Equestria.
Truly a wondrous land. From the sparkling lakes to the roaring waterfalls, the golden beaches to the sandy deserts, the beautiful jungles to the snow-capped peaks, to the shimmering crystals of the Frozen North to the fields and rolling hills upon which flowers and grass grow plentiful. The happy little ponies, the inhabitants of this great kingdom, trotted around without a care in the world. A heaven on Earth.
It was hard to imagine this beautiful land was at war.
Celestia sat in her throne room, giggling to herself. She was nearly overcome with glee. It took her years of planning, years of experimenting and so, so much math, but she finally did it. She was invading the planet of Earth.
The Earth was inhabited by billions of, to be quite frank, disgusting ape-like creatures known as 'humans'. Creatures that had destroyed themselves and their home due to their greed, their intolerance, and their bitterness. They were vile creatures. When Celestia had first discovered him, she was disgusted by what she saw. Violence. Hatred. War. Poverty. Pollution. She came up with an idea; she would invade and conquer humanity and teach them the magic of friendship.
She concocted a potion, a liquid that, when it comes into contact with human skin, will morph the human into a pony. And not only that, but their minds would be altered, too, to get rid of all that 'humanity' and turn the human into a peace-loving pony in every way. A servant for her and her kind, never to threaten life as she knew it again with their... putridness.
Mind-warping her subjects had been easy enough, a couple barrels in the water systems of a few major cities, an odorless, colorless and tasteless gas spread throughout the nation... that was the easy part. Only she could see how invading Earth would be a good idea, unfortunately. She couldn't blame them. They were but mere mortals, after all.
Her arrival on Earth also went quite well, with her successfully convincing humanity it was all an accident. It seems the humans had sent their nicest representatives to visit them, the human leaders carefully masking their naturally violent tendencies to avoid a conflict with her peaceful nation for now. Clever, really. But, of course, disgusting in its own right. They were trying to lure her species in, to grab their trust, before stalking up behind them and stabbing them in the back for their resources or whatever trivial justification they would use.
She had introduced 'Conversion Bureaus', organizations to distribute the serum to the world, changing the human into a pony. It was all a ruse, however; the bureaus simply being a way to knock off as many humans as possible before the invasion and to serve as a point to begin it.
The declaration of war had been a total surprise to humanity, her subjects supporting it fully and beginning to ponify all humans on sight, the mind-warping agent doing quite nicely, convincing their mortal minds to support her wise decision. The attack had gone wonderfully. In the opening days alone, several military and political leaders had been either killed or ponified, millions had been converted, roads, bridges and electrical systems cut off and destroyed, almost all military bases, weapons, missile silos and satellites being taken out with hours, destroying any chance humanity had at resisting her salvation, much less organize a full-scale counter-offensive against her empire.
An entire planet would soon be under her control. An entire planet, and seven billion loyal minions to aid her in her advances! She was truly the Solar Goddess. And the best part?
None of her subjects would or COULD oppose her. She was left with free reign over the Earth. Her power was absolute. Nopony could even THINK about defeating her!
Celestia smiled.
After all, what more do the humans have left?
THE SCP FOUNDATION
SECURE. CONTAIN. PROTECT.
AUDIO LOG OF MEETING 16██ OF THE O5 COUNCIL.
SITE 1, SECTOR ██.
0623 HOURS
WARNING: THE FOLLOWING LOG IS STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL. ANY PERSONNEL ATTEMPTING TO VIEW THIS LOG WITHOUT LEVEL 4 OR ABOVE CLEARANCE WILL BE TERMINATED VIA MEMETIC KILL AGENT. BY STARTING THE LOG, YOU ADMIT YOU HAVE LEVEL 4 OR ABOVE CLEARANCE. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.
[BEGIN LOG]
Administrator: Alright, alright. Calm down, everybody, this is important.
O5-4: Calm down- calm down?! Do you even realize what's occurring?! This doesn't just- just pose a direct threat to the security of not only the SCP Foundation and the very existence of humanity as a whole, but could potentially cause an XK-Human Reconstruction Event! And you tell us to cal-
Administrator: -Tell you to calm down, yes, I know the situation is quite pressing, which is exactly-
O5-4: I don't think you fully understand the severity of this event, sir. We need-
Administator: -If I didn't, I wouldn't have called this meeting, now would I? (long pause) Good. Now, as you all are aware, Equestria has recently declared against humanity as a whole. The areas around her 'Conversion Bureaus' have seen massive damage, and so far, estimates show over twelve million humans have now been forcibly converted, and most active military establishments and government leaders have either been completely destroyed, damaged beyond repair, KIA or MIA. The goal of this meeting was to discuss the possibility of the SCP Foundation intervening in the conflict.
