Risk Of Epic

The doors to the royal throne room violently swung open. Four royal guards trotted in, escorting their captive. A unicorn guard held a black crate filled with odd and mysterious items in the grip of his magic. The final guard stood behind the captive, prodding him along with a spear, although it didn’t seem to matter much against the orange armor of the stranger.

Princess Celestia and Luna sat upon their thrones, surrounded by droves of guards. Celestia’s face remained resolute, and yet, a twinkle of doubt could be seen in her eyes. Luna looked upon the bound stranger with disgust and malice, her face contorted in subtle anger.

The guards shoved the prisoner forward forcefully, sending him onto his knees. The orange armor of the captive was weathered and dented in various places. The carapace bore several deep gashes, and certain places showed signs of scorch marks. Even one part of the chest plate seemed semi-melted, corroded by acid.

The prisoner’s face was obscured by a bulbous helmet, colored a lighter, yet opaque orange. The visor was cracked in several places, showing signs of combat long past. Underneath all the armor, the captive wore a simple black jumpsuit, scratched and scarred just as badly as the rest of his armor.

Celestia looked over to Luna pleadingly, trying to convince her to place a lesser punishment upon the stranger. Luna looked away, holding firm. Her sister let out a sigh, knowing Luna would stand her ground on the matter.

“Speak your name, foul creature,” Luna ordered, stomping her hoof into the ground making her demand all the more intimidating.

The stranger was looking down into the floor. the front of his visor obscured from sight. Celestia glanced nervously at the guards around the prisoner, trying to beckon them to back away with her eyes, fearing the worst. After several moments in silence, just as Luna was about to stamp her hoof into her throne’s floor the figure looked up, tilting his head ever so slightly.

“They call me the Commando …”, uttered the captive in a ragged, gravelly voice.

“So then, Commando, you have been charged with the murder of thirty seven citizens of Canterlot, along with the theft of numerous possessions of your victims. On these grounds, I find the only acceptable punishment swift, and decisive death,” Luna spoke firmly, staring the Commando down. He remained unflinching, not intimidated in the slightest by the threat of death.

The Commando just knelt there, staring down the judge, jury, and executioner. Luna nudged Celestia lightly with her hoof, prompting Celestia to speak.

“While I wish there was some other way, my sister is right, you have been found guilty on all accounts of murder, and theft,” Celestia looked uncomfortable, almost sad that she would have to carry out what was to come. She always performed executions with a heavy heart. Luna rose from her throne, as the guards stood at attention. She stopped several feet away from the Commando, looking into his reflective visor. Suddenly, the accused spoke.

“Many people speak of the one known as the Commando … “ he said as if retelling a story. Abruptly, the Commando shattered his metal restraints, elbowing the unicorn guard hard in the side. The guard’s concentration broke, the crate’s lid sliding off, and items spilling out midair.

The Commando snatched two small guns out of the air, before fastening a small teddy bear to his armor. With lightning speed, he whipped around, training his weapons on the other two guards before letting loose a squeeze of each trigger.

Projectiles ripped into each of the guards, twisting and contorting their useless armor. The commando continued to fire, bullets whizzing through the air, slamming into the guards behind the fallen captors.

“ … when they spoke of him, they knew that he went through tough times, but that he always prevailed …” continued the Commando, doing a backflip as the pony behind him attempted to run him through. He landed behind the pony, before aiming both guns straight at him, and unleashing a piercing shot. The shot shredded through him, hitting Luna in the right foreleg.

The Princess winced in pain as her magic began to mend the wound. Celestia sat up on her throne, all traces of sympathy gone from her expression. She ordered the rest of her bodyguards to attack, before taking flight and charging a powerful energy beam.

As Celestia prepared to attack, the Commando dashed back towards the crate, scooping up several items as he went. He fastened on a small cylindrical core to the back of his armor hastily, before clutching a small hourglass in his hand, holstering one of his pistols.

