Ahriman's Answer

Chapters

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8

Chapter 1 Author's Note

I'm putting the Author's Note at the top to get any moderator's attention. The first Chapter takes place entirely in Warhammer 40k universe, but it will come to Equestria in time. I promise.

Chapter 1

Fire contaminated the void of space with vibrant colors. There are no planets or stars for light-years in every direction, and yet two fleets found themselves locked in a void battle. Lasers, plasma, missiles and boarding craft shot from one vessel to another as the empty void filled with the debris of shattered ships and lifeless hulks.

One such ship, The Word of Hermes oversaw the steel carnage. As it's bridge crew furiously worked to keep information flowing and weapons firing, two giants clad in cobalt blue power armor stared in silent fury.

"They're gone. The Pyromonarch, the Soul Jackel, it appears you are now my second in command." One of the giants rumbled with a mechanical snarl in its voice.

"Damned Eldar. They never travel in such numbers. To think that it was only half their fleet." The other snarled as well with a clenched fist.

The two giants were Commander Ignis of the Prodigal Sons, the now second in command to his superior, the scourge of the galaxy known as Ahzek Ahriman.

Both transhuman warriors hailed from the XVth Legion of Legiones Astartes: The Thousand Sons, a Legion known for two things, it's powerful psychic warriors and a vile mutation known as the Flesh Change.

Ten thousand years ago, Ahzek had attempted to remedy this disease through his Sorcery. The effort cured all the most powerful psychic warriors, but turned the weaker and non-psychic warriors into mindless automaton manipulated through the psychic prowess of their brothers.

Horrified and disgusted by this atrocity, the ruler of the Thousand Sons, Magnus The Red, banished Ahriman from the planet of Sorcerers.

Ahzek Ahriman has spent the last ten millennia searching for a way to undo his folly and restore his lost brothers. A goal that routinely brings him into conflict with the Eldar, one of the eldest and most knowledgeable races in the galaxy.

The pursuit of an Eldar fleet carrying ancient tomes from the fabled Black Library brought Ahriman's warband into an ambush, for the unseen other half of the fleet was lying in wait when the Prodigal Sons dropped out of Warp.

"They've finally cornered me...But I will not die as easily as they think. Tell every surviving Sorcerer to take as many Rubric Marines as they can to the nearest enemy ship and slaughter as many Xenos as they can." Ahriman demanded.

"As you command." Ignis stated, already moving to assemble his own forces.

The Word of Hermes lost its shields at the same time as its target. Astartes drop pods rocketed towards the Alien ship as missiles struck the Chaos Warships engines.

Ahriman sensed the anti-aircraft fire that would destroy his pod before it even fired and teleported himself and his ten Rubric Marines onto the Alien vessel near the bridge.

The first thing his optics registered were the blast doors closing 12 meters in front of him. The second was a squad of Dark Reapers leveling their automatic missile launchers.

Return fire! Ahriman willed as he poured his psychic might into a hastily constructed shield.

The Dark Reapers turned and twisted their guns, aiming the stream of alien missiles at the incoming streams of Bolter fire. The alien weapons superior rate of fire drowned the Rubrics bolt rounds...but one Rubric Marine did not have a Bolter. He had a Lascannon.

A blood red beam of light cut through the alien missiles and blasted a hole straight through the vile xenos.

The Rubric reoriented his weapon, but not before another barrage of missiles struck from behind.

The second squad of Dark Reapers was accompanied by Howling Banshees, their psychic scream attempting to shatter Ahriman's concentration.

Hmph, fools... Ahriman mused as he lifted his staff and brought it down. Bursting the shield in a psychic blast that sent every alien flying, the Howling Banshees being blasted apart by the missiles of the second Dark Reaper squad, while the first was systematically slaughtered by the Rubric Marines who quickly turned to suppress the recovering second squad and the surviving Banshees.

Ahriman turned to address the Aliens, channeling his psychic power into a storm of Warp lightning.

"Enough of these distractions. Come brothers. We will make this filth pay for interfering in our affairs." Ahriman said as he turned and poured fourth all of his anger upon the blast door, destroying it and all behind it...or so he thought.

Ahriman suspected his opponent for to be a Farseer of commendable power, he hadn't expected 30 Farseers led by Eldrad Ulthran.

"CURSE YOU!!" Shouted Ahriman as he flung his most powerful doombolt at the ancient sorcerer as he and the others swiftly overpowered him.

Ahzek Ahriman awoke with a sudden scream as the psychic paralysis was undone. He had not suspected to survive, and was far more shocked to find he wasn't alone.

Ignis fell to his knees beside Ahriman alongside three other Sorcerers. Before them, nearly two thousand serfs had been herded by the Rubric Marines. Ahriman burned with rage to see his cursed brothers led by Alien Witches, but his rage almost faded when he realized what stood at the center of the gathering.

Surrounded by the Farseers, and flanked by Eldrad Ulthran, was a Harlequin Solitaire holding a locked tome with a DNA encrypted hand scanner. "Greetings Scourge of Knowledge."

"Alien filth. If you were a fragment as intelligent as your arrogant race pretends to be, you would've killed me when you had the chance." Ahriman proclaimed as he channeled his psychic might.

Hidden panels hissed and opened, glass cages containing humans emerged to surround the surviving sorcerers. No, not humans. Blanks.

Another Sorcerer, a Scarab Occult Sorcerer, shouted and charged the Solitaire, only to slam into a force field. "Tsk tsk tsk, is that any way to treat someone so graciously granting you all you've ever sought?"

Ahriman blinked as the Solitaire passed the book through the force field before him. "...What game are you playing?" The sorcerer snarled.

"The Great Game. The Final Jest. A plan put into motion twenty thousand years ago. Lord Ceogoragch knew of the coming of She Who Thirsts and the rise of the Dark Gods. Beings you wish to control if possible, destroy if necessary, but above all else...to understand."

"And I am to believe you are simply giving me this knowledge? After all this time!?" Ahriman demanded.

"We are not so kind. But the new Warp Entity you will discover is. The book will guide you." The Solitaire promised.

"...A new Warp Entity... you fear it don't you." Ahriman stated. "It is less dangerous to your kind in my control than if it grows on its own."

"It will be devoured by the Great Enemy we both share and twisted into something perverse...like all others before it." The Solitaire stated. "You will not believe any direction we give on how to prevent this. You will find the way, or you will fail."

"And if I succeed?" Ahriman asked.

"The Rubric will be undone. Your brothers will live again. And you will be the key instrument in delivering your species from the tyranny of thirsting Gods." The Solitaire claimed. "But do not trust me. Trust your knowledge." The book waved tauntingly in front of Ahriman's face.

Ahriman snarled from within his chambers aboard the Word of Hermes . His hand had opened the DNA Scanner, and he had stolen enough texts of the Aeldari and Drukhari to identify a fake...it was authentic.

"What lies are you hiding behind half truths Eldar..." Ahriman said as he stared from the window in his chambers across the void to the Eldar vessels his battered fleet was leaving behind.

From beyond the void the Eldar watched him as well. "I am not one to doubt prophecy Tallik, but you're saying that our greatest chance at stopping She Who Thirsts is him!?" shouted Eldrad.

"It is the will of the Laughing God. Only he knows how the Final Jest will play out. The rest of us have to wait and see." Declared the Solitaire as he pulled a small trinket from his person. A blue crystal in a shape unfamiliar to any of his race...but would be recognized by humans as a balloon of all things.

Chapter 2

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 3

Thunder shook Ocellus from her sleep with an adorable yelp. She and her friends have a sleepover in the castle of Harmony every third weekend of the month, and are always sure to keep up to date with the Cloudsdale whether schedule...so the unexpected storm took them completely by surprise.

"HUHWHAT!? WHAT'S GOING ON!??" Shouted SilverStream with an inappropriate amount of concern.

"Alright, whose the wisepony who didn't update the whether schedule? SOME OF US HAVE TO FLY HOME, YA KNOW!!" Shouted Gallus, feeling more than a little irate.

"Guys, Yona doesn't think that was thunder. Yaks know what smashing feels like." Yona stated nervously.

The yak's statement earned the group's attention. As they stopped complaining, they realized that there was no rainfall outside and the thunder had ceased as swiftly as it began.