O5-7: Administrator? Sir, it seems to me that the mere notion that the SCP Foundation doesn't intervene in such a matter is simply absurd. This isn't just a large-scale military conflict in the Middle East or nuclear war. This, as O5-4 mentioned, poses a direct threat to humanity, the Foundation as a whole. I say we strike quick and fast before they get too strong, take out crucial leaders and establishments to allow humanity to attempt a counter-attack. The combined force of every MTF Squadron and security officer together, not to mention any remaining military personnel would undoubtedly catch them off guard. They wouldn't expect us in the slightest.
O5-3: O5-7, I gravely disagree with that. Administrator, as you said yourself, almost all global military installations have been destroyed. To imply that the Foundation alone, even with all of our funding and MTF Squadrons could somehow withstand the invasion is ridiculous. We would get wiped off the map, despite our power. I say we don't reveal ourselves, lest Equestria find out about us and attempt to seize control of the Foundation. God knows what they might do if some of the SCPs fell into their hands- er, hooves.
Administrator: I see. O5-3, they WILL find out about us eventually. There is no chance in hell that we could keep them unaware of our presence, with the countless facilities located in cities and factories that will fall into the Equestrians hands- uh, hooves if we don't do something. And O5-7? Our combined MTF and Security Officers combined wouldn't be nearly enough to do any damage that could allow a counter-attack, in the state the global military is in right now. I agree with O5-3 on that. However, I agree with O5-7 on this: we do need to attack, of course, but the real question now is: Where, when, who, what, and most importantly: How?
(long pause)
O5-12: I saw we give it our best shot. Round up the MTF, the Officers, any military personnel and fuck 'em hard in one big volley. Wipe out their precious princess and we can leave a legacy behind at least.
O5-3: Are you kidding?! That would be a suicide mission. Their princesses will be guarded by who-knows-how-many guards and safety equipment for sure. There is no way in hell they would simply let us in that easily!
O5-12: Did you not hear me?! We give it our best shot. Fire every shell, bullet, mortar, napalm bomb and nuke we have at those motherfuckers to get them to remember us when we're gone! Doesn't matter if it's successful, we just fuck 'em hard and tell them not to mess with us!
O5-3: I say we don't throw our valuable men into a meat-grinder. Who knows how powerful their magical attacks are against our weapons? What if they don't even work?! Our 'legacy' would be one of failure, to top it off! Are you actually-
It is important to note that at this point, multiple personnel attempted to speak simultaneously. The result was that the recording equipment couldn't pick up and discern their speech, nor did the Administrator believe it was important enough to translate. As such, the following section of the log takes place thirty-four seconds after the previous statement made by O5-3.
Administrator: Shut up, shut up, shut up! Do you even hear yourselves right now?! Humanity is on the brink of extinction, facing overwhelming odds carefully stacked against them by a menace who took advantage of our goodwill! (Slams fist on table) We might be the last humans left still... human by the end of the next decade, if that, and here we are bickering like children! We are trying to solve a problem here that threatens everything that we know and love, and I would appreciate it if you would all just shut up, sit down and think for once! (long pause) Good. Now, stop and actually try to suggest good options that don't involve sitting around and doing nothing, nor throwing our valuable soldiers into the meat-grinder of god-knows-what lays inside that damn island! Alright? (long pause) Alright.
(long pause)
O5-1: Administrator?
Administrator: Yes?
O5-1: You said it was our job to figure out who, where, when what and how we are going to stop Celestia. Correct?
Administrator: Yes, that is correct.
O5-1: You all seemed to have ignored the 'what'. You keep assuming that our MTF Soldiers, Security Officers, and Military Personnel are the only ones left that can fight. What other things can we use to bolster our numbers? (long pause) Nothing? Nobody? Okay, listen up. Tell me. What is the name of our Foundation?
O5-9: The SCP Foundation?
O5-1: Yes, correct. The SCP Foundation. Now, tell me this: What does that stand for, and what do we do?
(long pause)
O5-13: Secure, Contain, Protect, or 'Special Containment Procedures'. We do exactly the former.
O5-1: Yes, exactly! And what do we secure, what do we contain, and what do we protect?
Administrator: What exactly is the point of all this?
O5-1: Just answer the question.
O5-2: Fine. We secure and contain SCPs. Anomalies. Dangerous things or things that pose a direct threat to normality and life as we know it. We do this to protect humanity. Yes, we all know this, we all read the flyer. Pray tell, what does this have to do with anything?
