War, Friendship, and Crisis: The Tale of a Torn World

As the newly created quartet of the Elements of Harmony departed from the drop ship, Twilight noticed the abundance of GEST Corp. troops and Ponyville citizens near the town square. General Solk was standing at a podium while speaking to the residents and his troops. Most of the audience was ponies, but there were a few humans here and there. Some of the ponies held flashing cameras and active microphones that aimed toward him, and others chattered indistinctly among the rows and rows of disorganized humans and ponies.

"It has come to my attention that your world is in dire peril," Solk's voice boomed as he spoke to the audience. "This entire planet, not Equestria, is in deep trouble. If none of you remember the attack days ago, a group known as the demons attempted to destroy this entire town. Sadly, that is the least of what can occur from these monsters. I have recently heard from my recon troops that the kavarians are showing interest in this world."

Murmuring around the crowd began after Solk finished his small paragraph. The four ponies trotted closer to the scene, investigating and examining what is happening. One pony held up a hoof and lowered it as Solk's hand pointed at him. "Do you think that these kavarians are going to cause severe damage or not?" the stallion asked in curiosity.

"The kavarians are an experimental species. They like to examine and study other creatures that they discover. They also enjoy–" Solk hesitated a little "–experimentation with other species as well. We have eye witness accounts of humans losing most of their original DNA and physical form from their tests. We believe the same can happen to this world if we do not take precautions."

Chattering around the crowd became louder and more fearful as he added the ideas of experiments and abominations. A mare deeper in the crowd raised her hoof as well, and Solk pointed towards her. "Do you have an exact time when these creatures will invade?"

Solk shakes his head in disagreement. "No, we have no records stating their arrival, but we do know their attack patterns. The kavarians will most likely strike Canterlot first with a large and destructive force. Until that happens, security will be increased in all towns near the city. This does include Ponyville, if any of you were wondering that."

More chattering and conversation continued in the crowd as the quartet walked towards Solk in a slightly timid manner. "What's going on here?" Twilight's mouth changed to a slight yet worried smile.

Solk turned his head over to the her. "This is a small meeting that I have gathered due to our discoveries on kavarian activity. After we fought them a few times with our new ED soldiers, they seemed to have taken interest in Equestria. I'm afraid that they might attack soon, but they have not shown any early warning signs yet."

"kavarians?" Pinkie said questionably and slowly. "What are they?"

"They're humanoid creatures that support reason over superstition. They do not believe in magic, and they only use technology as the correct path of advancement. To them, unicorn magic could be telekinesis. They would believe that some sort of pony can fly though." Solk smirked a little. "I bet they would after a few attacks using them. Anyway, they're creatures that you don't want to get involved with yet. They can do, unspeakable things to all of you without remorse."

Pinkie decided to not ask what those 'unspeakable things' were to avoid what happened earlier with the pilot. Rainbow Dash stepped in and looked up at Solk. "So, what're we supposed to do next? A drop ship doesn't come here with you here for nothing."

Solk faced the crowd and notified an agent with his hand. "Anyone who wants more details on this topic needs to speak to the agent over there. This is all the information I can give at the current moment." Solk turned back to the four ponies as a crowd gathered around the agent in the back. "Your next mission involves our world again. We found another Element of Harmony member on Verzonia. This planet is called the Universal Graveyard due to how big the planet is and how many corpses are buried there."

Pinkie slightly shivered from that fact. "Another crypt? The last one we visited had evil skeletons!"

"Don't expect a difference in this one then. Liches pop up everywhere on that planet, so expect hostile activity."

Twilight was not so fond of having to encounter these liches, especially after she fought a skeleton that was almost a lich. "Will we have any help on this one? I don't think we can fight off those things alone."

Solk nodded to a squadron of human soldiers. Five GEST Corp. soldiers marched into the area. "These five will be your support," Solk stated. "They will protect the drop ship area while you enter the crypt. If anything tries to destroy your ride home, they will not even land a hit on the ship."

Twilight sighed as she did not receive what she wanted, but she wore a faking smile of appreciation anyway. "Just let me get ready for this mission then." She swiveled her head over to the other three ponies. "Can you three wait near the drop ship for a little bit, please?"