"... okay...so, another yak is playing tricks on us?" Sandbar suggested.

"Ooooh, if somecreature ruined my beauty sleep for a joke, I'll give them a nice relaxing LAVA BATH!!" Smoulder roared as she took to sky and flew to the windows at the top of the castle...but not through them.

The orange Dragon stopped just short of breaking the window, frozen in shock at what she saw outside. "Smoulder? Is something wrong?" Ocellus asked as she and the other two flying creatures came to look out the windows beside their friend.

Shocked and concerned gasps emitted from them as they beheld the sight of large blue knights assembling outside. They appeared to have come from five large pods that had slammed into the ground outside, answering the question of the noise that woke them.

"Guys? What's going on?" Sandbar asked from the ground. "...I...I think we're being invaded." Ocellus answered back.

"W-we don't know that!" SilverStream stuttered unassuringly. "M-maybe they're ambassadors seeking friendship."

"Oh come on Silv, if they were ambassadors, they'd be at Twilight's castle! The only reason they'd come to the Castle of Harmony is to try and hurt the Spirit of Harmony! Just like King Sombra when he destroyed the tree that turned into the castle in the first place." Smoulder explained.

"Yeah, and the leaders definitely look like dark wizards." Gallus added.

He was right. While most of the around 50 armored knights looked like warriors. 3 of the 5 leaders looked like wizards, another looked like a wizard/mechanic, and the big one looked like he was the gener-

"YEEP!!" Ocellus yelped as she dove down below the window. The moment she focused on the big one, he turned from the other leaders and looked straight at her.

"There is something in there." The Scarab Occult Sorcerer sneered.

"We will handle it. Remember your task Brother Jerrik." Ahriman replied.

"Of course. Come brothers." Jerrik called verbally to the Scarab Occult Terminators that obeyed him.

Of all the Sorcerers that followed him, Jerrik was the most determined to restore their lost brothers. He cared little for the secrets of the Galaxy, and conducted himself more like a berserker than a Sorcerer. Favoring spells to augment his strength and speed or shield himself from projectiles and the sorcery of his opponents.

As such, he was the perfect rearguard in case locals from the nearby province took exception to Ahriman's visit of what he assumed was a holy place. "The rest of you, secure the area. I will investigate this castle."

Ocellus peeked back through the window to see the large warrior and his like-armored friends moving into the Everfree Forest towards Ponyville, three of the other wizards surrounding the castle with 10 warriors each, and the most decorated wizard heading into the castle with another 10 warriors.

"Guys, they're coming in!" Ocellus warned.

"Darn it! It had to be wizards. If he's half as strong as Twilight, then I won't be able to take him head on... I'll have to surprise him." Smoulder deduced.

"Yeah, cause his meathead friend totally didn't sense us the moment we looked at him." Gallus snarked without humor. "We need to warn Princess Twilight about this."

"And what? Just let the obviously evil wizard do whatever he came here to do?" Smoulder retorted.

"Ugh, if we send one of us to warn her while the rest of us take down his goon squad, will that keep you from getting yourself hurt. They can't be too fast with that clunky armor. But those weapons they're holding look kinda like crossbows, so don't fly straight at them." Gallus warned.

"Yeah, I know how fighting works. I am a Dragon." Smoulder retorted. "SilverStream, you fly out the back window and go tell somepony what's going on... especially if that big guy really is heading to Ponyville."

"A-are you sure? Those big armored guys look really tough. You could use all the help you can get." SilverStream stuttered.

"No offense, but you and Sandbar will be the least help in a fight, and Sandbar can't fly." Smoulder explained.

"Hey! Earth Ponies can be just as strong as Dragons." Sandbar defended."

"Without fire breath or protective scales. If those are crossbows, you won't be able to get close. Besides, I beat you in hoof wrestling every time." Smoulder added.

Sandbar dropped it and the plan was put into motion. SilverStream flew as fast as she could to the back exit while the rest of Young 6 made their way forward, keeping an ear out for the armored invaders.

It didn't take them long. They heard the footfalls of the armored knights just around the corner ahead. Smoulder saw a room between them and the corner. "You guys head in there, I'll lure them this way and then we can ambush them."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Ocellus asked.

"It sounds like there's only two of them...and they're getting close. If you don't have a better idea, then follow my lead." Smoulder barked. Ocellus and the others broke off from the young Dragon and headed into the other room.

Smoulder snorted fire as she tensed up, then rocketed around the corner and kicked off one of the blue knights to launch him backwards and herself back around the corner before the other knight knew what hit them...or so she thought.

She turned to find the other knight on her side of the corner with his weapon raised.

BOOM!!

Smoulder hit the hallway floor hard and gasped for air. She had felt something slam into her and explode! But thankfully, Dragon scales and bones were some of strongest materials in Equestria.

Unfortunately, Smoulder's gasp for air told the angry knight all he needed to know. BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! The knight advanced as he fired. Smoulder grit her teeth and put her arms over her head as he started aiming for her eyes.

The young Dragon tried to crawl away, but the projectiles hitting her doubled, telling her the other knight had recovered.

The door to the other room opened as Ocellus tried to get out and help. The knights changed targets immediately, but failed to fire before Yona charged through the wall and slammed into them with enough force to send him both knights through the opposite wall.

The other 4 young creatures of the allied races gathered around to help their bruised Dragon friend to her feet. "On... second thought... LET'S GET OUTTA HERE!!"

"YOU SAID IT!!" Gallus shouted, wisely deciding to save his 'I Told You So' for after they escaped.

No sooner had the group started running and turned a corner did more of those thunderous projectiles nearly strike their rearmost member. "I think we made them mad you guys!" Shouted a panicking Ocellus.

"This way!" Shouted Smoulder, remembering how fast those things can run.

The five young creatures found themselves in another room, a kitchen to be exact, and heard the creatures barrel past them. "Phew, guess we gave them the slip." Gallus breathed out.

"I don't think so...I feel something." Ocellus whimpered. The others knew what that meant, Ocellus was the only magic user among them. And if she felt something, it was usually something magical...or someone.

"Guess their boss is coming to see what the noise is about." Smoulder said in a near whimper herself. All sense of bravado lost as she realized just how over her head she was.

"Quick! We have to hide!" Sandbar half whispered half screamed.

Yona dove under the table, more specifically, the table cloth. Smoulder quickly stuffed herself into the oven while Sandbar and Gallus crammed themselves into the fridge and upper cabinets respectively, each making sure nothing fell out to reveal their hiding places.

Then, Smoulder realized that Ocellus wasn't hiding. The timid little Changeling had instead opted to stand if front of the door disguised as one of the blue knights.

Smoulder tensed up to shoot out and grab her, but dismissed the idea as soon as the door opened.

"They got away sir!" Came the stereotypical military tone with a robotic sound to it. Ahriman considered obliterating the Imposter where it stood, but paused when he realized how naively open-minded this creature was.

A child who had recognized an obvious threat to her friends and homeland, now realizing how foolish their heroic attempts had been and desperately hoping to save her friends from their foolishness.

Ahriman restrained a chuckle at the children's expense as he prodded Ocellus' mind.

The Changeling Hives, the Dragon Lands, Griffonstone, Yakyakistan, Seaquestria, and finally, Equestria. The 6 major kingdoms and Xenos races were now now known to him. He made a note to orbitally bombard the Dragon Lands if war broke out. They would be difficult otherwise, but that wasn't what the Chaos Sorcerer was looking for.

The School of Friendship, Princess Twilight Sparkle, Loyalty, Honesty, Generosity, Kindness, Laughter, and-

Greetings Ahzek Ahriman

Ahriman turned from the Changeling he had been reading like an open book and came face to face with his true objective. A Warp Entity bearing the appearance of Princess Twilight Sparkle. The Spirit of Harmony.

Author's Note

Sorry to leave you all in suspense, but next chapter is going to focus on Jerrik introducing himself to some unwanted visitors.

Like a certain Old Man once said, Good Times Rhymes With War Crimes.

