asmodeus paused for a second, before humming in intrigue. “Indeed, I suppose I do harbor feelings for her. I believe the mortals call this ‘love.’”
Pharynx laughed. “Y̫̗͋̾oͅu͍̒’r̥̯͂̿e͚͂ ǎ̤ ̮̃f̫̺o͕̥ͫͮol̰̍,” Pharynx dismissed as he walked past the demon. “Y͎̦̽̚o͋ȕ̞’̙͒̃d̞̗ ̳͂ͩb̘̪e ̜̾͛f͖o͙͇ͬr̞͉c̭̫̈́e̓́d̽ ̳ͩt͉̖ͯͯo̬͓̿͑ ̘̠͆̋w̎̂aͨͯt͈̬́c̈h̤̔ ͔̅ͫhͤͅe͔r̦̿͋ ͔̓g͎̏r̹̝͊ọ̦͊̏w̳ ̖̌͗o͉ͅl̺̑ḏ͍̈ ǎ̘ṅ̥͉dͯ̇ ͉̼̃ͤd̊͒iͮͬe ̋͌i̠̍ͮn̦̹͋ ͉͛ͨy͕̌o̯u̫̐͗r̎̾ ̙̉a͚̐̔ṙͬḿͩs͐.”
“Maybe, but I’m okay with that,” Asmodeus replied with a smile. “She’s made a deal with a demon, so she’ll end up in the same place as me.” the Demon turned into a spirit orb and slowly returned to Pinkie’s body. “Then the both of us can cause untold mischief until the end of days.”
Pharynx still rolled his eyes. “F̬͐̉ͭo̅͊o̤͙ͨͮl͕̬̼̖̫̀…̖͓͖” he muttered as the time began to flow normally again.
Ash sat on the couch, watching something he never expected to see. Apparently, this universe had ‘The Golden Girls,’ which was the ONLY show he could tolerate on this old-ass television set. Unknown to Ash or the inhabitants of the Asylum, a portal opened up in the basement of the mental hospital. Hundreds of demonic spirits poured into the hospital, making short work of employees and patients.
Sensing the chaos, Ash’s eyes widened as he jumped to his feet.
“Something's not right,” Ash stated, feeling uneasy in his gut.
Without warning, the door was flung open as a spirit crashed into the bars and flew into the air ducts.
“Well, ain’t this a kick in the pants." Ash shook his head in disappointment. “Twilight, when I get out of here, we are going to need a serious talk.”
Ash moved to the bars in haste. The moment he stepped past them, a door was flung off its hinges. One of the guards was thrown out of the room and crashed into the wall. Ash moved to help him but stopped when a deadite jumped out of the room and started to drag the man back into the room. The guard's screams pulled Ash back to reality, and Ash ran to the room to help the guard, only to freeze at the sight of his legs squirming in the drain. Finally, the guard's legs went down the drain as a fountain of blood and guts spewed from the room's drain.
“Jesus Fucking Christ!!” Ash shouted, stepping back to avoid the blood. “I will never be able to un-see that”
Ash backed away from the blood-spewing room and headed down the hall. The sounds of gunfire caused Ash to pick up his pace.
“Stop right there!” a guard shouted, firing his gun before screaming.
The man’s body crashed into the wall, and the gun in his hand fell out and slid to Ash’s feet. Ash glanced at the gun before hearing the piercing howl of a deadite. Ahead of the one-handed man, a possessed patient glared at him.
With no hesitation, Ash picked up the gun and spun it around his finger before aiming it at the deadite. “Let's see if you fuckers are still allergic to lead.”
The Deadite charged the human with its teeth bared. The human moved to the right and stuck his leg out. The deadite’s eyes widened as it tripped and fell to the ground. Ash walked over and placed his foot on the deadite’s back.
“Thanks for the gun,” Ash pulled the trigger and exploded the deadite’s head. “Something tells me I’m going to need it.”
Ash turned away to look at the guard's hip. “He’s probably got more ammo on him.” Ash walked towards the dead guard but not before firing another bullet into the deadite’s head. “Double Tap, baby.”
Ash searched the guard and found two ammo clips for the borrowed firearm. “Two addition clips which hold about 12 rounds,” Ash said as he removed the gun's current clip. “7 bullets plus the chambered round.” Ash set the clip down before grabbing the gun and reinserting the clip. “This is going to be a bitch and a half to get out of here,” Ash said, tightening the grip on his gun.
Ash continued down the path presented until he came to another set of steel bars; Ash looked around before spotting the office that controls the gates and cameras. The human walked over to the door only for it to swing open and slam into his face. The door let out an obnoxious laugh as it closed.
“You little...”
The door swung open again, knocking Ash to the ground.
“Fuck!!”
Ash rose to his feet and shot the door before flicking his gaze to the window. Adjusting his aim to the window, Ash pulled the trigger and unloaded two rounds into the glass. The glass never entirely broke, but with the two holes, it did weaken it significantly. Flipping the gun around, Ash smashed the butt of the weapon into the glass, causing it to shatter. Ash cleared away any remaining glass before pocketing the gun and jumping into the office. Inside, the human spotted a dead guard slumped below the desk of monitors.
“Don’t mind me,” Ash said, setting his gun down before looking at the monitors. “Let’s see the state we’re in.”
To Ash’s surprise, the monitors showed nothing but an empty, abandoned hospital; Ash took a glance at the monitor that showed the room he was currently standing in. Ash’s eyes widened at the sight of the guard jumping to his feet on the monitor. In desperation, Ash grabbed the keyboard and smashed it across the deadites face.
The Deadite dropped to the ground as Ash dropped the broken tech and picked up his gun; Ash fired a shot into the deadite’s head before hitting the emergency release button. The barred doors opened, allowing the human to get out of the damned place. Ash jumped out of the office the same way he got in.
“Worst. Day. Ever.” Ash growled out as he continued down the path
Ash continued until he made it to the cafeteria. The moment he stepped into the room, the door slammed shut as pieces of wood blocked off the door.
Ash looked ahead and saw two deadites in the room. Both possessed humans turned and growled at the one-handed human.
“Great,” Ash groaned as the deadites jumped over the tables, lunging for him. The demon slayer rolled out of the way of the deadites before they pounced on him.
“What I wouldn’t give for both hands right about now,” Ash shouted as he shot at the closest Deadite
The two shots he fired only hit the deadites chest and grazed his cheek. Ash internally cursed as he was slashed across the chest by the second deadite. Ash let out a pained groan as his eyes changed to his Sharingan and slowed the deadite’s movements. Luckily for the human, he had done more than try to escape in the past six months.
“Alright, six months of practice,” Ash said as his eyes shifted. “Should be able to pull this off.”
Ash felt his left eye sting as the flames began to burn the binding on his stump; soon, the burning stopped as the fire shifted into a flame-made hand. Ash grinned as he flexed his flaming hand; turning his fist, the human rushed forward before slugging one of the deadites in the face. The flames on his hand transferred to the deadite, who released a scream as the black flames slowly burned it away. The last one tried to rush Ash, only for Ash to unload the remaining three bullets into the deadite’s skull. With both dead, Ash dispelled the black flames and proceeded to change clips one-handed.
“Damn,” Ash said, still feeling the sting on his stump. “Looks like I’m going to need more practice with that particular method.”
With the pistol reloaded, Ash looked around and found all doors were closed and barred.
“Great. Locked in.” Ash groaned as he stashed the gun in his waistband.
Ash walked over to the door on the far side of the cafeteria before a crimson skeletal hand and rib cage materialized around him. Ash slammed the bony hand into the door, breaking it into splinters. The partial Susanoo vanished as Ash walked through the door.
“Heh, I guess practice does indeed pay off,” Ash commented before making his way to the building to find his personal effects. “Now, if I was my shit, where would I be?” He thought for a moment before it clicked. “Patient possessions.”
As he moved through the building, he kept his guard up. He knew at any moment, a deadite would pop up and ambush him. What bothered him the most was that it never happened and unnerved him to no end.
“Shouldn’t he be here by now?” Twilight muttered to herself as she paced before a pair of wooden doors. “And how do you know Ash will come out of this door?”
“You really must relax, my dear,” Pharynx said as he lounged in a hammock made entirely of shadows. “It has been proven that people who mutter to themselves are lunatics and belong in an Asylum.”
“Can you not say that right now?!” Twilight nearly shouted at the demon king. “Why hasn’t he gotten here yet?”
“And have a little faith, Mortal,” Pharynx said, sitting upright as his hammock shifted into a throne. “My demons are wrecking that place from top to bottom.”
“That wasn’t the Deal!” Twilight shouted at the King, earning a glare from him. “The Deal was…”
“Do not take that tone with me, ‘Mortal,’” Pharynx warned as storm clouds began to cover the sky. “The Deal was to get him out,” Pharynx stomped toward the Princess until she tripped to the ground. “Not once did you specify ‘how’ he gets out. So sit down and be patient.”
Twilight’s gaze shifted to the Asylum with worry. “Please hurry, Ashley.”
“Fucking Finally!” Ash shouted as he finally found an elevator. “Now, let’s go get my shit back.”
Ash hit the call button and waited patiently for the doors to open.
The doors opened, but before Ash could step through, a force tossed him across the room. The human hit the wall with enough force to crack the surface, and Ash groaned as he struggled to his feet.
“Of course, there’s a spirit in the Elevator,” Ash groaned as he cracked a few parts of his spine. “Why wouldn’t there be one?”
Ash looked back to the now destroyed elevator. The sight brought nothing but rage in the human.
“And, of course, the bastard fucked up the goddamn fucking elevator!” Ash all but screamed out in anger. “By all means, tell me how this could get FUCKING WORSE?!”
Ash heard the clatter of metal and wood, which caused his head to drop. “I had to ask?”
The Human glanced across the room and found all furniture lifting off the ground, and Ash let out an angry howl as he ducked to avoid a chair.
“I had to fucking ask!” Ash shouted as his Partial Susanoo manifested.
The sofa was the next piece of furniture that was hurled at the human. But he caught it with the skeletal hand of Ash's Susanoo. Ash let out an angered howl as his Susanoo threw the sofa back where it came from. Evidently, the spirit didn’t like that, as the rest of the furniture charged the human, smashing against Susanoo’s arm or ribcage.
Angered beyond belief, Ash thought out loud to himself. “Okay, Ash… think. The elevators from here to the first floor are busted up,” Ash’s Susanoo ripped through a pair of doors which revealed a set of stairs leading up. “So that means I’m going to have to venture through Shock Therapy to get to the last working elevator.”
Ash dispelled his Susanoo and ran up the stairs. Reaching the second floor, Ash walked into the closest therapy room and found a patient receiving constant electric shocks due to the machines going haywire. Ash ignored the electrocuting body as his attention was directed to the map on the wall.
“Okay, the Elevator is just down the hall,” Ash said, looking at the part of the map with the lowest building level. “Patient possessions?” Ash said before spotting the part labeled Mogue/Patient Possessions. “Bingo!”
Ash went to leave but stopped at the poor unfortunate soul suffering behind him. Ash sighed as he pulled the pistol from his waist; the man then proceeded to unload round after round until the machines stopped working. After dropping the clip, Ash reloaded his last clip as he looked at the body.
“Sorry you had to suffer, Capt. Crispy,” Ash said, stashing the weapon back in his waistband. “But at least you went out here and not by the dead.”
Ash left the room and immediately headed to the Elevator down the hall. He breathed in relief as the door opened with no problem.
“It’s about god damn time something good happens to me,” Ash said as he pressed the button to send him down before realizing he wasn’t alone inside the Elevator. “Oh fuck.”
Sparks squeezed their way through the crack of the elevator door before opening, revealing the wrecked elevator. Luckily Ash survived the drop as he crawled out of the steel box.
“I fucking hate my life,” Ash groaned as he lay on the ground, waiting for the pain to subside.
A good ten minutes passed, and Ash soon found the strength to stand on his feet. “Now… to the morgue.”
Ash Williams found no trouble finding the one place with the dead bodies that didn’t want him dead. Moving past the bodies, Ash ventured into the back room where the patients' belongings go.
“Let’s see… Williams. Williams. Williams.” Ash said as he scanned through the shelves before laying eyes on the box with his name on it and his chainsaw next to it. “Ha! Jackpot!”
Ash wasted no time ripping the box open and finding his clothes and possessions; Ash practically tore off the asylum clothing and slipped on his clothes before his hand glided across his chainsaw.
“Hello, honey,” Ash said almost seductively. “I know, I know, six months and no phone call” Ash placed the chainsaw over his stump. “Let me make it up to you with a night in the Asylum as we slaughter some Deadite Scum.” Ash smiled as he stowed his trusty Boomstick in its holster. “Maybe then I hope you will forgive me.”
Ash perked up when groans and the sound of body coolers opened up. “And speaking of the devils,” Ash grinned. “Alright, baby, let’s hear you sing,” Ash pulled the cord and grinned as his weapon purred. “Sing for the King!”