The beam impacted the Commando square in the chest plate, sending him flying backwards, smoke billowing from his ragdoll like form. As the guards closed in weapons at the ready, preparing to finish off the warrior, time froze. Slowly, the orange plated figure righted himself, still clutching the hourglass.

“ … when they spoke of him, they marveled at the secrets of time he kept …” he said before clipping the hourglass to his belt, and drawing both guns. He held them steady, directed at the mass of frozen guards.

The Commando let loose a torrent of bullets, overwhelming the numbers of the ponies, each projectile imbedding itself within each unflinching victim. The stream of death coming from the soldier’s guns ceased just as the time lock lifted, and every guard crumpled to the ground in a  bloody heap of destroyed muscle and shattered bone. They had been dead the instant the bullets had hit them, suspended for a few moments only by the time lock.

Luna, who had been struck by several more bullets struggled to channel an attack while also trying to mend her wounds. The attack spell vanished as she focused all her efforts on healing herself.

“Guards!” Luna shouted, as several dozen Night Guard unicorns flooded into the room through several side doors, once again surrounding the Commando who made no attempts to move. He simply held his guns by his side, staring at Celestia.

“End him!” cried Luna, the Night Guard’s readying their magical blasts.

The warrior simply stood there, accepting his fate. The spells zoomed towards him, the multicolored lances of bright energy exploding around him, creating a smoke cloud that obscured him. The barrage of magic continued for several seconds before Luna, fully healed, held up a hoof to signal to cease.

At once, the unicorns’ horns lost their bright aura, returning to normal, as the smoke began to settle. Celestia and Luna squinted to try and see the mangled figure of their enemy appear, but what they saw was much more terrifying.

He just stood there, encased in a field of blue energy, his armor giving off the same blue glow. In shock, the guards were paralyzed in a mix of confusion and terrible awe.

“... when they spoke of him, they told of how he could turn aside any blow, repulsing the assaults of lesser creatures …”

The field of energy exploded, streaks of multicolored magic being returned to the respective attacker. The Night Guard were blasted apart, many being sent flying several feet backwards, and others exploding in a shower of gore.

The smell of seared flesh and burning hair pervaded throughout the room. Luna looked to her side, observing the melted armor of one of her valiant guards. Her eyes began to glow bright white, as she ascended into the air, her horn glowing  a darker hue of blue than normal.

Again, the Commando made no attempt to avoid the incoming attack. He simply holstered his guns, grabbing the cylindrical object on his back, and flipping open a small hatch at one end of it. He pressed a red button contained within the hatch, a yellow glow wrapping around him.

Luna cared not for whatever tricks he had left to play, for only sheer hatred for this being remained in her heart. With a powerful cry in the Royal Canterlot Voice, an enormous lance of energy spiraled toward the Commando. The beam impacted, but was absorbed by the yellow field of energy. Luna did not relent, calling upon all her magical power to kill the deathless foe.

After several more seconds of the powerful beam, Luna was depleted of her strength, floating back to the ground, Celestia rushing to her side, and throwing up a magical barrier around them, fearing she would suffer the same fate as the Night Guard. But nothing came, the Commando’s yellow glow simply fading after a few moments.

“ … when they speak of him, many thought him invincible, an invisible shield always saving him from even the most powerful of strikes …” continued the Commando. He idly walked towards the black crate, not paying any mind to the sisters cowering inside their shield. He picked up a worn ukulele, gripping it firmly in one hand, and raising a gun towards the sisters with the other.

“ … all of these things are simply legends, told by the people who would never know him. Very few ever met the Commando in person, but those who did …”

He steadied his hand, as Celestia reinforced the barrier, putting all her power into the shield. Electricity began to crackle from the ukulele, shortly spreading to the new executioner’s armor, slinking along the bodysuit and over the damaged plates of carapace, until they finally reached his gun.

“ … spoke of how his music could enchant all those around him. They said he had power over the spectrum of sound …” he squeezed down on the trigger, a bolt of lightning forming inside the barrel of the gun, “ and that his music was electric ... “