Chapter 3 - Swamp Friends
Author's Note
Hey Guys, sorry about the delay on chapters, as usual life is a dick and things fell apart but hey i'm still here so here is a new chapter. enjoy please and i pray i can get another chapter out soon
Chapter 3 - Swamp Friends
Equestra.
Location - 2 Miles North of Sanctuary.
Time - 5:48am
The normally quiet swamp, which was normally home to the sounds of swarming insects, bubbling sludge the occasional redneck version of a pony hollering was flooded with the sound of guttural groan, moans and the sound of loud crashes. In a dry clearing several hundred feet from the base of a mountain, a 10 foot wide toxic green transparent bubble sat in the middle of the clearing, illuminating it. Within the bubble was a dark green Changeling queen with a crooked yet sharp horn, several large holes on her limbs, mane and tail. Her horn burned with fire similarly colored to the barrier as a gargantuan plant brutally slammed vines into the barrier.
The plant had half a dozen large yellow flowers atop a mess of vines and pony corpses. The plant stood tall on a trio vines easily 2 feet thick each, surrounding it were several shambling solar guard zombies that seemed to be infested with vines and small flowers. There were a good half a dozen of them meekly wielding their weapons at the barrier.
The Changeling Queen did her best to stay standing and concentrating on her barrier as every few moments the Corpse Flower before her slammed three of its veins down onto the bubble with tremendous power. Each strike left faint cracks, which vanished quickly, and slowly pushed the barrier down into the muddy ground.
The Queen had several lacerations and cracks along her chitinous body as she begged for something to save her from the monstrous plant before her. After several long minutes she could feel her legs slowly sinking into the mud as her barrier was now pressing down against her body while spear and swords deflected off it’s surface. She watched the Corpse Flower prepare for another strike, making the Changeling grit her teeth as she would feel this next one due to the barrier being pressed against her body. As she watched the vines come down and strike the barrier with the force she expected, she felt the force of the blow rippled through her body causing her to cry out and collapse to her knees. With her concentration broken, her barrier quickly shattered like glass as the Changeling Queen laid in the mud helpless.
The first thing that hit the now exposed Changeling monarch was the putrefying smell of rotting corpses assaulted her nostrils, making her eyes water and causing her empty stomach to seize. Chrysalis felt her body shudder at the smell of the abominable hulking flower before her as the ground quaked under it’s vines unrooting themselves and reburying themselves closer to her. She blinked away the tears in her eyes as she meekly pushed herself up onto her hooves once more before attempting to retreat.
This didn’t go well as the moment she attempted to run, the infested Solar Guards charged in, launching crippling strikes with sword and spear, slashing shallowly at her legs, hindquarters and wings, sending her face first into the thick mud. She lay in the mud for a few brief moments waiting for the inevitable sharp pain to come, but it never came as she felt hooved legs wrap around her back legs. She gasped in pain as she was roughly handed and dragged backwards towards the rotting flower. She looked over her shoulder to see a pair of guards dragging her towards the Corpse Flower, which appeared to be waiting patiently for her. She began to cry once more as she begged whatever higher power would listen to save her from such a cruel fate.
On this day, one listened as a sharp deafening crack was heard from the tree line as one of the Flower zombie’s head detonated in a wave of viscera, blood, bone and plant material while the second one’s head was taken off of it’s neck as the bottom part of it’s head was turned into a cloud of matter. A tree on the far side of the clearing detonated as well, sending splinters flying in all directions as a trail of white smoke hung in the air for a second. The world seemed to be without sound as the crack vanished while the pair of zombies released Chrysalis’ legs before crumbling to the ground. Chrysalis looked to where the smoke trail came from as a second crack was heard as one of the Corpse Flower’s legs detonated in a section, causing it to collapse on top of a trio of it’s zombie minions and crushing them. Chrysalis was in shock at what powerful unicorn or magic user could create such powerful magic.
She soon discovered to source as a third beam slammed into the Corpse Flower, ruining a pair of it’s bulbs and making writhe in pain. The Changeling saw a tall black armored creature wielding a long weapon which it was propping up on an exposed root. Smoke raised from the long barreled weapon it wielded as it shifted it’s weapon and fired once more with yet another crack of noise which resulted in a confused zombie to be split in half as the round hit just behind it’s shoulders. Once the shot had been fired, the creature reloaded it’s weapon before slinging it over its shoulder before sprinting straight towards the Monarch.
Her eyes widened as she suddenly realized that she might be in more danger as she quickly got to her hooves once more, pushing through the pain and began to run away. Tony gave her a confused look as he tried to catch up to her but the moment he passed the fallen Corpse Flower, it shot out vines that wrapped around the ODST’s right arm and burrowed beneath the armor of his arm. “Hey! let go of me you overgrown salad bar!” Tony growled as he drew his combat knife and began hacking away at the vines as a larger one launched forward and slammed into his helmet, cracking the visor and stunning him. The force of the strike sent him down onto the mud and sent his firearms and knife away.
Chrysalis glanced back at the scene to see the unknown creature on the ground being attacked by the Corpse Flower as it was being pulled in slowly. She was about to keep running when she thought about the fact that the creature had saved her so the least she could do was return the favor.
Tony managed to compose himself as he blinked a few times as his helmet seemed to be stuck in it’s night vision mode as he started to pull against the vines, causing his right arm’s armor and under suit to begin split and peel away. Tony could see his top’s long sleeve as he suddenly got an idea before drawing a frag grenade from his belt and putting it in his right hand. Tony pressed the trigger tightly as he continued to pull away from the flower, causing his armor to continuously be peeled off. Tony was finding it more and more difficult to pull as his boots slipped in the mud until he felt a strange sensation wrap around his torso which pulled him backwards sharply. Tony gritted his teeth, hit shoulder feeling it was about to be ripped out of his torso as his shirt showed incredible durability.
He quickly looked around and saw his knife in the ground near him so he knelt down, took the blade and slashed at his arm, tearing the fabric and allowing the rest of the sleeve to tear as it was peeled away into the Flower with the rest of his arm’s equipment and the now smoking grenade.
Chrysalis pulled with all her magical might, flinging the armored being about 40 feet away from the Flower, making it land hard in the mud seconds before the Flower detonated in a way of floral gore, chunks of meat, shrapnel and pollen. The creature raised it’s oddly shaped right arm in front of it’s visor while curling up as shrapnel splattered the area he resided.
His armor held up against the high velocity metal pieces along with his arm though Tony felt several pieces pierce shallowly into his left arm, belly and legs. A few seconds passed before Tony lowered his arm and sat up, looking towards the ruined husk of the Corpse Flower before he pulled his helmet off. The man looked around, letting his eyes adjust to the light difference while he wrinkled his nose at the smell of the swamp.
Tony looked around and noticed the Changeling Queen he had just rescued watching him cautiously from the tree line. He gave her a 2 finger salute before pushing himself to his feet and inspecting himself, noticing several pieces of shrapnel sticking out of his armor and several more sticking out of his body shallowly. “Could have been worse.” Tony muttered as he picked up his helmet and attached it magnetically to his hip before he went to collect his weapons.
