Howl to the Future

Two unicorns dressed in medical garbs glanced down at Shining Armor, his form nearly lifeless as it lay upon a bed. His veins pulsed with unknown, blue liquids, and his entire face was becoming a web of them.

"I've seen a lot of crazy crap in my day, Dr. Esuoh, but even during the war, I've never seen this kind of thing."

"A new wolf magic? Developed by the seemingly 'immortal' wolf encountered?"

"It isn't Lupis, I can say that for sure..."

Esuose chuckled. "And this is why I like you, Dr. Xoc."

"Seriously though, I can't believe I'm saying this, but either the Prince has been eating too many blueberries, or we're dealing with some sort of modern curse. Maybe we should contact someone in Equestria. Maybe they'd know about it?"

Dr. Esuose shook his head. "I'm not too sure we can-"

"RAUUUUGH!.!.!"

The two doctor's eyes widened. The prince's eyes had flung open, completely covered in blue veins.

"P-Prince Shining?"

"What's going on?! Where is she!"

The two doctor's blinked. "Y-You mean your sister?"

"Is she well?!"

They glanced at each other. "Uh... do you want to tell him?" Dr. Esuohe grunted.

"You friggin' wuss... fine!" Dr. Xoc said, shooting him a glare. "Your sister... is currently being pursued."

"By who?"

Dr. Xoc took a deep breath. "Your army."

Across the city, the golem rocked forward, his hardened feet crumbling the cobblestones lacing the street as it moved. Its 'gaze' was set upon the six, as were the eyes of a multitude of soldiers.

As they spoke, a half-moon slowly moved upward on the horizon. Luna was in control now.

"OK, here's the plan!" Rainbow cried. "I'll grab one of you, fly out of the Empire, and then come back. Sound good?"

Twilight shook her head, gulping. "I don't think that's going to work. There's not enough time to get all of us and they're bound to have pegasi on air patrol by now."

"Then what do we do?!" Rarity shouted. "I love gems, but not when they're marching towards me!"

"We figure out how to take it down, then!" Rainbow Dash called.

"With what?! Our teeth?!" Applejack grunted. "I ain't biting into that!"

"Archers, knock arrows!" called the squad leader. "Lancers, move in!"

With that, Twilight turned towards Rainbow, her eyes drowning in sorrow. "Rainbow... you've helped us out so much already... but don't make it all for nothing."

Rainbow raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"

The archers knocked arrows as six ponies armed with swords and spears sped forward.

"Fly out of here. Head towards Equestria and save yourself."

"What?!"

"Archers, take aim!"

"You heard me."

"I'm sorry then, I must have mistaken 'run away' for 'stick with my friends until the very end.'"

The lancers let loose a battle cry as they sped around the marching golem.

Twilight winced. "Rainbow, don't do this to us... FLY!"

"Fly?" Rainbow smirked. "I can do that."

The archers pulled the strings back of their bows...

Twilight narrowed her eyes. "Don't you dare."

"Who dares? I dare! Story of my life! And of yours, in a way," she sighed. "This isn't the part where they kill you, Twilight. I'll make sure of it."

With one final wink, she sped off towards the column of soldiers, now flying a good thirty feet in the air, her wings flapping fiercely in the winds.

"RAINBOW!"

The archers suddenly switched aim to her, and fired, but Rainbow was prepared. With agility she could barely muster, she suddenly flung herself downward, and the arrows flew past her before harmlessly smashing into the street. However, in the meantime, the lancers closed in, the squad leader among them.

"Nononono!" Fluttershy screeched. "I don't want her to die for us!"

The sergeant narrowed his eyes. "Unicorns! Blind her!"

"Understood!"

Four narrow beams of light extended from their horns. Rainbow winced at it, though continued to blindly move in.

"I can't beat them!" Rainbow shouted behind her. "But I can buy you time! Get out of here, now!"

"We're not leaving without you!" Pinkie shouted.

Rainbow let loose a growl. "You're not stupid, Pinkie. Don't start acting like you are! GO!"