Also, for anyone doubting Dragons being able to tank Bolter fire, keep in mind that A. Spike takes the Lion's share of slapstick abuse. B. Garble got 3 feet through a wall of solid rock and stumbled out. And C...I needed a way to give an action sequence without giving Rubrics Stormtrooper aim.(when they're not aiming at main characters, Stormtroopers actually accuracy than army rangers)

Chapter 4

Rarity peered from behind the mannequin she was dressing with her latest work. Someone was knocking at her door, but she didn't have any appointments today.

"Come in darling, I'll be with you in a moment." She said as she quickly sewed the two pieces of fabric she was working with at the time. She pouted to herself for having for having to stop so suddenly, she really hoped this was important.

She heard the door open as she tightened the sewing thread to tie it off and cut it, but didn't get the chance as her new guest slammed into her.

Rarity grunted as she hit the ground and found herself staring into the frantic frightened eyes of SilverStream.

"RARITY!!YOUNEEDTOCALLTWILIGHT!!THERE'SABUNCHAFREAKYKNIGHTSANDWIZARDSATTHECASTLEOFHARMONYANDITHINKMYFRIENDSAREINTRO-" The panicking hippogriff was silenced as Rarity used her magic to lift SilverStream off of her. "Darling, you simply must slow down! I understand that you're frightened, and I know it takes something truly terrible to scare you this greatly, but I can't understand a word you're saying. Now please, take a breath and try again."

"Are you INSANE!?" Chancellor Neighsay shouted.

Twilight groaned internally. Of course Neighsay had somepony monitoring the skies for potential threats. "Quite the opposite Chancellor, who or what ever these creatures are, the fact that they came here in real life space ship proves that their technology is far superior to ours. So even if they are here to cause trouble, provoking them would be the dumbest thing we can do right now."

"If? IF!? THOSE THINGS CAME DOWN UPON THE CASTLE OF HARMONY!! THE SOURCE OF OUR GREATEST WEAPON!! CELESTIA KNOWS WHAT THEY'RE PLANNING TO DO!" Neighsay shouted.

"...WEAPON!? YOU SERIOUSLY THINK THE MAGIC OF FRIENDSHIP IS JUST A WEAPON!?? FOR ALL WE KNOW, THEY'RE JUST TRYING TO LEARN ABOUT IT! MAYBE THEY PICKED IT UP ON THEIR 'TRICORDERS' OR SOMETHING!!" Twilight shouted back.

Spike stepped between the shouting Ponies "Okay you guys, maybe we should give it a break until we get to Ponyville at lea-" The Dragon puffed his cheeks and grabbed his face before letting out an echoing belch of green fire that compressed into the form of a letter.

Twilight Sparkle seized the letter with her magic and went numb as she just barely recognized the scribbled writing as Rarity's

TWILIGHT!!YOUNEEDTOGETTOPONYVILLEIMMEDIATLY!!THERE'SABUNCHOFFREAKYKNIGHTSANDWIZARDSATTHECASTLEOFHARMONYANDITHINKOURGRADUATESAREINDANGER!!!"

Rarity paced around nervously while Applejack did her best to keep Rainbow Dash from flying out to attack these new invaders by herself. "Oh Twilight, please hurry."

"Grr, let me go! We can't wait any longer!" Rainbow Dash shouted as she flapped her wings as hard as she could. Applejack kept her teeth clenched on Rainbow Dash's tail, but the ground beneath her hooves was starting to give way.

"Hmm, What do ya know, Applejack kept her here. Guess that means cookies tonight." Pinkie Pie chirped to herself. Confusing Rarity for a half second until a lavender flash and audible pop signaled their leader's arrival.

"Oh Twilight! Thank goodness you've made it!" Rarity shouted as she and the others crowded around their friend...and somepony else.

"We don't have time for this nonsense! Who knows what damage these invaders have already caused." Neighsay grumbled as he, Spike, and another familiar face made themselves known.

"While I don't mind the odd group hug from time to time, Neighsay does have a point. We need to assess the situation immediately." The dark maroon Unicorn stated. Pinkie Pie is the only one who called Fizzlepop Berrytwist by her real name, with the others using the nickname she had chosen for herself: Tempest Shadow.

Twilight sighed but relented. "Right, let's get go- wait, where's Fluttershy?"

"Oh, Discord took her out on a date this morning. I'm afraid we'll have to do this without her." Rarity stated.

Nothing else was said on the matter, but an unspoken concern wormed it's way into Twilight's mind. Would they be able to use the Magic of Friendship without their sixth member?

The last wooden wolf cried out an echoing howl as it exploded into splinters. Jerrik lowered his Storm Bolter and continued forward.

Soon brothers. Soon. Jerrik projected to his brothers. He was close to them, as they were to him. When the thrice damned Wolves of Fenris betrayed the Thousand Sons and put Prospero to the sword, he had lost his entire biological family. His parents, his sister, his nephew. All butchered by the Wolves.

He had captured one of Leman's dogs the following year. Beat and tortured him as he explained what he had learned of Horus and Magnus. "YOU PLAYED RIGHT INTO HIS HANDS!!" Jerrik shouted at the dog. "No." He replied. "You would've betrayed us either way. Such is the nature of Witches."

Jerrik put him down and howled his hatred. Only his brothers mourned with him, and they fought beside him on Terra as they reaped their vengeance on those who had betrayed them and labeled them traitors.

Then came the Rubric. Jerrik hunted Ahriman to kill him, but Ahzek had defeated him and convinced him to aid the Scourge in undoing his transgression.

Now, on this Alien world, they were mere days away. And no Xenos filth was going to interfere.

Such were his thoughts when his helm detected movement. Jerrik and his Scarab Occult Terminators halted, and Jerrick used his sorcery to conceal their presence. Let them come...

"Huh, that's weird." Applejack stated.

"Hmm? Something wrong?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Well, aside from the absence of any birdsong, I had heard kinda large critters up ahead...but they suddenly stopped." The farm girl explained.

"It's the invaders! They're here!!" Neighsay shouted. Striking up an aggressive pose and lighting up his horn.

"That's enough!" Twilight stated firmly and engulfed the zealous Unicorn in a magic bubble. "If the visitors are really here, and even if they are invading, we can't just go in horns blazing. So take it down a notch!" The Princess of Friendship dropped Neighsay like a sack and turned to Rainbow Dash. "Can you fly overhead and tell us what you see?"

"Caaan do!" The hotshot Pegasus sang out with an exaggerated salute before rocketing through the treetops, sending down a snowfall of leaves and twigs.

Rarity quickly shielded herself with her magic to prevent any debris from finding root in her mane or tail while others simply picked them out or brushed them off after the fact.

"Well...that could've been worse" Twilight stated...half a second before Rainbow Dash punched through the treeline again and dropped a whole branch on an unsuspecting Neighsay.

Neighsay removed the offending flora and was about to shout at Rainbow Dash when the Wonderbolt Captain suddenly shoved her hoof into the Unicorn's mouth. "Shhh! Something's over there!"

The whole group dropped to a dead silence, and quietly asked their friend to explain what she had seen. "I don't know, I could... barely make it out!"

"What!? But your eyesight and memory are photographic when you're flying... it's how we taught you your Wonderbolts history lesson remember!!? Pinkie Pie practically exploded with a whispering shout.

"And that's the only reason I noticed them at all. There was a whole chunk of the forest that I couldn't focus on, like my mind wouldn't let me look at whatever's over there. So I looked for clues around the area, and saw these huge footprints leading to the blank spot. They must be using some weird alien magic or something." Rainbow Dash explained.

"Then that confirms it, they're trying to ambush us." Neighsay snarled.

Twilight took a deep breath. "If that's true, then I'll spring their trap. Rarity, Tempest, please make sure he doesn't do anything rash."

And with that, the Princess of Friendship teleported between the two groups and shielded herself. "Visitors from the stars, I am Princess Twilight Sparkle, ruler of Equestria. There is no need for conflict between our two peoples, we could accomplish much more learning from each other than from fighting each other. Is it possible we can coexist in peace?"

Jerrik didn't bother trying to interpret the Alien's tongue. It either spoke the lies of the Eldar, or the naive foolishness of the Tau.

The purple equine creature called out to him again, he pondered eliminating the Alien, but the shimmering purple field gave it away as a psyker.

