Chapter 3 - Demon

With Zylo...

"So..." Zylo thought silently to himself. "Octavia doesn't like blood huh? That must mean everypony else doesn't either. Better get rid of it. I don't wish to have unwanted attention."

Standing deep under a small body of water, Zylo thought to himself, scrubbing his fur clean of the red blood that stained it. Digging deep at his fur, he began to grow curious of it's existence. It felt so soft and fine. Each one of the hairs made it so, and Zylo noticed.

"Hmmm. This hairy substance. Must be fur!" He told himself, putting some puzzle pieces together.

He flexed, letting his strong legs throb up and down.

"What's that under my fur? I assume it's muscle, but it's solid and soft at the same time. And what holds my body up? Surely not just raw muscle. So many interesting subjects on a ponies body."

Something restricted Zylo at that instant. It's as if he had to go to the surface of the water, or something terrible would happen. This was no curious want that Zylo has countlessly experienced. No. This was a need, a demand from his very brain, screaming to leave the water. A pain could be felt in the center of his torso. Directly in the center where his lungs were.

"Huh? Oh no... I... I HAVE TO COME UP!!!" He screamed in his head, with his instincts screaming with him.

2 minutes before...

With Rainbow Dash and Applejack...

"Come on AJ!!!" Rainbow Dash yelled, running down a quaint sub street of Canterlot. "Keep up!"

"'Hey!" AJ defended. "I'm not as fast as you, but I can keep up ya know..."

Running down a small staircase, the 2 decided to stop and rest by a small and quaint pond. This new modern park was very nice, so it proved a good resting point. The surface of the water was rippled, as if somepony threw a rock in it only moments ago. Both thought nothing of it. Perhaps a duck dived downward?

"So, the Ponyville Triathlon is coming up." RD reminded her. "Applejack, are you sure you want to compete against each other? We'd make a great team you know..."

"Yeah. I know that, but it would be mighty nice having some competition this year." Applejack responded with a cocky smirk. "It'll be too easy to win with both of us."

"Ha! So true!"

Both of them locked hoofs hard, giving each other a smile with narrowed eyes.

"Whew! I'm a'thirsty!" Applejack cried out.

Stepping over to the small pond to get a drink with her friend, Rainbow Dash noticed something odd. It had a red tint to it. It was just faint, but it seemed to rise up from the center of the pond, as if it was coming from a source.

"Applejack stop." Rainbow Dash said, staring at the spot where the redness was coming from.

"Why? What's wrong? I'm parched!" She defended. "Can't ya see..."

"Just, don't drink it yet..." Rainbow Dash proclaimed.

Slowly, the spot started to bubble, then a huge object burst from it, launching high into the air. Almost half of the body of water launched into the air with it, sending mist and water by the gallon straight up.

Flying just under the Rainbow that Zylo created with the mist, he looked down to the 2 heroes below. He was gasping. He looked very fatigued, but he was just winded from being under water too long!

He jumped a good fifty feet into the air, so before any of the water came back down (and nailed Applejack), Rainbow Dash decided to be nice and grab the pony to prevent a nasty fall.

"Gotcha!!!" Was all she said, grabbing Zylo by the hoof.

Zylo slowly looked up to the face of his rescuer. It was a pegasus, a mare. She had a sky blue coat with magenta eyes. Her cutie mark was that of a cloud with a colorful lightning bolt. Her mane and tail were the most interesting. It was all the colors of the rainbow, all mixed perfectly in a gradient starting from red, to purple.

After he stopped examining her, he shook as violently as he could, jerking her all over the place in the sky. Rainbow Dash lost control in an instant. With one final heave her to the ground, Zylo let go with a famous roar, causing her to crash land. Zylo began to fall to the ground.

"You forgot to say please!!!" Zylo yelled to the crash landing site, in a prissy, high-class city voice. "Have some manners!!! Hmph!"

Before Applejack could even get mad, he grew shocked! Zylo just mimicked a pony she knew she's seen and heard before. One that has purchased merchandise from the apple family.

"Have I lost my mind, or...or did that stallion just talk like... Octavia???" AJ thought deeply in her head.

Landing some-what gracefully on the hard pavement, Zylo's wet mane flipped over his left eye, causing one to look angrily at Applejack.

"Whew..." He sighed, thinking to Applejack out loud. "Why am I limited only to dry land? I am unable to survive underwater for extended periods of time? It is clear to me that this body does have it's limits after all."

