"Find the guilty ... " a deep voice boomed, echoing across the wide stretch of land. A gigantic figure encased in a metal diver's suit lumbered up towards a tall statue and stood his ground. He looked in front of him as an archer took aim from the nearby brush. Normally arrows would just bounce off of the juggernaut, but as the arrow streaked through the air, it had a cold aura about it. The arrow embedded itself in the giant's chest plate, causing a hard ice to creep over a small potion of it. The hulking figure broke off the arrow and the frost disappeared. The diver had an old helmet with a small m shaped opening from which two glowing red eyes peered out, and his diving suit's chest bulged out forward. His padded legs carried the enormous weight of his armor and the engraved anchor which had doomed him so long ago. His suit was corroded and barnacles and seaweed grew in a few places.
The archer fell to the ground as a bipedal lion with an eye patch and homemade armor removed his short blade from her chest, which was gushing with blood. The lion nodded before leaping away into the nearby jungle. The hulking behemoth known as Nautilus silently thanked the white lion before walking being ambushed by a lich.
The lich's long flowing robes reached the ground, and a ghastly aura of dead souls surounded him before he commanded a gate of magical energy to appear at Nautilus' position. He raised his scepter high and clutched his spell book close as numerous blasts of dark magic pelted nautilus. The tank of a man commanded a barrier of dark energies to surround him before launching his anchor at the lick and reeling him in close. The lich struggled to maintain his focus as he cast a spell known as requiem, which conjured a red line of flowing energy over Nautilus' head, and after three seconds, basted him with dark magic. However, just as the spell was cast, the giant knocked the scepter from the lich's hand. The crystal ball which adorned the top of the scepter shattered on the ground, the magic form withing mixing with tat of both requiem, Nautilus' shield, and the souls of the dead floating around the lich.
The statue pelted the lord of the dead with devastating orbs of energy, before he fell to the ground lifeless, only to be reincarnated for a few seconds. But all of the magic that was mixing together had created a volatile brew. As the lich tried to reanimate, he remained dead on the ground, instead causing a massive explosion with the the last bit of energy needed to create a portal. The blast knocked Nautilus up against the tower as it collapsed on him.
His vision blurry, Nautilus clawed his way out of the rubble, still clinging to his anchor. He stood tall among the destruction, gazing upon what lay mere feet from him. A purple vortex just big enough to squeeze Naut through began sucking light objects into its gaping maw. Nautilus felt the force of the portal increasing on him and everything around him, as he ducked underneath a piece of rubble that was sucked in. The juggernaut's grasped his helmet before he fell to the floor, grasping is anchor. The inner cyan light that escaped through the cracks of his armor faded, and his eyes flickered as everything went dark.
Zecora scooped a small ladel-full of a stew that she had concocted to cure the common cold. Of course she muttered to herself that she'd never get it right, but she bottled it and kept in her collection of potion just in case. She cleaned out the cauldron she used with water from a nearby stream, just as it was getting dark outside. She scrubbed off the grimy residue and placed it back in its rightful place inside her hut. She adjusted a few crooked masks here and there before walking over to her bed which was right next a circular window. she crawled underneath the covers and found a comfortable position in which she could look out her window. It had begun to rain a few minutes ago. The pitter patter of rain on her hut soothed Zecora and helped her to sleep. Sure enough, just a few minutes later the alchemist had dozed off into a deep sleep.
She dreamed the same thing she did every night, only this time the dream got further than the night before. She dreamed she was this strange hairless ape-like creature that stood on two legs and wore clothes similar to what the sailors of Equestria wore. She wore a plain black shirt with a heavy fur coat over it and navy blue pants with brown loafers. The woman who Zecora controlled helped a few other of the creatures attach a large metal carapace to a winch before lowering the suit down. Usually the dream cut off right after that, but this time it kept going. The shiny new diver's suit touched the frigid arctic waters and was was immediately grabbed by a black goo of sorts. The man inside the suit struggled to grip the side of the boat, which was now being dangerously close to capsizing. The sailors, in a desperate attempt to save themselves pried the metal hands off the side of the ship. Zecora just stood there and watched in horror. Even after he had been pried off the ship, still he fought for his life, gripping the ship's anchor tightly as the ooze tugged at his legs and began to surround him. The crew members cut one of the chain's links and the diver suit was swallowed up by the black ooze, sinking to the bottom of the ocean.
