Midnight Rising

"01001100 01101111 01110011 01110011 00101110"

An intense, throbbing pounding in my head and a sharp pain in my chest let me know I was still alive, as consciousness returned to me. My ears were filled with a terrible ringing, and as I rolled over and opened my eyes I realized I could hear nothing else. Fearing deafness I clucked my tongue, hearing the telltale sound, assuaging my fears. It took me another moment to realize that the hangar had likely depresurized when the blast door was breached, and vacuum had replaced the air inside. I swallowed, my ears popping and the ringing stopping. I looked up, finding that I was no longer inside the cockpit of the Starwing. Instead, I was behind a stack of crates, the Shining Armor AI nearby, leaning out to fire back at the Starborn that were gunning for us.

I groaned, getting up onto my hooves. I was in terrible pain, but I still had a mission to complete. A mission that had come down to the wire. At any moment Flurry Heart would enact her plans, and I couldn't waste any time crawling around on the floor. "Sh-- Shining AIrmor! What's the situation?!" I asked over the radio, my mechanical ally slipping back into cover and turning to face me.

"Meteor Shower? i was wondering if you'd survived. You were out for a good ten minutes. The situation is pretty crap. There was a good 20 or so Starborn waiting for us when we, well, 'landed'. I had to bash my way out of the cockpit and drag your rump out of it. We're pretty freaking lucky" the Shining Armor AI explained.

I shook my head. "I'd consider us lucky if Flurry Heart's device exploded and she died of a heart attack. For now, it's enough to know we're still alive, and that we still have time to stop the mad Princess. You said there were 20 Stars; have you killed any?"

"Three. I didn't know the Starborn had Unicorns and Pegasi among their ranks now" Shining AIrmor commented. "There's a couple Unicorns and at least one Pegasus Star out there."

"That'll complicate things. Earth Stars are bad enough" I said. I looked over my suit, finding that it was pretty well intact, if more than a little banged up. I had used the last of my grenades in fighting Limestone, leaving me with just my guns. "The Starborn are irrelevant; we need to find Flurry Heart and stop her."

"Kind of hard to do if you've got robots gunning for you. Let's get these things mopped up first before we turn our attention on my rogue daughter" the Shining Armor AI contested, leaning out to fire on the Starborn. I turned around, peeking out of cover and assessing the situation. The hangar was crawling with Starborn, and I saw the Pegasus Star take off from the second floor. The hangar was setup in a way that it had three floors that ringed the hangar in a U-shape, each floor bearing docking arms and cradles that held dropships. Every arm and cradle had a dropship in it, making it nearly impossible for any Starborn on the upper floors to shoot at us. Consequently, it would give the Pegasus Star plenty of cover when engaging us.

It was eerie, fighting in vacuum like we were. It was utterly silent, but I could obviously tell we were in the middle of a battlezone. The lack of sound meant we were lacking a tactical element that was crucial to staying alive on the battlefield, and we'd have to be extra vigilant if we were going to survive past this room. I knew the rest of the ship would still be pressurized, so it was just this one hurdle we had to clear.

I leaned out of cover and saw a couple of Starborn moving up, getting closer to the crates Shining AIrmor and myself were hiding behind. I blinked, blue orbs of eldritch fire racing out, my shots filtered through the spark filter. I slagged one of the two Stars and the electrical discharge fried its comrade. I ducked back to give my gems a moment to recharge, looking over my shoulder at the Shining Armor AI. It was as focused and stalwart as ever, firing on the attacking Stars with methodical precision. I turned back around, edging out and firing on a group of Stars that were in cover halfway across the hangar, forcing them to duck down.

"I don't want to stay here, Shining AIrmor. I have a plan" I said as I moved back behind cover, looking out. To the left of the crates, some 60 feet away, was a bulkhead; a door, that led into the ship. It was in an alcove, and there were some crates near it. We could cycle through it, and the Shining Armor AI could melt it shut behind us to prevent the Starborn from chasing. "There's a door to port; I'm going to make a break for it. Cover me!" I shouted as I charged out, galloping across the hangar bay, a nervous sweat breaking out. I saw errant shots from the Starborn passing in front of me, and I'm sure there were some passing in my wake as the Stars tried to shoot me. I never stopped, my legs moving in a practiced cadance, taking me to the door. I threw myself against it, dropping low behind the crates. "Shining Armor; MOVE!!"

