Eye of the Hurricane
by
DarkMalcontent
Proofs by Ali
Eastern Empire, Southern Plains, 1 year After Canterlot Disaster.
***
"We have found the first anomaly, my lord." A long bony hand held a communicator as Strife spoke into it. The equally bony face it belonged to showed no emotion, save a moment of annoyance. "It’s centered around a girl."
"Have her subdued, I will arrive shortly." A voice echoed back, it's tone grim but still commanding. "Glockenspiel is with me to ensure we have no more false positives."
"As you wish, my lord. Be mindful that she is more trouble than anticipated." Strife ducked, exposing from the shadows of the treeline his bald head to the moonlight. He heaved a breath and pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his bloodshot red eyes. Would be lovely for a raise. Strife opened his eyes and looked to the battle armor draped troops that flanked him. “Be ready.” The soldiers nodded, readying their rifles which were a mangled mashed design to incorporate magic and conventional weaponry. Strife adjusted his chestplate, his pistol hidden by a cape on his hip. Turning to focus on the fuschia colored girl that was the center of all the fighting, he signaled for more to move in. "Such a fuss for one girl."
Two more squads ran down the rocky path leading down to the settlement where the conflict was occurring. Fires were burning in half the buildings and bodies were strewn about. Both villager and soldier lay in piles of death that the troops swiftly disregarded, all focusing on the rapidly moving girl in the center of town.
Tempest Shadow spun to dodge a lunge from a trooper, cracking him in the back of the head with an elbow. Taking advantage of the stunned opponent, she grabbed him from behind in a chokehold and pulled him with her. Timed perfectly, the trooper met his end by his own company firing at her, hitting him several times. Recoiling in a moment of shock, Tempest stared them down with her one good eye, a smug smile on her face. "Nice shot." She laughed briefly, the smile quickly fading as she threw the body forward into another salvo of magic infused ammo.
Ducking and rolling to the right of the dead human shield, she pulled his side arm from his belt as he dropped. Taking aim with lightning speed, she took the remaining three in the company and turned to see herself surrounded with fresh troops. "Wow, really?" Tempest laughed, astonished at their tenacity. "You saw what I just did to your friends." She added but began to notice their maneuvers were about containing not capturing. "Or are you not my real problem?"
"Stand down, girl." Strife stood behind the lines his troops formed, his cloak fluttering in the currents the fires blew. "Your village is all but dead, yet there may be hope for you if you surrender."
Her clothing torn and bloodied, Tempest looked down and gave another chuckle. "This...this is so not my village." She shrugged. "...and surrender is not an option." She said, losing her smile. A crude patch covering her left eye, the burnt flesh around it was hardly new as it gave a twitch. "But I tell you what, for making me laugh, I'll kill you last."
"Such arrogance." Strife shook his head. "By order of his lord, Emperor Sombra of the Eastern Empire, I am to bring you before him." He sighed, looking down at her from the rocky perch he had settled on. "Preferably in one piece."
"Your lord can take a number." She eyed up the soldiers closing in slowly, each with a rifle trained on her. "I've got my own mission at the moment."
"What petty matters could possibly be above a summons of your lord?" Strife asked, a mild tone of offense overcoming his usual demeanor.
“Your lord, not mine.” Tempest firmly replied, narrowing her eye on him. “My mission is personal, lap dog, but very simple: revenge.”
“Take her.” Strife ordered strictly.
Pulling a shiv from the back of her belt, she turned and contorted out of the way of their open gunfire, getting in a few knicks here and there. The knife hit one soldier in the throat, sending him to the ground. Another two dropped as Tempest grabbed one's magical energy rifle nailing each in the face with a stun round, allowing her to close ranks on the last three.
Two were able to draw their trench knives as they saw her throw aside the empty pistol and steal two knives from the falling troops. Leaping over the rifle fire, ignoring a shot to the leg, Tempest engaged the front two, the glint of metal on metal reflected the fire around them and almost blinded Strife. Quick and decisive motion brought one down with a slashed throat and the last shot the second one as she used him as a barrier again. She broke into a dash and knocked the rifle barrel out of the line of fire at her. As with the others, speed was on her side as she put the woman into an under the arm headlock, cutting her protests and mercy pleas short with a snap of her neck.
