The Real Monsters

“How have our subjects faired in our absence?”

Luna looked ahead towards Orthodox, the creature leading their group through the forest.

“Well, we only arrived a few days ago, but they seem to be doing alright since they were released.” He hacked away a tree branch with his long knife, before shoving it aside. “I mean, there’s still some that are prisoners in other towns and cities, but they seem to be able to cope with everything they’ve gone through.”

Luna felt a great sadness well up in her at the reminder that some of her ponies were still captive. The amount of tortures that they would be going through was unthinkable, given her own experience with captivity. Glancing to her left, she frowned down at her groggy sister, Dainn having been particularly cruel to her. Celestia could barely walk, going back and forth from periods of hysterical laughter to emptiness in mere moments.

“Why are you here?” she tried to find out, so far the wider motives of her rescuer a mystery.

Orthodox paused to hack aside another branch before replying. “I’m just the backup that the Brass sent. Straken got herself teleported here, somehow, and she placed a call for support after offing a caribou. As soon as the bigwigs got wind that we were dealing with a nation of slavers, they sent me in and started to prepare an assault force. As for Elijah… well, he’s just strange, if you get my drift.”

“Your people hate slavers?” Luna decided to ignore the fact that Orthodox had called this ‘Elijah’ strange. “Or are you just taking advantage of us?” Her voice lowered warningly towards the end of her sentence, but the creature ahead of her just shrugged and continued walking.

“A little bit of both, really,” he continued to explain. “Pretty much it started during the early days of the UIP, that’s the Empire I work for, when we were going around taking planets and kicking arses. One of the easiest ways to take a planet belonging to slavers is to incite the slaves to revolt, and then during the confusion you strike. Then, a few decades down the track when everyone from that planet is a citizen of the UIP, they start being recruited into the military.”

He hacked another branch down.

“Give it a few generations, and you’ve got the sons and daughters of former slaves rising up the command ranks. A few millennia and you’ve got a deep seated hatred of all slavers sprinkled among officers who have the authority to order the deaths of galaxies. Hence the ‘kill all slavers’ mentality. Oh, and it’s also pretty fun to just wail on some genuine dirt bags from time to time.”

Luna tried to take in the tide of information, attempting to process just what she was dealing with. Thankfully, it seemed like the powerful empire was on their side and had a goal to eliminate the Caribou for their own reasons. While she normally disliked the idea of killing, having a King have his way with you, and your sister while you watched, did swing her opinion towards it being justified.

The fact that Orthodox had also said that this ‘UIP’ was aiming to take advantage of a weakened Equestria was still worrying. While likely an unreliable source of information, he was currently her only one.

“When you said that it was a little bit of both, what did you mean?”

“Oh, the whole ‘we’re in it for ourselves’ bit? Don’t worry too much, from the looks of things you and your ponies will fit in pretty well.” He chuckled to himself. “Heh, Straken’s getting so friendly with a few of your guards that she may just ask High Command to just let you guys do your own thing. You’ll probably get a few military bases plopped down, but also a whole bunch of traders and mining companies asking for deals.”

“It can’t be much worse than it is now,” Luna mumbled, Orthodox nodding his helmeted head.

“Yup, we’ll kill you, your family and take your land, but we won’t rape you before doing it.”

“How chivalrous,” Luna deadpanned, evidently Orthodox and his people operated on a different moral system than Equestria. Then again, she could have guessed that from the fact that his first action in her presence had been to rob the King.

He didn’t reply and continued to clear a path. They had made steady progress, not stopping for rest at all. Luna was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn’t notice that Orthodox had stopped, and so she banged into his back. Receiving a helmeted stare from the creature, she was about to apologise before he cut her off.

“We’ll rest here,” he commanded, Luna looking around and noticing that they were in a clearing. Fallen trees, indicating that it wasn’t natural, were spread out from the centre of it. They were long dead, the dirt covered with a light patch of grass, and Luna wondered what had happened here to cause it. She watched while he dragged the logs around, amazed that such a small creature seemed to possess strength to rival a minotaur. It must have had something to do with his armour, Luna wondering what sort of magic powered the device. Then again, she had been amazed by steam engines when she had returned, so maybe it wasn’t magical in nature at all.

“Will we be safe?”

“The fire shouldn’t get us here; the wind’s calm and doesn’t look like it’ll pick up. The Caribou will likely be after us, if they survived, but I’ll have plenty of prior warning.” He tapped his helmet. “I’ve remembered to switch my sensors on this time.”

“That is… good?” Luna tried, not knowing what ‘sensors’ were. She found a patch of grass and sat the limp Celestia up against a log. Running a hand through her sister’s lifeless mane, Luna sighed and sat down next to her. “Are we far from Ponyville? I do not know this forest as much as I used to.”

“Another day, half if we rush it,” he answered, sitting down on a log opposite and flipping his knife over in a hand. “Then we’re back in Ponyville and home free, no sweat.”

‘I doubt it will be that easy,’ Luna thought to herself, leaning her head against Celestia and closing her eyes.

She had to admit that things were looking up, and hopefully once they reached the town she could relax for the first time in ages.

“No, there is no way we’ll be doing that… witchery.”

Straken pointed at Elijah to drive home her point. He had spent most of the morning with his caribou general, and apparently had found out that the King possessed potent magical abilities. She had known of the existence of the arcane arts, but like all decent officers she viewed them with measured distaste.

The fact that he was talking about live sacrifices didn’t exactly help that unease.

“I assure you, everything will work out fine,” the scientist tried to convince her, glancing towards the pale Blaze for support. “What about you, Lieutenant? Surely you agree that a few dead Caribou are worth protection from the full wrath of King Dainn?”

“It’s not right,” Blaze imputed, earning a nod from Blueblood, the stallion having joined the three for the discussion in the moonlit street. “Despite what they did, they’re still prisoners.”

All four glanced towards the chained up beings, the twenty-one caribou either glaring at them or staring at the ground.

“All I need is six,” Elijah continued. “Six for the entire town, and I can guarantee that no ill magic will affect us for three days.”

“What do you know of magic?” Blueblood questioned, dressed in a simple farmer’s outfit with a spear in his hand. “You are not a unicorn, nor a caribou.”

In response, Elijah tapped the icon on his coat’s left breast, the plain white pentagram symbol standing out on the grey cloth. “I am with the Occult Military Application Division, my dear Prince. I have access to much knowledge that many consider ‘witchery’, as the good Colonel stated. A simple protection spell powered by the souls of six rapists is something well within my means.”

“Their souls?” Blaze stammered. “You want to use their souls to power a spell?”