O5-1: Listen up. We protect humanity by containing these... things. We protect humanity from what lurks behind that corner. From what lies beneath those waves. From what hides in the forests of the world, waiting for the most opportune moment to pounce. We protect humanity from the anomalies and dangers that either pose a threat to human existence or normality as we know it. And believe me when I say Equestria poses a threat to both. So why should we treat it any differently?
(long pause)
O5-5: I... I don't follow.
O5-1: We should do what we always do! Secure, contain, protect. Stop Equestria from conquering and subjugating humanity, to threaten what we know and love and perceive as normal. Equestria didn't face any of these dangers. Why not? If they are going to conquer Earth for themselves, why shouldn't they get a taste of what we went through? The dangers we faced and came out victorious? We have the SCPs. Why not release some onto Equestria? Why not [REDACTED]?
(long pause)
O5-3: ...Are you mad?! We... how would we even contain these things after the fact?! They will be completely unpredictable! What if they turn their backs on us and attack us instead! God knows what would happen if some of these things got out... Do you even realize-
Administrator: O5-3! Quiet. O5-1? I think your idea has potential. We have the dangers. Why not use them? But, pray tell, what kinds of SCPs are you talking about?
O5-1: [DATA EXPUNGED]
[END LOG]
ERROR: ALL FURTHER INFORMATION IS CLASSIFIED TO LEVEL 5 CLEARANCE OR HIGHER. PLEASE INPUT LEVEL 5 OR ABOVE SECURITY CREDENTIALS TO CONTINUE.
THE SCP FOUNDATION
SECURE. CONTAIN. PROTECT.
Silence.
All was quiet at Canterlot Castle. The halls were made bright by only a few, specially placed torches, candles, and golden chandeliers. The moonlight shined through the windows, illuminating the floor of the throne room with a soft, blue tint. Every so often, Celestia could hear the sound of one of her loyal subjects, scuffling around before leaving, silence reigning once more.
It was rather tranquil, really. Celestia sighed and began to get up. It was a long, successful day, she should really get some sleep. Tomorrow, who knows what the humans might pull now that they know of her intentions? Stepping down the numerous carved, ornate wooden stairs lined with gold that led up to her throne, she paused. Her ears perking curiously, she swore she heard a weak buzz of some sort.
She stood still on the steps for the longest time, before the buzz eventually faded away and disappeared. Wherever it came from, it was loud and far away. She could tell that much. Oh, well. It probably wasn't important.
"Site 19? This is the MTF Alpha-1, 'Red Right Hand' Commander. The helicopters have made their way over Equestrian airspace undetected and delivered their payload. Four instances of SCP-939, equipped with implants to monitor their location have been landed on Equestrian soil. Our intelligence shows they are in the location the ponies call 'The Everfree Forest'. They've already begun advancing onto a nearby town.
"Copy that, MTF Alpha-1. We advise you leave now before you are found out. Helicopters are noisy, after all."
"Copy that, Site 19."
Ice Blossom trotted along merrily, hopping and skipping through the foliage at the outskirts of Ponyville, the moonlight gleaming brilliantly against the trees and leaves, illuminating them with an almost eerie glow. The shrubbery crunched under her hooves as she made her way forward in delight. She was on the way to her friend's house for a sleepover, and extremely excited to get there. Hopping and skipping and hopping and skipping and-
She stopped. She could have sworn that she heard something inside the Everfree. Slowly, she turned her head to face the forest edge. Her ears perked up with interest, carefully listening for anything out of the ordinary. Silence reigned for a few seconds, the eerieness of the situation quickly being apparent.
Crunch.
Ice Blossom's reeled, stepping back away from the forest edge as quickly as she could. She made it a good few feet before she stopped again. What if it was just a harmless bunny or another small critter? Her eyes darted around, trying to decide what to do.
Crunch.
Whatever it was, it was getting closer.
Crunch.
It was obvious it wasn't just a small critter now. The sound was much too audible, too big for anything smaller than a Timberwolf to have made it. Ice Blossom froze in place, every muscle and fiber in her telling her to run, but yet she couldn't. Slowly backing up towards Ponyville, she moved back and back, careful not to make a sound.
Snap.
That didn't come from in front of her, did it?
She quickly reeled around, startled. She had stepped on a branch. Whatever thing was in that forest, it knew she was here now. Her face grew pale, and just as she turned around to run, she heard it.
"H-hello?" a voice said from deep inside the forest, just barely audible.
She stopped. Slowly turning back around to the forest, she stared for a moment before responding.
"H-hello? Who's there?" said Ice Blossom softly, turning around to face the forest head-on.
"Hello? Oh, thank god. I... I think I broke my leg... I can't walk, I need help!" said the voice.
Ice Blossom paused.
