Equestria: The Crystal War

Blazing Fire dragged her hooves tiredly. How long had she and her mother been walking for? She didn’t know, but she did know she was bored. She would try to ask her mother to tell her stories about her father, but every time she did, Sunset would turn away and start to cry. Blazing eventually took the hint and stopped asking. She started getting thoughts in her head. Thoughts she didn’t want. Could her father actually be dead? No. He couldn’t be. He’s told her stories of how he helped the CER win major battles for Equestria. He had to be alive. He was just catching up, that’s all.

Sunset Shimmer counted each slow step in her head as she and her daughter walked through the tunnel. Since Braveheart had sent her and Blazing through the tunnel, she had felt something inside of her slowly die. She didn’t feel that connection with her husband that she did when he was with her. Even when he was given an assignment on the battlefield and she didn’t, she could still feel that connection. Now, that connection was gone. Her husband was dead. And there was nothing she could have done.

“Mom?” Blazing asked. Sunset turned to her daughter, her eyes welling up with tears. “Is dad going to be OK?” Blazing continued. Sunset wiped the tears from her eyes, and got ready to tell Blazing the hard truth. But before she could, there was a rumbling in the tunnel coming from the opposite direction. Both mares turned towards the noise, startled. Sunset gritted her teeth.

“What is it?” Blazing asked, taking a step back.

“Sombra’s soldiers,” Sunset growled. “Stay behind me.” She pulled out an assault rifle from the duffel bag, and chambered a bullet. She aimed the rifle down the tunnel, taking steps back to keep advancing, slowly but surely, toward the CER camp. The rumbling intensified, shaking the tunnel, when suddenly a mass of Sombra berserkers thundered into view, bayonets strapped to their armor. Sunset opened fire on the berserkers, taking some of them down. But when her clip ran dry, the berserkers quickly closed in. Sunset grabbed her daughter and waited for the worst. All that met her ears was the sound of slicing flesh and she and Blazing were surrounded by body parts of berserkers. The rest of the berserkers were frozen, seemingly in fear. Sunset looked behind her, and saw a pony behind her, standing calmly with their left hoof outstretched. Something in the air shimmered a bright blue, creating a thin outline. The pony flicked their wrist ever so slightly, and the shimmering outline made sharp movements. More Sombra berserkers were cut up from seemingly nothing, while the occasional blue shimmer lit up when a berserker fell.

“Get behind me,” the pony said in a dull voice. Sunset and Blazing quickly did so, and the pony relaxed. More berserkers that hadn’t seen the carnage rushed into the scene, and something large whizzed by Sunset’s head. It exploded, killing many berserkers. Another pony with a massive anti-tank rifle stepped up next to the dull pony. Her eyes were black with red pinpricks in the center. She reloaded her massive weapon as another pony dual-wielding pistols with long rectangular slides stepped up, blasting the heads off the berserkers. When there were only two berserkers left, Rusty Ace jumped in front of the group and cut their heads off with a sword. Not one of these soldiers’ armor dissolved into shadow. Rusty sheathed her sword and turned around. Sunset straightened up and saluted.

“Lieutenant,” she said. “Are we ever glad to see you.”

“Likewise, Captain Shimmer,” Rusty nodded. “We’re glad we got to you when we did. Sombra berserkers may fall easily, but they are very dangerous in large numbers.”

“Who are you all?” Blazing asked. The three other ponies stepped up to Rusty and turned around. One looked exactly like Rusty, just with a flat manestyle.

“Sunset, Blazing, meet Wolf Squad,” Rusty said. “All bioengineered organisms designed for wiping out legions of Sombra’s forces. While Sombra was busy with his shadow armor, the CER has been just as productive. First, Quartzite.” The pony that looked like Rusty nodded. She wore dark purple eye shadow and her mane was straight and flat, hanging down from her head.