As the Trooper collected his weapons, he heard soft steps approaching him from behind. “Are you doing alright?” He asked as he turned to look at The Changeling Queen, who stopped in her tracks the moment they locked eyes.
“A...Ah yes i am, a bit sore but nothing serious.” She said as her eyes moved from his to inspect him until they moved to his right arm. “How can you move your arm if it stripped the flesh off?” She asked confused as Tony looked to his right arm and inspected the Prosthetic limb, noticing the scratches he had put into its surface with his knife.
“Don’t worry, it’s not a real arm, it's a prosthetic.” He said as he showed her the limb and wiggled it’s fingers.
“I haven’t seen any prosthetics that advanced, they are mostly wooden limbs.” She said approaching closer to Tony and reached out a hoof to poke his right arm.
“Well lets just say I come from a culture that is quite advanced.” Tony said as he wrapped his metallic fingers around her hoof and shook it. “Anthony by the way.”
She blinked at him confused for a few moments before smiling meekly and shaking his hand in return. “Chrysalis and Thank you for saving me.” She said as Tony let go of her hoof and smiled at her.
“No worries.” He said as he noticed the Corpse Flower slowly pulling itself back together. “We should probably have this conversation somewhere safer.” He added.
“Follow me, i have shelter.” Chrysalis stated.
“Alright just let me grab by bag first.” Tony said as he moved to the tree line and collected his rucksack. He quickly checked his equipment before returning to the Changeling, the adrenaline from the fight fading and the pain of his injuries beginning to set in made him hesitate slightly before he reached her. “Let’s go.” He said with a warm smile as he gestured for her to lead the way.
Crystal Empire
Location - Crystal Palace Dining Hall
Time - 7am
The dining hall was silent as the near dozen individuals sat in silence after the Princess ofLove had finished explaining what had transpired the day before. The shock of a creature falling from the sky and not only saving the kingdom and defeating Sombra was shocking but also the fact that it had left shortly after into the frozen tundra. The Alabaster and Midnight Blue Princesses listen with a mixture of curiosity and doubt as the recount was told, of the creature’s compassion and aggression.
The Alabaster Alicorn was most perplexed about the idea that the creature had crashed to the planet in a metal coffin which her student had mentioned that it originated from high atmosphere due to the heat damage on it. She had heard stories of creatures coming from the heavens to smite evil when they were desperately needed before they settled beyond Equestria’s borders. Their kind were the forefathers to Elves, Earthans and Gnomes which rarely traveled into Equestria.
“And you say it seemed sad?” Celestia asked, looking at Rainbow Dash with a curious look.
The Rainbow maned Pegasus suddenly blushed and shrank under the Alicorn’s gaze, unprepared for the sudden attention. “Well kinda, it had blood on it and when i asked if it was hurt and he said it was his friend’s and got down.” She explained as she rubbed her neck. “Oh and it’s name is Tony!” She added getting a raised eyebrow from Celestia and her Sister.
“Tony? That wasn't what i expected” Luna asked curious.
Chapter 5- Emotions and Royal Meetings (Edited)
Author's Note
(Edited By AidenHeaven)
So here is a another Chapter relatively soon after the last.
I hope you all enjoy also
Trigger Warning
For parts of this Chapter
Chapter 5- Emotions and Royal Meetings (Edited)
Equestra.
Location - Sanctuary
Time - 6:50am
With a tired groan, Tony landed onto the old couch with a content sigh as he leaned his head back. "I feel like death." Tony groaned loudly as he looked at the ceiling. He heard a similar noise come from next to him as Chrysalis climbed onto the couch and sat next to him.
"The feeling is mutual." She stated as she sluggishly held herself up.
"So Star, while we both have a metric ton of questions for each other… I'm exhausted and probably gonna sleep for the next day so can we pick this up like tomorrow?" Tony asked as he looked at the Mare.
"That's understandable, I'll speak to my sister about getting this place updated while you both rest." She said with a smile.
"Your sister?" Chrysalis asked curiously as Tony tiredly pointed at her in a manner that said he seconded her question.
"Yes well my sister is the Mayor, she is super nice and I'm sure she would be more than happy to assist you both in getting settled… though she will probably ask you to cull some monsters." Star explained as she gestured to Tony.
"Sure, that sounds agreeable." Tony said as he felt the Changeling Queen leaning against him.
"And she won't have an issue with me being here?" Chrysalis asked in a faintly venomous tone of voice. "She isn't going to report me to Celestia?" She asked, making Tony turn to look at the entity next to her with a confused look.
"No no, she wouldn't after I explain that you and your partner are here to help." Star replied, causing Tony and Chrysalis to look at each other.
"Eh, I don't know if I'd tap that." Chrys said with a smirk.
"I see how it is." Tony said with a chuckle.
"Wait, you both aren't a couple?" Star asked, making the pair shake their heads. "Oh, I'm sorry for assuming."
"It's fine." Chrys said as she shifted her body, leaning more of her weight against the human for support. “He has saved me a few times but we have only just met recently… like an hour or so.” She explained as Tony shifted, allowing for the Changeling to get more comfortable against him.
“This is simply because we are both exhausted,” Tony said as he gestured towards the closeness of the pair.
“Sure, well I'd best be off,” Star said as she climbed off her seat as Chrysalis’ horn ignited, causing the window to quickly repair itself.
“I have a question before you go, how do you know about Humans?” Tony asked the mare.
“Oh well it would take a huge amount of time to explain but the short story is that we have discovered many old sites that belonged to them where we have scavenged technology to integrate into our society.” Star Note explained as she gestured to the kitchen, lights, and vents on the walls. “They have made life easier for all species but most we haven't been able to explore due to being protected by some kind of unified automaton.” She explained as Chrys patted Tony’s knee, making him look at her.
“Alright, I'll ask you for more information tomorrow then,” Tony said as he took the Changeling’s hint.
"Okay, well I hope you both rest well," Star said with a nervous smile as she quickly left through the front door.
"Finally some peace and quiet," Chrys said with a tired sigh.
"Yea, I'm gonna go inspect the master bedroom to see what condition it's in," Tony said as he got up, causing Chrysalis to collapse on the couch.
"Don't leave me here." She asked him. Causing him to groan and pick up the Changeling after he collected his equipment. "Thank you." She said with a smile.
"Don't get used to it." He retorted with a chuckle before carrying her upstairs to search for the master bedroom. He felt like he was about to collapse from a mixture of exhaustion, pain, and the adrenaline in his system fading as he pushed open the third door to discover the main bedroom. The room was in decent condition with a massive king-sized bed, a large dresser, a large walk-in wardrobe, a small seating area in the corner by a bookshelf and fireplace, and a set of double doors leading to a balcony.
"Nice, the old owner paid for enchanted linen," Chrys said as Tony put her down.
"And that helps us how?" Tony asked as he followed the tired Changeling.
