A Boy and his Watch
By TheAlienBrony22

A Hell Coming to the Homestead,
Part 2

[Canterlot, Sparkle Household.]

"Benjamin Sparkle, are you ready yet?!" Velvet called out, looking up the stairs. "Come on, I know you're a bit disappointed that you'll miss out on the movie, but that doesn't mean you have to mope! When you get down here, I wanna see a smile, young man!"

"Don't pop a blood vessel, mom, jeez! I'm coming down. Besides, a movie is not worth moping about. Sure, I'm a bit disappointed that I couldn't go to the premiere, but I can just go and see the regular viewing, it costs less." Ben called out. As he came down, he truly looked a lot like one of his numerous counterparts across the multiverse. He was dressed in his black t-shirt with the white stripe, a pair of comfortable faded blue jeans, black and white boots, and had a gray jacket with green sleeves and one white and black stripe on each sleeve. There was also a bright blue ten embroidered on the back. His wild and unkept hair was combed and even shined in the light. "Maybe I should count my blessings, Premieres can vary on if they go well or not, and Canterlot has a bad habit of getting really hissy."

"That's because your father taught you to never obsess over such basic things," Velvet said, dusting off a bit of dirt from Ben's jacket. "There, now don't you look handsome. Plus, I'd say you missed a chance at a blessing, premieres aside, this is a beautiful time of night to spend with someone, some say that you'll find that special somepony before you go off into the world of adulthood."

"Sounds to me like you watched way too many novellas, I'm not a hopeless romantic like Shining. What's everypony doing tonight, anyway?" Ben asked curiously, slumping into one of the chairs. "Haven't seen Shining, Spike or Twilight since I got home earlier."

"Well, Shining is working over time with the guard tonight, and Celestia is keeping Twilight and Spike in for some extra lessons." Velvet explained.

"That's all well and good, but where's Dad? Shouldn't he have gotten off work by now?" Ben asked.

"You know how he is, he's always working hard to provide for us. I'm doing the same, I clean other people's homes and bring home a substantial amount of bits." Velvet pulled out a few small full satchels of bits.

"Well, I was planning on going out to catch the normal viewing of the movie, just to give it a chance, but before I head out... can I ask you a question, Mom? This has been on my mind for a good few months." Ben asked with uncertainty.

"Of course, Benny! What is it?" Velvet asked, taking a seat as she looked at the human that sat across from her, the human she called her son for seven years. He took a deep breath and exhaled.

"Why did you want me to stop going on patrols? I know when you told me before, I was eleven, that made sense... but I'm almost a grown man, I think, and I can take care of myself... I want to help people, but it feels like with every time I want to get involved and do something great, I can't help but feel like you don't want me to do that. I know there are other ways to do something great, but I have a handle on my powers... I don't even know where they come from, I don't even know where I came from. I just remember waking up in a room, surrounded by ponies, and Twilight was helping me up, that's it up until everything else that followed afterwards." Ben explained. Velvet went silent, she had an answer, but she didn't seem to have the nerve to say it. "Tell me the truth, do you think I'm a bad guy, mom? Do you think I'm going to end up dead if I'm not careful, or become the next Nightmare Moon if I let my worries and doubts overtake me?"

"Of course not! Benjamin Sparkle, how can you think such a thing about your own mother?" Velvet asked, caught off guard by the assumptions.

"You haven't said anything, you aren't telling me something I probably need to know, of course I'm gonna make assumptions! What exactly aren't you telling me!?" Ben questioned. Velvet was metaphorically in a corner, she took a deep breath and prepared her answer.

"It's because you are a special boy. You clearly have some form of amnesia, and the royal doctors told us something at your last checkup. If it were to get worse, don't let you get into trouble when your memory comes back. I tried to make sure you didn't go out at night, to go on those patrols, I did it for you, your well-being. I know you've done good, even if it's posed a problem to others, and I couldn't be more proud for how selfless you are, but if your memories ever came back... I worried you wouldn't want to be apart of our family anymore," Velvet said. Ben was about to retort, but she kept going. "Ben, you being around has had an affect on my babies. Twilight never worked so hard to understand something like you or your watch, you gave Shining the motivation to join the guard when he found out what you were doing, I never saw him work so hard for something like that, and Spike, he looks up to you like a role model. He looks up to you like Twilight looks up to Celestia, I never saw such hope in his eyes before, and it was the most beautiful thing in the world. I was a little wrong to keep you from doing what you obviously do best, and you can take care of yourself."

Velvet wiped her eyes, feeling tears whell up as she walked up and hugged her son. Ben hugged her back as he got up and let her go. "You wanted to cry a little bit, didn't you Mom?" Ben asked with a small smile.