Ash stepped out onto the morgue floor, grinning as the corpses converged on him.
“Ladies and Gentlemen of the Asylum Morgue,” Ash sang. “I humbly apologize for my tardiness, but now allow me to present tonight's entertainment.” Ash pulled his Boomstick from his back and shot the head off one of the possessed corpses. “Let's get busy!”
Ash ran forward before jumping and vaulting over one of the operating tables, bringing his chainsaw down on one of the 12 remaining Deadites.
“What are ya’ll waiting for?” Ash demanded as he pulled his chainsaw out of the deadite. “The Night is young, and I got six months of boredom to work off.”
The deadites let out a blood curdling screech as they charged at Ash, who merely laughed like a maniac and charged at them.
"Feast upon his flesh!" One deadite shouted as they lunged forward. It's mouth opened wide to tear apart Ash, but Ash quickly shoved the barrel of his boomstick into its mouth and slammed the deadite down.
"Say Ahh!" Ash fired his boomstick and blasted the deadite's head clean off. “God Damn, it’s good to have my shit back!”
Two more deadites tried to flank Ash from both sides. However, they both crashed into the crimson skeletal ribcage of Ash's Susanoo and saw the smirk on Ash's face as two skeletal hands appeared and grabbed the two deadites, lifting them by their legs.
"I always wanted to try this." Ash laughed as he started using the two deadites as weapons by bashing them against the other deadites. Four deadites were flung across the room and crashed into the walls, cracking them on impact. Blood flew all over as Ash beat the deadites with the two deadites in his grasp.
"I have had enough of you assholes to last a lifetime! Just die already!" Ash shouted as he slammed the two deadites in his hold together, their bodies crashing into each other as bones snapping could be heard. Their blood poured down like rain as bits of their bones dropped. Ash deactivated his Susanoo and looked on at the remaining deadites, panting heavily but still having a smile on his blood-covered face.
"I gotta admit, I kinda missed you fuckers. Now…" Ash revved up his chainsaw and reloaded his boomstick. "Who wants to spend some quality time with Daddy!"
The deadites roared and all charged in at once, circling him from all sides, but the demon hunter didn't care. His rage boiled as he sawed one deadite in half and blasted another in the head. Ducking under one of them, Ash fired his boomstick at its chest, and they flew into another deadite. One snuck up behind Ash and bit down on his shoulder.
"Ah! Motherfucker!" Ash turned and bit down at the deadites nose, tearing it off and spitting blood in its eyes, blinding it for Ash to leg sweep them, and slammed his boot down onto their skull, smashing it like a bloody watermelon.
Ash glared at the four remaining deadites and roared.
The deadites backed up, actually afraid for once in their undead lives. The man…. The monster before them just kept tearing them apart like they were nothing, and he was still going!
Ash stepped forward and marched towards them. The deadites roared and tried to scare him in a futile attempt to get him to back off, but Ash merely grinned. Two deadites lunged at him, but Ash was quick to roll to the side and blast both their heads off in one clean shot. The last two charged at him, one going high, and the other going low. The low deadite lunged forward and bit Ash's leg, nearly tearing a chunk of his thigh off while the other pounced on him. Ash groaned in pain as he punched the deadite on top of him in the face and then in the throat. Ash activated his Mangekyou Sharingan and burned the deadite on top of him to ash while he then hit the last deadite in the face with the butt of his boomstick.
"Chew on this, bitch." Ash fired his boomstick into its mouth and blasted a new hole in the back of his head. Ash winced as he held his bleeding leg. "Fuck, Twilight better have a fucking first aid kit with her. Or alcohol, at least."
Ash used his chainsaw arm to hoist himself up as he limped toward the doors at the end of the room. Ash had survived far worse wounds than this, but that didn't mean he could just shrug this off. It would definitely be a pain to fight with an injured leg, but he'd manage. Hopefully.
Ash made his way into a large open room which had a set of stairs leading up to a hopeful exit. However, that wasn’t the only thing in the room. Standing in the center of the room was the same patient Ash spared in the Shock Therapy ward. Anger filled the human’s voice as he groaned.
“I knew I should have gone for your fucking head,” Ash shouted as electricity arced from the Deadite’s body.
The Deadite roared as it thrust its hands toward Ash, unleashing a torrent of electricity.
Ash rolled out of the way to avoid the lightning as he glared at the Deadite. “Conserve your energy, Static Clink,” Ash warned, reloading his Boomstick. “Cause you’re going to need every stinking volt!”
The electric deadite let out a mix of a scream, a roar and a cry as it then sent out a wave of electricity. Ash quickly jumped over the wave of electricity as it raced through the ground but winced as he came back down, holding his bleeding leg. He glared at the deadite, aimed his boomstick at it, and fired.
The buckshot made contact, but sparks could be seen as a small barrier on the deadite protected it.
"Oh, that's bullshit!" Ash screamed as he dodged a stray bolt.
Ash fired again, grinning as some of his buckshot got through the barrier, judging by how the deadite stumbled.
"So there's a limit to how much it can hold out?" He thought to himself. Forcing himself up, Ash lunged at the deadite, slashing it across its chest as it stepped back. It roared out in pain as it clenched its bleeding chest, a deep gash plastered across it. It roared and fired a bolt of lightning at Ash, sending him flying back against a wall. Ash fell to the floor as he gasped for air, having the air knocked right out of his lungs.
"Fuck…. That hurt…" Ash glanced up and quickly rolled out of the way as a stray bolt of lightning nearly hit him.
Raising his boomstick, he fired at the deadite, but its little shield managed to protect, and due to the distance, his shots weren't as effective. Cursing under his breath, Ash got up, holding his bleeding leg.
"Gotta finish this quick, or else I'll be burnt to a crisp." Ash gritted his teeth as he tried to ignore the pain in his leg and charged at the deadite. His Sharingan activated just in time as the deadite fired a few bolts at him. Thanks to his Sharingan, he was able to dodge them. Running up, Ash fired his boomstick point blank at its chest, able to knock it back a few feet.
"Shocked?" Ash smirked as he fired one more time; his buckshot tore through the deadite shield like paper. Sizing his opportunity, Ash lunged forward and dug his chainsaw right through the deadites chest. "I've had enough of you assholes. Now keep your undead ass dead!"
Ash revved up his chainsaw and tore through it. Bits of bones and guts flew all over as Ash was drenched in gore, having to look away a bit to keep the shrapnel of bones from getting in his eyes. The deadite dropped dead in two pieces, and Ash started poking it to make sure it was dead.
"Meh, can't be too sure." Ash raised his chainsaw high and sliced off its head before blasting it to blood bits with his boomstick. Ash panted heavily as he spat out some blood.
"Oh God, this is just wrong. I'm coughing up blood, and it ain't mine." He gagged in disgust and fired a few more shots into the dead deadite, just to ensure it was really dead this time.
Ash hobbled out of the room, traveled up the stairs, and found a pair of wooden doors. “Oh, thank Christ,” Ash said, sheathing his Boomstick and going to open the door only to find it locked. “Why!? Why can’t anything go my way!” Ash said, punching the door in anger
“Ashley?” a very familiar voice called out from the other side of the door “Ashley, is that you?”
“Twilight?” Ash said as his anger subsided at the sound of her voice. “Not gonna lie, it’s good to hear from you, but is there a chance you can GET THIS GODDAMN DOOR OPEN!!!” Ash kicked the door and tried to force his way through it.
“I can’t. Some heavy chains are on the door, and I can’t get them off without my magic.”
Ash just roared in rage. “FUCK IT. I’ll DO IT MYSELF!” Ash took his boomstick and aimed it at the door. “Get away from the door, Twi,” Ash warned before unloading countless rounds of buckshot into the door. Eventually, he made a rather large hole where the handles were.
The bloodied and bruised human climbed out and was immediately embraced by the Princess of Friendship. Ash dropped his shotgun and wrapped his arm around the princess. Their embrace lasted a full ten seconds before he removed his arm and firmly smacked the princess’s head, causing her to yelp in pain.
“That was for summoning demons against my wishes,” Ash said, pulling away from the princess and grabbing her chin. “And this…” Ash brought the princess close and gave her a kiss. “is for getting me out of that hellhole.”
Twilight’s face flashed red; she was unable to speak. Ash couldn’t help of smile at the state he put her in.
“H̹̪ô̬̇w ͥ̒s̿è̗̪n̳ͨ̓ͅt͚̿̑ìm͕ͯ̑e̝̜ͤ̍n̿ͮt͆a͂ḽ̂,” a demonic voice mused.
Ash snatched up his Boomstick quickly and point it at the midnight black demon waiting. To his credit, the demon didn’t even flinch.
“You summoned him?” Ash demanded, not tearing his gaze from the demon.
“S͉hḙ̈́ͣ ̗̞ͦd̮͑ͫ̿i͚͖ͫͅd̗̣̏.” The demon rose from his shadowy throne. “I’͇ͣm̥ ̋t̗h̽ȅ ̥̈one w͍hò ̑un̬l͕eã̱s̱he̓d ͕th͈os̈e̺͐ ̥d̀e̓m͌o̖nsͬ ản͔̑d̔ ͤg̲o͇̔ẗ̺ ŷ̪o͐u̓ ͦo̤u̯t õf ͉̄t̺ͮhe̙ͬr̫ẻ͉.”
“Gee, thanks for that,” Ash said sarcastically. “Now I have another reason to kill you.”
“Ashley, please,” Twilight practically begged. “I made a deal with him, and he means us no harm.”
“You WHAT?!” Ash shouted, turning his gaze to the Princess.
“Š͈hͭe o̦̿f͎ͪfe͈re͎d m̖̍e͈ ̭m̜yͬ ͇f̲r̥ee̫d͖oͅm͙.͂ ͎Anḏ̒….” Pharynx stopped when he saw Twilight swiping her hand across her neck, signaling she’d rather spare Ash the knowledge of her other deal. “W̩è̠l̖l̘̅,̙̒ t̮h͓a͉ṱ͛'͕s al̮l͚ ͣsͯh̻e͙ ̪͛ỏ̱f̗fe̠re͔̐d͒,̖ ͩȃ̫n̝d̠ͨ ̿y̤o̗u’̂r̿e̾ ͇̑f͚ŕëe,͋ s̺̋ỏ̘ ͎w̍e̜̽’̮r̬̐e͚ ̼al̉ͅl ̮ͬs̓q̩ͯuͪa̟̔r̆eḏ ̬a̙͆wa͍yͅ.” Pharynx dusted off his hands as he cleared his throat. “Nͦo̼ͬwͪ,̩ ̱ͬí̲f̖ ̠y̔ou̒ͅ ͍ͧw̦o̲n̒’̥tͮ ̼m̯i͎̍n̗̑d̤ͯ,͎ I͐’̮ͥm̻͂ ̜g̗ȯ̜i̲n͓g̫͊ ͎͆t̍ó͔ ̝f̼̓in̐d my̜͒ ͖ͬb͒r̺o̚t͆h͇ͭe̥͒r̞̊.”
The Demon laughed as he turned into black smoke and parted with the wind. Ash could only stare in disbelief before looking to the princess with a stern look. As her head bent, waiting for a lecture or anger, he reluctantly relaxed his expression.
"We’ll talk about the demon later,” Ash decided, sheathing his boomstick. “But first, can I get a shower and a nice bed to sleep in.”
“We can,” Twilight responded with a smile. “Sunset and the girls are waiting out front.”
After a well-deserved and earned shower, Ash fell asleep on the couch in Pinkie’s home, to which the pink-haired teen had provided a blanket and a pillow. The one-handed man fell asleep almost instantly, only to be woken up by a scream.
His eyes snapped open as he rolled out of the couch and snatched up his boomstick. Ash vaulted over the couch and rushed to the source of the scream. Bursting into the room Twilight was staying in, he found only her, thrashing about in her sleep.
Ash lowered his weapon. His princess was just having another nightmare.
“Twilight!” Ash shook the princess awake. She snatched his shirt, clinging to him for security as she calmed down.
At the same time, Twilight’s friends surrounded the doorway. Ash glared at them. “How long?”
“The past six months she’s woken up screaming her lungs off,” Sunset admitted.
“She refuses to tell us what causes such night terrors,” Rarity added.
“Well she has a tendency to keep things to herself,” Ash shrugged as the sleep and nightmares cleared from Twilight’s eyes.
“A-Ashley?” Twilight gazed up at him, only to pause before she could speak.
“You’re not going to tell me are you?” Ash asked.
Twilight closed her eyes and shook her head. Ash sighed.
“Fine” Ash got up and strode to the kitchen.
“Where are you going?” Rainbow asked.
“I’m going to order a pizza and a 2 liter.”
“How’s that gonna help, Twi?” Applejack asked with a raised eyebrow.
“It was something my mother did when I was young and had a nightmare,” Ash replied, finding the home phone and a menu for a pizza place.