“It’s not like they’re going to get into any decent afterlife,” Elijah shrugged. “Why not use them for something useful?”

“I can’t agree to this,” Blueblood answered with a shake of his head. “Doing that would make us just as bad as them.”

“I have no issue with it,” Elijah informed them. “I’ll do it myself, everything if you ponies don’t want to get your hands dirty.” He fixed Straken with a smile, although something about him sent shivers down her spine. “I expected you to see why this needs to be done, Colonel. I do hope that you’re not going soft on me.”

“I’m not going soft,” Straken growled out. “I want no part of your debase rituals or pacts. I’ve heard stories about your department, and none of them are good.”

“Oh please, Colonel,” he replied, still maintaining his creepy smile. “You should know not to trust stories. Now, if you don’t mind, myself and Dante have a protection spell to create.”

Almost as if he sensed his name being uttered, the quiet giant entered the town square from an alley and headed towards Elijah. With a wave of his hand, the researcher and his bodyguard made their way over to the chained up Caribou.

“Let’s get out of here and get some rest,” Straken suggested, turning her back on the Researcher. The ponies followed her example, leaving Elijah and Dante behind. Heading towards the town’s bar, where they had set up a temporary rest area, they opened the wooden door and stepped inside. Straken waited until all of them had entered, before closing the door behind herself.

A muffled retort of a laser pistol shot could be heard, followed by faint cries and yells.

Ignoring it, Straken walked over towards the bar to join Blaze, the brown stallion bartender becoming very nervous.

“You’re just going to let him do those horrible things?” Blaze questioned, the bartender passing her a glass of water.

“There is not a lot that I can do,” Straken explained, forgoing a drink. “He’s a Lead Researcher for the Occult Department, people you don’t want to have in your bad books.”

“Still,” Blaze mumbled. “It’s not right.”

“We’re at war,” Straken replied. “You do whatever you can to win. History is written by the victor, after all.” She hesitated, before giving Blaze a pat on the back, visibly surprising the guard. “I understand that you don’t like it, and I don’t either, but we can worry about what’s right and what’s wrong after we’ve eliminated the Caribou once and for all.”

“I guess.” Blaze didn’t sound too convinced, and Straken glanced around the bar. Ponies of all types were arrayed around the large wooden room on chairs, the majority drowning their memories in drink. Turning towards the window, she caught a glimpse of a grey-coated figure dragging a corpse past, heading towards the north gate.

“Bartender,” Straken addressed, the unicorn nearly soiling himself. “I require a good, strong, drink.”

“Come on Tia, we’re almost there.”

Luna tried to get Celestia to move faster, but she had remained in her unresponsive state. Celestia would shuffle forwards like a zombie, no energy in her movements or eyes. It was really starting to worry Luna, what if the effects were permanent? She couldn’t rebuild a shattered Equestria by herself, and her only option would be to ask Orthodox for help. That was something she dreaded, and when she returned her gaze to the front of the path she spotted him gesture forwards.

“Princesses, your town is just after the tree line up ahead.”

Luna looked down when her hoof stepped in something, and she peered down at the puddles of blood and strange metal cylinders that littered the ground. Looking back up, she noticed that the trees were riddled with holes. With no time to wonder what it all meant, she followed Orthodox.

“Almost there,” she breathed to herself, seeing sunlight through the trees. Orthodox had stopped just ahead, Luna furrowing her brows. “What is wrong?” she asked, fearing that the Caribou had taken back the town.

“Elijah,” Orthodox hissed. “What the Hell has he done this time?”

‘Elijah?’ Luna thought, remembering that he was one of Orthodox’s friends. She moved beside Orthodox, and shuddered when she felt something… wrong coming from the town. Celestia whimpered like a scared foal, and Luna felt her stomach begin to heave in protest.

“What… what is that?” she asked, gripping her stomach with her free hand. Orthodox didn’t answer, and instead continued on to the break in the trees. Fighting her revulsion, Luna willed herself to press forwards, Celestia whimpering all the while. “It’s okay, Sister,” Luna tried to comfort, however she too felt like bolting in the opposite direction.

Reaching Orthodox again, the short creature seeming just as disturbed, she looked out towards the town. Her free hand went to her mouth, in an effort to stop the vomit from coming out.

Nailed spreadeagled to a wooden board, with symbols written in blood surrounding it, was a single corpse of a caribou. The bull’s head was missing, and Luna could instantly tell that some very powerful, and evil, magic was at work.

“Insane bastard,” Orthodox mumbled, before heading towards the board. He gave it a wide berth, Luna following his lead. Her unease increased the closer she got to the macabre decoration and she found herself unable to look directly at it.

She could swear that she could hear a voice screaming inside her head, its tone one of immense agony. Closing her eyes, she pressed forward while dragging Celestia with her.

All of a sudden, she felt all of the unease and voices disappear, and she opened her eyes.

They had passed the body, the plain back of the upright board the only thing visible. Breathing a sigh of relief, she heard possibly the most glorious sound she could have at the current time.

“Princess! The Princesses are here!”

Luna forgot all of her worries when a mass of ponies ran towards her; a mix of royal guard, civilians, and even a single bat-pony. Orthodox stepped aside and allowed the twelve ponies to crowd around the her and Celestia, Luna wearily giving every single one a smile.

“Okay, give them some room.”

A female voice heavy with command rang out from the town, prompting Luna to look up. A creature with a black mane and pale white skin was advancing towards her, flanked by another solar guard and surprisingly a changeling. Based off of the appearance, Luna assumed that this was the ‘Straken’ that Orthodox had been talking about.

“Greetings,” the female addressed, giving a slight nod. “I’m Colonel Tabitha Straken; I assume that you’re Princesses Luna and Celestia?”

“We are,” Luna replied, the ponies around them quieting down to listen to the conversation. “I am Luna, and this is my sister, Celestia.” Luna glanced towards Celestia, who had stopped whimpering and had reverted back to her emotionless state. “My sister needs medical attention however; she is suffering ill effects of her collar.”

“Indeed,” Straken answered, before gesturing with a hand. “Lieutenant, Mirage, please help Princess Celestia to the hospital and instruct the doctors that she requires the utmost care.

“Yes Colonel,” the guardmare acknowledged, while the changeling meekly nodded. Luna stared at the pair while they removed Celestia from her, in particular the changeling. It was female and barely matured from the looks of it, and she mentally questioned why a changeling was working with ponies. Making a note to pursue that question in the future, Luna focused back on Straken once the ordered pair had started to walk Celestia back to the town.

“I am grateful for you and your companions’ assistance to my people,” she began, the Colonel narrowing her eyes.