Twilight galloped towards her treehouse as her friends nodded a yes. She removed all of her recovered artifacts and placed them on the table. After she fixed her mane and grabbed a special recipe, she raced back to the other friends. They were near the drop ship, and the five soldiers were already aboard the aircraft. Fluttershy was now wearing body armor and boots. Twilight handed the recipe to Pinkie Pie as if her life depended on it.

"What's this?" Pinkie asked.

Twilight's expression changed from exhaustion to a calm manner. "That is an old magic-related recipe. It's used to enhance foods with magic refueling abilities."

Pinkie stared at the writing intently. "Well, I bet it's pretty useful! I'll use it if we have any time, alright?"

Twilight nodded in agreement as the quartet entered the ship. The ramp closed up as they rested on the ship once again. The skies and green pastures of Ponyville were soon replaced with stars, and those stars were soon replaced with different stars from a different world.

•—————•

The drop ship landed in a misty and dark graveyard. In fact, the entire surface of the planet looked like a graveyard. Leafless trees and offset tombstones littered the gentle hills. Iron fences blocked off some tombs from the others, and a few crypt entrances were visible from the ship. Only two corpses were walking around, but they were too far from the ship to see it. As the ramp lowered, the four ponies breathed in the musty smell of the planet. So this is what death smells like.

"Eww, it smells like rotten meat!" Pinkie exclaimed as she held a hoof up to her nose.

"Pinkie," Twilight started as she knew how obvious the reason was, "the entire world is full of rotting corpses. Of course it would smell like that."

"Are the creatures here nice?" Fluttershy asked in the absence of hope.

Twilight scanned the area around them. "I doubt it. This place looks and feels too dead to be friendly."

"The signal is coming from over there," Travis informed. "There's a crypt over there that you need to enter to find your friend." Travis examined the readings again. "I'm also detecting a major power surge from the location too. Be very careful over there."

The quartet started their journey with a slow walk through the graveyard. Rainbow Dash hovered in midair to avoid any danger from below, and the other three ponies examined the graves. Fluttershy was scared and uneasy with the huge abundance of death in one area, but she soldiered on. Twilight was glancing at random graves to her right and left, figuring out which one will release a threat. Pinkie was humming another song to herself while hopping along with her eyes closed. Just like Twilight, she had saddlebags around her body too.

A metal claw sprouted out of a nearby grave. Fluttershy jumped and shrieked as the metal claw dug out its own body. A damaged R-Bot crawled out of the newly made hole. It's entire right side of its body was ripped apart. Wires flung around without restraint as sparks bounced out of the circuitry. The machine's exposed gears spun violently and sporadically.

"En/&y @-er )/;e!" the R-Bot spoke in severely broken dialogue. Almost none of its words were intelligible from the screeches and garbled voice that it used. "I (/e; as&@?tan:- n$!"

Rainbow Dash fired at the R-Bot, but it absorbed the hits like they were pure energy. The R-Bot hurled a mass of wires around Rainbow Dash and constricted her. She fell to the ground as electricity fried her body and spasmed her muscles. Twilight fired a magical blast at the R-Bot, shooting it into a gravestone. Rainbow was dragged on the ground with the robot and its mass of tentacle wires.

"Twilight, kill it!" Rainbow Dash screamed as her body was thrown across the dirt and moss. She fired another magical blast, but this one hit the wire bundle instead of the body. Multiple wires were cut away as the magic severed Rainbow Dash from the killer R-Bot.

The machine garbled again in irritation. "Y:u (@ll /); f- ($at po@&!" It ripped parts of its own hull off, exposing multiple rips and tears in its metal. It rolled up to Twilight in an attempt to stab her with its body. Pinkie punched the left side of the robot and kicked it into a ditch at the last second. The robot was soon destroyed as a magical blast ruined its life support systems.

Rainbow Dash attempted to get back up, but her left wing and her right foreleg were paralyzed. Pinkie handed her a green and red cupcake, and Rainbow Dash ate the pastry carefully. Her body felt as if a thousand knots in her muscles were untied. She stretched all of her limbs while getting back on her hooves.

