Rise of The Solar Empire

*After The Crystal Empire Attack*

Darth Critious slammed the door open, furiously walking towards his Empress’s chambers. Rage fueled each step, all staff and troopers cleared the way for him, fearing his anger. He walked through the halls of the superweapon, designated  codename, “The Steel Sun.” The doors to the Empress’s chambers swung opened as he approached. He knelt before her throne in her chamber.

The throne she sat in rotated to have the cloaked empress face him, or at least have her cloaked face at him. “Greetings my loyal apprentice.”

“”Empress Solious.” He responded. “What is thy bidding, my Empress?”

“You will find the pegasus Flash Sentry, I want you to bring him before me.” The Empress said.

“Why would you want a wretched creature like that in your glorious presence my empress?” Darth Critious asked.

“I want you to use him to find Twilight Sparkle, bring him before me, alive Darth, alive.” Empress Solious commanded.

“May i ask why you have been sending me on these retrieval missions?” Critious asked, “After all, you did train me to be a killer, and these errands, are a waste of your teachings.”

“You are not like those soldiers, you are my protégé, and my apprentice, and I will send you on what ever I see fit. I send only you one this mission because I want him brought back alive.” She answered him sharply, displeased at his lack of respect for her assignments. “He is at a royal guard meeting in Cloudsdale, that is where you will journey to find him.”

“It will be done my master.” Darth Critious accepted his task, and despite not wanting to bring that creature back alive, he complied with her orders. He had begun to walk to the door, when the Empress spoke up once more.

“And alive, does not mean unharmed, my apprentice.” He saw a smile come to her lips, and felt one creeping across his own face.

Understanding her meaning, he replied, “Thank you, my Empress.” And took off to the hangar bay to find his shuttle.Along the way he ran into Captain StarBlaze, and gestured to have him follow.

“Lord Critious, what do I owe the pleasure? “ The recently appointed imperial leader asked.

“I want you to gather the 625th.” He commanded his comrade, trusting this important mission only to the finest battalion in the Imperial Navy.

“Do you really believe Flash Sentry will be that difficult to handle?” Starblaze asked, puzzled by his commander’s request.

“No, I will have Twilight sparkle’s location before Moon’s Hight this evening,” The dark leader ordered. ‘And I want the troops ready to gather her by as soon as possible.”

“Understood.” StarBlaze said, and went to gather his troopers.

Darth Critious made his way to his shuttle, and took off to Cloudsdale. “My revenge is almost at hand.” He said under his breath to himself.

After arriving in Cloudsdale, he cloaked his ship, and exited, looking for his target. He didn't need to look far before he found a newspaper that gave him most of the information he needed. It said, “Flash Sentry, love interest of Twilight Sparkle?.” Critious gave a contemptuous snort. “That fool truly believe Twilight loves him? I haven’t heard anything more ridiculous in all my life.” But it still didn’t stop the headline from having more hate well up in his body. “Now, where is that brown coated ignoramus?” He began looking through the paper, finding he was staying with the Wonderbolts, when a funny thought entered his mind, his coat is brown, brown like shit.. The months he spent watching angry critics in his youth showing briefly, before the dark person he was now returned.

The sky darkened, and rain had begun to fall. How do clouds form above where the clouds are formed? Critious wondered, that was something he never understood about Equestria, then again, he wasn’t from this world, the physics and inner workings of it eluded his grasp. But he had not time to worry about those thing, he had a mission at hoof.

The rain began to pour down, and he threw the paper to the ground, or cloud, running with his cape billowing out behind him. All around him pegasi failed to notice him as they flew from cloud to cloud. Looking for the hotel that his target was in. Piercing yellow rimmed brown eyes scanned the streets, his body pressed against a brick wall. Finding the hotel, called the “Resting Wing”. Critious walked towards the hotel, rain pouring down on his cloak, but the hydrophobic nature of the clothing repelled the drops. The cloak was pulled over his shoulders and body, concealing his entire body and face with its cloak and hood, leaving only a portion of his front exposed.

When the doors opened, he walked to the doors leading the the elevators, but was greeted by one of the mares at the front desk, a pale cream pegasi. “Hello sir, welcome to the Resting Wing, how may I help you? ” He cursed under his breath, but not wanting to arouse any suspicion, he want over to her, a false smile plastered across his face.

“Hello, I just need to know where somepony is staying, I’m anxious to find him.” Darth Critious replied, trying to hide his vengeance from spoiling his cover.