The creature called out again, but this time to something above them. Jerrik craned his head and saw a winged xeno calling back. It was flying over them, but couldn't see them...yet it knew where they were.

Jerrik took aim and fired a single bolt at the low flying alien giving away their cover before reorienting on the witch. Fire! Jerrik willed, he and his brothers opening up with Storm Bolters, a Soulreaper Cannon, A Heavy Plasma Gun, and two Hellfyre Missile Racks.

The barrage of munitions slammed into the witch's shield and exploded violently...so violently that it masked the Ariel assault.

Rainbow Dash barely saw projectile in time to barrel roll at Mach 5, and still lost some feathers as it passed her by.

The tomboy reoriented herself and finally saw what she couldn't. 10 humongous blue knights with loud and totally awesome looking weapons that were shooting at-

"TWILIGHT!!" Rainbow Dash shouted as she realized what was happening before rocketing towards the sky as fast as she could before diving back down, developing an ever shrinking mach cone that merged with her just as she fell within the midst of the invaders.

BOOM!!

Rainbow Dash reoriented her flight path and headed straight for Twilight, but she was unreachable.

Jerrik pushed his body off the ground, and found himself staring into the eyes of the Alien witch that he had evidently landed on.

He made a fist and tried to punch the witch, but something electrocuted him. 5 more Xenos erupted from the forest shouting battle cries.

Engage! Jerrik willed as he shrugged off the psychic assault and made to kill the witch beneath him again.

This time, the witch herself intervened. Teleporting out from under him and casting an energy wave powerful enough to throw him on his back.

Bolter fire and the sounds of sorcery erupted around Jerrik as he fought against the witch's sorcery. He pushed against the energy wave with a psychically enhanced hand and started looking around for his weapons.

Fortune favored him, he landed right next to his force sword. It's runes and savage design marking it as a trophy taken from Leman's dogs. He grabbed the sword and Rose to his feet. Pushing against the energy and advancing towards his quarry.

Out the corner of his eye, he saw one of his brothers felled by...the pinkest Alien he had ever seen. It shot the Terminator with a cannon that shot pastel colored strips of paper with enough force to knock down an Astartes in Tactical Dreadnought armor.

The Alien climbed onto the downed warrior's chest and smacked him with a hammer, a carpentry hammer. Get up! Fight back! Jerrik willed, but the Rubric Marine remained unresponsive.

"Sorry! He's out cold! It's just yooou and meeee." The Pink Horror explained in flawless High Gothic as she jumped towards Jerrik with her hammer in tow.

Jerrik didn't have time to ponder the impossibility of what was happening here. He spun away from his struggle with the witch to engage the Horror.

A swift swing of his sword should've taken the monster's head off, but it sucked it's head into its own neck like a turtle.

"Missed me!" The Horror chirped as it resurfaced. Jerrik seized it's head and crushed its skull, or would if it wasn't boneless. It's fleshed simply squeezed through the gaps in Jerrik's fingers with an obnoxious squeak.

They're not Aliens, they are Daemons! Jerrik mentally shouted as he realized his window was closing, the witch would reengage him any nanosecond now and he was unable to kill the Horror. All he could do was glance around the battlefield and try to salvage the situation.

It was a disaster. The witch had engaged two of Jerrik's to save an injured Alien that was also a psyker while two more psykers bogged down his heavy weapons specialists. The flying Alien was still alive and distracting more of his brothers while the closest Alien to being a Terran born equine seized the openings created by the flyer to launch Terminators through the air with simple kicks.

This is not possible...withdraw! Jerrik willed to his brothers. "Aw, leaving so soooon?" The Pink Horror sang, its head still squished in Jerrik's hand.

"SILENCE!" Jerrik shouted as he threw the Horror at witch and retreated. "This is not over."

Author's Note

And there's the action. The aftermath will come after... whenever I find time.

Yeah, I have no excuses. My life is reaaaalllllllllyyy chaotic right now and it's not slowing down anytime soon.

However long it takes, I'll see you all next time.

Chapter 5

Rarity gasped as Twilight set her broken ribs, the Princess was absolutely horrified at the damage a magically blocked attack could cause.

She couldn't stop replaying that sickening shattering noise in her mind. She was about to help Pinkie when she heard it and turned to see Rarity thrown to the ground by the force of the alien robot's massive glowing fist.

It began aiming its cannon at her to finish her off. That's when Twilight stepped in, it wasn't much longer before the aliens ran. Neighsay wanted to go after them, but Twilight needed to get Rarity to a doctor. Neighsay had tried to argue stopping the aliens was more important, but Rainbow Dash shut him up.

"I set them the best I can, but I'm not as good at healing as Rarity needs. I'm going to teleport her to the Canterlot Hospital Emergency Room, the rest of you need to evacuate Ponyville and-" Twilight paused to process her next sentence and swallow her anxiety. "Prepare for an invasion."

Jerrik was furious. He had known things would be difficult, but he didn't expect a Xenos race that was predominantly Psychic. Even the Eldar couldn't field that many powerful Psykers at once, especially not for a Scouting Party!

The Scarab Occult Sorcerer shuddered to think of what monsters ruled these beings if that was their rank and file. But either way, they needed reinforcements.

Jerrik made his way to the crystalline Castle and met with Ahriman's second in Command. "Brother Ignis, the enemy has encountered us. Their Scouting Party consisted of 4 powerful Psykers and what I can only assume was a Daemonhost."

The TechMarine remained impassive. "Brother Ahriman has encountered the entity he is seeking. No doubt he is bending it to his will as we speak, but he will need more time. Summon the mortals. Order them to besiege the nearby settlement to bog down their forces."

In the void above Equestria, two Battle Barges remained of Ahriman's once great fleet.

The first was the Word of Hermes, Ahriman's personal flagship that had been part of the Thousand Sons since its construction.

The second was the newest ship in Ahriman's Fleet, but arguably held more history.

The ship began its existence as a Battle Barge of the Star Hunters called the Piercer of Heaven. when the Star Hunters Primarch was recovered, and the Legion renamed, the White Scars vessel was refitted with faster sublight engines at the price of slower Warp travel.

This made the ship excellent at ambushing enemy ships before they knew they were under attack...which is exactly why a warband of Night Lords came to covet it 10,000 years later.

Renamed the Screaming Darkness, the warband of Night Lords who conquered the vessel avoided most military targets in favor of weaker prey. Taking most hostage to hunt in the bowels of their own ship.

The stronger prey would be given the 'honor' of serving the Night Lords and would even be allowed to scavenge weapons and armor from butchered PDF forces.

The Night Lords never thought of it, they were the worst of their breed and couldn't fathom mere humans being able to oppose them. Sure, they made it known that if any attempt at rebellion was made, every menial would suffer...but they always voiced their disappointment when none tried.

Then, just over five years ago. The White Scars attempted to reclaim their vessel. The Night Lords won, but less than twenty survived. And their mortal pets had grown adept at avoiding angry Astartes.

Thousands of Vengeful humans seized the opportunity to destroy what remained of their oppressors. First, the frustrated few that went down to the mortal decks to hunt. Their deaths revealed that the menials had the means to rebel, but the wisdom to wait.

If the Night Lords had been more like warriors than murderers, they might've posed a threat worthy of Astartes. But when they realized what was happening, 8 more shrieked their promises of butchery to the rebellious slaves and sprinted to the mortals decks with crackling claws and snarling chainswords.

They saw the lascannon emplacements on the catwalk, none of them saw the mines, none of them realized half the mines were remotely activated after the last Night Lord passed over them, none of them saw the plasma weapons activate behind them.

The last four Night Lords cowed on the bridge. Hundreds died finishing them off, but years of fear, anger, and resentment spurred them on.

Now, the Angel Killers renegade band of mercenaries offered their Battle Barge to the few warbands willing to accept that the newly named Spiteful Darkness belonged to Jeremiah Quinton.

Quinton had been born of that ship. He lost his mother when he was 4, but he didn't cry for her, or run out to save her from the Raptor that skinned her. He swallowed his grief, and turned it to spite.

It was spite that allowed him to survive, it was spite that allowed him to convince the others to swallow their grief and wait. And though he would never speak respectfully of the Emperor in a Traitor's presence, he knew that it was the Emperor's spite that saved Humanity.

