Anonymous in Nu-Questria 2

The next morning you were rudely woken up by a siren at the crack of down.

You and the ponies were forced to line up outside the bunkhouses before anyone could do so much as piss.

You were marched along with the other creature recruits down the street. The tower loomed in the misty morning sky, a portent of the harsh work day to come.

The ponies and you eventually made it over to the tower and were led into the backyard. Zelina and her cat servant were waiting.

“Oh, so you all survived the night without killing yourselves? Hm?” Zelina says with a smarmy grin.

“Wonderful. Good show, ponies.” She says and claps her hands together.

“Well I hope you have gotten your rest, because today will be another fun day of - yes, that’s right!” She says with rising enthusiasm.

She turns to her cat servant. The cat servant looks at his clipboard and says, “Metal Reclamation.”

“Metal Reclamation! Hooray! Don’t try to have too much fun, now.” Zelina says.

You and the ponies remain silent. You look at your feet to keep up the act of looking defeated.

“Of course,” Zelina says with a sly tone, “This could be all avoided if you were to tell us how your magic really works.”

Zelina shifts her cloven hooves and shoots a knowing smile to Sunny.

Sunny turns her head away and grimaces.

“No? Still not in the mood to share?” Zelina says. “Well then. You’ll spend another day serving our cause in one way or another. Go on, then.”

Zelina motions with a hand and the guards move forward behind your line.

Soon you are all in the truck again, moving along the ruined city streets. Your stomach gurgles from hunger pangs. You glance nervously up at the storm, and suddenly your hunger start to dwindle.

As you arrive, you unload along with the ponies and the guard creatures. The ponies are a bit tense. So are you.

Hitch is the last to step off the truck. He hops down and hisses with pain as his hind hoof touches earth.

“Hitch, you really can’t be working today.” Sunny says with a sympathetic expression.

“No, it’s okay, Sunny. I can-” Hitch says before taking another step and collapsing with pain.

“Ah!” He cries out, curling his body up and clutching his leg. “Oh that smarts!”

The three guard creatures look at each other and shrug. They look at the pony with vacant, bored stares.

Sunny leans down to Hitch with a worried look on her face.

“He’s not well.” She says. She looks up at a buff diamond dog guard with a helmet over his face. “Please. We need to take him back and get him medicine.”

“Pony is fine. Let me see.” The dog guard says as he slings his rifle on his back and crouches down.

The other guards, a warthog and a bullfrog, both stand awkwardly, both still holding their weapons.

“Hey.” You say. “I’ll take his place. Give me something to use.”

The warthog creature mumbles something to himself and then stomps towards the truck again.

He reaches inside and grabs a sledgehammer from a metal crate. He holds it out to you with one paw, his massive, bulky arm holding it like a toy hammer.

You take it with both hands and heft it over your shoulder. You nod at the guard, but he doesn’t respond with any word or gesture.

The guard turns away. Zipp crouches down. She looks at Izzy, who nods back at Zipp.

“Now!” Zipp yells.

In a flash, Izzy’s horn sparks up and pulls the rifle off the diamond dog’s back. The strap snaps off and the rifle soars up into the air. Zipp takes off and catches it in the air, then flies out over the concrete rubble.

“Hey!” The bullfrog creature says. He and the warthog raise their weapons and take aim at the retreating pegasus.

Zipp spins and dives towards the mound of rubble as they open fire. She’s moving far too fast, and all the bullets miss. She disappears below the mound of debris and out of sight.

The creatures try to keep shooting the concrete, but their weapons simply click. They look down to notice that their weapons are missing their magazines. Izzy is holding them up in her telekinetic grip.

“Whoopsie!” Izzy says as she tosses the magazines far into the distance.

At this point, you are swinging the sledgehammer over your head with both hands. It collides with the helmet of the warthog with a heavy clang. He instantly falls to the ground and his body goes limp.

At the same time, Pipp and Sunny tackle the diamond dog creature and start kicking him in the stomach with their hooves.

The bullfrog raises his rifle up, preparing to use the butt stock as a club. You drop the sledgehammer and grab onto it with both hands before he can bring it down.

You grunt and strain against the creature. The bullfrog’s breath smells awful, his slick green lips curl in anger and his throat inflates a bit.

He is then picked up in a bright pink aura that encapsulates his entire body.

He lets out a shrill croak of panic as he is lifted into the air. His body is then tossed casually to the ground and he tumbles in the dirt.

Sunny finally kicks the diamond dog guard in the chin. His head lulls to the side and he lays flat.