“We are not doing it for your gain,” she explained coldly, before she seemed to relax. “However, helping you and your ponies align with our own goals, and I highly doubt that you’ll mind us killing all of the Caribou that we want.” Luna grimaced at the reminder, the Colonel picking up on it. “Is that an issue?”

“No,” Luna replied, taking a deep breath. “I’m just remembering my own experiences with them.”

“Primitive animals,” Straken spat, grinding her boot into the dirt. “Filthy base creatures that have no promise.”

Luna glanced back towards the wooden board, wondering if the Colonel realised how their own behaviour appeared.

“I’m sorry about your welcome,” Straken apologised, evidently having noticed the glance. “The Lead Researcher is rather overzealous when he has an idea in his mind. Apparently the six corpses will serve as protection against enemy spells.”

“Six?” Luna inquired, Straken nodding with a frown.

“Six dead bodies, all arrayed in a specific pattern around the town. Don’t ask me how it works, I don’t know.” Straken’s eye twitched. “In my opinion, it should be something that no one knows.”

Luna found it hard to disagree with that opinion, but her agreement was cut off by Orthodox barging into the talk.

“Oi, Straken,” he asked, the Colonel sneering when she looked down at him and saw his looted gold and sacks. “I managed to rescue the Princesses, pretty great am I right?”

“I’m assuming that you also set fire to the forest,” Straken commented coldly. “And looted yet more items to sate your own greed. I question just what your priorities were.”

“Hey, an outcome is an outcome,” he defended, pointing towards a stallion in solar guard armour. “You there, soldier-pony! Take these sacks to my treasure horde.” Orthodox held out the sacks towards the confused guard, before the stallion hesitantly took the sacks in hand and backed away. Straken shook her head, and despite her opinion of the Colonel, Luna found herself agreeing. She may be cruel, but at least Straken seemed to have a decent head on her shoulders.

“Sometimes I wonder why I joined the military,” Straken muttered under her breath, watching while Orthodox swaggered into the town behind them.

“Hey Gary, guess who’s the better agent now!”

“I have observed that he is rather… strange,” Luna commented after finding a nice way to say ‘completely nuts’. He did save her and Celestia after all.

“He is insane,” Straken agreed. “But I can’t deny that he’s a useful asset. We just need a way to focus him towards the Caribou.”

“He likes gold.”

“I didn’t notice,” Straken deadpanned, before glancing around at the surrounding ponies. “Don’t you have posts to watch?”

“But the Princess-“ a brown-coated earth pony stallion began, before Straken cut him off.

“Is safe and alive, but the same may be the same for the Caribou. Get back and garrison your positions.”

Luna was surprised at the speed that everypony followed Straken’s orders with, all of them hurrying back to the town leaving the two alone. Evidently a lot had changed in her absence, and it may not have been for the best.

“What do we do now?”

“We prepare for a direct assault,” Straken answered, pointing out towards the smouldering forest. “With your rescue our enemy will no doubt be looking for revenge. The forest provides concealment and cover to an approaching army, and with the open fields on either side that is the most likely path of approach.”

“There is not much ground separating the forest from the town,” Luna observed. “Merely a small stream and a bridge. They could easily overwhelm us with numbers even if your… protection spell blocks their magic.”

“First, it’s not my protection spell,” Straken stressed. “Secondly, you’ll find that your guards and citizens have been provided a means to harass and punish our enemy from afar. We plan to make this area our main defence point, holding them here while the ISA agents cut off their attack from the rear.”

“We have no prior warning, they will possess the element of surprise.”

“They will be the ones that will be surprised. I can assure you, I have thought out our plan of attack and I believe it will be adequate.” Straken looked over her body, Luna standing strong while the Colonel’s eyes examined her naked form. “You, however, will likely require rest-“

“I shall not rest until my subjects are safe,” Luna replied, crossing her arms. “All of them.”

“Fine,” Straken dismissed. “Although I suggest you take a bath and spend your time comforting your subjects. I can handle the military side of things.”

Luna mulled over the suggestion. While she was keen to exact some form of vengeance against the ones who had humiliated her and harmed Celestia, even if it was merely planning their demise, her subjects did need her. A strong show of confidence from her would likely rejuvenate them and boost morale.

“I am okay with this arrangement,” she nodded, Straken showing a small smile.

“I’m thankful that you ponies seem to understand how to behave in dangerous situations,” the Colonel praised. “My past experiences with royalty have been far more tedious.”

“This is not the time for infighting,” Luna accepted. “You and your comrades in arms appear to be far more accustomed to warfare than we are, so your assistance is extremely appreciated.”

“Your cooperation is likewise a boon. Now, we have work to do.”

Luna glanced back towards the board, her spine shivering with the memory.

“We do, they are likely only a few hours behind us.” Both turned and headed towards the town, a mass of ponies rushing out to meet them.

“Great,” Straken muttered, Luna smiling to herself while the joy-filled horde closed in.

Things were looking up.

“See anything?”

Blaze tried to ignore the board out in front of them, the grisly totem facing out towards the forest. She adjusted the heavy winter coat she was wearing, trying hard to not let the sweating get to her. It was unsuited for a warm night like this, but with the lack of armour a heavily padded jacket was better than nothing. It may not stop a sword thrust, but at least it could possibly dull the blow of a club or shock baton.

All of her guards, a grand number of ten, were staring out towards the forest while the moon began to rise. Forty-one of the militia, comprised of townsponies and a few of the changelings, were also huddled behind barricades constructed from upturned carts and junk. Nervous eyes watched the area around them while hands gripped weapons, the flickering light from burning torches aiding the moon with lighting the area.

“Nothing yet,” a guard called back, a private named Edge. “What about the scouts?”

Blaze tapped the small ‘communicator’ plug that was lodged in her ear. Straken had given it to her, and told her that one of the ISA agents would tell her if they found the Caribou army. She didn’t really like the human technology, the borrowed rifle in her hand heavy with more than just physical weight. Already she had claimed a life with the deadly tool, the first in her entire military career.

“No word,” she answered, standing up and peering into the forest. It was impossible to see past the trees, and they didn’t have much ground between them and an enemy attack.

“How are things going Lieutenant?”

She nearly jumped out of her fur when a hand placed itself on her shoulder, the Lead Researcher walking beside her to give her a friendly smile. Blaze shuddered; she still couldn’t shake the image of the merry scientist nailing a headless corpse to a board, whistling a tune while he did so. He terrified her more than any of the other aliens, but it was nothing like Straken’s cold efficiency or even Orthodox’s bloodlust. Something about the tall, curious human just seemed… wrong.