“Griffinstone Pizzaria, how can I help you?” asked the cashier on the other end.
“I’d like to place a delivery order for a plain cheese, a meat lover, and a 2 liter of Pepsi,” Ash said into the phone.
“Okay, that’ll be twenty dollars even. Can I get an address for your order?”
Ash turned to the pink-haired teen. “Pinkie Pie, what’s your address?”
“Did you say Pinkie Pie?” the cashier asked. Ash could hear the grin in her voice. “We’ll send your pizza sent out in fifteen minutes or less or your meal will be fifty percent off.”
“Huh. Alright then.” Ash hung up the phone and turn to the others who were sitting at the large round table. “Pizza on its way.” Ash sat down and eyed the princess. “You wanna tell me now or after the pizza?”
Twilight remained silent. Ash nodded in understanding before grabbing a red popsicle from Pinkie’s fridge.
Time passed; the room remained silent. Ash kept sparing glances at Pinkie’s watch, a grin spreading on his face as he chewed on the popsicle stick.
“Pizza dudes got thirty seconds,” Ash noted.
“Do you honestly think this is the best course of action we can take?” Sunset asked. “With Twilight and her night terrors?”
Ash didn’t reply, his eyes remaining on Pinkie’s watch before he grinned again. “Times up! Fifty percent off!” Ash laughed, getting up from his seat and moving behind Twilight. He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Besides being there for her, this is the only way I can think to get her to tell me.”
Before the others could ask for more details, the doorbell rang. Pinkie shot up.
“Pizza time!” she cheered.
Ash strode to the door and opened it, revealing a young teen with brown hair wearing a red and black uniform and a black wristband with a grey Dpad.
“Plain cheese, meat lovers, and a 2 liter,” the teen said with a smile. “That’ll be twenty dollars.”
Ash smirked, but before he could pay, Pinkie shot past Ash and snagged both pizzas and the soda from the teen. Blinking but shaking off the oddity, Ash reached into his wallet and pulled out a ten. “Here you go kid.”
The pizza boy stared blankly at the bill. “Um…the total is twenty.”
“You’re two minutes late.”
The pizza boy groaned. “Come on! It’s my first day and I had trouble finding this place.”
“That sucks,” Ash replied, though his tone wasn’t very sympathetic.
The teen looked like he was ready to get on his knees and beg. “Please! I need to collect the full tab!”
“Wise men say forgiveness is divine,” Ash said placing a hand on the door. “But never pay full price for late pizza.” With that Ash closed the door on the flabbergasted teen.
Ash sat down at the table again. His gaze shifted from the food to Twilight, who still kept her head down as her friends -mostly Pinkie- enjoyed themselves.
“Twilight.” Ash prompted the princess. “Please… tell me what happened?”
“It….” Twilight began only to stop. “It was the same nightmare as before.” Twilight slowly got up from her seat and walked back to her room.
Foregoing pizza, Ash followed after her, stopping her just before she could escape back into her room. “Twi,” he insisted. “Tell me what’s bugging you.”
“Ashley do you…?” Twilight stopped herself, looking away.
“Do I what?” Ash prompted.
Sighing, Twilight looked back at him. “My nightmares have gotten worse. But I’d rather not talk about them.”
“It’s not healthy to keep something like that bottled up.” Ash sighed. “However, I won’t force you to tell me.”
“Thank you,” Twilight bowed before brushing past Ash to her room. “Goodnight, Ashley.” With that, she shut the door.
“Goodnight Princess.” Ash placed his left hand on the door and rested his forehead against the wooden surface. “Just remember I’ll always be here for you. All you need to do is call and I’ll be there.”
Unknown to the bodyguard, Twilight remained standing at her door.
“I know you will,” Twilight said as the nightmare replayed in her head:
Frightening memories of the deadites and changelings haunted her sleep. However, a good number of them she was unfamiliar with.
The first was placed in her Castle of Friendship. In the middle of the castle’s library was Spike, Twilight’s partner in her youth. However, he looked like he was in the beginning stages of his Greed Growth. The purple dragon was surrounded by Changelings as he stood in front of a white unicorn in a protective manner.
Another showed her brother being held by Queen Chrysalis in an unknown location, and Shining’s sword was held by the queen. The blade's edge pressed against his neck, while Ash stood mere feet away with his grip on his trusty boomstick.
And yet another showed Celestia’s and Luna’s throne room. Standing before the throne was an alicorn that Twilight has never seen before.
Her coat was a pale white color. Her teeth sharpened like vampire fangs. Her mane and tail were made of orange ethereal flames and her eyes were bright orange. The pupils slitted like a dragon or cat.
On the ground in the middle of the room were Ash and Shining Armor, however, for some reason Shining had Jacob’s chainsaw over his right hand.
The final – and worst - of the unfamiliar images were still in Celestia and Luna’s throne room. However, it only showed Ash; grimacing in pain as the blade of a sword pierced his gut.
“Oh Ashley,” Twilight lamented. “That’s what I’m afraid of most.” Unable to reveal such a fate to her love, she forced herself to go to bed
The following morning, after breakfast and an intense arm wrestling match between Ash and Rainbow – Ash pretended to lose, but stole the win when Rainbow started gloating - Twilight and Ash stood before the mirror to Equestria. Ash rolled his eyes at the looks he was getting for carrying his bloodied chainsaw. But thanks to his case getting wrecked at the Apple Family Farm, there wasn’t anywhere else he could store it.
Twilight finished her goodbyes with her friends and stood next to her bodyguard. Holding hands, the pair entered the mirror and were blinded by a bright light before appearing in the library of the princess’s castle.
“Home Sweet Home,” Ash mused, setting his chainsaw on the nearest table. “Good to be back.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” Twilight admitted with a heavy sigh. “I’m going to find Spike so he can catch me up on what has happened in the last six months.”
“Hold up,” Ash said. He pulled out the handgun he took from the Asylum Guard. “There will be a time when I won’t be there to protect you.” He placed the gun in the alicorn's hand. “Only put your finger on the trigger when you plan to shoot it.” He backed away from the princess. “I’ll teach you more later.”
“Ashley….” Twilight gently placed the gun next to Jacob’s chainsaw. “Do you…”
“Do I what?” Ash asked. “Twilight, just talk to me!”
The Alicorn's thoughts went to all the times Ash had planted a kiss on her. The first was at the Apple Family farm, and the most recent was at the asylum.
“Do you love me, Ashley?” Twilight asked.
Ash froze. “I…” He scratched the back of his head. “I….”
Fortunately for the human, a knock came from the castle doors.
“I’ll get that,” Ash said, quickly moving to answer the door. Though he noticed Twilight look down in sadness at the quick dismissal of her question.
Ash sighed, moving to answer the door… only for the carpet to get yanked out from under him. He crashed to the ground as a laugh echoed all around him.
“I must say,” whoever was laughing noted. “After risking your life on Little Miss Sparkle on several occasions, I would have thought you’d grow at least a few feelings for her.”
Ash glared as the voice gave shape to a creature with mismatched body parts. “Judging from the bizarre appearance and the mocking tone,” Ash noted. “You must be Discord: The Lord of Chaos.”
The draconequus gave a slight bow. “My reputation precedes me.” He chortled before snapping his fingers. A springboard formed under Ash and propelled him to his feet as Discord floated around the human. “So? Why didn’t you answer the princess’s question?”
“Does it matter?” Ash asked.
Discord thought for a split second before grinning. “No, not really!” The draconequus laughed as he erupted in a puff of pink smoke.
Sighing, Ash brushed off the bizarre encounter and opened the door.
Waiting for him was Rarity’s younger sister, Sweetie Belle. The younger unicorn was wearing a pair of periwinkle tight-fit jeans along with high-heeled boots. A matching shirt that left her mid-riff and cleavage exposed. A ruby jeweled bracelet on her left wrist, and mild makeup covering her face.
“You look like a cheap whore?” Ash spoke bluntly to the filly.
She gasped. “Wha…?”
“Sorry,” he mumbled. “Spent too long in an asylum, my filter’s been tossed to the dogs.” He sighed. “What are you doing here, Belle?”
“When...When did you get back” Sweetie asked, blushing with slight fear and embarrassment
“Just got back,” Ash crossed his arms. “What do you want?”
“I-Is Spike here?” Sweetie asked with hope in her voice.
“My Fucking God,” Ash groaned before walking past the filly. “It’s official; you both need Jesus!” The human stopped to give the filly a side glare. “Start walking. We’re going to talk with your sister.”
“My sister?! Wait!” Sweetie tried to follow after Ash, but with every step, she gave off a small ‘ow’.
Eventually, Ash stopped in his tracks, glaring at the filly. Unaware of his stopping, she bumped into him and fell to the ground.
“Take those off!” Ash growled, forcibly removing the heeled boots from the filly’s feet. He then yanked her back up. “Start walking!”
“Yes sir,” Sweetie whimpered as she walked ahead of the human.
Ash took a breath and forced himself to calm down. Once he was certain he could talk without shouting, he looked down at the filly.
“Look kid,” he began. “I know you have a crush on that dragon. But you’re going about it all wrong?”
Sweetie looked back at the human. “What do you mean?”
“Well for starters, you’re trying to win over someone who has eyes for your older sister. You need to change your tactics.”
Sweetie’s gaze turned to a glare. “You don’t think I’ve tried?” she nearly shouted. “For six months, I’ve tried changing clothes, using makeup, and even bumping into him on several occasions.”
“Bumping into your crush?” Ash said with a raised eyebrow. “That cliché never works. Believe me.”
“Well, if you know so much, can’t you help me?”
“Kinda have no choice in the matter,” Jacob said as they approached Carousel Boutique. “Otherwise I’m going to be plagued with the constant headaches brought on by your failed attempts.”
“Can you stop being crass and just give me some advice,” Sweetie Belle begged.
The human paused before he could go into the boutique. He looked back at the filly. “For starters?” He gestured at her attire. “Don’t dress like a whore. Dressing like that means that you’re either a horn dog who doesn’t care about her life or desperate.” The human then leaned down. “And desperate is definitely not attractive,” he added in a whisper.
Sweetie sighed. “Duly noted.”
“Next, you need to stop trying too hard,” Ash said to the filly as he entered the store. But before he could explain ‘trying too hard,’ he was greeted by Rarity.
“Welcome to Carousel… oh! Jacob. When did you get back?”
“A few moments ago,” Ash said with a small smile. “I actually need your input on something.”
“What can I help you with?” Rarity asked, grimacing as she spotted her sister and her current attire. “Spike?”
“Hit the nail right on the head,” Ash praised.
Sighing, Rarity’s magic flared as several large spools of fabric were pulled towards her. Sweetie tried to back up, but Rarity’s magic snagged her as well.
“Wait, sis, WAIT!” Sweetie protested, before the fabric formed a little twister around the siblings.
In a few seconds, the fabric pulled away, revealing Sweetie now wearing a white old-fashioned hoodie and a pair of sweatpants. Rarity grinned in relief as she pulled up a stool for Sweetie to sit on.
“Sweetie dear, you shouldn’t change how you look just to impress somepony,” Rarity said to her sibling. “You shouldn’t try so hard.”
“Mr. Jacob already told me that,” Sweetie replied. “He said he’d help me.”
“Him?” Rarity questioned, glancing at the human. “How do you know if he’s had any experience with dating.”
“Wow,” Ash noted. “Rude much? I might need ice for that.”
“I’m sorry, Jacob, but seriously,” Rarity insisted. “Have you?”
“I’ll have you know I’ve been in ten relationships with some of the best-looking girls in my world,” Ash said with pride. “What about you?”
Rarity, however, raised an eyebrow. “And how long did these relationships last?”
“Hey this isn’t about me!” Ash protested, pointing at Sweetie. “This is about your sister! She came to Twilight’s castle dressed like a hooker.”
Rarity blushed at his language, but then a familiar voice got their attention. “Oh-no-no, by all means. Let's continue talking about your love life. It was about to get good!”
Rarity groaned as she and Ash spotted the Lord of Chaos perched in the reflection of the store’s window. “Discord,” Rarity bemoaned. “My second to least favorite person.”
“Second least?” Discord asked with a raised eyebrow. He scoffed. “I’ve never been so insulted. Pray tell; who holds the number one spot?”
“The princess’s nephew,” Rarity admitted with a roll of her eyes. “Prince Blueblood.”
“Honestly, I don’t blame you” Ash commented, ignoring Discord entirely as he returned his gaze to the filly. “Alright kid. I’mma try and set you and Spike up.”
Rarity grimaced. “Are you sure that’s a good idea.”
“It’s either that, or I slap him so hard he finally gets a clue,” Ash answered with a shrug. “While I do like the first option, I am definitely more on board with the second.”
“Okay, so don’t be desperate, quit trying so hard and I need to change my tactics,” Sweetie Belle listed off the advice given. “Anything else?”
