The Legacy Paradox

Chapter 2

White spots teased Rainbow Dash's vision as she felt a sturdy pair of hands set her right.

"Boss, you alright?" asked the concerned Iron Gear.

She waved the big man off.

"Yeah, I think I'm good. Just a bit dazed from the Jump."

Rainbow Dash straightened, her vision was nearly cleared except for a few spots of white around the edges. But she had had worse compared to this. A small migraine was already forming on the back of her head and her eye twitched. She could feel the newly damaged skin cells righting themselves thanks to ring number four.

"What about the rest of the crew? Are they alright?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"Da boys are fine, Boss. Da hull took a nasty hit but it ain't nothing da boys and I can't fix. Doc said everything is good in da med-bay. He's more concerned about you, Boss." explained Iron Gear.

"Tell him, I'm fine. The rest of the men are who he should be fussing about."

Sparks flew from one if the consoles near them, causing them to flinch violently. The Jump was hard enough without having to worry about a broken ship. Iron Gear expectantly stood besides her, watching the veteran youth scan the working monitors for any more abnormalities with the Battleship. He jumped when Rainbow Dash slammed her hand upon one of the console desks.

"Fuck!" cursed Rainbow Dash. She sighed and ran a ring covered hand through her hair. "Most of the levels have been hit. We're also missing a thruster while Sector D is mostly missing. We're down to forty-three percent on the backup and the reactor is at twelve. Fuck!"

"Do you want da boys and I to check the area out? See if some of da locals are willing to help out, Boss?"

Rainbow Dash shook her head.

"There's no telling what the locals are like or who they're working for. It's better if we keep our distance as much as possible. Get as many men as you can and start fixing the hull and Sector D." she ordered. "We need to get the ship as stable as possible for a Jump."

She carefully slid the sixth ring off her burnt finger and unto the chain, but Rainbow Dash didn't budge an inch from her position at the monitors, her train of thought had just experienced a fifty car pile up with a highly reactive, oil truck. It was not a pretty sight at all. Her freshly burnt fingers clenched and unclenched at alarming rates as she just stood there lost in the abyss that was her mind. The vibrant valkyrie was practically dead to the world. It wasn't until Iron Gear cleared his throat that Rainbow Dash snapped to attention. Fortunately, the sixth ring was already around her neck.

"What was I saying?"

Her eyebrows knitted together, she snapped her fingers.

"Brace for impact? Something about Jumping. Did we make it?"

Another pause. A harsh curse tumbled out of her chapped lips as she struggled to remember what she had just said, damning her blackouts to the deepest, hottest pit of Tartarus there was. While she suffered from slight short-term memory loss after a blackout–or freak episode as the crew likes to call them behind her back–it was thankfully short, forgetting the pun, however. Fortunately, her little "freak episode" was short and nonviolent.

"Yes, Sector D. I'll leave you and the boys to it. By the time I return, I expect an improvement or it's your ass being fed to Celestia." cheerfully threatened Rainbow Dash, sliding on a pair of aviators. "And get the reactor core back online. Milk spoils when there's no power."

"Sure thing, Boss!" Iron Gear gave a sloppy salute to the rainbow haired youth as she walked out.

Walking through the labyrinth of corridors, Rainbow Dash eventually reached the hangar, where a few all terrain vehicles were locked in position. A PELICAN sat to the side as did a couple of fighter planes the crew and her had accumulated over the five years they've been traveling. She walked past all of them, choosing to use her wings instead. Rainbow Dash hit the green button on the side of the wall, and with a hiss and several gears churning in their slots, the hangar floor slid asunder and a ramp extended itself down to what appeared to be...a castle tower? Well, that was certainly new.

Rainbow Dash confidently stood at the edge of the long ramp, her get already half off, and gazed at the new environment.

