The Sorcerer of Everlasting Summer

Chapters

Prison Realm
The Unsealing
A Taste of Companionship
The Desert's Heat
Rest & Relaxation
Freedom's Takeaway
The Eye of The Storm
The Infinite Sky
Curses will always persist

Prison Realm

Tick tock… Tick tock…

In the inner depths of the peaceful halls of the underwater castle’s chambers, Princess Skystar tossed and turned in her bed, bubbles tickling her cheeks as they floated upwards, her eyelids shut tight, and her muzzle scrunched back.

Tick tock… tick tock…

From the outset, anyone might’ve considered her having one terrible dream. Though one could beg the differ in her psyche. Her dreamscape was a flat land of pure white, with no noise, no transparency, and, most of all, no distractions. Well, except for a lone alicorn standing idly in front of her. She wasn’t anyone Skystar had recognised off the get-go. Not any princesses off the top of her head could she remember having that striking blaze red mane with a straight fringe cut, white fur, and a cutie mark with a quill and ink dip.

Wow, upon closer comparison, she is much larger and more slender than most ponies, including Celestia and… luna. That’s beside the point.

Trotting… or rather, swimming up to her, Skystar tried to look her in the eyes.

“Um… hello?” Skystar asked. “I haven’t seen you before. Who are you?”

The alicorn didn’t return the greeting; instead, it only uttered a simple phrase with a smile. “Reach for it, and take care of him, my child.”

“I’m sorry, miss, but I’m not your daughter!” Skystar quickly tried to explain, noticing that she couldn’t quite match her gaze. Every feature she had up her snout was all foggy, the details fading away. “Queen Novo’s my mom, actually- Woah!” Her magic lifted off Skystar, the alicorn, sending the princes of the seas flying upward into the sky.

“W-wait!” Skystar beckoned, “Your name! What’s your name!?”
The alicorn turned to face the mare fading into the light, the corners of her lips pulling into a soft smile. “It’s Faus-”

“Gahh-!!” Skystar screamed, springing upright on her coral bed, the sweat pooling on her forehead for a moment before diluting into the waters around her.

From what she could tell, it was morning. The soft glow of bioluminescent algae cast an ethereal light within her chamber, illuminating the intricate patterns of her seashell-adorned walls. She sighed, stretching.

Every morning, she rose from her bed, her movements as mechanical as the tides. Each passing day seemingly painted the world ever greyer. She floated off and swam towards her bathroom, cleaning herself off and freshening up.

Heading out the door, she swam past the guards stationed at her chambers. Giving a quick “Good morning.” Before swimming down the halls at a rapid pace.

Strange, as for how dreams usually go, she’d forget any prior ones she had by the time she woke up. Yet, the strange interactions in the dreamlands still stuck around. Whatever it was.

Passing into the dining halls, several pairs of guards stood attention at the entrances connecting the spaces. In the middle, a long dining table with a coral chandelier hung above it.

“I see you’ve certainly slept in later today, Skystar.” Queen Novo commented, munching on kelp with practised elegance.

“Morning, Mom.” Skystar haphazardly greeted with a yawn, grogginess evident in her voice. “Couldn’t get a wink of sleep last night.”

Novo was about to grill Skystar for her less-than-regal conduct, but upon hearing about her daughter's lack of sleep, she was stopped dead in her tracks. She looked down at her plate of kelp, the edges of the vegetation wiggling in the slow but still noticeable current around her.

“…Was it the funeral?” Queen Novo asked.

“…Maybe,” Skystar admitted.

Novo shut her eyes, turning her head away from her daughter.

“I understand,” Novo said. We are all affected by your uncle's passing. It would be best if you rested, Skystar. I’ll handle royal duties today.”

“Mom, you know I can’t do that…” Skystar stared at her mother across the table, her plate of kelp untouched. “Not when everything’s in such disarray… Not when I could help it.”

The slight shift in tone didn’t go unnoticed by the Queen; she put her cutlery down, glaring at her daughter.

“I’ve told him already. We can’t fight them.” Novo explained.

“Uncle Sky Beak wasn’t trying to pick a fight with them! He was trying to secure a safe passage out of the shores!”
Stepping onto the forbidden shores is a declaration of opposition, Princess Skystar. When they sensed our presence up there, they had our heads on spears.”

Skystar caught up, slamming the table. “This is exactly how it was with the Storm King!”

“You can’t compare the Storm King to them.” Novo tried to reason.
“I can’t?” Skystar scoffed, “Both times, they stole our homes and forced us underwater. Sounds pretty comparable to me!”

“Your uncle had asked for supporting resources and military backup to help him survey the above world. How was I supposed to provide either when our supplies are as scarce as they are and our infantry is at an all-time low? Especially with the recent earthquakes and changing tides, Seaquestria is as vulnerable as ever.” Novo folded her fins, “I had hoped my denying his request would push him back from further pursuing to visit the lands above. No, it drove him stronger than ever.”

Novo clenches her jaw, placing a fin on her forehead. “Now not only had I lost my brother-in-law, but my sister also lost her husband… And it's all my fault.”

The tension was palpable; the guards shifted uncomfortably in their stations, an imaginary steam rising from the cracks of their armour as they exchanged quick glances at one another. Skystar sucked her lips in; she hadn’t meant to push her mother this far. “Mom… I didn’t mean that.”

“No… I’m sure you don’t.” Novo got up from her seat, swimming to the giant doors at the end of the room. “Rest today, Skystar. I’m sure you’ll need it.” That was all she said before exiting the dining hall and leaving Skystar alone with her thoughts.

Skystar looked down at the plate before her, the edge of the pristine white dish reflecting the image of her tired face with baggy eyes. She scowled. Was she ever this helpless?

Skystar sat in the royal gardens, eyes scanning the vibrant mixture of life beneath the waves. The mass amounts of beautiful corals, their hues ranging from the palest pink to the deepest purple, swayed gently under the pillars of light piercing through the ocean tops. Cascading down into a gentle glow that bathed the entire underwater garden in a beautiful light, the beams illuminated the intricate patterns of the coral formations and the shimmering scales of the fish that darted between them.

Despite the breathtaking beauty of her surroundings, Skystar felt a sense of melancholy. The once-vibrant gardens reflected the diminished vitality of Seaquestria itself, the corals seeming to lose their colours over the passing months. The repetitive nature of her duties had dulled her senses, making her feel disconnected from the world around her. Adding on to the… event that happened several days prior. Yeah, it all almost came crumbling down on her. And she messed up big time.

Skystar let herself sink between the ribbons of the aquatic leaves, the green appendages wrapping her in a false embrace as she closed her eyes. Right as she was about to drift off to sleep, however, a familiar voice snapped her out of her daze.

“Skystar?”
Skystar cracked her eyes open, not bothered with getting up. It was rather dim, though enough light pierced the ocean to filter a golden glow around the figure. Silverstream peered down at Skystar from above, tilting her head curiously.

“Silverstream!” Skystar jolts. Getting up to greet her cousin with a quick exchange of hugs, she broke it off with a worried look. “W-what brings you here? I thought you wouldn’t want to see me again after…”

Silverstream grabbed Skystar’s shoulders, her grip reassuring. “My dad was a… passionate hippogriff. He passed doing what he thought was right. Even so, I couldn’t possibly hate you for it, Skystar.”

Though difficult, Skystar met Silverstream’s gaze. Her eyes were red, and there were bags under them. The princess’s breath hitched; it seemed she wasn’t the only one who hadn’t gotten enough sleep.

“But I didn’t come to talk about that…” Silverstream said, reaching behind her and pulling out a grey cube with slits on each of its surfaces, each of a differing number. “I found this off the seabed on the edge of our borders. I think it got swept there by the rushing currents from the earthquakes.”

Skystar’s eyes widen. “Could this be the relic you were talking about?”
Silverstream nodded steadily, “I-I think so…”

Skystar shifted her head to get a better look at the relic from various angles, and a strange feeling was leaking out the slits on each surface. “Didn’t the scripture mention this thing having eyes?”

As Skystar continued to examine the relic, she felt a strange sensation. The energy emanating from the cube seemed to be intensifying, and the slits on its surface were beginning to glow. A faint hum filled the air, a low, rhythmic vibration that resonated with her heartbeat.

“I’m not sure how we should go about this,” Skystar added.

“I’ve already notified Ocellus about the relic. We plan to meet closer to the surface, nearer to the shores.”
“The shores!? While they’re still around!? Are you crazy!?” Skystar jumped, pushing herself closer to Silverstream. “Why can’t Ocellus come down to us?”

“There isn’t much aquatic life that could both freely use magic and breathe underwater. It’s best if we met on land.” Silverstream remarked.

“T-that’s suicide!” Skystar stated, “There has to be another way. Maybe our necklaces?”

“The magic from the necklace isn’t enough.” Silverstream puffs, “Unless Auntie Novo wishes to use The Pearl.”

“…There’s no way mom’s gonna let us borrow The Pearl’s magic like that.”
“Yeah, thought so.” Silverstream held back a sigh, turning to face the distance. “Ocellus will arrive by sunset tomorrow. I will leave then.”

“Wait,” Skystar interjects, “Why can’t Ocellus just swim down here and let Mom use The Pearl to transform her underwater? Then she could use her magic here in a safe environment.”

“Did you forget? They’ve already finished a spell that transforms their troops into sea ponies. We would be leading them straight to our homes if we did that… That’s how Dad died; that’s why he was forced to break off from the rest.” Silverstream swam backwards, turning to leave, but stopped to turn her head slightly so her gaze could find Skystar. “I came to tell you this in case I fail. I will toss the relic back into the sea so you guys can find it… see ya, Skystar…”

Skystar tried to reach out to Silverstream, but her guilty conscience prevented her from moving an inch, letting the seapony swim off unrestricted back into the direction she supposedly came from.

The princess’s mouth creased into a frown, her brows furrowing as she palmed her forehead, jiggling her lighted lure. This is bad. She’s speaking just like mom.

The next day – midday

Everything went as it did yesterday. Skystar got up earlier this time, freshened up, greeted the guards, and headed to the dining hall. She opened the doors as usual, and Novo sat opposite the long table as usual. However, she hasn’t already started eating yet as compared to yesterday. Skystar greeted her as usual, sat down as usual, and ordered as usual.

“So… Mom.” Skystar began,
“What is it, Princess Skystar?” Novo replied plainly.

“If I told you Silverstream has this ancient relic from the past that could solve all our problems, but it needs The Pearl to supercharge it, would you let me?” Now, that was unusual.

Novo gave a quick “Huh,” as if to say that’s not something you hear every day. “Interesting.”
“So…?” Skystar pushed.

“No.”
“Oh, c’mon!”

“You have to know how ridiculous this sounds,” Novo said, leaning onto her fin.

“Yeah, but-”
“You have to think not only from your position but from mine, as well as the wellbeing of all the seaponies living in Seaquestria. Have you thought what would happen if this fails? How much magic it would take? How vulnerable would it leave us?”

“We can compromise-”

“No, I will not compromise the safety of our citizens for something you’re not entirely sure about.”

“We can’t sit idle and twiddle our fins!” Skystar tried to argue.

“Nor can we take the risk.” Novo inserted.

“Enough,” Novo cuts, “I’m not about to have this dispute with you. This talk is over.”

Skystar got off from leaning on the table, drifting back into her seat with a huff and grumbling with crossed arms. She wallowed in silence as their ordered meals arrived on the long dining table. The guards did their best not to fidget, while the server did their best not to make eye contact. It was a very quiet breakfast, to say the least.

Later that evening, on the outskirts of the Seaquestria kingdom, Silverstream swam up closer to the surface by her lonesome, a sling bag around her person. Several slivers of moonlight dancing atop the sea’s surface intensified by the passing minute as the moon rose. How long had it been since she saw the moon rise? She pondered, not realising Skystar was waiting for her behind a large boulder near the deep slop of terrain.

“Psst-!” Skystar called out. “Silverstream!”

“Skystar?” Silverstream questioned, “I’m guessing you told Auntie Novo about my plan?”
Skystar raised a brow. “How’d you know?”

“More guards are stationed near my home than usual,” she answered. “I’m guessing the same could be said for you.”
“Yeah…” The princess admitted. “How’d you managed to get out?”

“No one knows the layout of my home better than me,” Silverstream proudly boasted, “…So, here to say good luck? Maybe a goodbye?”

“You know I’m not the one for goodbyes.”

“Then what are you here for?”

“I’m coming with.”

“What.”
“You heard me,” Skystar repeated.

“There’s no way I’m bringing you with me! It’s too dangerous!” Silverstrea’s eyes widen in alarm.
“The same could be said for you.” Skystar countered. “Two sets of fins are better than one, so I’m coming with. Unless you wanna turn tail and head back to Seaquestria, we’re both going.”
Silverstream sighed, “Fine, but we have to do this quietly, okay? Did you bring your necklace with you?”

“Sure did.” Skystar pulled out the necklace from her back, showing it as evidence.

“Alright, let’s go.”
Just as they were about to take off, a deafening screech could be heard behind them, sending shivers down their spines. Turning around, several deformed crabs, fish, and insectoid beings oozing with malevolent energy inched forward, eyes trained on Silverstream.

“Um, Silverstream.” Skystar began, “They don’t look friendly.”

“Run!!” Silverstream yelled, booking it. Skystar following close behind.

“What are those things!?” Skystar asked, paddling her tail to keep herself close to her cousin. She could feel how close the monsters were to them, their every movement sending waves and ripples that the ends of her fins could feel.

“No idea!” Silverstream replied. “And I don’t wanna stay to find out!”

Ocellus lay in the low tides of the gushing shores under the rising moon, her body, shape, size, and touch all resembling the form of a rather large rock formation. It was her disguise, crude as it may be; it helped her blend in with the natural surroundings. The waves from the sea rushed to her, seafoam splashing all over her rocky disguise as the tides rested for a moment before receeding back into the vast ocean from afar.

Just a few more minutes of this and Silverstream would meet her here, or rather, lower into the sea. Ocellus was being as vigilant as possible, trying to see if any head was poking through the ocean’s surface or if an aquatic plant was shaking in some sort of code trying to get her attention. She couldn’t be too sure, after all.

Her worries of missing a signal would never come to pass as Silverstream and Skystar erupt from the sea waves in a bright light of transformation into their hippogriff forms. They landed on the shores, panting and huffing, sweat pooling on their faces while glancing behind them, checking if they managed to lose the monsters.

“Ocellus!” Silverstream called out, rushing over to her.

The changeling quickly turned back into her original form, her face going into a full-blown panic. “What happened to being discreet!? And why’s your cousin here!?”
“Long story, no time,” Silverstream said, pulling the cube out of her bag. “Sorry for rushing you like this, but monsters are chasing us. We tried to lose them, but it was no use. We have to do it here.”

“Are you serious!?” Ocellus exclaimed, grabbing the cube.
“Halt.” Came a voice from deeper inland. The trio turned to the voice, fear creeping into their features. Several ponies, clad in black armour, laced with spikes along their shoulders and back. Their faces were entirely covered in the same material, eyes glowing bright green in a horizontal slit with black manes atop their helmets. “In the name of his majesty, surrender now.”
Ocellus stepped back, turning to face the sea, only for a torrent of monsters to spring out of the waves. The crab monster lunged forward; claws opened large and aiming for Ocellus. Skystar quickly intercepted its path, allowing the crab to clench down and squeeze her arm in a deathly grip.

“Arghh-!” Skystar screamed, barely holding herself together.

“Skystar!” Silverstream yelled, running over, only for a school of monstrous fish to bash into Silverstream, knocking her down and shoving her back. Taking a dagger from inside her sling bag, Silverstream sliced at one of the fish before her while flinging the weapon at Ocellus’s back, knocking back a quickly approaching guard. “Ocellus, do it now!”
Seeing no other way out of this and having very little left to lose, Ocellus pulled out a book from behind her and recited the incantations for a spell to operate the relic. The noises of rushing waters were drowned out by the clattering of metal from the running guards and grotesque yells of the monsters, but Ocellus managed to pull herself together enough to see it through. Magic swelled and swirled around the base of her horn, twirling around the shaft and up to the tip before it focused and concentrated onto one singular point.

In an instant, a blinding white light flashed the entire scene, flushing out any fighting and conflict in the coastal area.

Tick tock… tick tock…

Gojo sighed, leaning back into the skeletons reaching out for him. He was bored out of his mind. How many months had it been? His students should be freeing him by now, he thought. That said, he couldn’t really blame them for the lack of notification.

“Well, it isn’t like Megumi can drop me a text telling me when they’d free me,” Gojo said to no one in particular. Okay, maybe one of the skeletons he named for fun. His name is Mochi. “Amirite, Mochi?”

Mochi didn’t reply, sadly.

Gojo gave a more profound sigh, wondering how long he would be stuck in limbo like this. Well, maybe his students already fought Sukuna and somehow did it all without his help. Wow, that’d have to be some recognition for an honour award for literally being the best teacher out there, right?

“Heh, nah. The higher-ups will be on their asses.” Gojo spoke again… to no one in particular.