“Well your sister will give some more advice from a woman's perspective,” Ash replied, kneeling to meet the teen’s eyes. “However, I will give you the best advice you’ll ever receive: be ‘valuable,’ not just ‘available.’ Make him see you for you and not just another carbon copy of another.”
Sweetie tilted her head. “And that means?”
“Be yourself,” Rarity replied, sitting next to her sister. “Sweetie, nothing is more attractive than showing who you are to the one you love.”
Ash paused. His thoughts went to the Princess he was should’ve been protecting. “I… think I’ll leave the rest for you,” Ash said excusing himself from the fashionista home. He made his way back towards the Castle of Friendship. Unfortunately, halfway there, he was intercepted once again by Discord.
“Mr. Williams,” Discord called out. “Could I bother you for a moment of your time.”
Ash glared behind him… but no one was there. He frantically looked around, trying to find the draconequus until…
“Over here genius.” Ash found a miniature Discord sitting cross-legged on his left shoulder. “Why didn’t you answer her question?”
“Are we still on that?” Ash asked the mini-creature.
“You never gave me an answer.”
“I thought you didn’t care?” Ash replied, flicking the creature off his shoulder.
“I’m bored,” Discord replied, flipping and returning to his normal size. “And as it turns out, I’m still interested in your potential answer.” He flew closer. “So… do you love her?”
Ash turned away. “So what if I did? She’s a pony, and I’m a human.”
“I’m a draconequus and my true love is a pony as well,” Discord replied. “You’ll need a far better excuse than that.”
“How about because she’s a princess,” Ash replied.
Discord tsked. “I’m the Lord of Chaos,” he pointed out. “My love doesn’t need a title. Try again.”
Ash rolled his eyes and kept walking. “I don’t belong in this world.”
“Neither do I; my home is the Realm of Chaos.”
Ash growled, but Discord only seemed to delight in his irritation.
“Oh come-come-come, Williams, just answer the question,” Discord insisted. “Do you love her?”
Ash shook his head. “It’s not that simple.”
“Then simplify it,” Discord rose his voice. “Do you love her?”
“It’s what I do!” Discord matched the human’s volume. “Do you love her?!”
“OH MY GOD, FINE YOU WIN, YES!” Ash screamed. He glared at the smiling draconequus as he collected himself. “Yes, I love her! She’s smart, has an incredible sense of humor, and might as well be considered a goddess with how beautiful she looks.” Ash sighed. “But it’s not like I can tell her tha…” He paused, seeing how wide Discord’s smile had gotten. “Why are you smiling? What did you do?”
“Turn around.” Discord recommended, before vanishing from sight with a laugh.
Ash seethed, but reluctantly turned. He found Twilight staring at him, blushing like crazy and her jaw on the ground.
“I am going to kill him.” Ash whispered through gritted teeth.
“Ashley,” Twilight stammered. “D-Did you mean what you said?”
Ash sighed in defeat. “Yeah.” Jacob gingerly took the princess’s hands. “You are hands down the most beautiful woman I have ever had the pleasure of meeting.” He shrugged. “Though that might be the Stockholm syndrome from when you guys kept me prisoner.”
Twilight failed to hold back a laugh. “That’s not funny,” she tried to insist, even as she still held her smile. “But… why couldn’t you tell me earlier?”
“Because when this is all over…” Ash grimaced. “I have no idea if I have to go back to my world,” Ash gazed into her eyes. “I don’t want to break your heart if I’m forced to go home.”
“Ashley,” Twilight said softly. “Even if you do leave, nothing would change.” The alicorn leaned in close. “My heart would belong to you and you alone.” She pulled the human into a kiss. “And I’d never feel sadness if you were to return to your world.”
After returning to the castle, Spike caught Ash and Twilight up on the past six months.
According to the purple dragon, a map appeared in the throne room which led Spike and the Main 6 to a village; a village that had ponies with the exact same cutie mark. There, they met the founder of the village, Starlight Glimmer, who with the aid of her magic, stripped every pony of their Cutie Marks. Had it not been for the combined efforts of Fluttershy and Spike, the village would still be stealing Cutie Marks from the rest of pony kind.
Another event happened that wasn’t quite on the same scale as the previous adventure: as per Rarity’s idea, they dug up the roots of the golden oaks library and turned it into a chandelier with glowing gems, holding images of Twilight’s past with her friends. The gift had brought tears to the alicorn’s eyes.
Over the course of the next week, the pair mostly stayed in Ponyville. However, Ash began to get some weird looks from some of the mares. He also noticed that the stallions began to make themselves scarce. By the end of the week, Ash noticed a complete lack of men in the village. And even weirder was that Twilight started to make an effort to keep her distance. Even when they shared the princess’s bed they were separated by a wall of pillows.
There was an explanation, but Ash wasn’t sure if he wanted it to be true or not.
But he didn’t have to wait long to find out.
One morning, Ash woke up to a strange sensation coming from his lower body. He pulled back the covers, and got the shock of a lifetime when he found Twilight there. Her lips wrapped around his semi-erect manhood.
"Well, this is certainly one way of getting rid of morning wood," Ash commented before shifting a little.
However, the Alicorn never acknowledged the human words, continuing to suck like she was drinking a milkshake.
“Umm...Twilight?” Ash shifted again, despite her efforts to keep him in place. “As much as any man would enjoy being woke up like this, we only admitted to our feelings a week ago.”
Twilight didn’t respond, her tongue lapping around his shaft. Hesitantly, Ash tried to touch her head, only for her horn to glow. A blast of magic covered his hand and stump and attached them to the headboard.
"Okay, ha-ha, very funny,” Ash grumbled, twisting and shifting his weight, finally getting Twilight off him. “There we go. Now would you please untie me so-"
He was cut off when Twilight grabbed his throat, unintentionally revealing that she was wearing nothing under his sheets.
"Shut up and give it to me!” she growled like an animal before aiming her nether regions over Ash’s now fully erect pole.
"Twilight, you're going from hot to psycho in record speed!" Ash warned as he tried to pull his arms free. "Can you at least tell me why you're doing this before you..."
But for once, Twilight wasn’t interested in explaining, and Ash’s words went up in a moan as she let her hips fall, and slid his member into her canal.
“HOLY fuck you’re tight!” Ash wheezed.
"I should be,” Twilight growled, still in animal mode. “It's my first time after all. Now shut up and buck me!” She slammed her hips down – Ash felt her hymen snap against him – and let out a moan loud enough for the whole town to hear.
For a moment, her moan transitioned to a whimper, and her body shook in pain. Ash saw blood ooze from the space between where they were joined. He hesitantly reached for her cheek.
"Twi, you okay?”
"I-I'm alright..." She panted, shifting and adjusting herself.
"Twi," Ash grunted, resisting the pleasure and trying to keep his rational mind. "Why are you acting this way?"
"Don't you know?” She managed a laugh despite her panting. “It’s because I’m in heat. Most of the mares go into heat around this time.”
Ash tensed, and not just because of Twilight’s insides clamping down on him. “Come again?”
“If you insist,” she admitted with a sultry grin. “It’s my heat cycle and I can’t get you off my mind.”
“But…!” Ash wanted to protest that they didn’t have protection. That Twilight wasn’t in her right mind.
But Twilight cut him off by mashing her lips against his, her hips bucking up and down as she rode him like a horse.
"Mmm! MMM!" Ash protested, struggling against his restraints and just barely managing to disengage their lips.
“Please,” Twilight moaned, gazing at him with hearts in her eyes. “I’ve been dreaming about this for so long!”
“You have to get a hold of yourself,” Ash insisted. “We have to think about this rationally!”
"Didn't you say you loved me?"
"I do! And that’s why I’m worried. Heat could be dangerous for you?"
"All depends on how badly you want me!”
Ash didn’t like the hint of crazy in her tone. “I want you to stop, and think about this!” he pleaded. “Before something happens that we’ll both regret.”
But Twilight was ignorant to his pleas. Like a possessed mare, she bounced on his member, the room filling with the smell of sweat and sex while her erotic cries mixed with Ash’s reluctant grunts.
"Ashley…” she moaned as her eyes rolled back. “I love you~!"
Ash could only grit his teeth and moan himself, wincing as Twilight’s marehood clenched around him and soaked his hips in her love juices. The sensation brought tension to Ash’s pelvis as well, and he felt his balls churning with potential baby batter.
"T-twilight wait!" Ash protested. "I-If you keep this up I'm gonna…!"
But Twilight gazed down at him with lust. “Yes! Do it! Fill me with your seed! Spray it in me~!"
She came a second time, and Ash could feel his lower boomstick begging to be fired. But fortunately, Twilight’s magic weakened in her lust, and Ash was able to break his magical bindings. He yanked her off and tossed her on her back, barely keeping himself from going off.
As she basked in the afterglow, Ash took advantage of her pause, snatching up his pants and bolting out of the room.
“A-Ashley?” she called, but he slammed the door on her. “Ashley, wait!”
But Ash couldn’t heed her calls. Not yet. Not when her intellect had been reduced to that of a primal animal. He paused, wondering where he could go to find a way to calm her down… only for her to launch out of a teleportation spell and tackle him to the ground.
"Where are you going, sexy~?" she asked.
Ash, however, rolled her to her back and pinned her arms down. “Twilight, I’m serious! We can’t. Not like this.”
Twilight paused, seeing the worry in Ash’s eyes, and took a breath, visibly calming herself. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m sorry, Ashley. I just…” She gazed up at him with pleading eyes. “I know this feels rushed, but… you’ve done so much. Put yourself at great risk and asked nothing in return. You’ve become so important to me, and I couldn’t think of any other way to repay you.” She glanced away with a slight grin. “Being able to confess our feelings? The heat cycle starting… it made it feel so much easier to do this with you.” Her ears dropped and she looked up at him with a sad expression. “Do you… not want the same? To be closer to me?”
Ash relaxed and let her go. “I do,” he promised. “Believe me, I do.” He shifted on his knees. “I just don’t want you to rush into something you might not be prepared for.” He managed a small chuckle. “And I’m… kinda terrified of what your brother will do to me if you get you pregnant.”
Twilight paused, considering his point, before chuckling herself. “Good point,” she admitted. “Hang on.”
Ash watched her horn glow, before her lower belly pulsed with light. “What just happened?” he asked.
“I cast an infertility spell on myself,” Twilight explained. “It’s a handy little bit of magic for mares who don’t want foals yet. It’ll last for a full week.’ She got on her knees and leaned in close. “Which means, if you want…?”
Ash gulped as she loomed over him. "Uh...I am both scared and aroused right now."
She hesitated, her lips inches away from his. “Oh, so… do you still want to stop?”
Ash grimaced. “You do realize Shining’s still going to kill me for popping your cherry, right?”
Twilight sighed, and looked away. “I…”
Ash managed a smile and touched her cheek, making her look at him again. “But you want to know something else?”
Twilight’s ears perked in hope. “What?”
“I don’t care.” With a smile, Ash lunged, pinning the mare to her back as he enveloped her lips in a passionate kiss. He briefly pulled back to grin at her. “I like this Twilight over Psycho Twilight.”
She giggled, gently rubbing her slit against his shaft. “Well, she’s all yours,” she replied.
Touching heads, the two watched as Ash re-entered her, her canal slick with her juices and allowing him to slide in with ease. His length glided into her velvety halls, pulling him in greedily with a vice-like grip.
The pair moaned and panted, overwhelmed with sheer pleasure and warmth. Ash bottomed out, but could already feel his limit approaching, sooner than he was hoping for.
Without worry or hesitation to stop him, Ash let his own animal side take over. And as he rammed Twilight with everything he had, she screamed as she felt him reach depths in her that had never felt such contact before. Lightning ran up her spine and she clamped down hard as Twilight came once again.
"Wow,” Twilight panted. “That was intense~."
She gazed up at her lover with a warm smile. One Ash was able to happily return.
“Again?” he offered.
She wrapped her arms around his neck before leaning in close. “Don’t ever stop,” she said with a wide smirk.
Ash matched her confident smirk before he began again, crashing through her like a hurricane.
Despite it being her first time, Twilight’s depths milked and pulled his length like a professional, coaxing him into unleashing everything, and driving him ever closer to the inevitable.
"I love you~!" Twilight screamed out in pure, sweet, unadulterated bliss and pleasure as she wrapped her legs around his waist, locking him in place.
He managed two full thrusts before he felt the dam give way, and his balls jerked and clenched. The end of his shaft pressed against Twilight's inner sanctum, and his cum spurted right into the deepest parts of her cervix, excess running down his length and out the mare’s quivering lower lips.
Twilight’s body arched back as her eyes rolled back, her tongue hanging out the corner of her mouth and her nails digging into his back.
"Jesus... H... Fucking… Christ," Ash breathed out. He slumped over, his head resting on Twilight’s shoulder.
After a few breaths, Ash felt the princess's wings wrap around him in a hug. The two looked into each other’s eyes, smiling with pure love for each other.
