Earth 1

Gotham City

Bruce rushed into the cave, dirt smeared all over his tuxedo, drenched in rain water, and shoved his chair aside as he began typing on the Bat Computer. He quickly went through the files to see who it was that grave robbed his parents and tried to bury him alive.

But he stopped when he noticed a notification down in the bottom corner of the screen.

A small, but noticeable pop up.

It read, 'Files successfully copied.'

Eyes wide, Bruce quickly closed the open window and accessed the Babel Protocols, hoping, praying that he was just being paranoid. But when he opened the files, his worst fears were confirmed. He saw that the Babel Protocols had indeed been copied off of his computer.

But how?

There had been no alerts to any intruders in the cave.

This shouldn't have been possible.

Wayne then thought back to what his assailant had said. "By now my associates and I have already dealt with your fellow Guardians, and are now on our way to change the world as you know it, so this will be goodbye." He had mentioned the Guardians.

Tony.

Mario.

Sonic.

Twilight.

"Sir, where have you been?!" The worried voice of Alfred Pennyworth echoed throughout the Bat Cave as he rushed over. "When I saw that your parents' graves had been restored, I'd assumed that-"

"Alfred, get the portal ready!" Bruce shouted in a dreaded tone as he rushed over to the display case housing his suit. "The Guardians are under attack!"

Alfred was now concerned, but also confused. "By whom?"

"By me!"

Earth 1991

Mobius

Knuckles, Tails, Amy, and Cream could only look and scream in horror at Sonic's still form. He hadn't moved an inch, not that he could since he was being held by a Gravitational Field that was currently crushing him and every bone in his body. The red echidna was pounding on the fake Roboticizer, trying to break the glass containing him so that he could save his dying friend.

Cream was currently sobbing, being too young to do anything. She hated feeling so helpless and afraid. The little rabbit wished she was as half as brave as Sonic was. It was heartbreaking to see her adopted big brother so helpless, dying on the floor, it was agonizing.

Tails was in a similar state, except he was panicking while trying desperately to hack into the device powering the Gravitational Field with his Miles Electric, but the firewalls securing it were nigh to impossible to break through. Whoever designed this field was a genius, even he couldn't disable it.

Amy was a sobbing mess, crying in hysterics as she bashed the glass separating her and her hero with her Piko Piko Hammer, screaming louder and louder as her efforts yielded no success. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she thought to their supposed happily ever after. The one she dreamed up in her head for years and years. She had since grown out of her obsession with the blue hedgehog, but that didn't mean that those feelings disappeared.

Rouge hovered in her container, striking the glass with her feet, unrelenting in her kicks. She resorted to shoulder charging the glass, desperate to get out and save the Blue Blur. While they started off as enemies, with her working for Robotnik in secret, in time, they grew to be friends. And she wasn't ready to say goodbye just yet.

They all tried to get to him, Sonic couldn't help the swell of warmth that entered his chest, despite the unbearable pain that he was currently in. His train of thought went through every happy memory he had of his friends. Reuniting Cream with Vanilla after he rescued the former from Eggman. Playing with Chao while having a picnic with Amy. Sparring with Knuckles after tormenting him to no end. Working with Rouge and Team Dark to stop Neo Metal Sonic. Meeting Tails for the first time.

He could feel his body and spirit waning, he couldn't keep it up for much longer.

Eggman really had him beat this time.

He didn't think that his race ended here, but if that was supposed to happen, who was he to question it?

He gave his friends one final smile, knowing that they would keep Mobius safe after he was gone, before his eyes started to grow heavy. He lived his life to the fullest, living with no regrets. But the only one that did bother him was not rekindling his relationship with his family.

Sonia.

Manic.

Queen Aleena.

He never got to say goodbye.

Now he never would.

But before he crossed the finish line, a portal opened up behind him where a Batarang flew out and struck the device on the ceiling, releasing an EMP blast that short circuited the Gravitational Field. As the pressure on the hedgehog was lifted, the Dark Knight leapt through the portal and darted over, grabbing the fallen hedgehog in his arms, and moved to the other side of the room before the field came back online.

Batman turned around just as the Gravitational Field came back online, the hedgehog groaning in pain in his arms. He was no longer in range for the device to have any effect on the hero of Mobius. Gently setting Sonic down, Batman turned around and approached the containers holding Sonic's friends.