“Sorry, but we don’t give out room numbers unless you’re staying with them.” She said politely. “If I could have your   name I could give a message to them.”

This was getting him nowhere, fast, he decided to resort to more direct methods of extracting the information. Waving his fan in front of her face, he said “You don’t need to take my name.”

“I don’t need to take your name.” She repeated.

“You are going to tell me wha room Flash Sentry is staying in.” He said,using his powers of persuasion to have her reveal the information.

“I will tell you what room Flash Sentry is staying in.” She said, her voice lacking all emotion. She began to type on a computer, and then responded, her voice just as vapid. “He is in room 6-086, here is a key.” She outstretched a hoof, holding a keycard.

“Thank you,” He said accepting the keycard, smiling, and then he walked away, releasing her from his mental hold.

She shook her head, not remembering what had happened, only seeing the black cape of Critious walking into the elevator, and wave to her, before the elevator taking him up to floor.

Darth Critious stood in the elevator alone, watching as the floors ticked off, 4,5,6, there we are. The elevator dinged as it reached the floor, and the door swung open, but even before the door had opened, he could hear the squeals of fanfillies. In front of him, he saw a massive crowd of them had gathered in front of the Wonderbolt’s room, with their security trying to keep them away. But it seemed as though the mere presence of Darth Critious, and the darkness that lurked in him was enough to make them quiet down, and even pause,  the group parting to let the human pass through. He passed by the doors, counting off them until he reached the room he was looking for. “Ah, 6-086, here we are.” He turned to the ponies that were staring at him, and he waved his hand in front of them, “I would like some privacy, if you would please.”

The mass of ponies moved to the elevators, and descended. After several seconds, a pony, a light blue stallion, poked his head out, asking, “ Did you see what happened to the ponies what were out here?”

“No, I’m sorry, I don’t know where they went,” The human said, “What would your name be sir.”

“Soarin’” He replied.

“Hello Mister Soarin’, you may wish to stay inside, with some earplugs for yourself and those in the room with you, I predict those fans will be back soon, and in greater numbers.”

“Thank you.” Soarin’ said, and closed the door, not paying much mind to what he had said, until he thought about him not knowing where the fans when, to saying they would be back.

Critious swiped the key card and promptly entered the room, locking it behind him.

The sound of hoof-falls came from the bedroom, and Flash Sentry came walking out, eating an apple, and speaking through a mouthful of it as he walked into the main room. “I said the interview wa-” He dropped the apple when he saw the dark clothed human standing there

A look of pure hatred across Darth’s face, he extended his weapon. The pegasi threw his apple at the human, who grabbed it with his mind, holding it in place in midair, before crushing it mentally. Flash Sentry ran, but Darth lunged at him, his babre stashing at where he was, cutting through the wall. Fueled only by hate, Critious followed the pegasus, who had closed doors to try and slow him down, but he pushed the doors off their hinged with his powers, and followed him, dragging his red lasersword across the floor, leaving a glowing trail behind him. It brought him great pleasure to see the creature that filled him with hate running for his life.

Flash ran into his bedroom, and closed the door, pushing his body against it, but Critious punched through the door, and constricted his arm around the terrified pegasi’s throat. He grunted at he ripped the door down, pulling Flash Sentry with it, and throwing him into a kitchen cabinet, the effort came from pulling the door, rather than moving the pegasus. Flash’s head slammed into a corner of one of the cabinets, causing blood to come from his forehead.

Critious moved over to his target, grabbing him by his shirt, and threw him through another wall, leaving a massive hole in his wake. The human walked through the hole, again grabbing the bloody of his target, his head hanging back limply. Critious punched his face to snap him back to reality. Raising his fist to do it again, Flash Sentry raised his hands to cover his face, and saying, “Please don’t.”

He pulled Flash to his face and in a vicious said, “Why should I?” Before slamming him back onto the floor. Approaching the unmoving body of his target, he stood over him, and reached down to pick him up, when Flash sprung up, and punched him with a bloodied hoof. Critious’s face slowly moved back to face him, and Flash threw another punch, only this one he caught, twisting his arm, and pushing his shoulder up, before slamming Flash’s body to the floor with a heavy thud. “Shining Armour was no match for me, what makes you think you would be any different?” Critious’s foot found its way to the back of Flash’s neck.

He began to struggle, but to no avail. “You’re the bastard who killed Shining? I’ll kill you for that.”