Unfortunately, a loud knock at the front door emanated.
Both let out a loud groan, before Ash lifted himself off Twilight and retrieved his pants.
“I got it,” Ash said, pulling his pants on. “You might wanna get back in bed,” he added to the princess with a grin. “Next time, I want to finish where it started.”
Twilight smirked and nodded, pulling herself off the floor and heading to the bedroom, as Ash made himself presentable and headed towards the main hall of the castle.
Before he could reach it, however, a crash sounded as the main door was likely kicked down. A familiar voice roared at the top of her lungs.
“Jacob Ashley Williams!”
“Great…” Ash muttered. “Never a good sign when someone middle names you.”
The signs only got worse when Ash reached the main hall, and found Samantha glaring at him, the door lying in a broken heap beside her.
“You unbearable ASSHOLE!” Samantha screamed, marching towards the human. “You left me in the Crystal Empire!” She jabbed her finger into Jacob’s chest. “It took me SIX MONTHS to walk back here! Oh, and did you know I can’t starve? Because I can’t. I found that out when no one on this fucking planet would give me food or a ride home!”
The human let out a small laugh. “Can’t imagine why,” he mused.
“Jacob now isn’t the time…”
“Nah,” Ash shot back. “How about you go back out there, and search for the number of fucks I give.”
Her anger mixed with a hurt expression. “Why are you being such an asshole?”
“Why am I being an asshole?” Ash demanded, anger entering his voice. “Why am I? Let’s think about that, shall we?” He listed off the reasons on his fingers: “First, you knocked me out. With my own gun! Dick move. Then, you knocked out Twilight! Double Dick Move. Third, you delivered her to the Queen Bug Bitch. And lastly – and stick with me, because this is pretty important – YOU ALMOST GOT US ALL FUCKING KILLED!”
Before Samantha could protest or get a word in, a purple barrier formed between them.
"ENOUGH!" Twilight shouted, entering the room in a robe. "I finally gave my first time to the person I love, and I’m not going to have it spoiled by… whatever this is!”
"Stay out of this, Princess," Sam said, barely bothering to look at the alicorn. "This doesn’t concern you. This is between me and your asshole bodyguard.”
"Last time I check I'm not the crazy immortal bitch who almost ended the world,” Ash countered.
Sam pressed her fists against the barrier. “Call me crazy again,” she dared in a dangerously calm tone. “I dare you.”
"Now hold on you two-" Twilight tried to interject.
"Just forget it Twilight,” Ash said, glaring at his former friend. “There’s no reasoning with a crazy bitch.”
Sam let out a deadite worthy shriek, and shattered the barrier with a massive double hammer fist. Tackling the human to the ground, she began wailing on him.
“Samantha, no!" Twilight shouted.
But before she could run down the stairs, Ash caught Sam’s fist.
“Stay out of it, Twi,” he warned, flaring his Mangekyou Sharingan. His partial Susanoo materialized around him, and the large skeletal arm grabbed hold of Samantha's body.
"Ashley stop!" Twilight pleaded.
But the princess's pleas fell on deaf ears, and Ash hurled the half-deadite through the halls of the castle. Sam crashed through the door of the castle library and hit the table holding the majority of Jacob's weapons.
Ash rushed in after her, tackling her and managing to grab his boomstick. Sam countered by grabbing the bore pistol. But before either could get a shot off…
“NOT IN MY LIBRARY!” Twilight roared, the Royal Canterlot Voice worse than an angry dragon.
Sam and Ash both froze from the power behind Twilight’s voice. And in their moment of hesitation, their weapons suddenly vanished, and they were constrained by more restraints and barriers than either could hope to break out of. By the time she was done, Twilight’s horn was practically smoking as she cowed them both with a dangerous glare.
"The two of you are friends,” Twilight growled. “And until you go back to being friends, you will remain in those barriers."
Sam huffed as she pulled at her restraints. “So, what? You’re putting us in time out?”
"As a matter of fact, I am!" Twilight growled back.
"I broke through one barrier," Sam stated with a smug smirk, pulling at her restraints. "What's stopping me from breaking through these?”
"Those have kinetic enchantments,” Twilight stated with an equally smug smirk. “The more you hit them or resist, the stronger they’ll get." Twilight brought up a chair and sat between the two of them. "Now. We are not leaving until you two talk this out."
"Then we'll be here awhile," Ash said, trying to cross his arms despite being restrained. He glared at Sam. "Cause I'd rather cut my dick off than trust her again."
"Oh, like you had a dick to begin with,” Sam mocked. “I bet you left our poor princess here high and dry."
Ash laughed. “Keep talking, bitch. I’ll…”
"Stop!" Twilight snapped, the dangerous glare coming back.
Ash and Sam looked away from Twilight, but still managed a glare at each other.
"Jackass," Sam muttered
"Cunt," Ash snarled back.
Twilight sighed, and got up. “I can’t do this in a bath robe,” she grumbled, heading back to her bed room.
For a moment, Ash and Sam were left alone. Ash pulled at the restraints, but true to Twilight’s word, they only got harder to resist against the more he tugged at them. He sighed.
"So..." He finally asked Sam. "Why come here and not back to that bug bitch?"
"Because you're my friend, Jacob," Sam replied.
"A friend you betrayed.”
Sam looked down, regret shining on her face. “Ash…” she sighed. “I know I fucked up.”
“Royally.”
"What can I do to make you trust me?"
Ash’s glare was cold. "Fuck off and Die."
She winced. "That's a bit harsh."
"Harsh? HARSH?!?" Ash snapped. "You nearly killed us all! On top of that, I finally got to spend a passionate moment with the girl I love after we FINALLY confessed how we feel about each other. And YOU came along and ruined it!” He stopped to take a deep breath with a sarcastic smile. "Personally, I think harsh is an understatement."
Sam looked away, not responding for a moment. “Jacob,” she said, looking at him with regret. “Believe me; if I could go back and change what I did. I would.”
Ash let out a breath through his nose. “Then why? Why’d you trust Chrysalis in the first place?"
"She promised that if I delivered Twilight to her, then you and I would be safe from her," Sam gazed at Ash pleadingly. "I thought you'd be safe."
Ash kept his glare. "And you didn't think to run this by me?"
"Because I knew you wouldn't agree!"
"DAMN STRAIGHT!!" Ash snapped.
"I'm sorry!" Sam insisted. "I know I can't fix it, but at least I'm trying."
"Can't fix if what’s already broken," Ash snarled as he looked away.
"Don't forsake your friends, Ashley."
Sam’s words made Ash’s eyes widen. He glared at her with fresh rage. “Do not… Don’t you dare!”
But Sam held her head high. “I dare.”
“Don’t you dare bring her into this!” Ash almost roared.
"Bring who into this?" Twilight asked.
Ash glanced at Twilight, who had returned wearing a light blue dress and a pair of flat black shoes. Her concerned gaze reached past Ash’s defenses, and he looked down in sorrow.
"My mother.”
Twilight gasped, glancing between them. “I’ll be… right back.” She zipped away, and returned just as quickly with a clipboard. She pulled her hair back into a bun, and donned a pair of reading glasses, before taking out a quill and poising herself to take notes. She gazed at Ash expectantly. "Go on."
But Ash shook his head. "I'm not talking about this Twi.”
"But talking about it will be good for you.” Twilight smiled. “And… if we're going to be a proper couple, we should know more about each other."
"Twilight. Please," Ash insisted, his tone calm but stern. "I will gladly tell you anything about my life. But I can’t talk about her."
Twilight lowered her clipboard, disappointed, but understanding. Ash, for his part, sighed and looked at Samantha with something other than loathing.
“But…” Ash admitted, before letting out another sigh. “Alright, Sam. I’ll give you one more chance.” But his gaze became stern and he held up one finger. “Just ‘one.’" His gaze became morose. "I won't forsake my friends.”
Sam lowered her head in understanding. “Thank you, Ash.”
Twilight glanced between them. “So… if I drop these barriers, you two promise not to fight?”
Ash nodded. "You have my word.”
"I promise not to start anything either," Sam added with a nod of her own.
Giving them one more stern look, Twilight moved the restrained displaced out of her library, before dissipating the barriers and other deterrants.
True to form, Ash and Sam didn’t attack each other.
Breathing in relief, Twilight hugged Ash. Her heat caused her to nuzzle him a bit more than was needed, and Samantha began to blush.
“So…” Sam mumbled.
"I haven’t forgiven you,” Ash warned her, before giving a slight grin as Twilight continued to nuzzle him. “But I have given you a chance to change that.”
"I'll take it," Sam said with a grin before she noticed the princess's gaze.
"Good,” Twilight said. “Because now that the two of you aren't killing each other…" Twilight pointed to the mess in the library and the halls leading up to it. "You get to clean my castle."
"What?!" Samantha protested, before pointing at Ash. "But what about him? He made this mess in the first place!” She narrowed her eyes. “And from the smell of it, he’s made another mess too.”
"Ohh hardy har har, you're a comedic genius," Ash said before lifting Twilight bridal style and walking back to their bedroom.
“He’ll handle his mess,” Twilight called over his shoulder. “You can handle that mess,” she pointed to the wreckage.
Sam deflated as she gazed at the utter destruction.
“Have fun,” Twilight added with a giggle, before the pair traveled out of Sam’s sight, quickly returning to the master bedroom. As they approached the bed, Ash hesitated.
“You realize she’s going to hear everything, right?” Ash asked the alicorn.
Twilight smirked, already pulling off the shoulders straps of her dress. “What’s your point?”
Ash still grimaced. “I don’t know…”
Sensing his hesitation, Twilight cast a spell on the door, blocking it with additional furniture for good measure. “There,” she said. “This time, no interruptions.”
Ash’s grin returned. “I love the way you think.”
Feeling Twilight’s inner fire just from holding her, Ash plopped her on the bed and got to work. Ripping away her dress and his pants until both were as naked as popinjays, Ash lined up his shaft with her entrance, teasing her only briefly before shoving home.
Twilight's eyes rolled back and her tongue lolled out of her mouth. Her pussy lips stretched wide, desperately gobbling up his large instrument, and a bestial moan escaped her throat.
Ash closed his eyes and smiled. "Oh, that still feels fucking tight."
“And oh, so fucking right,” Twilight breathed, locking her legs around him and trying to pull his member all the way into her womb.
"Mm,” Ash teased, slowly pushing in and out. “A princess with a dirty mouth~." He kissed her neck.
"EEE!” Twilight giggled and she held him tight. “Ashley, that tickles~!"
He sighed, gazing on her not just with lust but love as well. “I love you, Twilight.”
She smiled up at him. “And I love you too.”
Back in the main hall, Sam sighed as she heard the sound of a thumping bed, along with Twilight’s high pitched moans.
“Sounds like you’re having fun,” she muttered, as she swept up the debris from her fight. She tensed as Ash let out a mighty roar of dominance.
Back inside, Ash straddled Twilight dominantly, her belly bulging a bit from the combination of his seed and girth. Twilight lay back, shivering at the feeling of his member twitching between her thighs, while his cum oozed inside her.
“My-my,” Twilight purred. “Quite the energy you have. Three times in a single hour."
“What can I say?” he replied. “You’re too good.” He went to all fours, pulling himself free and watching his load spill onto the bedsheets, dripping from his now limp member. “I must be tired…”
Almost in defiance of his words, his little friend once again stood at attention.
“Or not,” Ash decided, grinning at Twilight. “Round 4?”
“Round 4,” Twilight agreed, pulling him into another kiss.
After a few more rounds, the pair finally found themselves completely spent. Ash lay satisfied, with Twilight next to him. Her hair was completely frazzled, and her body was numb with pleasure, but she smiled faintly as she held onto her lover.
Sam hesitantly opened the door. “The uh...cleaning is done."
She saw the door glow in pink, and wisely ducked out before it was slammed shut in her face.
The glow on Twilight’s horn faded, as she smiled and rested her head on Ash’s chest.
“Best. Heat Season. Ever,” Twilight murmured, before Ash’s heartbeat lulled her to sleep.
"That'll be twenty bits, Williams," The farm girl said sternly.
"Twenty bits for four apples?" Ash asked with a glare. "The pony before me asked for the same thing and only paid a third of that."
"Yer point?"
"Why do I have to pay more when everyone else pays less?" Ash shouted as he gripped the bag of groceries in his metal hand.
"If ya don't like it, shop somewhere else. Yer scaring away my business!" Applejack yelled back.
"That's bullshit and you know it!"
"Go buck some trees yer self?" Applejack pointed to her family’s farm.
Ash let out a groan and stomped away. Neither he nor Applejack noticed a mop of red hair hastily shoving apples in a brown bag. The human made it ten steps from the market as he felt the weight of the bag of bits Twilight gave him. The human smiled. "I managed to save quite a bit," Ash noted as he made his way to the castle. "Even managed to haggle on some of the more expensive ingredients.”