Zecora, mouth agape,eyes wide trembled before the dream abruptly switched to a very disturbing image. The diver suit's helmet encompassed all of Zecora's dream, only this time it was old and corroded. Two menacing red eyes peered out from the opening in the helmet, as it delivered a single message to Zecora.
"I've found you Susanne. Even in death, there is no escape."
Zecora bolted upright in her bed, in a cold sweat. She looked through her window as the sun began to rise, and she could've sworn she saw those ethereal red eyes staring back at her.
(P.S. Just putting this short sample of what's to come if this story gets positive ratings out there. I know its been a while, and i will eventually get back to my other stories, bu I just wanted to start with a new idea. Depending upon how well this sample is received by you guys, ill determine the rate at which to put out new chapters. So, yeah. Enjoy everypony and remember to leave a comment on what you think. Till' next time, Centurion, out.)
Nautilus lay limp on the ground, his face in the dirt. The birds cooed overhead as the natural activities of the day continued without falter, as if a gigantic metal man hadn't just been dropped into their world. This serenity wasn't meant to last though. As the juggernaut began to reawaken, it signaled the beginning of the end.
Nautilus pushed himself off the ground, and into a sitting position before he began to look around. After a short delay, he stood up and lumbered over to his anchor, which was dug almost completely into the ground. As he pulled it out, he noticed something strange. He wasn't sure of it, but the grass somehow looked ... more vibrant and alive than it usually did. After tugging at the anchor a few times, Nautilus unearthed it and put it into its normal carrying position. He rubbed his helmet a few times before he noticed his suit was covered in dirt and magical residue. ( The stuff certain types of magic leave behind after being cast.) He stomped the ground hard with one metal foot, and a pool of water rose from the earth. He plopped in and let the water clean his armor and anchor before getting back out.
Without warning Nautilus drop to his knees, his red eyes flickering, and his strength weakening. He looked over to his hand, which he could see was leaking a black ooze.
"No ... No it can't be ... But that's impossible." Nautilus spoke to himself.
A few seconds later the feeling of weakness and the awful migraine that came with it subsided. Once more Nautilus was able to stand. He quickly picked up his anchor, picked a direction and began walking. As he walked, he kept a watchful eye on his 'bleeding' hand, and to his relief, eventually the black ooze stopped leaking out. The behemoth walked through the forest, creating an awful din, as tree branches snapped against his diving suit. Nautilus, however, payed no heed to the noises. He was concerned with other more pressing matters. He knew he didn't have much time left, and that meant he would never get revenge on those who wronged him. He needed more time. And that's exactly what he planned to get.
Nautilus did however note something very strange about the place he had ended up in. It seemed as if this place had a friendly and caring aura about it. The grass was greener, the trees were healthier, the creatures seemed more content. It was all so very strange compared to Valoran. The tank continued his march through the trees for several hours like this. Contemplating what he must do to obtain what he needed, and taking note of strange or interesting things every so often.
After several hours, Nautilus emerged from the forest, his leg pads slightly scratched. He was on a high hill overlooking a small village that seemed to blend old and new styles of construction. The most noticeable feature he could see was the large tree in the center of the town, which seemed to be serving as some kind of public building. After a quick once over of the town, he decided that it would be best to go into town and look around. If he couldn't find what he needed there, he might be able to at least get a map or something that could tell him where to obtain what he needed. He began marching down the hill in his normal manner, being careful not to trip and fall down the steep incline of the hill. As he reached the bottom, he spied a dark blur in the corner of his eye. He turned to face it, and was a little shocked, even for his standards. The dark blur stood frozen in place, head down. It was wearing a dark cape and hood, and appeared to have a strange necklace attached to her slightly visible neck. And if, Nautilus was seeing correctly, it looked as if it had light blue fur, and walked on four legs.