"Well they have been enchanted to not rot, spoil and they protect the mattress, blankets, and pillows with this magic also." She explained as she climbed onto the bed and stretched out.
"Alright, well I'm gonna find a…" Tony started before the door to the room was surrounded by Chrysalis' magic aura and closed. "Chrys."
"I'm sorry but I don't want to sleep in a room without you in it incised we are attacked." She explained as she patted the space next to her.
"That's fair, let me get changed," Tony said as he walked over to the edge of the bed and sat on it. "It feels like forever since I have taken this off," Tony said as he undid his chest plate, arm armor and dumped it on the floor. This was wrinkly followed by the top half of his undersuit, which he tossed across the room.
He sighed as he stretched, feeling the cold bite of the air against his skin. "Fuck it’s cold." He groaned while he stretched, causing several pops and cracks to be heard from his body as he felt weight against his back. He looked back to see Chrysalis had moved her body against his as she wrapped her hooves around his neck. "What are you doing?" Tony asked, confused.
"Helping, though I need to feed a bit before I can… if that's okay." She asked the ODST, who nodded to her.
"Sure, help away." He said as he patted her hoof before undoing his boots and removing them. "Fuck me." He groaned as he flexed his toes. "You have no idea how good that feels." He chuckled as he felt a warm sensation cover his body as he was covered in her aura.
"Hold still." The Changeling instructed as the shards of shrapnel pushed themselves from Tony's body before flying into a floating orb in front of the pair. He watched as the wounds healed quickly before the green aura faded. "There, that should help." She said in an exhausted tone as the orb was compressed and placed onto the bedside table as a solid mass of material.
"Thank you, you can start feeding now if you like. Tony replied as he patted her hoof.
"I have been, like, quite solidly draining you… you didn't notice?" Chrys asked, confused.
"Wait really? Aren't I meant to get super exhausted like how Star Note did?" He asked her.
"Yea… normally." She replied.
"Huh, well I guess if it doesn't exhaust me, then I guess I may be a good source of food for you." Tony chuckled sarcastically.
"Wait, you're willingly offering to be a source of Emotion for me?" She asked, shocked, gaining a shrug from the man.
"Sure, I don't currently have a use for it at the moment so go ham." He said as he removed his leg armor.
"Why's that?" She asked as she rested her head on his shoulder.
"It's a long story, like really long… and I don't really want to be a buzzkill right now so maybe another time." He said as he turned his head to look at her. "Besides I gotta change my pants." He said as he patted her hoof, causing her to let go of him as he stood up. He walked over to his rucksack and pulled out his PT shorts before he walked to the ensuite.
"What are you doing? I thought you were changing?" She asked him confused.
"Well, believe it or not, I'm not super keen on getting naked in front of a woman I just met, even if she is from another species," Tony explained, gaining a snort of amusement from the mare before entering the bathroom and closing the door behind him.
The room was dim, only lit by a few fogged windows and a fogged skylight. "Fuck." Tony sighed as he rubbed his eyes, trying to process the last day. He stood for a few minutes before he checked the shower and discovered that there was working plumbing and hot water. "Nice." He said with a smile before he removed his pants and underwear. "Need a towel before I can shower." He muttered as he pulled on his shorts and inspected the room.
"What's taking so long?!" He heard the Changeling Queen call out.
"We have running hot water and decent pressure with the shower, just looking for a towel!" He called out as he heard the door open behind him.
"Wait really?" She asked surprised.
"Yea really." He replied as he checked another cabinet and discovered towels. "And we have towels." He added with a smirk.
"Oh my stars, I'm having a bath." She announced excitedly while trotting over to the bath.
"What happened to being exhausted?" Tony asked with a chuckle as he leaned against the counter.
"I was but then I fed on you and well let's just say you're very filling," Chrys explained with a smirk and a wink, gaining a hollow chuckle from Tony.
"Good to know," Tony said as he dumped two towels on the counter before inspecting himself in the mirror. His eyes drifted across his chest and arm at the myriad of scars and burns, coupled with a few tattoos, ranging from insignia to a tattoo of a planet over his heart. His fingers traced his body where the shrapnel had been as he heard the water running behind him.
"You know, I'd you want I can make the rest go away." He heard Chrysalis say tenderly behind him, making him smile as he touched the heavy bruising around his neck from the wraith.
"It's alright, I have had many chances to have them repaired but I have kept them as a reminder that I'm a survivor." He said as he glanced back at the Mare, who smiled at him. "I'm curious, how good are you at shape-changing?" Tony asked curiously as he turned and sat on the bench.
"Well, I am an extraordinary Changeling Queen, one of the few that could successfully shapeshift and mimic an Alicorn." She said in a prideful tone, achieving short applause from the marine.
"Can you turn into bipeds?" He asked curiously.
"You know I haven't tried, maybe one day." She said with a coy smirk. "I mean if you are lucky." She added, making them both chuckle as She climbed into the bath and gave a satisfied sigh. "This is amazing, care to join?" She asked with a smirk.
"As much as I would love to, I fear I'd fall asleep in it." He responded with a smirk of his own as he got up and walked past her.
"Really? That's your only reason for not climbing into this bath with me?" She asked curiously along with a smirk.
"Yea, I don't wanna fall asleep in the bath." He repeated with a smile as he exited the room and walked over to his bag. He collected it and sat on the edge of the bed with it before opening a side pocket to grab one of the 24-hour MRE and proceeded to prepare it and consume it. He left a few packs of chocolate, fruit drink mix, and coffee aside for when he woke up as he finished the rest of the pack. "Really can't nail chili, can they?" He complained chuckling to himself. He collected the remaining pair of rations packs and dumped them on the bedside table.
“Let’s see what I packed, can't really remember what I put in here since Reach,” he muttered as he put his bag onto the bed and began emptying its contents, finding the medical supplies he packed on the Autumn, the plasma grenades, a spare sets of his combat undersuit, a small pack of tools, some underwear, a spare full canteen a few small bottles of pills and a few pictures. Upon finding the pictures, the man felt his chest tighten before he put them back into his pack. “I can’t… I need to keep… I don't know.” He sighed as he ran his hands through his hair before he collapsed backward onto the bed. “What is the actual fucking point anymore?” he asked the room, which responded with a deafening silence. “Why am I still fighting when I have nothing left?” He growled as he clenched his fists and sat up. He could feel himself getting agitated as he went over all the choices that led him up to his current point.
“Fucking should have made that wizard send me home… Doubt he would have… not that I even have a fucking home anymore.” He quietly hissed as he stood up off the bed. “I should have protected my team in the Autumn better, but I wasn't good enough and…” He growled as he noticed his helmet laying on the floor before he walked over to it and collected it off the ground. “I should have gone to earth with the boys but my god damn fucking pride got in the way and now she is dead and I’m ALONE!” He shouted as he threw the helmet at the wall with enough force to get it lodged in the drywall.