Hitch gets up and stands on his feet, dropping his injured act. “Okay, quick!” He says and then trots over to the back of the truck.

Zipp flies back over to the group and lands in the back of the truck. She helps Hitch climb on. You reach down and take the truck keys from the warthog creature’s pocket.

“Got it!” You say, looking at Sunny with a smile.

Sunny nods. She goes towards the passenger seat of the cab, and Izzy and Pipp load into the back of the truck.

You run to the driver’s side and swing open the door. You sit on the tired, worn seat and stick the key in the ignition. You crank it and with a few seconds of struggle, the diesel engine rumbles to life.

You look in the mirror to see the bullfrog creature slowly rising up off the ground and rubbing his head.

You push in the clutch and put the truck into first gear. You then push on the gas and the transport lurches forward.

Black smoke shoots from the tailpipe as it starts to pick up speed. Sunny braces herself on the dashboard as she sits in the passenger seat.

“Go, Anon! Go!” She urges.

You rev the engine more and then shift it into second.

The road is clear ahead. There’s a straight shot out of the city, and a gradual decline along the barren landscape leading towards the storm.

About thirty seconds into your trip, an air-raid siren rings out from the base. The creatures must have radioed back to raise the alarm, but it doesn’t matter. You just needed a bit of a head start.

Sunny is craning her head out the passenger-side window, looking back to the encampment. Her ears are folded and she has a very serious expression.

“They’re starting up their trucks! They’ll be after us soon!” She says.

She puts her head back inside and looks at you. “Can’t this thing go any faster?”

You push the pedal down further. This thing only has four gears, but even in the highest you’re only going about fifty miles per hour.

“It’s not exactly designed for speed!” You shout over the churning engine.

“Well just try to get us close!” Sunny says.

Your hands turn white as you grip the wheel. You steer the truck around a pile of debris, and then the road opens up as you start to get out of the city.

The road turns from pavement to gravel. The sun winks out for a moment as it dips behind the storm. The landscape is empty and vast. It barely feels like you’re getting any closer.

The truck jostles a bit as you narrowly avoid a pothole. You look in the rear-view mirror to see a group of dark vehicles speeding along the road behind you. It looks like they’re gaining.

You then see a flash of light, and a moment later you hear the distinct crack of gunfire.

“They’re shooting at us!” Pipp cries out from the back of the truck.

“Hold on! Get down on the floor!” Sunny cries out.

“Don’t worry! They can’t hit us from here!” You say in a raised tone.

You try to will the truck to go faster. Your eyes nervously dart along the road, looking out for obstacles. You occasionally glance back in the rear view to watch the approaching vehicles and the dirty smoke trail they leave behind.

Ahead of you, the clouds of the storm continue swirling ominously.

Then the engine starts to sputter. White smoke billows out from the front hood. The engine tries to keep chugging, but it eventually gives out and dies.

“No! No!” You shout. You turn the key, trying to start the truck again as it coasts along the path, losing speed by the second.

The engine keeps trying to turn over, churning with meek gasps of ignition before sputtering out. You slap the steering wheel in frustration.

“Alright!” Sunny shouts. “Stage two, then!”

She kicks open the door to the passenger side and runs around the side of the truck.

“Fuck. Shit. God dammit.” You say as you open the driver’s side and run around a moment after she does.

You both jump into the back of the truck. The other ponies are all laying on the floor.

“Stage two, everyone!” Sunny says with steadfast determination.

Izzy pushes the earth pony and unicorn crystal forward. Zipp does the same for the pegasus crystal.

Sunny quickly arranges them on the floor. You kneel down and watch, and you realize your breaths are coming quicker with anticipation.

Please. Please work.

There’s a glimmer. Then a spark. The crystals glow with rapid intensity and an iridescent stream of magic shoots out towards Sunny. Her body shimmers with magical light as her ethereal golden horn and wings appear on her body.

“Everyone hold tight!” She says as her body tenses and her horn focuses and controls the magic flowing into her.

The truck bed is coated with a golden shimmer for a moment before it shifts upward suddenly.

With a groan and a sudden snap, the truck bed is wrenched off the frame and starts to levitate in the air. You watch the ground begin to retreat below you as the wooden bed is carried up into the air with nothing but the will of a very determined pony.

Sunny then jumps into the air and her wings shoot out to her sides. She begins to glide as she keeps the tuck bed held in her magical grip.

“Go Sunny! You got this!” Izzy cheers.