"Mister!" a young voice called out.
Ash turned, finding an out-of-breath Apple Bloom panting heavily with her hands on her knees. "You're...Applejack's little sister." Ash scratched at his forehead before the name clicked. "Apple Bloom, right?"
"Here," Apple Bloom said, handing a brown bag to the human.
Ash looked inside and found six apples inside. "Thanks, kid," Ash said adding the apples to his back of groceries. He then reached into his sack of bits. "Six bits, right?"
"Four, actually," The young Apple smiled reassuringly. "The other two are for dealing with my unreasonable sister.”
"Honestly I kinda feel bad for you," Ash said, handing the bits to the kid.
"Apple Bloom!!" Both turned their gaze to the angry Applejack who was stomping after the two.
"Run!" Apple Bloom shouted. She ran in one direction while Ash turned tail and raced toward the castle.
Fortunately, the farm girl’s anger was directed toward her younger sister. Ash closed the door to the castle and slowly calmed down, before making his way to the castle's kitchen and putting all the perishables away.
"I'm still amazed at this world," Ash noted, closing the refrigerator door. "They have showers, fridges, and video games and yet instead of cars or guns, they got medieval-style weapons and their carriages are pulled by large wolves.”
"They're called Dire Wolves," a voice said, yanking Ash from his thoughts.
"Jesus!!" Ash fumbled with a jar of grape jam before catching it and setting it down. Ash turned and found Spike standing at the doorway of the kitchen with a plastic bag of gems in his hand. "Don't sneak up on me, man!" Ash placed a hand over his racing heart. "Nearly gave me a heart attack!"
"You fight demons and Changelings?" Spike noted, popping a gem in his mouth. "And a small dragon scared the shit out of you?"
"Keep talking, dragon," Ash said as he took off his metal hand and placed it on the counter. "I can still kick your ass with one hand."
"Fair enough," Spike conceded with a shrug. "But as I was saying, they’re called Dire Wolves: a race of wolves that grow rather large, which is quite helpful when we need a cart, wagon, or carriage that needs to be pulled. You'll hardly ever find a wild Dire Wolf, as they were at one point hunted to near extinction. At least until Celestia ordered that they should be tamed to aid in the carrying of heavy goods or ponies.”
"Huh... Neat," Ash mused, putting his metal hand back on his stump before grabbing an apple and taking a bite out of it. "That still doesn't explain why this world doesn't have a single gun.”
"Never needed them,” Spike replied with a grin. “Not until you showed up.”
"Fair enough," Ash relented. He began to walk away, only to hear something hit the ground.
The human turned, and found the young dragon curled over in pain as his scales shined like diamonds. Ash rushed to help the dragon but found the dragon too hot to touch.
"Twilight!! We've got a problem in the kitchen!!" Ash shouted before a burst of light blinded the man.
“What happened?” Twilight asked.
Ash grimaced as he rubbed the spots out of his eyes. "Next time, could you just walk in here?”
"Oh, sorry," Twilight apologized, but her focus was on her dragon. "Spike, what's wrong?"
"It… burns!"
"Ashley, bring him into the library," Twilight said, exploding in another flash of light.
Fortunately, Ash shielded his eyes this time, and avoided the blinding effects of the alicorn's spell. Using his metal hand, Jacob picked the dragon up while his other hand hooked under Spike's legs. Ash carried the dragon through the castle, and on his way, he ran into Samantha.
"Sam! Here.” Ash dumped the dragon into her arms. Sam nearly dropped him with a yelp, her arms smoking from his heat.
"Jesus, he's hot," Sam complained.
“I thought you can’t feel hot or cold,” Ash noted.
“He’s ‘that’ hot,” Sam replied.
"You’re… not my type," Spike groaned out, which caused Ash to snicker.
"I can always drop you," Sam warned.
But she kept her hold on him, as the three entered the library.
"We're here Twilight," Ash said as Sam placed the dragon down. "Any idea why Spike is in pain?”
"Not enough pain if you ask me," Sam muttered. "Smartass."
"I'm going through every anatomy book I have," Twilight said frantically, numerous books floating around her. "None of them are telling me what's happening to him!”
Twilight continued to look through the books in a frantic rush. The Alicorn was so worried for her friend that she didn’t hear the knock on the door.
"Sam, can you get that?" Ash asked the Half-Deadite.
"Why do I have to..." Sam shut her mouth, remembering that she still wasn't fully trusted. "I'll get it.”
Leaving the group behind, Sam moved through the castle. All the while Sam couldn't help but feel something bugging her.
"She's a princess, so why doesn't she have servants?" Sam mumbled.
Sighing, she opened the door, and was shocked by what she saw.
Standing in front of the castle door was a blue dragoness with brilliant red eyes, and a mess of blue hair. The Dragon's scales were a brilliant cyan with a pale turquoise underbelly and wing membrane gradient of moderate indigo to light cobalt blue. Jutting from the sides of her head were down curved Horns that had a light apple greenish gray color.
The Dragoness also wore gold armor which covered her upper chest, shoulders, wrists, legs, feet, and the tip of her tail. Brown wrappings covered her elbows, feet, and the base of her tail. The most alarming feature the dragon had that shocked Sam was that her scales were shining like Spike's.
"Please tell me you're not the Princess of Friendship," the dragoness all but begged.
"I'm not," Sam said, slightly irritated before she noticed how the dragon looked. "You look like you're in pain. Come inside.”
"Thanks," the dragon said as she made her way inside. "Please… I need to speak to a princess.”
Sam helped the dragon through the castle, grimacing all the way from the feel of the dragon's scales. Soon enough, the two made it to the library, where they found Twilight with a stack of books at her feet.
"Sam, who was at..." Ash started to say before noticing the dragon. “Oh.”
"Twilight,” Sam said, helping the dragoness approach Twilight. “Someone needs to talk to you.”
"Princess of Equestria," the dragoness said, kneeling before the Alicorn. "I am Ember, Daughter of Dragon Lord Torch." She lifted her head and looked at Twilight with pleading eyes. "I need your help in the Dragon Lands. My father is going to make a terrible mistake!”
"What kind of mistake?" Twilight asked the dragon.
"He's calling the dragons around the world to hunt down and destroy these… creatures.”
“Deadites?” Ash asked. “Or changelings?” He winced. “Or both?”
“Both,” Ember clarified. “He thinks together, we can destroy them. But he'll only be leading them into their deaths.” The dragoness shuddered. “I’ve seen what they’re capable of. These creatures have the ability to hide themselves and are strong enough to ambush and overpower ten dragons at once.”
Ash nodded, before heading out of the library. “I’ll get my guns.”
"I'll bring the car around," Sam offered.
Ash tossed the keys to his friend, all while Ember stared on in confusion.
"Guns?” she asked. “Car?”
"We'll explain everything on the way," Twilight replied, helping Spike to his feet and levitating a book with her magic.
A familiar flesh bound book that caused the dragon princess to back up with horror. "What. Is. That?" Ember whispered.
"You don't need to know," Ash replied, re-entering with his trusty boomstick in its holster. "All you need to know is that we need it.”
"I still haven't figured out the incantation to send them back where they came from," Twilight admitted, stashing the book in her satchel before admiring the bag. "It was nice that Pinkie gave me this bag.”
"Yeah not to mention it looks good on you" Ash flirted.
Twilight to blush before sighing. “Only two and a half weeks.”
Ash hummed and shrugged as well. “Well, it was fun while it lasted.”
"Two and a half weeks?" Ember asked
"How long this little vacation of ours lasted," Ash explained as he picked up his chainsaw. "Now that the changelings are back… it’s back to the grindstone.”
Before Ember could react to that, a horn blared, alerting them that Samantha brought the car around.
"Let's go," Ash said, before eyeing the dragon princess's glowing scales. "Any chance you could bring Spike to the car?"
"Um... sure," Ember said. “Though… I still don’t know what a car is.”
“You’ll see,” Ash replied.
Watching him go with a hum, Ember helped Spike to his feet. "Don't worry," Ember assured the dragon as he groaned in pain. "The pain will fade the closer we get to the Dragon Lands.”
Spike grinned up at her. “Thanks.”
Ember smiled, though her smile faded into shock as they got outside… and she saw what a ‘car’ was. "What in great granddad Bahamut's name is that metal beast?!”
"This beautiful lady is the Delta," Ash replied, as he opened the trunk and pulled out a leg holster. "Glad I ask Rarity to make this for me," the human said strapping the holder to his thigh. "Made me pay a lot for it, but man is it worth it!” Ash then pulled out the Kandarian dagger before placing it into the thigh holster.
"Is that...?" Twilight asked before Ash walked up to her.
"The same dagger Chrysalis used to damage that beautiful body of yours," Ash said, tracing his finger over the scar on her left arm. "And I promise that if I come across that bug bitch, I’ll do to her what she did to you?"
"Can you two stop flirting and get in the car?" Sam asked, getting out of the driver's seat. "You’re making me gag.”
"Get over it," Ash shot back, but he got into the car all the same.
Sam started to move to the passenger seat. However a look from Ash spoke volumes, and Sam slunk to the back seat without another word, making way for Twilight to take the passenger side while Spike and Ember sat on both sides of Samantha.
Gunning the engine, Ash drove out of Ponyville with Ember giving him directions to the Dragon Lands.
"Subject 1K06," a blue pegasus male with blonde and white wavy hair in a white coat said, observing a caged dire wolf with a clipboard in his hand. "Birthed two cubs," the pegasus wrote down something on the clipboard before speaking again. "Testing for project War-Dog will begin within three weeks."
The pony came across a grey unicorn that had rather uncontrollable black hair and a mustache who was looking into the cage next to his. "How's Subject 1K07?"
"She birthed a total of five cubs," the unicorn said before pointing out a sickly-looking snow white cub. "The runt, however, doesn't look fit for the experiments.”
"It doesn't matter," the pegasus brushed off. "If it dies, it dies. Celestia wants these war dogs ready.”
"If I may ask… what got her to finally approve of our War-Dog initiative?" the unicorn asked.
"She wants to be prepared to take the fight to the Demon," the Pegasus said, going over the other test subjects. "Though, she didn't clarify who or what this demon is.”
“Well, it should be Chrysalis and her changelings,” the unicorn replied, using his magic to remove the runt from his mother's reach. "Either way, I'd say we start with this one. The last batch died within a matter of hours.”
"What'd you have in mind, Solid Gear?"
"We give it a full dose of the new formula and wait," Solid Gear said eyeing the weak cub. "If it lives, we can start with the others. Sound good Sky Drifter?"
"Wise course of action," Sky Drifter said, recalling the number of failed attempts. "Celestia won't be pleased if we give her another failed report.”
Both ponies move from the cages and into a lab that already had a syringe prepared for them. Solid Gear set the pup down, holding the wriggling whelp in place. Sky Drifter picked up the syringe and stabbed it into the dire wolf pup. The pegasus injected every drop of the formula into the pup which enticed a whine of pain.
"I really wish these things would stop whining," Solid Gear said coldly as he let go of the cub.
"It’ll stop if it keels over,” Sky Drifter said as he picked up the cub and threw it in its cage. “Let’s just see what happens.”
The weeks flew by, and before long, Solid Gear and Sky Drifter once again went over the numbers of recent births and deaths of the Dire Wolves.
Sky Drifter stopped as he looked into a solitary cage that held a single sickly Dire Wolf.
"How's the runt fairing, Sky?" Solid Gear asked as he pushed up his red glasses. "Another failure?"
The pegasus opened the cage, taking the pup out and examining it. "From what I can see he's already got a foot through death's door and looks far worse than he did prior," the pegasus said. "However, he's still breathing...barely."
"So long as it's alive," the unicorn said, using his magic to pluck other pups away from their mothers. "That means we can get started on Project War Dog."
"What about the runt?" The pegasus asked, holding said the runt up.
"Who cares?" Solid Gear replied coldly, already preparing the formula for each wolf. "It'll die anyway. We'll probably just use it to test out the mutts’ combat prowess.”
"Tough break, Runt," Sky said, tossing the wolf back into its cage.
As Drifter left to assist the unicorn, he failed to notice the changes that were happening to the small wolf:
Its eyes changed from a deep forest green to a poisonous purple, and the pup's fur shifted from snow white to charcoal as its body grew to the size of a full-grown foxhound. The wolf bared its fangs, hearing the whines of its siblings in the distance. It let out a growl, it’s ears flicking as the voices of the ponies grew louder and louder.
“I'm glad we finally got a working formula.”
“Don't get excited just yet. Remember what happened last time you had expectations that high?”
“In my defense the wolves all showed signs of becoming War Dogs.”
“But it drove them insane and we had to put them down.”
As they spoke, the pup rose to its paws. Feeling newfound strength coursing through its veins, it slammed into the door of its cage.
“You hear that?”
“Go check it out.”