He thought about kneeling down and speaking to it nicely,(stranger things have happened) but this idea completely disintegrated once the creature lifted its hood up to reveal two large, light purple eyes. Nautilus eyed the horn that protruded from its head and began to understand what the creature was. He also found it quite amusing when the unicorn spoke perfect english.
"I am The Great And Powerful Trixie, and I demand that you stand aside!" spoke the unicorn loudly.
Nautilus stood his ground and took a step forward, causing the ground to shake a little.
"Very well. If you won't stand aside, I'll make you!" Trixie spoke in an aggressive tone. She took a defensive stance, digging her hooves into the ground before channeling her magic. A red aura surrounded her horn as she concentrated on levitating the behemoth. However, and much to her surprise, the red aura surrounded him, and quickly dissipated. She stood mouth agape before trying again, with the same results.
"Ha, ha, ha." Nautilus broke out in a hearty laugh before encroaching upon the creature.
"B-But ... H-How ..." Trixie stuttered, her mind spinning as the beast approached her.
"I'll you two options." spoke Nautilus. " You can die. Or you can tell me where I can find this."
He gestured toward the small pool of black ooze in his free hand.
"I need to know where I can find some of this." he said, Trixie cautiously observing the goop.
" I've never seen anything like it ..." the pony responded.
Without a word, Nautilus closed his hand and leaned in close to Trixie's face. He shot his arm out and grasped her neck tightly, lifting her up into the air. She squirmed in his iron hold, gasping for air.
"Then die." he spoke solemnly.
Trixie could feel his grasp tightening around her throat, and thrashed about violently, her mind racing. Her lungs were on fire as she channeled her magic into her horn, and with a bright flash of light, teleported a a few yards away. Immediatley she took a deep breath and began to run. However, the juggernaut had other plans. With a frightening amount of speed for a being his size, he chased after the unicorn for a few yards before he hurled his anchor forward, catching the blue mare in its deadly hold. Nautilus heaved and both him and Trixie were pushed together. As he readied his anchor, the unicorn summoned a magic red shield to defend her, but it wasn't enough. The giant brought down the anchor on her, penetrating her barrier and smashing her into the ground.
He removed his anchor and looked upon the crumpled and bloody mess that was once Trixie. As he quickly turned away from the dead unicorn and resumed his march towards the town, the weakness returned for an instant. 'This is getting ridiculous.' he thought to himself. ' If I'm to live through this, I need the ooze very soon.' The weakness dissipated and he continued his unstoppable march towards the town.
As he got closer and closer, he spotted a few more of the pony creatures, but they were so far away, they didn't seem to notice him. Or so he thought.
"Alert the guards! We have a monster headed this way, and it's already killed a pony!" an olive colored pony shouted, as she banged her hooves on the door to the recently added Ponyville guard post. The heavy wooden door almost instantly shot open to reveal a stoic royal guard. Like all pegasi guards, he was a snow white with golden armor and a golden helmet.
He stared down the mare for a moment before turning and raising the town alarm. The barracks came alive with guards of all colors racing to their stations, donning their armor, and gathering up weapons. The average soldier was equipped with a short sword, and a spear or an axe. However, one guard seemed to stick out from the rest. He wasn't dressed in the normal gold armor, but instead wore a suit of full body armor. The metal suit was a dark black and every inch of the wearers body was protected, including his face. Large ornate shoulder-pads adorned his armor, depicting both of the Princesses, one on each. His front hooves were spiked , and he didn't seem to have a tail, as no space in the armor allowed for it. The pony went to fetch his weapon, and instead of grabbing the usual spear or axe, he instead brandished a large metal sword that matched the color of his armor. He retracted his spikes on his metal hooves, to allow for a better grip. At the tip of the sword's hilt, a crescent moon was carved in on one side, and a sun on the other.
