Eternal Knightfallby Joker the HedgehogChaptersSaving SunsetThe ArmoryAR TrainingSaving SunsetHello there. You just couldn’t resist stopping by to hear my story, huh? Well, as long as you’re here, I might as well get started. I’m sure you’re wondering just who I am exactly. In another life, I was Ethan Osborn. I was just an ordinary guy trying to live his life. I had a good job, a decent house, you know, the basics. That all changed when I was killed in a car accident. That’s where our story begins. Because when Ethan Osborn died, Jason Todd, the Arkham Knight, leader of The Resistance and badass superhero, was born... ... “Wake up, Mr. Osborn. We have much to discuss, and little time to do so.” “Ugh... five more minutes, Daddy...” “I SAID WAKE UP!!!” A powerful shock ran through Ethan Osborn, who was a young man in his early twenties with a bruised and cut face, a mop of dirty blonde hair, and blue eyes. He was wearing a ruined blue hoodie with a black shirt underneath, blue jeans, and black and white sneakers, causing him to sit bolt upright, wide awake. As Ethan looked around, he came to realize that he was in a totally white space of some kind, like a world of nothing or something like that. Well, almost nothing. “At last, you’ve woken up. Now we can begin,” said what appeared to be a man wearing a black leather trench coat, black dress pants, black dress shoes, black leather gloves, and a wide-brimmed hat that completely shrouded his face in shadow. He also had a sleek black cane in his hand. “Wh-who are you?” asked Ethan. “My name is Kilroy, and it is my honor to welcome you to purgatory,” said Kilroy. “Wait… purgatory? As in the purgatory where dead people go to find out if they’re going to be sent to Heaven or Hell?” asked Ethan, a shiver of fear creeping into him as he stood to face Kilroy. “Is there any other?” asked Kilroy with a small chuckle. “And before you ask, yes, that means you’re dead. A snow drift caused you to hit a patch of glare ice and made you lose control of your vehicle and collide with a semi-truck. You were pronounced dead at the scene.” Ethan nodded to show he understood. “So… I take it that means you’re going to weigh my sins or however that works?” he asked Kilroy. “Hardly. I’m here to offer you a chance to be reborn, and become a hero whose legend will be told through the end of time,” said Kilroy. “R-really?” asked Ethan. “Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s do this thing!” “Ah-ah-ah. There’s more to it than that. First and foremost, you will be reborn in an alternate world that most believe to exist only in fiction. And while we’re on the topic of fiction, you must select a character from any form of fiction, good, evil, or somewhere in the middle to be reborn as,” explained Kilroy. Ethan placed his hand on his chin in thought. There were so many characters he wished he could be, but which one should he pick? A small smile crossed Ethan’s face as his choice crept into his mind. “I want to be reborn as Jason Todd, aka The Arkham Knight,” he said confidently. “Very well, then.” ... Her heart beat was rapid and her breaths were short and quick as the red and yellow haired girl continued running for her life down the streets of Canterlot, knowing full well that if she looked back she would meet the bright headlights of the humvees, filled with soldiers that were hunting her. And at the front of them, leading the charge, was Rainbow Dash, Captain of Nightmare Moon’s Lunar Guard. Sunset Shimmer, who was clad in a black trench coat, black jeans, black leather boots, and a pink blouse with a red and yellow stylized sun on the front, was doing a good enough job at keeping herself distanced from the humvees due to her taking several shortcuts through alleyways, but she knew that if she slowed just a bit then that short drop of speed could be her downfall. She turned another corner, entering another alleyway as she could hear Rainbow Dash behind her yelling out in anger. She stole a quick glance behind her, seeing the humvees behind her still, slowing down as they drove in the alley, most likely several more of them would be waiting for her on the other side. True to her suspicions, turning her head she could see the other end of the alley was blocked by a large humvee, Rainbow Dash herself stepping out with an angry glare stabbing daggers directly towards Sunset as more of her men climbed from the vehicle, all of them armed and ready to fire at Sunset. “You really thought you could outrun us?!” Rainbow shouted, taking her own weapon from one of the soldiers handing it to her. She had a rainbow-patterned mohawk and rose-colored eyes, and wore a suit of midnight blue and black armor that was somehow more elegant and regal than the traditional Lunar Guard armor, and which had a dark blue cape draped over her shoulder. Being a Night Flier like the rest of the Lunar Guard, she had a pair of bat wings attached seamlessly to her back. Otherwise, she looked like a normal human woman with a strong and athletic build. “Why not? I kept myself distanced from you long enough,” Sunset answered, nervously smiling and shrugging. “Wit won’t save you now. Only an act of God can save you, and that’s not likely to happen. After all, that’s the only thing that could’ve helped you accomplish your goal,” replied Rainbow, a look of cold fury on her face and a look in her eyes that suggested Sunset was just a bit of muck to clean off her boots as she pulled back the hammer of her pistol. “Now, hold still so I don’t have to waste any more bullets.” Sunset gulped and watched as Rainbow aimed down the sights of her pistol, aiming directly towards her head as she grinned, ready to pull the trigger before a loud bang echoed through the alley. But surprisingly, the bang didn’t come from Rainbow’s pistol, as her hand was thrown back and she yelled in pain, looking upwards to the building by them with the soldiers and Sunset doing likewise to notice a tall silhouette standing there as its glowing eyes stared directly to them as it lowered its arm, a pistol in its hand that it sheathed. “Well, now, what have we here?” asked the silhouette, its voice sounding both demonic and robotic as it glared down at the people in the alleyway. “And just what the Sam Hell are you supposed to be?” demanded Rainbow. “Oh, where are my manners?” said the silhouette before it jumped into the alleyway, the dim light from the nearby neon signs revealing it to be a being that seemed to be a mixture of a demon and a soldier or a mercenary. It wore the top half of a black, gray, and blue suit of body armor that had a white stylized “A” insignia on its chest and both shoulders, red and black camouflage military pants with a belt that held two handguns and a variety of other weapons and gadgets, black and gray military combat boots, and glowing blue mask that had what looked like bat ears attached to it. “I am The Arkham Knight.” Rainbow raised an amused eyebrow. “‘The Arkham Knight?’” she asked. “Well, I tried to pick a memorable name, a cool outfit, and some highly useful weapons and tools,” said the Knight with a shrug. “Now it’s my turn to ask the questions. Care to share why exactly you were chasing after this beautiful woman?” “I could… but, I actually have a better idea,” said Rainbow, signaling her soldiers, who aimed their automatic rifles at The Arkham Knight, despite the looks of fear on their faces. “How about you ditch those weapons and get on your knees with your hands behind your head?” The Arkham Knight lightly sighed and shook his head. “Sure, sure. Whatever you say, doll.” He said as he lowered down to his knees, taking his weapons out and placing them on the ground in front of him. Rainbow growled lightly at the Arkham Knight’s comment, one of her men walking over to him and taking out a pair of handcuffs, reaching down to cuff the Arkham Knight before the man was knocked backwards as his jaw felt metal impacting it before an elbow was sent into his stomach, bringing him to his knees before the back of the Knight’s boot knocked him to the ground, unconscious. Rainbow grabbed a gun and aimed it towards the metal assailant, but he had already grabbed his guns and fired four shots, taking out the legs of Rainbow’s guards, before quickly turning around and firing multiple shots to the others on the other side of the alley, making sure he didn’t hit Sunset. Rainbow growled louder and began firing, ignoring the groaning soldiers at her feet as she stepped up to the Arkham Knight. Acting quickly, the Arkham Knight threw a flashbang grenade at Rainbow, temporarily blinding her long enough for him to knock the rifle out of her hands and knock her to the ground. The Arkham Knight aimed one of his handguns at Rainbow’s face. “Don’t make me shoot a woman. Especially a pretty woman like you,” warned the Arkham Knight, his synthesized voice full of menace.“Now, why are you hunting down ketchup and mustard over there?” Sunset growled at the Arkham Knight’s insult, crossing her arms as Rainbow grimaced. “I’m not going to ask twice hun.” “First off, stop with the ‘hun’ and ‘pretty woman’,” Rainbow spat to the Knight, “and secondly, get the Hell out of here. This does not concern you.” “Yeah, I could just walk away right now and let you guys take her away...” Arkham turned to Sunset, who’s face turned to slight worry as she saw him turn to her, “but fuck that. Now tell me, what do you want her for?” Arkham pressed his handgun up to Rainbow’s cheek, giving her the perfect opportunity to smack his hand away, knocking the gun out of his hand as she kicked the Knight in the chest, knocking him back and causing him to stagger. She took the opportunity to get up as the Knight aimed his second pistol directly at her, preparing to fire as Rainbow grabbed his gun hand, sending her fist forward and landing it on his mask, sending his head back as her steel knuckled gauntlets crashed against him. He yanked his hand from Rainbow’s vice-like grip as she aimed another strike to his face, but she was too slow as Arkham ducked under it and sent his boot to her stomach, not doing much other than causing her to stagger due to her armor, but he quickly delivered an uppercut, knocking her head back. She growled loudly and delivered a headbutt, connecting with Arkham’s helmet. She groaned lightly in pain as Arkham shook his head, punching her in the jaw again, knocking her back as he sent his elbow to the other side of her jaw, sending her to the side as she hit the wall. Arkham took this to his advantage, attempting to kick Rainbow in the face, only for her to grab onto his leg and pulled him down to the ground. “Well, I must admit, you certainly know how to stand your ground,” growled the Arkham Knight as he pulled himself off of the ground. “Well, you don’t become Captain of the Lunar Guard just by looks alone, you know,” replied Rainbow. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to make a few calls.” Before the Knight could stop her, Rainbow took to the skies faster than a bullet. Arkham growled in anger as he watched her escape before turning to Sunset, who whimpered in fear and involuntarily scooted herself away under the Knight’s gaze. “You okay?” The Arkham Knight asked the beautiful woman on the ground as he held out his hand to help her up. With a look of the utmost terror on her face, Sunset very, very carefully took the Arkham Knight’s hand. “Y-yes. I-I’m fine,” she whispered. “Good. Grab a gun. Your BFF most likely went to call in some back up,” said Arkham as he crouched down in front of one of the dead Lunar Guards and grabbed his radio. Sunset nodded and did as she was told, taking a rifle from one of the other soldiers. “By the way, what’s your name?” “Sunset. Sunset Shimmer,” replied Sunset. Looking over her shoulder, Sunset noticed that Arkham was dismantling the radio he’d taken. “What’re you doing?” she asked the demonic being. “Taking the encryption key from this radio,” Arkham explained as he pulled out a small device that resembled a video game controller, expanded it, causing a holographic screen to appear, and inserted a small chip of some kind into the side. “If I can hack into these jarheads’ comms systems with my Cryptographic Sequencer, also known as a Remote Hacking Device, I’ll be able to listen in on them. They won’t be able to sneeze without me knowing about it.” Sunset raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t that illegal?” she asked the Knight. The Arkham Knight shrugged. “Can’t be any more illegal than anything I’ve done already,” he said, before looking over his shoulder at Sunset. “Or, judging by the effort these guys put into killing you, anything you’ve done, which we’ll be discussing once we get out of here.” A moment later, the Arkham Knight was successfully hacked into the Lunar Guard’s comms systems… and he found his prediction was correct. “-this is Captain Dash. I’ve run into a little trouble in attempting to apprehend the suspect. Some kind of gun-totting demon-robot thing came out of nowhere and just took out a bunch of my men, Request reinforcements to the alleyway on 4th and 2nd street,” said Rainbow over the Knight’s comms. “Reinforcements are on the way, Captain,” replied a male voice. “Crap. Time to go,” said Arkham as he grabbed Sunset’s hand and pulled her out of the alleyway into the street, just in time to see no more than six humvees pull up from both sides of the street, these ones armed with roof-mounted chain guns, and deploying more Lunar Guard as they screeched to a stop. “Let’s see you fight your way out of this one,” said Rainbow Dash as she landed on top of a building across the street. “So, you ready to give up yet?” “Oh, I’m far from ready to give up.” Arkham replied, making a small grin hidden under his mask as he pushed a button on the wrist of his left gauntlet. As Rainbow opened her mouth to speak, a loud roar was heard in the distance growing louder until a large silver vehicle blasted onto the street and towards Sunset and Arkham, ramming a humvee out of the way and screeching to a halt in front of the two as the tires extended from the sides and a large cannon appeared out from the top, giving the vehicle a tank-like appearance as the main weapon aimed right at the humvees behind Rainbow and her soldiers. “60 Millimeter Cannon operational,” said a computerized female voice before the cannon fired several rounds at the humvees, destroying them on contact. “Blow that thing to scrap metal!” yelled Rainbow, a hint of panic in her voice as her troops began to open fire upon the vehicle. “Riot Suppressor engaged,” said the female computerized voice as a machine gun unfolded from the side of the cannon and sprayed bullets into the attacking soldiers, ripping through their bodies and armor, causing their blood to splatter across the pavement and ruined vehicles, and forcing Rainbow to run for cover. With the soldiers either dead or seriously injured, Arkham grabbed Sunset’s wrist and pulled her to the car before climbing inside and pressing a button on the control console, causing the back to open and two seats with harnesses to extend out from it. “Alright! Now let’s get out of here!” Sunset looked at the vehicle uneasily as she tried to catch her, a shiver of fear and suspicion stopping her from hopping right into one of the seats. “You know, my mother warned me about getting into cars with strange men,” she told the Arkham Knight. “First off, this isn’t a car. Secondly, what makes you think you have a choice? If you want to stay alive, that is,” replied Arkham. Sunset winced at the Knight’s reply, knowing that he was right. “Okay, fine, just get us the Hell out of here in one piece,” she said, sitting down in one of the seats before the harness lowered itself, securing her inside as both of the back seats returned to the interior of the vehicle. The Arkham Knight smirked under his mask as he hit the gas pedal and drove away at breakneck speeds, all while Rainbow Dash was watching from her hiding spot in shock, horror, and awe. Okay, what the Hell is going on here? Where did that thing come from, and where did he get that huge tank-mobile thing from? And those weapons, how’d he get his hands on those? thought Rainbow, her mind racing as she looked at the carnage the so-called Arkham Knight had left in his rescue attempt. Nightmare Moon’s gonna wanna hear about all of this ASAP, so I’d better get back to Moonlight City. And with that, the young bat-winged woman took to the skies faster than a bullet, determined to tell her queen about the deadly new enemy that had arrived. The ArmoryAs she sat in the back of the Arkham Knight’s vehicle, Sunset’s mind was racing with questions about this strange being who had saved her life. Where had he come from? Where did he get all of these weapons and this tank-mobile thing? And more importantly, where were they going now? Almost as if he could read her mind, the Arkham Knight spoke up. “I know you must have a ton of questions you’re just dying to ask me, Sunset, like ‘Who the Hell is this guy?’ and ‘Where did he get all of these weapons and this strange vehicle from?’ Well, I’m afraid those questions will have to wait until you’ve answered all of my questions once we get back to The Armory,” said Arkham. Sunset looked over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow. “First off, what’s ‘The Armory,’ and secondly, what questions?” she asked the demonic being. “Oh, just some simple questions, like why in the Hell did the military put that much effort into making you dead, and why does my control panel’s clock say it’s 11:30 AM when it looks more like 11:30 at night?” replied the Knight. “As for The Armory, it’s my, or perhaps I should say our, base of operations. It’s located in the abandoned crystal mines underneath Canterlot. No one even remembers they exist in the first place. It’s the perfect place for a hideout, or maybe even a prison of some kind.” “Okay, first off, what do you mean OUR base of operations? Who says I’m working with or alongside you at all. Secondly, if nobody remembers these mines exist, then how do you know about them?” asked Sunset. The Arkham Knight chuckled. “You’d be surprised what you can find by reading dusty old books, Sunset. More importantly, since you were just attacked by the military, I’m guessing you don’t have anywhere to go, so I figured I’d offer my hospitality. In any case, we’re almost there, so hang on.” A few moments passed by in silence before the Arkham Knight turned his vehicle into a dark cave, the entrance of which was littered with overturned minecarts. As he approached a solid crystal wall that looked to be the result of a cave-in at break-neck speeds, the Knight pressed a button on his vehicle’s control panel that caused the wall to slide up into the cave ceiling, and reveal a hidden ramp that spiraled upwards. Taking the ramp, the Knight soon drove his vehicle through a waterfall and onto a metal platform before coming to a stop. “This is it, we’re here,” said Arkham as he opened the cockpit of his ride and let Sunset out of the backseat. As she got out of her harness and stood up and took a look around at the Arkham Knight’s base of operations, only two words came to mind, “Ho-ly shit.” Draped over the cavern walls were blood-red banners bearing the Arkham Knight’s insignia. Overhead spotlight provided illumination to the base while multi-level metal platforms provided the base’s flooring. Additional rooms and corridors had been added, thus making the base even bigger than what Sunset could see at the moment. “How in the Hell… did you get all of this equipment and weapons and everything else?” asked Sunset in a hushed whisper. The Arkham Knight chuckled as he walked up beside Sunset, “Let’s just say I was made an offer I couldn’t refuse. And when I agreed to that offer, the guy who made it went all out on his end of the bargain,” he said before he pressed something on the side of his helmet, causing it to slide up and reveal his face. Sunset did a double-take when she saw the Arkham Knight unmasked. He was a human man around her age with jet-black hair, icy blue eyes, and a burn scar just under his left eye in the shape of the letter J. “In any case, now that we’re in the safety of The Armory, we can finally be properly introduced,” said the unmasked Knight, his voice sounding far different from the voice his mask gave him. “My name is Jason Todd, and welcome to my home,” he said, holding out his hand. Very, very carefully, Sunset took Jason’s hand. “Heh, I get it. J for Jason,” she said, pointing at the scar on Jason’s face with her free hand. “Actually… it’s J for Joker.” Sunset raised an eyebrow. “‘Joker?’ Who’s ‘Joker?’” she asked the armor clad being. “No one you’d ever want to meet. Truth be told, I don’t like talking about how I got my scar. So, how about I give you the tour of this place instead?” said Jason. “Um… okay,” said Sunset, following Jason as he walked towards a corridor. “So, the room we’re in right now is the Hangar Bay. Right now, all we have in means of rides is the Arkham-Mobile, but I’m working on different modes of transportation,” explained Jason. Sunset raised an eyebrow. “‘The Arkham-Mobile?’ That’s the best name you could come up with for that tank you drive?” she asked. “Well, I was going to call it the Knight-Rider, but that name was already taken,” explained Jason as he led Sunset past various rooms, which he pointed out as they passed by. “That’s the Medical Bay on the right there, the Augmented Reality Training Facility is across the hall on the left,” said Jason, pointing at two solid steel doors with what Sunset recognized as handprint scanners where the doorknobs should be. “I’ll have to add your handprints to the database later.” “What’s ‘Augmented Reality?’” asked Sunset. “I believe the more common term is ‘Virtual Reality,’” explained Jason. “Anyways, coming up here on the right is the Equipment Room, where I keep all of my guns, gadgets, and other types of weaponry, and on the left is the Living Quarters, which I might add is where you’ll be staying, and dead ahead here would be the Computer Room.Thankfully, we don’t get crocodiles in here very often, if ever.” “What do you mean, ‘crocodiles?’” asked Sunset as Jason placed his hand on the scanner. “Eh, it’s nothing, just something from back home,” said Jason as the scanner finished reading his handprint and the door swung open, allowing them to enter. As Sunset looked around the Computer Room, she once again found herself wondering just how exactly someone could get all of this stuff in here without getting caught. Dominating the room was a MASSIVE supercomputer with multiple screens, each displaying the Arkham Knight’s insignia a set of chairs stationed around it. “Take a seat,” said Jason, pulling out a couple of chairs. “So, start talking. What’s going on here? Why is it dark when it should be broad daylight?” Sunset sat down in one of the chairs before answering. “So... You don’t know Nightmare Moon and her takeover of Equestria?” Sunset waited for a response, but she took Jason’s silence as response enough to continue. “Well... It all started... Six years ago I believe. When Nightmare Moon had taken over Equestria after defeating her sister, Celestia, and stripping her of her magic. Then she banished her to the moon, taking her entire kingdom.” “Why did this Nightmare Moon want to defeat Celestia?” Jason asked. “Well... It happened a very, very long time ago.” Sunset replied, “Back when Nightmare Moon was still Celestia’s sister, Luna. Luna would raise the moon while Celestia raised the sun. One day, Luna began feeling jealous of Celestia, and how everyone loved the daytime that Celestia gave to us all, while we merely slept through Luna’s night.” “Sooo.... How? This ‘Luna’ raises the moon, while her sister raises the sun? How the hell is hat possible?” Jason asked. “They do it through magic.” Sunset responded. “Ah. Of course. Magic. The get out of jail free card. Carry on.” Sunset looked to Jason with confusion, but continued anyways. “And after Luna banished her sister to the Moon, she’s... built a very strong grip on the land and its people, to put it lightly. She’s created her own army to hunt down any and all that still supported Celestia.” “So... This army of hers... that was who I fought. With that rainbow-haired chick. So I take it you’re someone who supports Celestia still?” Jason said. “Well… yes. But they were also chasing me for another reason.” Sunset said. A moment of silence fell unto the room before Jason coughed and spoke. “Soooo... are you going to tell me what that other reason is?” “Oh, right. Sorry. Well... they were chasing me because I’m guilty by association with a very wanted Celestia supporter, named Twilight Sparkle. She used to work at Eclipse Labs working on genetically adapting crops so that they’d grow in the moonlight. But, this message she left me says otherwise,” said Sunset, fishing her cell phone out of her pocket, only to discover that it was badly damaged. “Dammit. It must’ve gotten wrecked during the chase.” “Give it here,” said Jason. Sunset handed her phone to Jason, who promptly began dismantling the device until he found the component he needed, which he placed into a slot on his supercomputer. Jason turned towards the supercomputer and began typing in commands until the right box of text and coding gibberish appeared on the screen. “Show all recent calls and messages from Twilight Sparkle,” he said, causing another box to appear. “Voicemail or text?” Jason asked Sunset. “Um… voicemail,” said Sunset. “Okie-doke. Play the most recent voicemail.” A moment later, a frightened female voice boomed over the computer’s speakers. “Sunset, it’s me, Twilight. I know we’re both already in hot water as it is, given our beliefs, but now… well, let’s just say the water I’m in is boiling now. You know how the Imperial Government contracted us to work on adapting crops to survive in moonlight? The humanitarian thing? Well, it turns out, that’s just a front. All the work I’ve put into allowing this desolate world a better chance for survival, all for nothing. Here’s what’s really going on. Yesterday, I was outside Dr. Eclipse’s office and I heard him and Nightmare Moon talking about something… terrible. Sunset, they’re experimenting on innocent people to turn into Nightmare Moon’s soldiers! They also talked about something called ‘Project Tantabus-’” A loud crash was heard in the background, followed by a second voice, one both Jason and Sunset recognized as Rainbow’s, bellowed, “Don’t move, sun-loving scum! Take her!” The shout was followed by sounds of a struggle before the line went dead. Jason stood up and stretched.