Critious chuckled darkly, “Ha, and why pray tell? Because you were in love with his sister?” He taunted, “A pony like her would never love someone like you, she deserves a pony who she can actually have a conversation with, a pony whom she can be with without him drooling all over her. If I could never have won her love, someone like you certainly couldn’t.” recalling his previous relationship with the unicorn.

“I can see why she doesn’t like you.” He tried to taunt him back, but that only enraged him further.

“I would kill you right now if it weren’t for the fact that my empress wants you alive.” Darth Critious said, slamming his foot into the head of his captive’s head, rendering him unconscious. Not wanting to touch him, he levitated him upwards, and teleported himself, vanishing in a puff of red dust. He reappeared by his craft, the rain still pouring down. Removing the cloaking field, and opening the boarding ramp, he entered his craft, out came two waiting troopers, they had been waiting for him to return. “Cary him, but do not have him be harmed. The Empress wants him alive, so keep him that way.”

“Yes my lord.” One, a black earth pony nodded.

After entering the cockpit, his powers rotated his cai and he sat in it, rotating back to face the darkening skies of Equestria, Princess Luna’s moon shone brightly on the world below. The engines gave no noise as the dark apprentice flew back to his master’s domain.

Darth Critious and Flash Sentry walked through the superweapon, followed by a trooper escort, the human held the pegasi’s neck in his hand, more pulling along than walking. They continued to the Empress’s chambers, relinquishing the guard’s neck. “Greetings lord Critious, guard Sentry.” She spat the royal guard’s name with disgust. Her apprentice knelt down, but the guard did not.

Darth Critious stood up, and force the wounded and blackeyed guardsman to his knees. “You will kneel before you Empress.”

“Rise my student.” She said, and both Critious and the royal guard stood up, but Critious forced him back down.

“She did not tell you to rise.” The assassin said.

“Rise, pitiful creature.” Empress Solious said.

And Sentry rose once more, only to be forced back down, onto his chest this time, “What was that for?” He asked.

“Because I wanted to,” He replied to his captive, arms crossed. “Royal scum.”

“Now, you will tell me the location of Twilight Sparkle.” The Empress demanded.

“And why would I do that?” The hoofcuffed Pegasus replied defiantly.

“Because of….THIS!” She said, and powerful, yellow bolts of electricity firing from her hands, electrocuting the guard.

Sentry began to writhe in pain of the floor, yelling in pain as the lightning coursed through every fiber of his being. Then she stopped, residual electricity clinging to him. He was panting from the pain. “I’ll never tell you.” And she resumed her torture, watching him suffer more.

“Wait my Empress.” She stopped, and Flash looked up, hopeful he would be spared, “May I be the one to extract the information?” Darth Critious spoke up.

“Very well my apprentice, you may.”

Critious felt more and more hatred compound itself within him, and he released it, bright blue bolts of lightning, more intense than the Empress’s, hit the defenceless pagasi. The intensity of his rage being conveyed into the body of one of his most hated targets. “Where is she?”

Through the electricity coursing through his body, Sentry managed to say. “No, I won't betray her.”

Rageful fire burned in his eyes, ceasing his onslaught of lightning. “From any other guard, I would commend them on their bravery, but for you,” His voice turned even more malevolent, “It’s just stupidity” He hit him with another intense blast, this time, his clothing was beginning to burn, and smoke began to rise from his singing fur. He stopped, giving his captive a moment to collect himself, breathing laboriously.Critious raised his hand to fire once more, but Flash Sentry raised a hand, begging him to stop.

“Ok, ok, I’ll tell you.”

“Good, where is she?” Empress Solious asked,

“She,” He inhaled painfully.”She is at an oak tree library in Ponyville.”

“Thank you,” And Darth Critious blasted him with another jolt of electricity, rendering Flash Sentry unconscious. “Troopers!” He called, turning his head to BroadShield and Sky Storm. “Take this royal scum to the attack fleet, he shall witness my greatest triumph because of his failure.” He said, metaphorically grinding salt into the wounds.

They picked up the body of Flash Sentry, and with his feet trailing behind him.

Darth Critious turned back to his Empress “And when will he be arriving?”

The Empress was caught off guard by his question. “I foresee he shall be here soon, the human that Twilight knew shall be here soon. I can feel his presence growing closer to this world with every moment.” She stated, “Why are you so curious about his entrance?”

He turned around so he didn’t need to face her, in a manner of speaking, “I guess you could say I am anxious about him.”