"Batman?" Tails questioned, having calmed down from his earlier panic.

The Dark Knight nodded to the fox before placing a circular device on the glass, "You might want to step back." He advised before moving and placing more devices on the other containers. Taking his advice, the Mobians moved to the other side of the fake Roboticizers as the gadgets lit up, burning a hole in the glass big enough for each of them to fit through.

The first thing they all did was rush out and made sure that Sonic was okay.

The hedgehog was currently in the process of getting to his feet, his body aching all over, blood dripping from his mouth. The pain was amplified when he was tackled by Tails, Amy, and Cream. When he let out a groan of pain, they relented and let go of the wounded hero.

"We're glad you're okay, Blue." Rouge said sincerely, resting a comforting hand on his shoulder.

Sonic chuckled, then let out another groan of pain, before pointing at the Batman. "Well, I wouldn't be standing here if it wasn't for my brooding friend there."

As Batman approached, he suddenly felt pressure on his left leg. He looked down and saw a small rabbit clinging to him, tears of happiness falling down her face. "Th-Thank you so much!" She thanked, crying into his leg, her tears dripping down his armor. "Thank you f-for saving my friend!"

The Bat of Gotham simply patted Cream's head before she was pulled away by Amy, who looked at the Batman with a sheepish expression, mouthing an apology to the hero. He looked to his fellow Guardian and asked, "How're you holding up?"

"I'll manage." The hedgehog said, his body disagreeing with him, hitting him with another wave of pain. "Hey listen, not that I'm ungrateful or anything, but what are you doing here? And how did you know I was in trouble?"

Rouge gave the Bat a suspicious glance, "And how did you know how to disable the machine?"

"That doesn't matter," Batman instantly shut down, annoying the spy, "We have to move quickly."

"Why?" Sonic couldn't help but ask.

"Because this wasn't just a random encounter. This was an orchestrated attack on the Guardians of the Multiverse, and if we don't get to the others in time, they'll die."

Earth 1983

The Mushroom Kingdom

Mario couldn't breathe, no matter how hard he tried, no oxygen was entering his lungs.

He gasped for air, for the sustenance needed for his lungs to help him live, but whatever that gas was that Bowser dosed him with was preventing any air from entering his body. He grasped at his throat, choking as he looked up at the tearful eyes of Princess Peach, who was trying desperately to reach her hero from behind the bars of her cage.

But before he could choke on his dying breathe, a portal opened up in the center of the room and a blue blur shot out and struck the chain holding the cage to the ceiling, sending the prison crashing down, with Princess Peach along with it.

The princess groaned, looking up to see the happy, yet, exhausted face of Sonic the Hedgehog smiling down at her, offering her a hand to help her to her feet. She accepted it and looked over to see Batman crouched over Mario with some sort of concoction in his hand.

In Batman's hand was a jet injector with a blue liquid contained within. Without hesitating he stabbed Mario in the chest and injected the antidote. The reaction was almost instantaneous as the plumber shot upright and sucked in a massive breath, gasping for air as he felt the oxygen enter his lungs.

Peach sprinted over when Mario went into a coughing fit, crouching in front of him and wrapping her arms around him. "Mario, are you alright?! Can you breathe?!" She asked frantically as she held the coughing plumber in her arms. "It's okay, I'm here, and I'm not going anywhere."

"I-I thought... I wasn't gonna make it..." He said in between spurts of coughs, gazing lovingly into his girlfriend's eyes. "I thought of all the things I never got to say to you. About how you would go on if I wasn't here to protect you. As I was dying, all I could think about was you." He cupped her cheek and whispered, "Only you."

The two lovers then closed the distance between them and sealed their lips together, engaging in a romantic kiss, passion and love soaring in the air around them. The kiss that wouldn't be had his friends not saved his life from certain death.

The Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom turned and looked at the two Guardians standing behind them, "Thank you. Thank you for saving my hero." She thanked, eternally grateful for their help.

"Seriously, thanks guys." Mario inputted before noticing Sonic's appearance, how disheveled he looked. "You look like you've seen better days."

"Well, as it turns out, we're not the only ones who got attacked." Sonic responded with a strained smile.