It was always spite, not faith. Faith in an Emperor who tried his best, but ultimately failed. Faith in soul sucking parasites who fed on the suffering of their worshippers. In Quinton's eyes, faith was a delicious poison, and spite, a bitter remedy.

Quinton sat in his command chair hearing the mission briefing of his employers. The Thousand Sons weren't the most humble of the Emperor's favorite mutants, but Ahriman respected Quinton and kept his ship floating. So, he didn't really care if the Angel in a dress wanted him to pick a fight most mortals couldn't win. Most mortals weren't Angel Killers.

A lifetime hiding from Night Lords had given the Void Born mortal a Nostroman-like complexion, and his mercs had a similar style of warfare.

"As long as they don't have future sight, this shouldn't be a problem. I'll see you PlanetSide." Quinton stated. A lifetime of holding in emotions giving him an almost robotic tone.

"At least that fool has some sense." Neighsay sneered as he and Tempest looked over the Royal Guard Creatures that Twilight had teleported to Ponyville while looking after Rarity.

While Neighsay locked horns with his Country's leader on most topics regarding the inclusion of non-Ponies in anything, even he agreed that the inclusion of Dragons and Griffins in the Royal Guard had increased their martial prowess to an almost respectable level.

"Ya know, you should learn to respect your leader. Especially since if we lose, most Alien Overlords don't tolerate your kinda back sass." Tempest groaned.

Neighsay stared a hole through the scarred Unicorn. "I'm not taking advice from you Traitor."

Tempest stomped back as if she had been struck." Hey! I might've made some mistakes, but at least I wasn't duped by a filly!"

Neighsay mirrored her reaction and fired back. "No, you just trusted an evil tyrant over your own species!"

Tempest slammed her forehead against Neighsay's. "YEAH! BECAUSE MY SPECIES WASN'T TRYING TO RESTORE WHAT I LOST!! THEY WERE TOO BUSY TREATING ME LIKE A MONSTER!!!"

Neighsay jumped away. Not because of the Traitor's words, but because Arcane Lightning crackeled from the jagged stump that used to be her horn. "Ah! Mind yourself! Save it for the invaders. You can't deny you're dangerous."

"And you can't deny you're a heartless jerk!" Tempest snorted, though she did restrain her temper to a cold disapproving stare.

"Uh, guys..." A Guardspony called out.

"WHAT!?" The two arguing Unicorns shot back. The fire in their eyes died when the Guardspony hadn't reacted to their frustrations and was staring in slack jawed awe at something in the sky.

The two Unicorns turned their heads just in time to see a swarm of fast, fast flying aircraft bear down on Ponyville and unleash hell. Bombs, missiles, Las and Bolter fire rained down on the town like a furious storm. Neighsay and other Unicorns formed a combined shield and began running for cover.

Twilight's friends had already begun the evacuations, and several villain and monster attacks over the years had given the Ponies of Ponyville a practiced speed, but screams still rang out with the explosions. Providing a sickening harmony to the Song of Slaughter.

Tempest snorted steam from her nostrils as her rage built. She shoved her head out of the protective barrier and screamed her hatred to the attackers, causing a torrent of Arcane Lightning to pour from her shattered horn.

The first machine out flew the climbing attack. A second flew into it, but the machines had evidently been made immune to lightning strikes. Tempest struck a third machine's wing. This time, she detonated an unspent explosive and sent the machine crashing into the nearby Everfree Forest.

That small victory was all she managed before Neighsay pulled her back into the shield. A barrage of explosive bullets peppered the shield and instant later and then... nothing.

The confused guards looked to the skies and confirmed it, the attackers were leaving.

Tempest and Neighsay shared an uneasy look. "That's not the end right?" Neighsay asked.

Tempest shook her head. "I don't think it was even the beginning, it was just a distra-hrrk!"

Quinton knew from their response to the bombing that they were green, but he didn't expect them to lower their shield so quickly. He made them pay with a quick shot to the witch that shot down one of his stolen Valkyrie.

He and the rest of the Angel Killers rappelled down in the treeline while the bombers and gunships kept the enemy's attention. But he knew better than to engage an unknown enemy so quickly.

He alone fired, his silenced slug thrower didn't leave a traceable beam of light, and the shocked screams and shouts concealed him chambering the primitive bolt action weapon. The enemy resumed shielding themselves and braced for an assault that would never come.

A hundred hunters dropped with their leader. Slug throwers and long lasrifles were trained on targets. The first shot would give the illusion of a single foe, the second opportunity to destroy the enemy would be seized by every hunter.

Even if the enemy found proper cover before the hunters could strike again, the dropships were unloading stolen artillery pieces 10 miles away. Quinton was just making sure they couldn't think in the meantime.

Krrk "Artillery standing by. Awaiting targets." Quinton's vox bead crackeled. Quinton would never stop being amazed of the speed at which Night Lord ThunderHawks deposited assets onto the battlefield.

Quinton laid down his rifle and grabbed of pair of binoculars, its machine spirit connected to that of his most prized munition: a Whirlwind.

He lazed the glowing group of Xenos. Krrk "Target confirmed. Firing for effe-" STOP!! Boomed another voice on the vox channel...that of Ahzek Ahriman himself. There's been a change of plans...

Author's Note

And another Chapter done. And yes, I'm aware that Quinton is the spiritual love child of Commissar Yarrick and Lotarra Sarrin...we need more badass mortals.

Also, Jerrik not fathoming that his new foe's most elite forces were the first ones he encountered will lead to more misunderstandings down the line. :pinkiecrazy:

The name Piercer of Heaven is a Bleach reference:the English translation of Getsuga Tensho.

Now, as much as I absolutely love Jeremiah Quinton as a stand alone character, it occurred to me as I wrote the last paragraph that his inclusion in Ahriman's Warband might make more sense if he a Daemon Prince.

What do y'all think, is Quinton fine the way he is, or should I rewrite this to make him a Daemon Prince?

Other than that, I'll catch you all next time when we see just what went down between Ahriman and the Spirit of Harmony.

Until then...

Chapter 6

Two Hours Ago

Greetings Ahzek Ahriman said the Ethereal Equine.

"So, you are this 'Spirit of Harmony'...what separates you from the other parasites of the Warp?" Ahriman interrogated.

My food. The creature said. Friendship, by it's nature, cannot be forced. And thus, I am incapable of sustaining myself through Conquest and Corruption.

Ahriman blinked. An honest answer with sound logic...from a Warp spawn!? "...well then...am I now to believe that I must devote myself and my servants to strengthening your presence in the Warp in order to cure the Rubric Marines?" Ahriman asked, fishing for the catch.

No, as long as you bring no harm to my subjects, I will help you. The Spirit clarified.

"...It can't be that simple." Ahriman stated, even with the abnormal nature of this Warp spawn, it couldn't be this easy.

The Spirit gave an apologetic sigh. It is against my nature to ignore those in need, but the children of Isha chose to reveal my presence to you now because Equestria will soon be in grave danger. And I cannot cure more than the Rubrics you brought to me unless you protect my subjects. Not because I wouldn't help you, but because I would starve and perish.

Ahriman sighed himself, of course this was the Eldar's machinations...but why? " If the Ruinous Powers can breach your defenses, then how do those pompous knife-ears expect me to stop the will of the Gods? And what do they gain from it!?"

I cannot answer the latter, for the whims of Ceogoragh are as mysterious to himself as to all others. As for the former: The Primal forces that define the modern Age cannot destroy me directly, and my power protects my subjects from their servants, so they are working to expell this world from the Warp...into real space...in Imperial territory.

A dark chill ran down Ahriman's spine as he tightened his grip on his Black Staff. The instant an Imperial probe discovers a world of alien witches worshipping a creature of the Warp, all hope of curing the Rubric would die with them... unacceptable.

"Very well Warp Spawn, in exchange for your... Generosity, the remnants of my Warband will preserve your followers." Ahriman declared.

The Spirit of Harmony smiled and nodded before fading away. Ahriman's senses returned to the present, and he took notice of the Changeling still trying to pass herself off as a Rubric.