“Well, that tears it. That absolutely tears it. Nightmare Moon must be taken down,” he said. “And… how are you going to go about doing that?” asked Sunset, raising an eyebrow. Jason pressed the button on his mask, causing it to slide over his face again. “What I’m going to do is add your handprints to the database. After that, I’m not going to do a thing,” said the Arkham Knight. “What WE are going to do, though, is get you trained up in the AR Room, then we’re going to find out where this Twilight Sparkle is, rescue her, and find out what she knows about these experiments and this ‘Project Tantabus’ and then we’re going to destroy Eclipse Labs. After that, we’re going to recruit anyone and everyone we can to build an army.” “And assuming we’ve done all that without getting ourselves killed?” asked Sunset with a smirk on her face. “Then, it’s time to go to war.” ... Inside the Everfree Forest on the outskirts of Moonlight City, the capital of the New Lunar Empire, stood a dark, yet magnificent castle. Over a thousand years ago, this castle had been known as “The Castle of The Two Sisters.” Following the clash between the Princess of the Sun and the Princess of the Moon, the castle had been all but destroyed, and had remained that way for over a thousand years until Nightmare Moon’s triumphant return and takeover. Now, fully rebuilt and redesigned to fit its new occupants tastes, the castle was now called simply “Nightmare Castle.” And it was this castle that Captain Rainbow Dash approached. After her credentials were check and the castle guards saluted her, Rainbow entered the castle and followed its dark and twisted corridors, taking great care to avoid the traps that had once been placed there as mere practical jokes, but now had far more lethal additions like spikes at the bottom of the pits. Finally, Rainbow arrived at the throne room and approached the imposing and powerfully built black-winged woman with teal snake-like eyes, fangs, and smoke-like dark blue hair clad in black and dark blue battle armor complete with a helmet, a long black cape, and a rapier at her side and kneeled before her. “My queen… we have a serious problem brewing in our midst. I was unable to kill Sunset Shimmer,” said Rainbow. “Is catching a simple Spellcaster beyond even your talents, Captain Dash?” asked Nightmare Moon, malice in her voice alongside a hint of amusement. “No, of course it isn’t. I actually had her dead to rights, trapped with nowhere to run. But, before I could pull the trigger… someone or something intervened and shot the gun out of my hand,” explained Rainbow. “Oh? And who, pray tell, was it that intervened?” asked Nightmare Moon, mildly interested. Rainbow sighed. “He calls himself ‘The Arkham Knight.’ His hand-to-hand combat skills are exceptional, probably almost as good as yours, and his gunplay is astounding. He took out most of the troops I’d brought with me to catch Shimmer. I called for backup, but then… things only got crazier,” she explained. “How so?” asked Nightmare. “Out of nowhere this car-tank thing showed up and blasted the crap out of my reinforcements and forcing me to take cover. The technology this guy has, it’s… unbelieveable.” Nightmare Moon seemed thoughtful for a moment. “I hope you don’t mind if I check the validity of your statements,” she said, raising an armored hand. “I suggest you hold still.” On that note, Nightmare Moon’s eyes turned a shadowy black color as Rainbow screamed in pain, for it felt like her memories were being ripped out of her brain, which, in a way, they were. Finally, after what seemed like forever, Nightmare Moon’s eyes stopped glowing and Rainbow collapsed, gasping for breath. Nightmare Moon pondered over the memories she’d just obtained from Captain Dash. This mysterious Arkham Knight character was greatly skilled, powerful, and provided he could be persuaded to serve her, he could be an invaluable ally with the resources he had. “Get Rarity, Pinkamena, and Starlight in here. We must find this so-called Arkham Knight and convince him to join us. Or, if he cannot be persuaded, then we must destroy him. Am I making myself clear?” said Nightmare Moon. “Y...yes, your majesty…” gasped Rainbow. “Good, then get going.” Rainbow slowly and painfully got up off the floor and set out to do her task. As the throne room doors shut behind Rainbow, a second voice, seemingly from the back of Nightmare Moon’s own mind, spoke up. “What makes you so sure that this Arkham Knight can even be killed, should he refuse to join you?” Nightmare Moon growled. “Show yourself, Luna!” Then, as if on cue, a figure emerged from the shadows, one that looked identical to Nightmare Moon. Except, her hair looked long and elegant, almost as if she were wearing the night sky itself. She also lacked Nightmare Moon vertical pupils and fangs. Additionally, she was not dressed the same. While Nightmare Moon wore battle armor, this one wore clothes one would expect from someone of royal blood. She wore a long, flowing dress that was designed after the night sky, complete with countless stars dotting along it. It, like her hair, rippled gently in the breeze from a nearby open window, giving the figure an almost ghost-like appearance… which, to all intents and purposes, she was. Nothing more than a hallucination created by a part of Nightmare Moon that she couldn’t really destroy, nor could it destroy her… not to say that neither of them didn’t try. Princess Luna walked from the shadows, but she wasn’t looking to Nightmare Moon, instead she was gazing to the night sky. “I never thought that any of this could happen from my own jealously. People starving, dying, tortured, used as lab rats, and God knows how many other unspeakable things you’ve done, all because I wanted the night to be appreciated for what it truly was. I never thought my own jealousy could create a monster like you,” the true Lunar Princess said, her sorrowful gaze directed at the moon where she and the murderous tyrant who now controlled her body had spent 1,000 years… where her own sister was now trapped, powerless and without any hope of escape. Nightmare Moon gave a short laugh. “Monster? I? You forget, Luna, no one showed any gratitude for the night you slaved away over week after week, month after month, year after year, century after century. I did what you could never do, what you were too weak to do! I defeated Celestia and put an end to her daylight. Now they have no choice but to love the night, or else pay the price.” “And look what’s become of it!” snapped Luna, her voice echoing throughout Nightmare Moon’s mind. “Everyone appreciates the night, the beauty it has given the world.” Nightmare Moon responded, growing more impatient with Luna the more she continues. “Yes. And look at the early years. The terror. The night is beautiful, but in my jealousy I had clearly not seen the little bumps in my wish.” Luna spoke, turning to face Nightmare, “Crops dying from the lack of my sister’s sun, causing animals and people alike to all starve.” “But look now, we’re prospering.” “After years of death. The crops dying weren’t the only thing that caused people to die, there were also the riots from those who still support my sister.” “The sun worshipers? They may have been a threat before, but that is history. Now, everybody is happy. The time of rioting and death is something of the past.” “Yes, yes it is. And now is the time of silent raids and assassinations. Like with Sunset Shimmer.” Nightmare Moon growled softly, not being particularly fond of being reminded of one of her supposed best soldier’s failed operation. “We were caught off guard by the ‘Arkham Knight’s appearance. It will not happen again.” Luna looked to Nightmare Moon, her face slowly growing confused as she could practically see a light bulb turn on inside of Nightmare’s eyes. “And I know just how to do it.” Nightmare said, grinning with malice as she walked over to a nearby table, picking up a small object that Luna recognized as her old phone, and began typing. “Who are you calling?” Luna asked. “I have several amazing soldiers, but I have one that I’ve used only on certain occasions, one that can take out this ‘Arkham Knight’ character. But if what Rainbow Dash said is true, and he truly does have such advanced technology, then I might need more.” “More?” Luna asked. “What, are you going to send more soldiers after him? You know how well that turned out.” “Don’t be foolish Luna, I’ve got a better plan. Something that’ll attract the attention of far more... special... people.” Nightmare Moon turned her attention back to the phone, speaking into it before walking around her desk, picking up a small briefcase. “What are you planning, Nightmare Moon?” Nightmare chuckled softly before turning the phone away from her, “Nothing you should concern yourself about Luna, just a bounty or two to welcome our new friend to our beautiful land.” She flashed Luna a malicious grin before moving the phone back to her, walking away from Luna, who wore a face of concern. “Oh sister... If only I had never tried to change the balance of the days...” AR TrainingGuns. Lots of guns. And knives. And grenades. And all sorts of other gadgets, protective gear, and weaponry. That’s what lined the walls of the Armory’s Equipment Room. “Come on,” said the Arkham Knight, gesturing for Sunset to enter. “The first thing we need to do is upgrade your wardrobe, because the one you’re wearing right now isn’t going to let you survive this impending war with Nightmare Moon and her subordinates, so I suggest you start with the protective gear before you choose your weapons.” Sunset nodded and began looking through the protective vests and light armor, trying to find something that would work for her. As she did, the Knight spoke up again. “So, uh… do you have any actual combat skills or abilities?” “Well, yeah, of course I do,” said Sunset as she held a bodysuit against her slender frame. “I was Princess Celestia’s apprentice back when her School for Gifted Spellcasters was open. She taught me all kinds of offensive and defensive spell, like this one spell that not only turns me invisible, but completely mutes my movements.” “Yeah, that’s all well and good, but can you actually kick someone’s ass WITHOUT using any hocus-pocus whatsoever?” asked the Knight. Sunset looked a little nervous before she gave her answer. “Well… I can kick and punch, if that’s what you mean. But, why does it matter when I can just use my magic and your guns to blast enemies out of the way?” The Arkham Knight chuckled. “A typical response. It seems as though Celestia’s teachings have taught you to rely too much on magic alone. To be honest, magical training from what amounts to a sun goddess might be well and good if we were squaring off against common thugs and criminals. Except, we’re not,” he