Velvet looked up at Ben, wiping her tears as she sniffled and smiled. "I'm proud of the man you became, I'm proud of what Twilight has achieved under Celestia's tutelage thus far, I'm proud of Shining wanting to make a difference, and I'm proud of Spike for looking to you for motivation... Go on, go see your movie, I'm gonna freshen up a little bit and take a nap."

Violet walked up the stairs as Ben grabbed the door's knob. "And one more thing, son, do me a favor, Ben... Whatever it is you plan to do tonight, be careful, and know that your mother will always support you." Velvet added as a door closed.

[Canterlot Castle]

Twilight yawns, as does Spike, who was about to fall asleep on the unicorn's back. Celestia walked forward and lifted the two in one of her legs, setting them down on her bed in her royal chambers, covering them up as she slowly returned to her throne.

'Her training is coming along wonderfully... soon enough, it'll be time to send her away, for her final assignment.' Celestia thought to herself, smiling.

Celestia's smile soon disappeared when the huge double doors in the throne room swung open as she arrived. In the doorway was an Earth Pony, one that managed to match Celestia in height. His coat was a blue-ish off-white, his mane was short, crewcut, colored in a shade of black that seemed to disintegrate any other color that touched its surface. The pony had bronze armor with a yellow sun in the center, and his cutie mark was a clock torn in half with a gray brain inside of it. The pony was blind, yet it could follow the movements of the pony in front of it.

"Captain Time Crunch, to what do I owe the pleasure?" Celestia asked.

"No pleasure, just the displeasure among my soldiers, Princess. They're in a discourse, it's chaotic. They've somehow got it in their empty brains that the human in Canterlot is going to raid a theatre, and by some twisted roll of the dice, they somehow got it in their heads that I was the one who started this nonsense, can you believe this bullocks?! While I never believed in the myths of humans before, this has become a problem. I need a proper solution, otherwise, I am to act accordingly and--" Before the Captain could finish talking, Celestia raised a hoof, and his words petered out.

"I see the issue still hasn't died down, hm? Well, I didn't want to do this, but my hoof has been forced by my own soldiers. How Ironic," Celestia said with dissatisfactory. "Captain, round up every single one of your soldiers, Colt and Mare, and bring me Shining Armor, as well as my niece, Mi Amore Cadenza... it's time to nip this in the bud and find out where the source of this treachery came from, once and for all. That's an order!" Celestia commanded.

The captain didn't even flinch at the use of the royal Canterlot voice, and just smirked as he saluted the princess. "Yes, your highness!! YOU LOT HEARD THE PRINCESS, GATHER EVERY SOLDIER WE HAVE AT THIS MOMENT, AND BRING THEM 'ERE, FRONT AND CENTER!!" The captain barked at several of the smaller guards. Several of the pegasus guards nodded and flocked downwards to Canterlot, preparing to round up soldiers. Most of the earth ponies on duty were already present.

Celestia was going to weed out the mole who started this treacherous line, even if it meant all of Canterlot would be unguarded for a temporary amount of time.

[Canterlot Theatre]

Ben walked over to the booth and saw there was a lack of ponies out tonight, not even a single guard was out. Ben figured he might've been off the hook, and tried to look for Trixie, until a guard without her helmet got the jump on him.

"Gotcha, you fillynapping freak of nature!! By order of the Canterlot Royal Guard, you're under arrest for the disappearances of several innocent ponies!" The mare exclaimed, struggling to subdue the human. Ben was trying to pull the mare off, but the mare was extremely persistent, if not stronger than she looked. Ben activated the Omnitrix and slammed it down.

In a flash of green light, the mare yelled out in pain as she let the human go, looking at her now very singed and moderately burned hooves, then back at the creature that stood in Ben's place.

The creature stood upright, it had small plumes of fire and smoke coming off of its rocky and very hot body. It burned bright in a golden blaze, the rocks on its body were cracked, but they also withstood the heat of the creature. the skull of the creature looked to be entirely made of the same rock, but it had a warped and monstrous look about it, almost like the face looked like that of a human skull, just chiseled out of rocks. The emblem rested on the creature's chest. This was the creature Ben called Starburner.

"Don't try to play with fire, little pony, you might just get burned." Starburner warned. He got a good look at the mare, a cream colored Earth Pony mare with red eyes and a dark indigo mane... and rockstar eyeliner? Strange makeup choices aside, her cutie mark was what actually stood out to him. There were Six magical talismans arranged in some kind of order, each one with a different symbol engraved onto it, but one of them was red, while the others were brown, and the engravings were glowing yellow.

For a moment, Starburner had felt something. Something told him that he should remember what those are, but he didn't want to focus on that right now, he had a job to do, and he looked at the mare cautiously.