This was actually a first for Gojo, having so much time to… think, ponder even. Things that he couldn’t find the time to process or layout properly. Getting enough sleep was one thing. Now, he was borderline thinking he had the rest of eternity to set out his messed up head straight and narrow. Steadying out his wishes, regrets. One thing was clear, however: whoever was inhabiting Geto would die the moment he was free. That’s a promise, not only to himself but to his best friend. That’s the least he could do before his goodwill crumbles away.

“Was this how it felt like, huh, Suguru?” Gojo asked rhetorically, nodding downward into space. “Slowly losing your mind, thinking the world is fading all around you?” He chuckled, “I think I finally get what you felt all those years ago.”

Right as Gojo was about to doze off again, the world around him rumbled. He jumped up in surprise. This was the first real sensation of movement he felt in months. Looking around, he could see the barriers and space around him… weakening!
Gojo couldn’t help but crack a smile, seeing the top of the vast black space shattered, allowing moonlight to seep in and bathing him in light.

Back in reality, the blinding white light began to fade, and the earth stopped shaking. Ocellus stopped shielding her eyes with her arm and looked at the relic. Its eyes were wide open, looking past Ocellus and into the sky.

“It didn’t do anything!” Ocellus said, looking at Silverstream.

However, Silverstream didn’t pay her any mind. Instead, she seemed to be fixated on whatever the relic was also staring at. Looking around, the monsters, the soldiers, and even Skystar shared the same sentiment, frozen entirely in their tracks. Curiosity finally got the better of her as she turned to face the sky, wondering what all the fuss was about.

A towering figure, elongated and ethereal, floated effortlessly in the air without the use of wings. Its slender body, draped in flowing black robes, seemed to defy the laws of gravity. A cascade of white hair framed his face, every strand illuminated by the moonlight.

The figure's presence was both intimidating and mesmerizing, a strange blend of power and menace. It exuded an energy that was unlike anything Skystar, Ocellus or Silverstream had ever encountered, a force that seemed to ripple through the seaside. The creature's power was similar to that of the princesses, but it was... to put it plainly, stronger.

As if sensing her gaze, the creature turned its head and pulled its blindfold down, revealing a pair of piercing blue eyes that seemed to bore into her soul.

The strongest is free.

Author's Note

There should be a JJK group frfr, also, thank you for reading :heart:

The Unsealing

Gojo took a deep, hearty breath in. It’s been terribly long since the crisp, cool night air entered his lungs. The moonlight was especially bright this time of evening, probably to welcome the strongest back into the real world. Gojo pulled his shoulders back, stretched his back, and allowed his blood to flow more freely now that he was finally out of that prison. He’d almost forgotten how good it feels to move and not stay stationary, well, almost. First things first, “Where is that bastard that stole Suguru’s body?” Gojo thought.

Before the sorcerer could properly locate that convict, from below, Gojo could instinctively sense a cluster of cursed energy writhing with ill-control. He spun around in mid-air, pulling down his blindfold, and stared at… what are these things?

“Hey,” Gojo said, his tone carrying an aura of authority and power as he slowly descended onto the group. Landing onto wet sand with his expensive Prada boots, he stared at the bunch: two hippogriffs and one changeling. “Who’re you lot?”

“We are the faithful soldiers of his majesty, King Sombra-” One of the soldiers tried to explain but was quickly shut up by Gojo’s interference.

“I wasn’t talking to you.”

This seemed to anger the soldiers standing. The contingent stood battle-ready, dragging their hooves into the sand before charging maniacally at the white-haired sorcerer. Gojo rolled his eyes, pointing a finger at the pony leading the charge, and blasted a red orb towards the ground where the leader was about to step on. The earth instantly erupted in a massive explosion of sand and dust; the heat and pressure generated by such a simple motion were so intense that Silverstream could’ve sworn she’d seen glass shards raining about, reflecting the moon’s rays. But it wasn’t glass or sand that was raining; the leading group of soldiers that were advancing on them was raining from the skies as well. Propelled by the force of the sorcerer’s attack, and landing back on the golden sands and into the ocean’s embrace.
Turning back to the trio, he squatted down. Arms rested atop his knees as he’s eye-leveled to them, staring into them and humming to himself. “I was talking to you guys.”

Silverstream and Ocellus both opened their mouths to try and say something, but the encroaching swarm of monsters behind them held their attention more than whatever Gojo was trying to get. The two turned around, ready to fight, only to just in time catch the group of monsters being twisted and pulverised into balls of condensed energy before ashing into the cold, ruthless winds.

They spun back to the creature, looking at his relaxed expression. It was rather unsettling. “Go on,” Gojo gestured with a lazy wave of his hand. “Continue.”
“W-we’re…” Ocellus began, stumbling across her words. Should she bow? Would it be rude not to bow? Whatever, better safe than sorry. Bowing down to her forehead kisses the sea salt sand, she continued. “I’m Ocellus, and these are my friends, Silverstream and Princess Skystar. We freed you from the relic to ask you for your assistance, oh, honour one.”

Silverstream quickly followed suit, followed by Skystar.

“It’s stated in the scripture that you have the might to “Save the world” in these tense times. We humbly request your assistance and cooperation. Please use me to your heart’s content if you require a sacrifice.” As Ocellus finished, she closed her eyes and practically accepted her fate, awaiting her timely demise.

A large hand reached out to her, grabbing her by the head. This sent a shiver throughout Ocellus’s entire body. Fear-stricken to move, tears welled up in her eyes. Right when she thought the worse was going to happen, the hand removes itself, the being speaking.

“Well, then. I’ll need a good massage and something sweet to bite.”
“What.” Skystar and Silverstream verbally vocalised.

Gojo shrugged, “Don’t you know? My powers act on the quality and duration of a good massage someone can give me once freed. That and the latter of my request, wasn’t that written in your scriptures or whatever?”

Ocellus exchanged looks with Skystar and Silverstream. Well, that’s leagues better than sacrificing her life to this deity, Ocellus thought.

For the next hour or so, Skystar and Silverstream did their best to give Gojo, with a shit-eating grin, a back massage to the best of their ability closer inland on an old beach chair.

“Oh yeah…” Gojo moaned through a rumble in his voice. “That’s the spot.”

“We didn’t quite get your name back there,” Silverstream started, “Mr…?”
“Hm?” Gojo propped, “Oh yeah, Gojo’s fine.”
“So, Mr. Gojo, are you able to help us? With our predicament, I mean.” Skystar said, digging the pads of her talons into the thick muscles of Gojo’s back.

Gojo raised his hand, pointing a finger, “Well, first of all. I’m gonna need a rundown of the situation.” He raised another finger, “Secondly, I want a way to get home.”
“Um, okay,” Silverstream spoke, rubbing the base of his back up and down. “We can do that. You’re in the southern section of Equestria, Hippogriffa, to be precise.”

As Silverstream explained, Ocellus walked out of the dense foliage behind them with an apple in her magical grasp. She walked over to them, floating the fruit to Gojo’s face. “I’m sorry, this was the only thing I could find.”

“It’s all right,” Gojo said, picking the fruit from the air and taking a bite from it. It was surprisingly sweet and refreshing! Very few apples back in Japan compared to the one he’s eating now. As he continued to munch on the apple, Silverstream continued.

“Ever since the Canterlot Incident, things have been going downhill from then on. Friends… died, Princess Luna’s gone crazy, nations fell, and King Sombra’s back.”

“Woah,” Gojo huffed, chewing on a piece of the apple. “You gotta explain each in detail. I have no clue what you’re going on about.”
“Canterlot is the capital of Equestria, the land you’re standing on right now.” Skystar chimed in, “After the destruction of Canterlot from that being, Princess Luna, one of the monarchs ruling Equestria, went crazy. Slaughtering nations and countless lives. On top of that, a ruthless king going by King Sombra resurrected from the dead, overthrowing the Crystal Empire and enslaving its inhabitants…” The princess turns over to the fallen troops, their bodies moving slightly from their weak breathing but otherwise alive. “You’ve seen them first claw.”

“Thought so,” Gojo laughed, “Sensed there was some cursed energy in that helmet they’re wearing that’s messing with their minds. Still, that’s a pretty crazy first introduction if I’ve ever heard of one!”

“…Will you help us, honoured one?” The princess begged.

“Sure, I’ll help,” Gojo said, shuffling to sit upright. “But I have to ask, do you know where’s Japan?”

“No?” Silverstream admitted, tilting her head. “If that’s your homeland beyond Equestrian borders, we can help you find it.”

“Well, we’ll talk more about it when we get there. What day is it even?”

“October 30th 1118… or actually, it's the 31st now, if you want to be specific,” Ocellus replied.

Gojo crossed his arms, pursing his lips. 1118? Was The Prison Realm even able to travel back in time? Nothing in the Gojo Family archives for Special Grade Cursed Objects states that it could time travel, other than the prisoner being unaffected by the usual passage of time. Dang, this really was a can of worms Gojo couldn’t begin to hope to digest.

“All right, I get the gist now.” Gojo mumbled, “Bring me to your leader if ya got one. We’ll discuss more there.”

“Is it okay to bring her to you?” Silverstream said, “Our home is actually under the sea.”

“Yeah, whatever,” Gojo waved, “Oh, and could you fetch some restraints to hold those soldiers in one place? I think they’re gonna wake up soon. But don’t try anything funny. I can read minds~” he mocked with fingers pointed at his blindfold-covered temples, a grin plastered across his face.

“Y-yes, Mr. Gojo!” Silverstream and Skystar said in unison, before trotting over to the seaside and diving back into the ocean in a transformation of light.

Gojo pulled his arms back to the back of his head, “So,” Gojo started, requiring Ocellus to crane her head up to face the human. Dang, was he tall. “What are you, anyway? Some bug horse?”

Not 20 minutes later, several sea ponies hopped out of the waves, transforming in a brilliant display into hippogriffs before landing on the seaside. The largest of the group had a strong magenta mane, a pinkish-grey coat with wings spanning several meters, and a blue feather headpiece and tail with silver regalia around the base of her neck. Beside her were several hippogriff guards clad in golden armour and brandishing spears and chains.

“Is this their show of force?” Gojo thought, petting Ocellus in his lap. “How cute!”

Queen Novo walked over to Gojo, holding her head up high with a dignified stride. Gojo smiled. She was nervous—the twitches in her muscles, the subtle sway in her movements, that small beat of sweat on her forehead. All these inconsistencies couldn’t escape the Six Eyes.

“I am pleased to be in your presence, Prince Gojo.” Queen Novo said with a slight bow.

“Likewise.” Gojo nodded.

“Mom!” Skystar whispered yelled, “It’s Mr. Gojo!”

Novo jolts at this, turning back to her daughter with a whisper yell of her own. “Then why’d you describe him like the Princesses!?”

“I don’t know!? He looks regal like that!”

Novo rolled her eyes, “Forgive me. Mr. Gojo.”

Gojo threw a thumbs-up. “All’s good.”

Novo takes this as her cue to continue: “We heard that after you’re freed from the relic, you helped us reclaim our stolen territory. We’re grateful, truly. Is there anything you require or need? Do let me know. We’ll try to accommodate you.” Novo turns to her guards, signalling for them to go and tie up the unconscious soldiers littered around Mount Aris.

“Sure,” Gojo brushes it off, “Are we near the mainland?”

“No, we’re not.”
“Could you bring me there? There’s people I want to find, things I must do.”

“People?” Novo asked,

“Urm, individuals.”
“Ah, I see. In that case,” the Queen turns around, waving for a guard to come closer and speak to him directly. After a minute, the guard nods with a salute before turning around and jumping into the sea. “We’ll prepare a ship for you to travel deeper into the mainlands.”

“Actually,” Ocellus perked, “We could use the ship I used to travel here.”

“That’d be wonderful. It saves us time from fixing up the old ships.” Novo added,

“Whichever’s faster.” Gojo sighed,

“Is there anything else we could do for you?” The Queen inquired,

“I’d like a bag of those apples my good friend Ocellus here picked.” Gojo gestured,

“Considered it done.” Novo smiled.

“Also, you got a copy of this scripture you're talking about?” The sorcerer added,

“The full scripture is with Rarity in Manehatten. We can make our way over there once we reach the shores.” Silverstream expressed.

“Our agenda is dealing with this King Sombra fellow and finding this Rarity. Then, let’s head off when we’re ready,” Gojo declared, getting up and ruffling Ocellus. Pulling out his phone, he tried to dial someone, anyone. “Any objections? If not, we’re off…Damn, no signal.”

“What’s that?” Silverstream asked, leaning in.

“A smartphone,”

“Woah, what’s it do?”
“You got telephones in this world?”
“Yeah we do.”
“It does that and other stuff, too.”
“Woah…” Silverstream awed.

After waiting idle for another hour, the royal guards loaded Ocellus’s ship with bags of apples and other local fruits. Filling their inventory to bring with them travel supplies that would last several days, possibly weeks, if they rationed properly. The boat was slightly larger than a standard travel ship, with a large sail and built-in cabin and deck, but it should serve its purpose. Several seapony guards circle the boat, each swimming at attention.

“These guards will guide you safely through the seas,” Novo explained, nodding to a nearby guard. The troops returned a salute to their queen. “Stay safe, Silverstream, Ocellus. Mr. Gojo.”

“Thank you, Auntie!” Silverstream waved, walking onboard. Whilst Gojo only gave a curt nod, mouth stuffed full of apples.

“Thank you, Queen Novo.” Ocellus bowed.

Novo smiled at them, waving goodbyes. With Gojo around, the world might return to what it once was. Their best bet was to bet on him—to overturn this corrupt and maniacal world.

Ocellus unhooked the lines binding the ship to the wooden decks, drawing the ropes in and on deck before allowing the winds to carry the boat outshore. Skystar waved at the quickly shrinking ship back on land, shouting cheers of encouragement for the departed until her loud chants turned into a mellow silhouette of movement under the moonlight.
“Godspeed, Mr. Gojo.” Novo wished before turning around and commanding the revitalisation of Hippogriffa for the second time in a decade.

Across the lands, in the desolate remains of the Canterlot Castle, a pony walked through the quiet halls all by his lonesome. His hooves clicked on the dusty marble floor, kicking up a small cloud of dust with each step. The once-grand castle, now a shell of its former self, echoed with the sound of his footsteps, a mournful dirge that seemed to mourn the loss of its former glory.

Passing one of the remaining glass windows, still intact and in one piece, the moon's rays bathed him in light and showcased the pony’s features for the briefest moments. A horn, slicked-back mane, two pairs of eyes, and intricate tattoos adorned his face, coat, and horn.

The air crackled with the intensity of the cursed energy surging through his body. Not once had he thought of holding back his strength. It was a burden, a curse, but it was also a part of him. It was another tranquil night, with his thoughts and his thoughts alone. So is the curse of being at the apex of creation, being the strongest.

He stopped by a shattered window, peering out into the city streets below. A gaping, empty hole was present squarely in the heart of Canterlot’s tightly packed city. Smoke billowed out from every back alley street, and fires acted as light sources below as ash filled the air. Every corner you turn, destruction, destruction, and more destruction.

Damn, was he bored.

Right as the pony was about to turn away, a scroll popped up in front of him with a “poof!”. Grabbing it with his magic, he unwrapped it and began to read. It was a simple letter, and he didn't have to try very hard to know who wrote it to him.

Yo!

The pony gave an audible "tsk," this prick again.

I thought I'd let you know that my cursed spirits were exorcised on the shores of Mount Aris, several of Sombra's guards were knocked out in the altercation, and the Prison Realm was broken.

Upon reading the last few lines, his smile grew wider and wider, bearing his toothy fangs and even exposing his gums a little. His heart beat rhythmically like the start of a fight song, a chorus's high hitting him like someone listening to a favorite tune for the first time.

Gojo Satoru is free.

Author's Note

Chapters will be updated slowly from now on; I have a project I gotta do for the next two weeks. Sorry! 🙇

A Taste of Companionship

Gojo jolts awake in a chair that seems just too small for his large body in the cabin onboard; that power nap wasn’t something he desperately needed but integrated into his everyday schedule as a sorcerer. Getting sleep whenever available was part and parcel of fostering the next generation of talents, wherever they might be. He glanced at the old fire lamp hanging on the ceiling; it was pretty prehistoric if you had to ask him.

Gojo guestimates it to be just a few hours since their departure and his much-needed nap. Was it a bold move for him to sleep defensively while the others onboard could do something to him? Sure. But when you’re the strongest, whatever you say, your every action demands respect. Plus, though it might not look like it, Gojo had already inspected every bag, sack, and barrel given to them courtesy of her Royal Highness, Queen Nova. Or something like that. To further add to the security, the two other occupants with him, Silverstream and Ocellus, are much too nervous and fidgety to try anything that’d earn his disapproval.

As strange as it is, it’s almost as if those two knew the powers he held. Like, he gets it. Whenever he met a superior for the first time, they were always thrown off by his goofy demeanour. Usually, they’d let their guard down and relax around him even.

Not those two, though.

They’d been on the edge ever since boarding the boat. Perhaps it was like his students said… “An aura just pours out, even if you try to hide it.” Somewhere along those lines.

Getting up, Gojo saunters to the door, needing to actively duck under the door frame to fit through. Almost banging his head in the process, alas, large problems for a large man in a small pony world.