The knight exited the barracks alone, the other guards still gearing up. The soldier dug his sword's blade into the ground and looked out across the Ponyville plaza. A few scattered ponies here and there running into their houses and shutting their doors. It seemed the news had spread rather quickly.
Pulling his sword out of the ground and swiping it through the air a few times, as the guards filed out of the building behind him, the knight spoke in a bone-chilling voice.
"Today, is a good day to die."
Nautilus stepped onto the cobblestone pavement and walked down an alleyway, spotting a few creatures closing their windows and scattering into buildings. All but a few. He rounded a corner into a large space near the tree, which he now realized was actually a library.
"Halt. Who goes there?" a firm voice spoke as Nautilus turned to see the white stallion holding an iron spear, which reached up past the crest of his helmet.
The giant stepped forward, making eye contact with the soldier.
"Where can I find this?" Nautilus asked in a grim tone, reaching his arm out and revealing a small pool of black liquid in his hand.
The soldier looked it over quickly, and instantly knew what it was.
"But ... how is that possible? We thought ... We thought we destroyed the last of that type of magic during the Zebra Wars."
"You thought wrong. Now tell me where I can obtain it, now." Nautilus said threateningly.
"As far as we know, there is no place in all Equestria that contains that type of dark magic." the guard replied.
Nautilus stood silent for a moment, thinking over what his next course of action would be.
"There, in the forest. I sensed someone watching me. Do you know who this might be?" he asked the soldier.
"Hmm ... There's actually a zebra who lives in the Everfree named Zecora. She might've been watching you." the guard spoke.
"Is that all I should know about her? Is that her real name?" Nautilus asked, the sun beginning to set .
The soldier tensed up for a second before responding with, " She's an alchemist. And Zecora isn't her real name."
"What is her name then?" Nautilus inquired, growing impatient.
"I'm afraid that's between her and the princess." spoke the guard coldly.
"Tell me now or you die." the behemoth threatened, gesturing to his anchor.
The soldier remained silent, and this is what ultimately sealed his fate. Nautilus grappled the stallion by the neck, lifting him off his hooves and with a great heave, tossing him into the side of a brick house. The guard hit the wall with an immense amount of force, knocking bricks out of place and shattering the pony's bones. He was dead the second he hit.
The other twenty or so royal guards backed up slightly before raising their weapons and rushing Nautilus. As the ponies swarmed around him, the juggernaut called upon dark energies to shield him. He brought up a shield of dark magic around him, and instantly the soldiers around him began to writhe in pain. The dark energies blocked the few spear stabs and sword slashes that manged to reach Nautilus, as the magic also disintegrated the guards. Ponies started to disappear into nothingness, and the few who managed to get out of vile magic's area of effect were too weak to stand, much less fight the metal beast.
Nautilus watched as the feeble creatures died around him, and after deciding they had had enough, his shield dissipated. He searched around for anyone that had survived the dark energies, and spotted the only survivors by a fruit cart a few yards to his right. He lumbered over to them and towered above their crippled bodies.
"I'll ask one last time. What is her real name?" the beast spoke.
One guard began coughing up blood, but managed to speak in between coughs. "Her ... name is ... Susanne."
If Nautilus could smile, he would've been wearing the most disturbing grin ever seen by Equestrian eyes. He silently turned from the dying guard and looked around the plaza. Still deserted, aside from one other being. At the other end of the plaza is a creature encased in a suit of black armor, and wielding a sword twice his height.
"You are not welcome in this land vile beast." said the knight.
Nautilus stayed silent and stood his ground as the sun's tip faded from the horizon, leaving the town in twilight.
"Leave at once, or perish." spoke the pony issuing Nautilus an ultimatum.
The juggernaut remained in place, dead silent.
"So be it." said the knight as he raised his sword high. He began to walk over to Nautilus slowly, but quickened his pace a he approached the metal man. Mere feet away from the tank the knight leaped into the air, with his sword raised high overhead, ready to strike a fatal blow. However, this tank had one more trick up his sleeve.