Pipp and Zipp smile warmly as Hitch looks in wonder.

Sunny flaps her wings hard, moving forward quickly and leaving glittering trail of magic particles in her path.

The wind starts to pick up, whipping at your face and clothing. You stay low to the floor and hold onto one of the seats for stability.

The ground goes by much quicker now. Small hills of dirt and gravel zip past you.

You are about a mile from the edge of the massive lake and closing in fast. The bursts of thunder within the storm are not as frequent as they were yesterday, something that Sunny is counting on.

One last ditch effort. One final push towards hope. Come on, Sunny. You got this, you brave, stupid mare.

You look up to see Sunny’s focused expression. Her entire body is pointed toward her singular goal. For a moment, she glances down and catches you staring. A confident smirk spreads across her muzzle.

At this moment, you see her horn and wings blip out of existence for a moment. The truck bed lurches down for a split second.

“Woah! Woah!” Sunny exclaims. She tilts her body back and her wings flap hard as she tries to slow down. Her legs flail in the air wildly.

“What’s happening?!” Izzy shouts.

“I don’t know!” Sunny says as her horn begins to fade out. Her wings also begin to become more transparent. She starts to droop lower in the sky.

“Oh no! Sunny!!” Pipp cries out.

“Shit! Hold on!” You say as you clench the seat tighter.

Sunny’s magic gives way. Thankfully, you weren’t too high up. The truck bed falls several feet to the ground, then tilts up on one side. You and the ponies fall out of it.

You flip over in the air once. You then manage to catch yourself with your hands and roll along the ground. Your hands and arms get scraped up, but you come to a stop without hitting anything.

You’re very dizzy and disoriented as you look up. Sunny is laying on the ground, holding her chest. She’s wheezing like she got the wind knocked out of her.

The other ponies are banged up, but don’t seem too hurt. They slowly rise up, letting out grunts of pain.

“What? What happened?” Izzy asks, rubbing her head with a hoof.

“Anon! I thought you said you were going to believe in us!” Pipp shouts at you.

“I was!” You shout back. “I swear I was!”

Zipp is looking at her wings with a confused expression.

“Hold on a second.” She says. She stands in a ready position and unfolds her wings. She flaps hard and jumps into the air, but comes right back to the ground without lifting off.

She flaps a few more times and then hangs her head. “I can’t fly! It’s not working any more!” She says in a desperate tone.

“Oh no!” Pipp says as she flutters her wings. She looks back at them with a crushed expression.

“Izzy, try using your magic!” Zipp says.

Izzy perks her head up. She then squints hard and scrunches up her face. She looks at her horn with both eyes, but no matter how hard she strains, there’s no light coming from it.

You stare in shock at the ponies trying their best to activate their magic. Your gaze then drifts over to the lake and the gnarled, twisted black structures rising out of it.

“Wait. That’s it!” You say.

You slowly rise up to your feet. “They set up a field of anti-magic! That’s what caused this!” You say, pointing towards the lake.

The ponies look up at you in varying levels of disbelief.

“Back in Ancient Equestria, there were artifacts that could negate magic. Even magic as powerful as Celestia’s or Discord’s! It’s the only explanation!” You say.

Sunny manages to rise up to her hooves. “Is this... true, Anon?” She asks with a pained breath.

You nod grimly. “Yes. I promise you Sunny, this isn’t me.” You say.

Sunny looks at you for a moment. She sighs and looks out over towards the storm.

“Stage two failed.” She says. “So that means...”

“Time for plan B?” Hitch asks cautiously.

Sunny nods. She walks over and picks up the Earth Pony crystal, which got flung out of the ship.

You and the ponies look for the other crystals. You gather them up and then start walking back the way you came. After a few dozen feet, the crystals begin to glow again and Sunny’s wings and horn flicker back to life. She stops and looks back at her wings.

“See?” You say.

Sunny looks at you for a moment, but chooses to say nothing. The crystals hover close by her, orbiting her as they feed magic energy to her.

In front of Sunny, five armored trucks are barreling across the wasteland towards you.

You, Izzy, Pipp, Zipp and Hitch crowd around Sunny. She stands as tall as she can, though you can tell her pride is wounded.

The trucks circle around the party as they draw close. They surround you all in a circle. They quickly stop and the creatures start to pile out.

The guard creatures all point their weapons at Sunny as they spread out. Then Zelina steps out of the back of one of the trucks.

“Sunny!” She says in a cheery tune. “You changed your mind, did you? Hahah!”