Stepping onto the other side, the moon was high, and the calm sea breeze greeted him in a gentle hug. It would’ve been more tranquil had the sudden sensation of a beak not collided with his leg with a muffled “Oompf-!”
Looking down at the source, Silverstream was face-first deep into his leg. Pushing off him, the hippogriff took a second to steady herself and gave a sheepish smile. “S-sorry!”

“No harm done.” Gojo dismissed, “How much longer til we reach the mainland?”

“About half a day, but it’s a straight beeline from here on out.”
“You’re kidding.”
“Nope.”
Gojo crossed his arms, raising a hand to hold his chin. He pondered momentarily while Silverstream sat there looking up at him. He hummed, before snapping his fingers.

“Tell all the guards to get onboard. There’s an announcement I want to make.”
Silverstream looked sideways, before nodding. “Okay, I’ll get them up in a minute. What’s the announcement you want to make?”

Gojo placed a finger on his lips. “It’s a surprise~”

Silverstream didn’t know what he meant by that, but it was only a matter of time before she did. She whipped around, trotting away to the edge of the boat and leaning over the edge to call for the guards. News spread pretty quickly, the guards already springing out of the waters in a flashy transformation and landing on the large deck once they heard the order. Organising themselves into a neat 2-by-2 file without Silverstream needing to say anything. Not like she would.

“They’re all here!” Silverstream called out,

“I’m over here!” Gojo called out from the back of the boat.

Jogging over to the back alone, the hippogriff stuck her head out from around the corner, glancing around until she saw the sorcerer standing at the very edge of the boat. “Mr. Gojo, sir? What’re you doing here?”
“Earlier you mentioned that it’s a straight beeline to the mainland, correct?”
“Yeah-huh, I did.”
Gojo grins, spinning around. “Hold on tight~”

“What do you-” Silverstream couldn’t finish her sentence, as the entire boat was rocketing forward at an alarming speed. The sudden acceleration even tilts the front of the boat off the waters for a second as a deep red light shined at where Gojo was. Silverstream could hear the sudden whacks and thumps of the soldiers against the cabin walls, it was quite thin after all. Their bodies stuck to it like flies on a wall, the force of motion pinning them against their will, as they panicked in fear.

“Woohoo!” Was all Gojo roared as the boat went… even faster.

Silverstream could feel her heart drop as she slid to where Gojo was, scraping along the wooden deck with her talons and holding on for dear life. To say it was a smooth ride was an understatement, bumps here and occasionally, Silverstream could’ve sworn the boat soared briefly. The world was acting against her, all these movements and bumps, she couldn’t hang on. Soon enough, her talons gave out as her body, too, soared in the air with another bump. She’d thought she was a goner, needing to swim in her seapony form to catch up to the boat, had a lengthy arm not wrapped around her midsection, and pulled her close.

“I gotcha!” Gojo assured with a smile.

On shore, several hours later, the crew descended from the boat, their faces painted with a sickly green hue that contrasted starkly with their usual vibrant colors. Two of the guards excused themselves to hurl on the grass patch, their bodies contorting in agony as they succumbed to the effects of a Red-induced seasickness. The other two, their faces pale and drawn, tried to hold it in with little effect, their talons clutching at their stomachs.

Ocellus got off board as well, stumbling about in a daze of dizziness. The world seemed to be spinning around her, and she had to grab onto a nearby tree to steady herself. Her vision was blurred, and her head throbbed with a painful intensity. As she tried to secure her surroundings, she realized that she was standing on a small, rocky outcrop, the ocean stretching out before her in all its vastness. She could only admire the scenery for a blink of an eye before the vomit deity claimed her stomach as well.

“Well wasn’t that fun!?” Gojo jumped off the boat, jiggling whilst carrying the several barrels with one arm stacked atop one another.

Silverstream followed suit, jiggling along with the human. She’d be lying if she said she didn’t enjoy herself, it has been a few years since she’d properly had any fun. Releasing his hold on the hippogriff, Silverstream plopped onto the wet sands, shaking herself as the post-ride experience sent tingles down her back.

“It sure was!”

“H-how was that fun!?” Ocellus managed to push out before another wave of nausea hit her.

“Don’t be such a pooper party.” Gojo waved.

“It’s party pooper.” Silverstream corrected.

“Same thing.” He replied, unbothered.

“I don’t think I can recover from this…” Ocellus gargled.

“Don’t be so dramatic,” Gojo said, ironic.

“D-dramatic!?”

After managing to pull themselves together, the trio duo thanked the guards escorting them as they made their way back to Mount Aris and parted goodbyes. All the while Gojo continues to munch on the apples supplied to them but still gives a simple wave. Turning ways, the trio trenched forward, walking through the forbidden land’s dense forest. The only natural compass available to them is the river running through the place. Following the stream, it was soon daybreak, the light of Celestia’s sun piercing through the moist din of the foliage and trees.

Several hours into their trek, they managed to break past into a small opening within the forest where the direct sunlight shines. Gojo plopped the barrels of fruits onto the grass, wiping the imaginary sweat on his forehead.

“Let’s set up camp here for the day.” He said, turning back to face Ocellus and Silverstream. “It’s a nice spot, with plenty of shade but enough sun and a nearby stream.”

“Okay!” Silverstream eagerly agreed, eyes sparkling with excitement. “I’ll gather some firewood!”
“Then… I’ll help in setting up the tents,” Ocellus added.

“That’d be great!” Gojo praised, getting up and stretching his back. “I’ll go get some meat.”
“…M-meat?” the two quivered, lips trembling as they turned to face Gojo.

“Yeah, shouldn’t be too hard to find a wild boar or something out here and cook it over fire for a bit,” Gojo turned over to look at them, smiling. This was when they both realised that Gojo had fangs in his teeth. “You guys want some? It’d be a nice treat after our long journey.”
“N-no thank you!” Ocellus waved her hooves.

“Same here!” Silverstream quickly added.

Gojo shrugged, “Suit yourselves.” Before taking off his coat and slinging over the barrel, now in his black tight-fit shirt, he pulled down his blindfold before vanishing in the blink of an eye. The leaves where he once stood danced in the soft whiplash of the wind.

There was a hesitant pause in the air before Ocellus flipped her head to face so fast it was almost comical.
“He eats MEAT!?”
“I-I don’t know!?!” Silverstream threw her talons up to defend herself.

Ocellus paced around the opening, pupils shrinking as her breathing turns irregular. She was starting to feel claustrophobic, trapped in this small clearing with a potential predator.

“He’s gonna cook us.” The changeling stated plainly.

“How did out of all the possibilities, that one comes to mind!?” Silverstream retorted.
“The moment he can’t find something to eat in these woods, it’s going to be us. He’s going to cook us…” Ocellus jumped to Silverstream, shaking her with an intensity proportionate to her panic. “He’s going to cook us!”

“R-relax, Ocellus!” Silverstream begged, trying to calm her friend. “Mr. Gojo would never do that!”
“He blasted Sombra’s troops without so much as batting an eye! What makes you think he’s going to-”

“Yo!” Came Gojo’s voice from behind. The two immediately cuts their conversation, spinning back to greet him. In his arms, were two large boars, both very dead from the lack of heads on their shoulders. “Did I miss something?”
“Nope! Not one thing.” Silverstream lied through her teeth.

Gojo tossed the bodies to the floor, his nonchalant attitude was beginning to worry the two. “It’s missing something… that’s right! Stew!” Gojo hammered his fist. “Be right back!”

The hippogriff gagged, covering her beak. Seeing the battered remains of the boar ooze out crimson onto the grassy patches and painting it a deep red, it's unsettling. Their stomach begins to churn, threatening to spew out the fruits they ate on the way here.

It was nighttime, the campfire Ocellus set up crackled with each intake of sticks and wood, warding off the cold of the darkness. The space was tense. Silent. The smell of cooked meat begins to puetrify the air as sliced boar sits skewered on sticks simmering to perfection.

Silverstream and Ocellus sat on a shared log opposite of Gojo’s. Although there was ample space for them to spread out more, they decided it’d be best to stick together. They stared at the meat, its muscles sliced eerily straight despite Gojo not owning cutting equipment of the sort. They could practically imagine their bodies being fillet.

That said, they couldn’t ignore the miniature, handleless stock pot sitting directly above the fire, its content bubbling underneath the metal lid. Another item courtesy of her greatness.

While the two were sitting like statues, Gojo was rolling his head back with crossed arms, tapping his foot impatiently on the grass blades, silent thumps that signal each passing second and further driving the two friend’s insanity through the imaginary roof.

After several more minutes of this mind-wasting, non-verbal altercation. Gojo stopped tapping his foot.

This is it, their time is up.

The tall man got up, kneeling near the fireplace and removing the stock pot without the need to make physical contact. Only has to wiggle his fingers in a manner that suggests where the pot should be moved. He sets it next to Silverstream and Ocellus, opening the lid and setting it aside, allowing the fragrance to blow into their faces.

“There aren’t any bowls or plates to eat from nor any utensils we could use from what I could find, sorry, you’ll have to make do with this.” Gojo said, “Go ahead, dig in.”
Ocellus and Silverstream leaned in to stare at the stew from above, it looked pretty okay at first glance. It’s what anybody would’ve guessed a standard vegetable stew would look like, no sight of lingering pieces of meat could be found though. Playing it safe, Ocellus brought the wooden spoon over with her magic and stirred the dish in a regular, clockwise manner. Checking all possible lumps and bumps if they were meat. To her surprise, there wasn’t. So far anyway.

“Um, Mr. Gojo?” Silverstream piqued.

“Yeah?” Gojo returned. “Something the matter?”

“Is there any meat in this stew?” Ocellus asked, sweat threatening to break her forehead.
“No, there isn’t.”

“R-really?” Silverstream asked.

“Yeah, guessed you both don’t eat meat the moment I asked if you guys wanted some. So I made some vegetarian stew. This is a first for me though, so go easy on the critiques!”
Ocellus and Silverstream exchanged looks, unsure if- oh what the heck, what else could Silverstream possibly lose in this forsaken world? Snatching the spoon from Ocellus’s grasp, she shoved the spoon into the stew and took a heaping full of the dish before bringing it to her beak and taking a bite.

It’s… pretty good! It’s bland, but considering the fact that they’re in the middle of nowhere with limited supplies such as salt and pepper, it's a darn good stew.

“Wow, Mr. Gojo! It’s delicious! I didn’t know you could cook!” The hippogriff complimented, before taking another mouthful. She paused to give the spoon to Ocellus, who begrudgingly took a mouthful as well. Her reluctance quickly turns into genuine shock and pleasure, scuffing several bites of the stew on her own.

“Watched it in a survival documentary once,” Gojo explained, taking a bite of the boar. “Thought it might come in useful on a mission.”

“I can’t imagine what you could cook up if you had a proper kitchen!” Ocellus added, mouth full of stew.

“I rarely cook, but…” Gojo took another bite of the boar, eh, could be more tender. He smirked, remembering the time he brought the students to an expensive restaurant in Roppongi after a mission. The way Silverstream inhaled that stew reminded the teacher of the way Yuji would devour that ribeye in less than a minute, then nervously ask for seconds. At the same time, Nobara would try to remain as ladylike as possible, but eventually, her walls would come crumbling down as she had an eat-off with Yuji in the 5-star facility. Kinda like how Ocellus was.

“It’d be a nice change of pace.” He admitted.

They began to chat for the rest of the time the fire was still lit, eating and exchanging stories and folktales of their worlds. Laughing the night away, talking about old friends, and reminiscing about simpler times. As the fire began to die down, Gojo even shared a story or two about how he “convinced” his underclassmen to get a license instead of pursuing sorcery before calling it for the night and heading to bed.

"Well, I think it's time to hit the hay," Gojo spoke, "We have a long journey ahead of us tomorrow."

Ocellus and Silverstream nodded in agreement. They gathered their belongings and set up their makeshift sleeping bags of piles of leaves near the campfire. They practically fell asleep within minutes, their fatigue finally caving in. Gojo lay on his own pile of leaves, blindfold still on, and staring at the stars in the rich, navy sky.

After a moment or two of ensuring the two girls were asleep, he slowly got up, making sure not to make any sudden noises that Turning might startle those two awake. Sneaking over to the trees nearby, Gojo walked into the darkness, the shadows swallowing him whole as he tiptoed deeper and deeper into the forest until he was confident he was out of earshot from the campsite. Looking back one last time to double-check he wasn't followed, he pointed two fingers towards the sky, cursed energy surging in his body and whispering.

“Emerge from the darkness, blacker than darkness. Purify that which is impure.”

Author's Note

Okay, for reals. I might not upload for the next few days now for reasons already stated. (im cooked) :fluttercry:

The Desert's Heat

The liquid darkness circling overhead dips into a dome that encompasses the campsite, dimming out the only light source provided to Gojo. It’s a small matter. Even in this dimly lit area, that blot of cursed energy in the distance was practically sticking out like a sore thumb to him. Clasping his hands together, Gojo shifted, the space distorting and warping around him as the ground beneath him swayed. In the next instance, he was next to a tree, staring at a chameleon curse perched on a tree branch.

The curse seemed to be looking for where Gojo teleported off to, glancing left and right to try to get an accurate reading of his whereabouts. Gojo floated over unbeknownst to the curse and swiped it off the branch.

“Eep!” The curse shrieked,

The sorcerer brought the thing closer to his face, examining it. This is weird; it isn’t squirming. In fact, it’s acting relatively calm for a low grade. The curse’s eyes glaze over Gojo’s features, trailing down his body and to their surroundings.

The white-haired human hummed, tilting his head a bit before an idea popped into his head. It was worth a shot, he thought.

Tightening the grip he had on the little fella, he inched his face closer.

“I know you’re still alive…” Gojo rumbled. In response, the curse’s eyes begin to widen, causing Gojo to crack a smile. “You can run, hide, or change your face, but the world won’t protect you from me… And now that I’m free, I will find you.”

Finishing what he wanted to say, the man crushed the chameleon in hand, purple blood splattering everywhere before its remains vapourised into the air. Good, this is good! This confirms his suspicion that body hopper is still alive. And it pretty much aligns with what he saw back at the beach with Sombra’s troops and that bunch of curses.

Flicking his hand for a bit to get rid of the stinky purple mess he made, he turns his heels and heads back in the direction of the camp. Whistling to himself from the satisfaction of a filling meal and a satisfied night as he released the curtain over him.

It was a blazing midday, one where it wouldn’t be wise to trek through the desert without proper preparation. And yet, there they were, a human, hippogriff, and changeling, walking through the dusty hills with ribbons of sand formations scattered about.

The sun was particularly ruthless this time of day, and it was evident by the amount of sweat dripping from Silverstream’s face. Dusty skulls lay scattered all across the fields; insects Gojo had never seen before crawled out of one of its sockets and dug beneath a rock the skull was leaning on. Gross.

Gojo and the two lumbered forward, huffing with each step.

“We-“ Silverstream huffed, tongue drying out. “Should be reaching Klugetown!”

“Why does the walk feel longer on the way back!?” Ocellus asked herself.

“I’m burnt…” Gojo commented, touching his delicate hand with the arm still carrying their luggage.

“W-wait!” Ocellus stopped, straining her eyes with a forehoof to her brows to act as shade. “I think I see it!”

Trudging over the dune along the cobblestone road, broken remains of ships decorate the empty spaces, guiding their eyes up to the marvellous, multi-mangled machinery and not-so-intricately stacked town of Klugetown. Billows of smoke rise from pipes sticking out of towers of scrap metal, and the air is so polluted that even the ultra finer details almost seem to be a blur for the sorcerer. Well, the keyword being almost.

Going along the cobblestone road, Gojo and the gang upped their pace a little. But two enormous gates and twin watch towers stopped them from entering the rusted city.

“Hey, Silverstream.” Ocellus perked,
“Yes?” She replied, staring at the metal gates.

“Was this gate always here?”

“I don’t think so, no.”

“Identify yourselves,” Came a robotic voice from one of the watch towers. Drawing their attention, the trio looked to the source of the sound. A mind-controlled troop of Sombra’s army peeked out of the cover. “In the name of his majesty.”

Right as Gojo was about to open his big fat mouth, Silverstream stepped forward, whispering. “I got this!”
Coughing into her talons, she patted Gojo on the leg and approached the tower, projecting her voice to ensure the soldier could hear her.

“Hello! We’re passing travellers from afar and wish to trade our goods! Oh, and long live his majesty!” Silverstream exclaimed with the most merchant voice she could muster before executing a bow in a show of good faith.

“Where do you come from?” The guard questioned.

“We just made it out of the forest back there,”

“You mean the forest leading to Mount Aris?”
“Uh, yeah.” When those words of confirmation left her lips, the troop’s horn flared to life.
“We lost contact with the squad patrolling Mount Aris. It is your group’s doing it, is it?”

A bead of nervous sweat dripped down Silverstream’s forehead. Glancing over to Ocellus, she meekly returned the gaze while looking for a way to get them out of the situation.

“Aha,” Silverstream faked a laugh. But it looked as though she was talking to the wall. “I don’t suppose you’ll turn a blind eye to this?”

The guard’s horn grew brighter.