"Now, listen up. I'm not working against you, I'm working with you. I have a process, my own way of doing the same job, getting the same results. I'm looking into the disappearances of ponies, and I think this theatre might just be the lead you, the guards and myself were missing. We can bicker amongst each other, or we can save lives tonight, what'll it be?" Starburner asked.

The mare grit her teeth and stood up, looking at the flaming creature, then back at the theatre. Was she really considering trusting this monster, if she wasted time fighting it, maybe more lives would be lost, but how does she know if this thing is really telling the truth?

"We'll go by code names, follow that simple premise, and I might be able to trust you. I'll be known as Magic Mare, you will be known as Charcoal Man. Deal?" The mare offered.

"And Shining thought my names were bad... Fine, now let's go save lives." 'Charcoal Man' stated. The two walked to the booth, seeing the chain that once held Trixie's legs in place, but the mare was nowhere to be seen.

"I should've selected Beelzebeast. At least I'd be able to track her scent and find her that way," 'Charcoal Man' remarked, glaring at the mare at his side. "If somepony wasn't insisting on trying to get a rather unpleasant piggy back ride."

"Semantics, semantics. Can't you just tap that stupid badge and change yourself into that wild mutt with no eyes, if you're gonna complain about it?" 'Magic Mare' regarded.

Ben didn't want to try that, because the watch seemed very finicky. It was sensitive, but it could take a lot of abuse, accidental or intentional, and not be left with so much as a scratch. He did want to find Trixie and the other missing ponies, and he knew he was gonna have to follow his own advice. Doing what's right, no matter what, even if it meant he breaks the thing that gives him his powers.

Starburner twisted the dial carefully as the badge several beeping noises. Soon enough, the badge popped up and Starburner pressed it back down, enveloping himself in another flash of green light. The mare covered her eyes, and soon enough, she uncovered them, now being face to face with Beelzebeast.

"There, aren'tcha glad you trusted me?" The mare remarked. The beast growled, looking rather displeased. Beelzebeast jumped through the protective glass of the booth, sniffing at the chain as he picked up on Trixie's scent. The mare watched as the beast did its thing, and rolled her eyes as a flicker of purple sparked momentarily in the whites of her eyes.

Beelzebeast got out of the booth and grabbed the mare, tossing her onto his back as he roared and stormed into the theatre. The doors flew off their hinges, and Beelzebeast was prepared to move through panicking ponies and/or aggressive ponies, but was rather disappointed... and rather disturbed.

There wasn't a single pony, bystander or hostile in the lobby. The snack machines that prepared popcorn, dispensed soda and such were still going, but there wasn't a pony in sight, just barely audible sounds of the movies that were playing, but even that didn't sound right, it didn't even put him at ease, it just... kept going.

"Movies are playing, the contraptions are still going, and not a single pony. There's strange, and then there's this. Ok, you overgrown mutt, I'm gonna look around for evidence that requires careful collecting, you try to see if there're any secrets." The mare stated, hopping off the canine as she trotted over to the counter. Beelzebeast took a long sniff of the air inside the building... he smelled something. Something that smelled like it didn't belong here.

Beelzebeast carefully followed the new scent, moving over towards a supply closet. The scent grew stronger, and it tied the alien's stomach in knots from how awful it smelled. It smelled like a crypt with way too many bodies inside, but that just confirmed Ben's suspicion. Somepony or some creature was killing ponies, and probably stashing them in the closet... but wouldn't have other ponies noticed the bad smell, or was it something Beelzebeast could only pick up on? The guard mare didn't seem to smell it, so it's possible this was something else, but it's not like he had a lot of proof.

As Magic Mare ran a hoof over every possible area from behind the counter, her eyes slowly flickered and glowed purple. She saw the remnants of some strange auras, auras that belonged to a wide variety of creatures. Creatures that weren't just ponies.

"Interesting... there's obviously a feeling of the three different types of ponies, but there's something else present, something foreign. This may be useful information for a full blown investigation, but I need another way of figuring out how to identify these auras individually without magic. After all, an earth pony with a knack for magic is bound to get somepony upset." the mare told herself.

Before the mare could reach out to one of the auras, a loud crack, and the sound of something crashing to the floor echoed out, snapping her out of whatever she was doing. She looked back to where Beelzebeast was, only to see the beast backing away from the closet. The door was on the ground, knocked off its hinges, and several withered ponies stamped out of the doorway.

They were ragged, worn out, frail, thin, they looked lifeless, but they had a crazed and wild look in their eyes. The obvious outlier about any of them, was that a few of them were dressed in usher uniforms. The ponies screamed out in a feral manner, and immediately ran forward as they planned to attack.