"I'LL TELL YOU WHY!!!" Rainbow Dash said, launching up into the sky, then back to Zylo. "Because you're not a sea pony! You idiot! What's your problem? I save you from breaking the bones in your legs, and THAT'S THE THANKS I GET??? A CRASH LANDING!!!"

Rainbow Dash edged closer to Zylo, who didn't move at all. After not saying anything for about a minute, Rainbow Dash finally backed off in worry.

He did nothing. Only stared back and forth between the 2 girls. Then, he looked to his 2 hoofs. Then to a tree to the side of him. With no warning, Zylo swung at it, causing it to fall over their general direction!

"WAAAHHHH!!!" Both Rainbow and Applejack started to yell in fear.

"Don't flatter yourself..." Zylo silently said. "Please don't."

Holding the tree up with one hoof, Zylo asked. "So, that's why your legs aren't flimsy. It must be these bones you mentioned. Answer me now, rainbow one."

"Uhhhh. Yeah! Those are called bones alright." She said, ultimately confused over the whole situation.

With a growl, Zylo heaved the tree over a wall, causing it to make a terrible sound. That sound where you know you've done and fucked something up badly! Zylo looked to Rainbow Dash with a steamed look.

"YOU!!!" He pointed to her with his hoof. "Why didn't you save your friend here with the hat? My body is much stronger and faster than both of your bodies. I would have been fine, but now, her head wear is ruined!"

"WHAT???" Both yelled in unison. "NO YOU'RE NOT!!!"

"Listen. My name is Zylo." He said, changing the subject. "I need to locate a pony by the title of, 'Vinyl Scratch'. Do you know where she lives pegasus?"

"Look!!! I have a name." She snapped. "It's only world renown. My name is Rainbow Dash, the fastest flier in Equestria!!!"

Zylo shook his head and growled.

"Damn you! You're so full of yourself. How about you! Earth pony. Me and you are similar. You must tell me." He demanded. "You have to know where she is. Do you, or do you not?"

While waiting for an answer, Zylo studied Applejack very carefully. She had orange colored fur, with a blonde mane tied up in the end with a red strip. Her mane was wet too. Her eyes were the same color as Zylo's. Zylo grew intrigued at him. He always liked those who were similar to himself. She was even strong, more toned than Rainbow Dash was. Her cutie mark was that of 3 apples. She also wore her trademark hat atop of her head. Unfortunately, the brown cowboy hat was wet.

"Please?" He repeated, copying Octavia. "I would be most gracious if you could help me. It would be very nice of you if you could do as I ask. Damnit! Please?!"

"Well, you're right." Applejack said with an honest smile. "First, my name is Applejack partner!"

Applejack extended her hoof to Zylo's. He did not take it. He was too confused with Applejacks offering to accept it.

"Wh-what's this?" Zylo asked.

"A hoof shake of course!" She said in happiness. "Grab my hoof and shake it. Simple!"

Crushing it with his solid grip, Zylo shook it hard, almost shaking her to the point of nausea. Rainbow Dash normally would have laughed, but she was busy.

"Hmmmm. One minute, this guy is as rude as can be, and another, he's asking Applejack nicely where Vinyl is. I hope she doesn't tell him." Rainbow Dash thought.

"Th-that's quite a grip you got there..." She said, shaking out of it. "Well, anyways. It's nice to meet you Zylo. If you're looking for Vinyl Scratch, she lives in a really nice penthouse with her friend Octavia... She..."

"Octavia..." Zylo said, like she was his friend.

"So, you know Tavi?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Yes! What's it to you???" Zylo said defensively. "I met her earlier. She taught me a few things. More than both of YOU two did combined!"

"Yeahhhh..." Applejack said, weirded out. "Look. She lives in Ponyville heights. You can see her house from half of Canterlot. Listen for incredibly loud music. Just watch out. She's picked up a few... bad habits."

"Applejack?!" Zylo said, threateningly.

She waited for the worst, but she was met with the best.

"Thank you." Zylo said, kind of shyly when he did.

"Your welcome!" Applejack said. "Look, if you're ever in Ponyville sometime, stop by Sweet Apple Acres. We can use a pony with your strength."

"And speed." Rainbow Dash added. "That's where me and Applejack are training. If you're up for it. You should totally be on MY team. Forget about Applejack."

"Team?" Zylo asked. "What's this, 'team.' you speak of?"