In a flash, the guard fired off a concentrated blast of magic at the trio. Silverstream and Ocellus braced themselves for the impact, shutting their eyes and holding their bodies tight. But the explosion never came. Cracking an eye open, Silverstream checked her surroundings, only to see Gojo standing in front of her, his tall stature shielding her from the attack as it seemed to hover harmlessly in front of his face.

“Wha-?” Ocellus blurted out.

“Interesting,” Gojo analysed, “A mixture of Positive and Cursed Energies, this is a first.” Raising a hand up to the glowing ball of magic, he tickled it with the tip of his fingers before slapping the thing away. The projectile landed several feet away out of range and exploded harmlessly in the open sand fields. “My turn~!”

Bring the same hand that tickled the soldier’s attack high up, the space around his palm warped and bent. In the next instance, a gravitational pull sucked the two guards stationed on the watch tower into the air above the gate. The speed at which they were pulled caused them to come crashing into one another; the sound of armour metal clanged together, and their bodies tightened around each other’s limbs.

Intensifying the attraction, the metal gates were pulled and sucked in as well, folding and bending around the two guards; the sound of high-pitched metal whirling and moaning filled the air, and, not long after, a giant ball of junk metal floated in the middle of the path—small shards of metal and rusted steel orbit around it. The gate breaking seemed to trigger some alarm if the sound of blaring sirens and flashing red lights weren’t any indication.

Bringing the giant floating ball to himself, Gojo palmed the rusted surface, exploding it forward and decimating it through the various barricades and blocks set up for inspection. It crashed into the side of a building, rolling slightly before coming to a stop.

“Are… they alright?” Ocellus asked.

“Probably,” Gojo shrugged. “C’mon, let’s go.”

As they walked into Klugetown, the trio received stares from residents couped up in their homes and windows. Eyes wander all across their bodies, though not one goes unnoticed by Gojo.

“Halt!” Yelled a soldier’s voice up ahead, charging in with a sword. “In the name of-“
Gojo backhands the troop, sending him into the nearby building.

“Stop!” Came a more feminine voice from behind, leaping in with an axe-

Gojo backhands her into the building opposite her colleague, immediately sending her into a deep nap.

Walking deeper and deeper until they reach what Gojo could only assume to be the town square, with a giant fountain with a large open space and whatnot. More guards flooded in from every angle, some blocking the streets, others perched atop buildings behind cover, and some troops even appeared to be town residents. One in particular, a bipedal hog, pushed through the crowd with a spear. His head brandishing a mind-controlling helmet.

“You are surrounded!” The hog said, “Surrender or die!”

“Where’s your leader at!?” Gojo demanded,

“Last warning!” The hog threatens.

“Listen here, Piggy!” Gojo mocked, pointing a daring finger at him, “Either you bring’em out here, or I’m blasting every one of your pals to smithereens. The choice is yours. Well, I’m still gonna blast all of ya, but hurry up!”

The tips of his fingers begin to glow red, and the air spins around the focus as Gojo releases a blast of divergence at the gathered crowd of soldiers. The attack blasts the group in an explosive warning and scatters their flying bodies around the plaza.

“Need a bigger demonstration?” The sorcerer smirked.

Suddenly, a faded silhouette marking an opening space grew darker and darker until a blur dropped from the skies in an explosive rumble that even shook the earth. The mysterious figure got up, the low-lying dust clouds dissipating to show a very built cyan pony clad in black armour with a standardised mind-controlled helmet. He had a red cape and a crest of the Crystal Empire engraved onto his shoulder guard while his mane and beard poked through the protective gear. To top it all off, he carried what looked to be a weaponised black and red shovel on his back.

He was heavily decked out from top to bottom.

“That would be me.” The pony spoke, eyes gleaming purple.

“So you’re the leader running things around here?” Gojo asked, plopping down the barrel before taking a step forward. Only to be stopped by a talon and hoof grabbing his leg.

“D-don’t!” Ocellus warned, “It’s Rockhoof!”

“Uh-huh,” Gojo nodded, “Who’s that?”

“A pillar of old!” Silverstream answered. “He was a hero who saved Equestria in the past! H-he’s strong! And fast! Too fast even for you!”

“Hey, don’t worry!” Gojo patted their heads, pointing a thumb at himself with his trademark smile. “I’m the strongest!”

Right as Gojo said this, Rockhoof charged forward at blinding speeds with his shovel in his mouth. “For his majesty!” Rockhoof roared.

Bringing the shovel back, Rockhoof unleashed a gargantuan swing onto the sorcerer. The shovel connected with an earth-shattering hit, quaking the ground they stood on. The dust quickly settled, revealing Gojo was no longer where he was. Rather, he was sitting on Rockhoof’s back with a leg over the other.

Gojo leaned onto his hand, the same arm resting atop his thigh. “Where’re you aiming that~?”

Rockhoof spun the shovel and rolled it around his neck, forcing Gojo to hop off as the shovel landed squarely on the ground beside Rockhoof. Picking it back up, Rockhoof flung the weapon at Gojo while making a break for it at the human.

Catching the shovel midair with his bare hand, he forced the weapon into the ground, his hand still on the handle and using it like a walking cane. Pivoting on his heel, his body rolled out of Rockhoof’s way as Gojo danced around the earth pony. Making a fool out of him in front of hundreds of watching eyes.

“Hey.” Gojo quipped, leaning back into Rockhoof’s ear. “My travel buddies are watching, so I’m gonna show off a little, yeah?”
Rockhoof spun back, swinging his hindleg in a low sweep. But Gojo was already gone, standing several feet behind him. Rockhoof gave chase, leaping into the air with several somersaults to gain further speed before dropping back down like a meteor, extending his hindleg in a devasting axe kick.

Gojo didn’t move. In fact, he seemed to welcome Rockhoof with open arms. All window of opportunity to dodge was erased as Gojo continued to stand there, Rockhoof’s leg diving closer and closer to his face. Right at the moment when Rockhoof’s hoof would’ve connected squarely onto Gojo’s forehead, the sorcerer adjusted his positioning ever so slightly in such a way that Rockhoof’s attack missed him entirely. Causing the pony to continue falling down onto the handle of the shovel Gojo held onto.

Rockhoof’s crotch made contact first as he landed on the handle with an earth-shattering boom! The pony’s body jolted a bit, staying mechanically still. The sound of pain whimpers could be heard while a tear streaked down the edges of the helmet. Gojo smirked, leaning in closer.

“What’s wrong?” He teased, “Something broke?”

Pulling the shovel and, in turn, the support keeping Rockhoof upright from underneath him, the large pony begins to fall back onto the ground briefly. Tossing the weapon away in quick succession, Gojo brought his hand into a fist, launching the knuckle straight into Rockhoof’s gut with the attraction of Blue.

The fist dug deep into the underbelly of the pillar. Gojo swore he could feel something even breaking as Rockhoof was sent careening backwards. The poor pony was sent through several buildings, tearing through metal walls before coming to a stop at the end of the street. The only indication that he was there was a new billow pillar of smoke emitting from the crash site.

Ocellus and Silverstream looked on with slacked jaws, and so did the foot soldiers on the battlefield. All of their eyes were wide in disbelief. Turning over to the sorcerer, Gojo smirked, throwing a peace sign and a thumbs up their way. His nonchalance fully threw them for a loop.

“Told ya I’m the strongest!” Gojo boasted with his singsong voice.

Rest & Relaxation

Gojo stood alone in the open plaza, the dust clouds around him dissipating from the attack he landed on Rockhoof. The place seemed really quiet after his display of strength; grinning at his own grace and power, Gojo spun around on his heels. Only to be greeted by a charging drone from Sombra’s army at him.

“Even with the clear strength difference, these guys still attack me?”Gojo thought with a huff,

Funnelling his cursed energy through his technique, Gojo sent a torrent of force at the charging drone. The effect was immediate; one of his forelegs was twisted ever so slightly with a snap. This caused him to buckle his weight and tumble over to Gojo’s feet, his momentum sending him to drag forward before coming to a stop.

Gojo squatted down to the soldier, bringing his gigantic hand to palm the entire helmet. “What an interesting flow of cursed energy.” He stated, concentrating on the intricacies and ridges of the helmet. Meticulously flowing his own cursed energy into the headpiece in such a way that it cuts the helmet’s cursed energy, binding it to the soldier’s skull.

The two cursed energies clashed within the helmet, foreign and non-foreign, both trying to dominate the space within. In this moment of fine-tuning his cursed energy, a sweat even broke from his forehead, which was quickly absorbed by his blindfold. Speaking of his blindfold, Gojo pulled it up to reveal his eye, granting him better vision and enhancing the smaller details.

He bit his lips, squinting his eye as the helmet’s grip on the soldier’s skull began to loosen. With a final pulse, the latches near the back of his head snapped open as the green light glowing in the inner visors died out, and the sound of a pressurised hiss released from the corners of his jaws. At the angle where the soldier was lying down, the mind-controlling headpiece tumbled unceremoniously onto the ground next to the pony. Releasing him from years of service and finally showing him what he, along with the entirety of the Crystal Empire, wanted. Freedom.

The pony’s cheeks were sunken in, while his mane looked knotted and tangled, almost like they weren’t well taken care of for a long time. Figures. Though, now that Gojo’s gotten a better look at the fellow, he couldn’t help but feel a little bad for him.

The downed pony took a sharp, ragged inhale. His chest collapsed in as he choked a little, coughing out a little saliva. He cracked an eye open, pupils dilating and adjusting to the desert sun. He tried to speak, but his voice seemed worn out, the movement proving too much for his chapped lips to handle, causing it to break open and a small line of blood to be visible.

“Yo!” Gojo greeted, “How’re you feeling?”

“D-dad…?” The pony mumbled out,

“Sorry, not your pops.” Gojo got up, brushing himself off. Silverstream and Ocellus rushed over to the body, a fluttering sensation filling their chest.

“T-there’s…no way!” Silverstream chirped, reaching down to check on the pony’s condition.

“He’s free from Sombra’s control!” Ocellus added, turning to Gojo. “How did you do it?! Whenever we tried to tinker with the helmet, it would have killed the pony before we could do anything!”

Gojo scoffs, “It’s a matter of cursed energy funnelling. Though tricky, given enough time, even my students can do it.” Looking over to the remaining horde of soldiers, Gojo sighed, looking up to the sky and rolling his shoulder. “This is going to take a while.”

“W-wait!” Ocellus spoke, stopping the sorcerer for a second. “Could you not break their limbs when you are freeing them?”

Gojo gave an even greater sigh, shaking his head. “Okay… sure...” Walking to the bunch, he rolled his eyes behind his blindfold. Kind of glad that it was there in the first place. “Looking out for the weak, huh…” He thought, scrunching his nose. “What a pain.”

Gojo and the crew busted through the door to a local hotel, trudging to the counter in their tired states. Their bodies felt numb from moving all those unconscious bodies, and their legs were leadweight. Silverstream leaned on the desk with great effort, dirt and grim all over her body. “2 rooms please…for the night,” She requested,

“Ya got money?” The receptionist inquired,

Gojo suddenly slams the table with an open palm, shaking the entire front with a smile twitching on his face. “We just liberated your town from Sombra’s rule,” he leans over the counter, bringing his face closer to him. “and this is how you treat your saviours?”

“…” The receptionist took a pair of keys from hanging from the wall and tossed them onto the tabletop, mumbling to himself with a grunt. “Level 2, room 13 and 14.” He stated.

Gojo happily swiped the keys, “Thank you, sweetheart.” Gojo said before making his way to the rooms upstairs.

Ocellus turns over to Silverstream, eyes half-lidded in partial unamusement and partial fatigue. Silverstream shrugged at her, her own expression equally as unbothered and tired as hers.

Catching up with Gojo up the stairs, he tossed a key over to the two, to which Silverstream caught with their talons.

“I think it's best if I have a separate room to myself,” Gojo said, bringing a hand from the top of his head before gesturing it down his body. With my size and all.”

“Yeah,” Ocellus agreed, yawning to herself. “Goodnight, Mr. Gojo.”

“Goodnight, Mr. Gojo,” Silverstream added,

“Goodnight to both of you,” Gojo replied, heading into his room. Ducking under the door frame and closing the door behind him. He set their things down in the corner of the room and sauntered over to the bathroom. Entering it, every single item inside looked either worn down or was poorly taken care of.

There wasn’t even a showerhead, only a large enough bucket with a dipper to manually scoop the water overhead for a shower. Even the bottled shampoos and body wash were all used up and squeezed dry. Dang, he missed Tokyo already. Sucking it up, he begins to get undressed and tossed his clothes outside, getting himself drenched with the dipper as he clears the sweat and grim off his body. Grabbing the squeezed bottle of shampoo, Gojo poured water into the opening of the bottle and shook the bottle for a bit before pouring the remaining shampoo on his head.

He used his fingers to scrub his white set of hair clean, and then he repeated the steps for the body wash. Although the quality of the shower should be under inspection, it is still a shower, as Gojo got out of the bathroom feeling somewhat refreshed with a ridiculously small towel wrapped around his privates.

He took the clothes off the ground and hung his oversized jacket near the window to air them out. Then, he dried himself the best he could and wore back his shirt and long pants. He lay on the bed, the pillow doing very little to give Gojo any comfort with how little structure it has. But it still beats sleeping on the grass out in the wilderness.

It’s been long since the sorcerer had slept for more than four hours for more than two days straight. A real luxury with what was needed to balance his teaching life with high-grade mission commitments.

Well, now that he’s here. It isn’t like he’s got a choice. The best outcome would be to capture that body hopper as soon as possible and interrogate him before finally serving his head on a platter. That’ll be his other goal, to find out what happened and what’s with the strangeness of this world.

Leaning deeper into the bed, he shut his eyes. Best not to ponder more than necessary. It isn’t like he’d get answers now. Best to enjoy the rest while he still can. Whether it was from the long journey through the desert or just from straight fatigue, Gojo’s consciousness faded quickly after a brief moment of relaxation. His mind diving deep into the dream realm.

The ornate chandeliers cast a soft, golden glow on the room, their reflections dancing across the polished marble floor. The air was thick with the scent of fine cuisine and expensive perfume while patrons dined with the clatter of cutlery against posh china plates.

“No way!” Yuji chirped, leaning across the dinner table. “What happened next?!”

“I stole Utahime’s skirt, of course!” Gojo boasted, throwing a hand up.

Yuji busted a gut laughing at this. “Y-your serious!?!”

Gojo grinned. "A little chaos is always good for the soul."

Nobara snorted. "Well, I didn’t know what I’d expected. I swear, my hair would’ve turned grey if I was Utahime-sensei."

Megumi, his face impassive as always, simply nodded. "He still does it, but I'm used to it.”

Nobara laughed. "Yeah, right. Like you didn't enjoy it a little bit."

“Hey!” Yuji interjects, “You’d laugh too!”

As the trio continued to exchange their banters, Gojo bathed in the relaxing atmosphere. Reminiscing on this feeling with his students and taking in the scenery before his smile quickly faded.
“I think I’d enjoyed myself enough,” Gojo said, getting up.

Curious, the students got up as well. “Where’re we going, Gojo-sensei?” Yuji asked.

But Gojo didn’t respond to the young talent. Instead, he shot his hand up to the air on his right. Grasping at an invisible object and gripping it tightly. The world around Gojo quickly dissolved into the void, including his students and the high-end restaurant where they enjoyed dinner.

The air Gojo gripped soon painted a deep sapphire as a figure of a pony manifested quite literally in the palm of his hand. Her mane imitated the stars like that of the night sky, flowing gently in the non-existent breeze while boring both wings and a horn with an image of a crescent moon plastered on her flank.

Gojo frowned, tilting his head whilst tightening his hold. “So, who’re you?”

The pony squealed, eyes bulging out of their sockets. “You’re Gojo Satoru, correct?” The pony laughed, “Your time on this planet is very limited.”

Gojo gave a quick “Huh.” Turned to think for a second before snapping back at the pony. “You’re acting really annoying for someone in neck-breaking distance, you know that?” He tightened his grip once more, this time her face turning from a noticeable red to a deep purple. “So I’ll ask one more time,” He leaned in closer, “Who’re you?”

“Goodnight, Gojo Satoru.” The pony wheezed out with a smile, “Enjoy the last of your- ack-! Days!”

“Tsk.” Gojo reflexively gave out,

Having heard enough of this nonsense, Gojo pulled an arm back and struck the mysterious pony in the face. Right when his fist connects with her cheek, his striking hand emits an ominous red glow.

“Cursed Technique Reversal:” Gojo muttered as the reality and space around them started to shatter, but it wasn’t fast enough to stop his explosive discharge of cursed energy. “Red.”

In the next moment, the expansive, destructive force exploded outwards while the red light washed out the falling remains of the shattered dream realm, combining cursed energy and magic in a sick mixture of clashing energies.

Gojo shot up from his bed, his blindfold still wrapped around his eyes and the bedsheets still covering roughly sixty percent of his legs. He wriggled his toes, even popping some as he hopped off the bed. He caressed the side of his head, rubbing it gently. That was one weird dream.

No point dwelling. Looking over to the clock on the nightstand, Gojo raised his eyebrows in surprise, whistling.

“Seven hours of sleep?” Gojo stated, “New record.”
Walking over to the bathroom, Gojo freshens up and changes, donning his jacket before heading downstairs with an extra prep in his step.