Strife took a step back as all six of the soldiers fell quicker than he could imagine, the sight of the girl dashing up towards him was frightening without his guards. He tried to pull his seldom used pistol but felt a blade to his throat before it could clear his holster. Staring down at the one good eye of Tempest, he stood open mouthed, at a loss for words.
"Like I said." Tempest began, pushing the blade closer. "You cost me one of the two people I hate in this world..." she gritted her teeth as she reached around the back of him and shoved it into his spine and down near his collarbone, cutting his groans short. "...and if your lord wants to talk to me, he'll have to come himself." She tossed him to the ground, watching him writhe in pain without flinching.
"Very well." Tempest jerked around only to be thrown off her stone pedestal. She released a grunt as she rolled down, hitting the ground and debris from the once stone pile clicked around her. The massive shockwave of unseen magic died down, the gust of wind extinguishing the flames behind and around her. Shaking her head, her ears caught the sound of heavy, clinking footsteps calmly nearing which matched with the voice that had spoken.
Raising her head, she stared at a blackened stone pillar. Just a step back, to his side was a smaller, frailier woman with her graying hair tied back in a tight bun. Tempest’s eye widened and jaw slackened. The moonlight behind him reflected off the sharp armor on his shoulders. As the wind blew, the ruffling of the closed cape he wore gave insight of a person beneath the shadows. “I’ll have you know I seldom grant requests. Find yourself lucky.” He lifted a black gloved hand from under his cape, falling to the side like liquid shadows. A pale green flame formed around his fingers.
From her pocket a similar glow came and the corner of the picture sticking out began to slide away from her. Shaking off the mesmerizing sight, Tempest registered the photo as it entered the air. Swiftly she pounced the wrinkled photograph, holding it tightly despite his magic tugging on it. “Not letting go?” she held her tongue, narrowing her eye. “Aren’t you feeling glad I made you an exception?”
“I’m not stupid. No one of your standing would mess with someone like me.” Tempest quietly said with a bit of a growl.
“Hmm, I suppose you’re right. I don’t want to get fleas from mangy mongrels.” Sombra explained, Tempest glaring at his word choice.
Tempest slid her foot to the side delicately, curling her body. Snatching up the knife, she bolted at Sombra, baring her teeth. The blade rose and came down at his face right when she jumped for height. His eyes erupted into a purple and green glow. He lifted his hand and caught her by the throat, the blade not coming near his face. He examined her face and locked his eyes with hers. She glared back, flinching after a couple moments with a soft matching green licking at the corner of her uncovered eye.
Let’s see how much you have, a blood diamond or an imitation. Sombra thought, pulling her closer before tossing her backwards to the ground. “Professor?” he inquired with a look over his shoulder. Tempest glared from her crumpled position, her knife having been dropped and not as close as she would have liked it to had landed.
"Checking now, my lord." The elderly female responded, pulling from her bag a small device with a series of wires and prongs sticking from it. She turned on the device and pointed it at Tempest's unchanged form. "Scanning."
Tempest eyed around then in front of her. The machine was making odd sounds. Taking a breath, she snapped back up and ran towards the lone rifle. She was cut short, felt the ground leave her and her throat constrict again. Grabbing at the nothing that was holding her, she snapped her eye open to stare at the raised glove of Sombra, yards away. “Do hold still, girl.” Sombra said with the same slow and calm demeanor. He turned his head slightly. “Professor Glockenspiel? Is she one of them?”
The device gave small beeps and clicks as it did its job. "Positive, my lord." She spoke softly, keeping her voice down so only Sombra would hear.
“Truthfully?” he quietly questioned.
Glockenspiel twitched under his gaze and voice. She nodded stiffly, finding swallowing hard. “...yes, my lord.”
Turning to face Tempest, Sombra closed the distance with a small gesture towards him. She flew in the air closer to him before stopping abruptly. The tension around her neck dropped her to the ground and she stumbled to gain her footing. Sombra crossed his arms, eyeing the defiant girl whom had decimated his troops and continued to stand despite her injuries, although minor as they were. “Have the lump of rocks brought over here.”