"O-okay. I'll be right there!" said Ice Blossom with a sigh of relief. "You- you scared there, a bit. I thought you were some kind of monster or something!"
"Yeah, yeah... Sorry, but please hurry up. It really hurts!" the voice cried out. Ice Blossom sped up her pace, entering the forest edge.
"Okay, where are you?" Ice Blossom said, moving briskly through the foliage and branches of the Everfree. She looked around curiously. She couldn't see anypony nearby. She could have sworn the voice came from around-
"Over here!" the voice said. Ice Blossom paused for a second. It sounded... farther away, almost. Like the source of the voice had moved further into the forest. She chalked it up to her mind playing tricks with her and moved towards the source of the voice, the crunching of the leaves under her hooves echoing throughout the densely forested walls of the Everfree.
"Be right there!" she said. The canopy soon blocked out the moonlight as she moved into the thicker parts of the forest, turning the area around her from a deep blue to an inky black. She slowed down as she looked around, unable to see farther than two meters in front of her.
"Please hurry up!" the voice said.
"Uh, I can't... I can't see anything. It's really dark..." Ice Blossom said with worry. She was beginning to wonder whether this was really a good idea. Perhaps she should head back and get some help. It was awfully dark and she didn't seem any closer to the source of the voice.
"What?! No, wait! Please, you're almost there! Just a little farther! I... I'm glad somebody found me, it really hurts! Hurry, please!" the voice said. It seemed... deeper than it was before. She hadn't moved an inch farther since the last time the voice spoke, but yet it seemed closer now. At least five meters or so- wait.
Ice Blossom paused.
"Somebody?" Ice Blossom said, looking around, trying to find the source of the voice. "Don't you mean somepony? Who are you?"
No response.
Crunch.
A chill went up Ice Blossom's spine. Something had just cracked a branch, no more than three meters behind her. She froze in place, unable to move. Sweat pooled in a small puddle directly under her as her mind reeled. What was that? The voice was in front of her just seconds ago, so what-
A scream rippled through the air, so high-pitched it hurt her ears, coming from less than five meters to her right. The voice sounded... alien, almost. Distorted. Unnatural. A second later, several shrieks came from several other directions. Footsteps, slamming against the forest floor, before a set of red jaws emerged into her vision, directly in front of her, clamping around her front left leg and biting hard.
Screaming, she fell to the floor, blood spurting from the puncture wound as a horrifying lizard-like creature ripped into her leg. She barely got a second to comprehend what was happening before several others reached her. Somewhere from two to five others. She couldn't really tell, nor did it matter in the end.
As soon as they arrived, they began biting into her exposed flesh, ripping off huge chunks before coming in for more. She screamed in agony as she was devoured, pieces of flesh flying off in every which direction. Slowly, her vision blurred, and a wave of unconsciousness hit her as she fell asleep for the last time in her life. Her body would act as a feast for the monsters for at least the next couple minutes.
"MTF Alpha 1 Commander? It seems the four SCP-939 instances have found some prey, they all appear to be ganging up on something, according to the motion trackers. It doesn't seem like they'll have much of a problem finding food here. Their presence should serve as a good distraction."
"Copy that, Site 19. We're on our way back now."
Copy that.
Scarlet Dusk sighed as she trotted down the streets of Manehattan. The moonlight glinting off the tall building windows, barely illuminating the streets more than the naturally bright lights of the city, just giving it a light-blue tint. The street lights placed every ten, fifteen meters or so did much more than the moon, allowing Scarlet Dusk to see her way through the garbage-filled sidewalks.
She wasn't out for any particularly important reason. She was hungry and wanted something sweet to eat. Perhaps a large bag of chips, or maybe a jug of ice cream. Something to keep her going until the morning, to allow her to finish her essay. She sighed again, kicking an empty and crushed soda can into the street. Passing alleyway after alleyway, she approached the corner store she had grown so used to in recent years.
She stood in front of it for a minute, gazing into the windows at the shelves of goodies that laid the walls. She could barely afford to buy food with her current salary. Why she spent so much on candies was beyond her. She entered the store, the bell ringing to alert the store owner to her presence. She walked around on the tiled floor, trying to decide what to get.
It wasn't a particularly new store. Some boards on the ceiling weren't there and the light sometimes flickered. The black and white tiled floor was scuffed all over and some parts were chipped off, brushed into a small pile of debris in the corner. Her horn glowed as she grabbed a large bag of chips in her telekinesis before she turned and walked towards the front counter. Placing three bits onto the counter, she waited for the storekeeper to arrive. He had to have heard her come in.
A minute passed.
