The Fight for Tomorrow (Part 2)
#11 of My Little Pony: The Aeons of Equestria
This is it. The endgame. The final showdown. With the fate of all Equestria resting heavily on his shoulders Reno cannot afford failure...
Warning : the following dark fanfiction contains intense gunplay, over the top fight scenes and oodles of gore. Reader's discursion is advised.
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My Little Pony
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Episode 9: The Fight for Tomorrow (Part 2)
The royal palace was as beautiful on the outside as it was on the inside. The tower-like structure was grand to the point of ridiculousness. Everything was huge. The windows were all stained glass, and tall numbers, depicting epic scenes of the sun rising over vertical landscapes, or scores of ponies in royal-guard armour marching to glory. Every ceiling vaulted high above their heads.
The throne room was the epitome of the palace's grandeur, placed at the very, very top of the highest tower. A massive circular room, every re-enforcing spine arched upward and met in the centre of the pointed ceiling. The stained windows were spaced all around, adding a certain mood to the lush decorations.
There were crimson drapes with golden tassels, suits of silver armour and various poles holding up multi-coloured flags and streamers bearing the coats of arms from Equestria's various provinces. There was a single red carpet leading from the grand throne room's doors, right up to the podium in the centre of the room.
Side by side the thrones stood. The throne of the sun, the grandest of the two was crafted from pure gold and stood almost twice as high as Celestia was tall. Crested at the very top of the backrest was the symbol of her cutie-mark, a golden orb with jagged beams of warmth stretching from the sun's core. The arm-rests were encrusted with diamonds and pearls, and the seat itself was padded with plush, silken cushions.
The throne of the moon sat to the right of where Celestia would sit to raise the sun every morning. The throne of the moon was where Princess Luna would sit to lower the sun and raise the moon, bathing Equestria in her beautiful nights. It was a seat carved out of dull grey stone, with various ancient Equine symbols carved into the cold rock. Somewhat smaller than its sister-throne, perched atop the throne was a marking like Luna's cutie-mark, a crescent moon surrounded by a few glittering stars.
The throne room was quiet for a moment... until the sickening crunching noise of a fist making contact with a face rang out again. It was followed quickly by a sharp gasp from the princess the fist had made contact with.
Luna span with the heavy blow delivered by a towering Shadow Legion conscript. The stallion's eyes were emotionless as she saw the princess drop to all-fours, spitting blood onto the smooth floor. In fact, none of the conscripts seemed to react with any emotions. They all stood as mechanical as both clockwork warriors guarded the throne room doors.
Twilight pulled at the hands holding her fast. The stallion's grip on the unicorn didn't loosen as she was held apart from her friends. Across the space there were more uniformed conscripts holding on to Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Applejack and Fluttershy. Two of them towered over Luna and had proceeded to beat her without any good reason.
Still, Luna wasn't going to just give in. while she knew every time she straightened up she would be beaten down again, she refused to stay on the ground.
None of them used magic. It didn't seem to have any effect on the Shadow Legion followers. Their spells just dissipated before making contact with them. And in Celestia's name, Twilight Sparkle had tried again and again when they had been jumped. Not long ago Twilight and her friends were seated outside the throne room, waiting like naughty fillies about to see their headmaster for detention. They had been separated from Reno immediately and had been carted to Canterlot several hours ago. They had asked the guards what had been going on, but none had answered. The only words that had been spoke to them was from the captain of the guard, who had simply placed them in their seats and commanded them to wait for the princess.
Not long afterward all of Canterlot rocked and shifted... and then all this had happened. Shadow Legion conscripts and clockwork warriors had come out of nowhere and taken them captive. Luna had then teleported into the throne room out of nowhere, only to be ambushed and overpowered.
Luna sat up on her knees again, blood dribbling from a crack in the winged unicorn's lip, mingling with her night-sky fur. The conscript merely reacted by raising his fist for another punch.
"That's quite enough of that!" a voice echoed across the chamber.
It caused Twilight's heart to skip a beat. It was the voice that brought warmth to her soul. A voice that she had longed to hear since they had been taken captive. A voice that assured her everything would be all right.
But as Twilight turned her head, her heart began to sink. A clockwork warrior slammed the throne room's door shut in his wake. He was clad in black fatigues with a dark mail vest of sorts draped over his shoulders and wrapped around his torso. Wrapped around his waist was a belt with grey pouches, the buckle adorned with a Shadow Legion insignia. Wrapped around his throat was a scarf, and he wore a smug grin as he moved closer to the lavender unicorn.
"Twilight Sparkle!" Reno clapped his hands together and sighed. "The prodigal child herself. Well..." the human shrugged, eying her over, his gaze lingering on her chest area for a moment. "Not really a child I suppose."
"Reno?" Twilight asked a little unsure. It sure looked like him. It certainly sounded like him. But Twilight didn't... she didn't feel anything in the man's presence like she usually did. That tingling butterfly sensation her stomach went through? It wasn't there.
"Ugh." The man rolled his eyes. "Of course you would think I was him. But not to worry, I'm sure that little goody-two shoes got what was coming to him. Allow me to introduce myself. I..." he gave a low and elegant bow, one hand over his stomach and the other held out to his side. "Am General Strife."