"Well, you know... a team?" Rainbow Dash said.

"NO!!! I do NOT know a team!" Zylo snapped, making Applejack jump.

"Partner, a team is a group of more than one pony who work to get something done. The triathlon takes three opponents." She explained.

"YOU FOOL!!!" Zylo beamed. "Can you not count? Even I have access to such basic information as counting. There are three of us here now. Applejack, Rainbow Dash, and I."

"Are...you suggesting what I think you're suggesting?" Dashie asked, starting to grow happy.

"I will attend this, Triathlon and train with you 2." Zylo said. "I can use this team you speak of to grow stronger. Now, out of my way!!!"

Shoving the 2 ponies out of the way, Zylo continued his journey, keeping his eyes sharp for a penthouse, and ears sharp for dubstep. He was gone in a flash, leaving Applejack and Rainbow Dash giddy that they found a strong third wheel.

With Shining Armor...

IF YOU CANNOT HELP ME, THEN YOU ARE USELESS. YOU DIE NOW!!!

Those terrible memories of last night only made Shining more and more angry. Like a lot of creatures out there, including the one he set out to destroy, anger was a great strength to him. Doing push-ups by the hundreds with sandbags on his back, and with full armor, he could not fail to do 200. He would not allow it. He began to imagine that if he didn't, Zylo would destroy him and his family.

"Failure...cannot be...ALLOWED!!!" He screamed, nearly falling to the ground after his 190th.

Peacefully strolling through the Canterlot gardens to join her brother for training, Twilight Sparkle began to talk to the small creature that was on her back.

"Magic enhancing potions?" She asked.

"Check!!!" Yelled the baby dragon known as Spike.

With a pen and parchment, Spike checked the first thing on the list.

"Fitted armor?" She asked. "Light for me and Cadence, and heavy for Shining?"

Spike gave Twilight those eyes that said, "Dude! You're holding the armor above us with your magic!" but he checked it off the list anyways with a sigh.

"Yeah... Check!" Spike mentioned.

"Great! The last thing we need to do is to practice hard with Shining! Let's GOOOO!!!"

"WAAAH!!!" Spike said, clinging to the purple and pink mane that flowed in the wind.

Twilight picked up the pace, and rounded the corner to the least occupied part of the gardens. Shining was there. Another one of Zylo's memories lingered.

LISTEN TO ME. I'M GIVING YOU A CHANCE TO LEAVE! IF ANY ONE OF YOU PONIES FUCK WITH ME, YOU WILL BE ELIMINATED. GOT IT???

Shining struggled with the weight on his back, but all he did was toss more rage into his furnace. The fuel was incredible!

"I could have taken that warning!!!" He thought in his head. "MY MEN COULD STILL BE ALIVE!!! NOOOOOO!!!!"

Pounding his hoofs harder into the dirt, he began to do one legged push ups, and at an even greater speed than he was earlier!!! Indeed, Shining's physical abilities were unbelievable, his strength quickly rising.

"I... WILL... STOP ZYLO!!! I WILL!!!" He screamed, pushing past the 200 mark.

"Shining Armor!" Said a voice to Shining like he was in trouble.

Twilight butted Spike off of her back, and sat him down next to the armor.

"Spike, stand back and watch me." She told her little friend.

Spike winked and gave a thumbs up. Only he knew her plan.

"200! 201! What...is it...Twilight? 202! 203! 204!" He asked, still doing push-ups.

"Don't you think you're over-training? You've been out here all day by yourself! Relax." She said.

Her words were no good, but he did throw the sandbags off of him and stopped with the push ups for a bit.

"huhh...huhh...Twilight! I will not stop until I'm sure that Zylo will be eliminated. Whew... huhh...huhh..." Shining yelled, clearly winded. "Now, are you ready to begin?"

Twilight nodded. Already, she knew Shining has become tremendously stronger. It was time for the test.

"Yes! So, you want to see how strong you've become?" Twilight said, as if she knew a dirty secret. "I can prove to you that you can beat Zylo with one hoof."

"Show me then..." He begged.

Twilight turned around, seeming to be doing absolutely nothing. She just shuffled her hoofs around, overturning a few mounds of dirt. Shining was confused, but he didn't let his guard down for one second. Not since that day.

"SURPRISE!!!" She screamed.

With no warning at all, Twilight launched a small magic blast towards Shining Armor. He didn't even flinch. The purple ball of energy stopped just before it came an inch away from Shining Armor's nose.