Mario looked at his friends with concern, "Wait, you guys got attacked too?"

"This was an orchestrated attack, planned out to take out every member of the Guardians of the Multiverse." Batman informed the plumber.

"I was nearly crushed to death." Sonic piped up.

"CRUSHED?!" Both Mario and Peach exclaimed in horror.

Sonic scoffed and pointed to the brooding hero beside him with his thumb, "You think that's bad? This guy was buried alive next to his dead parents."

"Thank you for the reminder." Batman remarked sarcastically.

"But if you two were targeted..." Peach drifted off as she slowly turned to Mario, who also turned to look at her, the same dawning horror on his face.

"The others...." Mario finished in a hushed whisper.

Earth 616

New York City

"Sir, we are out of time." J.A.R.V.I.S. informed his creator, who was still flying inside of a living deathtrap.

Not that he would ever admit it, but Tony Stark was actually terrified. He was stuck in an impossible situation with no possible solution in sight, the seconds were literally counting down to his death, adding to the stress he was currently feeling.

He swallowed some saliva that was built up in his mouth and stuttered out, "Hey bud, do me a favor and call Pepps, would ya?" He figured that if he was gonna die, he might as well admit his feelings to the woman he likes. He literally had no other opportunity to do so, so screw it, he was gonna do it now.

The call dialed for a few seconds before it went to voice mail, making the hero sigh dejectedly as he truly missed his opportunity. "Might as well add that to my endless list of regrets." He thought bitterly as the seconds continued to count down.

"I'm sorry, sir." J.A.R.V.I.S. sounded genuine.

Iron Man began to close his eyes, knowing that this was it, the end of the road.

But that was before a certain bat hacked into his Comms. "Tony, can you hear me?"

Tony did a double take, "Bruce?"

Meanwhile at Stark Tower

The Dark Knight of Gotham marched to the edge of the helipad while both Mario and Sonic fell out of the portal above them, the vigilante quickly typing on a holographic screen on his gauntlet as he addressed Tony. "Stark, you need to head back to the tower right now. Where are you?"

"Can't do it." Tony refused, causing the Bat to groan. "Armor's been hacked by some whack job working with Loki. I've been locked inside of it and in a few minutes--"

"It'll explode."

"Yeah.... Wait, how'd you know that?"

Batman decided to ignore him, "Listen to me. I'm in the process of breaking through the firewalls installed in your armor to try and stop the countdown. You need to head back here in case I can't so that I can free you from the suit before it explodes."

"Hang on, you have schematics to my suit?!"

"Tony, do you want to live or not?!" Batman shouted heatedly, having grown frustrated by trying to convince the Avenger to turn back while simultaneously trying to break through his own code. He hated how smart he was at times, this time being one of them.

There was silence from Iron Man for a moment before he suddenly said, "I'm on my way."

The Dark Knight nodded as he continued to try and break through the firewalls, not noticing both Mario and Sonic approaching from his left. "How long does he have before he blows up?" The former asked, dread in his voice as he worried for his friend's life.

"Not long." Batman revealed lowly.

As the Mark 43 came into view in the distance, Batman began to pick up the pace. He wasn't going to let the Armored Avenger die because of him, nobody was going to die tonight. Not because he wasn't prepared for the possibility of his contingency plans becoming compromised.

Iron Man was getting closer, he was running out of time.

"Alright, I'm closing in!" He informed the detective, the seconds counting down. "Whatever you're gonna do, you'd better do it now!"

Sonic looked up at the World's Greatest Detective, eyes laced with concern for his friend's wellbeing. "Have you hacked into his suit yet?"

"I've managed to unlock his armor," He informed the Blue Blur, turning to look down at him. "But I can't stop the countdown." He then addressed Tony, "Stark, on my mark, propel yourself upwards. We have to get the timing exactly right."

"Why?"

"Just do it!"

Letting out a sigh, Tony relented and said, "Alright, on your mark."

He came closer to the tower, picking up speed as the clock counted down.

10

9

8

Sonic watched with nervousness, his entire form fidgeting as he fought the urge to jump up there and tear through that armor. But Batman had a plan, he had never led them astray before. He had to trust in the plan, just like how he trusted Batman.