“Yes.” Glockenspiel scurried behind Sombra, speaking to a couple of the troops out of a group that had stepped off the transport.
What shall you do now, little living crystal? Sombra thought. Neither moved and his armor began to illuminate, displaying magical runes etched into the metal. His cape was separated further and blown back, showing his strong form as his eyes had not yet ceased their fiery glow.
“What’s the matter? Scared to finish the job?” Tempest sharply questioned with a shift of her right foot, quickly glancing to the side before meeting his gaze.
“The better question would be, are you afraid to show your Emperor how you managed to take down one of my Warlords?”
Fine, I’ll show your sorry face. Jerking her legs into motion, she leaped with a roll, shot the pistol off twice at Sombra. The runes increased in their glow. Tempest took the shiv and charged with all her might. She slid low past his side and jumped forward, bringing down the blade.
He shifted his eyes over towards her and her momentum drastically slowed, halting her in place like a floating frozen statue. Seems you cannot tap into it. Worthless garbage. He thought disappointedly. With a shift of his head she was swung around and dropped to the ground. Before she could stand, the pressure of what felt like a dozen hands weighed down upon her and held her on her hands and knees. Turning, dust kicked up as he stepped closer and proceeded to circle her, inspecting her. Tempest snarled, her body twitching and flexing as much as she could muster.
"Marvelous. You are beaten, yet still try to fight. As if some feral animal that doesn't know when it’s caught..." he muttered, fascinated like a scientist examining a slide under a scope. "Tell me,” he stopped in front of her, “what happened to your eye, beast?"
Tempest felt the magic jerk her head up to stare at her opponent before it started to tug and slowly peel the patch off. She winced and instinctively tried to lower her head or turn it to no avail, his magic holding firm. She heard footsteps and the sound of more soldiers surround her. Perfect, Dropsy gets away with Spring and I get this, she thought.
A minute of silence passed with defiant glaring. The sound of metal footsteps reached Tempest’s ears before a sharp pain joined a ringing in her ears. "You will answer." A soldier struck her in the head with her rifle.
Tempest grunted, her head being forcefully shoved downward and just as quickly, the unseen force holding her shifted it’s main target. She noticed why as Sombra had lifted his other hand, making the overzealous soldier drop her weapon.
As the others seemed to take a step back, the scene unfolded quickly, her good eye wincing at the display before her.
"My lord...I-I...beg…" the woman stammered as the sound of eggshells cracking filled the air. As she pled for her life she dropped to her knees nearly identical to Tempest stance, only standing on her knees, arms pinned to her side and bent inward like a giants hand squeezing a tube of toothpaste. Her body slimmed as more bones cracked and any words merely came as screams from the soldier. Armor slipped off her body slowly as it was compressed, and the twist of Sombra’s wrist lit the girls body afire with a dark black flame. She screamed at the top of her broken lungs as her legs, torso, shoulders and neck turned to ash. The final wail died as she did, the air pushing away any of the ash left, leaving only the unharmed armor.
"I don't recall asking for your help," Sombra bellowed, turning back to his visibly shaken prisoner. “Shall we try your answer again?” Tempest gulped as two nervous soldiers moved up and collected the armor for later redistribution. Quickly they scurried away while Sombra took a step closer, looking down his nose at the girl.
"I lost it to a beast. The two I chase now led me to a cave it lay asleep in under the farce of a game." Tempest speedily answered, her words trembling despite her efforts to sound confident, staring at the soldiers emptying a handful of dust from the armor behind him. The picture she had gripped floated up effortlessly in front of Sombra. He gave it a trivial glance and tossed it to the ground in front of her.
"You chase these two to administer justice then?" Sombra asked, fixing his glare upon her. "How long has this pursuit taken you?"
"I was young, maybe fifteen years now." She winced, taking notice of his gaze being focused more on the scarred flesh than meeting her open eye. Damn it. Why can’t I just be naked or something? staring down, she shook her head. Sombra watched silently, listening and allowed her head to lower. "Justice. Anger.” She blurted out to fill the silence before lowering her voice. “Call It what you want, my lord." She added an insincere tone at his title. "I just want them to feel as awful as I did." She sighed as an effort to move proved unsuccessful. "I hate them both. But that doesn't matter now. Do what you will." She quietly finished, her shoulders fallen and head refusing to lift on its own so to keep examining the ground.