“Mr. Gojo!” Silverstream called out, “You’re up early!”

“Good morning, Silverstream!” He returned the greeting. “Where’s Ocellus?”
“She’s sleeping in for a bit. I thought I’d get a bite to eat first.”

“What are they serving today?” Gojo walked over to the hippogriff, taking the coffee out of the machine. “No way a place like this got room service.”
Silverstream giggled, “You’re not wrong. By the way, Rockhoof’s awake.”
“The pony I punched through the buildings yesterday?” Gojo poured himself a steaming cup while adding unhealthy sugar cubes. “Surprised he’s up and running the very next day.”

“I wouldn’t say he’s “Up and running.” Bedridden is the more adept description.”

“So we’re paying him a visit?” Gojo sipped on the cup, his face instantly souring. “Yuck.”

“After breakfast,” Silverstream grabbed a plate from the pile, walking over to the cafeteria. “You coming?”

“Not if the rest of the café food is like this.” Gojo placed the vile cup of coffee on the table. He won’t be drinking this anytime soon. “But no harm in exploring.” Catching up to the hippogriff in a few easy strides, the pair entered the establishment near the lobby of the hotel. Gojo nearly bumping his head for the second time that morning.

The same night, six in the morning, Canterlot Castle.

In one of the desolate halls of the royal castle, the palace shook with a sudden force, the source in question blasting herself through several walls of the halls and skittering herself across the ruined dusty carpets before coming to a stop at the base of a pillar. The dust settles, revealing Luna’s melted face in the moonlight, the burn exposing a portion of her cheekbones and her lower jaw as she sat in contemplative agony.

“What are you doing?” Came a low growl,

Luna looked up at the figure, her heart racing in her chest. A pony was shrouded in darkness, gazing down upon her. Yet, the two sets of eyes and aura exuding from his person were unmistakable.

“L-lord Sukuna…” Luna tried to bow in her sorry state, lowering her head even further so that her wound was touching the nasty ground. “my apologies for causing such a ruckus at this hour, please punish me as you see fit.”

The king rolled his two sets of eyes, “Is this related to Gojo Satoru?”

“…”

Sukuna snickered, turning around. “Get this place cleaned up.”

Though he couldn’t see it, Luna’s face was burning up from embarrassment. She bit her half-regenerated lip, breaking new wounds as blood dripped from her chin. “Damn you, Gojo Satoru! Making a fool of me in front of his lordship!”

Getting up, Luna teleported a broom next to her, and she began to clean up the mess she had made with a most heinous scowl on her face. She didn’t get very far into the cleaning before a letter popped into existence next to her. Taking it from the air, she unscrolled it and needed to read only one word before ripping it to shreds, already knowing which scoundrel had written that letter to her as her face turned even redder than before.

The word in question: LOL.

Author's Note

Sorry guys I got hooked on RDR2. The story's really got me in a death hold, LOL. :rainbowwild:

Freedom's Takeaway

It was still another blazing day in Klugetown, though the heat was somewhat more bearable as compared to yesterday with the metal towers shielding Gojo and Silverstream from coming into direct contact with the sun’s merciless rays.

The duo walked downtown and into the supposed and reformed territory of Sombra’s troops; there were merits to being under Sombra’s rule. One was free healthcare. But only to the soldiers serving his army, and said soldiers would get the most basic forms of treatment. But free healthcare is free healthcare. Who could possibly complain?

Walking past the street and turning at the sign, Gojo spoke.

“Don’t suppose the food they serve there is better than the café?”

Silverstream blew a raspberry, “C’mon, hospitals aren’t well-known for their quality of foods.”

“Whichever serves the better breakfast.” Gojo shrugged, “That sludge they served just now just isn’t it. I think I can still feel it slopping down my throat.”

“Ewww.” Silverstream stuck her tongue out. “You don’t have to remind me or put that image in my head.”

After crossing another street, Gojo could see the hospital over the horizon. Its black paint and Crystal Empire logo, with its sleek design and large, menacing red cross, stuck out amongst the rusted buildings.

Gojo whistled, “I didn’t know the tyrant’s a designer!”

“You shouldn’t be praising a tyrant either.” Silverstream’s eyes threw daggers at him. To this, Gojo surrendered with his hands up.

“Hey, I’m giving props where it’s due!”

Silverstream squinted her eyes further. “Whatever you say,”

Upon entering the building, Gojo and Silverstream made their way to the front desk. To their surprise, a pony was there to greet them. It was the same pony Gojo first freed; his dishevelled mane seemed to calm down a bit, and he even regained colouration on his cheeks.

“Hello, mister!” The pony greeted with a smile, “Hello, Ms Silverstream!”

“Silverstream is fine.” The hippogriff waved off.

“Gojo,” Gojo added,

“Sure! The pony hopped off the chair, trotting over to an entrance of a hall. “Please follow me!”

Gojo and Silverstream walked behind the pony at a steady pace, noticing medical equipment left in the open and bits of trash lying about in a heap of unhygienic mess.

“You sure you can be up and about?” Gojo inquired, picking up a lone syringe off a table stand as they passed by, inspecting the glass. “You looked worse for wear.”

“Oh, I’ll be fine. Mr. Gojo.” The pony said, turning his head back to look at him. “With the things I’ve done, I couldn’t possibly rest while others continue to suffer from my doing.”

“It isn’t your fault, you know that?” Silverstream tried to console him, but the pony just laughed it off.

“Thank you, Silverstream. I get what you’re coming from.” The pony smiled, “But for ponies like me, there’s never a moment we could ever get any peace of mind.”

“Say, what’s your name?” Gojo asked, tossing the syringe behind his back and forcing Silverstream to jump back and catch it before it shattered on the hospital tile floors. “Didn’t think we asked you before.”

“Star Striker,” Star said, turning a corner to another corridor and guiding the duo to follow him.

“Fancy name, Star Striker,” Gojo commented,

“Thanks, my dad picked it out for me.”

“Figured.” Gojo laughed, glancing at his shooting star cutie mark. “So, what was being mind-controlled like?”

“Mr. Gojo!” Silverstream reprimanded, turning to the towering human.

“It’s fine, Silverstream!” Star assured, “Well, safe to say I wasn’t all there for those past five years.” He chuckled, trying to lighten the mood. “I would remember flashes of memories from time to time and even be fully conscious of others. There was an event I could recall. I was deployed in Appleloosa, uh, I think I was holding a family hostage. A mother and her filly, but I wasn’t too sure what happened after. I hope they are well.”

The trio turned to another corridor. “Another time, I was eating some MRE in a bunker with five other ponies. The rations were laughable! No way was it enough to be filling! And the room was awkwardly silent, too!”

“Must be weird,” Gojo folded his arms behind his head. “having something else pilot your body.”

“You said it.” Star agreed. “Oh, we’re here.”
Stopping by a large metal, reinforced door. Gojo glanced at Silverstream, which she promptly shrugged him. Star approached the door, knocking at it to produce thuds loud enough to alert anybody else in the corridor of their presence. Gojo turned to look down the corridor, catching a few glimpses of curious ponies and residents of Klugetown staring at the trio. Eyes wide with curiosity, almost like they’re seeing an alien with the way they’re staring.

“Mr. Rockhoof? Silverstream and Mr. Gojo are here to see you!”

“Come in!” Rockhoof spoke through the barrier.

Opening the metal door and stepping aside, Star guided Gojo and Silverstream into the room while still staying out. He smiled, bowing as they passed him. “I’ll be waiting outside to give you some privacy.”
“Thank you, Star!” Silverstream smiled, “You’ve been a big help!”

“Don’t mention it,” Star pulled back, trotting over to guard the door with a nod. “It’s the least I could do.”

Shifting their focus over to the lone bed where Rockhoof lay, he looked… well, being hooked to an IV drip with a giant brace and cast over his midsection really speaks volumes of his condition. Despite his condition, he welcomed the two with a smile and a hearty laugh.

“Silverstream!’ Rockhoof greeted, “And my saviour, Mr. Gojo! I couldn’t express my gratitude with words for freeing me!”

“Don’t thank me,” Silverstream waved off, gesturing over to the sorcerer. “You should have all your thanks directed at him. Mr. Gojo’s the one that got that helmet off you!”

“Yes, you’re right!” Rockhoof tried bowing but stopped midway when he whinced in pain. “T-thank you, Mr. Gojo!”

“You shouldn’t move too much, with your injuries and all.” Gojo walked over to the nearby chairs, picked it up and flipped one of them around. Placing it next to the bed and motioning for Silverstream to come over. She quickly did and sat on one of them, followed by Gojo, who was sitting on the flipped chair. Resting his arms on the top rail and leaning his head on his forearm in a more relaxed manner. “Aside from your condition, Silverstream and I came to ask if you have any other information that would be valuable for our travels. Stopping that mad tyrant Sombra and all.”

“Of course! Hold on, let me think for a moment…” Rockhoof hummed, looking up to the ceiling in mock recollection. “It was back when Sombra resurrected after the Canterlot Incident and Luna’s defection. Sombra had cornered me and my friends in his wicked magic and forced his dastard helmets onto us. My memory after that was fuzzy. I remember leading a contingent for the sake of that maniac, and Starswirl, Mistmane, and Flash Magnus all are currently acting as Sombra’s foremost generals, leading his army to conquer more of Equestria each passing day.”

Rockhoof stifled a groan, rubbing his temple in gentle circles. “After the defeat of that behemoth of a raging monster back when Tirek, Chrysalis, and Cozy Glow attacked Canterlot, I have no idea what came over Princ- I mean, Luna to warrant an all-out war against the other nations.”

“This Luna you speak of,” Gojo gestured with a circular wave of his hand. “How does she look like?”
“She’s an alicorn, Gojo.” Silverstream filled him in, “A pony with both wings and a horn, her coat’s an evening blue with an equally majestic mane that looked just like the night sky.”
“Hmm,” the human hummed, “Does she have some sort of magic to alter dreams?”

“Yes, she does.” Silverstream shifts in her seat, “Why’d you ask?”

“I’ve met her already,” Gojo pursed his lips with his hand, head still resting atop the top rail. “Just last night, actually.”
“W-what!?” Silverstream jumped up from her chair, “How’d you survive? No one survived an encounter with Luna in the dream realm!”
Gojo smirked with a raised eyebrow, snapping his fingers. “Hehe, I just punched her really hard in the face.”

Silverstream creased her forehead, “Is your solution to everything just punching it?”
“If it gets the job done, you can’t complain~”

Silverstream sat back down in her seat, holding back a chuckle.

“Well said, my friend!” Rockhoof laughed once more but stopped when another jolt of pain triggered in his abdomen. “Oof! That reminds me! The reason for my control over this territory was due to a sudden upsurge of strange energies in this area, as well as searching for an object called “The Prison Realm”. But all my team managed to dig up was this strange limb that resembled a minotaur’s fingers.”

“A finger? So that was what that weird sensation of cursed energy was?”
“Do you know something about it, Mr. Gojo?” Silverstream asked, her body shuddering at the thought of handling some dismembered limb.

“Maybe, but I have to see it for further examination,” Gojo said, swaying in his seat.

“If memory serves, that finger is held within a mini vault in my office,” Rockhoof noted, “that the particulars are still a bit vague…”

Gojo got up from his seat, stretching a little with a lean. “Thank you for your time, Rockhoof. Best we get going and let you rest up. Oh, and sorry about the caved-in chest, by the way.”

“You did what you had to, lad. Don’t worry about it! And if you’re going to continue your journey north, the ponies and towns folk both agreed to organise an airship for your travels. Just let us know when you’re ready to leave!”

“That’d be greatly appreciated, Rockhoof.” Gojo turned back with a smile, waving at the hospitalised pillar. “Thanks again!”

Stepping out of the room, Star eagerly turned to the two with an excited hop in his step. “So, how’d it go?”

“Got some good intel.” Gojo turned on his heels over to face Star. “Could you lead us to Rockhoof’s office?”

“Uh… Sure?” Star glanced around, finding the fastest route for an exit before signalling for the two to follow. “Follow me.”

“Is Rockhoof also staying in back in town?” Silverstream questioned, trotting close behind the other two.

“Yeah, like the rest of us, he also feels responsible for enslaving the residents. He promises to rebuild Klugetown piece by piece before heading to other places he “wrecked and destroyed” to aid recovery efforts. With his strength, it shouldn’t take long to bring Klugetown back to its… uh… glory. I’m surprised; why didn’t you ask him personally?”

“Didn’t feel it was right”, Silverstream sighed, “Or appropriate.”

“I understand.”

As the ex-militant led the human and hippogriff tag team out of the building, Rockhoof rested deeper into his pillows, staring at the black ceiling and sighing. “That blindfolded alien sure was creepy…” He thought, trying to adjust his position and stopped once another jolt of pain rocketed through his body.

“Found anything yet?” Silverstream piqued from behind the drawers in the desk.

“Nope, nothing,” Gojo replied from the small cabinet in the corner; everything on the desk ended up empty or useless.

“I’m pretty sure we ransacked the place, but the finger isn’t here.” Silverstream walked over from behind the desk, eyeing every corner of the tent. Her talons dug into the thin carpet beneath them, practically able to feel the grains of sand below it as her body shifted on the uneven plains.

“Wait, we’re near it. I sense it.” Gojo reached for his blindfold and tugged it down, revealing the eyes that reflected the ocean blues—the same pair of eyes that see it all. “Let’s give it one more go-around.”

Scanning the entirety of the inner tent, a striking influx of cursed energy emanated from the desk. Curious, Gojo walked over to the same desk that Silverstream had rummaged, rechecking each drawer.

“I’ve already checked the drawer thrice. That finger isn’t there.”

Huffing, Gojo brought a hand up into a fist and hammered at the desk, smashing and splintering the table into two and sending stacks of paperwork and such littering across the carpet floor. From the inside of the two-piece wooden structure was the same mini vault Rockhoof was talking about, tucked neatly in a hidden compartment within the table. Gojo’s first pummel already dented the metal safe; crouching onto one knee, the sorcerer brought his hand down again, denting the safe even further and leaving an imprint of his fist.

Taking the two corners of the vault, Gojo tore it straight open, releasing the finger trapped within as it plopped onto the carpet with a soft thud. Tossing the hunk of junk metal aside, Gojo picked up the finger as Silverstream jogged over to his side.

“That…” Silverstream began, her face turning a tinge of green. “Looks disgusting…”

“It’s strange…” Gojo commented, rubbing his chin.

“Yeah, seeing a dismembered finger oozing a weird aura does that to a creature…” The hippogriff gagged, covering her mouth. “I think I’m gonna puke…”

“No, that isn’t it…” Gojo mumbled, “his cursed energy feels different…”

“Who’s is?”

“Hmm… never mind, it’s nothing.” Gojo stood up, stashing away the finger into his jacket. “We should start heading out of town; go wake Ocellus up; I’ll go talk to the ponies and towns folk.”
“Will do,” Silverstream nodded, walking over to the covers of the tent. “Meet you at the airship’s take-off pad?”

“Sure.” Gojo threw a thumbs-up.

Silverstream took this as her cue to leave, leaving Gojo alone in Rockhoof’s tent and office hybrid. Gojo pulled his blindfold to cover his eyes while staring at the finger stashed in his jacket. “What are you hiding, Sukuna?” He mumbles as he, too, leaves the tent.

The Eye of The Storm

The atmospheric change aboard the black, overprotected battleship was noticeable. The temperature in the air dropped, and Gojo could feel the pressure in his ears popping a little. The sorcerer leaned back onto the wooden guard aboard the ship. His snow-like hair flowed gently in the wind as he swirled the mug of water in his off-hand.

Gojo reared his head back, staring straight up at the still blistering desert sun. However, it cooled considerably when the airship entered the badlands territory. The clouds came in bulk, providing sunshade and giving the crew aboard respite from the golden death rays threatening to tear through Gojo’s perfect skin. He took a swig from the mug, exhaling through his nostrils and trying to get some sort of enjoyment from this.

Ocellus sauntered over from his rear, trying her best to stifle a yawn, but to no avail as a tear broke from her eye. “It’s too early for this…” Ocellus mumbled and complained,

“The cabin’s pretty vacant right now. Why not take a nap there?” Gojo suggested,

“I’d rather not break my sleep schedule…” Ocellus smacked her lips, eyes shut tight. “Mr. Gojo?”

“Yeah?”

“Why are you helping us?”

“What do you mean?” Gojo shifted slightly, head still facing the sky.

“Well, aside from getting you back home.” Ocellus leaned onto the guard, soaking in the sights above the clouds as the winds kissed her cheek. “Isn’t it much more trouble to babysit two creatures you never met before over a journey filled with so much… uncertainty? And it isn’t like you lacked the power. In fact, you have such overwhelming strength. You could do whatever you want.”

Gojo was… stunned. He never really placed that deep of thought on these kinds of things. He’d usually follow his gut and think of things when the time came. Sure, there was the whole appearing in a world so similar yet so different. But… If he was asked to give an answer… then…

“Say…” Gojo began, hunching over. “Have you ever lived in a corrupt system?”

“Yup,” Ocellus snickered, “Though those days were long ago.”

“How was it like?” Gojo asked, staring at the horizon.