"Guess that confirms one theory, but now there's so many more that need deconstruction." The mare groaned. Her hooves glowed a bright purple color as she blasted a beam at some of the ponies, entrapping them in some kind of magic bind. "Ok, you overgrown dog, knock 'em my way, I'll make sure they stay put!"

Beelzebeast roared, swiping the ponies away towards the mare, who entrapped them in another bind. The ponies continued to squirm, growling and gnashing their teeth like a bunch of feral wolves with their backs to the wall. Beelzebeast tapped the badge, and in a flash of green light, Ghooligan took the beast's place. "What is with these ponies? They just burst out of nowhere, and I'm fairly sure that this many ponies can't fit in that one closet." Magic Mare stated.

"Probably because it may not be a supply closet," the spectre stated, slowly moving towards one of the mad ponies, then looking back at the magic earth pony. "Gimme a minute to try something, if I may."

The mare didn't know if this would be a good idea, but it's not like she had any other ideas, and she couldn't hold all of them forever. She cautiously nodded and the ghostly creature became transparent, phasing into the gnashing and maddened pony. Before anypony could be any wiser, The maddened pony stopped trying to escape, and its lifeless maddened eyes began to calm down, and glow a bright green color.

[Memorium]

Ghooligan soon looked around, finding himself in a dark and monstrous place. The walls patterned to look like that of a brain, but were now sprouting vile white roots that seemed to be decaying and warping the fleshy walls around him. He floated carefully through this strange location, only to soon find a locked up door that has been barricaded by the white roots.

He simply phased through the door, and looked on at the pony he possessed. It was a pegasus with a bright fuchsia coat and darker faded purple stripes across its body. it was caged up like a bird, and didn't seem to be in the best condition as white roots inch towards it, then mangling the poor pony. Ghooligan covered his mouth and his singular eye, yet he couldn't look away from the carnage. He felt his mind wander like it was being guided, he saw things in flashes, but nothing made concrete sense.

'Ectonurite... you are not welcome here... leave!' A strange voice called out. Before the ghostly hero could figure out where the voice was coming from, let alone who had such a voice, he found himself pushed out of the room and back where he manifested when he possessed the pony.

[Canterlot Theatre]

The mare could feel her power waning, until the spectre fled the mad pony's body, only for it to resume its animalistic mannerisms. The spectre looked at the pony. They were missing their wings, and the fuchsia color of their coat and their purple stripes seemed faded, washed out, and sullied. "Hey, did you find something out? I can probably keep these ponies here, but their binds won't last if I'm not constantly pouring magic to them." The mare called out.

Ghooligan grabbed the mare and picked her up, bringing her into the closet as they both see a wide descending staircase lined with torches. It was like an entryway for some kind of catacomb, and they both knew they had to go deeper if it meant they saved these poor souls.

"Just so you know, I think we're gonna be seriously hurt by the end of this," Magic Mare remarked, meeting the gaze of the ethereal creature. "But I'm confident that it'll only be a minor injury at best. We may not trust each other, I'm still a little on the fence, but I do think if we're gonna stop whatever this is... we have to work together."

"Dually noted. I never met an earth pony who could use magic though, at least in the way you have, but it's nice to know I have a little bit of backup this time." Ghooligan stated. The two ventured downwards into the strange catacombs, all while the mad ponies continued to struggle and squirm.

[Unknown Cavern]

"Rrgh!! Let me go!! Trixie just wanted a few extra bits, not to see some shoggoth abomination!! Let me go, I demand you!! Somepony, anypony! HELP!!!" Trixie called out in an anger induced panic. Two ponies in torn up usher uniforms dragged the mare along to the huge opening without another word. The mare was chained to the ground as the ponies backed away, a dulled and lifeless look in their eyes as Trixie gazed at the dark opening, thinking she sees something.

A shrill and devastated scream of terror echoes throughout the catacombs, but then slowly peters out.

Author's Note

Took a wee bit to get this chapter out, but boy am I glad to have finally gotten it out at all...

Just a couple more parts and an Epilogue to go before we start off Season 1.

And for those wondering how Ben is changing from form to form like this, as Magic Mare suggested for him to do, it's still draining the Omnitrix's energy reserves. Over time, the Omnitrix stopped relying on a time-out function and relied on an energy reserve to keep the user from de-transforming at the most inconvenient time.

Ben will be returning to normal and the Omnitrix is gonna be recharging for a little bit in the next chapter, but there are also a few other surprises too.

Stay tuned!

EDIT: Despite this being published on April 1st, I am trying to make Celestia a proper ruler, unlike how I portrayed her in one of my other stories... you can guess which one.