He took several short rapid breaths as he glared at the new wall decoration, “I should have been better, should have been stronger… I should…” He continued his rant, his voice beginning to shake like his body began to. “ I should have been a better Father and Husband when I had the chance.” He said quietly as he stood there for several minutes before his eyes slowly drifted to his magnum that lay with the rest of his equipment. “What’s stopping me?” he asked as he walked over to it and collected it before he returned to the bed, sitting on its edge near his rucksack. He sat there quietly while inspecting the weapon, repeatedly having the barrel of the weapon pointed towards him. “Just a simple pull of the trigger and bang, no more problems.” He said with a somber smile, which quickly melted away as he lowered the weapon. “Anna wouldn’t be too happy with me if I did.” He signed as he removed the magazine and pulled the slide back, ejecting the remaining round in the weapon. “Besides, I doubt that wizard would hold true to our deal if I popped myself,” he said as he dumped the weapon on the bedside table with the pile of food.
He continued to sit in silence for what felt like an eternity before he repacked his backpack, save for one of the bottles of pills and his canteen. “At least I packed these,” he muttered as he popped the bottle and retrieved two oval pills, put them in his mouth, and washed them down with a few gulps of water. “Should help me sleep.” He muttered as he hid the bottle of pills and properly got into the bed.
He stretched out on the large bed, silently thanking the universe that it wasn't pony-sized as his body began to go numb and his consciousness began to fade. As he was about to fall asleep he heard the bathroom door open. "That was quick," Tony called out.
"Quick? I was there for nearly two hours." Chrys replied as she climbed onto the bed.
"Really? Huh, fair." He said as the mare rolled her eyes before her horn flared, lifting the covers off of Tony. "What are you doing?" He asked her as she moved over him and lowered herself on top of him.
"I want to completely feed and I think we both need someone to cuddle as well." She explained as she laid her body on his, her hips against his with her hindlegs holding him tightly. Her front legs wrapped around his neck as she rested her head next to his while he wrapped his prosthetic arm around her.
"Yea I guess that's true, just let me know if my arm gets uncomfortable for you." He said, gaining a nod of approval as he felt the changeling hold him tightly.
"Okay." She said quietly as she noticed the man’s helmet sticking out of the wall. “Ah what happened?” She asked, gesturing to it, gaining a shrug.
“Wanted to decorate.” He replied sluggishly before he passed out.
“That doesn’t help” She grumbled as she used her magic to remove the piece of equipment and repair the hole it made. “I was expecting an actual answer from you, not sarcasm.” She said with an annoyed tone of voice as she placed the helmet onto his armor before getting comfortable and quickly falling asleep.
Equestra.
Location - Sanctuary
Time - 1pm
Chrysalis awoke with a start, her horn flaring as she sat up, sweat forming on her brow as she glanced around the dimly lit room. Her breathing was erratic as she scanned the room for threats only to find nothing but the Human that saved her life still restrained between her thighs. She allowed herself to relax as she inspected the soldier beneath her before noticing she had changed.
"Wow, I would have expected this to take longer, I guess he is a good source of food." She said as she inspected her limbs, noticing that the holes were completely gone. Her body was more filled out to a similar body shape to Princess Celestia if not a little thicker in places. "I haven't felt this good in a while." She said with a smile as she flexed her wings before noticing the man beneath her shiver slightly from the sudden lack of her body heat. She shifted and carefully laid back down his chest. Doing her best not to put too much of her renewed weight on him. "I'm happy you found me." She said quietly as she nuzzled him, gaining a groan from the man.
She laid there watching him sleep for a few moments before her eyes drifted to the bruising on his neck, causing her to remember the wraith attacking her and how helpless she felt. "I'll protect you as you have for me." She promised him quietly as her horn flared, causing the bruising to quickly heal. "I wonder how you will react to how I look now?" She asked him quietly with a smile before her mind drifted to the nightmare she had. "I also hope Celestia doesn't find us." She said as she gently squeezed the man. She was about to fall asleep when she faintly heard knocking from downstairs and a voice calling out.
"Hello! Anyone home?!" A voice called out, making the Changeling groan. "It has even been 12 hours yet." She growled quietly as she climbed out of the bed and used her magic to cover the human with the covers. "I'll be back." She said to the softly snoring man before teleporting to the front. Her frustrations at being taken away from the warm bed were quickly destroyed by shock as she pulled open the door fully.
Outside the house was a group of ponies, 6 were dressed as Solar Guards, they were armed with spears and swords, and were mostly unicorns. The seventh alabaster unicorn stallion was dressed in similar golden armor with purple trim to it.
Besides the mob of guards was a pair of mares. One was Star Note wearing a pair of saddlebags and smiling sheepishly at the Changeling while standing next to a second unicorn mare with a vanilla coat and grape green mane that was tied back in a bun. She wore a pair of silver glasses on her nose and had a pair of saddlebags on as well which covered her cute mark. Star Note mouthed an apology as Chrysalis' eyes drifted to the radiant form of the Alabaster Alicorn that stood behind the entire crowd. The Alicorn's magenta eyes quickly locked with the Changeling's as she smiled.
"It has been a while, Chrysalis. You are looking well" Princess Celestia said in a warm tone of voice as the alabaster unicorn guard gave the Queen a venomous look.
"Crap," Chrysalis said loudly before glaring at Star Note.
"Oh don't blame her, I have been monitoring your movements since you were blasted away," Celestia explained as she stepped forward.
"Wait what? You have?" Chrysalis asked, confused. "Then why have you suddenly decided to rock up?" She asked.
"Well simply put, you are with a creature I would very much like to meet." The princess explained, gaining an untruthful look from Chrys.
"Why?" She asked, cautious of the monarch's motives.
"I shall explain, but first may we come inside for some tea. I have brought some with me and some snacks." Celestia explained.
"Okay, but they stay outside." Chrysalis accepted while pointing at the Guards.
"Naturally," Celestia replied, her smile never leaving her face.
"Princess, you can't trust…" the alabaster guard attempted to warn but was stopped by the Alicorn as she raised her wing.
"Shining please, Chrysalis is restored so honestly, you all wouldn't make much difference if I am being honest," Celestia explained politely, much to the visible offense the stallion took. "So wait out here, beside we can't have your history clouding the judgment of any decisions made." She added in a polite yet direct tone of voice without breaking eye contact with the Changeling.
"Yo… yes your highness." He begrudgingly agreed while taking a step back.
"Wonderful. Now shall me?" Celestia said while gesturing inside with a nod.
"Sure, but any funny business and you are out." Chrysalis threatened.
"Naturally." She replied with a kind smile before the two unicorns and the princess entered the house. Once inside the house, Celestia used her golden magic to close the door as the group walked into the sitting door.
"Also I'd advise not to be loud," Chrysalis said as Celestia walked next to her.
"Of course, you are my host." She explained as she sat down on the couch along with Chrysalis while the two mares nervously sat in armchairs. While Celestia was being polite, an aura of power surrounded her.
