Reborn in a Dating Sim: Life as a Mob is hard in an Equestria Girl’s Dating Game! Book 2

Reborn in a Dating Sim:

Life as a Mob is hard in an Equestria Girl’s Dating Game!

Book 2

Chapter Eight

KLANG! KLANG! The sounds of the two weapons being held by the two different armors struck each other with a force that would rival the strongest magi-guns. Each strike caused the buildings of the academy to shake, creating a miniature earthquake in the surrounding area. For those on the buildings it was difficult to keep their purchase and still fight. For Copper it was the realization that his decision to not have dealt with the Lich before was coming back to fuck him in the ass with a vengeance.

There was little excuse for his decision. The reasoning had been that he could turn the Lich over to the Kingdom. That by doing so he would give the rulers of the Kingdom the duty of dealing with the Lich in whatever light they preferred. The actual reason was that he didn’t want to be responsible for killing someone. He didn’t want that bloodshed on his hands, and now because of his decision there would be dozens, if not hundreds, of lives that would end instantly if he didn’t do what was needed now.

To say that he regretted his decisions would be an understatement. He far more than just regretted it. He actively wanted to avoid thinking about it. He wanted to focus on this engagement, and pretend that the other one never happened. That this time was what mattered, and that the choices he made before weren’t here to shove a sandpaper dildo straight up his ass. .

Each movement, each strike, every single attack was one that he could see the Lich countering. Being a magic caster was more or less part of what it was to live in this messed up dating sim, but being a pilot was something that few actually had a real aptitude for. The fact that the Lich could control his attack so well told him that the Lich was a skilled pilot. He braced for a slash, and he saw the way both the axe and the sword managed to sink into one another. The sword that he was using looked to be ready to be cut into half. Luckily the axe itself seemed to be okay.

Of course there was the fact that it was simply thicker than the sword, but it did bother him that the sword was able to cut into it regardless. It wasn’t that he believed that it was invincible. Far from it. The axe was just a weapon. It was designed to be used, and it was also something that would eventually have to be replaced. There was no getting around that, but he also knew that it was designed in such a way that it shouldn’t have been able to be destroyed easily. Seeing the sword cut into it meant that the sword was designed in a similar fashion. It meant that their weapons, for good or bad, were on parr with one another.

The Lich drew the sword back, and he watched as he tossed it. It wasn’t toward the ground, or in a random direction, but instead it was toward a building off to his side. Without hesitation he moved, blocked the sword, and in return the Lich laughed at the action. He realized exactly what that meant. The Lich wasn’t some Saturday Morning villain that was going to monologue and then attack where there were no people. He was going to use the fact that Copper cared about the people in the academy to his advantage.

“The problem with you heroes is that you are so resigned to ensure the health and safety of those around you. Your entire being is focused on ensuring that those that live in your world continue to draw breath. It means that while I have no doubt that our skills are mostly equal there is an absolute difference between us. You will go out of your way to protect these people, and I will use them regardless if they are living or dead,” he said with humor in his voice, “It means that I’ve won. I have absolutely won against you, and there is nothing that you can do about it. Prepare for death, boy.”

Copper watched as the armor stretched its arms out. The palms of the armored gauntlets began to open, and he could see the tentacles that were inside of it slithering out. Those tentacles began to shift into different shapes. The tips of them glowed a sickly green, and he realized that each one of them was holding a magical blast. There was absolutely no way to protect everyone from that. He wasn’t even sure if Avarice would survive a direct hit. Not that he doubted the armor in the slightest, but he wondered exactly what kind of power was inside of each blast.

Without a second though, he rushed forward, pushing Avarice to its absolute limit. The action seemed to cause the Lich to become startled. Likely he believed that Copper would instead attempt to save as many people as he could. That he wouldn’t rush in to attack, and the points all aimed at him. The axe went flying, hard, and struck the chest of the armor. When it did the tentacles lost their shape, and they began moving erratically. All of them appeared to be out of control, unable to deal with what had happened. There was little doubt in that moment that the confusion felt by the living armor was Coppers one real chance. He grabbed the Axe, ripped it back, and didn’t hesitate, “Grenade,” he said, his voice firm, “Give me a grenade now!”

One came from the back hatch, and he shoved the giant grenade into the opened wound of the living armor. The living armor’s arms wrapped around him, “If I go boy, then you go too!”

The explosion was something that could heard far outside of the capital. Somehow, the effects of the grenade were focused directly on the space between the two armors. The massive explosion that happened was enough to cause every building to shake, most of the windows to break, and of course most of the doors to crumble. Those not behind the barriers would need to be seen at the healers due to damage to their ears.