I popped up, firing on the Stars as the Shining Armor AI took off, running towards me. I saw the Pegasus Star glide into a view a good 100 yards away, and I turned my gaze onto it, firing at it. The Shining Armor AI was fast, but if that Pegasus Star fired on us even my mechanical ally wouldn't be able to outrun the missiles. A group of Earth Stars, accompanied by the few Unicorn Stars, moved up to a bank of crates near the ones we had just been behind, taking up positions. "SHINING ARMOR!" I barked as way of warning as the Stars opened fire.

The Shining Armor AI was halfway to me when the Stars opened fire, magical fire and missiles racing out to touch us. I watched as the Shining Armor AI lowered itself as it ran, twisting its body to turn, its steel hooves throwing up a rain of sparks as they grinded against the steel floor. It turned 180 degrees, facing back into the hangar. It threw out its chest and reared its head back, its horn igniting. A massive sphere of pure white magic lifted into the air and split off into five smaller orbs that formed a semi-circle aroung Shining AIrmor's head, before they shot out at the Stars. The orbs hit the Stars like a thousand pounds of dynamite, detonating in brilliant fireballs of sunlight and fusing the steel aroung the detonation sites. One of the orbs was sent towards the Pegasus Star and it burst midair, a visible concussive wave ripping the Pegasus Star's body into scrap. A blue mist of magical residue rose into the air, creating a fog in the middle of the hangar. The Shining Armor AI backed away, watching for any more threats as it finally reached my position by the door.

"By the Empress, what was that?" I asked as I turned to face the door's control panel. It appeared to be in the Star's language, so I had the Shining Armor AI have a go at cracking it. I turned back to watch its back, knowing that there were still some more Starborn in the hangar that would be coming for us.

"Star magic. Kiss of Sunlight. Taught to me by one of the Empire's premier wizards, Sunburst, before he turned his back on Twilight. I've decided that he deserved what you did to him, back on Hydra, with what we've learned since then" Shining AIrmor answered as it got to work on the door. As I suspected the remainder of the Starborn were moving up, taking care to not expose themselves, having seen what happened to nearly half of their numbers. I fired at them, making sure they stayed in cover. "I'm going to equalize the pressure and open the door. it won't take but a minute" my mechanical ally assured me, making me frown. Even one second felt like an eternity on the battlefield when you've got things shooting at you.

I kept my head up, putting suppressive fire on the Starborn. So far they had elected to stay in cover, which was just fine by me. I only wish I still had some grenades, since they'd be of great use right now. I watched my power meter as my gems were slowly emptied, taking care not to expend them. "Shining AIrmor, how's that door coming?" I asked, turning my head in my ally's direction but keeping my eyes(and thus my guns) trained on the Starborn across the room. I turned my eyes to look at the door just as it silently opened.

"Got it!" the Shining Armor Ai declared, turning around to face me. "METEOR SHOWER, GET DOWN!" it thundered. I moved to drop to the floor just as I got hit, an eldritch fireball hitting me in the head hard enough to spin me around, my vision blurred and darkened at the edges as I fell to the floor. The room spun and spun, and the Shining Armor AI grabbed me as it returned fire on the Starborn, dragging me into the corridor beyond the door. It sealed the door in our wake and ignited its horn, fusing the door shut. The corridor pressurized, and I could finally hear all sounds again. "Meteor Shower!" my mechanical ally called, and I waved a hoof, showing it I was still alive.

"Stupid... Stupid. I took my eyes off them for only a second, and that's all they need" I said, shakily getting to my hooves, shaking my head. I took a deep breath, regaining my balance, my senses coming back to me. "OK, let's keep going."

"Are you alright?" Shining AIrmor asked, moving by my side. His dedication was admirable, and I was even beginning to see it not as an 'it', but as a fellow pony. A dangerous sentiment, I know, given its mechanical nature. But that's how I felt.

"I just made a rookie mistake. I'm fine. Well enough to complete the mission, at least. Come on; we've got to find Flurry Heart. If we can locate a map we'll be able to figure out where we are, and see if we can't figure where she might be hiding out" I responded, heading for the other door at the end of the corridor. It opened without pause, leading into an intersection corridor that appeared clear. We were safe, for now.