As she moves forward, Sunny furrows her brow and her horn sparks menacingly.

One of the creatures suddenly fires his rifle. The loud bang makes everyone tense up, but the bullet pings harmlessly off a glowing gold shield that surrounds the group.

“You fucking idiot!” Zelina shouts angrily. She marches over to the creature and slaps the back of his helmet. She then grabs the rifle out of his hands and holds it like a bat. She smacks the creature in the chest with the rifle frame. “Don’t shoot unless I tell you too!”

The creature whimpers and cowers down. Zelina throws his rifle off to the side. For a moment she glares at the creature before turning to Sunny with a peppy grin.

“My apologies, Sunny.” She says. “It’s so hard to find good soldiers when all they bring me are these incompetent bags of meat.”

Zelina carefully steps forward, admiring Sunny’s transformed appearance. She then notices the crystals hovering around her, and her one visible eye shimmers with desire.

“Crystals, hm? So that’s the key. I should have known.” Zelina says.

She turns to a nearby guard and smacks him on the shoulder pad of his armor.

“Didn’t you idiots even search them?” She shouts.

The creatures don’t respond. They seem used to small outbursts like this.

Zelina folds her arms and turns to Sunny.

“Well, no matter.” She says calmly. “We have you cornered now, Captain Sunny. There’s no where left to go.”

“That may be true, but for once, listen to what I have to say!” Sunny shouts.

Zelina quirks an eyebrow and raises a hand limply. She waves it at her.

“Go on.” She says.

Sunny raises her head up and says in a forceful tone, “You have lived in fear of the ever-storm for so long. Why haven’t you stopped it? That’s what we were trying to do. We knew you’d never let us try on our own, so we wanted to help without your approval.”

“Help?” Zelina says. “By deserting your job and running headfirst into the storm?”

“I am going to use my magic to stop it. To find its source and put an end to it!” Sunny shouts.

“Hah! You really are something!” Zelina says. “Don’t you realize we’ve already tried that? What do you think happened when you got close? The storm is surrounded by artifacts meant to disrupt magic, but no matter how many we put up the storm still grows!”

“You can’t stop it with anti-magic then!” Sunny shouts. “You need magic that’s powerful enough to counteract what caused it in the first place. That’s what I can do!”

Zelina frowns and clenches her fists.

“Do you really expect me to believe that?” She says. “You want me to let you just waltz into the storm with your friends? I’m not an idiot. Your little escape attempt has failed. Give up.”

“You’re wrong.” Sunny says. “I am not trying to escape. I want to help you. Help all of you. Only we can do this, so just let us help!”

Zelina taps a claw against her chin for a moment. She studies the temporary alicorn with shrewd eyes.

“Fine.” Zelina finally says.

Sunny relaxes her fierce posture. You almost do a double-take. Sunny’s plan B actually worked?

Zelina shrugs and sighs. “I guess you are right. The only way to beat the magic of the old queen is with the magic of a new one. It makes perfect sense.”

Zelina backs up a bit. She points a finger at Sunny.

“However!” She says. “I need assurance that you won’t just run off. I can’t risk you getting away. So. With that in mind...”

Zelina casts her gaze over the group.

“Your friends are staying here, with us. And if you don’t come back in twenty-four hours...” She says.

She then runs the claw on her thumb across her neck with a threatening grin. “You won’t have to worry about them any more.”

Pipp and Izzy both gulp in unison. Your lip curls into a snarl.

“No. I need my friends. Don’t you remember? The only way my magic works is-” Sunny says.

“Alright, fine!” Zelina says. “I’ll let you bring one friend. Only one! That’s a fair compromise, right?”

Sunny inhales slowly, she puffs out her chest. Her horn glows a bit brighter.

“It’s alright, Sunny.” Hitch says.

Sunny looks over at him. Hitch nods softly. The three mares behind him nod as well.

Sunny’s horn fades. She looks back over at Zelina. “Fine then. I’ll take-”

“Woah, now. You don’t get to choose.” Zelina says with a grin. “That’s not how this works.”

Sunny opens her mouth to say something. Zelina grins and casually waves a finger along your group.

Her finger lands on you.

“He will accompany you.” She says.

You quirk an eyebrow.

Sunny looks at you, then looks to Zelina.

“Anon?” Sunny says.

“Yes.” Zelina says. “And you should be thankful I’m letting him go with you at all.”

Zelina then gestures you forward.

You look at Sunny. She thinks for a moment and then nods in acceptance.