“Quartzite, codenamed ‘Angel of Death’,” Rusty introduced. “She has been gifted with a very special weapon. Using a combination of her hooves and her mind, she can manipulate a magical wire to deflect bullets, cut up soldiers, and make one mean salsa, might I add. While not the most equine way to dispatch of Sombra’s soldiers, she gets her assignments done.” Rusty moved on to the pony with the anti-tank rifle. The mare had a dark purple coat and a raised dark red mane. She smiled a wicked toothy grin, revealing long fangs.

“Crucifix,” she said. “A pony bred from dark magic harvested from Sombra’s shadow armor we’ve destroyed. Little did anypony in the CER know that some of the shadow armor from years ago at the battle of Vanhoover was secretly collected and processed, the dark magic inside being contained. This dark magic, combined with a volunteering CER soldier, produced this monstrosity. Her mind, extremely unstable, only kept intact with the weapon she carries. The volunteering mare had lost a close friend during the battle of Las Pegasus, and the only thing she could remember her by was a single incendiary steel round. Her friend was an artillery expert, you see. So, the CER created the 30 millimeter anti-tank rifle she carries. Firing either depleted uranium rounds or exploding incendiary shells, that thing will obliterate entire chunks of soldiers from Sombra’s ranks. It’s the closest thing Crucifix has to remember her friend by.” Rusty tapped the last pony on its steel shoulder. The pony was a metallic white with shimmers of light blue. She wore a blue screen over her eyes, which lit up with a light blue.

“And finally, Circuit Frost,” she presented. “The first robotic pony with artificial intelligence. Her outer shell is comprised of a titanium and Kevlar alloy, making it virtually indestructible. Inside houses a mix of hydraulics and magnetics, allowing her to lift massive amounts of weight with little effort. Her heads up display can allow her to give detailed and highly accurate predictions of Sombra’s attacks, not to mention analyze wounds on our own soldiers. The guns she carries are very powerful custom longslide pistols. The silver gun fires 454 casull rounds, weighing 6 kilograms and firing 7 rounds per magazine. The black gun is different, firing custom made 13 millimeter exploding rounds and weighing 16 kilograms.”

“Incredible,” Blazing gasped, amazed.

“And if you look, you can see that none of the shadow armor returned to Sombra,” Rusty added. “Celestia herself foresaw this as a possibility, and she ordered that special bullets were to be made. The new rounds are blessed with magic straight from the princess, allowing them to pierce through the shadow armor while preventing it from dissolving. My blade and Quartzite’s wire were given the same properties. We have been preparing for Sombra’s return, most thoroughly.”

“Well, that much is obvious,” Sunset agreed.

“Come on,” Rusty urged. “We need to get back to camp. Sombra will surely have sent more than these berserkers.” Sunset nodded, and the group kept going through the tunnel.

~~~

At the Crystal Empire, Sombra stood in the war room, overlooking the map of Equestria. The areas he had control over were lit up black, while the areas neutral and CER occupied were lit up red. A soldier walked up to him, letting off a series of clicks and groans. Sombra’s eyes narrowed.

“What do you mean, the berserkers haven’t returned yet?” he hissed. “Their mission was simple. Kill Captain Shimmer and bring her daughter back alive. If they are dead, their armor should have returned by now.” The soldier clicked and moaned again, and Sombra’s eyes started to glow in anger.

“What ‘new technology’?” he growled. The soldier took a step back, uttering more clicks and moans. Sombra whipped around, grabbing the soldier by the throat in his magic. The soldier clicked once, and Sombra tore his head off, the armor flowing back to him. He turned back to the map.

“What have you been up to, Celestia?” he snarled. “If you’ve started to get involved, wonderful. It will be a delight to kill you. I forgot how long it’s been since I’ve tasted your personal soldiers’ blood. With Captain Braveheart dead, I presume the morale in your soldiers is falling. It will be your downfall.” Sombra turned away and left the room, gripping a red collar in his hoof.

“As for you, Lieutenant Rusty Ace,” he quietly snarled. “You have betrayed me since the start, and I will kill you for it.” The war room door slammed shut behind him as he dissolved into shadow, flowing toward Braveheart’s house.