The Pegasus quickly rushed out of the lab, and found the runt trying to break out. The pegasus’ eyes widened, taking in the changes the dire wolf has undergone.
"Hey, Solid!" Sky Drifter called out with a grin. "Come here and take a look…"
The door on the cage burst open, and the Dire Wolf leaped onto the pegasus. Sky Drifter screamed in pain as his ear was ripped off his head. His scream was drowned out by the wolf’s roar of rage as he went for another bite.
Before Sky Drifter’s face could be similarly torn from his head, a bolt of magical lightning blasted the dire wolf away. The Dire Wolf let out a pained yelp as its body convulsed and twitched on the ground. Sky Drifter pulled himself up, clutching the bleeding wound where his ear had been before giving the dire wolf a look of hate.
" You little bastard!" the pegasus shouted as he gave the paralyzed wolf a hard kick.
"Wait!" Solid Gear shouted, grabbing the pegasus before he could kick him again.
"It bit my ear off!"
"And it broke out of a cage designed to restrain monsters," Solid Gear said, pulling Drifter away. "This requires further study"
"It. Bit. MY FUCKING EAR OFF!"
"THEN GO TO THE INFIRMARY!" Solid shouted right back. "While you recover, I'll run some tests on the runt."
Sky Drifter gave the wolf one more loathsome glare before turning to the infirmary. “Make it painful,” he spat before leaving.
Solid grinned ominously. “Oh, I will,” he promised as he turned to the wolf again. “I will.”
Ash and company continued their drive to the Dragon Lands as the Scorpions ‘Rock You Like a Hurricane’ played in the background.
“Eyes up,” the Dragon Princess informed the group, “We’re well beyond the Dragon Land borders now.”
Samantha sat in between the two dragons, completely bored out of her mind. She glared at Ash, but he just grinned. He knew full well that Sam hated long road trips; she had bounds of energy but she hated sitting still for long periods of time.
"So, Twilight" Samantha said, hoping a conversation would alleviate her boredom. "You mind if I ask you a question?"
"Not at all," Twilight said turning to the Half-deadite curiously.
"Why don't you have any servants?" Sam asked.
The alicorn tilted her head. “Excuse me?”
“Your brother and Cadance had servants, so why don't you?"
"Honestly...” Twilight looked away with an uneasy grimace. “I just don't feel comfortable ordering others around.”
"Why?" Sam asked rather forcibly. "Servants make life easier. They'd cook, clean, maintain, and protect the castle.”
"But again,” Twilight insisted. “I don’t like ordering them around.”
“Seriously?” Sam demanded.
"Sam..." Ash hissed out, but Sam ignored him.
"I mean can you honestly say you're fine maintaining such a large castle…”
"Samantha!"
The half-deadite looked at her friend and saw he was glaring at her with his Sharingan active. She shrunk back in her seat.
"S-Sorry Ash" Sam apologized.
He still glared at her, before something else drew his attention: Spike's and Ember's scales ceased their glowing.
"We've arrived at the Dragon Meeting," Ember said as she leaned forward and pointed ahead. "Behold Dragon Lord Torch.”
In the distance was a large blue dragon that sat on a mountain like it was a throne.
"Holy… Shit!" Ash gasped out as he gazed at Ember's father. "That's one giant dragon!”
"Not even the dragons in Elden Ring compare!" Sam admitted.
Pushing past his shock, Ash drove toward the Dragon Lord's meeting. However, they soon found their route blocked by a horde of dragons.
"We'll have to walk from here," Ember said, undoing her seatbelt.
"Couldn't you guys fly up to speak to your father?" Samantha asked.
"If you want to get barbecued," Ember said with a humorless chuckle. "My father has enforced that none shall fly when the Dragon Lord speaks.”
"But my car!" Ash moaned, giving the dragons a suspicious glare.
"I'll take care of it," Twilight reassured with a smile.
Ash was still hesitant, but he trusted Twilight more than anyone in this world. All five removed themselves from the Delta before the princess covered it in her magic. The Delta shrank down to the size of a Hot Wheels toy. The alicorn took the shrunken vehicle in hand before once again covering it in her magic. The Delta disappeared in a familiar yet different golden light.
"You used that same spell on the Necronomicon when we first met," Ash noted. "What is it exactly?"
"Well, this is a modified spell" Twilight explained. "The original spell is a storage space spell that could be accessed by either myself or the other princesses.”
"Twilight modified the spell so that only the caster can retrieve whatever they stored within," Spike explained with confidence.
"Wait… what about the book?" Samantha asked.
"I left it in the Delta," Twilight answered with a serious expression. "I figured it’d be safer this way.”
"But don't you need the book to banish them?" Sam asked the princess.
"Only because I still need to translate the book," Twilight responded, looking down with shame. "Translating the Necronomicon is more difficult than I anticipated." The princess looked on the verge of tears as she continued. "It took me more than six months just to translate one page and summon a single demon."
Sam gasped. "You summoned a demon?!"
"Later, Sam" Ash said, moving through the dragon horde.
"My dragons!" Dragon Lord Torch bellowed as the dragons listened to their lord. "You have been summoned to your homeland to answer the call of your Dragon Lord. As of late, many of your brothers and sisters have been taken by bug-like creatures who possess the strength of giants."
The dragons grumbled and muttered among themselves.
"But I swear as Dragon Lord, this wrong will not go unavenged!" Torch spoke in a commanding tone as Ash and the others got closer to the Dragon Lord. "We will go to the changeling Hive! we will take back our kin! AND WE WILL BURN THEIR HOME TO THE GROUND!!"
The dragons roared in agreement.
"LET THE GRUDGE BE SETTLED!!"
"I'd advise against that!" Ash shouted causing the surrounding dragons to fearfully stare at the human.
"Why are they staring?" Sam asked, looking around nervously. "They're looking at you like you just fucked the king's daughter.”
"Daughter..." Dragon Lord Torch said, spotting his daughter amongst the crowd. "Care to explain why you've brought these creatures to your homeland?"
Ember stood tall. "I've brought them to help combat the changelings."
Torch huffed, lowering his head towards the group.
"Them?" the Dragon Lord laughed. "These weak, frail, pathetic fools couldn't even beat a dragon!”
Ash grinned and flashed his Mangekyou Sharingan. "Susanoo!"
The dragons backed away as the crimson skeleton formed around the human. Torch's eyes widened as Susanoo's skeletal hand gripped his left horn.
"We've fought them before," Ash said smugly as he tightened his grip on the Dragon Lords' horn. "We know their weaknesses and quite frankly the only thing you and these dragons will be doing is becoming their food.”
Despite having his horn grabbed Torch managed a sneer, smoke leaving his mouth as he spoke. "You've got stones talking to me like that,"
"Please Dragon Lord!" a loud worried-filled voice called out.
The others turned as a young orange dragoness pushed her way through the crowd.
"Please,” she said. “They can help bring my brother back"
"Smolder?" Ember asked.
"If they can help find and bring him back,” the orange dragoness – Smolder – said, “Then I beg you to let them help!" Smolder got on her knees. “Please…”
Ember knelt down to comfort the crying dragon. Meanwhile, Ash let go of Torch before kneeling to look the dragoness in her eyes.
"Tell me what happened, kid?" Ash asked
"Me… Garble…"
"Garble?!" Spike demanded, only to be smacked into silence by Samantha.
"...and a few of his friends were swimming in some of the Lava pools" Smolder recalled as her tears continue to flood from her eyes. "Then… I felt someone hold me underneath the lava.”
Ash hummed, but motioned for her to continue.
"Once I surfaced,” Smolder said, “I saw changelings taking my brother and his friends away.” Her breath quickened in fear. "I saw several coming after me, so I dove into the lava and stayed there for as long as I could. A-And when I surfaced…”
"You survived," Ash said patting the dragon's back. "That's the important thing, and I'm sure your brother is glad you weren't taken.”
"Do you know which way they went?" Ember asked.
I think they were heading west... maybe southwest?" Smolder said. "Towards the Fire Geysers.”
Ash grimaced, but she grabbed hold of his arm.
"Please I beg you," Smolder pleaded. "He's been gone for weeks! You need to find him!”
"The Fire Geysers?" Ash muttered, turning to the dragon princess. "How far are they from here?"
"About a day's flight," Ember said before glancing at Ash’s wingless back. “In your case… maybe a three to four day hike south from here.”
"Hmm...." Ash looked around before exhaling deeply. "Yeah ,the terrain from here looks too much for the Delta.”
The Human looked to his leg, more importantly, the Kandarian dagger strapped to his thigh. Ash felt a sinking feeling in his gut as he gripped the demonic weapon. The human turned to the alicorn, before drawing the weapon and holding it out to Twilight.
"Think you could use an illusion spell on this?" Ash asked.
Twilight took the dagger. "Can I ask why?"
"I'm currently having a bad feeling," Ash admitted, scratching at the back of his neck. "They need that to turn your flesh into a new book.”
Twilight paled, but nodded. “I understand.” With a flash from her horn, the dagger changed.
One moment it was Kandarian, the next it was something different.
"Cool..." Ash said, admiring the dagger's new look before sheathing it.
"So what's the plan, Ash?" Spike asked.
"Pretty cut and dry," Ash said, turning to the purple dragon. "Find the Hive and kick out the squatters.”
"Two weeks," Torch added.
Ash glared at the Dragon Lord. "Pardon?"
"You have two weeks to return with my dragons," Torch said, matching the human's glare. "Otherwise me and my dragons will continue with our raid.”
"A deadline?” Ash rolled his eyes. “Sure. No pressure there, right?"
With a sigh, Ash and his group started to move south. However, Ash stopped when he saw Twilight following them.
“Uh-uh, not happening,” Ash said, turning the alicorn back towards Ember. "You're not coming with us.”
Twilight spun back to him indignant. "Why not?!"
"Because I want to keep you safe," Ash said, standing his ground. "And while I don't trust these dragons to keep you safe…” he indicated Ember. “I can at least trust her to keep you here.”
"She'll be safe with me and my horde," Ember said with a nod before looking at the alicorn. "Just don't take any of it.”
"Now stay here and let me work," Ash concluded, walking away.
"Ashley..." Twilight pleaded, causing the human to stop. "This is just like the asylum again. I can’t just sit here not knowing whether you'll return alive or wind up dead.”
Ash turned and grinned at her. "Have some faith in me, Sweetheart."
"Gag." Sam muttered, making a puking sound.
But Ash turned fully back to Twilight with a smile. “It’ll take a lot to kill me.”
Twilight wanted to argue with the man. However, she remembered that same man took down a small army of deadites single-handedly. She sighed in defeat.
"Okay..." she said. "Just please… come back alive."
Ash bowed. "As you wish, my princess."
With that, Ash, Spike and Sam headed out to rescue Garble and the other dragons.
Back in Canterlots Royal Research and Development building, Solid Gear had the runt strapped and restrained to a table that had multiple gadgets and tools close by.
"Day 3 of Wardog testing," Solid Gear spoke into a handheld recording device. "Upon further study of the Dire Wolf Runt - now known as Subject Alpha - I have discovered that along with the changes to its appearance, its strength and senses have increased immensely."
The unicorn turned to see the Dire Wolf growling and snarling at him.
"Hmm... Update from Day 2's tests. Despite being fed rotten and spoiled meat, Subject Alpha hasn't shown a single sign of illness or weakness." Solid began writing some notes on his reports to the princess as he continued speaking. "And regarding the fire ants I left in its cage... they refused to get within a foot of the subject."
The dire-wolf snapped at him, but the unicorn merely rolled his eyes.
"Beginning next test: subject durability against various levels of electricity." Solid Gear set down the recording device as his hand hovered over a red dial. "Let's start with a low voltage, shall we?"
The unicorn spun the dial until it hit one thousand volts. In seconds, the area that had the restrained wolf was covered in arcs of electricity. Much to his surprise, the Dire wolf didn't flinch; it's hardened glare set on the unicorn.
"You're a resilient little runt, aren't you?" The unicorn smiled as he increased the voltage to 100k. "Let's see how resilient you really are."
The Dire Wolf shut its eyes in a pained grimace. Solid Gear grinned as he cranked up the voltage to 230k. The Dire Wolf's body started to spasm as the wolf finally let out an agony-filled howl.
The unicorn wrote down the effect the test had on the runt as it collapsed to the table. Satisfied with his test, the unicorn shut off the electricity and hastily picked up his recorder.
"Subject Alpha appears to have a resistance to electricity up to a high voltage of 230k volts," Solid said as the Dire Wolf struggled to get back on its paws. "Should War Dogs need to be stopped, I recommend the use of high-level lightning magic." the unicorn briefly frowned, sad that his colleague was missing all the fun. "Day 4 testing on Project Wardog will include Testing Alpha's resistance to fire." Solid Gear grinned as he turned on the electricity which earned another pained howl from the Dire Wolf.
Jacob, Sam, and Spike sat around a fire, several large lizards roasting nearby.