"I have to say, it is a nice place you have here, a bit run down but a fixer-upper." Celestia compliments in a coy tone of voice as her horn glowed faintly. The sight of her horn glowing made the Changeling tense up moments before a low mahogany coffee table appeared in the room with trays of finger food, a large teapot, and several cups. "As much as I would love to small talk, I doubt you want to," Celestia said as she floated a biscuit to her mouth.
"Your doubts are correct," Chrysalis replied as she eyed the platter, raising an eyebrow at some containing cooked meat. The Solar Princess noticed and smiled politely.
"I had those prepared for our Human friend seeing as they are omnivorous." She explained as she poured four mugs of tea with her magic.
"How do you know that?" Chrysalis asked, curious as she accepted one of the mugs as it hovered in front of her.
"Well, I have been alive for many, many centuries and I have seen much." She said as she sipped her tea, causing Chrys to sip her own. "The last time I encountered a living Human would have been about 400 years ago, give or take a couple of decades… she was delightful," Celestia explained, reminiscing for a few moments. "She died, however, as a majority of humans do."
"Old age?" Star Note asked, gaining a somber look from Celestia.
"Oh heavens, I wish that was the case but no. " The princess started as she lowered her mug. "Unfortunately it is due to Magical intolerance. Humans from realms where magic is foreign don't tend to live longer than a few months unless direct action is taken." She explained, gaining the full attention of the room.
"And what would that action entail?" The unnamed unicorn asked.
"Simple, during a moment of near-death DNA of a decently magical person is introduced into the body before the human is magically healed. They are left in a place of great magical power in hopes that their body absorbs it correctly." Celestia explained.
"And if they don't absorb it correctly?" Star asked curiously as she was scribbling down notes.
"Oh well, they detonate." She replied bluntly, causing the three other mares to look at her in shock.
"Come again?" The unnamed unicorn asked.
"Their body absorbs the magic, but it isn't integrated into their cells. Which results in large amounts building up until they explode in a dangerous flare of magic. " Celestia explained further. "That's if the initial transfusion works, which it doesn't always." She added as she ate another biscuit.
"Wait, hold up a second, so are you telling me that he is going to die but going through the method to save his life could also kill him?" Chrysalis asked, trying to quickly organize the facts she was given.
"Yes, unfortunately, first we need to find a sufficiently powerful magically inclined individual but not too powerful as that will reduce his chances even further, also it can't just be a regular Unicorn because the average range of power is simply not enough for this method," Celestia explained.
"Wait, how come we can't use somepony who is powerful like an alicorn or Changeling Queen?" Chrysalis asked curiously, gaining a sigh from Celestia. "You attempted it with that female Human didn't you?"
"Of course, I was head over hooves for her and wanted to save her… it didn't end well," Celestia said, deflating for a moment before shaking her head. "Anyways, I have a few leads on some sufficiently powerful individuals," Celestia said to the Changeling.
"Okay, but why are you putting so much effort into a person you haven't even met?" Chrysalis asked.
"Well that's simple, he saved my niece so in turn, I shall do what is in my power to save him." She replied in a determined tone of voice.
“Alright, but what's going to happen to me?” Chrys asked as she placed her teacup on the table.
“It all depends on the Human’s response, seeing as he is asleep I shall return at the later point.” She said as she finished her drink. “Do try to stay out of trouble,” Celestia remarked as she got off the couch. “I’d hate to see you be swatted once more.” She added before she vanished in a radiant flash of light, along with the table, the two mares, and presumably the group of guards outside.
“Bitch.” Chrysalis hissed at where the Alicorn just was. “She must have an ulterior motive to just return a favor.” She added as she got off the couch. Her horn ignited in a brilliant green fire as she created a powerful hidden barrier around the house to stop the Alicorns from watching them or teleporting in.
“That should hopefully keep both Sun and Moon out.” She stated as she walked to the front door, enchanting it to stop it from being forcibly entered along with the windows. Once she had made some rounds of the entire house, she returned to the master bedroom to discover her roommate where she left him. “I have a feeling that nightmare earlier was Moon bitch waking me up to talk to her sister.” She growled loudly, gaining a noise of complaint from the human as he sluggishly sat up and rubbed his face. “Sorry, I didn't realize I was being noisy.”
“No, it wasn’t you… I was having a weird-ass dream about moons, a blue horse, and gorillas when it suddenly ended.” He explained as he blinked slowly and inspected the Changeling. “You got fat.” He added as the pillow next to him suddenly flew into the side of his face with a loud crack. “Ow”
“Don’t be rude, this is what I normally look like… when I'm not starving,” Chrysalis said in a hurt tone of voice.
“Sorry, I just wasn’t expecting to wake up and see a thicc horse.” He added with a chuckle.
“Thick?” She asked, confused.
“Yep, with two Cs,” He said with a chuckle as Chrysalis simply stared at him in utter confusion.
“I… what?” She asked
“I’ll explain another time, so who’s a bitch?” he asked as he stretched and yawned.
“Oh just… well… I just had a meeting with Princess Celestia, who runs this country with her sister, Princess Luna.” She explained to Tony, who nodded slowly.
“Okay cool… I have no idea who those people are but okay.” Tony nodded.
“That’s fair, so pretty much Celestia wants to save your life because you saved her niece.” She explained.
“Okay… and why does she need to save me?” He replied as he scratched his chest.
“Well, because you may be suffering from Magical Intolerance which is apparently fatal,” Chrys explained.
“Oh okay, and how is she going to do that?” Tony asked curiously.
“Well by nearly killing you and putting you through a procedure which has a decent chance of killing you and then putting you in a magically rich area and hoping you don’t explode,” Chrysalis explained to him, as he looked at her as if she just told him she was pregnant with his kid. He sat there looking at her face to see if she was joking and when he got no sign of her teasing he ran his hand through his hair and took a deep breath.
“I’m sorry but… THE FUCK!”
Chapter 1 - Pillar of Autumn
Author's Note
Hey Everyone, so here it is... only 2 days later then i promised... sorry about that. i have made some drastic changes to the story to make Tony more likable i hope and also turned a 1.8k chapter into nearly a 5k chapter so that's something haha
Anyway i hope you all enjoy :)
Chapter 1 - Pillar of Autumn
UNSC Pillar of Autumn,
Current Location - Lower Flight Deck, ODST Armoury/ Launch Bay,
Status - Under Heavy Covenant Fire, Boarded
ODST's Orders - Abandon Ship, Locate Suitable Location for Forward Operating Base
The halls of the Pillar of Autumn were filled with alien chatter, screams of dying combatants and gunfire, the air was thick with the musk of sulfur and gore. The presence of human life was swiftly vanishing as the survivors quickly abandoned the ship. Soon the only remaining Humans aboard the star ship was a group of black armored marines.
These marines were known as Orbital Drop Shock Troopers or ODST’s for short, they were the special forces of the UNSC (If you exclude Spartans of course). The Group was divided into squads of four ODSTs each. Each squadron was given a specific task, the majority of the squads were located in the ODST drop bay while a select few squads had volunteered to run interference with the alien forces on the ship.