"Did it work?" Pinkie asked with hope. "That's my new anti-paralysis cupcake! One of those soldiers back there gave me a special ingredient that repairs very bad nerve damage!"

"Pinkie, that's amazing!" Rainbow Dash looped twice in the air to test out her fixed wings. "Thanks for the cupcake. I feel so much better now!"

Twilight peered over to a few rumbling gravestones. Bony and rotting hands pulled themselves out of the old earth. Two human corpses and a unique alien that was missing a huge chunk of its chest. One of the human corpses lacked both a jaw and an arm, and the other was missing half of its head. The three corpses glared at the quartet with glowing blue pupils in their empty sockets. The alien corpse held a laser rifle in its claw hands.

"Travis, what is that thing?" Twilight was panicking as the corpses shambled towards the four ponies.

Travis examined the alien corpse. "That looks like a kavarian soldier. From what we have gathered on them, they are resistant to the heat, but they are weak to the cold. It's best you avoid getting close to it."

The kavarian corpse raised its rifle and fired four uncoordinated shots. They all missed the quartet, but the other two corpses were about to fix that mistake. One of the corpses clawed at Pinkie in an attempt to rip her flesh apart. She retaliated with a punch into its skull. Half of the corpse's skull caved into its cranial cavity but still attacked without flinching. Pinkie kicked into its leg and broke some of the bone. The corpse grabbed her head as it fell onto the ground. Twilight destroyed the corpse's body with a magical blast.

The other corpse shuffled towards Fluttershy and grabbed her wings. Rainbow Dash approached the monster and blasted its chest into nothing but viscera and rotten meat. The entire body fell to their ground and slowly decomposed into the dry dirt. The kavarian corpse fired again, this time aiming instead of using hip fire. The corpse grazed Twilight's right ear and successfully shot her right foreleg twice. The pain was unbearable. Her leg felt like it was being consumed by hungry flames. Her ear stung, but it did not hurt too much.

Rainbow Dash rained down multiple lasers as her friend grunted from the pain. The corpse switched to a crawling stance and pounced at Rainbow Dash. its claws were now protruded, and they were about to shred her into bloody ribbons. Pinkie hastily pulled out her party cannon and placed it in front of the airborne kavarian. Shards of sharp confetti shredded the corpse into bundles of flesh. The decaying corpse tumbled onto the ground, burying itself into the dirt as it fell into an open grave.

Twilight rested to recharge her magic and turned towards Fluttershy. "Fluttershy, you have to at least help us in some way. We'll need you if we want to survive."

Fluttershy looked up from a gravestone and faced Twilight. "Do you know that I cannot fight these things? I'm not as good of a fighter as you three. I don't even want to fight them."

"You don't have to fight to help us out. You can try to cheer us." Twilight remembered Rainbow Dash's confidence and strength boost as Fluttershy cheered her performance.

"I guess I could do that. But what if I get lost or get separated from you?"

"That's when you have to fight back. Remember, you have to stand up for yourself. You can't let these creatures do what they want, or else you might–" Twilight quickly changed her words to be a little less morbid "–you might, be very hurt. I don't want you to get hurt, Fluttershy, especially in a place like this."

Fluttershy lightened a little, but she was still nervous. "I'll try to be a little assertive then. Just tell me if I go too far with my actions."

"I'll warn you if that happens." Twilight shifted her attention towards a far obelisk and repositioned her communications chip. "Travis, what is that thing over there?"

Travis examined the obelisk in the mist. "That's a sign built by the Scythori. They place down obelisks that tell other species which one owns a certain crypt. The crypt you four are entering is listed as human."

"Well, we have no time to waste," Twilight exclaimed while pointing towards the obelisk, "let's go!"

The quartet regrouped and traveled to the structure. Rainbow Dash flew in the air to search for any potential enemies, but the thick, greenish sky and the permeating mist ruined her chance of discovery. Fluttershy was now in the middle of the group instead of the back. She felt a little more confident after realizing how much of an asset she was to the mission. The fate of all of her friends depended on her now, and she definitely knew this. In fact, this is what she believed.

When the four ponies reached the obelisk, Twilight studied it carefully. The only thing she saw were random symbols of awkward shapes and confugurations. "I can't read this. It's too complicated for even me to understand."