said, turning to look Sunset dead in the eye. “We’re going up against a tyrant who has god-like magic of her own and who has her hands wrapped around this country’s, hell, maybe even this whole world’s throat. And backing her up is a battle-hardened, possibly augmented, army and God only knows what else. An enemy with Nightmare Moon’s resources and power more than likely has the means to negate magic. You’ll need to be able to fight should that happen. Is that understood?” Sunset nodded her head and said, “Yes.” “Good. Now, hurry up and get your equipment together, and I’ll get the AR Room ready.” … Meanwhile, in Nightmare Castle, three women were approaching the conference room, where they’d been summoned to by their queen, Nightmare Moon. “What do you think her majesty wants to see us for?” asked one of the women, who had purple hair with a streak of mint green in it and wore a white labcoat with the New Lunar Empire coat-of-arms on the left hand breast pocket and a black tank top underneath, black dress pants, and black dress shoes. This was Starlight Glimmer, Head of Nightmare Moon’s Science Division. “I haven’t the slightest idea, yet I can’t help but wonder if this has something to do with those strange rumors I’ve heard about that sun-worshiper’s getaway,” said the second woman, whose purple hair was tied up into a bun and wore a simple diamond necklace, a navy blue dress jacket with a white shirt underneath, a matching skirt, black heels, and red glasses. This was Rarity Belle, and she was in charge of the New Lunar Empire’s financial business. “One of your projects didn’t escape, did it, Starlight?” Starlight shook her head. “I’m a geneticist, not a robotics engineer. Rainbow’s the one in charge of weapons development as she’s the Captain of the Guard. Ask her,” she replied. The third woman woman turned to look at Starlight. She had shoulder-length pink hair and wore a black leather jacket with a pink shirt underneath, a dark pink skirt, and knee-length black boots. “That reminds me, when are you going to give Chomper back to me, huh?” “Pinkie, I told you once already we-” said Starlight before an animalistic growl from the pink-haired woman cut her off. “DON’T-CALL-ME-PINKIE!!!” she snarled, putting her fist right up to Starlight’s face. “Whoa, whoa, okay, Pinkamena,” Starlight said defensively. “As I was saying, we still need him for running some tests for my project.” “You mean you still need him to make monsters?” asked Pinkamena. “Shh! Not so loud!” hissed Starlight. A few moments of walking in silence passed by before Rarity decided to break the tension. “So, Pinkamena, how goes the mining projects?” she asked. “About as well as one could expect them to go, even with that Fluttershy and her tree-hugging hippie pals trying to get in the way with all of their ‘damaging the ecosystem’ bullcrap. I mean, in case they haven’t noticed, the sun’s been gone for a whole six years now, so one would think the ecosystem would be a lost cause. In any case, we’re here,” said Pinkamena, pointing at a pair of large double doors. Starlight stepped forward, turning the silver doorknob and opening the door. A long, but silent, creak filled the room as the door opened, Starlight noticing the silhouette of Nightmare Moon herself standing at the end of the room, gazing out the large, circular window onto her kingdom. Starlight stepped into the room along with Pinkamena and Rarity, each of them stopping a few feet behind her and bowing on one knee. “You’ve asked for us, your Highness?” Rarity spoke. “Yes, indeed I have.” Nightmare Moon spoke, taking a moment longer to gaze upon her kingdom before turning, looking down to the three women, “Starlight, I would like to know. How are things going with that little... Hehe... Pet project you’ve been working on?” “I, uh... I’ve made some progress. He hasn’t grown as much as I’d originally thought, but he has grown quite big.” Starlight responded. “Good, good. And Pinkamena? How’s your little friend who’s down in the mines with you?” Nightmare Moon asked, turning to Pinkamena. “He’s, uh... He’s fine. He still doesn’t really speak with anyone, and he prefers staying down in the mine in his own little tunnel he’s made, with us bringing his food and other supplies to him.” “Good... Good. And Rarity? How has the payment gone along?” Nightmare asked. “The payment has gone successfully your Highness. But I wonder, who is this ‘Deathstroke’?” Rarity asked. Nightmare Moon turned her gaze back out the window. “Someone who will come to great use to us in getting rid of this ‘Arkham Knight’. Just make sure not to tell Rainbow.” Rarity raised an eyebrow, wondering what Rainbow would have against calling in this ‘Deathstroke’, but she simply nodded, saying “Yes your highness,” and walked out the door with Starlight and Pinkamena. … An alarm bell was going off inside a well-furnished bank as groups of thugs dressed like garbage workers began heaving piles of money into the garbage bags they had with them. What they didn’t realize was that they were being watched by the Arkham Knight and Sunset Shimmer, who was now wearing a lightly armored black bodysuit with black leather boots, black fingerless gloves, a black belt with two holsters on each side and a variety of other gadgets, and a black leather overcoat. “Welcome to the Financial Crash Predator AR Map, Sunset. Perfect for a rookie like you, as with that alarm blasting, you don’t necessarily need to be stealthy with your attacks. All you have to do take out these thugs and we’ll see where you fit in from there.” “I have to... Take them out? How? They’re everywhere!” Sunset said, watching the groups of thugs in the bank, all of them taking as much money they could carry before hobbling from the bags over to the doors, where a garbage truck that had crashed through the doors was waiting for them. “The alarm will be able to drown out your actions, so don’t worry about them hearing you.” Knight said,“But the alarm won’t last forever, so you’ll have to work quick if you want to get them before it gets cut. After that, you’ll have to work quickly and silently to take them out. Use the floor grates and gargoyles on the ceiling to your advantage.” Sunset looked to the Knight, and then back down, nodding. “Okay, but how am I going to get to the gargoyles?” “For that, you’ll have to use this.” Knight said, pulling out a small object that seemed to have the appearance of a handgun, but had a hook at the end of it. “It’s a grappling hook, but it’s called a Batclaw.” “‘Batclaw’? Why call it a Batclaw?” Sunset asked, raising an eyebrow as she took it from the Knight. It was about as heavy as it looked, with a brown and seemingly wooden grip, with a large barrel that had another, slightly smaller barrel on the bottom of it. “... It’s because of an old friend of mine.” the Knight said, his voice sounding distant and coming off as a whisper almost, “That’s all I’ll be saying about that... Now come on. You’ve still got a room full of bad guys to take out.” Sunset gave the Knight one last look before nodding and firing the batclaw at a gargoyle on the opposite end of the room. The grappling hook then pulled Sunset towards the gargoyle. “Whoa… what a rush,” said Sunset as she pulled herself up onto the gargoyle. From her perch, she caught sight off two thugs, both with their backs turned towards her. “Perfect… easy pickings,” said Sunset as she dropped down from the gargoyle, drew her pistols and snuck up behind the thugs. She stood up behind the thugs and pointed her pistols to the back of their heads, putting her fingers on the triggers, but then hesitating. She closed her eyes and lifted them, bringing them down hard on the thugs and knocking them unconscious. She sheathed her pistols and got out the batclaw, firing it at a gargoyle further away and was lifted to it. The area was still filled with thugs, and she figured it wouldn’t take long for the others to find their two unconscious friends, so she’d have to work faster. A thug began to walk under the gargoyle she was rested on, carrying two large bags of cash. She jumped down and landed on the thug, knocking him down to the ground face first and knocking him out cold. She fired again quickly, checking around her to make sure nobody had spotted her as she was lifted to another gargoyle. There were two more thugs under her, and she could see three more walking to the truck, carrying two bags each. She dropped down slowly, using the batclaw to slow her descent, and landed behind the two thugs. She unsheathed and lifted up her pistols, bringing them down hard onto the thugs. And just then, just as her pistols made contact with the thugs’ heads, the alarm stopped and the impact of her victims being hit was out for everyone in the building to hear along with the dull thud of their bodies falling to the floor. “Hey! What was that?” She heard a thug call out. “You guys okay?” Another one said. She quickly fired the batclaw up to the gargoyle above her, but heard a short cry of fear coming from the door. She turned and saw a thug back up quickly from seeing her, but then aim his gun directly at her. Just as he fired at her, she was shot upwards to the gargoyle, screaming as she felt the bullets fly past her. As soon as she landed on the gargoyle she fired to the ceiling, swinging to a gargoyle closer to her. She continued swinging, hoping that the thugs would eventually lose her. Which they did, thankfully as she had grown tired from the constant swinging from gargoyle to gargoyle. “Getting a little sloppy there, Sunset!” said Arkham. A heartbeat later, she turned and looked to the last three thugs in the room. They were shaking heavily from what she could see, and they seemed like they would shoot at the sound of a pen dropping. “They’re terrified. Use that.” Sunset nodded at the Knight, then watched as two thugs walked away from the other, both of them walking with each other back to back while the lone one wandered off, struggling to stop shaking. Sunset pulled out a shuriken from a pocket on her outfit, and threw it towards the two thugs… and missed completely. However, the ping the projectile made when it hit the wall caused the goons to turn away from Sunset and open fire in the general direction of the noise, giving her the opening she needed. “What the Hell was that?!” asked one of the thugs, before he and his friend had their heads smashed together by Sunset, rendering them both unconscious. Hearing the sound, the sole remaining thug ran as fast as he could to check on his allies, only to be stopped dead in his tracks by a burst of gunfire from Sunset’s pistol. “Simulation complete,” said a computerized female voice as the AR Room returned to its original form and the Arkham Knight walked up to Sunset. “Not bad, Miss Shimmer… not bad at all,” said Arkham, sounding impressed. “Well, truth be told, that was actually kind of fun. It got my adrenaline pumping, that’s for sure,” said Sunset with a small smile. The Knight crossed his arms. “Well, then, how about we have a little bit more ‘fun’ with a Combat Challenge Map?” asked Arkham. “Bring it. I’m ready,” said Sunset as Arkham walked over to a nearby console and typed in a few commands. “Simulation activated,” said the female computer voice as the interior of a ruined movie theatre, along with a small group of thugs, some of whom were armed with what appeared to be knives and sparklers appeared. Sunset cracked her neck in anticipation for the fight to come. … In the depths of Shadowgate Prison, a young woman around Sunset’s age with shoulder-length blue hair with a magenta stripe wearing a tattered lab coat, a blue dress shirt, a pink bow tie, black jeans, and black dress shoes appeared to be unconscious as she hung from the ceiling by her wrists, which were tied behind her back. The cell door opened and a dark figure entered, causing the woman to stir. “So… you’re still alive. I have to admit, you certainly have fight in you, Miss Sparkle… more than your brother does, anyway,” said the figure. “My… my brother’s… alive?” asked Twilight Sparkle, her voice cracking from a dry throat. “For now, he is,” replied the figure. “Right now, though, that’s the least of your concerns. You see, Nightmare Moon herself has paid me a very handsome amount of money to keep an eye on you, and keep you safe. At least, until this Arkham Knight nutcase shows up to try to rescue you.” “The… who?” choked Twilight. “Oh, don’t worry, it’s nothing you need to worry about. He’ll be dead before long, followed swiftly by you and your brother.”