Sombra stood silently for a moment, his eyes narrowing in thought. Perhaps it needs more of a push to surface itself. They shifted in shape as a grin came across his face. "You have shown me that you are quite capable of laying waste to soldier and structure." Sombra let his eyes dim as a pack of men brought Strife, barely breathing and in considerable pain, to him. They dropped the warlord in front of him. "To say nothing of the leader of my ground forces." Sombra finished, frowning upon the limp form of Strife. Who appears to have outlived his usefulness, just like those before him.
She felt the magic around her shove her face first to the ground before dispersing. Tempest pushed herself up to her knees, covering her scared face with her left hand. She saw him turn and lift a hand. “Ready.”
“Wait!” she shouted, reaching out with her right hand, her knee resting on the photograph. No answer came but he didn’t continue his command. “Take me with you!”
"Why?" Sombra stopped after a few more steps, not bothering to turn.
She had no real answer, making her mouth go dry. I must think of something. He may have the resources to track Glitter and Spring. She glanced at the guns ready to fire. I'm certain to die here and I'll never have my revenge. She scowled a moment.
Sombra snorted with a brief cruel grin. "I have no use for a feral beast who doesn't understand herself, let alone the rules of my Empire." He turned back for a moment and stared at Strife. "...and I already have Strife for my military needs." He flatly remarked, disgust in his tone. What will your move be, mongrel? Sombra turned his head away and lifted his hand once more. “Aim.” The guns cocked.
Strife began to try and move. "Thank...you my lord." He choked with a shaky smile.
“Make sure you don’t miss him.” Strifes smile faded upon hearing those words. Tempest’s eye narrowed, her jaw tightened seeing Sombra’s hand slicing down like a blade. “Fire.”
Like an animal wanting to survive, she dove, grabbing Strife and covered herself under him as the guns blazed. He couldn’t even manage a yell before the shots had claimed his life. Taking his pistol, she chucked his body at two soldiers and opened fire. Three shots rang out with the rest. Three fell as tow stumbled back from the warlord’s dead weight. Rolling forward, Tempest took up a knife from a fallen woman and used another's corpse from being shot more. Twisting out she took aim, absorbing a shot to the shoulder and fired twice, taking out the man’s eye then through his throat under his chin.
Tossing aside the firearm, she snatched free another knife and charged the last two. Weaving, ducking and sliding she twisted around, coming to rush between them. The two knives found their homes in the two soldiers necks. Tempest breathed heavily, forcing herself to stand upright with arms limp at her side, the last two bodies collapsing dead. A wind blew in the silence with Sombra keeping his back to the girl. An eternity passed as her breathing changed from feral panting to mere labored breathing.
Sombra stopped but didn’t look back. Silence returned for a moment. “Well?”
She blinked.
“Are you coming?” without further elaboration, he continued on to his convoy.
Tempest dropped the gun, stepped forward and pulled the photo out of a pool of Strife’s blood. “Yes…” Tempest answered carefully, lining her words with obedience but the defiant fire remained within her good eye. “...my lord.” As she followed, she was eclipsed by his shadow, seeing Glockenspiel waiting by the door as he passed by, giving a respectful bow. If this gets me what I need...I can play along for a little while. Tempest thought and stepped on board. Glockenspiel stepped on behind the girl as did a couple soldiers.
Tempest looked around the transport and was in awe of the tech. Shaking it off she took a deep breath. It won’t be long before you get what you deserve. She thought, her fists tightening as the memory of her racing out of a cave, holding her burnt and scratched eye, to find no one there played in her memory.
***
Eastern Empire, Castle Sombra, 10 years after Canterlot Disaster
***
The mechanical sounds of Tempest's right leg echoed with each step she took, the three steps she took off the elevator sent the numb phantom limb pain she had afire. “Why don't you have a look downstairs in the warehouse? I've gotten you a gift for all your hard work taking out enemies of the Empire.” Hissing through her gritted teeth as the pain hit, Sombras words echoed in her thoughts alongside the high cost of her implants reminding her who was really reliant on whom. The circular room she walked into lit up, the dull dark red lighting from the floor broken by the overhead blue hues. Machinery sprang to life around her, all highlighting two large metal cases in the center of the room.