Travis remembered the Scythori's ten thousand letter language and its high complexity. "Yeah, these creatures think that they can put their own symbols everywhere due to everyone knowing that they can scan their writing and figure it out instantly. This is supposed to say, 'All who enter this mausoleum shall face death if they disturb the humans' rest.' "

Twilight noticed how advanced the human universe was. Everything had very advanced technology, and it was impossible to escape. She had already encountered evil machines, stormed a flying, metal ship, and dueled against futuristic soldiers of darkness. She diverted her attention to the nearby crypt entrance. Pinkie felt uneasy with entering another crypt, so she hummed a song about spirits and laughter to herself. The quartet traveled down into the crypt, wondering were the source of the power can be hiding.

•—————•

After encountering a few dead ends and brittle skeletons, the four ponies reached a metal gate. The room was littered with coffins built into the wall, and torches burned with blue flames. On the other side of the gate was a dark hallway. Before they could even advance, a bundle of bones assembled into a human skeleton with horns. A brushed helmet and gilded metal armor wrapped around it, shielding most of the skeleton from any attacks. A huge double-bitted battle axe and kite shield floated into the warrior's hands. Its blue eyes quickly shifted into red flames. After a short while, all of its bones were covered in fire.

The skeleton opened its fire-spitting mouth. "Fear me, mortal souls, for I am the guardian of my lord. Any who dare trespass his domain will be smitten with my axe."

The quartet moved a little closer towards the skeleton while preparing for a big battle. The skeleton opened six coffins located in the room with only one hand movement. Six armored and red-eyed skeletons joined the commander. All of them wielded bucklers and broadswords. "Leave now, or death will plague your soul!" one of the soldiers hissed through its burning jaw.

"I don't think that's gonna happen," Rainbow Dash responded cockily. "Also, we fought creatures like you before, so why don't you guys get back into your resting places before I have to pummel the message into you all?"

The skeletal soldiers took that statement as a threat. The fallen hero pointed its battle axe at Rainbow Dash, signaling three soldiers to attack. Pinkie pulled out her party cannon again and blasted the three skeletons. They blocked the blow successfully, but they were pushed back into the mob. Twilight fired a wave of magic that tripped and damaged the soldiers. They hastily climbed back to their feet and charged once more. Rainbow Dash flapped her wings to the point that wind was rushing through their bones. The burning flames inside their armor died out, and the skeletons shivered and slightly panicked.

"I feel, so cold," chattered one of the soldiers. "How can I fight in the frigid arctic?"

"This is not the arctic, knight," boomed the fallen hero. "This is a crypt that our lord owns. Now, be a loyal noble and slay the invaders!"

The soldier raised its shield in unison with the other two. The flaming three in the back followed as they raised their bucklers too. Rainbow Dash fired her guns, but the lasers did not penetrate the metal. A skeletal soldier near Twilight swung its broadsword. Twilight grabbed it with her magic And used it to stab the soldier in the skull. The soldier fell to the ground while a flaming one took its place. Pinkie punched one of the soldiers back and then stomped on its head. That same soldier fell to ground into a pile of bones and metal.

Fluttershy was about to be cut in two by another soldier. She backed away until she hit a corner. "Back off!" she scolded in a mess of rage and fear. "You are not being nice! Stay away and stop acting so mean!"

The soldier backed away in bewilderment. "What the hell? I don't know how to act to this."

Fluttershy stomped a hoof onto the ground. "You need to learn to be nice you living pile of bones! You can't go around and cut up ponies because they are looking for a friend!"

The skeleton looked around and dropped its weapon. "I, I'm sorry? I didn't mean to ki-"

Twilight blasted the skeleton into fragments as a magical blast destroyed its skull. The armor and bones fell to the ground, and two more rushed into the area. Their bodies were overflowing in fire from their vengeful souls. Rainbow Dash flew behind them and kicked their skulls off their bodies. She quickly pummeled and destroyed the two bodies to leave them useless. The fallen hero and his two soldiers rushed towards the four ponies. Twilight grabbed one of the skeleton's sword and shield, leaving them defenseless. She sliced the same skeletons head off with the blade, and she slammed the shield into the other, destroying its skull. Both skeletons fell lifeless onto the floor.