"Wh-why didn't you try to dodge?!" Twilight asked, slightly frustrated.

"I sensed no intent of you harming me." He said with a smile. "Twilight? I want everything you have to offer! Fight me with all of that power you have. Zylo will be doing the same thing. You can't hold back. Got it?"

"Hmmm. Right..." She said with a smile. "In that case, you better dodge. I will not hold back a second time."

Once again, she launched a purple magic ball, only twice as big and fast. Shining's reactions kicked in quickly! It grazed his face, but he managed to dodge the speedy magic missile. Twilight launched a second one. It made full contact to Shining's side, but he remained strong.

The third one was the biggest of them all. Shining was prepared to smash it into oblivion with his very hoof. When Twilight launched it, Shining met it halfway. Indeed, it smashed into hundreds of sparks. It exploded behind him, his face still battle ready, his mane flowing freely.

"Nice try Twilight." Shining yelled. "I know that you're stronger than me in magic, but if I can't beat you at your maximum, I might as well forget about Zylo. So, if you don't mind, let's just skip the warmup!"

Twilight had her eyes shut tight. She smiled, then they slowly opened. Her eyes were no longer there. They were only white slits of glowing energy.

"Fine by me!!!" She said. "But remember, you asked for it!"

Both of their aura's glowed with great passion, then they attacked.

With Cordelion...

Perched on his new vantage point, Cordelion awaits for his time to strike. The sun has not yet gone down fully. His powers would prove to be more effective during the night than in the day.

On the highest point of the castle was where Cordelion lay. One hand grabbing onto the building, the other adjusting his appearance. Cordelion covered his naked body with the clothes that Celestia provided him. He wore torn blue jeans, a black shirt, and a long black trench-coat that went down to his feet. On his face was a strange lens called, a Scouter. It was created by the very descendants of Zylo's Saiyan half.

"Master wants me to find this Zylo she keeps talking about." He hisses to himself. "To be more specific, the demon. He must return to her. I'll have it done before the morning."

Adjusting his collar downward, he opens the jacket to let some cool air in. On his red scouter, he pressed the side button, slowly scanning from his vantage point.

"Hmmm. The average power levels of these weaklings are only 3? How terrible. Although, the demon is weak, I must give him credit. He is built better than the average pony. His power level will be in the thousands, hopefully not over 9000!"

A loud sudden beep from the scouter brought a large power to his attention.

"Uh? What's this? There's 2 power levels below me that are incredibly higher than the rest?!" He said, astonished.

He peered over the edge of the castle. Indeed, there were 2 siblings fighting each other. First, Cordelion scanned the male. A meal was spotted! They looked so delicious, as Cordelion licked his lips in anticipation.

"Wow. His fighting power the other day was only 106, but now, it's risen to nearly 500? And this other one..."

Eyes grown wide due to the shock value, Cordelion had to sit down. It could not be real. The purple one was even stronger.

"Unbelievable!!! Power level 2,000? How is a pony besides an alicorn that powerful? She must have hidden power. Oh well. They are not who I am picking a quarrel with. But, if they are still there by nightfall, their power will be added to mine. Perhaps... over here. Ah! There you are!!!"

Only about a mile from the castle, Cordelion located Zylo's whereabouts.

"Maximum fighting power is up to 5000? Most impressive." Cordelion admitted to himself. "Master warned me that the demon can conceal his power level too, so he could be even stronger than this."

Cordelion smiled, hissed, then transformed into a small rat and pittered away.

"At least fighting Zylo will be fun!"

With Zylo...

"Finally! Canterlot heights!" He yelled.

Ignoring the countless ponies around him was very hard to do. Most only cared for themselves, just as Zylo did. The penthouse he saw from far away was just up the hill. Already, thumps could be heard about every second or so. The closer he got, the harder the ground shook.

"What is that preposterous shaking? Could this...Vinyl Scratch be powering up? Could she be like me?!?!?!"

For the first time in his life, Zylo was feeling anticipation. That had to be the very reason why she knew of Dr. Stasis. She had to have been an experiment just like he was. That explained why she knew of Dr. stasis.

Zylo stopped running. He took off at a rapid sprint, shoving and plowing over everypony in their way. He laughed at all of the ponies that fell over like nothing, but then stopped abruptly when a bigger pony stood in his path.