Ocellus joined him, “Torturous, when I first hatched, it was all I’ve ever known. To steal as much love as possible for the hive. Fight, fight, and more fighting. I was… to be frank, sick of it. But what can I do? I was just one changeling.” She chuckled, “Maybe because of my military past, I’d adjusted to the wastelands so quickly… that all this death and mountains of bodies I trek over became secondary to me…But only Faust would know.” She turned over to the human, eyes glazing over his person. “You?”

“You summed it up pretty well,” Gojo smiled, though not from cheerfulness. “I was sick of it all, those old bums that think everything will bend to their will. Sacrificing the youths of sorcerers in an attempt to maintain their power was revolting. I wanted change.”

Gojo’s smile died the moment the mention of the higher-ups left his lips, a scowl crossing his face as tension thickened in the air. Despite that, Ocellus never felt fear, which even surprised her. She thought that the moment Gojo stopped throwing jokes was when the situation was dire. But maybe it’s because they came from similar paths of history that she would emphasize with Gojo.

“But just killing those old farts would not change anything; some newer farts would just replace them… So, I thought of nurturing strong and clever allies that would make the change necessary to flip this corrupt society on its head. But…” Gojo took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. “I had a lot of time to think within that prison, and I came to a conclusion. If I nurtured them to achieve my goals, I’d be no different than those higher-ups taking control of my student’s fate. I reject that idea.” Gojo snapped his fingers, “I’ll guide my students, and if they choose to change Jujutsu society for the better, I’ll support them. If they defect, I’ll guide them back onto the right path. As an educator, I will still foster them as strong and clever allies who can make their own decisions... Or, that was my dream. Until all this stuff happened. I guess… You remind me of my students.”

“Educator? So, you’re a teacher to your… uh… sorcerer students?” Ocellus inquired, “You didn’t strike me as the teacher type.”

“Being a sorcerer is an occupation.” Gojo commented, “That both my work… and who I am.”

“A teacher,” Ocellus smiled, closing her eyes as she reminisced the past. “I hadn’t heard that word in a long time. I knew a teacher too, she was one of the bravest ponies I had known…”

“What was her name?” Gojo asked,

“Her name was… Fluttershy.”

“I see…”

“It’s actually pretty funny now that I think about it,” Ocellus giggled, turning to lean her side on the railing and facing Gojo head-on. “Rainbow mentioned taking a ride on an airship back when Storm King attacked Canterlot.”

Gojo folded his arms, “What? Another villain of the week?”

“I guess you could say that,”

“Man, you people can never catch a break, huh?” Gojo thrusts forward, getting his butt off the wooden guard in one swift motion. “Well, lunch is about ready, from what I heard. I’ll call you over when it's done.”

“Thanks… for the talk and the company,” Ocellus said, turning tail to the back of the ship. “I’ll be aimlessly wandering around. Feel free to call me…”

“Sure thing.”

The rest of the day was uneventful, or at least to Gojo it was. After sharing lunch with the cabin crew of five other ponies previously a part of Sombra’s army, Gojo wandered around the underdeck of the ship. Walking past storages, sleeping quarters, and…

Gojo pushed open the wooden door to a room filled with multiple stacks of crates. To the ordinary eye, it looked to be the most run-of-the-mill storage room, but Gojo had anything but ordinary eyes. His enhanced senses picked up a faint, almost imperceptible vibration emanating from one of the crates.

Intrigued, he walked over to the nearest stack of crates and ripped open one of the containers at the top. Wood splintered and cracked, echoing across the room. Underneath a pile of paper confetti and plush cushions, he found a helmet that was unmistakably identical to the ones worn by Sombra's army.

Gojo huffed, grabbed the headwear with one hand, and with little effort, crushed it in one swift motion, molding it into a shape beyond repair.

The sound of metal moaning and groaning and wood splitting could be heard for the next several minutes from outside the room. Not that anyone passed by to check on what the strange bipedal alien was doing. Gojo stepped out of the room, waving his hand to relieve the small tension built up from the repeated action of gripping solid metal in the palm of his hand. Shutting the door behind him, Gojo whistled a tune as he strolled down the corridor without a care in the world.

Climbing up the stairs and leaving the dark, confined basement area, the night sky greeted the strongest sorcerer with an even more stunning view of a golden sun dipping over the horizon. Its yellows bled into the surrounding blues and meshed together in a breathtaking display of colours.

“Dang.” He thought, scratching the back of his head and stepping on deck. “Is it that late already?”

“Mr. Gojo!” An unfamiliar voice came from below deck, turning around. A mare with a greenish coat and a long forest mane greeted him with a smile. Which Gojo happily returned.

“Hello there.” He waved, “You the captain?”

“Nope,” The mare said, hopping next to him. “Just cabin crew!”

“Is there something you need me for?”

“No, it’s just…” The mare shuffled anxiously where she stood, hooves kneading the floor in an effort to get her thoughts straight. “I just want to let you know how grateful we are for freeing us from Sombra’s control.”

“Don’t mention it,” Gojo patted her head, “if I hadn’t freed you guys, Silverstream would have grilled me alive.”

“You’re kidding!” The mare gasped, “Can she even lay a talon on you?”

“Nah.”

She giggle-snorted, playfully punching his leg as she tried to calm herself. “You’re funny!”

“Funny looking or fun to hang around?” Gojo smirked, rubbing his chin in mock confidence.

“Both!” she retorted.

“Isn’t that great?” he threw his hands up, shaking them in the air. “Your knight in shining armour freed you of your prison and has a great sense of humour!” He claps twice, celebrating his existence on the ship. “Hooray for Gojo!”

This time, the mare busted out laughing, tears teetering on the edge of her eyes as she held onto his leg for support. She laughed a whole minute before calming down, wiping the excess tears from her eyes. “I-it’s been long since I had a good laugh!” She got back onto her hooves, turning to look up at Gojo. “Thank you so much, Mr. Gojo. For saving us, for saving me!”

“No biggie.” Gojo blushed,

“By the way,” The mare brought her hoof to her back, rummaging around a little before pulling out a small metal ball. “Do you know what this is? I found several scrap metal balls lying about in a storage room with their crates torn off.”

Gojo took it off the mare’s hoof and brought it up to his blindfold for further examination. The sorcerer hummed, scratching his chin and tossing the thing overboard.

“Probably some trash, don’t gotta worry about it.”

“Oh, I-”

The mare was interrupted by the sudden booming of distant thunder, its remnant lighting flashing the entire airship in a blinding light for a fraction of a second. Gojo stood still for a moment, then turned to face the dark clouds in the distance. A large, looming cumulonimbus cloud towered over the battleship, bathing the aircraft in a deep, dark shadow as it soon blocked out even the moonlight. The occasional thunder would break through the dense cloud, with howling winds so strong that Gojo and the mare could feel it from where they stood as it whistled in their ears.

“Wow…” The mare mumbled in awe, “That’s a big cloud.”

Suddenly, Gojo jerked the mare back, pulling her to safety. A dagger struck where she stood, wiggling in the wood flooring before it stayed stagnant. Several more daggers flew directly at Gojo’s head from beyond the clouds but slowed to a halt before the weapons could actually reach him and clattered harmlessly onto the ground.

“Everybody, get into the basement!!”

As soon as Gojo gave the order, several pegasi rolled out of the clouds, each slinging daggers at the evacuees running to take cover. Gojo teleported next to a cabin crew further out deck, using his infinity as a shield for the pony and taking close to ten daggers in the face. None of them hit Gojo, of course, but it looked cool.

“T-thank-”

“No time for that!” Gojo yelled, “Get to safety!”

Taking two daggers from the air, Gojo hurled them at the fast-approaching pegasi. One landed its mark on a pegasus’s wing, forcing the pegasus to crash into the deck onboard, while the other dagger narrowly missed another pegasus.

Gojo rushed forth, grabbing the crashed pegasus by their tail and pulling them skyward. Reaching the apex of the arc, Gojo turns around and slams them down into the basement floor, smashing them through the deck.

One pegasus landed near Gojo and tried a sweeping kick, while another wanted to divebomb him from above with an extended hindleg. Neither achieved their goals as the distance between their legs, and Gojo grew vastly further and further the closer they got. Seemingly freezing in the air, their attacks halted in front of the honoured one.

“It's useless,” Gojo remarked, grabbing the leg of the pegasus that tried to divebomb his face.

Before he could punish the soldiers, something zipped past his peripheral view at lightning speed. Spinning around, Gojo bolted to the basement’s entrance, grabbing the dagger and saving a cabin member from permanent blindness. The blade was inches from their eye, the tip so close that Gojo sighed a sigh of relief.

Another pegasus rushed in and landed next to the cabin member, to which Gojo gave a warm welcome by smashing them with the struggling pegasus still in his grasp from earlier. Body slamming the two into the wooden railing, splintering the guard, and flinging them off the airship.

Gojo pushed the cabin member into the basement, yelling a quick “Sorry!” as the pony tumbled down the stairs and into safety. Three more pegasus charged at him from the front, twisting on his heel and pivoting his body, dodging one oncoming soldier and grabbing another from the air and chopping at the base of their neck gently. Incapacitating them and tossing them to the ground. The last pegasus wasn’t given as much grace as Gojo socked them straight in the face. Knocking them out cold before throwing them to the side.

Using the attraction of Blue, the last pony of the trio was sucked off the ground and straight into Gojo’s hand. Exhaling from his nostrils, Gojo held them upright by the neck, digging his fist deep into the soldier’s gut and knocking him unconscious, then letting them go.

In the next instance, an explosion went off at the back of the airship. The entire boat shuddered as the elevation dipped down a few notches. It may look insignificant, but every member onboard could feel the dropped difference, and it isn’t a fun experience.

“W-woah.” Gojo tumbled about, trying to get his bearings with the uneven flooring. As if the situation couldn’t get any worse, the bow of the ship begins to take a sudden nosedive. All cargo that wasn’t secured onboard begins to slide towards the front of the vessel. Another quake shook the foundation of the ground Gojo was standing on, and then after came a secondary explosion from the back motor.

The stern was in flames by now; it must be from the pegasi circling to the flank, tossing daggers into the fin, and jamming it. The ark at which the ship was sinking caused it to be swallowed by the cumulonimbus cloud. Thunder erupted and crackled at every angle, disorienting anyone on deck as a heavy downpour flooded the exposed areas of the ship. Adding on to the predicament Gojo found himself in, a lone pegasus landed at the forecastle deck of the boat.

Clad in the blackest armour that mimicked pure obsidian and with the emblem of the Crystal Empire engraved on its chest plate, the pegasus stood tall. His brilliant amber coat contrasted starkly with the armour, and even more so with the red mane sticking out his galea-styled mind-controlling helmet. He spread his wings wide in a fierce display. From the bend of his wings all the way to his primaries, they were clad in razor-sharp amour, his eyes glowing a devilish viridescent green.

“Surrender or die.” Flash Magnus commanded, taking a brave step forward.

“Damn,” Gojo spouted, standing upright. “Is this how guests welcome themselves aboard a transport ship?”

“Your blabbering mouth will be the end of you.” In one instance, Flash vanished from where he was. Reappearing next to Gojo in one mighty flap of his wings as he launched a vertical slash of his wing.

“Urgh,” Gojo moaned, clearly tired of this charade. “How many times must we keep doing this? You will never-”

That’s when it hit him: the tips of Flash’s wings were coated in a mysterious purple aura. This sensation was damn near unmistakable. This was the exact usage of cursed energy he faced prior to his sealing within the Prison Realm. The knife-like feathers of his wing armour clashed against the space of infinity surrounding Gojo. But instead of dragging to a halt as it’d usually do, the bladed tip of his wings got closer… and closer… and closer...Until…

Gojo swayed his body to the side, dodging the downward slice with a side step and composing himself. Dusting his jacket a little, Gojo turned to the pegasus general, getting up onto his feet even with the vessel diving vertically straight to the ground now. His carefree attitude hardened as Gojo's eyes never trailed from the first pony to have reached him through the infinite distance he placed himself against others.

“Where…” Gojo began, voice dripping with bloodlust. “Did you learn that technique?”

Flash got into a battle-ready stance. No one could see it, but it was blatantly obvious that he was smiling behind his helmet. Confidence oozing from his every pore. “I don’t talk to corpses.”

Author's Note

Thank you, Gege. 🙇
Also, I finished Cyberpunk and RDR2. I might do a story on those.

The Infinite Sky

Flash leaped forward, or in this case, he effectively leaped upwards with the directions their bodies were facing. Gojo stepped and dodged to the right, earning him a horizontal slash of Flash’s wings. Reeling back even further, Gojo flipped out of the strike zone and into safety. A thunder cracked nearby, flashing a second’s worth of blinding light as several pegasi surrounded the Special Grade anomaly.

A pegasus from his right burst forth, rewinding their hindleg into a roundhouse as three from his left charged at him from multiple angles. Thanks to his long limbs, Gojo retaliated with a sucker punch to the pegasus on his right, reaching him before their hoof could. In that same instance, he grabbed the pegasus by the head and chucked them at the group of attackers on his left, a tiny Red following closely to the body of the pegasus soldier he just threw.

“Red.”

A crimson light washed over the entirety of the ship, and the air turned furious as the pressure of diverging infinities expanded rapidly… until… Boom—!

The explosiveness and propulsion of red threw every single pony standing in that general vicinity overboard and into the black abyss. Gojo quickly turned his attention back onto the falling vessel, bringing a hand up into the open space; the ship began to slow its descent. Gojo was every bit as careful not to tear the airship asunder with the overwhelming attraction of Blue.

But his attention was warranted elsewhere when Flash came in again from behind, tossing several pellets onto the soaked, wooden floor as it emitted blinding smoke that enveloped the sorcerer. Usually, this smokescreen would prove pretty useless against Gojo. But the weird thing was that the cloud was infused with cursed energy.

Gojo clicked his tongue, so damn annoying…

Expanding the range of his limitless slightly further to give himself some space to work with, Gojo continued pulling the ship up and reducing its speed. That’s until he felt several pegasi circling him; he knew this trick; he’d seen it before.

“Trying to confuse me won’t stop me from breaking your jaw.” Gojo threatens, raising his hand higher in a show of defiance. “So start talking while you still have it.”

That’s when he felt it, a hoof socking his side with a surge of pain running through his body. His muscles stiffened, and his hold on the ship wavered, allowing it to continue falling back into the ground below. Gojo grits his teeth, trying to stifle a groan as he endures the pain. Another punch and another shot of pain runs up his body. And another, this time to his face. For a brief second, when the hoof made contact with his cheek, Gojo could detail what looked to be a cloud surrounding the attacking hoof. The cloud crackling with bolts of lightning was what seemed to be causing so much pain from each delivered punch.

“Domain Amplification and using thunder generated from the clouds surrounding the ship…” Gojo thought, body spasming out.

The sorcerer stood huffing from the repeated shockwave running rampant in his body, but when another hoof came for his cranium, he caught it by the limb before it could really do any damage. He held it with a deadly grip, expanding the range and reinforcing the strength of his limitless.

Crack, crack, and crack were what Gojo could hear beyond the rainfall coming from the pegasus he held. While the pegasus was locked into a death grip by Gojo, their body was pushed further and further away by his limitless. Their arm began to stretch beyond what it was capable of as their helmet spewed blood from its openings.

But the moment Gojo realised the pony he was keeping wasn’t the one with the fancy red mane, he let them go with a sidekick to their torso, sending them off the boat.

“Who’s next?” Turning around in the dissipating smoke, his eyes landed on several more pegasi standing on the deck. Each of them hungry for a piece of the strongest. At this point, the ship had fallen so far down that they cleared the giant cloud it was in and into the open space once more.

Gojo looked over to the horizon; the hills, grass, greenery, and even a river were visible from where they were in the sky. They were fast approaching for a crash among the borders of the badlands, and it’ll be fatal to everyone aboard if he doesn’t resolve this quickly.

Using this brief time to rack his brain for a solution, Gojo dodged a swipe at his face with a twist of his heels. Taking another step to dodge a slice of a bladed wing, the sorcerer looked around at his foes, their eyes never once trailing off him.

Exhaling, he leapt into the air, using his technique to keep him afloat as he detached himself from the falling boat. The pegasi legion never once took their eyes off him as they spread their wings to pursue the flying sorcerer, their group led by Flash taking the lead.

“You can’t escape from King Sombra’s army!” Flash yelled, flapping his wings to gain altitude.

“Escape?” Gojo snickered, a smile breaking his face. “Don’t make me laugh, you annoying prick.”

Right as Gojo gained enough distance from the airship and ensured that the pegasi that tailed him were following close, he stopped ascending upwards, giving the pegasi time to catch up to him.

Pegasi surrounded him from every angle, ensuring that there was no direct escape route Gojo could immediately take that wasn’t covered and guarded.

“Now,” Flash started, slowly approaching Gojo. “You’re surrounded—”

“Domain Expansion:” Gojo reached a finger under his blindfold, tugging it down and revealing the serene intensity of the Six Eyes. At the same time, his other hand was brought up with a crossed index and middle finger. He’d done it before, and he’d do it again. “Infinite Void.”
The world around them fabricated an imaginary space, the air bending, shifting to accommodate the tremendous cursed energy flooding out of Gojo’s body as he paints the air anew.