The intersection presented us with a bit of a problem. There were three other directions to head in, any one of which might lead us to the mad Princess. I looked up the one directly opposite us, finding it stretched for about 200 yards to another bulkhead, and I looked up the ones to our left and right. The left one was clear, and as I looked up the right one I caught a glimpse of Moondancer turning and trotting down a branching corridor. "Moondancer. I know where to go. Come on" I said, trotting down the corridor that ran parallel to the hangar, reaching the intersection at the other end and turning down the corridor I saw Moondancer head down. She was there again, standing in the middle of another intersection. She looked at us and trotted down another corridor, out of sight.

"She's baiting us" the Shining Armor AI declared matter-of-factly as we followed.

"That much was known already, but she's the only lead we've got on finding Flurry Heart."

We turned down the corridor Moondancer had gone down, finding a sealed bulkhead at the end. We paused, looking at it warily. I approached, and found the door was unlocked. I looked at the Shining Armor AI, who shrugged. "Down the rabbit hole we go" it commented, using another archaic idiom. I neared the door and it opened, revealing an arcaneum beyond. It was a circular, high-ceilinged chamber, with a dome ceiling. Around the circumference of the dome, painted as some kind of mural, were stylized representations of the Elements. Six colored banners hung from the ceiling, circling the arcaneum, extending all the way down to the floor. They bore the faces of six ponies; two Earth, two Unicorn, and two Pegasus. Orange, white, purple, pink, blue, and yellow. Moondancer stood in the center of the room, her back to us, as she looked up at the purple banner; Empress Twilight's face on it.

"Don't move, traitor!" I commanded as we entered the room, the Shining Armor AI locking the door shut behind us. Moondancer turned to face us, wearing the same armored cloak the Sisters' Pie had been. She pulled the hood back, revealing her face. The right side of her features were slightly disfigured by a burn scar, and she looked apathetic.

"Welcome... To The Host of Harmony. Six mares, who bore the Elements of Harmony... Only one lives to this day. Twilight Sparkle" Moondancer said.

"What are you talking about?" I demanded, keeping a careful distance from her, never once taking my eyes from her. The room was small, only about 50 yards in length, and a 50 yards in circumference. It reminded me of Empress Twilight's bedroom in Castle Twilight.

"Something you'll never understand, Royal Hunter" Moondancer said, standing on her hindlegs and looking at her forehooves. "As you once did for the bitter and the angry, grant these lost souls eyes, Harmony!" Moondancer shouted, hovering into the air with a burst of her magic. She ascended to nearly two feet off the ground, still looking at her hooves. She extended them, and from her forehooves came five orbs of magic, their colors matching the bearers of the Elements, sans Twilight, and the orbs swirled around Moondancer.

"Where's Flurry Heart?" I inquired.

"Out the door and up the hall, to the right. But you'll never leave this room, Royal Hunter. You, and that shell of a bot that calls itself Twilight's brother, will know Harmony before you die" Moondancer declared, the five orbs brigtening and firing ethereal lasers at us. I dodged to the right, the lasers not turning to follow. The Shining Armor AI raced around the room to the left, firing at Moondancer, the orbs erecting a shield that absorbed my mechanical ally's shots.

I got to my hooves and crouched low, watching Moondancer intently. She turned to face me, lowering her shield to fire her orbs. I opened fire, five shots racing out and striking the mare in her armored cloak. The Shining Armor AI fired, his shots piercing the mare's veil and passing through her. She shouted in pain and brought her shield back up, turning back around to face the Shining Armor AI. "You cowardly swine! I will enjoy killing you both for my Princess!" she yelled, dropping her shield and firing the orbs at Shining AIrmor, which dodged the beams. I opened fire, my shots absorbed by her armored cloak. I was tired of my shots doing no damage, but I knew they would distract her.

Moondancer turned back to face me and the Shining Armor AI shot her again. She dropped low to the floor and the orbs ascended, firing all five of their beams in a circular manner that ringed the whole room, scorching the walls and torching the books. The attack ended, and the orbs went back to hovering around Moondancer. "The souls of the Bearers guide us! And they will spell your deaths" Moondancer exclaimed. She hovered back into the air, facing me. The Shining Armor AI opened fire, and Moondancer shouted in defiance and anger. She let off a burst of magic that staggered us both, and one of the orbs raced out towards Shining AIrmor. I watched as the orb detonating, blasting the Shining Armor AI into scrap metal, bits of rended and slagged steel flew about the room like shrapnel, sticking into the walls. I knew there was absolutely no way it had survived that blast, leaving me to deal with Moondancer by myself.