Yet, through it all, through everything, it appeared that everyone was alright. For a moment it looked as if the world had finally given them all a favor. The smoke from the blast cleared and what should have been two armors standing there was reduced to most of one standing there. Avarice had withstood the blast, but not without severe damage. Part of the left arm was gone, the facial plate that covered the sensors in the head were destroyed, and its legs seemed to be fused in place.

Somehow, it had managed to save the occupant. The hatch opened, slowly, and Copper looked at the damage. What had happened was bad enough that it had pushed Avarice to its very limits. There was no doubt in his mind that if it hadn’t been for the abilities of the armor he would be dead. The armors that the five idiots had used would likely be laying in slag from the explosion. He could hear a strange, yet familiar, sound from inside of the cockpit. Looking around he found a small geiger counter.

From what he could see the explosion had contained radiation. In truth that made far too much sense. It was less like a grenade and more like a small nuclear warhead. Still, from what he could see the Lich was gone. At least he was hopeful that he was gone. His plan to take him in was completely stupid, and he got that now. At least they could take in all of his victims. He breathed out, seemingly okay until he saw movement. Below him, something moved from the scattered remains of the living armor. It was small, barely the size of a child, and it stood.

He saw the same flickering red and green eyes, “You’ve not won yet, boy!”

A moment later the lich was thrown to the ground, and behind him was an angry Starlight Glimmer.

“You were my father!” she screamed, her nails digging into him, “MY FATHER!”

Copper could see the confusion on the face of the Lich. He had likely believed that they would have executed Starlight and been done with it. After all, she had been a general in the Lich’s army. She had been prepared to sacrifice herself for him. Copper very much doubted that the Lich would have wasted the time to reconstitute Starlight into another Lich. Instead he would have left her dead. Perhaps, in his own twisted way that would have been honorable. After all, she would remain at rest while others that had died were forced into servitude. Still, the Lich had to deal with the fact that she was alive, well, and very much angry at him.

“How can you live?” he asked, his voice sounding far younger than it should, “You were captured. Once captured high ranking officials of other armies are put to death. It is a sign of honor, a badge of worthiness. To be denied that, you’ve fallen into deep shame.”

Copper watched and waited to see if the words would have the effect that he was certain the Lich was looking for. The effect of getting her to back off, but instead she slapped him. The sound resounded around them, and then she did it again. Each time she slapped him his head turned with the movement. After the sixth he was trying to get away, “Stop!” he shouted, “I command you! Stop you insolent whelp! I am your master! I remade you into the creature you are! I made you strong! STOP!”

She hauled back and punched him hard, “NO!” she shouted, her voice filled with anger, “I’ll never stop! You were supposed to be my father! My Father! You were supposed to care and love me! I believed that you loved me!”

Copper moved forward, and behind him was Professor Fancy Pants. He was surprised to see his beloved master of tea there, but with a quick movement Professor Fancy Pants had moved Starlight. He held her, effortlessly, and he nodded to Copper who grabbed the Lich. There was a very surprising difference between how the Lich had been, and how he was now. Before he could have felt the terrible power pouring off of him. He could practically feel the power of death itself there.

He didn’t feel it now. All he felt was the body of a child. Sure, there was still magic, there was still power, but it was a fraction of what it had been. All of the would be invaders were simply standing still. None of them were advancing because the Lich couldn’t do it. He was stripped of his power, and the only reason he could consider was that the explosion had destroyed him, and in an effort to continue to exist he reconstituted himself into a new living body.

With that knowledge he gained more information on Lich than he believed possible. It was possible to capture him, but in doing so it meant killing him. When he stopped to think of it that way the entire thing made his head hurt. He didn’t like that, in the slightest, but at least there was something. It meant that he could turn him over to the kingdom, and they could see exactly what it was they wanted to do with him. He hoped that it wouldn’t be to just release him. Even if he was trapped in a prison of his own flesh for now there was no guarantee that it would last forever.

He wasn’t sure exactly what it was that he’d done to become the Lich in the first place, but he had to imagine that it did involve dying. If that was the case then there was every possibility that he could attempt it again, and he certainly didn’t want to be the reason that he was able to do it. So that meant that somehow they needed to keep him alive, and they needed to preserve him. Slowly the answer came to him, and it hated that he was going to suggest it. Still, it was likely that Queen Chrysalis would prove to be beneficial again. If only for the reason of ensuring that the Lich didn’t manage to transform.