Saving SunsetHello there. You just couldn’t resist stopping by to hear my story, huh? Well, as long as you’re here, I might as well get started. I’m sure you’re wondering just who I am exactly. In another life, I was Ethan Osborn. I was just an ordinary guy trying to live his life. I had a good job, a decent house, you know, the basics. That all changed when I was killed in a car accident. That’s where our story begins. Because when Ethan Osborn died, Jason Todd, the Arkham Knight, leader of The Resistance and badass superhero, was born... ... “Wake up, Mr. Osborn. We have much to discuss, and little time to do so.” “Ugh... five more minutes, Daddy...” “I SAID WAKE UP!!!” A powerful shock ran through Ethan Osborn, who was a young man in his early twenties with a bruised and cut face, a mop of dirty blonde hair, and blue eyes. He was wearing a ruined blue hoodie with a black shirt underneath, blue jeans, and black and white sneakers, causing him to sit bolt upright, wide awake. As Ethan looked around, he came to realize that he was in a totally white space of some kind, like a world of nothing or something like that. Well, almost nothing. “At last, you’ve woken up. Now we can begin,” said what appeared to be a man wearing a black leather trench coat, black dress pants, black dress shoes, black leather gloves, and a wide-brimmed hat that completely shrouded his face in shadow. He also had a sleek black cane in his hand. “Wh-who are you?” asked Ethan. “My name is Kilroy, and it is my honor to welcome you to purgatory,” said Kilroy. “Wait… purgatory? As in the purgatory where dead people go to find out if they’re going to be sent to Heaven or Hell?” asked Ethan, a shiver of fear creeping into him as he stood to face Kilroy. “Is there any other?” asked Kilroy with a small chuckle. “And before you ask, yes, that means you’re dead. A snow drift caused you to hit a patch of glare ice and made you lose control of your vehicle and collide with a semi-truck. You were pronounced dead at the scene.” Ethan nodded to show he understood. “So… I take it that means you’re going to weigh my sins or however that works?” he asked Kilroy. “Hardly. I’m here to offer you a chance to be reborn, and become a hero whose legend will be told through the end of time,” said Kilroy. “R-really?” asked Ethan. “Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s do this thing!” “Ah-ah-ah. There’s more to it than that. First and foremost, you will be reborn in an alternate world that most believe to exist only in fiction. And while we’re on the topic of fiction, you must select a character from any form of fiction, good, evil, or somewhere in the middle to be reborn as,” explained Kilroy. Ethan placed his hand on his chin in thought. There were so many characters he wished he could be, but which one should he pick? A small smile crossed Ethan’s face as his choice crept into his mind. “I want to be reborn as Jason Todd, aka The Arkham Knight,” he said confidently. “Very well, then.” ... Her heart beat was rapid and her breaths were short and quick as the red and yellow haired girl continued running for her life down the streets of Canterlot, knowing full well that if she looked back she would meet the bright headlights of the humvees, filled with soldiers that were hunting her. And at the front of them, leading the charge, was Rainbow Dash, Captain of Nightmare Moon’s Lunar Guard. Sunset Shimmer, who was clad in a black trench coat, black jeans, black leather boots, and a pink blouse with a red and yellow stylized sun on the front, was doing a good enough job at keeping herself distanced from the humvees due to her taking several shortcuts through alleyways, but she knew that if she slowed just a bit then that short drop of speed could be her downfall. She turned another corner, entering another alleyway as she could hear Rainbow Dash behind her yelling out in anger. She stole a quick glance behind her, seeing the humvees behind her still, slowing down as they drove in the alley, most likely several more of them would be waiting for her on the other side. True to her suspicions, turning her head she could see the other end of the alley was blocked by a large humvee, Rainbow Dash herself stepping out with an angry glare stabbing daggers directly towards Sunset as more of her men climbed from the vehicle, all of them armed and ready to fire at Sunset. “You really thought you could outrun us?!” Rainbow shouted, taking her own weapon from one of the soldiers handing it to her. She had a rainbow-patterned mohawk and rose-colored eyes, and wore a suit of midnight blue and black armor that was somehow more elegant and regal than the traditional Lunar Guard armor, and which had a dark blue cape draped over her shoulder. Being a Night Flier like the rest of the Lunar Guard, she had a pair of bat wings attached seamlessly to her back. Otherwise, she looked like a normal human woman with a strong and athletic build. “Why not? I kept myself distanced from you long enough,” Sunset answered, nervously smiling and shrugging. “Wit won’t save you now. Only an act of God can save you, and that’s not likely to happen. After all, that’s the only thing that could’ve helped you accomplish your goal,” replied Rainbow, a look of cold fury on her face and a look in her eyes that suggested Sunset was just a bit of muck to clean off her boots as she pulled back the hammer of her pistol. “Now, hold still so I don’t have to waste any more bullets.” Sunset gulped and watched as Rainbow aimed down the sights of her pistol, aiming directly towards her head as she grinned, ready to pull the trigger before a loud bang echoed through the alley. But surprisingly, the bang didn’t come from Rainbow’s pistol, as her hand was thrown back and she yelled in pain, looking upwards to the building by them with the soldiers and Sunset doing likewise to notice a tall silhouette standing there as its glowing eyes stared directly to them as it lowered its arm, a pistol in its hand that it sheathed. “Well, now, what have we here?” asked the silhouette, its voice sounding both demonic and robotic as it glared down at the people in the alleyway. “And just what the Sam Hell are you supposed to be?” demanded Rainbow. “Oh, where are my manners?” said the silhouette before it jumped into the alleyway, the dim light from the nearby neon signs revealing it to be a being that seemed to be a mixture of a demon and a soldier or a mercenary. It wore the top half of a black, gray, and blue suit of body armor that had a white stylized “A” insignia on its chest and both shoulders, red and black camouflage military pants with a belt that held two handguns and a variety of other weapons and gadgets, black and gray military combat boots, and glowing blue mask that had what looked like bat ears attached to it. “I am The Arkham Knight.” Rainbow raised an amused eyebrow. “‘The Arkham Knight?’” she asked. “Well, I tried to pick a memorable name, a cool outfit, and some highly useful weapons and tools,” said the Knight with a shrug. “Now it’s my turn to ask the questions. Care to share why exactly you were chasing after this beautiful woman?” “I could… but, I actually have a better idea,” said Rainbow, signaling her soldiers, who aimed their automatic rifles at The Arkham Knight, despite the looks of fear on their faces. “How about you ditch those weapons and get on your knees with your hands behind your head?” The Arkham Knight lightly sighed and shook his head. “Sure, sure. Whatever you say, doll.” He said as he lowered down to his knees, taking his weapons out and placing them on the ground in front of him. Rainbow growled lightly at the Arkham Knight’s comment, one of her men walking over to him and taking out a pair of handcuffs, reaching down to cuff the Arkham Knight before the man was knocked backwards as his jaw felt metal impacting it before an elbow was sent into his stomach, bringing him to his knees before the back of the Knight’s boot knocked him to the ground, unconscious. Rainbow grabbed a gun and aimed it towards the metal assailant, but he had already grabbed his guns and fired four shots, taking out the legs of Rainbow’s guards, before quickly turning around and firing multiple shots to the others on the other side of the alley, making sure he didn’t hit Sunset. Rainbow growled louder and began firing, ignoring the groaning soldiers at her feet as she stepped up to the Arkham Knight. Acting quickly, the Arkham Knight threw a flashbang grenade at Rainbow, temporarily blinding her long enough for him to knock the rifle out of her hands and knock her to the ground. The Arkham Knight aimed one of his handguns at Rainbow’s face. “Don’t make me shoot a woman. Especially a pretty woman like you,” warned the Arkham Knight, his synthesized voice full of menace.“Now, why are you hunting down ketchup and mustard over there?” Sunset growled at the Arkham Knight’s insult, crossing her arms as Rainbow grimaced. “I’m not going to ask twice hun.” “First off, stop with the ‘hun’ and ‘pretty woman’,” Rainbow spat to the Knight, “and secondly, get the Hell out of here. This does not concern you.” “Yeah, I could just walk away right now and let you guys take her away...” Arkham turned to Sunset, who’s face turned to slight worry as she saw him turn to her, “but fuck that. Now tell me, what do you want her for?” Arkham pressed his handgun up to Rainbow’s cheek, giving her the perfect opportunity to smack his hand away, knocking the gun out of his hand as she kicked the Knight in the chest, knocking him back and causing him to stagger. She took the opportunity to get up as the Knight aimed his second pistol directly at her, preparing to fire as Rainbow grabbed his gun hand, sending her fist forward and landing it on his mask, sending his head back as her steel knuckled gauntlets crashed against him. He yanked his hand from Rainbow’s vice-like grip as she aimed another strike to his face, but she was too slow as Arkham ducked under it and sent his boot to her stomach, not doing much other than causing her to stagger due to her armor, but he quickly delivered an uppercut, knocking her head back. She growled loudly and delivered a headbutt, connecting with Arkham’s helmet. She groaned lightly in pain as Arkham shook his head, punching her in the jaw again, knocking her back as he sent his elbow to the other side of her jaw, sending her to the side as she hit the wall. Arkham took this to his advantage, attempting to kick Rainbow in the face, only for her to grab onto his leg and pulled him down to the ground. “Well, I must admit, you certainly know how to stand your ground,” growled the Arkham Knight as he pulled himself off of the ground. “Well, you don’t become Captain of the Lunar Guard just by looks alone, you know,” replied Rainbow. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to make a few calls.” Before the Knight could stop her, Rainbow took to the skies faster than a bullet. Arkham growled in anger as he watched her escape before turning to Sunset, who whimpered in fear and involuntarily scooted herself away under the Knight’s gaze. “You okay?” The Arkham Knight asked the beautiful woman on the ground as he held out his hand to help her up. With a look of the utmost terror on her face, Sunset very, very carefully took the Arkham Knight’s hand. “Y-yes. I-I’m fine,” she whispered. “Good. Grab a gun. Your BFF most likely went to call in some back up,” said Arkham as he crouched down in front of one of the dead Lunar Guards and grabbed his radio. Sunset nodded and did as she was told, taking a rifle from one of the other soldiers. “By the way, what’s your name?” “Sunset. Sunset Shimmer,” replied Sunset. Looking over her shoulder, Sunset noticed that Arkham was dismantling the radio he’d taken. “What’re you doing?” she asked the demonic being. “Taking the encryption key from this radio,” Arkham explained as he pulled out a small device that resembled a video game controller, expanded it, causing a holographic screen to appear, and inserted a small chip of some kind into the side. “If I can hack into these jarheads’ comms systems with my Cryptographic Sequencer, also known as a Remote Hacking Device, I’ll be able to listen in on them. They won’t be able to sneeze without me knowing about it.” Sunset raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t that illegal?” she asked the Knight. The Arkham Knight shrugged. “Can’t be any more illegal than anything I’ve done already,” he said, before looking over his shoulder at Sunset. “Or, judging by the effort these guys put into killing you, anything you’ve done, which we’ll be discussing once we get out of here.” A moment later, the Arkham Knight was successfully hacked into the Lunar Guard’s comms systems… and he found his prediction was correct. “-this is Captain Dash. I’ve run into a little trouble in attempting to apprehend the suspect. Some kind of gun-totting demon-robot thing came out of nowhere and just took out a bunch of my men, Request reinforcements to the alleyway on 4th and 2nd street,” said Rainbow over the Knight’s comms. “Reinforcements are on the way, Captain,” replied a male voice. “Crap. Time to go,” said Arkham as he grabbed Sunset’s hand and pulled her out of the alleyway into the street, just in time to see no more than six humvees pull up from both sides of the street, these ones armed with roof-mounted chain guns, and deploying more Lunar Guard as they screeched to a stop. “Let’s see you fight your way out of this one,” said Rainbow Dash as she landed on top of a building across the street. “So, you ready to give up yet?” “Oh, I’m far from ready to give up.” Arkham replied, making a small grin hidden under his mask as he pushed a button on the wrist of his left gauntlet. As Rainbow opened her mouth to speak, a loud roar was heard in the distance growing louder until a large silver vehicle blasted onto the street and towards Sunset and Arkham, ramming a humvee out of the way and screeching to a halt in front of the two as the tires extended from the sides and a large cannon appeared out from the top, giving the vehicle a tank-like appearance as the main weapon aimed right at the humvees behind Rainbow and her soldiers. “60 Millimeter Cannon operational,” said a computerized female voice before the cannon fired several rounds at the humvees, destroying them on contact. “Blow that thing to scrap metal!” yelled Rainbow, a hint of panic in her voice as her troops began to open fire upon the vehicle. “Riot Suppressor engaged,” said the female computerized voice as a machine gun unfolded from the side of the cannon and sprayed bullets into the attacking soldiers, ripping through their bodies and armor, causing their blood to splatter across the pavement and ruined vehicles, and forcing Rainbow to run for cover. With the soldiers either dead or seriously injured, Arkham grabbed Sunset’s wrist and pulled her to the car before climbing inside and pressing a button on the control console, causing the back to open and two seats with harnesses to extend out from it. “Alright! Now let’s get out of here!” Sunset looked at the vehicle uneasily as she tried to catch her, a shiver of fear and suspicion stopping her from hopping right into one of the seats. “You know, my mother warned me about getting into cars with strange men,” she told the Arkham Knight. “First off, this isn’t a car. Secondly, what makes you think you have a choice? If you want to stay alive, that is,” replied Arkham. Sunset winced at the Knight’s reply, knowing that he was right. “Okay, fine, just get us the Hell out of here in one piece,” she said, sitting down in one of the seats before the harness lowered itself, securing her inside as both of the back seats returned to the interior of the vehicle. The Arkham Knight smirked under his mask as he hit the gas pedal and drove away at breakneck speeds, all while Rainbow Dash was watching from her hiding spot in shock, horror, and awe. Okay, what the Hell is going on here? Where did that thing come from, and where did he get that huge tank-mobile thing from? And those weapons, how’d he get his hands on those? thought Rainbow, her mind racing as she looked at the carnage the so-called Arkham Knight had left in his rescue attempt. Nightmare Moon’s gonna wanna hear about all of this ASAP, so I’d better get back to Moonlight City. And with that, the young bat-winged woman took to the skies faster than a bullet, determined to tell her queen about the deadly new enemy that had arrived.
The ArmoryAs she sat in the back of the Arkham Knight’s vehicle, Sunset’s mind was racing with questions about this strange being who had saved her life. Where had he come from? Where did he get all of these weapons and this tank-mobile thing? And more importantly, where were they going now? Almost as if he could read her mind, the Arkham Knight spoke up. “I know you must have a ton of questions you’re just dying to ask me, Sunset, like ‘Who the Hell is this guy?’ and ‘Where did he get all of these weapons and this strange vehicle from?’ Well, I’m afraid those questions will have to wait until you’ve answered all of my questions once we get back to The Armory,” said Arkham. Sunset looked over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow. “First off, what’s ‘The Armory,’ and secondly, what questions?” she asked the demonic being. “Oh, just some simple questions, like why in the Hell did the military put that much effort into making you dead, and why does my control panel’s clock say it’s 11:30 AM when it looks more like 11:30 at night?” replied the Knight. “As for The Armory, it’s my, or perhaps I should say our, base of operations. It’s located in the abandoned crystal mines underneath Canterlot. No one even remembers they exist in the first place. It’s the perfect place for a hideout, or maybe even a prison of some kind.” “Okay, first off, what do you mean OUR base of operations? Who says I’m working with or alongside you at all. Secondly, if nobody remembers these mines exist, then how do you know about them?” asked Sunset. The Arkham Knight chuckled. “You’d be surprised what you can find by reading dusty old books, Sunset. More importantly, since you were just attacked by the military, I’m guessing you don’t have anywhere to go, so I figured I’d offer my hospitality. In any case, we’re almost there, so hang on.” A few moments passed by in silence before the Arkham Knight turned his vehicle into a dark cave, the entrance of which was littered with overturned minecarts. As he approached a solid crystal wall that looked to be the result of a cave-in at break-neck speeds, the Knight pressed a button on his vehicle’s control panel that caused the wall to slide up into the cave ceiling, and reveal a hidden ramp that spiraled upwards. Taking the ramp, the Knight soon drove his vehicle through a waterfall and onto a metal platform before coming to a stop. “This is it, we’re here,” said Arkham as he opened the cockpit of his ride and let Sunset out of the backseat. As she got out of her harness and stood up and took a look around at the Arkham Knight’s base of operations, only two words came to mind, “Ho-ly shit.” Draped over the cavern walls were blood-red banners bearing the Arkham Knight’s insignia. Overhead spotlight provided illumination to the base while multi-level metal platforms provided the base’s flooring. Additional rooms and corridors had been added, thus making the base even bigger than what Sunset could see at the moment. “How in the Hell… did you get all of this equipment and weapons and everything else?” asked Sunset in a hushed whisper. The Arkham Knight chuckled as he walked up beside Sunset, “Let’s just say I was made an offer I couldn’t refuse. And when I agreed to that offer, the guy who made it went all out on his end of the bargain,” he said before he pressed something on the side of his helmet, causing it to slide up and reveal his face. Sunset did a double-take when she saw the Arkham Knight unmasked. He was a human man around her age with jet-black hair, icy blue eyes, and a burn scar just under his left eye in the shape of the letter J. “In any case, now that we’re in the safety of The Armory, we can finally be properly introduced,” said the unmasked Knight, his voice sounding far different from the voice his mask gave him. “My name is Jason Todd, and welcome to my home,” he said, holding out his hand. Very, very carefully, Sunset took Jason’s hand. “Heh, I get it. J for Jason,” she said, pointing at the scar on Jason’s face with her free hand. “Actually… it’s J for Joker.” Sunset raised an eyebrow. “‘Joker?’ Who’s ‘Joker?’” she asked the armor clad being. “No one you’d ever want to meet. Truth be told, I don’t like talking about how I got my scar. So, how about I give you the tour of this place instead?” said Jason. “Um… okay,” said Sunset, following Jason as he walked towards a corridor. “So, the room we’re in right now is the Hangar Bay. Right now, all we have in means of rides is the Arkham-Mobile, but I’m working on different modes of transportation,” explained Jason. Sunset raised an eyebrow. “‘The Arkham-Mobile?’ That’s the best name you could come up with for that tank you drive?” she asked. “Well, I was going to call it the Knight-Rider, but that name was already taken,” explained Jason as he led Sunset past various rooms, which he pointed out as they passed by. “That’s the Medical Bay on the right there, the Augmented Reality Training Facility is across the hall on the left,” said Jason, pointing at two solid steel doors with what Sunset recognized as handprint scanners where the doorknobs should be. “I’ll have to add your handprints to the database later.” “What’s ‘Augmented Reality?’” asked Sunset. “I believe the more common term is ‘Virtual Reality,’” explained Jason. “Anyways, coming up here on the right is the Equipment Room, where I keep all of my guns, gadgets, and other types of weaponry, and on the left is the Living Quarters, which I might add is where you’ll be staying, and dead ahead here would be the Computer Room.Thankfully, we don’t get crocodiles in here very often, if ever.” “What do you mean, ‘crocodiles?’” asked Sunset as Jason placed his hand on the scanner. “Eh, it’s nothing, just something from back home,” said Jason as the scanner finished reading his handprint and the door swung open, allowing them to enter. As Sunset looked around the Computer Room, she once again found herself wondering just how exactly someone could get all of this stuff in here without getting caught. Dominating the room was a MASSIVE supercomputer with multiple screens, each displaying the Arkham Knight’s insignia a set of chairs stationed around it. “Take a seat,” said Jason, pulling out a couple of chairs. “So, start talking. What’s going on here? Why is it dark when it should be broad daylight?” Sunset sat down in one of the chairs before answering. “So... You don’t know Nightmare Moon and her takeover of Equestria?” Sunset waited for a response, but she took Jason’s silence as response enough to continue. “Well... It all started... Six years ago I believe. When Nightmare Moon had taken over Equestria after defeating her sister, Celestia, and stripping her of her magic. Then she banished her to the moon, taking her entire kingdom.” “Why did this Nightmare Moon want to defeat Celestia?” Jason asked. “Well... It happened a very, very long time ago.” Sunset replied, “Back when Nightmare Moon was still Celestia’s sister, Luna. Luna would raise the moon while Celestia raised the sun. One day, Luna began feeling jealous of Celestia, and how everyone loved the daytime that Celestia gave to us all, while we merely slept through Luna’s night.” “Sooo.... How? This ‘Luna’ raises the moon, while her sister raises the sun? How the hell is hat possible?” Jason asked. “They do it through magic.” Sunset responded. “Ah. Of course. Magic. The get out of jail free card. Carry on.” Sunset looked to Jason with confusion, but continued anyways. “And after Luna banished her sister to the Moon, she’s... built a very strong grip on the land and its people, to put it lightly. She’s created her own army to hunt down any and all that still supported Celestia.” “So... This army of hers... that was who I fought. With that rainbow-haired chick. So I take it you’re someone who supports Celestia still?” Jason said. “Well… yes. But they were also chasing me for another reason.” Sunset said. A moment of silence fell unto the room before Jason coughed and spoke. “Soooo... are you going to tell me what that other reason is?” “Oh, right. Sorry. Well... they were chasing me because I’m guilty by association with a very wanted Celestia supporter, named Twilight Sparkle. She used to work at Eclipse Labs working on genetically adapting crops so that they’d grow in the moonlight. But, this message she left me says otherwise,” said Sunset, fishing her cell phone out of her pocket, only to discover that it was badly damaged. “Dammit. It must’ve gotten wrecked during the chase.” “Give it here,” said Jason. Sunset handed her phone to Jason, who promptly began dismantling the device until he found the component he needed, which he placed into a slot on his supercomputer. Jason turned towards the supercomputer and began typing in commands until the right box of text and coding gibberish appeared on the screen. “Show all recent calls and messages from Twilight Sparkle,” he said, causing another box to appear. “Voicemail or text?” Jason asked Sunset. “Um… voicemail,” said Sunset. “Okie-doke. Play the most recent voicemail.” A moment later, a frightened female voice boomed over the computer’s speakers. “Sunset, it’s me, Twilight. I know we’re both already in hot water as it is, given our beliefs, but now… well, let’s just say the water I’m in is boiling now. You know how the Imperial Government contracted us to work on adapting crops to survive in moonlight? The humanitarian thing? Well, it turns out, that’s just a front. All the work I’ve put into allowing this desolate world a better chance for survival, all for nothing. Here’s what’s really going on. Yesterday, I was outside Dr. Eclipse’s office and I heard him and Nightmare Moon talking about something… terrible. Sunset, they’re experimenting on innocent people to turn into Nightmare Moon’s soldiers! They also talked about something called ‘Project Tantabus-’” A loud crash was heard in the background, followed by a second voice, one both Jason and Sunset recognized as Rainbow’s, bellowed, “Don’t move, sun-loving scum! Take her!” The shout was followed by sounds of a struggle before the line went dead. Jason stood up and stretched.