"Watch it!!!" He shouted. "You're gonna scuff the uniform."

"Who's this clown!?" Zylo asked.

"I'm Soarin!" He said, happy to be saying his very name.

Zylo, angry that he was cut short of his sprint, looked to the pony that stood in his way. He was bigger than the rest of them, about Zylo's size. He was one of the rare males that dotted the outlying country. One of the lucky males. He was an even lighter shade of blue than Rainbow Dash was. He wore a skin tight uniform, which was his Wonderbolt uniform unknown to Zylo. He had a pair of goggles and a blue mane blown back from his excessive speed.

"Hah! What, are you a fan of Rainbow Dash'es or something?" Scoffed Zylo.

"Good one pal! She's a fan of mine. After all, she DOES want to join the Wonderbolts?"

"The Wonderbolts? Ah! How FUCKING FANTASTIC!!!" Zylo shouted. "Who. Really. Gives. A FUCK!!!"

"Rainbow Dash will. I'm her ticket in. She's so hot!" Soarin added. "I'll ask her to go out with me, then I'll talk to Spitfire about making a few exceptions, then bam!!! I'll have that fine flank on a silver platter every night for the rest of my life!"

"Hot? You have attractions to Rainbow Dash?" Zylo asked.

"No duh kid! Don't you like anypony?"

"Y...yes..." He admitted with his face down.

"Who?" He asked.

"IM NOT TELLING YOU!!!" Zylo roared, keeping his love interest a secret.

"Well, whoever she is, she's not as good as Dashie. She's the finest mare out there, and she'll be all mine as soon as I'm done beating you up for talking to me like that earlier!"

Zylo's eyebrow cocked up and a small demonic smile could be seen on his face. This was his chance. He has been feeling a bit tense all day. He needed a punching bag.

A sucker punch to the face only managed to piss Zylo off. Zylo reared back and punched Soarin so hard in the face, that he went down like a sack of potatoes. At least 4 teeth hit the cobblestone with Soarin. He twitched, like a zombie fixing to be resurrected from the dead.

Zylo said nothing, only proceeded to stomp his head into the dust. Blood from his missing teeth and the side of his head spilled into the streets, with tons of ponies panicking. The blood flowed down the cracks of the cobblestone, like a minuscule river going to it's delta.

"Hmmm. He is wearing a very light armor. Perhaps it is of use to me?" Zylo thought.

Picking up the unconscious body of Soarin by the mane, Zylo took of his Wonderbolt's uniform, then slipped it on himself. He was pleased. It fit him perfectly, but there were 2 unnecessary slits for wings. When he was done with the living body, he tossed it over his shoulder like a banana peel. Then, he looked back to it, angry at his face.

"You have the sex appeal of a rat!" Zylo shouted, running back to scream it into his ear. "Rainbow Dash would be more likely to fall for me than you, which won't happen."

Grabbing the back of his neck, Zylo smashed his face into the side of the wall. With his jaw, he proceeded to write a word on the side of Vinyl and Octy's house. The blood ran dry when he got halfway done with the word.

"Ah dam. Out of ink!!!"

Zylo smashed his head harder into the wall even harder. Blood now flowed fluently. The pen's tip was broken.

"Much better!" He said with glee.

When he was done with his art project, he smiled as he stepped back to admire it. It was Zylo's favorite word. In deep red, it said, "FUCK"

Adjusting his fur tight Wonderbolts uniform, Zylo knocked on the door to Vinyl Scratches house. Nobody answered. It did no good to knock.

"Vinyl Scratch damn you! Come out at once!" Zylo attempted to yell over the music.

He had enough. Bursting through the door with one punch, he screamed "Vinyl Scratch" into the house. She actually heard it too! She stopped the music, then approached where the door once was. Her eyes looked very strange.

"Hey... wa-wasn't there a door here?" She asked.

"Maybe." Zylo said. "May I come in... Please?" He said, emphasizing please.

She looked outside to the left, then to the right, Then, she cocked her head inside, motioning Zylo to come in.

Author's Note

Day 4, Third chapter. I must say, this is FAST for me. Enjoy the new chapter. I hope you guys really like this.

Tell me what you thought about it! A negative review with constructive criticism would be most helpful. Positive reviews are always good, but tell me WHY you think it's good or bad. I mean, if that's okay with you...

Well, review for me regardless, be sure to like or dislike, and favorite or follow me if you can.

And as always, that's for reading!