One of the few squads not preparing to drop was a small team of marines who were defending the only entrance to the bay. The squad consisted of one of the remaining Lieutenants and a trio of Warrant Officers. The commander of the squad was herculean in stature, standing at a height of 6 foot in height and by far the youngest member of the squad. His name was second Lieutenant Abraham “Irish” Murphy, his Onyx armor was spotless and undamaged. he wielded a Shotgun and a magnum along with a steady supply of grenades.
Kneeling next to him while using the doorway as a brace for her Sniper Rifle was Chief Warrant Officer 3 Julia Ling. Ling’s body type was nearly the opposite to Murphy’s, she was willowy in stature and stood around 5 foot 4 inches tall. Her armor was plain in appearance save for a moon painted on her torso. Ling was equipped with a sniper rifle, a silenced pistol and silenced smg, she would occasionally glance at the other two ODST who were stacked up against the other side of the doorway.
These Hell jumpers were set up in a similar way to Murphy and Ling with one standing and the other kneeling in front of him. The standing ODST was a well built man known as Chief Warrant Officer 3 Jamie Peters and stood around 6 foot 1 inches. Like Ling and the remaining ODST, he had a moon painted on his chest plate which was well worn and mostly faded. He wielded a silenced smg, assault rifle and a trio of plasma grenades he had looted earlier.
The remaining marine was a muscular man though not to the same degree as Peters or Murphy. His name was Chief Warrant Officer 2 Anthony Bell who stood at a height of 5 foot 11 inches. He was holding a smg, magnum and an assault rifle while returning the glance back to Ling. The squad had volunteered to hold the door and wait for the remaining surviving squads to arrive and drop onto the mysterious ring world below.
The hallway that they were over watching was their kill box, with it’s grey walls painted mostly an electric blue color with splashes of dark purple. Managed alien corpses littered the hallway along with discarded weapons. The squads in the drop bay had already launched and the radio had been dead quiet for the last few minutes. The ammunition that the squad had stockpiled to use was nearly depleted along with the majority of their explosives.
“I think we may have to close it up sir and leave” Peters said as he looked to Murphy.
“Wait no there are still a few more squads to come” Ling protested as she looked between Peters and Murphy.
“I don’t think they are coming, Julia” Bell said somberly as he got to his feet. “We may be the last ones in Autumn and staying here longer than needed will only be a death sentence.” Bell said as Murphy nodded to him before he signaled Peters to seal the blast door. As he reached the controls, Murphy noticed the air in the hallway beginning to shimmer.
“Contacts!” Murphy roared as the group did their best to get into cover, though Peters wasn’t fast enough as a volley of glowing pink translucent spines pierced his chest, hip, left arm and his neck. Bell and Murphy began firing down the hallway as Ling lunged for the door controls.
Peters was on the floor, gripping the trio of needles in his neck which pulsed violently. He gurgled something out towards his squad mates but a mixture of blood filling his throat and the slight distortion from speaking through his helmet made it incoherent.
Ling managed to activate that door control as she noticed Peters waving to get their attention while the needles began to glow furiously. The sniper gave a confused look to the wounded man as he was pointing at his hip where half a dozen needles sat vibrating and glowing furiously. “Peters what are you doin…” Ling started before she realized that the needles had struck around the trio of plasma grenades attached to Peters’ hip. “Scatter!” She shouted moments before the spines detonated. As the spines detonated, Ling dove for cover while Bell turned and tackled Murphy behind cover and shielded him with his body.
A second passed silently shortly before the deafening explosion of plasma filled the area, the entire room rumbled from the force. The heat from the blasts filled the room shortly before vanishing along with the ringing. As Bell and Murphy regained their ability to hear, they were greeted with another disturbing sound.
The sound of meek sobbing and grunts of pain coupled with the sound of approaching footsteps. Without missing a beat, Bell was on his feet and preparing a frag grenade while keeping his eyes focused on the still partially open door and not the graphic mess that once was his long time friend. He took a single step forward before arcing the primed grenade between the gap shortly before it detonated. The sound of alien cries was heard as Bell pushed up to the door, checked his rifle’s ammo count before firing into the breach, finishing off the rest of the wounded advancing covenant.
Once the hall was cleared, Bell briefly inspected the ruined control panel and cursed under his breath. “Sir! The door is not going to close. We need a game plan.” Bell asked as he moved to find Ling. He quickly found her behind a mostly melted table, her armor was heavily damaged and her left arm had been all but melted away. The moment she noticed Tony, she whimpered louder as her entire body shook. “Hey, I got you” He said as if addressing a small animal as he knelt down next to her.
With the greatest of care he picked up his wounded friend bridal style and got to her feet as she sobbed in pain. “I got you, we are getting out of here” He repeated softly to her as he looked over the horrifying mess that once was Jamie Peters, a veteran ODST who was now only a mess of melted armor, bones and bits of viscera. “Sir! What is the plan?” Bell asked again as he looked around for his commanding officer. “Murphy!” Bell called out, the calm tone in his voice quickly turning to concern as he couldn’t see the young marine.
“J-Jamie… what hap-happened to him?” Julia squeaked out between grunts of pain.
“He’s gone, here let's find somewhere to lay you down and fix you up.” Bell said, his voice returning to a nurturing one as he carried the woman over to a large table. He gently laid her on top of the table and quickly inspected her injuries. Her left arm was missing from the elbow down with only bone and charred muscle up to her shoulder. The armor plating on her right leg, above her femur, appeared to have melted into her leg and exposed the bone.
Her chest plate was sizzling and her visor was shattered with large chunks of it missing. Bell’s heart sank as he inspected his friend before he removed her helmet and placed it next to her body. Once free, Bell saw that her once smooth features had been severely damaged from broken glass. Her once blonde hair was now stained red from blood while her breathing was shallow and more like wheezing.
“Hang on, I'll get you some morphine, then… then… you’ll be alright” He said as he gave her left hand a squeeze while trying to keep composed. Ling looked up at him, her blue eyes gave him a comforting look as she sluggishly lifted her hand out of his grip and to his helmet. Bell nodded to her and removed his helmet before smiling down at her softly as he took her hand once more. His ice blue eyes meeting hers as she gave him a smile. He had crimson hair, a few cuts on his face and a short beard.
“I-it’s fine T-Tony…” She wheezed out before coughing harshly.
“I’ll get you some morphine” He said to her, gaining a nod from her before he let go of her hand. Tony took a step away from the table and looked around for Murphy as he moved to the storage. As he approached the storage, he noticed Murphy was curled up into a ball where Tony had left him. The sight of the cowering commanding officer left a bitter taste in Tony’s mouth as he moved quickly to the storage.
Tony reached the adjacent storage room in a few moments, where he quickly grabbed several pen sized objects that had Morphine written on the side along with lots of words Tony didn’t know. He placed the morphine injectors and some bandages into his rucksack before grabbing several assault rifles, shotguns and placed them onto the storage room’s table. He noticed several wrist mounted PDA’s and attached one to his left wrist.