“Well, that tears it. That absolutely tears it. Nightmare Moon must be taken down,” he said. “And… how are you going to go about doing that?” asked Sunset, raising an eyebrow. Jason pressed the button on his mask, causing it to slide over his face again. “What I’m going to do is add your handprints to the database. After that, I’m not going to do a thing,” said the Arkham Knight. “What WE are going to do, though, is get you trained up in the AR Room, then we’re going to find out where this Twilight Sparkle is, rescue her, and find out what she knows about these experiments and this ‘Project Tantabus’ and then we’re going to destroy Eclipse Labs. After that, we’re going to recruit anyone and everyone we can to build an army.” “And assuming we’ve done all that without getting ourselves killed?” asked Sunset with a smirk on her face. “Then, it’s time to go to war.” ... Inside the Everfree Forest on the outskirts of Moonlight City, the capital of the New Lunar Empire, stood a dark, yet magnificent castle. Over a thousand years ago, this castle had been known as “The Castle of The Two Sisters.” Following the clash between the Princess of the Sun and the Princess of the Moon, the castle had been all but destroyed, and had remained that way for over a thousand years until Nightmare Moon’s triumphant return and takeover. Now, fully rebuilt and redesigned to fit its new occupants tastes, the castle was now called simply “Nightmare Castle.” And it was this castle that Captain Rainbow Dash approached. After her credentials were check and the castle guards saluted her, Rainbow entered the castle and followed its dark and twisted corridors, taking great care to avoid the traps that had once been placed there as mere practical jokes, but now had far more lethal additions like spikes at the bottom of the pits. Finally, Rainbow arrived at the throne room and approached the imposing and powerfully built black-winged woman with teal snake-like eyes, fangs, and smoke-like dark blue hair clad in black and dark blue battle armor complete with a helmet, a long black cape, and a rapier at her side and kneeled before her. “My queen… we have a serious problem brewing in our midst. I was unable to kill Sunset Shimmer,” said Rainbow. “Is catching a simple Spellcaster beyond even your talents, Captain Dash?” asked Nightmare Moon, malice in her voice alongside a hint of amusement. “No, of course it isn’t. I actually had her dead to rights, trapped with nowhere to run. But, before I could pull the trigger… someone or something intervened and shot the gun out of my hand,” explained Rainbow. “Oh? And who, pray tell, was it that intervened?” asked Nightmare Moon, mildly interested. Rainbow sighed. “He calls himself ‘The Arkham Knight.’ His hand-to-hand combat skills are exceptional, probably almost as good as yours, and his gunplay is astounding. He took out most of the troops I’d brought with me to catch Shimmer. I called for backup, but then… things only got crazier,” she explained. “How so?” asked Nightmare. “Out of nowhere this car-tank thing showed up and blasted the crap out of my reinforcements and forcing me to take cover. The technology this guy has, it’s… unbelieveable.” Nightmare Moon seemed thoughtful for a moment. “I hope you don’t mind if I check the validity of your statements,” she said, raising an armored hand. “I suggest you hold still.” On that note, Nightmare Moon’s eyes turned a shadowy black color as Rainbow screamed in pain, for it felt like her memories were being ripped out of her brain, which, in a way, they were. Finally, after what seemed like forever, Nightmare Moon’s eyes stopped glowing and Rainbow collapsed, gasping for breath. Nightmare Moon pondered over the memories she’d just obtained from Captain Dash. This mysterious Arkham Knight character was greatly skilled, powerful, and provided he could be persuaded to serve her, he could be an invaluable ally with the resources he had. “Get Rarity, Pinkamena, and Starlight in here. We must find this so-called Arkham Knight and convince him to join us. Or, if he cannot be persuaded, then we must destroy him. Am I making myself clear?” said Nightmare Moon. “Y...yes, your majesty…” gasped Rainbow. “Good, then get going.” Rainbow slowly and painfully got up off the floor and set out to do her task. As the throne room doors shut behind Rainbow, a second voice, seemingly from the back of Nightmare Moon’s own mind, spoke up. “What makes you so sure that this Arkham Knight can even be killed, should he refuse to join you?” Nightmare Moon growled. “Show yourself, Luna!” Then, as if on cue, a figure emerged from the shadows, one that looked identical to Nightmare Moon. Except, her hair looked long and elegant, almost as if she were wearing the night sky itself. She also lacked Nightmare Moon vertical pupils and fangs. Additionally, she was not dressed the same. While Nightmare Moon wore battle armor, this one wore clothes one would expect from someone of royal blood. She wore a long, flowing dress that was designed after the night sky, complete with countless stars dotting along it. It, like her hair, rippled gently in the breeze from a nearby open window, giving the figure an almost ghost-like appearance… which, to all intents and purposes, she was. Nothing more than a hallucination created by a part of Nightmare Moon that she couldn’t really destroy, nor could it destroy her… not to say that neither of them didn’t try. Princess Luna walked from the shadows, but she wasn’t looking to Nightmare Moon, instead she was gazing to the night sky. “I never thought that any of this could happen from my own jealously. People starving, dying, tortured, used as lab rats, and God knows how many other unspeakable things you’ve done, all because I wanted the night to be appreciated for what it truly was. I never thought my own jealousy could create a monster like you,” the true Lunar Princess said, her sorrowful gaze directed at the moon where she and the murderous tyrant who now controlled her body had spent 1,000 years… where her own sister was now trapped, powerless and without any hope of escape. Nightmare Moon gave a short laugh. “Monster? I? You forget, Luna, no one showed any gratitude for the night you slaved away over week after week, month after month, year after year, century after century. I did what you could never do, what you were too weak to do! I defeated Celestia and put an end to her daylight. Now they have no choice but to love the night, or else pay the price.” “And look what’s become of it!” snapped Luna, her voice echoing throughout Nightmare Moon’s mind. “Everyone appreciates the night, the beauty it has given the world.” Nightmare Moon responded, growing more impatient with Luna the more she continues. “Yes. And look at the early years. The terror. The night is beautiful, but in my jealousy I had clearly not seen the little bumps in my wish.” Luna spoke, turning to face Nightmare, “Crops dying from the lack of my sister’s sun, causing animals and people alike to all starve.” “But look now, we’re prospering.” “After years of death. The crops dying weren’t the only thing that caused people to die, there were also the riots from those who still support my sister.” “The sun worshipers? They may have been a threat before, but that is history. Now, everybody is happy. The time of rioting and death is something of the past.” “Yes, yes it is. And now is the time of silent raids and assassinations. Like with Sunset Shimmer.” Nightmare Moon growled softly, not being particularly fond of being reminded of one of her supposed best soldier’s failed operation. “We were caught off guard by the ‘Arkham Knight’s appearance. It will not happen again.” Luna looked to Nightmare Moon, her face slowly growing confused as she could practically see a light bulb turn on inside of Nightmare’s eyes. “And I know just how to do it.” Nightmare said, grinning with malice as she walked over to a nearby table, picking up a small object that Luna recognized as her old phone, and began typing. “Who are you calling?” Luna asked. “I have several amazing soldiers, but I have one that I’ve used only on certain occasions, one that can take out this ‘Arkham Knight’ character. But if what Rainbow Dash said is true, and he truly does have such advanced technology, then I might need more.” “More?” Luna asked. “What, are you going to send more soldiers after him? You know how well that turned out.” “Don’t be foolish Luna, I’ve got a better plan. Something that’ll attract the attention of far more... special... people.” Nightmare Moon turned her attention back to the phone, speaking into it before walking around her desk, picking up a small briefcase. “What are you planning, Nightmare Moon?” Nightmare chuckled softly before turning the phone away from her, “Nothing you should concern yourself about Luna, just a bounty or two to welcome our new friend to our beautiful land.” She flashed Luna a malicious grin before moving the phone back to her, walking away from Luna, who wore a face of concern. “Oh sister... If only I had never tried to change the balance of the days...”