7

6

5

"Get ready!" Batman shouted as his finger hovered over a button on the screen labeled, 'UNLOCK MARK 43' He had one shot at this, he had to get the timing precisely right, otherwise Tony Stark was a dead man.

4

3

2

"NOW!" Batman gave the signal as he pressed the button. As he propelled himself upward, the armor opened and shot out its occupant; Anthony Stark. The billionaire flew through the air, flailing his arms before landing and rolling across the helipad. He groaned, raising his head to see the Mark 43 soaring into the night sky.

1

The Mark 43 blew up in a glorious explosion, lighting up the night sky in a fiery, blaze of glory.

The Avenger let out a sigh of relief as he dropped his head to the floor, rolling over onto his back to see the faces of Mario, Sonic, and Batman. "Wow, that's one way to get rid of a hangover." He quipped, sitting himself up and staring at the Dark Knight of Gotham. "You saved my life. Thank you."

"Job's not done yet." Batman revealed, pressing onto his gauntlet which created a portal behind the group. "We need to get to Equestria, Twilight's life is in danger. We've managed to prevent our deaths tonight, but we have to hurry before we're unable to save Twilight's." He looked down to Stark and asked, "You got something else to wear?"

All Tony could do was smirk, time to take the Mark 45 for a test drive.

Earth 2010

The Crystal Empire

Agony.

Pure, unadulterated agony tore through Twilight Sparkle's body.

She had never felt pain like this before, her nerves were on fire, her whole body seizing unwillingly, the pain unending. And she could do nothing to change that, no, she could do something. Scream. That's all her body allowed her to do.

All she could do was scream.

The Mane 6 were all crying for Twilight to get up, to fight through the pain and send Tirek packing like the coward that he was. But none of them could do anything, none of them were strong enough to break through the bubbles that contained them.

They could only watch helplessly as their friend cried out in pain.

They may not have been able to do anything, but that didn't mean that Cadance was going to watch this.

The Princess of Love snarled, a gruesome growl escaping her throat as she began to charge up magic in her horn. First this monster dared to drain her subjects of their magic, then kidnap her newborn daughter, and now he dared subjugate Twilight to such cruel and senseless torture?

No, enough was enough.

Not noticing the build up of magic behind him, Tirek stomped over and loomed over Twilight with a devilish smile on his face. "How does it feel? Knowing soon that your entire world is about to be forever changed, and that there is NOTHING that you can do to stop it?" He straightened himself and chuckled, "You have no tricks left, princess. No Rainbow Power to save you from me this time. Now you get to witness as I drain your loved ones of their magic, powerless to do anything to stop me. Because the truth is, princess, is that you lost this battle before it even began."

"DID SHE THOUGH?!" A sudden shout from behind him caused him to turn around, where he received a magic blast to the face that sent him flying down the street, crashing into the train station. The Centaur of Wrath climbed out of the wreckage with a snarl on his face, witnessing the ponies he had imprisoned escape their prisons.

He rose to full height and charged up a blast in his horns. With a mighty roar, Lord Tirek launched a blast of magic directly at the group of ponies. They would've been scorched had it not been for the combined efforts of Celestia, Luna, and Cadance, who combined their magic and created a magic barrier that deflected the blast.

The barrier dissipated and the three alicorns unfurled their wings and took off to face the charging centaur.

As the battle resumed away from them, Shining Armor led the Mane 6 to the still screaming Twilight Sparkle, the Agony Matrix tearing her body apart before their eyes. "HANG ON, TWILY!!!" Shining reached forward to try and grab his little sister, but once his hoof made contact with the Agony Matrix, he was sent flying back.

"SHINING ARMOR!" Rarity cried out as she and Applejack rushed over to the singed stallion. "Are you alright?"

The Prince of the Crystal Empire groaned as he got to his hooves, "I-I'm fine. What about Twily?"

"Whatevah Tirek did ta her," Applejack turned to look at her fallen friend, who was no better than she was before, "We can't touch her."

"Then what are we going to do?!" Fluttershy cried out as she held the newest alicorn in her leg, the baby wailing uncontrollably.

