Cloudnail stumbled back a few steps. Lyra finished her tale and went back to hungrily eyeing the ponies trapped with her. An entire city fell by her hand in one night. They had unleashed a murderous goddess. The stallion at the intercom, with great hesitance, pressed the button to speak.

“We have no desire to oppose you. We would li-”

“No.” Lyra interrupted. “You arm a group of ponies, rig this room full of death traps and tell me you had no intention of attacking me? I have no intention of working with you for any reason.”

“I-IMPOSSIBLE!” Commander Cloudnail yelled, “The only way she could have known about the traps is if she heard me. She shouldn’t be able to hear anything that isn’t broadcasted over the intercom!”

“I can hear you just fine.” Lyra stated matter of factly. She pointed at the commander from the other side of the glass, “You’re the leader of this whole thing, aren’t you?”

Cloudnail gasped in shock and couldn’t form a response. Lyra shrugged and made her way towards the cage where the other prisoners were waiting.

“Let’s get this over with. Go ahead and try swing your little metal toys at me. Maybe this time I’ll die.”

The two stallions solemnly nodded to each other. They grabbed the remaining sword and spear and charged Lyra.

Lyra smiled, “That’s more like it!” The sword wielding stallion approached her first. She firmly grabbed the blade of his sword and kicked him in the stomach. He was propelled across the room towards the glass, his body rolling along the ground. He clutched his stomach, groaning in pain. With the sword wrenched free, Lyra turned around just before the second stallion approached and ran her through with his spear. The spear burst through her chest, piercing her heart on the way through. She took the sword in her hand and impaled herself as well as the stallion behind her. The stallion fell to the floor once both weapons were removed from her body. She threw the spear at the stallion she kicked, suddenly and violently piercing his neck and finishing him off.

The female prisoner grabbed the machine gun from the crate and ran towards the glass wall to put distance between her and Lyra. She held the gun in front of her with her magic and opened fire.

“GET AWAY! I DON’T WANT TO DIE!” She screamed as bright muzzle flashes filled her vision. Lyra looked down at her hole-ridden stomach and at the mare’s weapon. She had never seen such a weapon before. She raised her palm in the frightened mare’s direction. Her palm started to split open. The blade she removed from the very first sword was coming out. Her biceps bulged out. The mare started to realize what was about to happen. She ran away from Lyra, carrying the empty machine gun and screaming. Lyra’s arm tracked the mare. Once she was satisfied with the pressure built in her arm, her bicep immediately deflated to it’s normal size, firing the blade through her hand into the side of her head. The blade carried the mare to the glass window and pinned her to it.

Lyra approached the gun and picked it up, examining the foreign device curiously for a minute. She began disassembling the gun and examined each piece. Her observers were awestruck. Gun disassembly is a feat that requires hours of focus to learn much less master. Lyra figured out how to disassemble the gun flawlessly in seconds.

“This is impressive! Weapons that can kill from a distance…”

The stallion at the intercom questioned the need to even use it anymore, but pressed the button anyway, “What do you want?”

“I’m looking for a special stone. Anyone who stands in my way will die. And that includes all of you.”

Cloudnail pointed to the lab coats at the console, “Activate the weapons! Destroy her! She must not be allowed to live!” The ponies agreed and pressed two large buttons on the console. Small holes in the floor opened up and flames erupted up from each one. The room was turned in a makeshift cremation chamber. The vents followed suit and began releasing deadly gases into the room. Everyone squinted at the bright display happening before them. Not even a minute after the gases were released, a green hand burst through the glass wall.

“SH-SHE BROKE THROUGH THE GLASS!” Cloudnail backed far away from the wall, turning to the ponies operating the console, “Quick! Turn off the gas before it gets in here!”

“Y-yes sir!” The ponies frantically hammered away at the buttons. The flame stopped and the vents started pulling in air from the room, sucking up the gas. Lyra was grinning at Cloudnail, the charred fur and burnt flesh on her body steadily regaining their healthy green color. Her arm had stretched out and penetrated straight through the glass wall.

“She’s coming in!” Daring yelled. The soldiers in the room backed away and kept their guns trained on the hand sticking out of the hole. The rest of her body crushed and contorted while her hand held firm against the wall and pulling the rest of her body in. The broken mess of flesh and bone made it through, quickly unfurling and fixing itself until Lyra’s body was back to it’s normal self laying down stomach first. As she got back to her feet, everyone noticed that the bandages covering her lower half did not make the journey, leaving her completely naked.

She raised her hands up, stretching out a little, “Mmmmm, feels good to stretch these old bones after so long.”