AR TrainingGuns. Lots of guns. And knives. And grenades. And all sorts of other gadgets, protective gear, and weaponry. That’s what lined the walls of the Armory’s Equipment Room. “Come on,” said the Arkham Knight, gesturing for Sunset to enter. “The first thing we need to do is upgrade your wardrobe, because the one you’re wearing right now isn’t going to let you survive this impending war with Nightmare Moon and her subordinates, so I suggest you start with the protective gear before you choose your weapons.” Sunset nodded and began looking through the protective vests and light armor, trying to find something that would work for her. As she did, the Knight spoke up again. “So, uh… do you have any actual combat skills or abilities?” “Well, yeah, of course I do,” said Sunset as she held a bodysuit against her slender frame. “I was Princess Celestia’s apprentice back when her School for Gifted Spellcasters was open. She taught me all kinds of offensive and defensive spell, like this one spell that not only turns me invisible, but completely mutes my movements.” “Yeah, that’s all well and good, but can you actually kick someone’s ass WITHOUT using any hocus-pocus whatsoever?” asked the Knight. Sunset looked a little nervous before she gave her answer. “Well… I can kick and punch, if that’s what you mean. But, why does it matter when I can just use my magic and your guns to blast enemies out of the way?” The Arkham Knight chuckled. “A typical response. It seems as though Celestia’s teachings have taught you to rely too much on magic alone. To be honest, magical training from what amounts to a sun goddess might be well and good if we were squaring off against common thugs and criminals. Except, we’re not,” he said, turning to look Sunset dead in the eye. “We’re going up against a tyrant who has god-like magic of her own and who has her hands wrapped around this country’s, hell, maybe even this whole world’s throat. And backing her up is a battle-hardened, possibly augmented, army and God only knows what else. An enemy with Nightmare Moon’s resources and power more than likely has the means to negate magic. You’ll need to be able to fight should that happen. Is that understood?” Sunset nodded her head and said, “Yes.” “Good. Now, hurry up and get your equipment together, and I’ll get the AR Room ready.” … Meanwhile, in Nightmare Castle, three women were approaching the conference room, where they’d been summoned to by their queen, Nightmare Moon. “What do you think her majesty wants to see us for?” asked one of the women, who had purple hair with a streak of mint green in it and wore a white labcoat with the New Lunar Empire coat-of-arms on the left hand breast pocket and a black tank top underneath, black dress pants, and black dress shoes. This was Starlight Glimmer, Head of Nightmare Moon’s Science Division. “I haven’t the slightest idea, yet I can’t help but wonder if this has something to do with those strange rumors I’ve heard about that sun-worshiper’s getaway,” said the second woman, whose purple hair was tied up into a bun and wore a simple diamond necklace, a navy blue dress jacket with a white shirt underneath, a matching skirt, black heels, and red glasses. This was Rarity Belle, and she was in charge of the New Lunar Empire’s financial business. “One of your projects didn’t escape, did it, Starlight?” Starlight shook her head. “I’m a geneticist, not a robotics engineer. Rainbow’s the one in charge of weapons development as she’s the Captain of the Guard. Ask her,” she replied. The third woman woman turned to look at Starlight. She had shoulder-length pink hair and wore a black leather jacket with a pink shirt underneath, a dark pink skirt, and knee-length black boots. “That reminds me, when are you going to give Chomper back to me, huh?” “Pinkie, I told you once already we-” said Starlight before an animalistic growl from the pink-haired woman cut her off. “DON’T-CALL-ME-PINKIE!!!” she snarled, putting her fist right up to Starlight’s face. “Whoa, whoa, okay, Pinkamena,” Starlight said defensively. “As I was saying, we still need him for running some tests for my project.” “You mean you still need him to make monsters?” asked Pinkamena. “Shh! Not so loud!” hissed Starlight. A few moments of walking in silence passed by before Rarity decided to break the tension. “So, Pinkamena, how goes the mining projects?” she asked. “About as well as one could expect them to go, even with that Fluttershy and her tree-hugging hippie pals trying to get in the way with all of their ‘damaging the ecosystem’ bullcrap. I mean, in case they haven’t noticed, the sun’s been gone for a whole six years now, so one would think the ecosystem would be a lost cause. In any case, we’re here,” said Pinkamena, pointing at a pair of large double doors. Starlight stepped forward, turning the silver doorknob and opening the door. A long, but silent, creak filled the room as the door opened, Starlight noticing the silhouette of Nightmare Moon herself standing at the end of the room, gazing out the large, circular window onto her kingdom. Starlight stepped into the room along with Pinkamena and Rarity, each of them stopping a few feet behind her and bowing on one knee. “You’ve asked for us, your Highness?” Rarity spoke. “Yes, indeed I have.” Nightmare Moon spoke, taking a moment longer to gaze upon her kingdom before turning, looking down to the three women, “Starlight, I would like to know. How are things going with that little... Hehe... Pet project you’ve been working on?” “I, uh... I’ve made some progress. He hasn’t grown as much as I’d originally thought, but he has grown quite big.” Starlight responded. “Good, good. And Pinkamena? How’s your little friend who’s down in the mines with you?” Nightmare Moon asked, turning to Pinkamena. “He’s, uh... He’s fine. He still doesn’t really speak with anyone, and he prefers staying down in the mine in his own little tunnel he’s made, with us bringing his food and other supplies to him.” “Good... Good. And Rarity? How has the payment gone along?” Nightmare asked. “The payment has gone successfully your Highness. But I wonder, who is this ‘Deathstroke’?” Rarity asked. Nightmare Moon turned her gaze back out the window. “Someone who will come to great use to us in getting rid of this ‘Arkham Knight’. Just make sure not to tell Rainbow.” Rarity raised an eyebrow, wondering what Rainbow would have against calling in this ‘Deathstroke’, but she simply nodded, saying “Yes your highness,” and walked out the door with Starlight and Pinkamena. … An alarm bell was going off inside a well-furnished bank as groups of thugs dressed like garbage workers began heaving piles of money into the garbage bags they had with them. What they didn’t realize was that they were being watched by the Arkham Knight and Sunset Shimmer, who was now wearing a lightly armored black bodysuit with black leather boots, black fingerless gloves, a black belt with two holsters on each side and a variety of other gadgets, and a black leather overcoat. “Welcome to the Financial Crash Predator AR Map, Sunset. Perfect for a rookie like you, as with that alarm blasting, you don’t necessarily need to be stealthy with your attacks. All you have to do take out these thugs and we’ll see where you fit in from there.” “I have to... Take them out? How? They’re everywhere!” Sunset said, watching the groups of thugs in the bank, all of them taking as much money they could carry before hobbling from the bags over to the doors, where a garbage truck that had crashed through the doors was waiting for them. “The alarm will be able to drown out your actions, so don’t worry about them hearing you.” Knight said,“But the alarm won’t last forever, so you’ll have to work quick if you want to get them before it gets cut. After that, you’ll have to work quickly and silently to take them out. Use the floor grates and gargoyles on the ceiling to your advantage.” Sunset looked to the Knight, and then back down, nodding. “Okay, but how am I going to get to the gargoyles?” “For that, you’ll have to use this.” Knight said, pulling out a small object that seemed to have the appearance of a handgun, but had a hook at the end of it. “It’s a grappling hook, but it’s called a Batclaw.” “‘Batclaw’? Why call it a Batclaw?” Sunset asked, raising an eyebrow as she took it from the Knight. It was about as heavy as it looked, with a brown and seemingly wooden grip, with a large barrel that had another, slightly smaller barrel on the bottom of it. “... It’s because of an old friend of mine.” the Knight said, his voice sounding distant and coming off as a whisper almost, “That’s all I’ll be saying about that... Now come on. You’ve still got a room full of bad guys to take out.” Sunset gave the Knight one last look before nodding and firing the batclaw at a gargoyle on the opposite end of the room. The grappling hook then pulled Sunset towards the gargoyle. “Whoa… what a rush,” said Sunset as she pulled herself up onto the gargoyle. From her perch, she caught sight off two thugs, both with their backs turned towards her. “Perfect… easy pickings,” said Sunset as she dropped down from the gargoyle, drew her pistols and snuck up behind the thugs. She stood up behind the thugs and pointed her pistols to the back of their heads, putting her fingers on the triggers, but then hesitating. She closed her eyes and lifted them, bringing them down hard on the thugs and knocking them unconscious. She sheathed her pistols and got out the batclaw, firing it at a gargoyle further away and was lifted to it. The area was still filled with thugs, and she figured it wouldn’t take long for the others to find their two unconscious friends, so she’d have to work faster. A thug began to walk under the gargoyle she was rested on, carrying two large bags of cash. She jumped down and landed on the thug, knocking him down to the ground face first and knocking him out cold. She fired again quickly, checking around her to make sure nobody had spotted her as she was lifted to another gargoyle. There were two more thugs under her, and she could see three more walking to the truck, carrying two bags each. She dropped down slowly, using the batclaw to slow her descent, and landed behind the two thugs. She unsheathed and lifted up her pistols, bringing them down hard onto the thugs. And just then, just as her pistols made contact with the thugs’ heads, the alarm stopped and the impact of her victims being hit was out for everyone in the building to hear along with the dull thud of their bodies falling to the floor. “Hey! What was that?” She heard a thug call out. “You guys okay?” Another one said. She quickly fired the batclaw up to the gargoyle above her, but heard a short cry of fear coming from the door. She turned and saw a thug back up quickly from seeing her, but then aim his gun directly at her. Just as he fired at her, she was shot upwards to the gargoyle, screaming as she felt the bullets fly past her. As soon as she landed on the gargoyle she fired to the ceiling, swinging to a gargoyle closer to her. She continued swinging, hoping that the thugs would eventually lose her. Which they did, thankfully as she had grown tired from the constant swinging from gargoyle to gargoyle. “Getting a little sloppy there, Sunset!” said Arkham. A heartbeat later, she turned and looked to the last three thugs in the room. They were shaking heavily from what she could see, and they seemed like they would shoot at the sound of a pen dropping. “They’re terrified. Use that.” Sunset nodded at the Knight, then watched as two thugs walked away from the other, both of them walking with each other back to back while the lone one wandered off, struggling to stop shaking. Sunset pulled out a shuriken from a pocket on her outfit, and threw it towards the two thugs… and missed completely. However, the ping the projectile made when it hit the wall caused the goons to turn away from Sunset and open fire in the general direction of the noise, giving her the opening she needed. “What the Hell was that?!” asked one of the thugs, before he and his friend had their heads smashed together by Sunset, rendering them both unconscious. Hearing the sound, the sole remaining thug ran as fast as he could to check on his allies, only to be stopped dead in his tracks by a burst of gunfire from Sunset’s pistol. “Simulation complete,” said a computerized female voice as the AR Room returned to its original form and the Arkham Knight walked up to Sunset. “Not bad, Miss Shimmer… not bad at all,” said Arkham, sounding impressed. “Well, truth be told, that was actually kind of fun. It got my adrenaline pumping, that’s for sure,” said Sunset with a small smile. The Knight crossed his arms. “Well, then, how about we have a little bit more ‘fun’ with a Combat Challenge Map?” asked Arkham. “Bring it. I’m ready,” said Sunset as Arkham walked over to a nearby console and typed in a few commands. “Simulation activated,” said the female computer voice as the interior of a ruined movie theatre, along with a small group of thugs, some of whom were armed with what appeared to be knives and sparklers appeared. Sunset cracked her neck in anticipation for the fight to come. … In the depths of Shadowgate Prison, a young woman around Sunset’s age with shoulder-length blue hair with a magenta stripe wearing a tattered lab coat, a blue dress shirt, a pink bow tie, black jeans, and black dress shoes appeared to be unconscious as she hung from the ceiling by her wrists, which were tied behind her back. The cell door opened and a dark figure entered, causing the woman to stir. “So… you’re still alive. I have to admit, you certainly have fight in you, Miss Sparkle… more than your brother does, anyway,” said the figure. “My… my brother’s… alive?” asked Twilight Sparkle, her voice cracking from a dry throat. “For now, he is,” replied the figure. “Right now, though, that’s the least of your concerns. You see, Nightmare Moon herself has paid me a very handsome amount of money to keep an eye on you, and keep you safe. At least, until this Arkham Knight nutcase shows up to try to rescue you.” “The… who?” choked Twilight. “Oh, don’t worry, it’s nothing you need to worry about. He’ll be dead before long, followed swiftly by you and your brother.”