~~~

Sunset, Blazing, Rusty, Quartzite, Crucifix, and Circuit Frost continued to walk through the tunnel. They moved quickly, but at a reasonable pace. Suddenly, Circuit Frost stopped dead, looking back the opposite direction.

“What is it?” Rusty asked. Circuit narrowed her eyes. Her HUD lit up and started beeping. Suddenly, it lit up red and let off a violent alarm.

“It’s Sombra!” Circuit cried. In response, Quartzite summoned up her wire, surrounding the group with it. Crucifix aimed her anti-tank rifle down the tunnel, while Circuit shut off her HUD alarm and aimed her custom longslide pistols. Rusty drew her sword and raised a pistol. Sunset and Blazing stayed in the center of the soldiers. The group waited for Sombra’s attack. They all felt a sudden chill as the air temperature quickly dropped around them.

“Here he comes,” Quartzite said. The torches in the tunnel went out, shrouding the group of soldiers in darkness. Only Circuit could see, using her night vision to survey the area. Sombra suddenly jumped out of the shadow, targeting Rusty. Circuit shot her silver gun, briefly lighting up the tunnel and putting a bullet into Sombra’s temple. It didn’t kill him, but the force of the shot forced him sideways into the tunnel wall.

“Move!” Rusty cried. Sunset lit up her horn, casting just enough light to see, and led the group through the darkened tunnel. Circuit and Quartzite stayed in the rear to keep Sombra at bay. Sombra recovered from his bullet wound, and dissolved into shadow to chase down the soldiers. He burst up again, and Quartzite launched her wire at his body. The wire slashed away at Sombra’s flesh, but it healed quickly, proving Quartzite’s efforts worthless. Circuit shot her black gun, and the bullet exploded in Sombra’s face. The wound healed quickly, and Sombra continued to pursue.

“Keep running!” Rusty ordered. “Wolf Squadron, keep him off of us.” Crucifix, Quartzite, and Circuit Frost stopped, ready to defend against Sombra. The torches lit back up, but with green fire. Sombra materialized in front of the three bioengineered soldiers. They all got ready for a fight. Quartzite’s wire flowed around them in spastic patterns, reacting to her state of mind. Sombra’s eyes lit up green, and purple mist started flowing from his eyes.

“You don’t intimidate us, Sombra,” Crucifix hissed, sliding an incendiary round into her anti-tank rifle. “We’ll send you to Tartarus where you belong.” Sombra smirked.

“Then why didn’t the CER before?” he asked. “No matter how many soldiers they send, they can never kill me. Even your best soldier, Captain Braveheart, was it? Not even he could kill me one on one. The CER will fail, and the shadow of the Crystal Empire will consume everything.” His scythe materialized in front of him, and he charged at the super soldiers. Quartzite flicked her hoof, and her wire flew at Sombra. Before he knew what had happened, Sombra had lost all his limbs, and he tumbled to the ground. He bled out, but he quickly started to heal himself. Circuit fired an explosive shot from her black pistol, and it struck Sombra in the face. The shot exploded, coating the walls with blood and brain matter. Sombra rematerialized in seconds, and came swinging. Crucifix fired, and Sombra cut the shell in two. The two halves flew by his head, exploding behind him. He advanced on the soldiers, taking a powerful swing at Quartzite. But the scythe didn’t make contact. Quartzite’s wire had gripped onto the scythe handle, keeping it from moving. Sombra tried to tear his scythe free, but only succeeded in severing the blade from the handle, leaving him with nothing but a stick. He dissipated the scythe remains and conjured up another one from behind the soldiers. Circuit noticed, and whipped around, firing her silver gun. The bullet ricocheted off the scythe, knocking it away while simultaneously sending the bullet to Sombra’s head. The blast pierced his brain, but it grew back almost immediately.