The gilded tipped tower was connected to a large, white and gold castle built into the side of a steep mountain. The castle overlooked a large town that reminded Rainbow Dash slightly of Jump 24. It looked like a normal town filled with normal people that were normally looking at the NLR Battleship with a normal amount of fear. And surrounding the NLR Battleship were squadrons of golden armored soldiers.

"Hey." casually greeted Rainbow Dash.

The guards didn't look as pleased to meet her as she had hoped.

"By order of the Princess, you are under arrest!" shouted one of the soldiers. He practically trembled in his gilded armor.

"Under arrest? What for?" Rainbow Dash asked.

She was pretty positive that she hasn't broken any laws recently.

"For disturbing the peace!"

"Well, yeah...sorry 'bout that."

Her words had no affect upon the terrified soldier. The spear in his hands quivered. Rainbow Dash dug her hands into her back jean pockets, which held an inter-dimension rift that held most of her weapons, a locker of sorts, fingering the handles of the dual pistols. They were two M9s that she had stolen off of one of Celestia's goons in Jump 3.

"Put your hands up!"

Arching an eyebrow, Rainbow Dash frowned slightly. She hated to hurt innocents, but if it meant getting the supplies needed to find Celestia, then so be it.

"I don't think that's the best choice." Rainbow Dash answered, her hands curled around the handles. "Because, you see, I don't want to hurt you."

"By order of Princess Celestia, you are under arrest!" screamed the frustrated soldier.

Her ears perked, a feral grin threatened to split her face. It was time for a change of plans.

"Princess Celestia, huh?"

Twilight Sparkle eyed the strange vessel with a morbid fascination. The New Lunar Republic just sat there, only meters away from the Canterlot Palace, glistening in the dawn's rays. Perhaps, Twilight Sparkle mused, it couldn't move. The rainbow colored lightning had vanished once the ship came to a screeching halt, and the fire had been put out by the witches, wizards and valkyrie on the scene. A good chunk of the hull was missing, letting everyone see the sparking interior of the massive ship while the soldiers went to work on discovering what the New Lunar Republic was. They tried to enter through the hole. However, a blue force field had pushed them out before they could even step in.

While the gilded soldiers were busy poking and prodding the metal monster, the purple haired youth searched for her mentor, wishing all the while that she had brought Spike along. It would save her the trouble of tracking down Princess Celestia, and she could send a letter to the others back home of their current predicament. She ran through the corridors, took a couple of unneeded turns, and came out at the platform crafted from unicorn magic at the tallest tower, where the Elements of Harmony were housed, and her beloved mentor stood eyeing the giant metal death trap, surrounded by a legion of golden armored soldiers.

"Princess Celestia!" exclaimed Twilight Sparkle.

Said Princess turned around with a sigh already escaping her lips. The royal guards parted for the bearer of the Element of Magic.

"Twilight Sparkle," breathed Princess Celestia, "why am I not surprised?"

"I'm sorry, Princess, but I don't think you should handle this alone. We don't even know what this thing is!" She made a gesture to the stationed vessel.

"It's a Battleship." replied Princess Celestia, her light purple eyes gazing at the scorched ship.

"A Battleship?" stammered the brilliant witch. The name of the vessel was foreign and bitter upon her tongue.

"Yes, a Battleship. They were used in times of war." Her brows knitted together, Princess Celestia shook her head. "I've only heard of them in legends, and this vessel seems to match all the descriptions."

"But, Princess, how is that possible? Equestria hasn't had a war ever!"

"Perhaps it is not from Equestria. Be on your guard, my faithful student. The Elements of Harmony might need to be utilized." As she said this, a loud screeching sound flooded the palace as part of the hull of the New Lunar Republic Battleship disappeared, and a ramp took it's place, extending towards the awaiting soldiers and Princess.