“We’re… we’re ready for the attack, we’re just waiting for Orthodox and Stuart to find them,” she explained. The scientist nodded, and remained standing still with a smile on his face. “Excuse me sir, I don’t mean any disrespect, but are you out here for a reason? I thought Colonel Straken ordered you to stay in the town with the Princesses?”

“Straken is a great army officer, but terrible at reading the wider picture,” Elijah explained with a dismissive wave. “It’s in her nature to follow standard military doctrine, forming a static defence against a numerically superior foe. She has no appreciation for the finer points of defeating the enemy.”

Given Elijah’s idea of ‘finer points’, Blaze found herself agreeing with Straken. She’d take a static defence over executing prisoners and using their remains to power evil magic any day.

“By fighting on the front lines, I witness the enemy’s tactics and strategy first hand.” While he continued, Elijah undid his black waist holster and pulled out a small handgun, a dull grey just like his lab coat. He flicked a switch and a line along the side glowed to life, emitting a steady red light. “After sufficient observation, I can then form a precise plan of action to decimate their forces.”

Blaze looked around, guards and civilians still keeping a watch over the forest. Over half of them had rifles, with plenty of bullets to spare. They had barricades and the ISA agents were tracking down the Caribou army as they spoke. She doubted that one scientist, no matter how twisted, could really add any difference to their odds.

“I’d rather you’d follow the advice of the Colonel, and stayed in the town,” Blaze informed him.

Elijah chuckled, the small handgun still held in his hand. “I assure you Lieutenant, I am more than capable of looking after myself.”

“But the Colonel said-“

“Lieutenant,” he cut her off. “If you have doubts as to my safety, then why don’t you ask the Colonel yourself?”

“I will not leave my post,” Blaze told him, gesturing out into the forest. “The attack can come at any time.”

Almost as if prompted by her words, the earpiece she wore crackled to life with Agent Stuart’s voice.

”Lieutenant Blaze, we’ve got movement heading towards you. I count roughly one-thousand, five-hundred troops, armoured with lethal weapons. They’ll reach you in about ten minutes at this rate, in five you should be able to hear them.”. He paused, Blaze gulping at the mention of the fact that they were carrying weapons to kill. “Also, they seem to be rather ticked off.”

‘Great,’ Blaze thought, wincing. ‘I guess that the King is not too happy about the Princesses.’ Swallowing the lump in her throat, Blaze used a finger to press the small button on the ear piece and hold the small microphone closer to her mouth.

“Uh… thankyou Agent, we’ll distribute more guards from the south and west.”

“Allow me,” Elijah offered, the scientist turning around to stroll off towards the mentioned areas before Blaze could stop him.

“Was that Researcher Elijah?” With him gone, Blaze took the opportunity to find out more about him from Agent Stuart.

“It was,” she answered, glancing back over her shoulder. “Agent Stuart, do you know much about him? He wants to fight up here with us and I’d like to know what I’ll have to deal with?”

A sigh came over the radio, followed by a light chuckle. “You ponies have the best timing. Alright, I’ll give you the short version; I’ve got an army to harass after all. Basically, when Elijah Von Barker was in the ISA, he was one of our most effective agents. A skilled marksmen and highly intelligent, he still holds the record of being the best shot in the business. I don’t know the exact amount of confirmed kills, but it’s well over a thousand.”

“A thousand?” Blaze muttered, unable to imagine what that would be like.

“Yep. Unlike most agents, he changed a lot over the years. He became odd, started going for gut shots instead of straight up kills, unlike most snipers. There was talk about getting rid of him, but his squad commander kept him on. Soon, R and D got wind of him and offered him a position. He must have liked what they showed him, because he switched a month later. Don’t get me wrong Lieutenant, the work changes everyone, he just took it a little harder than everyone else.”

Without another word, the connection closed. Blaze stood and mulled over the information she had just received. Instead of feeling more ready for dealing with the scientist, the brief history of Elijah only fuelled the anxiety she felt around him. That smile now carried far more menace in her mind.

“Lieutenant?” a pony up front called out, breaking Blaze out of her thoughts. “We’ve got movement in the trees!”

Blaze quickly shouldered her rifle and pointed it towards the tree line, resting it on the upturned table she was sheltering behind. Her actions were echoed by all of the ponies and changelings around her, all of them bracing for combat.

“Aim…” she ordered, the sound of safeties being switched off soon overtaken by the thrashing of branches and leaves.

“Sir, the town is just up ahead,” General Trumpter whispered.

Dainn didn’t know why he bothered, the soldiers were all about as stealthy as a herd of drunken buffalo. Armoured in full iron plate, he was a mighty presence. His fingers cracked with energy, the broadsword he gripped in his right honed and ready for use.

“Sound the attack,” he commanded with a sweep of his sword, cutting clean through a branch in front of him. “Spare none, but if the troops want to screw them before they kill them then I have no issue with that.”

“Of course,” Trumpter acknowledged, the General moving to the front of the lines. Looking over his army, the thousand-strong force huddled down in the forest with the tree line in front of them, Dainn smiled.

He could sense the impending slaughter, and with a grin he realised that it was just about as appealing as any mare.

“I spy with my eye…”

Agent Stuart, pride of the ISA department, stared at the Caribou King through the sight of his laser pulse rifle from his tree branch perch.

“A slaver king who’s about to die.”

His finger stayed on the trigger, Stuart tracking the King while the caribou directed his army. Another of the beasts, one which he had identified as a general, headed off to the front of the lines. Disregarding the tall caribou with his feathered helmet and light mail armour, Stuart focused solely on the King.

Orthodox and Straken were lurking around the sides, and he intended to bag the King’s head himself. As soon as the Caribou began to bellow and charge out of the trees, he decided it was time to strike. Ever so slowly he applied pressure to the trigger, a three shot burst destined right for the King’s left temple.

The finger left the trigger when an almighty bang rang out through the forest, a massive upturning of dirt and body parts clouding his view. The explosion tore the heart out of the middle of the army, scattering the Caribou and causing a mass panic.

“Fuck,” Stuart muttered to himself, spotting movement in his peripheral vision and having his helmet identify the sub-dermal chip as one Colonel Tabitha Straken. Like a ghost of the jungle, the mud-covered Straken emerged from the dirt with borrowed rifle in hand, a single shot crowing a fleeing soldier and sending him sprawling into the dirt. Stuart remembered that Straken was ex-army commandos, the Colonel promptly shooting another soldier that had frozen in terror at the sight of her.

A flash of green became visible once the dust and dirt from the explosion settled down, leaving the King standing tall with a crackling green dome around him. Stuart quickly realigned his sight with the King and pulled the trigger, three pulses of invisible and silent light impacting harmlessly against the shield with no effect.