Huh. Odd. She had been here uncountable times before, and the storekeeper had never been gone. Why he practically lived here! Gazing around the store, Scarlet Dusk sighed and looked at the rusty old clock, placed on the wall behind the counter since the beginning of time. 2:57 AM.
Another minute passed.
"Hello?" Scarlet Dusk called out in frustration. She had walked at least half a mile to get here, she didn't intend to leave empty-hooved. She considered leaving a note, the money and taking the chips with her, but she stopped and listened. She could have sworn...
A grunt came from the backroom. It wasn't a grunt of pain or pleasure, but... it was hard to describe. Now more curious than annoyed, Scarlet Dusk slowly moved towards the sound cautiously.
"Hello? Storekeeper?" Scarlet Dusk said with worry. "Are you alright?"
She slowly made her way to the back door and opened it, entering the back room. It was more of a large storage closet, full of merchandise and things to sell. Scarlet Dusk took a few steps in and looked around. It was dusty, obviously. The light didn't seem to work right, only staying on one-third the time. The other two-thirds of the time, the room was absorbed by inky blackness. She could make out particles of dust in the air and more than a few mosquitos buzzing around. The walls were painted a light pink, the paint both chipped and dull. Clearly, this building was made longer ago than she thought.
She could hear the noise clearer now. It wasn't really grunting as much as it was muttering, the words inaudible. The storekeeper, a middle-aged, brown earth pony, was sitting down, huddled in the far left corner of the room sandwiched in between two shelves. In his back, there appeared to be a trail of blood leading up to a dart of some kind. Scarlet Dusk had never seen a dart just like that. It seemed to be made of some sort of... metal, glinting in between the flashes of light. She couldn't make out many details, but he seemed rather pale, and certainly in pain.
Slowly approaching, Scarlet Dusk looked around with worry. She didn't like this one bit.
"Storekeeper? Hello? Are you alright?" Scarlet Dusk called out. She froze in place for a second. The storekeeper seemed to jerk in response to her vocalization, almost in surprise, but... not quite. He moved unnaturally fast, unnaturally slow... just... odd. He slowly moved to face her and allowed Scarlet to see his face in full detail now, even with the strobe-light effect from the broken light.
His face was very pale and shriveled up. There were scratches all over his face, a slow trickle of blood coming from a few particularly nasty ones. His eyes were wide as ever and pupils the size of pinpoints. Scarlet Dusk stared in fear at the sight. Suddenly, the storekeeper started scrambling, slipping on the merchandise lining the floor, and jerking in her direction. Scarlet Dusk screamed as he bit into her leg, ripping into it like it was a sandwich wrapper.
She jerked back, trying to break his grip on her, his teeth embedding themselves into her leg. She reflexively swung her leg outwards, smashing the shopkeeper into a nearby shelf. The shelf swayed, and then tipped over, smashing onto him. As the heavy steel shelf hit him, a large container fell off and hit his head. A crack rang out as blood spurted up from his wound, and he fell limp. Scarlet Dusk quickly pulled her leg out from his mouth's grip and stumbled back in shock.
She hyperventilated as she watched with wide-eyes the blood pooling from his head onto the ground. She swore she could see some brain matter in there. She began to pull herself out of the room as the stench of death hit her nose, barely holding back tears as she slammed the door shut and fell to the floor, trying to catch her breath.
What just happened? He... he had just attacked her. He had... she... she knocked over the- he was- she tried to calm herself down. Looking around quickly, she found a package of gauze wrap on the shelf nearby. She grabbed it with her magic and opened it. She winced as she carefully wrapped the gauze around her leg. The wound was large and hurt to even touch, so the experience was rather painful for her.
She sighed as she made the last wrap, the blood finally stopping. Scarlet pulled herself towards the counter to rest and looked at the clock. 3:19 AM. She tried to stand but cried out as her leg buckled under the pressure, a new wave of pain making it's way through her body as she fell back to the ground. She needed to wait for her leg to get better.
She looked at the clock. She'll wait here for help. Somebody will come soon, won't they? She laid down on the tiled floor, trying to get comfortable. She was in for a long night.
She awoke only hours later, groggy and with terrible back pain. A consequence of sleeping on the floor, she guessed. Gazing at the clock, she sighed. Everything hurt and her leg didn't seem much better. She had slept for only two hours or so. 4:48 AM.
...
Odd. She felt kind of... what's the word? Feverish. Her head felt really warm, almost like she had the flu. She...
...
You know, she was still feeling rather hungry.
...
Why just settle for chips or ice cream? Something bigger will do much better, she needed it, after all. Deserved it, even.
...
What about meat?
She heard that meat was very filling. Contains all sorts of ingredients and vitamins that could help her.