Rainbow then landed on her hooves. Swords and spears grew near.

"DON'T KILL HER!" the squad leader shouted. "She's not who we're after! Take her with non-lethal force! Unicorns, relieve suppression!"

"By your will, sir!"

Suddenly, the unicorns' beams of light were extinguished, though Rainbow's eyes were now adjusting to the darkness.

Her ears were all she had.

She heard something swinging, and felt three wooshes coming from a low point. Acting on instinct, she surged upward in response, just as the world came into focus... as well as a brilliant half-moon on the horizon as the sun completed its descent. A growling sergeant glanced up at her as well...

"Loyalty!" the sergeant snapped. "Loyalty to your friends! Isn't that what you represent?! Do you really want to die for them when they wish for you to live?! Is THAT being loyal?!"

Rainbow Dash let loose a growl, soared downward, and slammed her frontal hooves into the sergeant, knocking him backwards, right in the path of the golem. His sword was flung from his teeth.

"You don't know a damned thing about loyalty!" she shouted. "You obey orders like a mindless drone. How about you have a little loyalty to your conscience?! HUH?!

As she shouted, the golem literally marched over the two. It made strange, glass-breaking sort of noise, before a series of crystal shards shot forth from its 'arms.'

The five wolves shrieked as the shards barelled for them, only missing them by an inch as they dashed to both sides of the street.

"Forget this!" Applejack howled. "How about we show a little loyalty ourselves?! If we die, we go out fighting with Rainbow."

"She's right," Rarity nodded. "I'm no warrior, but this is what I'd prefer."

Fluttershy narrowed her eyes. "Nobody messes with my friends... I'm with you."

"To the great Eternal Dream!" Pinkie bounced.

Twilight nodded, taking a deep breath. "For 'equillibrium.'

"ATTACK PATTERN ALPHA!" Pinkie squealed.

With that, the five wolves charged forth, directly towards the golem.  It let loose another strange, glass-like noise, before bringing down two massive fists towards them.

"BREEEEAK!" Twilight shouted.

The five broke into two groups, cicling around the beast. Its fists dived forward, smashing into the cobblestone road and creating two, massive craters.

The golem let loose a hiss, quickly turning towards Twilight and Applejack. The beast let loose a hiss, before raising its arms to prepare for another crystal blast.

"In there! Go!" Applejack shouted, pointing towards a nearby alleyway.

They sped down it... only to realize that there was a brick wall at the end of it. The began thumping to the entrance, its massive figure shadowing the two mare-turned-wolves.

In the meantime, the remaining three circled about the back of it, only to meet the remainder of the lancers. They charged at them, hissing, with spears and swords.

"COME AT ME, MEAT!" Fluttershy roared, startling even the soldiers.

Pinkie and Rarity became slackjawed.

Fluttershy blinked. "Did... I just say- EEP!"

She barely ducked, a spear grazing her mane.

CLACK!.!.!

An iron-covered hoof collided into Rainbow, sending her reeling back. She spat out blood, hissing at the sergeant.

"Damnit, don't make me do this!" the sergeant snarled.

"Conscience starting to kick in?!"

"No, I don't want Prince Shining to torture me before I die!"

"What? For fighting us all?! He wouldn't kill you for following orders. He's not like that! You all have been under Sombra's hoof for too long. You're so damned angry you're becoming what you hate! Paranoid... vicious!"

"Sombra WAS what we hated!" the sergeant snarled. "He was a hybrid: an abomination! Do you know what he made us do to his own kind?! It was the reason they retaliated in the first place! Yet they had no sympathy for our plight..."

"What are you even talking about?!"

"And I believe you! Equestria doesn't even care to inform their populace about us! They have no idea what we've been through!"

"It doesn't matter what you've been through: get over it! You're just trying to justify your bullshit by whining about your past!"

The sergeant grunted. "You spoiled brat! Just 'get over it', huh?! Oh how I wish I had grown up in Equestria... maybe I'd have the same sentiments, too! RAUUUUGHHHH!.!.!"