“Damn,” he muttered, preparing to make his way down the tree. “And it was all going to be so easy as well.”

Straken headed straight for the green dome in front of her, blasting away any caribou that got between her and her quarry.

Having exchanged her pistol for one of the surplus rifles, she had set out with the ISA agents in order to provide recon and support to the ponies holding the defence line. While Stuart and Orthodox had split up to cover a wider area, she had instead decided to prepare a trap.

Taking three plasma grenades that she had… ‘borrowed’ from Orthodox, Straken had set up a basic but effective mine that she had made back in her infantry days. After burying it under the dirt of the path, she had covered herself with mud and concealed herself within one of the many mud patches that covered the forest floor. She guess that it had rained recently, and thanks to the brown muck she had been undetected by the army’s scouts.

Her plan to simply blow Dainn up had failed, however; the detonation not large enough to cover the King with deadly energy. Granted, it had likely taken out most of his command staff, but she still had a job to do.

Calmly she stalked forward from bush to tree, killing anything that came near her. The crack of her rifle firing was drowned out by bellows, yells and the sound of massed gunfire from the town. A massed assortment of yells rang out and the Caribou started to break, turning from the front to run back through the forest.

Dainn was right in front of her, the King looking right at her with a hateful gaze.

Straken unloaded the rest of her rifle into him, however the bullets merely bounded off of his shield and struck the surrounding tress, dirt and some fleeing soldiers.

“Useless piece of shit,” Straken cursed, dropping the empty rifle and going for the backup pistol hidden in her boot.

She didn’t have a chance to draw it, a green bolt of energy slamming into her chest and knocking her to the ground. Her head hit a tree stump and she blacked out, sinking down into the mud.

Dainn allowed himself a moment to smirk at his fallen foe, before retreating soldiers cut off his view of her. With his shield still up, he lowered his smoking hand and turned to the tree line, his smirk soon replaced with a frown.

“You cowards!” he bellowed, amplifying his voice so that it rang out around the forest. “If you want something to fear, then fear me!” To show his point, he raised his free hand and opened his palm. A surge of magic shot out into the air, his fleeing troops cowering in terror. “Get back and kill those ponies!”

The tide was reversed, the army once again surging forward towards the town. Dainn, forgetting about his recently defeated enemy, urged more compliance by strolling forward. Branches and leaves sizzled when they touched his shield, the ground beneath him blackening and smouldering.

Following a mass of plate-armoured bulls, Dainn exited the forest and glared out at the town.

The first thing he noticed was an immense feeling of dread, a pain firing through his head. He grunted and cupped a hand to his forehead, his bodyguards also staggering.

Right in front of them, nailed to a board, was the long-dead corpse of a caribou. Dainn frowned when his eyes examined the blood-drawn symbols decorating it, no doubt the source for troublesome magics. Absentmindedly, he noted that the soldiers around him were being cut down by some invisible force, a mass of ponies using strange weapons from behind makeshift barricades.

Focusing on the grisly totem, Dainn ignored the cries of his soldiers and walked forward over blood-soaked grass and hole-riddled bodies. His shield shimmered whenever something struck it, looking much like raindrops in a puddle. Feeling sick in his stomach, Dainn pressed forwards. Strengthening his mind, he reached out with his sword, preparing a swing while he looked away from the foul defence.

With a swing, his sword cut through wood, flesh and bone, splintering the board and freeing the area from its foul curse.

Dainn felt new energy surge into him, and with an outstretched hand he pointed towards a barricade made from a long table. A guardmare was standing behind it, shouting out commands to yet more armed ponies running out from the town. Grinning, he waited until her eyes noticed him and widened, and then he unleashed a bolt of energy right towards her.

Blaze stood frozen on the spot, time slowing down while the King’s magical attack raced towards her. Some ponies apparently have their entire lives flash before their eyes when faced with death.

All she got was a brief memory of the battle.

From the very first enemy charge out of the forest, to her downing a bellowing bull in a feathered helmet with her first shots, up to the complete slaughter that they had inflicted, all of it replayed in agonizingly slow motion. She must have killed tens of them, having reloaded at least four magazines. No armour was proof against her or her fellows’ lethal projectiles, the metal munitions passing through chain rings and punching holes into iron breastplates.

Bodies littered the once pristine fields, a lack of accuracy not an issue when you were firing weapons that spat out more bullets in a second then you could count. They hadn’t even managed to get halfway, the entire army routing until the King himself had left the forest.

Letting out a breath of air, Blaze hoped that the rest of the ponies and changelings would be able to hold out without her leading them.
A heavy mass thudded into her back, Blaze falling forwards into the grassy dirt. She was dimly aware of a searing heat passing over her, a body pressing her down before a booming crack caused her ears to ring.

She lay there for a few moments without sight or hearing, her entire body aflame with pain. Slowly, her hearing returned, and a male voice broke through the roar.

“-tenant! Get up Lieutenant!”

Coughing out a mouthful of dirt, Blaze lifted her head to look behind her.

She was met with a wide grin, Lead Researcher Elijah giving her a thumbs up while he pulled himself off of her.

“I brought reinforcements!” he yelled over the din of the battle. “That rotter is shooting at us, shall we have at him!?”

Blaze winced when another bolt flew over them, this one landing further down in the town. She nodded and went to get up, Elijah helping her and pulling her back behind the table. Blaze doubted it would provide them with much cover; Dainn was far more powerful than she had imagined.

Suddenly, Elijah stood up and held his pistol out in front of him with an outstretched hand. Blaze stared up in shock, Elijah with that same smile still plastered on his now dirty face.

‘Does he want to die?’ she wondered, scrambling to her hooves just when he opened fire.

Beams of red light flashed out from his weapon, emitting a sharp thwack while they travelled through the air. He fired off an impossible amount, the barrage smacking into Dainn’s shield. Yet it did nothing, Elijah glancing down at the pistol in his hand.

“Huh,” he muttered, Blaze just able to catch it. “Well, plan C it is.”

‘What was plan A?’

Her mental question was never answered, the human dropping his weapon and flicking back his coat. She watched while he calmly walked past a third energy bolt, the scientist rolling down his right sleeve like he was taking a relaxing stroll through a park. He stopped in the middle of the raging battle, a wonder that none of the bullets accidently hit him. Blaze shivered when he pointed a finger towards Dainn, Elijah’s smile growing wider.

“Quasso.”

The word he uttered caused Blaze’s hair to stand up, a foul taste rising in her mouth. It sounded wrong, but it wasn’t the word itself. There was something behind it, and the only word she could think of to describe it was ‘evil’.