A barrier materialised around them, forming an iron dome in the sky above the crashing fleet. For a fleeting second, the noise of the outside world was drowned out by the eerie, muffled calm of Infinite Void. The fabric of the black space tore open with an equally confusing white, as a black hole in the distance was calling every pony in the domain to kneel and accept their fate.

Everyone caught in the domain stood still as if their body’s actions and thoughts ground to a halt. In this transient phase, it felt like an eternity’s worth of information had flooded into their brains, unable to move or do anything at all.

However, in the next second. The barrier collapsed, shattering into the wind as the imaginary noose around everyone’s neck in the domain went slack. A domain lasting only zero point two seconds, recreating the aftereffects in Shibuya as Gojo watched on. The pegasi surrounding him began to drop, their bodies not heeding the commands of their master as they fell helplessly into the depths.

Gojo allowed himself to drop as well, diving headfirst onto the vessel while manoeuvring around the falling ponies in the air and slowly just shy of Flash’s falling body.

“I’ll deal with you later.” Gojo growled, ensuing that Flash got all of that before continuing his fall and landed on the deck without a hitch.

The airship, a colossal beast of wood and canvas, groaned and shuddered beneath Gojo's control. He had managed to slow its descent with his cursed energy, but the ship was still falling at a terrifying speed. Below, the ground loomed closer, a dark and unforgiving expanse.

Gojo's hand, raised towards the sky, pulsed with a steady rhythm. His cursed energy was being channeled into an orb above the airship, acting as a pull and slowing its fall. He could feel the strain on his technique, the effort required to maintain the ship's precarious stability.

"Blue," he muttered, his voice barely audible over the wind and the ship's creaking. The airship shuddered again, its descent slowing slightly. But it wasn't enough. The ground was still too close.

Gojo raised his other hand, palm facing upward. He channeled his cursed energy into the bottom of the ship, creating a red that repelled the earth's gravity. The ship rumbled once more, its descent slowing considerably. “Red.”

Suddenly, thump! Gojo turned to the noise, realising the bodies of the pegasi from above finally caught up with the ship below. Another thump came from behind him, which doesn’t take a genius to figure out what it was. As the sound of thumping became more and more frequent, the sorcerer poured more cursed energy into slowing the airship’s fall into the earth.

“C’mon…” Gojo mumbled, amplifying his output as much as possible without compromising the safety of the ship. At this point, they neared the ground so much that any more falling could spell doom for everyone onboard. “C’mon…”

The ship creaked and moaned with an insistent tone, reprimanding Gojo for not protecting it as best as he could have. Too late for regrets; all he could do now was…

“Everyone!” Gojo yelled into the broken basement door. “Brace yourselves!”

The strongest clenched his jaw, amplifying Red the best he could with the hand dealt to him as the behemoth of wood shook in place. The ground below begin to tore up from the expansive energy Red was generating, chunks of earth flying through the air like projectiles as the airship was caught between two infinities.

The airship finally came to a sudden stop, crashing onto the cratered earth with as much grace as a raging bull. Its hull battered and bruised as Gojo released his technique. The entire deck was a mess; crates of various items, replenishable goods, and consumables were littered across the wet wooden floor. Good thing is, no one’s dead. Well, Gojo doesn’t know that, but its his positive guess that that’s the case.

Spinning back with as much enthusiasm as he has left, he waltzs down the entrance to the basement to assess the situation on hand.

“Yo!” Gojo called out, turning the corner. “You guys all right?”

“Don’t take a step further!” replied a hollowed voice from further down the basement. Turning to face the speaker, Gojo watched as two pegasus soldiers, well and alive, held onto Ocellus and Silverstream. Their hooves wrapped around their necks with bladed daggers pointed at their jugulars. “Or we’ll slit their throats!”

“C’mon guys.” Gojo raised his arms in mock surrender, scanning the room. The other cabin crew seemed to be fine, aside from a couple of scratches here and there, and the complimentary fear was etched on their faces. “Let’s be civil about this. I don’t take well to hostages being flaunted in my face like that.”

“Turn around with your arms on the back of your head!” The other soldier commanded. “Now!”

“Well, if they restraint me. It’ll be much better if I break out of them than risking it and causing anything to happen to those two…” Gojo thought, rolling his eyes and following the orders, turning around with his fingers on the back of his head.

The two guards approach him slowly, daggers dancing around their throats in anticipation. Once they were in close enough range whereby the soldier’s hold on Ocellus and Silverstream had softened, Silverstream turned to give her changeling friend a wink.

Ocellus acted first, transforming into a snake and coiling around her captive in a tight bind. She wrapped around his midsection, then up his shoulders and wings, then finally around his throat.

“What are you-!?” Was all Silverstream’s captive could say before she elbowed him in the gut and hurled him over her shoulder in a single sweep. The captive slams onto the basement floor, the wind getting knocked out of him while drops of saliva spew from his mouth.

This momentary gap in weakness gave Silverstream the opportunity to stomp on the hoof, holding the dagger hard enough that the soldier released his hold on the weapon. The dagger clattered harmlessly on the ground before Silverstream kicked it away in the dark corner of the basement, far out of reach for the poor pony.

Still leaning on the hindleg, crushing the soldier’s hoof, Silverstream brought her other hindleg down on her ex-captive’s helmet with a sharp axe kick, the attack strong enough to cause his head to jolt back and slam into the ground once more, knocking him out.

All this commotion motivated Gojo to turn around, eyes glazing over the scene. The two guards that were so happy waving those daggers around were unconscious on the floor, with Silverstream atop one while Ocellus was tightly wrapped around the other. What a role reversal.

“So you guys can take care of yourselves?” Gojo asked, a smile playing on his lips.

“Duh.” Silverstream scoffed, rolling her eyes.

“How’d you think we managed to survive this far?”The Ocellus serpent spoke from around the neck of her quickly turning blue ex-captive.

“I don’t know.” Gojo shrugged, “Dumb, blind luck, maybe? Anyway, I’d take it everyone here is well?” Gojo scans the crowd. No response. He’ll take it as a yes. “All right, good. There are a couple of soldiers upstairs that I need help taking care of. Can someone lend me a hand?”

“I’ll go with you!” The mare that chatted with Gojo earlier volunteered.

“Me too!” Silverstream jumped off the body, dusting herself off.

“Count me in!” Ocellus added, transforming back into her changeling form.

The trio tagged closely behind the sorcerer as they made their way back up the basement while still dragging the two unconscious guards along for the ride.

“Say, I’d never got your name.” Gojo piqued, turning to the mare.

“My name’s Forest Leaf!” Forest chirped.

“Hey Forest! I’m Silverstream!” The hippogriff introduced. “My friend here is Ocellus!”
“Hello.” Ocellus gave a quick nod.

Upon reaching the hull of the ship, the three, except Gojo, were stunned at the sight they saw. The bunch of pegasi soldiers that attacked them earlier were lying in heaps without a hint of movement. They lay as still as the clouds, peaceful, even.

“Mr. Gojo…” Ocellus began, eyes still taking in the amount of bodies around them. “Did you do this…?”

“Yeah, but they’re alive,” Gojo responded, walking over to the closest soldier with a sway in his arms. “Can someone take this guy after I take off his helmet? Organising them after is gonna kill my back, I swear.”

Stopping just shy of the soldier by his feet, Gojo squatted down to the pony, his eyes dancing over the body of the limp pegasus. “Huh?” Gojo voiced out, confused. Leaning in with a squint.

“Something wrong?” Silverstream inquired, the three walking over to his side.

The latch on the back of the helmet wrapped around the pony’s head snapped open by itself, the light from its visor flickering out as the hunk of metal rolled off the poor thing’s head and onto the wooden floor.

“Wow, you can free them without making contact now?” Ocellus asked, leaning in to get a better look at the fellow.

Suddenly, a rush of uproar of hisses and clacks runs circles all around the surviving group. It began with a pony on the far right, then on the left, then behind, then in front. Everywhere, all at once, the latches of the helmets on every pegasus soldier detached themselves. Each hissing out steam, and as the headgear released the pegasus trapped within. Picking up the helmet closest to him, he flipped it around to inspect its back. No damages.

Gojo ruffles his head and furrows his brows, trying to grasp the straws flying around him. He scratches his chin in contemplation. “Is this a byproduct of Infinite Void?” He reasoned within his mind, “But how? Why?”

“Say…” Gojo asked, turning to Forest. “Do you recall using any communication devices when you were still a soldier?”

“None that I could properly recall,” Forest responded, shifting uncomfortably. “Any memory I had of was just speaking straight into the helmet.”

“You don’t say…” Gojo muttered, getting up from where he was. “Gather the bodies; they should be fine if not incapacitated.”

“Where should we put them?” Ocellus asked, already dragging Flash’s body over.

“Give them a proper place to rest,” Gojo replied, walking over to the edge of the ship. “I’ll scout around the area for any more soldiers and gather the helmets into a corner, too; I’ll destroy them when I get back.” With that, he clasps his hands, fingers interlocking his palm as he disappears from sight in a matter of seconds without waiting for a response.

The trio stood in the middle of the hull with pegasi lying everywhere around them in pain and agony.

“There’s that,” Forest said to no one in particular. “His eyes are really beautiful.”

Silverstream stopped in her tracks, the pegasus in her talons going limp as she whipped her head around to face the pony. “I know, right!? I don’t know why he hides it behind that blindfold!”

An hour later, Gojo reappeared on the hull of the ship in a flash of wind, his blindfold already covering his eyes. Wrapped under his arm were three more pegasi guards lying unconscious in his grip, each of their helmets already securely removed by Gojo before they were brought back.

A pile of helmets lying against the wooden railing was one of the first things to welcome him back to the airship. Oh, right. His promise. Extending a free hand, he flexed his fingers in a crushing motion towards the pile of steel. In the next instance, the helmets begin to crush themselves inward; they groan and creak, quickly forming into a giant ball of metal. Gojo levitated the ball upward, tossing it overboard with a flick of his fingers.

“Aw dang it…” Forest groaned, leaning against the wooden pillar. Next to her was Silverstream, who was also relaxing against it and the second to welcome him back. A smug expression was plastered across her face with her arms crossed, almost like an “I told you so.” kind of expression.

“How’s things?” Gojo asked, walking past them.

“They are resting in the bunk beds, though there isn’t enough space, so they gotta share beds,” Forest replied, getting up from the pillar.

“That will be a nice surprise for them when they wake up, then.” Gojo remarked, walking up the stairs.

“Oh, by the way,” Silverstream adds, following along. “Flash is awake.”

“Who?” Gojo asked, puzzled.

“One of Rockhoof’s friends. The pegasus had a red mane and a golden coat. He just woke up.”

Gojo hummed briefly before the image of the pony they were talking about filled his mind. He stopped walking, turning around to look at Silverstream. “Oh, the one I promised to smash his jaw in.”

“That’s very concerning, Mr. Gojo.” Forest averred.

“Tell him I’ll see him soon after I put these bunch to rest.”

“Will do!” Silverstream mock saluted, puffing her chest out in confidence. The hippogriff and pony duo returned down the stairs and rounded the corner, chatting and giggling all the way down.

Gojo made his way into the poop deck, walking past the pony sitting at the helm and gently placing the bodies down on their sides in the open space. “Captain,” Gojo began, “Can the ship still fly?”

“No such luck.” The captain replied, “They got our rudder good, not to mention the amount of holes in the ship.” He motioned to the map spread on the floor, urging Gojo over. “But we’ve made considerable progress past the badlands. If we head north from here, we should be able to stumble upon some tracks leading into Appleloosa. We can get a move on if we start packing now.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Gojo expressed, walking over to the stairs. “We’ll get started once the rest of those soldiers wake up. For now, we need to rest up.”

“Roger that, Mr. Gojo!” The captain nodded.

“So formal…” Gojo mumbled, descending the flight of stairs, his footsteps echoing rhythmically as he disappeared into the depths of the battleship. As he rounded the corner into the dimly lit corridor of rooms, he paused. "Crap, I forgot to ask which room they're in."

"Mr. Gojo?" Ocellus's voice called out from behind him. She stood there, her small form dwarfed by the Gojo’s towering frame.

“Oh, hey Ocellus.” Gojo greeted, his voice softening. “Say, do you know where’s Silverstream and Forest?”
“Down the path, turn right. It’s the last door to the left.” Ocellus pointed with a hoof. “You’re going to meet Flash, right?”

“Yup, wanna tag along?”

“Sure, I’m done with my tasks anyhow,” Ocellus replied,

The duo began their journey down the corridor, their footsteps echoing softly in the orange hue of the lantern lights. The atmosphere was moist, probably from all that rainwater entering the basement from the turbulence of earlier’s descent.

Turning the path, Gojo spoke. “I hope earlier’s fall wasn’t too scary.”

“Please don’t mention that,” Ocellus lowered her head. “I thought I was a goner…”

“Hey, you’re alive, aren’t you?”

“I’ve been on countless live-or-die missions ever since all this went down, and I have never been this close to death so many times in a week before.” Ocellus shivered.

“A first for everything, am I right?” Gojo laughed, Ocellus didn’t.

“Sure.”

As they approached the door, Gojo paused and opened the door, giving a slight bow. “After you.”

Ocellus rolled her eyes, giving the best fake smile she could muster with her high society voice as she walked past him. “Why, thank you. Sir. Gojo.”

The two entered the room, where Flash was on the bottom of the right bunk bed, and Silverstream was sitting on a chair next to the pillar. Gojo was the first to approach the bed as Ocellus went to fetch a chair opposite the room.

“Yo!” Gojo waved, crouching down to meet with the General at eye level. “Remember that promise I made?”

“You smashing my jaw in?” Flash replied with a scuff, “Surprisingly, I do.”

“Heard you’re a friend of Rockhoof’s.”

“I am, still is.” Flash’s eyes glistened over, lips trembling slightly. “T-thank you… for freeing me…”

“No need for the waterworks,” Gojo patted his shoulder, “Tell you what, I promise not to cave your mouth in if you help us by providing intel, any you can recall.”

“Mr. Gojo!” Ocellus and Silverstream scolds.

“What!?” Gojo pulled back.

“Enough with the threats!” Ocellus glared at him.

“Okay, okay!” The sorcerer defuses, motioning with his hands for everybody to relax. “Fine, I promise to just cave your face in, how about that- ow, ow, ow!”
Silverstream promptly interrupts him with a pinch of his cheeks from her talons, pulling him closer to her while giving Flash an apologetic look.

“Sorry about that,” Silverstream said through the “ow!” Gojo was repeating. “He doesn’t mean anything he said.”

Flash chuckles, “Duly noted.”
“But going off on what Mr. Gojo mentioned,” Ocellus leaned in, shifting her chair closer to the bed. “Is there anything you could provide for us? Anything at all?”

Flash rubbed his forehead, “There’s… a lot to digest…”
Gojo ripped Silverstream’s talon off his cheek, his skin turning a bright shade of red as he tried to soothe the pain with slow and gentle rubs. “Then, can I suggest starting with the helmet? It doubles as a communication device, right?”

“I think you’re right…” Flash answered. “I can’t recall using anything to converse with the platoon I was leading.”

“So it was Infinite Void…” Gojo murmured.

“What was Infinite what?” Flash asked, confused.

“Nothing.”

“Besides that, I can’t remember much. Aside from Sombra conversing with… her about slaughtering every single dragon in the Dragon Lands.”

“Is it this Princess Luna I heard of?” Gojo asked, releasing Silverstream’s talon from his grasp.

Ocellus and Silverstream looked away at this. They knew who Flash was referring to. But can’t bring themselves to face it.

“No… it’s a mare that has traversed the lands along with Princess Luna to wreak havoc all across Equestria all for the sake of her enjoyment and thrill. She once preached and taught friendship, but has turn into a monster none of us could recognise... she wears white robes and bares a tattooed face and a pair of eyes that goes by the name of:”

“Twilight Sparkle: The Fallen.”

Curses will always persist

Gojo tapped his foot on the wooden floor, and the soft thumps filled the room with a rhythmic volume. He leaned back into his chair, folding his arms as a groan left his throat.

“He’s here too?” Gojo clicked his tongue. “What’s this? A get-together party?”

Ocellus turns to the sorcerer, whining in the chair. “Who’s he?”

“An imaginary fierce god with two arms and two faces, but he was an incarnated sorcerer being born many years ago. Looks like he’s taken over someone else in this era.”

“So, Twilight’s body is being controlled by this sorcerer? There’s a chance we can free her, right?” Silverstream leaned in, eyes twinkling with hope. “ You can free her, right!?”

“That’s not necessarily the case here if you’re banking on the fact I saved Flash’s group without making contact with their helmets. As my guess about them being communication devices was correct, overriding the functions of said helmets by overwhelming them with information seemed to be another way I could free them without having to make physical contact.”

“What do you mean by overwhelming information?” Silverstream asked, deflating a little when the prospect of saving Twilight was out of the question.

“It’s not something you could replicate, so don’t worry about it.” Gojo crosses his leg over the other, arms still crossed as he huffs. “Furthermore, incarnation is, from what I’ve seen, not the same as mind control. The soul of the incarnated occupies and control one’s body while the other is overtaking the mind via the helmet. That probably explains how Flash and his crew got to us so fast, adding onto the fact that there wasn’t anything back in Klugetown to imply a means to transmit information to that dictator.”