The one on the left had a single solid yellow light that was lit on its case, an indicator of some sort. The right one blinked a constant yellow indicator, and followed by a hiss from its tubing in it, began to slide open. Inside was a blue skinned girl, about Tempest’s age, and dressed down to her undergarments. An oxygen tube going into her nose began jiggling as she seemed to wake up. A harness around her kept her secured and in place as her body protested to move. Finally her eyes opened slightly, focused and widened. “What’s going on!?” Glitter Drops shouted, struggling harder against the harness.
Tempest remained silent, watching as the fear in her old friend's eyes increased. She drank in the feelings that it gave her. This was the satisfaction she had long since dreamed of. She seems uncomfortable. Good. She thought, her one eye narrowing.
The woman turned her head left and right quickly. “Where am I? What’s going on?” a noise, though muffled, brought her head to jerk to look in Tempests direction. “Who’s there?! Show yourself!”
I guess I can oblige. After all, what type of victory isn’t savored? Tempest thought. Stepping forward into the light, Tempest removed her cloak, revealing the tapestry of pain and cybernetic weaved flesh. Glitter’s eyes widened and face fell as she saw the woman’s right arm was gone at the elbow, as was her left at the shoulder. The hissing of her hydraulics in the right leg left only a hint of its purpose. The metal plate that covered the scared part of her face lit, revealing the now pupiless eye, glowing brightly a sickening green hue for a moment before dimming down.
“You-! You’ve been the one after me!” Glitter exclaimed, recalling seeing and hearing such noises when alone outside. "What do you want!? Who are you?!" Glitter tried to kick and struggle again, only to further prove it was a futile act in the confining coffin sized transport box along with the restraints.
Tempest didn’t answer. Little was visible that resembled a person anymore. It was fused with Midnight’s upgrades and patches to those upgrades. Giving a wide smile, a chill ran through her at the sight of Glitter’s shiver. Glitter scrunched her face up, examining to the best of her ability her captor’s face, the gears turning upstairs. Soon Tempest’s grin fell as she grew bored and pulled the crumpled up and half charred photo from her pouch. Glitter jumped as the old photo was slammed with great force onto the glass. That’s right. Think hard. She thought while Glitter examined the smiling faces before her.
“I…” Glitter began to slowly say.
“You know who I am.” Tempest firmly stated quietly.
Moments ticked by and gradually Glitter’s eyes opened wider than before. She glanced between the photograph and the woman looming over her. “It...can’t be...F-Fizzy?”
“Shocking how you can actually remember but I’m glad. It means I shouldn’t need to explain much to you.” She pulled the paper off. “Now, shall we see if our other dear, old friend is as bright?”
“Other friend?” Glitter muttered as Tempest turned to the other coffin transport box. Hisses came as it too opened and revealed a sleeping man in his boxers. She sharply inhaled. Rain?!
Tempest tapped on the glass, getting groans and stirs before punching the surface with her cybernetic fist. Cracks ran out from her knuckles, jolting him awake with a frightened shout. He too had an oxygen tube attached to his nose. “Ah, good morning Spring Rain. How did we sleep?”
“Ugh who-who are you? Where am I?! What’s going on?!” he quickly asked with growing fright and confusion.
Tempest frowned and slammed the photo in front of him. “How about a reminder? And don’t make me wait too long.”
It took a couple seconds before his eyes widened in realization and then confusion. He looked up to her and stared into her human eye. “Berry-bear? ACH!” he screamed as her hand left the photo and slammed into a button with inhuman speed. Sparks of blue and yellow danced across him before ending as she released the button, leaving him panting.
“You don’t have the right to call me that after what you did!” Tempest bellowed loudly, anger flashing in her eye with the other flashed a sharp green.
“We didn’t do anything to you!” Glitter shouted.
“Yes you did!”
“Then what are you even talking about that we did?” Glitter asked as Rain recovered his senses.