The Black Staff rose and fell and the open minded creatures of Equestria were all rendered unconscious. If Jerrik had already engaged the Xenos, hostages would be a grim necessity to rebuild the burnt bridges.

As Ahzek Ahriman made his preparations and recalled his forces, Chancellor Neighsay had amassed a small mob to swarm the downed alien war machine that had bombarded Ponyville before Tempest tore it from the sky.

Neighsay led 40 creatures from the Royal Guard towards the Roc sized metal monstrosity that validated his every fear. Slowing his approach and directing four Dragons and four Griffins to investigate.

The eight flying creatures approached the exposed flank of the machine. Four tried to open the large door they found while four made their way up and over to the other side.

Suddenly, the Griffin nearest the glass face of the machine double checked something before turning to the mob. "Hey! There's a pilot in he-" The Griffin was silenced. A blood red beam of light shot forth from the cockpit and struck her head. Whatever vile spell their Sorcerer cast caused the poor creature's head to violently explode like a water balloon.

The Ponies, Hippogriffs, and Changelings began screaming in horror, but the nearest Dragon had a far more useful reaction. With a fearsome roar, the blue beast slammed itself into the cockpit and tore out the foul creature within. It was some form of hairless ape with a pale white face being the only part of its body that wasn't covered by it's uniform and its obscured by a large helmet.

The ape shrieked in the Dragon's claws. It's alien staff shot more hateful beams of light, but the Dragon's near indestructible hide barely registered the light's warmth as the Dragon tore away the annoying weapon and threw it.

Neighsay and the others watched as the vile thing pulled out a knife and tried to stab it's captor, illiciting a bellowing belly laugh from the Dragon before it seized the ape's offending hand and bit the blade off his weapon before daring him to try again.

Part of Neighsay wanted to seize the monster before it could best it's captor, but another part sought to study his new foe while it fought against a more dangerous creature whose safety was not the Unicorn's priority.

The ape growled and reached for something on his chest, but he only succeeded in pulling a piece of it off before simply punching the Dragon and spitting on him before simply snarling curses in its foreign tongue.

The Dragon believed it's foe had given up, but Neighsay suspected otherwise. Deciding now was the time to act, Neighsay seized the device the ape had reached for with his magic and ripped it away from the apes vest, throwing it clear of anycreature present.

Not a second later, the device exploded, and despite how far it had been thrown, shattered pieces of the evil device tore into two Dragons and a Griffin. The Griffin went down clutching it's flank. One Dragon got a hole in its wing and the other had metal shard lodged in her face.

The other creatures in the mob went to help the wounded while the Dragon holding the invader stared blankly at the sight of the blast that most certainly would've killed him. Neighsay, however, stared blankly at the invader itself. They're willing to kill themselves...just to cause more suffering...

"...e's starting to wake up. Make sure she doesn't move." Tempest groaned as she stirred, but something held her still. She pushed against it until a gentle hoof pressed into her. "Don't struggle, we're almost done patching you up."

Tempest tried to open her eyes, but they wouldn't obey her...and they hurt. "Wuh...what happened...what hit me?"

"We don't know. Some sort of projectile. We pulled... pieces of it out of your eyes." The unseen nurse explained.

Tempest went cold. "M-my eyes?... W-what's wrong with my eyes?"

She heard the creature swallow nothing as it tried to find the words. "One of the invaders shot you in your eye, and whatever the projectile was, it punched through your skull and out the other eye...they both burst and...we couldn't heal them. It was all we could do to keep your face together."

Tempest fell limp. It wasn't the first time she was permanently maimed, but she never thought she'd have to go through this again. Would her new friends abandon her too? Was she completely useless now...was she cursed!? "...why?" Tempest whispered. To her nurse, herself, or the universe, she didn't know.

Jeremiah marched up to the circle of Transhumans without fanfare. Transhuman dread no longer affected him, and he didn't see anything special about these mutants besides the fact that they paid him. "Not to question your tactics Lord Ahriman, but decoy bombings work better if you don't give the enemy time to recover."

"We have made an error in judgement. We require the natives cooperation if we are to cure our brothers." Ahriman explained.

"What!?" Shouted Jerrik among others.

"This Warpspawn is... different. The short explanation is that I cannot subdue but it is willing to cure our brothers so long as we bring no further harm to its worshippers. Which means we will have to establish a presence on this planet and convince the Legion to bring every Rubric to us so we can cure them. But if we cull the Xenos populations on this world, the Spirit would sooner destroy itself than aid us." Ahriman explained.

"Well...that would've been nice to know before we bombed them." Quinton stated. "So what now?"

"Fortunately, the Alien's religion teaches the virtues of forgiveness and understanding. If we can prompt a ceasefire and explain the horrors of the galaxy, it is entirely possible that these naive creatures will simply...forgive us." Ahriman explained, shuddering for how wrong the concept felt.

"These creatures dwarf even the Eldar's psychic might. How do you expect to quell their wrath?" Jerrik asked.

"The Warpspawn's defenders were nothing more than children basking in their God's presence." Ahriman explained, pointing the crystalline Castle behind them, to the window where Jerrik first noticed signs of life. "I have rendered the young ones unconscious and taken them hostage. We will make this known to the aliens at the first opportunity to open negotiations." Ahriman explained.

Before another question could be asked, static burst from Jeremiah's Vox Hailer. The mortal mercenary seized the device and listened in. "Heh, looks like you'll get your chance. Damn horses grabbed some of my men and are attacking my artillery. They're already returning fire."

Author's Note

Sorry for the shorty, but next chapter's gonna be a big fight despite Ahriman's best efforts.

Now I envision two major talking points about this chapter, and the first is the Spirit of Harmony.

Now, it's been argued to and fro on rather or not the Dark Gods are actually evil or even sentient.

Yes, Khorne represents Honor.
Yes, Nurgle represents life.
Yes, Tzeentch represents inspiration.

So why are they all assholes?

Well, this video right here is pretty damn close to my own take, and it's creator really deserves more followers.

But the summary is the Gods are gluttonous and don't care that they'll eventually run out of food after everyone's dead. Now, if the Spirit of Harmony is remade to fit the narrative of 40k, then it would also be gluttonous. However, as stated above. It is essentially impossible for the Spirit to corrupt Equestria the way the Dark Gods would because, as basically every Starlight centered teaches us, ya can't force Friendship. So even if the Spirit of Harmony is just as desperate for a fix as the Dark Gods, it wouldn't be able to feed as voraciously as they do.

The other major talking is 'how the heck did Tempest survive that?'

Well Jeremiah aimed just behind her eyes, roughly around where a human's temple would be, but a Pony's head is like 60-80% eyeball with the brain held further in the back of their heads.

We can safely assume that Unicorns have a growth on their brain that stretches above the eyes to connect to their horns, but that's still above, not behind.

Now, anyone who has ever shot a gun can tell you that different bullet types do different things to different targets. The reason is 'energy dispersion'.

A slower, fatter bullet hits like a hammer and loses all of its energy at the point of impact. A faster, slimmer bullets hits like a spear and can sink much deeper before losing energy.

The best comparison for Tempest's head didn't explode is shooting glass. If you shoot with a slower bullet, it shatters. But if you shoot it with a faster bullet, it'll leave a small round hole with barely a crack.

Tempest did receive fractures along her nose and upper jaw, because all illustrations of a Pony's skull show a solid bone between the eyes, but all in all, the bullet over penetrated it's target. This is also why hunting game with armor piercing bullets is fucking stupid, but now I'm getting off topic cause I like guns.

That's all I got for now, I'll see you all in the next one.

Also, I'm writing two other stories while writing this one. The Grimdark 6 Volume 3, and the Lion's Heresy(With Ponies) So feel free to check those out while you're waiting. SEE YA!!

Chapter 7

Twilight silently listened to the beeping monitor proving Rarity was still alive, her chest barely rising through the bandages as she slept.

The sound of an opening door broke the silence as a nurse walked in. "Princess Twilight? They're here."

"Thank you." Twilight said with a nod as she left her unconscious friend in the nurse's care.

Twilight made her way to the hospital's waiting room. There she saw her oldest friends, her former mentor Princess Celestia, and her former foal sitter/ sister in law, Princess Cadence.