Sure, a pony hasn't ever tried meat before and had a good time, but there's a first for everything, right?
...
And there was a perfectly good body just inside that door, too. Sure, it was ALSO a pony, but... living comes first, after all. You have to do some bad things for survival sometimes.
...
But that's already dead. Why not have something fresh? To minimize the chances of getting sick, she supposed.
Looking up over the counter and out the window, she saw a small group of ponies. A gang, perhaps, sitting around talking, spraying graffiti.
...
There's some fresh meat.
...
Meat.
...
Food.
...
Hungry.
...
Eat...
...
...Delicious.
"MTF Beta-7 'Maz Hatters' Commander here. We have successfully fired several darts containing SCP-008 into several ponies in the downtown area of Manehattan. Our intelligence shows that it's their largest city. The disease should spread quickly."
"Copy that, MTF Beta-7. Be sure to also hit Fillydelphia, Canterlot, Cloudsdale, Los Pegasus, Baltimare and Trottingham before you come back."
"Copy that."
Crunch.
Crunch good.
No people. People gone. Room dark. I free. I move. I happy.
Door open. Room light. People enter, people stare. I trapped. I prisoner.
I moved out. Moved out of room.
Light.
Moon.
I see Moon.
Floor fuzzy. Trees. Grass.
No walls. Not the facility.
Door close. People leave. I free.
Crunch.
Need crunch. Crunch good.
I move.
Darkness. Tree block light. I free, I move.
I move fast.
I stop. Creature there. Creature stare. I prisoner.
"...What? Lemon, come look at this!"
Creature speak. Creature talk. I no talk. I prisoner.
"What is it-uh, what's that?"
More creatures. Two creatures. Both stare. I trapped. I want crunch.
Crunch.
Crunch is a beautiful sound.
"I don't... I don't know, it's like an odd statue of some kind."
Crunch. Crunch. Crunch. I want crunch.
"Who would put something like this here, anyway? I mean, it took this long just to find a spot this secluded. What's the point?"
Creature stare. Creature blink. Second creature stare. Second creature not blink. I trapped.
Want crunch.
"...I don't know, but I don't like it. It's... odd. I think we should go somewhere else, away from it."
Trapped. They move freely. They stare. I want crunch.
Crunch is good sound.
"...Yeah, I agree with that. Let's go."
Creature looks away. Second creature stare. I prisoner.
Second creature blink. I free. Necks fragile. Necks weak.
Crunch.
"What th-"
Crunch.
Crunch means freedom. Crunch means choice. Crunch means life.
Crunch means everything.
I have crunch.
Crunch sounds good. Need more.
"MTF Eta-11 'Savage Beasts' Commander here. We have successfully released SCP-173 into the forested area north of Equestria, a few miles to the south of Trottingham. We've put that tracking necklace around it too, so you can sign in and monitor it's location if you wish now."
"Copy that, MTF Eta-11. We're signing in right now. It seems to be heading towards the city."
"Copy that."
Lightning Star walked down the street of Los Pegasus, looking around at the wondrous sights. The streets illuminated by bright, flashing neon lights and street lamps, roller coasters lining almost every corner... The city that never sleeps is an under-exaggeration, with roller coasters and stores and popcorn everywhere you looked. It was impossible to go somewhere here and not find something entertaining to do.
However, that wasn't why he was outside that night. Lightning Star was out due to confusion. Specifically, confusion as to why a monstrous pile of feathers was just sitting in the middle of the street. Many ponies were crowded around it, just as confused as him, talking and muttering to each other, trying to figure out why this was here. Lightning Star listened into the discussion.
"It... it just fell out of the sky!"
"Are you kidding?"
"Whoa, man. This is, like... way too freaky for me right now."
"Who put this here?"
"Fell out of the sky? Who else saw that?!"
"Me, I saw it! I heard a buzz, and then... boom, this! Landed right there!"
"Was anybody hit by it?"
"I don't think so."
"Somebody go touch it!"
"Nah, man. No way I'm doing that. What if it's radioactive?"
Lightning Star sighed and pushed his way to the front of the crowd. Looking around at the slowly-evolving crowd of ponies, he watched in silence as events unfolded.
"Go touch it! It's just feathers."
"Yeah, man, but..."
"Aw, come on. Do it, do it, do it!"
"I think this is a very bad idea."
"Nobody cares what you think, miss."
"Excuse me, I just came in, what's this?"
"Do it, do it, do it, do it!"
"Alright, alright. I'll touch the damn feathers!"
"Finally!"
"Wait, what? I still think this is a terrible-"
"Ah, shut up."