Tony then grabbed several loaded magazines and a couple of boxes of shells, which he put into his rucksack. Once his bag was back on his back, he grabbed the guns and carried them out into the main room quickly. When he reentered the room, he dumped the weapons and bag next to Murphy before retrieving an injector. He walked over to Ling and removed the armor from her left forearm. “It’s gonna be okay” He said softly as he took the cap off the injector and placed it against Julia’s now exposed skin before applying the painkiller and quickly bandaged her as best he could.
Julia seemed to quickly relax as she looked to the ceiling barely conscious. “Rest for now” Tony suggested to her before he moved to Murphy. As he stood in front of Murphy, he noticed that the lieutenant had removed his helmet. “Murphy” Tony said in a stern voice, causing the much younger man to look up to him as tears ran down his face.
“I… we… how are we meant to live through this?” Murphy sobbed, his voice breaking as he talked. Sighing, Tony knelt down in front of the man, grabbed the officer’s chest plate before lifting him to a standing position.
“Not by sitting and crying we won’t” Tony said in a calm, supportive tone of voice that seemed to catch Murphy off guard. Tony then placed his hands on Murphy’s cheeks and smiled warmly. “We’ll get through this, I know it” he said in a fatherly tone of voice, gaining a hesitant nod of approval from the young officer.
“What should i do?” Murphy asked, his composure returning.
“We load those weapons and i want you to kill anything that comes down that hallway while i set up the drop.” Tony said as he let go of the man and knelt down to start loading the shotguns and assault rifles.
“H-how do you stay so calm and focused?” Murphy asked as he knelt down next to Tony and started loading.
“Simple, I remember a phrase my father taught me.” Tony said as he placed a loading shotgun on the ground while Murphy looked to him patiently. “Would the Child you were yesterday admire the person you are today? If not, adjust for the desired result.” Tony explained as he finished loading another shotgun.
“It's just that?” Murphy asked curiously as he loaded the last shotgun.
“There is another.” Tony said as he got to his feet holding an assault rifle. “Duty and fear follow the same path, we must follow one and conquer the other” Tony explained as he loaded the rifle and loaded a round. Murphy nodded and picked up the loaded weapons and carried them to the doorway long with his supply of grenades. Tony walked over to Murphy and handed the lieutenant his helmet.
“I still don’t know how you aren’t terrified.” Murphy said as he put on his helmet while Tony placed his hand on his commanding officer’s shoulder.
“Courage is the mastery of fear, not the absences.” He said with a smile before putting on his own helmet. Tony picked up the barely conscious body of Julia and carried her to the launch bay. Where he strapped her into a drop pod and went to retrieve a new helmet for her. As he returned and put the helmet on her, she grabbed his shoulder and looked at him.
“I’ll see you on the other side.” She said as she squeezed his shoulder briefly before her grip seemed to fall limp. Tony leaned forward and checked her vitals only to sigh and removed her dog tags.
“Yes you will” Tony replied somberly as he stepped away from her and closed her pod before moving to the controls. Bell quickly put in the launch commands before he heard the briefest sound of gunfire followed by a cry of pain and a disperse of energy. “Shit!” Tony said as he unholstered his smg and moved to where he left Murphy.
As he stepped into the main room only to see Murphy was laying against the doorway with a inch wide slash on his chest running from his left shoulder to the right side of his hip. The edges of the slash were glowing brightly as the gravely wounded man attempted to remove his chest plate with one hand while aiming his pistol around the room.
Bell was about to approach when he heard a noise that made his heart sink, the sound of an energy sword engaging. He noticed the brilliant blue light suddenly come into frame to his left, causing him to dodge backwards. As he did a twin curved energy blade passed in front of him, barely missing him but managing to cut his smg in two pieces. He glanced at the attacker, only to see ripples in the air as he quickly back stepped and drew his magnum. As he moved back, the rippling air seemed to shift into an Elite warrior wearing purple armor.
The Elite lunged forward, but seemed to not suspect Tony moving forward and rolling between its legs. As Tony finished rolling, he pushed himself to his feet, turned around and started firing into the Elite. Although his first couple of shots were panicked and missed, the three following rounds struck home, resulting in the Alien’s armor to glow brightly with a spiderweb of energy. The Elite quickly rolled out of the way of the following shots before attempting to run Tony through.
Tony couldn’t react fast enough to get out of the way and felt a sense of dread overtake him only for a trio of sniper rounds to strike home into the Elite from behind Tony. The first round hit the Elite in it’s left shoulder, depleting the rest of it’s shields and putting a decent hole in the alien, the second scraped against the side of the Sangheili’s face, removing two mandibles. The last round struck into the Elite’s right arm, blew apart the arm, sending a way of purple blood over the floor, the elite and Tony.
The Sangheili was sent into a horizontal spin before crashing into the ground hard and sending it’s weapon to the ground by Tony's feet. Without missing a beat, the ODST grabbed the weapon, activated it and drove it into the spine of the wounded Elite, killing it. Tony released the handle of the blade, causing the energy sword to deactivate and send it onto the corpse beneath him.
The man’s heart beat fast as he took a few steps back and looked towards the person who shot the elite. He quickly noticed Murphy, who was leaning against the launch bay’s entrance with a sniper rifle in his hands which he was barely holding. Blood was quickly flowing from the man’s wound and pooled at his feet.
Tony approached Abraham, who slowly sunk down the wall with a soft hollow chuckle. As Tony was about to reach Murphy, the man fell quiet and still. Tony knelt down next to him and checked for a pulse. The man’s heart sank as he didn’t feel a pulse as he picked up Murphy’s body and carried it to an empty drop pod.
Tony gave a lingering look on the young man’s body before shaking his head, removing Abraham’s tags and closing the pod. “Load up and drop, this isn’t the time for sadness” Tony told himself as he collected Murphy’s sniper rifle, a discarded smg, ammo and rations. The ODST proceeded to load up his drop pod with the gear before setting up explosive charges in the ODST operations area.
“That should be enough” Tony said as he activated the launch protocol and returned to his pod, locking it shut and strapping himself in. After a few moments he felt the pod shift as it pulled backwards, as it was pulled backwards, he watched a huge group of covenant swarm into the operations room. This brought an evil smile to his face as he glanced down at the trigger in his hand.
He heard a familiar beep repeat a few times, steadying his breathing ,Tony activated the trigger as his pod was dropped. His entire pod shook as the explosion’s shock wave hit it while it dropped towards the ring world below. Tony felt his stomach drop as the pod entered the ring’s atmosphere, above a vast forest moments before a brilliantly blinding light and deafening noise flooded into his drop pod, causing him to look away and activate his visor.
“What the actual fuck?” He shouted, barely hearing himself as his Pod shook violently, forcing the man to grip the handholds to avoid getting thrown around as he felt the straps he was in straining. Soon the shaking stopped, along with the noise and blinding light. “Okay, okay it pa… the fuck?” Tony said as he noticed that he wasn’t heading towards a forest anymore, let alone a ring world anymore, he was landing in a frozen tundra on a planet.