The three Alicorns shared a brief customary hug before addressing their new problems. "Luna is amassing the Royal and Lunar Guard as we speak, she has already dispatched messengers to our allies in the other kingdoms." Celestia stated.

"And Shining is mobilizing the Crystal Guard as well. If their invasion threatens to overtake Equestria, you can start evacuating civilians to the Crystal Empire." Cadence added.

Twilight went pale at the thought. Despite it's name, the Crystal Empire was vastly smaller than Equestria, more a large city than a small country. They would not be able to evacuate many civilians if that were the case.

"Okay, the others should've finished evacuating Ponyville by now, and Neighsay's probably fortified it excessively, so now all we have to do is figure out how many invaders we're dealing with, how powerful they are, and how to stop them...no pressure." Twilight twitched.

Celestia put a wing over her former pupil. "I know these are trying times Twilight, but we will overcome them. Tirek came from another world as well, and there were times we believed he was unstoppable too. But-" Whatever point the retired ruler was trying to make was lost when a puff of green smoke appeared over Twilight's head and solidified as a scroll.

The three Alicorns gathered to read it, and not a one could hide their anxiety.

Twilight! Ponyville was attacked and Neighsay's leading a mob to go after the enemy!

Neighsay shouted his rage as he seized one of the evil alien cannons in his magic and threw it at a group of invaders with a heavy turret, the viscous weapon had been belching thunder and throwing explosions into the angry mob of magical creatures that found and assaulted them, now it was silent.

With the turret out of commission, the Dragons charged forth. Red beams of hateful magic injected concentrated heat onto their scales to no effect as the Dragons closed the gap and began pulverizing the enemy force.

They had pushed through the enemy's defense...in one spot. Two more of their turrets protected their center and right flank while their treaded cannons retreated. More of their flying machines came and rained down on any group that wasn't shielded by Unicorns, but most of these machines focused on collecting the cannons.

These cannons were surely placed here to destroy Ponyville, and surely they could've used them before we recovered from their first attack...why didn't they? Neighsay pondered as the enemy continued to withdraw when suddenly, a sensation seized the warring sides as their skin tingled and their teeth itched.

The itch felt as if it was pulling Neighsay's skull towards the center of the battlefield and then a bright blue flash blinded the zealous Unicorn. When his vision returned, he felt a cold dread overwhelm him.

The horrible hulking brutes he encountered in the Evergreen Forest had returned, with several smaller warriors with more refined armor and weapons that appeared less destructive but more precise.

Neighsay ignored them, his eyes locked solely on their leader. A wizard, a wizard greater than himself, a wizard greater than Twilight Sparkle... perhaps even greater than Princess Celestia or Starswirl the Bearded.

Neighsay lost all of his nerve as fear overwhelmed him. He stepped back, trying to will himself to run, but he couldn't take his eyes off the wizard.

The Dragons were blissfully ignorant of his power and lunged at him. Neighsay screamed as he pictured what would happen next. He saw the entire mob vaporized before his eyes, he envisioned himself projecting a shield only for to shatter as the wave of magical energy washed him away.

The wizard's staff went up and down, a shockwave rippled through the battlefield...but no one perished.

Neighsay slowly pulled his front legs from over his eyes when he realized he was still alive and saw that the wizard had simply gathered everycreature's attention.

Neighsay felt a buzzing in his ear, and then he heard a deep, yet eerily pleasant voice in his head. Creatures of Equestria, I came to this world believing that we would be enemies. That I would have to destroy you in order to achieve my goals...I was wrong.

Neighsay couldn't believe what he was hearing... literally. This was the most obvious attempt at deception he had ever heard. These creatures had proven they were willing to kill themselves just to cause suffering. And now he's expected to believe it was an accident!?

As you have probably determined for yourselves, we are not from your world. We have visited millions of worlds, and every world that held another species held a new enemy. He have never encountered a peaceful species. And we acted as if we were already enemies, I am sorry for our actions. The Sorcerer bowed his head before the Equestrian mob that begun mumbling to themselves.

"Don't listen to him! They're just trying to make our conquest easier!" Neighsay shouted. His dread overpowered by desperation.

Dread swiftly returned as the wizard focused his attention on Neighsay. Even in spite of his helmet's frightening visage, the Unicorn could envision the hairless ape beneath narrowing his eyes in scrutiny.

Hmm, you are wiser than most of your breed... Chancellor Neighsay. But you know of my power. I have no reason to lie. I could simply make you serve me. The wizard spoke into his mind.

"Liar! You need us for something! WHAT ARE YOU PLANNING!?" Neighsay screamed.

I need your Guardian. The Spirit of Harmony. And it has agreed to cooperate, as long as I protect your kind from a coming threat, a threat that challenges my strength. The wizard explained.

The message was clear. Something capable of challenging this monster was beyond anything Equestria had ever seen. Neighsay stared blankly as his mind tried to comprehend such a thing, let alone how to fight it.

Neighsay has grown over the years since his embarrassing experience with Cozy Glow, but he wasn't a fool. "How could we possibly trust you!? He shouted, trying his best not to tremble before this being.

Simple, I- Whatever promise the wizard wished to make was silenced as a dark blue beam of energy struck his armor and knocked him to the ground.

The other armored warriors shielded the wizard but didn't return fire, the remaining soldiers however turned their weapons skyward and fired on their adversary.

"HAVE AT THEE!!" Princess Luna shouted in the Royal Canterlot Voice as she projected a powerful energy shield and allowed her Lunar Guard Pegasai to shoot crossbows from within it.

Had the Guard been caught unprepared in Canterlot Castle(again) these weapons would be useless, but for Twilight's report on their new foes, the Royal Sisters had authorized the use of enchanted crossbow bolts that could pass through armor.

They were still useless. What few enchanted bolts weren't turned away by the wards of the Thousand Sons bypassed their ceramite armor and broke skin only to stop dead on the surface of hardened bones. They were then melted by acidic transhuman blood which clotted mere seconds after running free from their wounds.

Jerrik had drawn most of their fire through his sheer presence. And he was ready to return the favor. My Lord, permission to- NO!! All forces, cease fire and withdraw!!

The smaller soldiers ceased fire and redoubled their efforts to evacuate. Which became evermore difficult when Neighsay's mob joined Luna's forces in attacking them alongside the Unicorns and Earth Ponies of the Lunar Guard.

Quinton's Angel Killers were not as willing to be assaulted as the Thousand Sons, so when the mob and Lunar Guard closed the gap, monomolecular knives came out and a vicious melee insued.

Ahriman cursed the mortals' survival reflex as any hope for easy amends died around him. The Equines were passionate, but hopelessly outmatched. Only their Dragon Allies could give the Angel Killers some form of grief, and their durable hides were no match for Heavier Weapons like the Melta Gun.

Ahriman put aside the wider battle unfolding as the Alicorn he recognized as one of Equestria's retired rulers prepared to attack him again.

The Psyker had raw talent, perhaps even a Beta level, but her mind was far too open. Ahriman implanted his message into her mind with just enough force to cripple her before casting forth a blast of energy to knock the attackers down.

It looked like that did it. And with all the mortals' Artillery finally withdrawn and only four dropships left lingering to extract the rear guard, Ahriman saw fit to take his leave, and plan his next attempt at... hostile diplomacy.

Author's Note

I am so very sorry this tiny chapter took so long, my scheduling issue took a turn for the worst during the holidays.

Hopefully, it'll pick back up, but I'm not making any guarantees.

So yeah, this chapter was all about the Ponies realizing this is not a fight they wanna get into. But don't worry, the violence doesn't end here...not by a long shot.

That's all I got for this one, I'll see you all next time.

Chapter 8

Neighsay walked forward with shaking steps, never taking his eyes off where the wizard had been even as he made his way to Princess Luna.

The Princess moaned in pain as she held a hoof to the base of her horn, her wings hanging limp from her flanks as she didn't even have the strength to tuck them in. "...That... monster..."

"...P-Princess?" Neighsay addressed her hesitantly. "Wuh-what did he tell you?"

Luna scowled as she recalled the message that had been hastily seared into her brain. "The knaves hath taken Princess Twilight's prized students as hostages."