“What did you do?” Tempest quietly asked after staring at the imprisoned woman for a moment. Softly she chuckled. “What did you do you ask?” she laughed more. “How can you even ask?” Glitter said nothing as Tempest lazily took the photo off his box and gripped it tightly in her hand. Why didn’t I feel joy from that? she thought, inhaling deeply. “You know exactly what you both did to me all those years ago.” Her tone had fallen flat, the green tube in her throat illuminating.
She snarled at the confusion contorting Glitter’s face. “Because you’re going to play stupid I’ll talk to you as if your brain has gone out to pasture. Once upon a time we were all good, fun loving friends. One day you and Spring Rain decided to throw your ball into a bear cave. Not willing to go inside, the two traitors decided to ask me to run in and get some stupid sap, me. Why? Because you both were bored, scared and wanted someone to laugh at.”
“That’s not true at all.” Glitter said, stunned at the story. “That’s not how it happened at all.”
“It isn’t? Well, I guess you’d know, right? Victors write the history after all.” Tempest snarled, reaching up and pressing a tiny release button on the metal eye plate. Tiny hisses came as she pulled the metal off the softened skin, letting the sound fill the air as if someone was pulling something off a sticky surface. The metal covering came off into her hand, revealing wrinkled, sickly pale skin that had been burned years ago. “Then I guess that bear taking out my eye with its hot claws was all my fault?”
The restrained woman inhaled sharply and turned her eyes away at the gross sight of Tempest’s exposed eye. “You had gone in with a lit fire lantern after we couldn’t find any batteries for our electric lanterns or flashlights.” Swallowing, she forced herself to turn eyes in the direction of Tempest, her eyes still not resting on her old friend now captor’s face for long. “We thought you got burned by the oil breaking in the fight, caught by the fabric wick and hit your eye. Bears don’t have heated claws.” Glitter tried to explain.
“Fizz, we tried to help as you ran out but you yelled at us not to look. Even when we tried to help you out after the doctor, you just vanished. We didn’t think a kid cou- ach!” Rain screamed as Tempest had came back over and punched the button, shocking him again.
“Lies, all of it! It’s all lies. You didn’t try to help me as the village shunned me!” she looked to Glitter. “You can’t even look at me.”
“Yes we did!” Glitter shouted back, forcing her eyes to meet Tempest’s. Tempest released the button. “We tried to help you, to comfort you, to give you confidence again but you rejected us! And we didn’t make you go in after our ball. You decided for yourself to go in after it since neither of us was willing to and debated on getting an adult.”
“You both only deliberated on how to make me a freak no one would dare want to look at.”
“No we weren’t and you can’t prove me wrong.”
“You both left me! You let that doctor shame me with my taken eye! You didn’t stand up for me!” Tempest snapped.
“We wouldn’t had left you if you hadn’t of run off, Fizzlepop Berry Twist!”
Tempest’s eyes flashed and she slammed her half machine arm into another button on the side of Rain’s box. A smoke began to slowly be released. She swiftly stepped forwards and slammed her fist into a button on Glitter’s box. “My name is Tempest Shadow! You took my birth name from me on that day!” she screamed.
As the same electricity sparked and danced over Glitter’s body, she let out a horrible scream, Tempest’s expectation of enjoyment fell into panic. Her face warped from anger to panic. She stumbled back, turning off the smoke and releasing the button thus ending Glitter’s pain. What-what was that?! Tempest shakily thought, her heart racing and breathing heavy. Her ears rang with the echo of Glitter’s screams of pain mixing in with a younger hers screams. Her stomach twisted and her chest thobbed. This...this isn’t the feeling I wanted. I wanted to enjoy this, not hurt from it. ...why...why won’t this emptiness leave me already? I have them and I’ve hurt them like they did me, so why won’t this end?!
“Are you sure they were never there to help you?” a little girl’s voice questioned.
Snapping her head to the side, Tempest saw no one but her body trembled nonetheless. She looked to Glitter then behind her to Rain who now had his left arm from his elbow down encased in black onyx stone. Her stomach twisted again and her chest felt as if it were turning in on itself. Lowering her head she gritted her teeth. “...leave…” she shakily hissed in a whisper.