The griffin soldiers and Daring Do’s guards trained their guns on Lyra and opened fire. The mare was pressed against the glass wall from the force of all the bullets piercing her body at once. Holes and blood covered her body from head to toe. The mare reached up to her forehead, removing a bullet from inside and looked at it curiously. All the bullet wounds healed completely. She tossed the bullet to the side and looked over the nervous soldiers.

One of the soldiers screamed, dropping his gun and running for the exit. Lyra pointed a finger at the fleeing soldier. A bullet erupted from her pointer finger and pierced the back of his head, killing him instantly.

“Hm. Only about eleven of you left and I still have over one hundred of those metal things still in me. I’ll at least make this fair.” She folded her arms underneath her breasts. Two bullets fired from her nipples, killing another griffon soldier.

“GET DOWN! Daring yelled, dropping to the floor immediately.

Lyra quickly started spraying bullets around the room rapidly from her nipples. The soldiers and guards watching Daring were all mowed down before they could react. Cloudnail and the equine scientists all dropped to the ground immediately to avoid the lead spray.

Lyra took a deep breath and sighed, “There we go. Much better.” She took a quick glance to her left, eyeing the pony that was manning the intercom. She pointed at him and fired one more bullet from her finger. “He annoyed me.”

Daring pulled herself up and got back to her feet, her hands still bound by the straitjacket. Everyone else quickly followed suit. Lyra glanced at Daring.

“Why is the smart one bound?” No one in the room answered her question. Lyra seemed mildly irritated. She shrugged and walked towards the stairwell leading out. “Whatever. It doesn’t concern me. Neither of you could hope to stop me. I have a gem to find.”

Cloudnail ran to the console, shoving the pony in the lab coat to the side and pressed a button. A door rose from the ground, blocking the stairwell. Lyra stopped, staring at the large metal obstruction.

“Do you really think this will stop me?”

Cloudnail’s hand was trembling over a big red button encased in glass, “N-no. But this will. There is a hydrogen bomb in this outpost. In case something like this happened, I can destroy everything here. I doubt even you can survive your entire body being completely obliterated!” Lyra turned around, stretching her right arm out.

“For the Griffonian Empire!” Cloudnail balled up his fist and brought it down. Lyra’s hand reached just in time to catch his. Her outstretched arm rose, hoisting him into the air. She threw him against the door behind her. Before retracting her arm, she brought her hand down upon the remaining stallion scientist’s head, penetrating his skull and absorbing everything inside to ensure he would not try to press the button as well. Her arm retracted, whipping around until it was back at her side at it’s normal length.

She picked up the injured Cloudnail by the neck, lifting him up off the floor. “I was overconfident last time. I do not intend to make the same mistake twice.” Cloudnail instinctively grabbed at her hand, attempting to pry it off. He was foist on to her nipple and held still by her other hand. Cloudnail’s muffled cries reverberated through the mass of titflesh blocking his mouth and view. Milk began to flow through her nipple, flooding his beak.

It was either swallow her milk or drown. Despite this Lyra’s milk was pouring into him faster than he could put it away. He was certain she planned on drowning him. He grabbed her tit and tried to push it away. His hands sunk inside her breast. Unable to feel his hands or remove his arms, he focused on trying to guzzle down the unending torrent of milk. Daring watched Cloudnail’s struggles gradually weaken, listening to the muffled choking sounds coming from Lyra’s breast until his body eventually went limp. Lyra pulled the commander’s head back, looking at the now lifeless eyes. She grabbed the rest of his body and shoved him inside her body, seeing as his hands were already stuck inside. She walked to the console, looking at the buttons and pressing one that was labeled ‘Door Lock’. The doors sealing in the stairwell opened.

Daring Do watched her head up the stairs. Daring would have been content to let her simply leave, but the idea of setting Lyra loose on the world bothered her. She claimed to be immortal, but there had to be a way damage her, a way to stop her. The sounds of gunfire could be heard upstairs for a brief moment, followed by screams that were quickly silenced. Daring assumed more guards attempted to stop Lyra and were most likely already dead now. Daring cautiously followed up the steps after the altercation had ended.

She emerged in the ground floor of a building most likely used as a small cafeteria. A few small puddles of fresh blood were on the floor but no bodies could be found. She remembered this place when she had been lead inside against her will. She never would have guessed that such a facility was hidden underneath from a glance. From the two windows she could the sun was starting to set. Lyra was sitting at a small rectangular table near a wall. Her elbow rest on the table with her head leaning into her hand. She seemed content to do nothing but stare outside with some degree of interest. Daring had the feeling she was on to something.

“I thought you were going to leave.” Daring asked from across the room.