“How the fuck did i miss a fucking giant ring!” Tony shouted as he descended.
Location - Crystal Kingdom
Status - Under Siege
“My don’t you look tired?" a tall Unicorn expressed in an amused tone. The Unicorn was a dark grey stallion with a flowing onyx mane. His horn was curved with a sharp tip which was a deep red at the tip. He was dressed in segmented plate armor around his neck and legs with a crimson red cloak. His eyes were green with red iris’ with purple energy burning from them. This stallion was known as Sombra, and he stood proudly in front of a glowing pedestal which shrouded his features in darkness, making him seem more ominous. Laying next to him was a pair of ponies who were partially encased in black crystal. A alabaster Unicorn with a blue mane known as Shining Armour and the other was a violet Unicorn mare known as Twilight sparkle who had a dark purple mane that had a stripe of purple and pink running through it.
He stood proudly in front of an exhausted looking pink Alicorn mare and a terrified small light purple dragon who was clutching a pulsing crystal heart identical to the one on the pedestal that Sombra guarded. All the entrances were blocked off by black crystals and more quickly rose to protect the pedestal.
The Alicorn mare, known as Cadance, struggled to get herself standing straight, her mane was filled with dirt, snow, sticks and blood. Her wings were encased in the same black crystal as her husband and her sister in law. Her normally beautiful features were tarnished with scratches and cuts from recently crashing into the staircase leading to the pedestal. Her pink eyes locked on Sombra as she stood defiantly between herself and Spike the dragon.
“Well aren’t we determined? You may think you look menacing…” Sombra started before his horn glowed, illuminating his face before smiling revealing his sharp teeth. “... But you look like a strong breeze could knock you over.” He said as he took a step forward while his shadow seemed to extend out along the ground towards the princess, stopping short at her hooves. Candance refused to move as her horn weakly glowed in defiance, gaining a dark chuckle from Sombra before he looked to Spike.
“Come now child and give me the heart.” He said with a wicked smile. “So many have fallen against me without so much as scratching me, for the sake of whatever pride you have. Surrender the heart.” He said in a strangely comforting voice only for Spike to shake his head.
“N-no you are like super evil and i’ll never give you the Crystal Heart.” Spike squeaked out heroically, gaining a chuckle from Sombra.
“I am so sorry it seems I wasn't being clear.” He stated, the comforting tone melting away to an apathetic one as long needles made of black crystal rose from his shadow in front of Candance and aimed towards her. “Give me the Crystal Heart before I tear out hers!” He announced in a dispassionate tone.
“Spike, do what you have to do.” Cadance said in a determined tone of voice as she straightened her posture.
“My dear, you have failed just admit it… there is nothing in this world that can possibly stop me!” Sombra declared confidently moments before the crystal wall next to him detonated inwards, sending a strong gust of air into the area along with rubble. Sombra stood there slack jawed as Cadance dove onto Spike to protect him. “I just had to open my mouth didn’t i?” Sombra growled to himself as he glared at the heavy smoke cloud. A few moments passed before the sound of an explosion was heard and a large piece of metal flew out of the smoke and into the crystal protecting the pedestal, shattering it.
Quickly the smoke cleared revealing a black armored being stepping out of a large metal rock. The creature appeared to either be a cyclops or wearing an elaborate helmet as it pulled a pair of long metal items from the rock. Once it had obtained its weapons being turned and surveyed the room it was in, the black visor on its helmet vanished to reveal a face beneath it before the visor reactivated. The being seemed to quickly notice the group of ponies and dragons in the room.
“Help us please!” Candance called out to the being, causing it to raise its shorter weapon and point it towards her. “He means to kill us!” She sobbed as she pointed a hoof at Sombra, who was still trying to process what was happening. The being turned its attention to Sombra. “Please save us.” She sobbed out as the being looked back to her and gave a short nod before turning his weapon onto Sombra.
“Oh buck.” Sombra said as he summoned long black crystal spikes and pointed them towards the creature. “Walk away or... “ Sombra started only for the creature to fire it’s weapon at him in an intense volley of fire. Sombra’s crystal spears were shattered before he could launch them and his armor proved ineffective at protecting him against half a dozen bullets hitting him.
Sombra collapsed onto the crystal floor in pain as he praised and cursed his partial immortality for saving his life while he gasped for air. He could feel his body beginning to quickly regenerate from the damage when he noticed the creature had approached him. He tried to conjure up something to defend him as the creature stood above him but as his horn began to glow it was swiftly crushed under the creature’s boot.
He would have cried out if he could as he watched the creature unleash another volley of fire into him. “You are resilient, I'll give you that.” It spoke in an apathetic tone of voice as Sombra continued to curse his immortality which made him endure through the numerous mortal wounds that covered his body. He struggled to move away from the creature, only to gain another volley from it before it replaced a small black box on it’s weapon.
“You have to put the Crystal Heart on the pedestal or else he won't vanish.” Cadance called out, gaining the creature’s attention. It looked down at Sombra then looked to Spike and the Crystal Heart he was holding. The creature moved away from Sombra and gave a lingering look towards Shining and Twilight before approaching them instead. It knelt down next to the pair and reached out to Twilight causing Spike to get to his feet quickly and run over to it. The young dragon swatted the creature’s hand away and stood between it and his friend. “Spike!” Candace called out as she tried to run over to him but was too tired.
“Don’t hurt her!” Spike threatened, seeing his reflection in the creature’s visor. The creature cocked it’s head softly at the small dragon that was knee height to him and gave a chuckle before it removed it’s helmet. It placed the helmet in front of it and gave a heartwarming smile.
“I don’t mean her any harm, I am just checking to see if she is alright.” He stated in a gentle tone of voice before patting Spike's head and taking the Crystal heart from him. He pulled his helmet back on and carried the Crystal Heart over to the pedestal, stepping passed Sombra, who watched him, unable to move to stop the creature, which he had no intention to do anymore. The creature placed the large crystal on the pedestal, which caused a powerful ripple of blinding white energy to explode out, obliterating Sombra and all the black crystals.
The ODST looked back at the scene to see the dragon cuddling his friend and the Alicorn trying to make her way to her husband. Tony silently walked over to Shining, holstering his smg, and picked up the unconscious unicorn and carried him over to Cadance. The mare looked at him with a smile and tears in her eyes. “Thank you” she crocked out as Tony laid the unconscious stallion next to her before returning to his drop pod.
He tapped on a screen within the drop pod before downloading all the data it picked up during the drop onto his PDA. he grabbed all his things and made his way to the stairs leading to the city when he heard the mare call out.
“Please don’t go.” She said as she looked at Tony while cuddling her husband. “Please, we haven’t thanked you for saving the kingdom.” She said.
“I’m sorry but i have to figure out where i am and how i got here.” Tony replied.
“Twilight can help with that when she is up and so can my aunts.” Cadance replied, gaining a long lingering stare from Tony before he nodded and sat down on the stairs watching the city.