Dainn’s shield popped like a bubble, shattering under the force of a viscous wind that picked up. The King was left gobsmacked, now exposed and evidently surprised that his spell was broken.

“Exussum.”

With another equally chilling word from Elijah, the area around the King was engulfed with a raging inferno, setting fire to some surrounding soldiers and scattering the rest. The engulfed Caribou quickly burnt, Blaze closing her eyes so that she didn’t have to see them die like that. She could still hear their cries, the crackling of flames accompanying the chorus of agony.

When she opened them again, the screams gone, she was met with a heart-wrenching sight. Dainn was standing proud, another shield around him. The King laughed, a deep, bellowing laugh lacking all humour. He dropped his sword and held out both hands, energy flickering across his antlers and finger tips.

“Fool!” He shouted, Elijah’s face never changing. “Challenge me and die!”

Electricity arced out from the King, but not before Elijah raised his arms and yelled out a single word.

“Contego!”

A barrier of darkness was formed before the scientist, the electricity running over it before running into the ground and harmlessly blackening grass. Dainn wasn’t about to give up so easily, the King almost frothing at the mouth.

“You like words!? I’ll show you words! Death!” With the uttering, an even stronger burst of electricity leapt from his fingers, battering the black shield. “Destruction! Hate!” Each burst grew more and more powerful, and Elijah’s shield was visibly about to break. No one, pony, changeling or caribou, dared to get in the way of the two magical combatants.

“Plan D!” Elijah yelled, a manic look in his eye and a grin on his face. “Festinatio!”

His shield burst, Elijah abandoning it and diving to the ground. A single flicker of electricity hit his coat, scorching the outside but not piercing through. The scientist rolled, standing up and dashing towards a nearby caribou in light mail. The unfortunate soldier had no time to react, Elijah dodging his sword swing with a supernatural speed. The scientist lashed out with his right arm, the limb grasping the surprised soldier around the throat.

With ease, Elijah held the struggling bull aloft with one hand, the fires glinting off of the silver. Blitz was surprised to say the least, although at the moment an artificial limb was the least shocking thing.

Dainn seemed confused, the King keeping his fingers at the ready. He raised them to unleash another spell, but an agonised screaming pierced the air and stopped him.

Blaze covered her ears with her hands, all across the battlefield fighters on both sides replicating her action. Looking at the source of the unholy sound, Blaze nearly threw up in her mouth.

The caribou gripped in Elijah’s fake hand was screaming, his body seeming to rapidly age. Hair, teeth and nails feel out, the chainmail shirt falling from his body. He began to shrink, the snapping of bone and the tearing of tendons sounding his death knell. While he was getting weaker, Elijah seemed to grow stronger. The human seemed taller, more bulky than before. A faint glow surrounded him, growing more and more powerful.

“Impossible!” Dainn yelled, Blaze briefly wondering if he somehow knew what was about to happen.

“Yes!” Elijah shouted back to the sky, before the bull in his hand expired.

A whoosh of air extinguished all of the torches in a mile, fires on buildings and trees dying out in a sudden moment. When whatever energy was released washed over her, Blaze felt like it was trying to draw the breath from her very lungs.

The broken body of the caribou, now not much more than bone and withered skin, dropped to the ground and broke apart into a scattering if dust. The glows from Elijah and Dainn, along with the moon, were the only sources of illumination. Everyone had stopped to watch the confrontation, the bloodshed halted to examine the impending show down.

“Ah, it’s feels good to get all juiced up.”

Elijah’s voice now had two parts to it, the second one echoing his words a split second behind. It hurt to listen to, even though it still remained as calm and cheerful as his normal speech.

“Daemon,” Dainn hissed, Elijah chuckling while he raised a hand towards the King.

“Oh no, I’m very much still a mortal. What you see before you is nothing more than one of the benefits of my position.” Elijah’s mouth twitched, his smile growing. “Now, I do believe that we were in the middle of something before my snack, care to take the first shot?”

Dainn didn’t waste any time, a single large bolt flying from his antlers towards Elijah. The scientist swiped out with his hand, battering the bolt out of the air with the black-covered flesh. The magical projectile slammed into the ground, showering the scientist with dirt but not much else. Elijah smirked, Dainn backing away with his shield dome still fully up.

“My turn,” Elijah taunted, raising his hand once again. “Quasso.”

Blaze braced herself, wondering what devastation would be released this time now that the King’s shield was once again shattered and popped.

“Oh, Dante!” the crazed scientist yelled, his voice booming with laughter. “Plan E!”

Dainn was, for the first time in his time as King, genuinely worried.

The protective totem should have been a warning, the infernal magic never would have been used by the ponies, no matter how desperate they got. Dainn didn’t consider himself a good creature, he knew that he committed wrongs and didn’t care. However, as he looked towards the cackling creature that had just magically eaten one of his soldiers, he realised that he was dealing with something formed from pure evil.

“My turn,” his opponent laughed, raising a hand once again. “Quasso.”

Dainn knew that this curse would break his shield, and he was proved correct when a searing pain hammered into his head and disrupted his spell. Quickly recovering, he made to raise another before the evil mage could get another fire spell off.

“Oh, Dante! Plan E!”

‘Dante?’ Dainn wondered, his concentration broken by the unusual word. ‘That’s not a spell…’

An unholy roar sounded from behind him, Dainn whirling around to be met with a solid black wall charging towards him. Metal crunched when it made contact a split second later, the force of the impact sending him flying back and into the muddy dirt. He shook his head, finding himself lying in a mix of blood and filth. He grimaced and pulled his hand from the gut of a fallen soldier, shaking off the blood and viscera while the enemy mage shouted madly.

“Yes, go my wonderful creation! Rend him apart!”

Dainn remembered just what had hit him, and he rolled to the side just in time. A large metal fist smashed down to where his head had just been, sending blood and mud flying into the air. Looking back at his attacker, Dainn saw that it was yet another unknown creature.
This one was a giant, baleful red eyes glaring down at him. It was covered with full metal plate, white skull icons covering its form. He guessed that this was the ‘Dante’ that the mage was babbling about. The giant raised a huge foot, evidently content to crush his skull while he lay in the muck.

‘Not now,’ Dainn promised to himself, raising a finger and pointing towards the giant’s helmeted head. ‘I have a world to rule! I can’t die!’

“To Tartarus with you!”

The giant started to bring his metal boot down, Dainn yelling at him and unleashing a powerful bolt of magic right into its face. He poured all of his strength into the spell, the energy blinding to all that witnessed it. He shut his eyes, white spots still remaining even after the bolt had left his finger.