"May your souls burn in an eternal inferno for your crimes!" the fallen hero scornfully cursed. It swung his battle axe into the quartet, but it completely missed. Twilight used her magic to steal the weapon. The fallen hero's grip was too strong to steal anything from it.

"That shall not happen, weakling." Another battle axe swing slammed Twilight into a wall. The fallen hero rammed its shield into her, attempting to crush her between the wall and the kite shield. Pinkie climbed on the skeleton's head and tossed it across the room. Rainbow Dash flew to the body to destroy it, but a battle axe swatted her like a fly in a kitchen. She was tossed to the bouncing and flaming head. The head hovered back to the body and placed itself back in place. Pinkie ripped off the kite shield and threw it to the gate, and Twilight used her magic on the battle axe once more and aimed it towards the skeleton's chest. Rainbow Dash zipped to the axe and kicked it into the skeleton, slicing the entire ribcage and chest plate in half. The flames around the bones died out as the red pupils in the sky faded into the darkness.

"Look!" Fluttershy pointed a hoof towards the opening gate. "We can leave this room now."

"It's best you move on," Travis warned. "Spirits don't die, they just lose their power temporarily. If you stay here for too long, that skeleton will come back and kill all of you."

The quartet abided to that order and entered the open gate. They encountered a few more corpses and skeletons, but they were easily dispatched and eliminated. Fluttershy scolded some of the enemies, confusing them to no end. They eventually reached a hallway with a cylindrical machine placed into the wall. It was glowing blue, and it held something inside of its cold components. Travis remembered what the machine was and gave clear advice to the four ponies.

"That's a dimensional cryogenic chamber," Traivs informed. "Many different species use them to keep creatures alive and inactive." He looked at the readings from the chamber and donned a face of haste. "This is giving the Element of Harmony signal! Press that blue button on the side now!"

Twilight quickly pressed her hoof onto the blue button. The cryo chamber hissed and released frigid air as the door slowly opened. In that chamber stood Applejack. She was attached to strange machines and life support systems by multiple wires and tubes, and they suspended her in midair. She woke up and spoke groggily, "Twilight, is that really you?"

"Applejack, you're okay!" Pinkie shouted in relief. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash unhooked the wires from her body. She was still half asleep, but she could stand perfectly fine.

has been added to your party.

"Who is't dares trespass mine own resting lodging?" a dead and cold shrill demanded from the air. "anyone who is't dares dare me shalt feeleth mine own wrath."

A cloud of black dust rotated behind the ponies. Two bony arms, a rib cage with a beating heart, and a skull manifested from the cloud. A robe of darkness covered the essence as its eyes illuminated the color of ancient possession, purple. A scepter levitated towards its left hand and emitted a blue and purple light. Darkness and tendrils covered its right hand. "Thy souls, they possess a most wondrous amount of power. I shall absorb these treats into mine, and then mine own army shall becometh insuppressive. All of thee shall convert into the soldiers of the undead and serveth me fore eternity."

A challenger approaches: Badass Mage Lich of Human Crypt number seventeen

"What fancy speak is this thing saying?" Applejack responded to the lich's Shakepearean tongue.

The lich stared into Applejack's soul in rage. "Thee dare fig mine own voice? Thou art the first to kicketh the bucket!"

A blast of darkness shrouded her body. Twilight fired a spell at the black to destroy the evil magic, but it was to no avail. The lich raised its darkened hand and summoned multiple skeletons from the ground. Four dead soldiers rose from the earth and prepared to obliterate the quintet. Rainbow Dash punched one in the face, but it soon raised its greatsword and blocked her next attack. A skeleton with a mace attempted to crush Fluttershy, but she involuntarily bucked the skeleton into a wall. Its own mace crushed its bones.

She held her hooves to her mouth in shock from the action. "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to do that to you, it just happened!"

Twilight strained from pushing a shield back as she heard Fluttershy's apology. "You don't, have to be sorry, to these things! It tried to, kill you anyway!" Her magic forced the shield into the skeleton's chest, disarming and knocking down the defeated soldier.