Moondancer threw up her shield and laughed with maniacal glee, turning around to face me. "That's one! Now, for the other!" she shouted, lowering her shield and firing two orbs at me, their beams slashing into the carpeting and racing up to me. I charged to the left to dodge. I knew the beams could only fire in the direction Moondancer was facing, or in a fixed direction if Moondancer lowered herself to the floor, which would give me an advantage.

I turned and fired as the orbs stopped firing, my shots expectantly doing nothing against Moondancer's armored cloak. She put her shield up anyway, lowering herself onto her hooves. She kept her shield up and charged me, lowering the shield as she reached me, the two of us colliding. She hit like a butterfly, and I easily kicked her away. She fell back against one of the banners, the one with the face of the yellow Pegasus on it, and the banner fell from its mounting onto her. She was tangled up in it, thrashing about on the floor, trying to kick the banner off her. I opened fire, showering the banner and tangled Moondancer in eldritch fire, the banner igniting. Moondancer shouted, first in terror, then in pain as the flames spread. She stood up, still tangled in the banner, and staggered around the room, knocking into one of the bookshelves and knocking all the books off, the tomes smoldering as they glanced off the burning mare, the fire intensified and Moondancer shrieked in agony as her entire body was immolated. She fell back to the floor and thrashed weakly, her screams petering out as she died. I blinked and blinked and blinked, dumping magical plasma on her, the banner and her body an inferno. I stared into the flames, my gems emptied, and grinded my teeth, an inferno of rage bigger than the flames licking at the air before me building inside.

I turned and approached the wrecked husk of the Shining Armor AI, looking down at it. It--he--had been completely slagged. There was a chance that the AI core was still intact, and that it could be removed and transferred to a new body, but I knew nothing about circuitry or AI computing. Plus I didn't want to lug around what currently amounted to junk, not when I still had a rogue Alicorn to kill. The mission came first.

I trotted over to Moondancer, ripping the remains of the banner and her cloak off her body, confirming that she was dead. My stomach lurched at the intense reek of burnt fur and charred flesh, but I forced myself to look all the same, my eyes taking in her corrupted skin, her flesh simmering. I stood over her longer than I should have, wondering just what could drive a pony to turn their back on their Empress. To want to give up their species' superiority. I kicked her, for good measure, and left the arcaneum, making sure there were no Starborn waiting for me before turning right and heading down the corridor. If Moondancer could be believed, then Flurry Heart was beyond the bulkhead at the end of the corridor. The bulkhead wasn't locked, and I made sure my gems were fully charged before entering.

I found myself in a gunbay, the floor made of thick-pressed glass that allowed one to look down at the planet Equus below. I scanned the room and saw Flurry Heart standing near the middle, encased in her armor, a spherical device mounted in a bracket, an arm extending down through a port into the glass floor, ending in a brass spire point, aimed straight down at Equus. At the sound of the door opening she turned to face me, tilting her head back when she was that it was me.

"The Royal Hunter... I shouldn't be surprised" the mad Princess said. She turned her head to the side, looking past me. "Where's my father? Or whatever that AI thought it was?"

"Dead. By Moondancer's hooves. She's dead, too. It's funny" I commented, certainly finding it ironically humorous. "I figured being interred in Tartarus for nearly 1,000 years would've granted her an immunity to fire" I said with a wicked smile, one that Flurry Heart could not see past my helmet, but could certainly hear.

With this remark Flurry Heart fired a short, powerful beam of magic into my side, and I was thrown through the air, hitting the heavy steel bulkhead hard before coming down onto the floor unceremoniously. I rolled on the floor, groaning in pain, looking across the gunbay at Flurry Heart. "What...is that?" I asked, feeling a strange warmth spreading on my side.

"THIS, you repugnant FUCK? THIS, is the Harmony Device. This is the key that will unlock the doors of Harmony and Friendship, and unleash these forgotten values on the ponies of Equestria once more!! And I will be the one who turns this key!" Flurry Heart exclaimed, reaching up and pressing a button on the device, and it began to power up, the ports all around it beginning to glow. "Justice and peace will prevail, and Equus will once again know Harmony!"

One more push. One more fight.

All I had to do was stand up...