An almighty clang was followed by a wet thump, Dainn opening his eyes. He broke into a wide grin when he saw that he had taken the giant’s head clean off. Nothing remained above the neck, the helmet lying on the ground in the dirt. He began to laugh, amazed that he had survived. The only sound he could hear while he waited for the body to fall over was his own fevered laughter, his tired body burning with exhilaration.

He stopped laughing shortly after, however. A loud, deep, booming chuckle rang out from the helmet lying at the decapitated giant’s feet, the eyes once again flickering with unnatural light.

“No,” he muttered, starting to scrambled backwards. “No! You don’t have a head! You’re dead, you monster!”

“Dead?” a raspy voice rang out, from both the suit and the helmet. “You’re right there, although I didn’t die by your foul hand.” The armoured suit creaked when it bent down, Dainn gulping when the neck opening lowered towards him.

There was nothing in the suit, save for a faint blue glow in the darkness. Armoured hands picked up the fallen helmet and it stood back up. Dainn continued to scramble back, his mind overloaded with questions about just what madness he had found himself in.

“I guess you could say that he’s the perfect… soul-dier!” The enemy mage cackled, Dainn ignoring the being to his left while he kept his eyes on the animated monster. The giant seemed to be unaffected by the loss of his head, the construct returning the helmet to its head and holding it on with one hand. It took a step towards him, more rumbling coming up from its empty shell.

“You don’t stand,” it began slowly, taking another step closer. “A ghost of a chance.”

That was the last straw, Dainn had taken enough. His army was in ruins, he’d gotten his rump kicked by a mage using devil powers, he was tired, his body was shaking with pain, he had fought an armoured giant that wasn’t alive, and he’d just been hit with two awful puns in quick succession.

‘Nope,’ he thought, forming a final spell. ‘I’m out.’

With a final scowl to all of those watching, he flipped off the mage and finished his teleport spell.

A green flash overtook his vision, before he found himself falling.

“Curses!” he swore, landing hard upon the forest floor. He heard shouted orders, and when he glanced over to the direction they were sounding from he saw that he was barely into the forest. The tree line was just ahead, and he certainly didn’t want to go back out there. He shakily got to his hooves, all around him lay bodies in their own blood. He stumbled over the crater that had been the pre-warning of the slaughter, a hand going towards his head. Above him, branches creaked and cracked in the darkness, the forest even bleaker during the night.

Thus, Dainn began his solitary retreat back towards the remainder of his army in the Crystal Empire, plans of revenge already swirling in his mind.

“Well, well, well, running away are we?”

Orthodox muttered to himself, his helmet ensuring that the King below him didn’t hear him. He had been relaxing in his tree branch perch after dispatching the survivors of the battle, the fleeing caribou falling prey to both his tail and gauss rounds. He could still remember the one guy that had panicked when an armoured tail had shot out of the trees and impaled his buddy right through the head, causing the frightened soldier to run straight into another caribou’s sword.

Priceless.

He hadn’t seen Straken anywhere, although he had spotted Gary lurking around the sidelines of the battle. Like himself, his rival had taken to stalking through the treetops, however the human could only go so far due to his weight and lack of a prehensile tail. Orthodox had lost sight of him, but Gary wasn’t his priority know.

“Come here, you bastard,” he muttered, raising his plasma rifle to his shoulder. There was no longer any need for concealing his position, and he wanted to make sure that he’d kill the king before the slippery bugger could get a shield up. He looked through the scope and settled the target right on the back of the limping King’s head, his finger about to squeeze the trigger to end the Tyrant once and for all.

He hesitated however, another thought appearing in his mind. “Actually…” His armoured finger moved from the main trigger towards a small button right beside it, Orthodox grinning and maintaining his aim. “I’ve got a better idea.”

Orthodox pressed the button, an almost silent hiss sounding when a burst of compressed air fired a tiny tracking dart. It smacked into the back of the King’s head. Dainn paused and raised a hand to his head, the King feeling around the area that the dart had hit. The dart’s small size worked against his however, his muck covered hands unable to locate the device that had created a tiny wound in the skin. Orthodox stayed still when Dainn glanced backwards, the caribou leader not even looking up into the trees.

Evidently he saw nothing and likely dismissed the small sting as a figment of his imagination, the King continuing to limp away from the carnage. Orthodox smirked at the departing King, lowering his gun as soon as he was out of sight.

“This is going to be fun,” he chuckled, before movement to his right caused him to look over towards the ground.

“Colonel, are you alright?”

Straken shook her head and opened her eyes, a thumping headache causing her to wince. She was pissed off, having messed up royally and failing to kill the King. Adding to that, she’d taken a shot like a rookie. Looking down at her chest, a black scorch mark on her armoured vest. The shame, and likely what was a broken rib hurt, but at least she was still alive and kicking.

“I’m fine,” she grumbled, an armoured hand gripping her bare arm and pulling her out of the mud. She mumbled a quiet thanks before glancing towards her assistant, a blood-stained ISA agent facing her with blue helmet optics.

“Taking a nap, Colonel?”

“Very funny Stuart,” she fired back, leaving out his rank in her annoyance. She looked around for her gun, before giving up after only a few seconds. It was a piece of trash anyway, she would have had a better chance with a sharp stick. She noticed the bodies around her, the smell of blood still fresh. “Did we win?”

“I assume so,” Agent Stuart answered, tapping his rifle against his side. “I must have killed at least twenty of them while they were retreating, and I’ve gotten no news from that pony Lieutenant.”

“Blaze,” Straken corrected. “Her name is Blaze.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Stuart dismissed. “We managed to rout them and I can only assume that the town managed to hold out.

“And the King?”

Stuart paused, Straken assuming that he had failed just like she had. “I had the perfect shot lined up, but then what I could only assume was a trap went off. Bastard had some kind of energy shield around him, it went up before I could bag him.”

“It was my trap,” Straken informed, before beginning to examine the surrounding bodies. “Is he confirmed dead, did someone else get him?”

“I don’t know, I certainly didn’t. The ponies or Orthodox may have though; I haven’t seen or talked to any of them yet.”

“The King’s gone.” Both looked up above them, Orthodox sitting down on a tree branch towards their right. The lizard alien was cleaning a long knife of blood on the bark, his armour coated with more of the liquid. “He teleported in and did a runner, judging from the sounds of things Elijah pulled some more of his bad juju shit.”

“You didn’t shoot him?” Stuart sighed, seeming to already know the answer. Orthodox shrugged in response, putting his knife away and jumping back onto the ground.