The last skeleton, armed with a crossbow, was smashed into pieces by Pinkie's constant punches. She then tackled the greatsword skeleton and incapacitated it. Rainbow Dash finished off the soldier by slamming a hoof into its head. The blue pupils vanished as an entire skull crushed itself. The lich was getting weary now, and he was afraid of the ponies' power. Applejack broke out of the darkness and snorted in anger.

"Nopony does that and doesn't get bucked." Her words were calm, yet they dripped with a locked hatred towards the lich. She galloped towards the Lich with pure determination. Since the lich was occupied now from Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash's attacks, it couldn't prevent her attack. She bucked the lich into the wall, breaking some of its dusty and ancient bones. It floated back to its original elevation and conjured a dome of darkness. Twisted faces breathed black fire at the ponies. Pinkie dodged, ducked, dipped, dived, and dodged countless flames, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy hovered over all of it, Twilight deflected it with her deflection spell, and Applejack continued to pulverize the lich.

The lich stared at the ponies in shock and awe. "How doth thee things possess so much power? Am I too weak to stand ho this madness?"

"No, you just suck at your job!" Rainbow Dash mocked while firing laser blasts into the lich. Applejack approached the Lich once more, ready to buck again into it. The lich learned its lesson this time and teleported other side of the room. The faces of darkness dissipated and revealed the room once more. The lich raised its hand again to summon more soldiers.

Actually, it was one soldier. Five skeletons fused into a giant forged out of multiple corpses. Its armor was enchanted ribs and skulls. It held a war hammer in both of its hands, and its bones teemed with the same darkness the lich possessed. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were slammed into different walls as the giant swayed its weapon in the air. Twilight fired a magical blast at the creature, but it was deflected from the enchanted armor. Applejack avoided it and headed straight for the lich. She bucked it again, destroying the scepter this time. It looked at the shattered stick in horror, realizing the terrifying loss.

"Nay, mine own soul! I shall cometh back hither lief, and I shall end all of thy liveth!"

The lich's body dissipated into a cloud of darkness, and then into nothing. The giant fell apart and lost its blue pupils and enchants. The room grew quiet with the absence of evil. The ponies reunited once again and greeted Applejack to the team.

Badass Mage Lich has been defeated!

"Good job, AJ!" Rainbow Dash looked at the fallen monster with a triumphant grin. "I didn't know you could slam monsters like that."

Applejack readjusted her hat and thanked Rainbow Dash. "I'm just doing what I think should be done. That creature caused a great deal of pain to me, and I couldn't stand it."

Twilight examined Applejack's body. "What do you mean hurt? You look fine to me."

Pinkie handed Applejack a cupcake in urgency. "Eat it! It heals the soul too!"

"Soul?" Twilight said in confusion.

Applejack ate the orange and yellow treat. She definitely felt better. The pain inside her body melted away as she ate the pastry. It wasn't long though until bones rattled once more. Travis watched them curiously.

"It's best you five leave now," Travis ordered in slight fear. "I think that defeat angered the entire crypt.

The quintet galloped out of the crypt and into the not so fresh air outside. The drop ship was just up ahead, waiting for the ponies to return safely. Applejack asked many questions about the cemetery and GEST Corp., but she soon realized that the answers were obvious. She was trapped in a crypt, and four of her friends traveled there to save her. She was still confused on where Rarity was, but her friends didn't know either. The five ponies entered the ship while one of the soldiers blasted a corpse's head apart.

"Hello, newcomer!" the pilot welcomed as Applejack rested in the ship. "What's your name?"

"It's Applejack," she answered wearily yet bravely. "And, uh, what are you supposed to be?"

"I'm a human. All of the soldiers in this ship are humans, except for your friends."

A crackle was heard as a visual and audio feed materialized from the cockpit screen. "Attention all units, Ponyville is under attack by demon hostiles!" the soldier in the screen informed as laser blasts and explosions riddled the area with mayhem. "All units capable of holding off the invasion must report immediately! Assistance is needed! I repeat, assistance is needed!"

"Well, we get to bust more demon heads open," Rainbow Dash said with an enthused grin.

Twilight expressed worry and attempted to think more optimistic thoughts. "I hope we can get there before Ponyville turns into rubble."