Neighsay felt a cold shiver. He owed those young creatures dearly. "What's the plan?"

Jeremiah was not happy to say the least. His men had executed an assault worthy of textbooks defining flawless tactics, but Ahriman's sudden desire for peaceful negotiations had forced his Angel Killers to pay a heavy price. Over a hundred men, 12 heavy turrets, 4 Basilisks, and a Valkyrie. "That mutant better give me a bonus for this shite." He muttered to himself as he took his place among Ahriman's roundtable to hear the mutant deliver their next course of action.

"This setback will only serve to delay us, we cannot to falter next time! We must conduct negotiations with these Xenos as soon as possible!" Ahriman shouted frantically.

"So now we're on a time table eh? Anything my boys should know?" Quinton spat.

"Your Angel Killers will have their reckoning Jeremiah. The Eldar did not reveal this Warp Spawn randomly. The Imperium will soon discover this world, and put it to the torch." Ahriman explained.

Jeremiah wasn't the only one who stiffened. The five Sorcerers were not pleased at the thought of defending a Xenos world from the servants of the Corpse God. But this was the closest they had ever come to curing the Rubric. "What must be done!?" Jerrik growled.

"I have delivered my ultimatum to one of their rulers...they will be here soon."

"THEY WHAT!!?" Twilight shouted. "They have taken your students hostage in an attempt to force our cooperation. They claim they need the Magic of Friendship to undo a curse put upon them by their leader's folly." Luna explained.

Twilight snorted in outrage " That! Is! NOT! How to ask for help! Well! If they want the Magic of Friendship! Then WE'LL JUST GIVE IT TO THEM!!!"

"OH YEAH! TIME TO RAINBOW LASER SOME BAD GUYS!!" Rainbow Dash shouted. While this traditionally be met with clarification, this time it was met with a resounding "YEAH!!!"

Ahriman stood at the lead of his Thousand Sons brethren. There was no further need for Jeremiah's presence, he knew what came next.

The Princess of Friendship lead the combined forces that Chancellor Neighsay had lead against the Angel Killers towards the assembled Astartes. The colorful creatures ceased their advance and, to the sorcerer's eyes, appeared to start praying.

The Spirit of Harmony answered them, lifting Twilight and her friends into the air a rainbow colored sphere, then another sphere lifted the retired monarchs, then a crashing sound alerted Ahriman to the Spirit liberating his hostages from the various Wards made to keep the native witches from teleporting them away. Now they too were levitating in a sphere of their Spirit's power.

Ahriman watched as a rainbow of psychic energy connected the three spheres, surrounding the Thousand Sons and closing in on them. You wish to show us your power? Then compare it to our own.

"MEET THEIR CHALLENGE BROTHERS!!" At Ahriman's command, he and the other sorcerers channelled their psychic might and attempted to push the rainbow colored energy back.

This portion of the immaterium was ruled solely by the Spirit of Harmony, and she could've simply cut off the sorcerers' connection to the Warp. But instead, she deigned to play along. Allowing the sorcerers their usual amount of power, and simply overwhelming them.

The sorcerers grunted, growled, and shouted in defiance, but Ahriman simply chuckled. Very well... you've shown us your power... now show us your benevolence.

Ahriman ceased his resistance and allowed the rainbow colored energy to wash over him. Through the torrent of psychic energy, he felt the emotions the Equestrians used to empower their attack. Devotion to help others, Courage to face danger, Willingness to put themselves in harm's way, and above it all, Faith.

Faith was truest source of power. Whether it was Faith in the Dark Gods, Faith in the False Emperor, Faith in one's own abilities. But these creatures, they placed their Faith in each other...in Friendship.

Will you as well? A familiar voice asked him. After a brief second, Ahriman bent his knee.

Jerrick blinked the brightness from his eyes. Whatever foul witchcraft these creatures unleashed upon him had no effect, but it not take them long to recover and counterattack.
Defensive Formation. Jerrick willed so he could shield the others from- "What's the situation?"

Jerrick almost dropped his force sword. His brothers had answered his telepathic order, but not as soulless automatons. They readied their weapons and analyzed the battlefield, taking in their surroundings. Their armor shifted with their breath as their bodies spoke the language of life.

"...buh...brothers?" Jerrick asked. "We are here brother Sergeant. Whatever you did, it worked." Answered Apophis, his second in command. "Now, shall we destroy these... what are we fighting?"

"We are not." Ahzek Ahriman interjected. "Stand down brothers! These Xenos are our salvation."

Twilight could only gape at the sight before her, the Magic of Friendship hadn't defeated the alien wizard army. In fact, it seemed like the less 'wizardly' of their forces were more alive than before. Was their leader...telling the truth!?

Yes. I was. The words entered Twilight's mind before she noticed their leader was walking towards the Equestrian army alone.

Some creatures tensed to run while others tensed to fight. "Everycreature stand down. I'll handle this." Twilight stated just loud enough to be heard by the assembled mass without shouting before teleporting between the two armies, and directly in front of their leader.

He was not as physically imposing as the ones she fought before, but his presence was far more intimidating, especially with the magical energy that radiated off him.

"As promised." The Wizard spoke, and with a wave of his hand, SilverStream's classmates were teleported to their midst.

"Oh, put that on the list of things I never wanna do again." Smoulder groaned.

"....ooooooOOOOOUUUU GGUUUUUUUUUUUUYYYYSSSS!!!!!" SilverStream struck the group like a shrieking cuddly missile. Bowling the entire group in a pile groans, complaints and laughter. "I WAS SOOOO WORRIED THAT HAD HURT YOOOOOUUUU!!!!"

A deep thunderous rumple silenced the group, their heads collectively turning to the sorcerer who had dodged the hug pile and was now looking down at mass of children.

Smoulder and Gallus were the first ones out. Flying to their former captor's eye level and attempting to intimidate him. Both to cover their friends from a possible attack, and to try and salvage their dignity.

"Guys." Another, friendly but stern, voice brought their attention to the former head mate of their school. "I'm trying to negotiate here so..." She inclined her head to the assembled Equestrians behind her.

"Yona thinks leaving is a good idea." Yona stated.

The rest of their friends nodded their heads and left Twilight to broker peace with the aliens.

"So... you seem to know our names. May I know yours?" The Alien asked Ahriman.

"I am Ahzek Ahriman of the Thousand Sons. XVth Legion of the Legiones Astartes. Son of Magnus The Red. Sorcerer King of Prospero." Ahriman answered.

The equine's widened in shock. "Oh! Then you're a prince?" She asked.

Ahriman could have explained the nature of a Primarch and his Legion, but he had no way of knowing how little time he had to prepare for the wolves. "I was. But our Legion was afflicted by a grievous disease that threatened to wipe us out. I attempted to cure it, but the cure only worked on the most gifted of our sorcerers. The less fortunate...were turned to dust."

Twilight blinked and cast her gaze behind Ahriman where his fellow sorcerers were catching up with their long lost brothers. Then, her face went pale. "You kept them in their armor...and manipulated them with magic."

She placed a hoof on her mouth as she processed the information. Ahriman spoke as she did. "I have spent the last ten millennia looking for a cure to my folly. And in all that time... I have not once encountered a peaceful species."

At this, the Alien refocused her attention on Ahriman. "That's why you attacked us.... You hurt a lot of innocent creatures. Not all of whom will be quick to forgive."

Ahriman nodded his head. "We are prepared to make amends for our misjudgment, but there is another matter we must address."

The equine arched an eyebrow at that. "What would that be?" She asked with a healthy amount of suspicion.

"I stated that our home was called Prospero. I failed to mention that Prospero was by narrow minded savages who destroy all touched by Sorcery. And they are coming here soon."

"What!? How soon!?" Before Ahriman could answer, the sky turned the pale pink and deep violet of the Warp as another Astartes warship ripped its way into the sky above Equestria.

Author's Note

I am so sorry for how long it's taking me to pump these out. I just don't have the time I used to...I wish I had discovered fanfics while I was still in highschool.

And no, that isn't a Space Wolves ship. That doesn't happen till later.

Anyone else remember the Severed Heads, I'm gonna enjoy flushing them out.

But that'll be next time. See ya then.