Sixteen Hours Later - Relocated Changeling Hive

Copper watched as the other temple guards kept a close eye on the Lich. The former Monarch was restrained by something similar to a straight jacket, a half mask was placed on him, rending him unable to speak and cast. Effectively he was made completely powerless by these precautions. The moment they entered the hive multiple creatures that looked like Queen Chrysalis, only without differing facial features, were there to greet them.

Copper watched as they all took a knee to his presence. The effect was obvious. They were under Chrysalis’ command, and thanks to Artemis she was under his command. At this point he commanded an army that rivaled most civilized nations. The idea bothered him. Not that there was this extra amount of manpower, but instead that it had been placed squarely into his hands. This was an amount of manpower that he didn’t really want to be responsible for. He didn’t want to have that kind of power, but then he wasn’t sure that there was anyone that he would absolutely trust with it either.

Queen Celestia had already more or less proven that she was perfectly fine with letting things slide until it was the next generation's problem. King Consort Baked Bean seemed to be a good sort, and certainly seemed to be honest in what he intended to do, but ultimately his power resided with Queen Celestia. If she didn’t want to do something she could deny it. That would cause a whole world of problems for anyone that was depending on the King Consort without some kind of prior authorization from Queen Celestial. That left the other nobles. Sure, he believed that he could trust Duke Filthy Rich.

He was honest about what his true goal was, and he hadn’t lied once about what he was planning on doing. The issue was that having this much power could be something that would end up swaying him. So, again it was a question of who did he feel the most responsible for it. The answer had been himself. He didn’t want absolute power, and he just wanted to make sure that Chrysalis didn’t do anything that would cause problems. With that kind of attitude he felt that he was at least on the right track toward ensuring that nothing happened.

“Welcome back M’Lord,” all of the creatures said, their voices sounding eerily similar, “Queen Chrysalis awaits you.”

He followed the group, with the temple knights in tow, and they found Queen Chrysalis sitting upon a dark throne. The throne itself was made of a black onyx, perfectly carved, and he realized that the creatures that made it had likely carved it directly from the stone. Likely, it had been a single stone in the beginning, and now it was perfectly seated for all to see. He watched as Queen Chrysalis stood, “My Lord,” she said, her voice a purr, “You have gifted me with your presence. To what do I owe this honor?”

He studied her, “I know that you have eyes everywhere for me. I know because Artemis told me as much. That means that you know what happened earlier, and you know about the Lich that is our custody. I need him sealed away, and I believe him going into one of your pods is the only real way to ensure that he doesn’t escape.”

She nodded, and he watched as she moved toward the Lich. The now much smaller former monarch seemed to be glaring at her. She circled him several times before she shook her head, “I will gladly place him into a pod, and it will hold him, but it will not do so forever,” she said as she looked back at him, “He simply has too much power inside of him for me to keep prisoner for an eternity. I could potentially hold him for a year, perhaps two, and then he would have gained enough power to break free.”

She motioned her hands out among the drones that were around them, “Unfortunately that means that he would likely slaughter my children, all of them, and then he would come for me. I have no doubts in my mind that he would use his necromancy upon us to ensure our devotion and servitude. Ultimately, it would end with him having access to an army that would rival Queen Celestia’s kingdom above.,” she stated as she looked at him, “The other option is that you agree to do a temporary imprisonment, and then you find something that will ensure his complete and total imprisonment for all time.”

He studied her, “I’m guessing that you have an idea of what that would be?”

She nodded, “Long before the royal existed, and before the current humans took over, there was a different breed of human. They had long since lost their connection to the magical powers that resided upon the Earth. They had little to not effect on the world other than technology. These humans had also managed to find, and stop, one of the single greatest threats of their time. An immortal demon king known as Grogar. They took an artifact from Grogar, a single bell, that was worn by him at all times.”

She studied him, “His bell contained all of his power, every last drop of it, and it would be the only thing powerful enough to hold our friend for an indefinite amount of time. In order to imprison him, you must obtain Grogar’s bell.”

He nodded, “Where is it?”

She smiled, “The Kingdom of the Ancient Dragon. It was last known to be there, and that is where you must go.”

He looked at her, and then he looked again at the Lich. He couldn’t allow him to go free, and he couldn’t allow him the chance to convert Chrysalis and her children to his subjects. That meant that he had to go to the Kingdom of the Ancient dragon. And that meant that he needed to find a way of doing it that would be allowed. The one thing he could think of was putting in as a transfer student.