Lightning Star watched in curiosity as a green-ish pony approached the mountain of feathers, encouraged and cheered on by a smaller group to the side. Slowly, the pony approached it and outstretched a hoof. The second his hoof made contact, the feathers seemed to... to... reach out, per say, and completely envelop the pony, pulling him into the mountain of feathers.
But that wasn't the worst of it. The pony who had been pulled in, just started... screaming. For no reason. Just... terrible, blood-curdling screaming that would give even the strongest stallion chills. Panic set in almost instantly, with some ponies freezing in place, some screaming and running away, and some attempting to grab and pull the green pony out, but this only lead to several others being pulled into the pile of feathers.
The screaming started to come from another direction shortly afterward, directly behind Lightning. Looking behind him, he saw something that made his blood run cold. Some pony had... had... solid, red ice growing out of his body, ripping through the flesh.
Ponies began running in every which direction, some accidentally bumping into a piece of the ice and fell to the floor screaming as it started to grow out of their own body as well. It was absolute pandemonium. Lightning tried to run, tried to get away from the dangers that presented themselves, tried to escape.
But he tripped and bumped into a piece of the ice on the floor. It was only a little bit, but it was enough. Immediately, the ice began to envelop him, puncturing his flesh and ripping him apart. Lightning screamed in terror and pain, trying to move, but the ice kept enveloping him.
Within hours, he would be frozen in ice on the ground of the city.
"MTF Alpha-9 'Last Hope' Commander here. We've successfully dumped SCP-469 onto the city of Los Pegasus."
"Copy that. What about the other payloads?"
"Hundreds of small chunks of SCP-009 has been delivered successfully in several key spots around the city. It's already spreading like wildfire, and it seems SCP-008 is doing quite well so far. The 'Maz Hatters' have done brilliantly."
"What about the others?"
"SCP-162 is doing fine, we intend to release SCP-650 soon, and SCP-017 already got at least thirty-two so far."
"Copy that. Keep going with your mission."
"Copy that."
Celestia scanned over the numerous reports in shock. What's going on? Since she woke up in the morning, she was met with over five hundred reports of odd events happening all over Equestria. Ranging from reports of ponies disappearing all along the edge of the Everfree, to reports of 'red ice' of sorts spreading and killing ponies in Los Pegasus as well as a 'shadow like' creature which simply causes ponies to... disappear, to reports of an outbreak near Neighagra Falls of a disease which transforms ponies into... horrifying, mutated creatures, to reports of a HUMAN of all things with tattoos along it's body slaying even the best of her guards near Appleloosa... what could any of this mean?
"Teddybear Killer...... Miners swallowed and devoured by growing crystals... hundreds of deaths due to sleep deprivation in Baltimare... 'zombie virus' outbreak all over Equestria..." Celestia muttered to herself, skimming the files. "This is ridiculous."
Celestia sighed to herself, getting up from her throne and stepping down the steps. She needed to get something to eat if she was going to deal with this. She only got half way through when one of her guards smashed through the door, rushing towards her as fast as he could move, carrying a large stack of paper.
"C-Celestia! Look! We have m-more reports, coming from... all o-over Equestria!" the guard said, panting heavily.
"What? Oh, for- go rest, I'll take a look at these." Celestia said, levitating the papers in her telekinesis.
"C-certainly, my highness." The guard said, slowly getting up and wandering out of the door. Celestia sighed and skimmed the reports.
"...Huge wildfire in the southern jungles... mysterious creature devouring ponies hooves in the Frozen North... This is insane." Celestia muttered to herself. Just when she resumed her walk to the cafeteria, she heard a noise.
A loud, powerful, shrieking roar blasted across the courtyard, making it's way into Celestia's throne room. Screams of terror and of pain could be heard emanating from the same courtyard. Celestia quickly made her way to the window, and gazed out in horror. A huge, lizard-like creature could be seen smashing through countless statues, making it's way across the courtyard and towards the castle. Celestia immediately hurried towards the door once again. The cafeteria could wait; she needed to get to safety.
Smashing out the door, she looked down the left hall. Down that way, at least fifty or so humans, fully dressed in their battle armor and wielding unfamiliar weapons were advancing through the hall, slaughtering any remaining guards they saw. Normally, such a small invasion force could be overwhelmed and destroyed completely, but she had sent so many of her guards to quell and destroy the other anomalies and dangers, that she hadn't left enough to defend her own castle.
Looking to the right, she saw a... humanoid, of sorts; he appeared very elderly, and completely black. He was covered in a liquid of sorts, which left behind a trail of corrosion wherever he went. His left hand completely phased through one of her guards, before the guard fell down dead due to a gaping corrosion hole left in his torso.