“That’s probably it.” Flash agreed.

“Now that we’d establish which bad guy I’m gonna be punching, care to fill me in on who’s this pony Sukuna took over? Twilight, was it?”
“She’s an alicorn princess. She used to hold the title of Princess of Friendship.” Ocellus said.

“Friendship? That’s got to be some cosmic irony.” Gojo spoke,

“Moving along…” Ocellus interrupted, “Her magic abilities are a generational talent, and even before she ascended, she was a prodigy among unicorns in the field of magic. And now, she’s possessed by this demon sorcerer you spoke about.”

“Yeah, I get the picture.” Gojo picked at his ear before getting a better look at his pinkie nail while digging at it with his thumb. “This isn’t going to be easy.”

“No doubt it’s going to be difficult, it's been years since all this transpired, after all. No one could match her might.”

“You sound uncertain, Mr.Gojo,” Silverstream added.

“I wouldn’t call it uncertain; maybe curious is more of an adept word.”

“Then, who’s stronger, him or you?”

“Maybe it’ll cause me some trouble, taking into account magic in all this.”

“But would you lose?”

Gojo flicked his pinkie to the ground and pointed his finger at the worried friends. A confident smile on his face. “Nah, I’d win.”

“I don’t doubt your abilities, Mr. Gojo.” Flash piqued, “After all, you did defeat Rockhoof and I.”

“Sorry to burst your bubble, but Rockhoof isn’t all that strong. Maybe you put up more of a challenge thanks to that trick of yours. But… wait… tell me, have you ever met anyone with a scar on their face? Specifically, across their forehead like stitches?”

“Sorry, I don’t have any memories of any creature you’re describing.”

“Just my luck.”

“Um, if you’re talking about scars, we know someone that matches your description…” Silverstream looked over to Ocellus, who returned her gaze with a raised eyebrow.

“You don’t mean…” Ocellus muttered.

“Who,” Gojo asked.

“Her name is Rainbow Dash, and she is our mentor and friend. She’s currently in Cloudsdale working with The Resistance against Sombra with Princess Celestia.”

“So we got two places to visit… great…” Gojo whined, scratching the back of his head. “If that’s the case, where do we head first?”

“I’m not one to question your ways, Mr. Gojo… but,” Ocellus asked, “Why do you want to meet this individual?”

“They’re the ones that locked me up in that Prison, Ocellus.” Gojo leaned into his palm, muffling his speech. “And they tricked me into it using a technique they had of taking over a person’s body by switching brains with the host. By removing the top of their skull and having it stuck together with stitches, they can actively take the host’s body as their own. And from what I’ve seen, their memories, too.” The strongest grits his teeth, brows furrowing, growling. “But that was a long time ago; I messed up once; that won’t happen again.”

“I-I…” Silverstream patted Gojo on the back, which surprised him. “I’m sorry that happened to you.”

“Don’t be, that’s entirely on me. Like I said, they’re dead the moment I catch them.” Gojo got up from his seat, and a sense of unease filled the air. It seems to bring up a past the sorcerer wasn’t so fond of, causing his energy to spiral. Even Flash broke a sweat or two from this. “Rest up, buddy. We’ll move out once more of your pegasus friends wake up.”

Gojo walked out of the room, followed behind by Ocellus and Silverstream. Both gave a quick nod and wave before exiting and leaving Flash to his devices. Flash plopped his head onto the pillow, staring up at the wooden bunk bed ceiling with sleepy eyes.

“He looks so much like Yuji,” Flash mumbled, turning to lie on his side as his eyes felt heavier and heavier. “Are they from the same species…?” Without putting too much thought into it, Flash closes his eyes and begins to enter the dream realm, his chest slowly rising and falling.

“Get those crates moving!” Flash yelled at the multiple pegasi huddled around the crates aboard the ship, some banding together to get the crates moving while the not-so-physically gifted ones carried the smaller supply crates. “C’mon! Move it!”

A pegasus dropped the crate onto the deck, stumbling and leaning onto it with a huff and puff. “Soarin! Get your bum off the ground and move those crates!”

“Sorry, Sir!” Soarin called back, sweat dripping from his chin, exhausted. “I’m still tired!”

“Here, let me help you out.” Came another pegasus, situating herself next to him with a wing digging beneath his crate. “On my count… one, two, three!”

On three, the two pulled the crate up as they shared the burden. Soarin took a little to stabilise himself, before turning to the mare next to him with a relieved smile.

“Thanks, Spitfire.” He said, taking a step forward.

“Don’t thank me,” Spitfire replied, “We wouldn’t be here if not for Mr. Gojo over there.”

Gojo watched on from the sidelines as the pegasi walked past him with a nod. He returned the gesture, glancing around as the ones who had fun destroying the ship were doing all the heavy work now. Still, recovering in less than a day was something that Gojo couldn’t wrap his head around. His best guestimate was that the ponies would be incapacitated for two months, but here they were, already up and moving about in less than twenty-four hours.

Another familiar face walked past Gojo, holding a crate in her magical grasp. Ocellus lumbered on, careful not to drop her cargo.

“Need some help?” Gojo offered.

“It’s all right; I got it. You were hauling around our luggage for a day or two. It’s my turn to take over.”

“Don’t break anything!”

“I won’t.”

Ocellus leapt off the edge, her wings fluttering with speed as she flew down to the open fields. Gojo fidgeted on the spot, arms folded. He turns over to the lines of pegasus flying into the forest away from the ship. He’s not being disrespectful when he thinks this, but they really do look like worker ants carrying food back to the colony. All traveling in single file lines.

"Heh," Gojo chuckled, turning to the last pegasus carrying a crate. He stopped just short of Flash, looking down at him. "Are we done here?"

"That's the last of them," Flash replied, spreading his wings. The sound of motorized wheels revved at the bladed tips of his wings.

“You’re still keeping that armour?” Gojo piqued, “Here I thought that thing give you ponies PTSD.”

“As much as I hate to admit it, this armour has technology far surpassing anything in Canterlot’s current armoury. If I could use it against Sombra’s army, so be it.”

“I thought you had your warrior’s pride.” Gojo jumped off the edge, floating next to Flash as they glided down to the ground.

“I believe the saying is, “All’s fair in love and war”. I tried to live by that warrior’s honour. And look at where that landed me, on the front lines and used as a pawn by Sombra to expand his reach further into Equestria.”

As Flash finished, the two landed on the grass patches without much difficulty, walking behind the long line of pegasus into the small forest separating The Badlands from the inland civilisation… or what’s left.

“Are there any more of you guys that Sombra still has? Pegasus, I mean.”

“No, my contingent are the only ones that could fly. Our primary jobs were to expand our airforces large enough to overtake Cloudsdale. Picking off any pegasus against the army and subjecting them to torture to get any information we could before forcing them to join our ranks.” Flash sighed, ducking under a low-hanging branch. “And I’m glad you stopped that before it was too late.”

“I didn’t do much.” Gojo walked through the low-hanging branch, the infinite space tearing the branch off the tree as he continued. “You guys came to me, but one thing about that bugs me: why did Sombra send such a small group to us? Especially the one he was developing, and not to mention your group, which are the only ones that could fly, right?”

“…You’re right,” Flash admitted, rubbing his chin with a mechanised wing. “It’s not adding up.” The pillar tried to recall any memory he could, closing his eyes for enhanced concentration. But all he got in return was a piercing headache as he tried to stifle a groan. “Sorry, I can’t remember anything useful…”
“It’s fine. We’ll figure it out on the way there.”

Stumbling across a small clearing, a lake with considerable width laid before the two, sparkles danced across the reflective surface while the hues of the night sky painted themselves across the still waters. Flash spread his wings, needing only to flap once to gain enough altitude to reach the middle of the lake, gliding the rest of the way across the other side. Gojo continued his walk forward, his shoes stepping on the mirror surface and generating a small ripple that flowed outwards.

Each following step was accompanied by a ripple as Gojo gracefully and leisurely strolled across the lake. The Pillar waited for Gojo on the opposite side of the large body of water for a moment before continuing their walk into the trees. Flash readjusted the barrel on his back, tightening the straps with great articulation of his wingtips.

“You still have the strength to lug that thing around?” Gojo asked,

“I’m fine.”

“What?”

“I know you’re checking on my well-being, Mr. Gojo. You don’t have to hide it.”

Gojo brought his hands up to the back of his head, leaning back a little as he walked. “This is certainly a first. What makes you say that?”

“Your eyes are too kind, Mr. Gojo.”

“Is that so? And it amplifies my beauty and good looks?”

“Ha. Ha." Flash laughs with a raised brow. Something which Gojo hasn't seen before. "I’ve seen the eyes of many warriors and soldiers back in my time. Moreso after I was mind controlled. The eyes of the angered, the despised, and the saddened. And yet, yours are some of the kindest I’ve seen…” Flash paused, eyes softening. “Wow, I’ve never thought I’d say “back in my time”.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Gojo patted Flash on the back. “We old-timers gotta look out for each other!”

“If you’re old, then I’m ancient.”

“We’re both relics.”

The two share a laugh as the rest of an hour’s worth of walking blended into a mixture of exchange of stories and information regarding Equestria. From this, Gojo discovered more species inhabiting the lands and neighbouring nations. His curiosity is piqued at the notion of all these mythical creatures and the like existing and roaming about.

“Nobara and Yuji would kill to meet these guys.” The thought crossed Gojo’s mind.

A sudden crack of a branch and shuffle of leaves guided their attention forward, eyes up. From the bushes next to a large tree just in front of them, Silverstream emerged from the foliage, her fur catching some stray leaves as she passed through. A large barrel was strapped to her back as a rope tied it close to her midsection, a branch getting caught in the process.

“There you guys are!” She chirped, ripping the barrel free of the branch.

“Something up?” Gojo asked.

“There’s a train station just up ahead in the clearing. The rest of the group has already settled down there. I came back to check on you.”

Right on cue, a dragged-out train whistle pierced the air further down the path, causing the nearby birds to fly away while the critters lying dormant in the trees scurried deeper into the forest.

“Speak of the devil! Let’s go!” Silverstream exclaimed.

The trio picked up their pace, pushing through the bushes and emerging into the open clearing. In the distance, they saw the headlight of a train and a plume of black smoke rising from its smokestack. They raced to the train station near them, running up the small flight of stairs and regrouping with the rest of them.

“You made it!” Forest spoke, “Where are the pegasi though?”

Gojo shrugged, “No idea.”

“Just in time, too.” Ocellus added, “The train’s coming.”

“All right, everyone. Listen up!” Flash announced, his leadership voice grabbing the entire group’s attention. “It’s highly likely that Sombra’s troops are aboard this train, so. Here’s the plan: we’ll pretend to take you guys hostage while the pegasus group sneaks aboard from above and takes control of the train. Once we’re done, we’ll neutralize the remaining troops outside of the carriages and take the entire train over. Is that understood?”

A series of nods bounced from pony to pony as Flash turned to Gojo. “Sorry, Gojo. Can you hide in the station for a bit?”

“Y’know. I could just take control of the train for us.” Gojo offered.

“I’d like to keep the train in one piece for travel and such.”

“…Okay.”

“Here she comes.”

The air was filled with the anticipation of the train's arrival. The group stood at the edge of the clearing, their eyes fixed on the horizon. The distant whistle of the train grew louder as it approached, carrying with it a sense of dread and wait.

As the train drew closer, its powerful engine roared to life, sending vibrations through the ground. The group could feel the earth trembling beneath their feet, hooves, and claws. The train's headlight pierced the darkness, illuminating the clearing with its blinding light.

With a deafening screech, the train thundered past the station. The ground shook violently as the massive locomotive rumbled by. The air was filled with the sound of clanking metal, hissing steam, and the rhythmic chugging of the engine. The train's powerful momentum seemed to draw the group in as if they were being pulled along with it by the wind currents.

The train sped past in a blur, the yellow light from the interior carriages flickering by as the train left behind a trail of smoke and dust. The group stood in stunned silence, their minds reeling from the sheer power and speed of the locomotive as they exchanged glances at one another.

“Sergeant Flash!” Soarin called, peaking his head upside down from the roof of the station. “Do I… uh… sneak on now?”

“Gosh darn it!” Flash cussed, “Everyone race for the train! Gojo!”

Gojo burst through the door of the station with a powerful heel kick, the sound echoing against the walls as he propelled himself forward. He skidded to a stop right where they were gathered, a confident smile on his face. “Already way ahead of you!” he exclaimed,

Without wasting a moment, he reached down and grabbed Forest and another earth pony by the arms. With a sudden burst of energy, he sprinted toward the back of the train, leaving a trail of astonished onlookers in his wake. The world around him transformed into a vibrant blur; the greens of the trees, the browns of the earth, and the grays of the station melded together into a single, cohesive swirl of colours.

As they dashed along, the rhythmic sound of feet hitting the ground mixed with the distant chugging of the train, creating a symphony of urgency. The cool breeze whipped through their manes and hair, invigorating them with each heartbeat.

Finally, they reached the back carriage. He jumped onto the rear balcony, carefully placing them onto the platform as the ground rumbled from the tracks. Flash and the others were right behind him, carrying more of the cabin crew from the fallen ship. Gojo extended his long arms toward them, and Flash humbly, albeit not-so-gracefully, accepted his help as the sorcerer pulled them aboard. The tumbled next to the wall in a heap as Gojo pulled more and more of the group aboard. The last of them was Silverstream and Ocellus, who had pushed the rest of the flyers forward first before themselves.

Gojo extended his hand, a reassuring gesture amidst the chaos. However, Ocellus noticed from the corner of her eye that Silverstream was losing speed, her wings flapping desperately as she tried to regain her balance. With a surge of determination, Ocellus spun around and, with a flick of her magic, grasped Silverstream's wrist, propelling her forward. Gojo's strong grip enveloped the hippogriff just in time, but Ocellus felt her strength wane, and she collapsed onto the tracks, the world around her spinning as she bellowed in pain.

“Ocellus!” Silverstream cried out, panic strung in her voice.

With a swift motion, Gojo shot out with his other hand, and suddenly, the air around it twisted and warped, forming a singularity that drew in everything nearby. Ocellus felt a force beyond her comprehension tugging at her, lifting her effortlessly from the ground. In an instant, she found herself cradled in Gojo’s embrace, his arm steady and protective around her.

“You okay?” Gojo asked,

“Yeah… t-thank you…” Ocellus mumbled, the searing pain spreading from the contact point on her back still fresh from the impact.

“Don’t mention it.” Gojo set them down, approaching the door. “Cabin crew, you guys take care and protect Ocellus. Silverstream, rendevous with the Pegasus assault team. I’ll clear everyone in the carriages.”

Reaching out a hand, he reached for the metal-reinforced door that connected to the rest of the train and gripped its surface with effortless strength. The steel yielded to his touch, bending like dough in a baker’s hands. Twisting in a circular motion, he tore it free from its hinges and sent it flying off the tracks with a decisive flick as he stepped into the carriage. The first thing to hit him was the wrecked smell of waste and piss. Turning his head to the side to get a breath of fresh air, he ventured into the unknown. But upon scanning the scene, what he saw stunned him.

Rows upon rows of unicorns, their faces contorted into vacant expressions, sat motionless beneath the oppressive weight of Sombra's helmets. But the headwear looked bulkier in size as thick cables extended from the back of their heads and extended to the ceiling. The unicorns' heads were tilted back in a trance-like state, their eyes fixed on the unseen sky. From the ceiling, translucent tubes descended, connecting to their mouths like feeding devices.

The scene was punctuated by occasional jolts and shudders as the unicorns' magic was extracted from their horns and channelled through the cables. Magic currents flowed up and down the tubes. While dark, viscous deposits were forced into the unicorns' mouths. The prisoners swallowed these deposits without hesitation, their bodies withering and wasting away in the damp and soiled seats of the train. Flies buzzing overhead of the stationary ponies.

“What is this…?” Gojo muttered,

“Mr. Gojo!?” Silverstream called out.

Gojo whipped his head around. “Don’t come in!”

“What!? Why!?”

“Just don’t! Don’t make me repeat myself!”

“O-okay! Uh, Flash and the rest found something sticking out on the roof of the carriage!” Silverstream paused, then continued. “They said it looked like those radio antennas on those broadcasting towers! They said it’s running with magical current and don’t know what it does!”

“Antennas…?” It took Gojo a minute to digest what they meant, but when he did. The cold realisation of what was happening struck him so hard he could feel his heart dropping. “I’d underestimated this Sombra guy…” Gojo grits his teeth.

No wonder he hadn’t found any transmitters so far; he was a fool to think those tiny helmets held so much power to be able to transmit information to nations far by their lonesome. Of course, there has to be some sort of intermediary for these sorts of things. But Gojo never thought it’d be groups of unicorns as the transmitter. The reality of this world begins to sink in as Gojo’s confident smile is wiped off his face in an instant. This was a learning point for the strongest. He was naïve. No matter the world, curses will always persist.

Author's Note

I kind of really wanna write RDR2/Cyberpunk 2077/Blue Lock crossovers. My hands are itchy. Really itchy.