Lyra didn’t seem to acknowledge her.

“After your performance down there, I doubt you’d just stop here to rest.”

Lyra’s eyes drifted towards her, “Hmmm? I thought you would have left already to unbind yourself.”

Daring looked out the window and back to Lyra, “You’re just about impervious to all forms of attack, so there’s no reason you’d be afraid of getting killed outside.”

Lyra’s head turned towards Daring. For better or for worse, Lyra was now interested in her.

“You’re waiting for the sun to go down, aren’t you?”

Lyra chuckled to herself, “Maybe. Maybe I’m just taking a moment to enjoy breakfast.”

“Cute.” Daring quipped, ignoring Lyra’s attempt to rile her up, “If that’s the case, then why not enjoy yourself under the light of the sun. You’ve been sealed in a tomb for countless years, haven’t you? You must dying to see sunlight again.”

Lyra smirked slightly, “For a prisoner, you’re strangely content with antagonizing the mare who just killed all your captors. Would you like to join them? There’s plenty of room in me for more.”

Daring glared at her, stone faced. “Come and get me.”

Lyra slowly stood up from the table. She picked it up and hurled it towards the mare.

Daring rolled under the flying object and got back to her feet, looking completely unfazed. Lyra stared at her for a moment before walking towards her for the kill. Daring started taking deep breaths. Once Lyra was close enough, Daring took one more deep breath. Her hands cut through the straitjacket that bound her. Her hands were sparkling and crackling with energy. She quickly grabbed the whip clipped to her waist and thrust her arm out towards Lyra. The energy surging through Daring’s arm poured into the whip as it unfurled in her direction. Lyra briefly recalled the writings on the chamber wall mentioning a technique that could harness the sun’s energy. She quickly leaned her whole body back, hovering just above the ground while her legs stayed anchored to the ground. The energy charged whip cracked above her and quickly yanked itself back towards Daring.

Lyra pulled her torso back upright and glared cautiously at the mare. “What was that?”

“Just a little something I learned on an expedition to the Himarelayas. It’s called, the Ripple.” Daring Do tore off the straitjacket and tossed it to the side. She grabbed the sides of her shoulders, grabbing a tuft of fur on each side and ripped them off, gritting her teeth through the pain.

“Looks like your little technique requires me to be in close range. All I have to do is kill you from here and I won’t have to deal with that. It’s a good thing I got some more ammunition when I came up here.” Lyra pointed at Daring with both fingers. Bullets erupted from her pointer fingers and her nipples.

Daring scattered the fur in front of her and channeled energy into it. The energy surged through the strands of fur, connecting with each other and creating a wall of energy to block the bullets. She grabbed a small knife from her pocket and threw it into Lyra’s foot from behind the barrier. Unable to see through the attack through light and dodge, Lyra looked at the knife pinning her foot to the floor with concern. Daring used this chance to close the gap. Channeling the energy into her fist, she punched Lyra in the stomach. Daring grinned as the energy surged through Lyra’s body.

Drops of blood slowly started to rise off the floor from the puddles. Daring’s sense of victory started to fade as she was beginning to realize it was not having any effect on Lyra. Lyra’s body felt almost like rubber against her fist. It started to dawn on Daring that Lyra must have altered her body to be like rubber, if it wasn’t already like that before given her stretching, and was using this property to disperse the energy throughout her body and out onto the bloody floor causing the blood to rise. Lyra grinned down at the pegasus below her.

“I’m glad I was able to see this once before getting hit. I understand now. Your little sunlight trick works like lightning. Knowing that, I can easily resist it as I would lightning! Thank you for showing me this. Now die!” Lyra’s chest opened up, revealing six sharp ribs that were pointed at Daring and prepared to strike. Daring quickly raised her arms to block the ribs as they shot out, stretching out from her rib cage. With the Ripple energy still surging through her arms, the ribs were blocked, but their continued extension from her body forced Daring back. The force of the impact sent Daring Do flying through the section of wall behind her that was destroyed by the table. Lyra watched the pegasus tumble across the dirt as her ribs retracted back inside her and the opening in her chest closed.

“Interesting. This Ripple of yours prevents me from absorbing you outright.” Lyra sat back down at another table and went back to waiting, keeping her watch on Daring this time. Daring begrudgingly left, taking to the sky and flying off. With her lack of real training with the Ripple, she would have no chance against Lyra. She wasn’t entirely concerned about leaving her to her own devices. With the way she was acting, she would be able to find her again fairly easily.

Author's Note

Blah blah, very loosely following Battle Tendency. I would write some notes here, but I have to sally forth to work now.