Before Rainbow Dash could say anything, she quickly ducked out of the way as Princess Luna flew right past her, crashing and bouncing against the crystal floor. The prismatic pegasus swerved her head around to see Tirek swinging Cadance around by her tail, slamming her into Celestia before slamming her against the ground.

She couldn't help but bare her teeth at the approaching villain, "I've had it up to here with this guy! First he ruins the Crystalling, then he tortures our friend, now he's attacking the princesses. I'm done waiting and I'm done with him!" Ignoring the pleas of her friends, the Element of Loyalty shot forward with her hooves outstretched, intent on wiping that smug smirk off of Tirek's face.

But that was as far as she got, having been backhanded into a house by Lord Tirek.

Seeing their friend get hurt was enough incentive to get involved. With Shining Armor leading them and Fluttershy remaining behind to watch the baby, the five ponies charged forward to take on the villain head on.

The centaur laughed, finding their attempt adorable, before raising his front hooves into the air and bringing them down on the ground, sending forth an orange wave of magic that sent the ponies flying back, crashing into Fluttershy and the baby on their way back.

They all groaned, struggling to get back onto their hooves, but they had to, otherwise the approaching centaur would drain them dry of their magic. And if he got the magic of five alicorns, they would never be able to stop him.

"I assume you each remember our last physical encounter?" Tirek asked, cracking his neck. "You couldn't even defeat me before I gained all of the alicorn magic in Equestria."

"You used Discord, you awful, awful creature!" Fluttershy exclaimed in an uncharacteristically loud voice.

"He was easy to manipulate." Tirek shrugged. "A perfect puppet to help me gather all of the magic in Equestria, he played his part, and then his usefulness was no longer needed. And now that I have dealt with the princesses and you, there is nothing to stop me from changing the world."

"What's that meant to mean?!" Applejack demanded to know.

Tirek laughed, clenching his fist menacingly at the apple farmer. "That is for me to know, and for you to never know the difference. Because in all seriousness, you'll never be able to tell the difference between the life you live now and the life you will live in my new world." His eyes glowed menacingly, "And my mission will be made easier with your magic added to my arsenal."

His shadow covered them, his maw opening as he prepared to drain them of all their magic.

He was only stopped by a Homing Attack to the face, which sent him stumbling to the side. Tirek rubbed his jaw and snarled, turning around to see the Guardians of the Multiverse standing before a closing portal. Except Iron Man was in a new armor, it looked shinier and more metallic than the other one. It was predominantly red, with hints of yellow on the arms, legs, and torso.

"Sorry, Elmo, but the show's over." Iron Man aimed his hands at the centaur, making sure that he didn't go anywhere.

And they weren't alone, as the three Princesses of Equestria all landed around the centaur, with the rest of the mane 6 and Shining Armor joining them, surrounding the villain in a circle, limiting his movements.

"It is over, Tirek!" Celestia declared, spreading out her wings and igniting her horn with the power of the sun.

Tirek hated to admit it, but they had him surrounded, if he had more magic he could easily take them, but there wasn't much he could do at this point in time. Except for one thing. With a sinister smile, Tirek lit up his horns and fired a blast at Cadance.

The Princess of Love prepared to teleport away, but stopped when the blast shot right past her. They all turned around to see the magic blast strike the Crystal Heart, causing the ponies to gasp in shock. That shock turned to terror when spider web cracks spread all over the heart.

It then promptly shattered into hundreds of pieces.

"NOOOOOOOOO!!!" Cadance cried out in absolute panic and dread, tears brimming her eyes as the artifact protecting her empire fell to the floor in shattered pieces.

The taunting laughter of Tirek made her turn around to face the evil centaur. "I guess it's going to be a bit difficult to perform the Crystalling without the Crystal Heart." He then reached behind him and pulled out a small device, pressing the center of it, and sending out a signal for him to be picked up. "Unfortunately that is the least of your problems. Hope you packed some winter wear, cause it appears that it is going to snow."

Luna screamed in outrage, her eyes whitening with magic as she stomped her hooves on the ground and declared, "YOU FOOL, TIREK!!! YOU'VE DOOMED US ALL!!! YOU WILL BE OVERTAKEN BY THE FROST ALONG WITH US!!!" She bared her teeth and spread out her wings, horn crackling with the power of the moon.