“I did… well, with a tracking dart anyway. But look on the bright side,” he tapped his helmet. “We can track him now, his signal’s heading north, we can easily catch up to him.” Orthodox strolled up to the both of them, Straken glaring at him while he nudged Stuart in the side. “Come on, who’s up for a little hunt? We’ll track him, watch him, taunt him, and then when we get bored we’ll kill him. It’ll be fun!”
He cheered the last part, his tail swishing behind him. It might have almost looked cute, except for the fact that said tail still had bits of bloody flesh hanging off of its spikes.

“I’m game,” Stuart agreed, both of the ISA agents sharing a nod and walking off towards the direction that Dainn had fled. Within a few moments, they realised that Straken wasn’t following and they stopped to look at her.

“Straken?” Orthodox enquired. “You’re not seriously sitting this out; I thought you wanted to castrate this arsehole?”

In truth, she wanted to cut him up slowing along with the suggested neutering, but there was something plaguing her mind. She grimaced, giving in to her own weakness.

“I do,” she answered, turning to make her way back to the town. “But there’s some people who I’d assume would also want a piece of Dainn.”

“A piece? Oh! Could I possibly have three? His brain and antlers would be most beneficial to my research!”

Blaze almost gagged when Elijah misinterpreted Straken’s offer, after his previous display no-one was willing to talk to him. Dante was the same, the… whatever he was too spooky for ponies to get over. Speaking of Dante, he was currently sitting down on a log with Agent Orthodox gleefully waving his hand through the space of his helmet and neck.

“No,” Straken muttered with a roll of her eyes. “I mean, yes, you can have his entire body for all I care, but what I’m asking is if anyone is up for some revenge.”

“Best. Day. Ever!” Elijah breathed out, doing a small fist pump. “I get to cut up a King!”

“I’m in,” a male guard spoke up, the soldier gesturing towards the body-littered field. “Those Caribou deserve everything that’s coming for them, and the King is the cause of it all.”

“The same for me,” Night Shard pitched in, the bat-pony gripping her rifle to her chest tightly.

“And me.” Prince Blueblood emerged from the crowd of militia, the stallion having been in charge of the south defence force.

“Us as well.”

All turned when Princess Luna voiced her intent, the alicorn approaching them with ten more ponies at her side. She had found something to wear, a simple farmer’s shirt and pants. In her hands she gripped a pitchfork, Blaze wondering where she had found it.

“Your Majesty-“ Straken began to protest, before Luna cut her off.

“No, Colonel. I thank you for your help, even if I have issues with your methods,” she glanced towards Elijah and Dante, her eyes hardening. “But King Dainn tore our country apart and destroyed out lives, and I ensure to be there when his wickedness is put to rest at last.”

“That’s right,” Maple Fields, the most surprising of the lot, added. “I’ll never get my horn back!”

This reminder sparked mutterings around the unicorns, most of them missing horns with only a few lucky ones still possessing them. Luna nodded, a further twenty ponies stepping out from the crowd.

“Have it your way,” Straken gave in. “Just don’t go and die, that’d be a difficult explanation to your subjects.”

“I will not,” Luna promised, before her gaze softened. “We did not escape the battle unscathed; the hospital is filled with ponies and changelings suffering from serious burns thanks to Dainn.” Her gaze moved over to the crowd, a few ponies at the back weeping. “That is not even taking into account the emotional trauma, we have killed so many…”

“And we have more to kill,” Straken clarified. “So I suggest that anyone who has an issue with that should stay behind and help rebuild the town.” None of the volunteers stepped back, Blaze swallowing her own desire to stay and instead steeled herself.

“Wait!”

Yet again another being raced towards them, this time a changeling. Blaze remembered that her name was Mirage, also recalling that she had been a part of their defence line. Still wearing just her simple shirt, Mirage slowed down and stopped next to her.

“I’ll go as well,” Mirage told Straken, a human rifle clutched in her hands. Murmurs once again rose up in the crowd, a few ponies still anxious around their former enemies.

“I will vouch for her,” Luna spoke up, seemingly more to the crowd than to Straken. “The changelings have proven themselves to me, and I trust them.” She smiled towards the nervous Mirage. “I will also guarantee that they will be welcomed, all of them, after this war is over. They have earned that much.”

“Th-thank you,” Mirage stammered.

“Desist from inserting things into my neck!”

The deep voice drew all attention towards Orthodox and Dante, Straken shaking her head while Blaze and the others stared in confusion.

Orthodox had climbed onto the seated Dante’s shoulders and was sticking his arm down the empty neck hole of the armour, Dante’s helmet held in his free hand.

“There’s nothing in here at all!” Orthodox announced with amazement. “Not even a jar, a box-“

“That’s because there is no physical remains of Agent Dante interred into the suit,” Elijah butted in to explain. “With the combination of science and other… methods, we managed to bond his departed soul with the inbuilt computer and-“

“His soul?” Orthodox interrupted. “Is that even legal?”

“He signed the forms,” Elijah huffed with crossed arms. “Don’t you remember the ones you signed when you first joined the ISA?”

Orthodox nearly fell off of Dante.

“Wait, what!?”

Blaze didn’t know what to think anymore.

“We don’t have time for this,” Straken growled, the Colonel stomping a foot to help transmit her point. “If we leave now, we’ll be able to catch up to Dainn before the night is over.”

The crowd of volunteers began to move out, torches lit and weapons reloaded. Blaze quickly picked up a bag of food and water before turning to join them, Straken and Stuart leading the pack into the forest with Elijah and Dante bringing up the rear.

“Stupid Elijah is not going to get my soul,” Orthodox muttered when he passed her, Blaze stopping. She was the last to enter the forest, the others already ahead. Looking back to the town, she wondered if revenge was really worth another battle. Remembering her time in the dungeons, and all of the foul acts that she had witnessed, she came to the conclusion that yes, revenge was indeed worth it.

Walking into the forest, Orthodox just ahead of her, Blaze gripped her weapon tighter and tried to ignore the memories of the past half-hour.

“Stupid, interfering, morons!”

Dainn yelled towards the tree canopy above him, lamenting his loss.

Curse those ponies and demons, now that he knew their tactics and strengths, he’d return to his remaining army and lay an ambush for them.

Rubbing his hands together, Dainn chuckled when he felt magical power surge into him, restoring his stamina and filling him with energy.

Yes, he’d have his revenge; it was only a matter of time.

Little did he know, time was something that he was quickly running out of.

Author's Note

So, things start to get moving in this chapter. Dainn is defeated for now, but will he have a plan to strike back? Or, will bloodthirsty aliens and vengence-driven ponies get to him first?

Will Farmer Luna shank someone with a pitchfork?

Will Elijah get the King's body... to cut up?

Why did I put in that 'You don't stand a Ghost of a chance' reference?

All except one will be answered in the next, and possibly final, chapter.

It'll be a big one.