Glitter slowly looked over confused, not following what was happening. Tempest pushed herself off Rain’s box and pushed down on a switch. The glass hissed and opened as the restraints released him and the oxygen tube in his nose fell out. She stepped over and pressed the same on Glitter’s containment box.
As both sat up, Rain with a little more struggle, Glitter eyed a motionless Tempest suspiciously. “...What’re you planning?”
Tempest lifted and reattached the plate over her damaged eye, the green glow returning. “...it’s not fun anymore…” she muttered.
“What?” Glitter slowly pulled herself out of the box, keeping her eyes on the cybernetic woman.
“I said...Get. Out.” Tempest ordered firmly, not making eye contact with her face kept down.
“You’re letting us go?” Rain questioned, coming out of the box a bit clumsy due to his stoned hand sliding on the edge of the box.
“I said to get out.” Tempest repeated, staying still by Glitter’s box and Glitter now standing by her side.
“I want to know what’s with this change. Why let us go now?”
“Glitz, don’t antagonize her.” Rain sharply whispered quickly.
Tempest kept silent, taking a small step away from Glitter.
“I just want to know why.” Glitter pushed.
A green blade shot out of Tempest’s half cyber arm, swinging up and down into the transport box. Glitter screeched and jumped away from the sparking metal and exposed wires. “Last. Chance.” Tempest quietly stated in a level voice, her eye shifted to glare with little rise of her head.
Glitter Drops quickly nodded, gulping and went to help Rain out. They fled only for Tempest to pop a side compartment. A couple orbs were grabbed. She stepped slow then quickly, making their pace increase. This ended as one then the other was thrown, striking both in the back. Glitter and Rain screamed, their arms reaching out as they became frozen in the black onyx crystals. Silence lingered, ringing loudly in Tempest’s ears. The energy blade retracted.
Tempest stepped closer and around, staring at their horror frozen faces, open mouths and pupiless eyes. “Finally. Finally you get what you deserve.” She began to laugh hardily for a moment but her laughter trailed off. It didn’t feel right. The longer she stared at their faces, the worse the stabbing feeling became. Lifting the picture, she stared at the smiling face and looked up to the horror frozen she’d created.
“Aww dang it. Now what’re we supposed to do?” Glitter asked, her voice echoing in Tempest’s head.
“Maybe we should go get someone to go in and get it? I’m not going into no scary cave.” Rain replied.
“Aw you’re just being babies. I can do it.” Tempest heard her younger self proclaim, the scene of them standing outside the cave flickering in her minds eye.
“Are you sure about this?” Glitter asked.
“Yea, you could get hurt or worse.” Rain added.
“I’ll be fine. I got this! Just wait right here and I’ll be back.” Tempest ran off, returning later with a lit oil lantern. “Okay, now it’s time to reclaim our ball!”
“Be careful, Fizz.” Glitter said worriedly.
“Yea, just come back out if anything dangerous happens. Promise Berry-bear?” Rain questioned as he went up and gave Tempest a hug.
She returned it and nodded. “I can do this, I know it.” She went into the cave, searching for their ball.
Deeper inside she went, the darkness grew thicker and upon finding the ball… “Ah! There you are!” she happily exclaimed, setting down the lantern and picking up the ball. “Now to get back ou…” she trailed off as a growling noise echoed around her. Tempest picked up the lantern, holding it up higher and out. She gasped and screamed, jerking the lantern back as a large red paw came down. It smashed the glass, shattering it into pieces, coating its paw and claws in oil. The flame on the wick remained, being shoved into the newly coated surface and lit the large paw on fire. The bear roared in pain, stomping and swung, slicing and burning Tempest’s face.
She ran from the cave, stumbling while holding her damaged and bleeding face, kicking the dropped ball as she hurried out.
Glitter and Rain both rushed to Tempest, asking to see what happened but were batted away by the terrified and injured girl. They eventually got her to a doctor and told her parents. Her mother recoiled in horror at the sight of her little girl’s face, asking the doctor if it could be fixed. He shook his head, explaining that it had to heal up some first before they could look into anything and for Tempest to keep it clean and covered.