"I hope these are just really big lizards and not someone's dragon babies," Sam nervously said as she took one of the roasted reptiles.
"You don't need to worry," Spike said, biting into his lizard. "These are Wyverns; they are known for growing quite large." Spike swallowed the head of his roasted prey. "And other than gems, they're also known to be a huge part of a dragon's diet." Spike stopped midbite when he noticed both Sam and Ash staring at him. "What?!"
"You're actually pretty smart," Sam said, dumbfounded at the dragon's level of knowledge.
"Of course I am!" Spike protested indignantly. "I've been Twilight's aid since we were kids! What, you thought I was just some stupid dunderhead with no brains?!"
"Honestly?" Ash admitted. "Yeah. No brains and a boner for older white mares."
Spike snorted and bit into his wyvern again. "You guys suck."
"Hey I'm just speaking the truth," Ash said biting into his food before showing a disgusted expression. "Damn...what I wouldn't give for some seasonings."
"Oh, you poor non-dragon," Spike said smugly.
Sam however looked away from the bickering pair. As she stared off into the distance, she saw many columns of fire across the horizon. The fire geysers were less than half a day's hike from their current location.
"3 days..." Sam said feeling uneasy. "And Torch will send his dragons in 11 days."
"I know that look," Ash said. "You had that same look when we fought against Melania."
"Sorry, but Torch's deadline worries me."
"Relax Sam," Ash said to his half-deadite friend. "We just need to get the dragons out, and kick some changeling butt."
"Are you sure it'll be that simple?" Spike asked the human.
Ash started to speak... but then frowned. "No, I don't," he admitted. He rose to his feet before putting out the fire. "With how shitty my luck is, I wholeheartedly believe something bad will happen once we storm the hive."
"Are you suggesting the Snart Maneuver?" Samantha asked with a grin.
"The Snart Maneuver?" Spike tilted his head. "What's that?"
"It's a tactic Jacob and I used whenever we played video games back home," Sam held up four fingers. "Four steps..."
"...Make the Plan..." Jacob said with a smile.
"...Execute the Plan..." Sam said matching his grin
"...Expect the plan to go off the rails..." The human said with a shrug.
"...Throw away the plan..." Sam said nonchalantly.
"And that's usually when shit hits the fan," Ash concluded.
Spike was about to argue with the two but stopped, remembering the nutjobs he was talking to. "You know what?" Spike said rubbing his temples. "Let's just get this over with."
Sam stared at the young dragon. "What's your problem?"
"Besides the headache the two of you are giving me?" Spike said bluntly. "I'm not exactly thrilled about encountering Garble again."
"Bad history?" Ash asked.
"That's a major understatement," Spike grumbled. "He an unbearable bully. The fact that he protected his sister just baffles me."
Immediately the dragon received a hard smack upside the head from both Jacob and Samantha.
"OW, what the heck?!" The young dragon held the back of his head as both humans glared at him.
"Smolder's brother did what any older brother should do!" Sam snapped.
"He protected his little sister even at the cost of his life!" Ash shouted with the same anger in his voice. "Don't ever let me hear you say something like that again!"
"Geez, fine! Sorry!" Spike grumbled, rubbing the back of his head. He didn't speak up again as he followed behind the pair toward the Fire Geysers.
The moment the trio passed the first couple of geysers, the changeling hive appeared thirty feet away.
Sam punched her palm. "Time to squash some bugs."
However, before they could take so much as a single step, the surrounding rocks and plant life was engulfed in the familiar demonic green flames of the changelings.
The demons pounced on the trio without hesitation or mercy. Immediately Ash noticed that these changelings had more of a draconic appearance than the others. However, he wasted no time in summoning his Susanoo, considering he forgot to get his chainsaw out of the Delta.
It didn't take long for the changelings to surround and restrain both Sam and Spike.
Jacob on the other hand proved harder to capture thanks to his Susanoo.
The Changelings kept their distance from the human and the giant Skeleton surrounding him. Unlike the older changelings this breed had yet to take on Jacob's Susanoo.
"Unless you fuckers want to be sent to your queen in a mop bucket" Jacob threatened as his Susanoo matched his movements and cracked its knuckles. "Then I'd suggest letting them...."
Before Jacob could finish, he felt cold claws digging into his neck.
"Williams..." the Changeling Maverick grinned as his claws started to draw blood.
"Maverick!" Ash growled as the changeling became visible. "I thought I killed every single one of you back in the other Equestria!"
"You came close," Maverick said coldly. "I'm the only survivor of that battle." The changeling started dragging his claws against Jacob's flesh. "Where is she, Williams?"
"Sorry," Jacob grinned as his hands clasped the Faust idol hanging from his neck. "I made sure to keep her away from you lot."
"I can smell the tainted princess," the changeling grinned madly.
"That's just me." Ash smiled as Sam looked at him irritated. "Heat season was a few weeks ago."
"Be silent!" The Maverick shouted in anger, turning to the surrounding area. "Come on out now, Princess! Otherwise, I'll spill your pets blood!"
Ash was about to retaliate against the changeling maverick... only to freeze when he heard a familiar voice.
One that made his heart drop.
"No! Stop!" Twilight screamed out in a panic as she appeared in a magical haze.
The changeling maverick smiled as it withdrew his claws from Jacob's throat. "A wise choice, Princess."
With the Maverick distracted, Ash took the opportunity to retaliate. The human slammed his Faust idol against the Maverick's face. The changeling let out a shriek as his metallic flesh burned and melted.
"Twilight Midnight Sparkle!" Ash shouted at the alicorn as the changeling dropped to the ground in screaming agony. "We are going to have a serious talk about this later!"
Ash turned his attention from the princess to the changelings, who were moving to restrain either him or her. The human raised his balled-up hand up as his Susanoo matched his movements before bringing them down and killing two changelings.
Seeing the death of their comrades sparked rage in the other changelings, as they all hissed and charged forward. Unintimidated, Ash raised his arm to swat them away.
Unfortunately, their size and speed allowed them to avoid the massive arm. They fired their magic at Ash - multiple balls of explosive magical energy - but his skeletal rib cages protected him.
Though he was protected, the impact rattled Ash enough that one changeling thought he could capitalize. He tried to fly straight through Ash, but the human quickly grabbed his boomstick and fired... at nothing.
The changeling had vanished.
A dumbfounded Ash looking around only to be shot in the back by the other changelings, his boomstick thrown from his grip and landing at the princess' feet.
"Oh, you bitch!" Ash shouted in rage. He swiped at the changeling responsible with his metal fist, but the changeling smirked as it flew around like an annoying fly.
The others similarly flew circles around Ash, firing more and more balls of magical energy at him. His Susanoo held but it wouldn't last forever.
Getting frustrated, Ash slammed his hands together, creating a shockwave that spread through the air. The shockwave knocked everyone in the area to the ground, but those attacks the changelings inflicted had done more damage than Ash would care to admit. The human dropped to his knees as his Susanoo began to fade.
Seeing him weakened, the changelings recovered quickly and took the opportunity to attack. The demons tackled him to the ground, the Maverick changeling approached the human with a burning glare as one of his hands clenched his burned face.
As the demons hoisted Ash up, the maverick raised his claws before bringing them down across Jacob's chest. The maverick grinned as Ash let out a pained scream.
"Jacob!" Sam and Spike called out as they ran to help their friend only to be tackled to the ground by the same changelings that captured them.
"Ashley!" Twilight called out, snatching up his boomstick.
"We'll get to you once we're done," Maverick said as he continued to mercilessly slash deeper into Ash's chest.
Twilight jumped to her feet before pointing the shotgun in the air and firing off a single shot. All eyes turn to the princess as she points the gun at the changelings. "Let him go!" she snarled.
The maverick let out a hard laugh as he stabbed his claws into Ash's shoulder. The human let out a pained groan as the changeling grinned at the alicorn.
"You shot us, you'll shoot him," the changeling mocked as he twisted his claws.
Twilight started to panic. As she watched Ash blood start flowing down his body, she took a deep breath... and placed both barrels against her chin.
"TWILIGHT!? Sam shouted, as the changelings panicked as well.
"You wouldn't!" one yelled.
"You need me!" Twilight shouted as her thumb pressed against the trigger. "Leave him alone, or figure out how you'll explain to Chrysalis why you let her new book die."
"Sir, we need her!" one of the changelings barked.
"If she dies the queen will have our head!" another insisted.
"Even if we collect her body," a third noted, "We won't have her face for the cover and her blood will be gone before we make it halfway."
The maverick seethed, glaring at Ash... but retracted his claws.
"Fine," the Maverick growled, turning to Twilight. "Start walking."
"You first," Twilight ordered with a glare.
One by one the changelings started to move towards the hive. Meanwhile Twilight and the changeling maverick held their glare off as Ash slowly got to his feet.
His cloaked dagger in his hand.
Using the last bit of his fading strength, Jacob pounced on the maverick and plunged his dagger into the changeling's chest.
"Ragh!" the Maverick roared. He elbowed the human before swiftly pulling the dagger out and stabbing Jacob in his thigh.
Ash didn't even have time to scream as he was blasted by a powerful beam of magic that sent him flying.
"ASH..." Twilight tried to shout before Maverick blasted her with the same spell. The force of the spell not only knocked the gun from Twilight's grip but knocked her unconscious.
Maverick let out pained breaths as he clasped a hand over his chest.
"Surge?" one of the changelings called out.
"I'm fine!" he barked.
Spike looked at the changelings in anger when a glint of metal hit his eyes. The dragon's eyes drifted to the ground and spotted the Faust idol that Ash used to harm the changeling. Thinking quickly, Spike spewed green dragon fire in the face of the changeling holding him. The Changeling let him go in shock, allowing Spike to make a run for it.
Surge moved like lightning as he intercepted the dragon and delivered a hard punch to his stomach. Spike gasped out as all the air left his body, and he fell to the ground with a thud.
Recovering from the fire, the changelings picked him up and carried him towards the changeling hive. Spike grinned weakly as looked at the idol, only to find the idol's broken chain.
Sam looked at the dragon with worry, but her worry faded when she noticed his grin revealed metal behind his teeth.
"What about him?" one of the changelings pointed in the direction where Ash was sent flying.
"Leave him for the buzzards," Surge growled as he dragged the princess by her ankle.
Ash let out a pained groan as he struggled to open his eyes. Pain flared throughout his entire body and even his weakened breath cause severe pain for the human. Ash opened his eyes completely before he glanced around and found himself in what looked like the inside of a cave.
In the cave Jacob only saw a burning fire and a dragon's tail in said fire while a pile of bones rested beside it. Ash then noticed he was standing straight up with his arms outstretched.
"What the hell?" Jacob groaned as he tried to move only to find himself restrained to the cave wall by a familiar greenish-black material. "Oh, no..." Despite the pain in his body, the human struggled to free himself.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," a voice called out of the darkness.
Ash froze, looking for the source of the voice.
"You'll reopen your wounds," the voice noted. "And healing magic isn't exactly in my wheelhouse of abilities."
"Who's there?" Ash demanded.
"A hopeless fool..." the voice said with a heavy sigh. "A fool who wishes to pull his siblings back into the light."
"Are we allies?" Jacob asked. "Enemies?"
"....."
"... You got a name at least?"
"....."
"Anything? Uh... Bob?"
"...."
"Jesus, come on, man! Give me something!"
".... Hi."
Ash rolled his eyes. ".... And I thought Fluttershy was a shy speaker." He tried to locate the owner of the voice. "Just... who are you?"
"I'm Nobody," the voice's owner finally stepped into the light of the fire.
The figure was cloaked in crudely sewn-together rags. From what Ash saw, not a single part of the figure wasn't covered in rags. If Ash was being honest, this figure looked like a dirtier version of the merchant.
The figure sat down in front of the fire before it started to pick at the roasting dragon's tail. Immediately, Ash took notice of the black-skinned claw that pulled off a piece of dragon meat.
"You're a changeling!" Ash realized.
The cloaked creature froze.
Now desperate, Ash started to struggle again. He just managed to pull his right arm free... only for the changeling to pull down his mask and spit a glob of resin.
Ash's arm was covered again, and worse than before.
"Great..." Ash sighed before looking back the changeling, who was adjusting the rag that covered his face. "You're going to kill me, aren't you?"
"If I wanted you dead..." the changeling noted. "I would have left you to bleed out."
Ash tilted his head. Each and every changeling he'd come in contact with wanted him dead. "Who are you?"
"I already told you, I'm nobody," the changeling said, as he picked up the roasted tail.
"Don't give me that crap," Ash growled. "You're different from the other changelings, so I'll ask again: Who. Are. You? Really?"
The changeling sighed, pulled down his hood and lowered its makeshift mask.
He had the black skin of the changelings. But he also had an unkempt mane of forest green hair, and dark orange eyes. A long jagged horn similar to the queens rested on his forehead.
"I am Thorax," The changeling admitted. "The last of the True Changelings."