Celestia immediately moved back into her throne room, slamming the door shut. This was insanity. The humans couldn't... beat her, could they? She had then pinned everywhere else. Even if she died, her subjects would continue attacking Earth. Humanity couldn't win this, of course not. But she still didn't want to die.
Celestia quickly sent out a message through her horn to alert the Royal Guard of the invasion. The entire force of the guard would be arriving shortly to destroy this attack on her empire; these pitiful humans would be annihiliated by their combined might!
Celestia smashed open one of her windows just as the humans burst through her door. Celestia attempted an escape, jumping out the window and flying away. But before she could even get to the door, a human fired his weapon at her. Whatever he fired, it hit her wing, causing Celestia to fall back to the ground in pain.
"Seize her!" a human bellowed, directing what Celestia presumed to be his squad towards her. Celestia attempted to fire a magical charge at the invaders, but another stray human caught on and shot her horn. Instantly, it broke into pieces, shattering all across the room as Celestia screamed.
She was quickly grabbed and subdued by the invaders, who wrapped her up in chains to prevent any sort of escape attempt. Celestia couldn't see what the other humans were doing, as only a portion of the humans she saw down the left hall were there to subdue her, but she guessed it was 'stopping' whatever '106' was to them.
What Celestia presumed to be the commander of the squad slowly approached her, before coming to a stop directly in front of Celestia, wearing nothing other than a smile.
"So, Celestia. I suppose your little 'invasion' of us 'pitiful' humans has failed," the human said, enunciating the phrases 'invasion' and 'pitiful' with a hint of anger. "I suppose you may be wondering how we beat you so... thoroughly."
"Bah! Your 'invasion' has changed nothing! Even if I die, my loyal subjects will continue the fight! We've already converted half a billion of your kind, and that number won't be the end of it!" Celestia spat at the humans.
"Oh, really?" The commander said, chuckling. "Well, you're in for a surprise, aren't you? You see, our intelligence has shown that your species will remain brainwashed as long as you are alive, and only then," the commander stated. Celestia stared at him with anger.
"How- how did you find out about that?! I was the only one who knew about-" Celestia said, moving about in her restraints.
"Well, we have a little thing called SCP-738. He answered our questions rather nicely, I must say." The commander said, pulling a file out of his back pocket.
"What?! That's... YOU- well, you see, Commander, but I sent a message to the Royal Guard to join their forces and come to eradicate you! You'll be dead in a few moments when they get here. You can't run, you can't hide, so don't even try!" Celestia said with a smug look on her face. Oddly enough, this didn't seem to frighten the humans at all.
"Oh, don't worry about that. SCP-058, SCP-049, and SCP-035 have taken good care of them. I doubt you'll be hearing from them anytime soon." The commander stated matter-of-factly. Celestia reeled.
"Wh- you- how- you CAN'T-"
"Stop, please. We know, we know. You're shocked you could have lost this badly. Well, Solar Tyrant," the commander stated, handing her a file. "Open this. Just for you."
Celestia seethed, but her curiosity got the better of her and she opened the file after some difficulty. She pulled out a photo and looked at it in curiosity. It was a pale face of a humanoid creature, with a mouth way too large for its size. Celestia crunched up the photo into a ball and threw it away.
"What was that for?!" Celestia yelled, slamming her hoof onto the floor. The commander smiled.
"Now you're free," Said the commander, releasing the restraints. Celestia looked at her hooves in both shock and confusion. The humans than simply walked away, leaving Celestia to sit and stare in confusion. "Farewell, SCP-096-1."
"This is the Alpha-1, 'Red Right Hand' Commander, SCP-096 has begun running. It's heading towards Equestria now."
"Copy that, Alpha-1. Epsilon-11 'Nine-Tailed Fox' is currently preparing to recapture SCP-096 after SCP-096-1 is terminated."
"Copy that."
Author's Note
I apologize for a number of things present in this story.
1: Yes, I know many people hate TCB stories in general, especially ones where Celestia is evil for no good reason.
2: Yes, I know a lot of people especially hate these crossovers with TCB.
3: Yes, I know the wording is a little clunky in places.
4: Yes, I understand anybody who has criticism or dislikes this story. I can understand it perfectly well.
5: Yes, I know TCB stories are overdone and there is too many of them.
But I love the SCP Mythos and quite a few TCB stories. I had this idea kicking about for the longest time, and this idea bunny simply wouldn't leave. So I had to write it, and decided, 'well, I might as well publish it to see how people like it'. I apologize if you dislike it, but I implore you to tell me precisely why you dislike it if you leave a downvote.
Okay? Okay.
Bye, and I hope you enjoyed.