You reluctantly step forward from the group. One of Zelina’s dog creatures comes up to you and pats you down. Finding no hidden weapons in your coveralls, the creature then leads you out of the circle of vehicles.

“I’ll let you prepare your things.” Zelina says. You notice her throw Sunny’s bag at her hooves before you disappear around the side of a truck.

A little while later, Zelina comes out around the side of the truck and walks over to you.

Zelina looks you up and down with a disappointed glare. Her mouth twists into a grimace. The creatures at her side retain vacant expressions.

“So.” Zelina says. “Why are you with these ponies, Mister Anonymous?”

You shrug your shoulders.

“It seemed like a fun thing to do at the time.” You say sarcastically. You shift your weight and act casual.

Zelina exhales from her goat-like snout. “Hmph. Well then. Does that mean you have no strong ties to them? You don’t really care what happens?” Zelina asks.

You shrug again and feign apathy.

“Very well.” Zelina says. She tents her clawed fingers and lowers her voice. “I have a proposition for you.”

“Yeah, sure. What is it?” You say, sounding bored.

Zelina reaches behind her humanoid torso and takes out a small snub-nosed revolver from a holster there. She holds it with two fingers clutching the grip.

“You know how to use one of these?” She asks.

You look at the piece. You nod.

“Terrific.” Zelina says. “I’m prepared to offer you a chance. Prove to me that you can do what’s needed, and in return... you’ll become an officer in my army.”

You turn your head and eye her warily.

“Look. I’m not talking about a shrimp-dick middle-management role. You’ll be commanding squads. I can already tell you’re smarter than most of my recruits. Your team bested one of my squads in an afternoon. Plus, maybe I just like your face, alright kiddo?”

She smiles and steps forward towards you. She bends down and holds out the gun casually.

“Think about it. You’ll have respect. Honor. Prestige. I treat my people well, Anonymous.”

Her smile widens. “At least, those that treat me well.”

You don’t really like the way she towers over you, dangling that gun. You shift back a bit.

“So. What exactly do you want me to do?” You ask.

“It’s simple.” Zelina says. “Take the pony into the storm. When you’re both alone, kill her. Dump the body. And then come back and tell the other ponies that she died on accident.”

You knew it would be something like that.

You look at the pistol, sitting there in her fingers. There’s no way you’d ever accept her offer to be a goon in her army, but if it convinces her to let Sunny go, then that’s good enough for you. Plus, you get a free gun out of it.

“Hm.” You say. “What about the crystals?”

“You can dump those as well. Don’t need them.” Zelina says with a fanged smile.

You look to both sides. You scratch your chin.

“Alright. Fine.” You say.

You raise a hand casually and she presses the revolver into your palm.

“Good.” Zelina says with a satisfied grin. “You made the right choice, Anon.”

Zelina steps back and turns towards the middle of the truck circle.

You look down at your work uniform. The dingy coveralls have deep pockets sewn into the front. If you tuck it down close to your hips, it sort of melds in with the baggy bunches of clothing near your thighs.

You awkwardly stuff it in along with the small bits of gravel you forgot to clean out.

Zelina has two soldiers escort you around the circle of trucks. She walks in front of them.

You go around to the other side. Sunny is waiting between two lines of guards that are all closely watching her. She has her pack over her shoulder again, and you notice the crystals are stuffed into it. Her horn and wings are still glowing on her body.

Sunny smiles a bit when she sees you. She walks up to you and Zelina has the guards step back.

You nod at Sunny. She stands by your side and faces towards Zelina. The major general centaur stops and adopts a proud, militaristic stance.

“Remember, Sunny. Twenty-four hours. That’s all you get. And don’t come back without something to show for it. I hate being disappointed.” Zelina says.

Zelina half-smirks, half-sneers at Sunny.

“I understand.” Sunny says.

“I’m glad we’re both agreed.” Zelina says. She then points a finger out towards the horizon.

“There’s an old outpost about five hundred meters in that direction. Inside you will find a boat. You can use this to traverse the storm. You’ll need to cover up from the rain, too. I’m sure you’ll find a way to figure that out.”

“Very well.” Sunny says. She turns and faces the storm. “But you had better keep your word, Zelina. My friends are not replaceable.”

Sunny begins to walk away. You take a few steps with her, glancing back at the group of creatures before turning and keeping pace with her.

Together you slowly start to trudge over the rocky, barren ground. Echoes of thunder rumble in the distance.

“Oh, also!” Zelina shouts. “If you see the queen, tell her to come out once and a while! Hahah!”