Everyone took a tentative step back as they raised their spears and swords at the empty ramp. Metal clanked metal and Twilight Sparkle already had her magic ready for a shield spell in case whatever was inside decided to attack. But nothing did. Then, footsteps could be heard against the pregnant silence that befell Canterlot. Black boots appeared followed by jean covered legs that had a holster or bag of shorts attached to her waist and the bottom of a white shirt appeared. Apprehension grasped the skilled witch as the full body of the mysterious stranger came into view. Twilight Sparkle nearly fainted. At the edge of the ramp for all to see was Rainbow Dash. In black boots, jeans, a white tee, a beige scarf and aviators, Rainbow Dash stood grinning like she owned the world, and it took everything in her power not to call out to her friend and fellow bearer of the Element of Loyalty.

"Hey." Rainbow Dash greeted smugly.

"By order of the Princess, you are under arrest!" announced Lieutenant Wind Chaser, Shining Armor's second in command.

Rainbow Dash looked more amused than concerned at the announcement. Twilight Sparkle wondered how she wasn't freaking out by now.

"Under arrest? What for?" innocently asked the iridescent valkyrie.

The Royal Guard looked dumbfounded at the Element of Loyalty's words. It was no surprise really. Rainbow Dash had the tendency to dumbfound everyone with life threatening her stunts. "For disturbing the peace!"

"Well, yeah...sorry 'bout that." guffawed Rainbow Dash.

Her hands disappeared behind her back as the muscles in her arms flexed as if she was grasping something.

"Put your hands up!" barked Wind Chaser, the Royal Guard strategically placed themselves around the Riser of the Sun.

"I don't think that's the best choice." Rainbow Dash answered, her smile turning into a frown. "Because, you see, I don't want to hurt you."

"By order of Princess Celestia, you are under arrest!" screamed Wind Chaser.

This caught the reckless youth's attention. A positively feral sneer split her face, and for the first time since their meeting, Twilight Sparkle was terrified of her friend. Besides the fact that she appeared in the middle of Canterlot with a metal creation only used for war, Twilight Sparkle questioned if something had happened to Rainbow Dash. If Discord had escaped from his stone punishment.

"Princess Celestia, huh?" she positively beamed.

"Yes, Princess Celestia!"

"Well, go and tell your beloved sovereign to come and face me herself if she demands my arrest." ordered the eerily smiling Rainbow Dash.

"Princess, don't." pleaded Twilight Sparkle, her heart in her throat.

Princess Celestia sent a reassuring smile to her pleading student. "Have faith, Twilight Sparkle." She gave a short motion to the guards and they parted without much noise. Wind Chaser gave a short bow to the venerable sovereign of the sun, leaving her to face Rainbow Dash on her own with a legion of gold behind her. "I am Princess Celestia, co-ruler of Equestria-"

"Save your titles for someone who cares." interrupted Rainbow Dash.

"May I know who you are?" calmly replied Celestia.

"Who am I? I'm surprised you don't already know. After all, you who claim to know everything should know above all who I am." Rainbow Dash snorted. "Or perhaps your titles are only a ruse, a carefully placed guide to deter the hopeful and desperate. Immortality must make one slow."

"Where is the real Rainbow Dash?"

The iridescent teenager gave a haughty laugh that sent shivers down Twilight Sparkle's spine, and thoughts of Discord invaded her mind. So this wasn't the real Rainbow Dash? Well, Twilight Sparkle would later think, that explained her advanced vocabulary.

"I'm surprised, Celestia. I really am. I had really thought you would know. Well, I guess it's up to me." She cleared her throat. "I am the Traveler Among the Stars, Lady of Time, God Slayer, Executioner of the Eternal, Survivor of the First Realm. Different religions and cultures call me by thousands of names. Most call me the Rebel. My name is Rainbow Dash. But you, you can call me your executioner."

She brought her hands from behind her back and in both hands were identical devices that reminded Twilight Sparkle of crossbows, except without the bow on top and they were smaller and black. She smiled evilly.

"Tell me, a quick and painless death or a slow and painful? I have time for both."