“Damn you!” Crucifix cursed. “Why won’t you just die already? You’re no pony! You’re…”

“A bioengineered regenerator agent,” a calm, older female voice behind the soldiers said. “And they’ve upgraded your healing. You’re a thing.” The three super soldiers turned around, and saw a tall mare with a flowing translucent blue mane and tail, twinkling with white stars. Her coat was a dark blue, and her eyes were teal. She wore black armor with a moon on the chestplate. The helmet kept her mane in a ponytail, and she wielded a sword with a moon on the handle. Despite the threat in front of them, all three soldiers bowed in respect.

“Princess Luna,” Quartzite said. “We are honored by your presence.”

“At ease soldiers,” Luna dismissed. The three super soldiers stood back up as Luna stepped in front of them. Sombra growled and charged, bringing his scythe to him. He swung down, and Luna blocked the attack with her sword. She pushed the scythe up and impaled Sombra through the heart. Sombra gasped for air. Luna tore the sword out of him and cut off his head. Sombra’s corpse fell dead, his head rolling onto the floor of the tunnel. Luna summoned a sword of magic and impaled Sombra’s head to the dirt. She turned around, facing the soldiers.

“Take me to the CER camp,” she ordered. “I have much to discuss with General Dash and my sister.”

“Yes ma’am,” Circuit nodded. The soldiers led Luna through the tunnel to the camp.

~~~

Sunset Shimmer, Blazing Fire, and Rusty Ace had safely made it to the CER camp in Canterlot. Blazing was crying, held in a hug by her mother. The truth of her father’s fate had been told to her, and she was heartbroken. Crucifix, Quartzite, Circuit Frost, and Princess Luna had just recently emerged from the tunnel, and Luna requested an audience with Rainbow Dash and Princess Celestia.

“What?!” Dash cried in anger. “You mean Braveheart wasn’t killed by Sombra at all? It was a regenerating clone? A damned clone!?”

“General Dash, contain yourself,” Celestia scolded. “But Luna, please explain. What was it?”

“King Sombra has developed bioengineered versions of himself to carry out tasks he would rather not,” Luna explained. “Such as killing Captain Braveheart and attempting to kill Captain Shimmer and her daughter. These clones have been given very powerful regenerative properties, allowing them to heal from all manner of wounds, even the blessed bullets, blades, and Quartzite’s wire. Sombra uses artificial armor on his soldiers now as well.”

“We heard,” Dash said. “It returns to Sombra, giving him the location and reason of death.”

“Well, that’s half right,” Luna said. “Instead of returning to Sombra himself, the dissolved shadow armor returns to the regenerator agent, increasing its power and speed of recovery.”

“The bullets we have created nullify the armor’s ability to return to the regenerators, but the bullets are useless. At least against the regenerator agents.”

“Which is why I paid a visit to the Dragon Lands,” Luna said. “Dragon Lords Ember and Spike helped me craft a special blade designed to kill the regenerators. However, they only agreed to make one. They said that they dare not get involved with the war. They wish to remain neutral in this time of conflict.”

“Understandable, but we could use their aid,” Celestia said.

“I spoke with them on the matter, but they refused,” Luna regretted. “A shame too. The dragons have been known to be great hunters back in the olden days of Equestria, wiping out entire legions from existence.”

“Regardless, we have to prepare for an assault,” Dash said. “With Captain Braveheart dead and Captain Shimmer returned to the CER, Sombra is surely preparing for a full assault of Canterlot.”

“And we shall prepare as well,” Celestia said. “Blazing Fire must be given military training, morale must be restored, and Canterlot must be fortified.”

“Indeed, sister,” Luna nodded. “Come then. We have much to do, and little time to do it.” The two sisters began to issue orders to the Crystal Empire Resistance, ready to be the last stand against King Sombra, bringing his rule to an end once and for all.