But instead of being threatened, Tirek simply laughed, "That's where you're wrong, Luna. You see, I'm already gone."

Out of nowhere, a red streak of lightning zoomed past the princesses, knocking them out of the way as it zoomed past. As the alicorns flipped through the air, the Reverse-Flash took Tirek and ran through an interdimensional breach, leaving the Crystal Empire and this dimension entirely.

"Woah! What the hay was that?!" Rainbow couldn't help but ask.

Batman looked to where the breach was a moment ago, brows furrowed in realization. "A speedster."

Sonic's ear twitched, "A speedster? Like The Flash?"

"Faster." Was all Batman said before he rushed over and crouched beside Twilight. He pressed a few buttons on his gauntlet and the palm of his hand glowed a bright blue.

"Hey, wait a second!" Shining called out, watching the hero with suspicion. "Who the hay are you?! And what are doing to my sister?!" His movement was stopped by the wing of Celestia, who gave the stallion a look that said for him not to test The Bat.

They all watched with amazement as the Agony Matrix suddenly sizzled out of existence, the Alicorn of Friendship finally succumbing to unconsciousness, her head dropping to the floor. Batman raised his hand over the pony's chest, measuring her heart rate.

He turned to the group of heroes and ponies and said, "She has a heartbeat. It's low, but she'll be fine." He looked back down at the sleeping mare and moved a strand of her mane out of her face. "Her alicorn healing should kick in momentarily."

"Thank you, Dark Knight." Celestia said with a nod before a grim expression overcame her face. "But now we must focus on the current problem."

"What problem is that?" Mario asked.

"The Crystal Heart has been shattered." Luna said, glancing at the broken artifact with a longing expression.

"So? Just get a new one." Sonic said as if it were that simple.

But Celestia shook her head, shutting down the hedgehog's hopes. "I'm afraid that that is impossible. The Crystal Heart protected the Crystal Empire. Without the Heart, the Crystal Empire's about to be buried under a mountain of ice and snow."

She was met with the shocked eyes of the Guardians of the Multiverse.

"Yeah, that's bad alright." Tony said, breaking the silence.

"So... not only can we not take part in a fabulous ancient ceremony, but we're also about to be frozen solid!" Rarity cried out in fear.

Iron Man turned around and had J.A.R.V.I.S. scan the forming storm clouds. "Jesus, the amount of energy I'm getting off of those clouds is no joke." He faced the ponies and said, "If we don't do something about them soon, they'll be making Christmas songs about us."

"I'm afraid that Iron Man is correct." Celestia said in a grim tone. "The storm clouds are already forming."

The lightning cracked in the distance, the clouds merging together to create a menacing storm cloud that would soon overcome everything in its path. Batman, still kneeling next to Twilight, unwilling to leave her side, said, "We have to evacuate the empire, right now!"

Rainbow Dash, however, scoffed and dismissed the concerns with a wave of her hoof. "I can totally fly up there and bust those puppies! No problem!"

But that idea was shut down instantly by Princess Celestia, who informed the mare that that would be impossible. "I wouldn't advise it, Rainbow Dash. Those storm clouds are not like the ones you know." She walked past the prismatic mare and stared up at the clouds. "Tirek knew that this would happen. He knew that if he couldn't have our magic, then he would make sure that we wouldn't be alive to use it."

"And he had an escape plan to make sure that he could live to do whatever it is that he has planned." Shining said grimly.

Luna looked around at her friends, worry evident on her face. "This far north, the weather has a will of its own, and now it will only grow stronger, enveloping everything in its path."

"Including the Crystal Empire!" Cadance exclaimed.

"And us along with it." Batman finished, still holding Twilight while staring at the approaching clouds, the cracking of lightning echoing throughout the doomed empire.

And a part of Batman couldn't help but feel responsible.

Author's Note

Well, things turned to shit quickly!

The Guardians may have been saved by Batman, but Tirek had one last trick up his sleeve. Instead of Flurry Heart destroying the heart like in canon, it was Tirek's ace in the hole. And he knew that he could get away thanks to Thawne.

Now they have to somehow restore the Crystal Heart without Twilight.

I wonder how the Guardians will effect the flow of the episode with their inclusion? Guess we'll have to find out next chapter!

Stay tuned!