With that, he blew steam out of his snout and charged forth towards the Hero of the Skies.

Down the street, the golem prepared to fire its shards. Applejack and Twilight hugged each other, shivering.

"The Eternal Dream... I wonder if it's real," Applejack whispered. "I just hope... it doesn't hurt to get there."

Twilight smiled at her. "Guess we'll find out together, huh? I was never fond of having to live forever, anyway... and you... you'll be able to-"

Applejack smiled back at her. "Hopefully."

However, just as the golem's shard began jutting out of it, it suddenly halted... before going limp.

Twilight blinked. "W-What in the world?"

Rarity side-stepped a spear, her new legs giving her surprising agility... and combined with her strangely enhanced eyesight, she found combat to be strangely easier than in her pony form.

However, another soldier was closing in on her... his sword shimmering in the moonlight.

"Go for the neck!" Pinkie shouted, busy battling another soldier.

"W-What?!"

"JUST DO IT! It's the only way we can win this!"

"Are you insane?! I'm not-"

"ALL FORCES! STAND DOWN, NOW!"

The group gasped, wide-eyed, as a black-cloaked figure walked down the street. Its face was mostly obscured, save for the

"That voice..." Rarity blinked. "Shining Armor."

"P-Prince Shining?" the sergeant gulped. "P-Pleasure to see you."

"Yes, it is!" the Red Ranger snarled, him and his squad of four finally arriving upon the scene. "He can help us take out these damned things!"

"W-What of the extra wolf?!"

He narrowed his eyes. "There was no extra wolf..."

With that, Shining twirled towards him, and with a strangely cold, placid voice, uttered: "You will not touch them."

The Red Ranger held a betrayed expression. "You can't be serious. These wolves just made a joke out of Princess Celestia. If I didn't kill the prime wolf-"

"Enough! Tell me... did they use magic at all during the battle?"

The Red Ranger blinked, turning towards the sergeant, who shook his head.

"Can you provide me a reasonable explanation as to why they wouldn't?"

"I... I cannot."

"Then I can only assume that your judgement has been... tainted by the past."

"P-Prince!"

"You are one of the Empire's honored soldiers... so I will not relieve you of duty... but for now, you are ordered to take a leave of absence."

The ranger's soldiers gave cries of protest, though the Red Ranger quickly silenced them.

"I beg you to reconsider, my prince."

"My choice is made. Leave now or be forced to..."

The Red Ranger took a deep breath. "Very well..." He narrowed an eyebrow. "Though I must ask... your cloak? A new fashion statement, perhaps?"

"You wish to know? Very well."

Suddenly, he his hood off, revealing his blue-vein-colored face. The group stared at him, dumbfounded.

"Shining! What happened to you?!" Twilight squealed, finally gathering the nerve to dash towards him. The rest of her friends did as well.

Shining gazed at her with cold eyes. "A... condition I've acquired."

The Red Ranger slowly nodded. "Indeed... very well then, my Prince. I shall take my leave."

"And so will we," one of his squadmates grunted.

"Good, I'm glad you're not wasting any more of my time..."

The Red Ranger shot him a glare, before him and his squad galloped off.

"Shining... are you OK?" Twilight said, glancing at him with a concerned expression. "I would be angry too, but... you seem..."

He took a deep breath. "Out of it? I am... really. I'm having trouble thinking. But I know that I'm making the right call." He then turned towards the sergeant and his squad. "I will be escorting the six of them to Canterlot and ask for Princess Luna's assistance in the matter, Sergeant Magma."

"By your... will, sir," he gulped.

"What about Spike?! Is he alright?!" Twilight gasped.

"He's still unconscious," Shining spoke. "He seems to be in a temporary coma, or so the doctors say. Without him, we can't contact Canterlot as easily as we did with Princess Celestia."

"So... nature hike?" Applejack smirked.

Shining nodded towards her, forcing a smile. "One to remember."