Tempest’s mother kept her inside, worried about reputation. Tempest didn’t enjoy this so after sneaking out, she stayed with Glitter for a short period before starting to stay where she could alone. Those in the village winced at seeing the marks coming out from under the bandage. It was soon after she ran, ignoring Rain and Glitter as they tried to chase after her to bring her back.
She released the photo, allowing it to flutter to the floor and her hand rose to cover her closing good eye. Her shoulders slumped then tensed and shook along with quiet sounds being repressed, a few slipping out. Her palm caught the salty liquid slipping down her cheek.
It was all my fault… she thought as the sword returned, she turned away from the sight. Damn it! Tempest hesitated to move, eventually looking to her creations. Lowering her head, she grabbed Glitter and carefully proceeded to move her over to a different spot that was out of the way. She grunted and sighed once her friend was in a safe spot. She returned and moved Rain to stand beside her. “I’m sorry…” she whispered, stepping away and paused between their coffins. Turning her head to look at one, her good eye narrowed, her hand curled into a fist. Her sword shot out and she began wildly slicing into the transport coffin box. Sparks and metal flew with severed wires. When just about all of a section of the side lay at her feet, she panted and lowered her mechanical arm away from her now open good eye. Is it never going to go away? Why won’t this feeling leave?!
Her mind whirled for several moments before starting to focus. She took a deep breath, retracting the sword and exhaled. “...I just...need to focus. Yes, that’s all I need to do.” Tempest whispered aloud to herself. Ignoring the mess she left, she made her way over to the elevator. She stepped inside and turned, the doors closing with a hiss. Shaking her shoulders and leaning back against the wall, she closed her good eye as her cybernetic eye dimmed down to appear turned off.
A feeling of being watched brought Tempest to open her eye, looking at the door. From the corner of her eye a small figure to her left stood still. Quickly drawing her pistol she turned, aimed but stopped before pulling the trigger. Tempest stared at the little girl before her. The child was no more than ten years old, sporting a scruffy mohawk and a burn across the left side of her face. Tempest slowly dropped her aim in disbelief as the girl looked up to her.
"Who are you? What are you?" the tiny girl asked.
Tempest startled back to reality as the doors opened, having drifted off for a brief moment. She was visibly shaken for the moment as the two attending guards peeked in to check why she hadn't left the elevator. She was staring at her reflection in the elevator’s reflective wall to her left. I...don’t know… Tempest thought, taking in the sight of her mechanical replacements and parts which were almost even, if not a bit more a piece of her than normal flesh.
Silently walking forward, she said nothing to them, the marble floor echoing her footsteps as she kept the doubts that began to bubble deep inside her where they had always been.
Where no one could see them.
Where they belonged.
In the warehouse, a camera closed its shutter while Midnight pushed her glasses up her nose. “As you can see, my lord, she still seems to hold some disobedience.”
“It is nice to see that beast is learning to control when her fangs strike a target. She’s passed but, as we were doing before, should she release anyone she’s sent to end and not catch herself, that will not be accepted. She will be punished for her disobedience.”
“Would you like that done now?”
Sombra sat back on his throne as Midnight tapped away on her tablet. “No. This was a test as I had instructed, so those she permanently imprisoned will be allowed to remain in storage undamaged. Now leave and continue with your work.”
“Yes my lord.” Midnight said with a proper salute and left.
***
End of episode
Author's Note
Long time readers of our universe will know that Tempest Shadow is one of the warlords that serve King Sombra in the Eastern Empire.
The Eastern Empire is the land controlled by Sombra and is, oddly enough, East of The Canterlot Commonwealth (home of Equestrian City).
As we built the world and universe we wanted to model certain elements after different periods of time since the world is less populated than our own.
The divergence resulted in a chain of events that made the world turn out vastly different then canon. What you just read is one such tale of how the timeline became skewed. It leaves some questions unanswered, gives you new ones and doesn't spoon feed you lore.
We attempt to disclose what happened differently through as organic as a storytelling process as possible.
We plan on doing more should enough interest be garnered for The MetaVerse.
Please don't hesitate to comment as myself and my team are eager to hear back.
DarkMalcontent