Twilight's jaw gritted. "Where is Reno? What have you done with him!?" she finished in a scream.
"Whoa, easy there, Sparkle." Strife chuckled taking a step back from her and holding up his hands innocently. "You're talking about the wussy imposter?" he laughed. "Oh, I dunno. Probably drowning in his own blood... or... y'know. Whatever blood my clockwork warriors leave."
Twilight's eyes glistened as Strife talked without missing a beat. She knew how to spot a liar... but Strife wasn't lying. "That's not true. He's coming to rescue us, and defeat you. You're the imposter here!"
Again, Strife laughed. "Trust me, Sparkle. He's dead." Casually he left the unicorn in the conscript's grip and walked over to the two thrones in the centre of the room. He carefully paced around them, sliding one hand over the gentle curves as he admired the delicate craftsmanship. "They're beautiful, aren't they? The thrones?"
Nopony said anything, the ponies staring at the general as he perched himself on the edge of Luna's throne.
"See, the thing about Shadow Legion magic is, it comes from the darkness." Strife said as he sidled back into the seat. Nothing seemed to happen as he slouched back and tried to relax in the embrace of the uncomfortable stone throne. "You know that sensation of paranoia you get in the darkness? That's where I draw my energy. That's where my magic comes from." He paused to sigh, thoughtfully resting his head in one hand. "But daytime is so... irritating to say the least. It's not like I'm powerless, it's just weakening to my forces as a whole. But if there was an eternal night... by the goddess, that would be glorious wouldn't it? Not even Celestia would be able to stop me."
"She stopped you before!" Luna cried loudly. In response Strife flicked his hand and the conscript standing over her punched the winged unicorn in the face again. This time she didn't sit up afterwards though. The blow came down with enough force to throw her into the ground where she remained catching her breath and shuddering with pain.
"That she did." Strife nodded grimly. "And how did she do it? By raising the sun and leaving it up for seven whole days! But if I were to control the night. If I was in charge of when it would be light, when it would be dark. The goddess would be able to rise from her sanctum and rule over all Equestria.
"So what's stopping me?" Strife enthusiastically jumped to his feet and walked back to where Twilight Sparkle was being held. "The throne is deadlocked. Only one thing can unlock it so that anyone could sit upon it and control the night. That would be you." He reached out and stroked Twilight's lavender cheek. "The Element of Magic."
As she stared at him, General Strife pulled something from his belt, and looked deeply into Twilight's eyes. "Element of Magic." He said smoothly with a warm smile. "Activate the throne please." He held what was in his hand up to Twilight's face.
Twilight Sparkle pondered the object in Strife's hand with some confusion. It looked like the handle of a sword, or a knife, but there was no evident blade. Just little holes along the two-stick handle with two little pin-hinges at the top. Was she being threatened with a bar of plastic?
Twilight's defiant purple eyes flitted upward again to stare the general down. "No." she seethed bravely.
That only made the man smile. "Very well."
It happened so fast with a blur of black and silver so enchanting, even if her magic had any effect she wouldn't have been able to stop it from happening. The general flicked his wrist back, and the object in his hand parted into two long sections. Hidden between them, on the hinge was the blade that had been missing before. The knife smoothly flourished open around Strife's fingers, swinging and spinning in an elegant blur. After a series of complicated swings and turns, the handle snapped together again and the blade was open, held in front of Twilight's face for only a split second longer.
Strife stepped backwards, twisted and flung the knife across the throne room. Applejack gasped and looked down as numbness spread across her stomach. Blood seeped into her fur and clothes as the conscript let go of the orange pony. All colour seemed to drain from her face and she fell to the ground with a bloody knife clutched in both hands.
"APPLEJACK!" twilight screamed as she struggled to run to her friend's side, but the conscript holding her didn't bat an eye. The other ponies cried out and tried to run to their friend's aid, but none of them could break free. Rainbow Dash bucked and kicked, but the larger of the conscripts holding her in place didn't move an inch.
Turning back to the struggling unicorn, Strife pulled another one of his 'butterfly' knives from his belt and held it in front of her face. "I will ask again, Twilight Sparkle. Summon the Element of Magic, or I will do the pink one next."
Pinkie Pie sobbed, squirming as she tried to shrink away.
"No, please!" Twilight begged and pleaded. "Wait. I don't know! I don't know how to summon it out of thin air! I wouldn't even know how to unlock the throne of the moon!"
The general's next flourish wasn't as complicated as the first. With a blur of black and silver, the knife twirled around the base of his thumb and landed neatly in the palm of his hand with the tip of the blade pointing at Twilight's eye.
"Well then figure it out by the count of three." He sent the knife into another set of spins, rotating around his index finger and blurring through the air with a series of clicks of metal on metal. The knife left his hand and was sent spinning into the air. "One!" the general shouted as he caught the blade again for the first time. Another set of blurry spins and another toss directly upward. "Two!" another snap as he caught it with the blade closed. A brief pause, and then the knife was sent tumbling over his index finger and he swung it around into a horizontal cartwheel. The mechanism span around, swung under and was launched into the air again.
The knife seemed to spin in slow motion before Twilight's teary eyes. It tumbled and twirled, like a ticking clock. Tumbling and ticking away precious seconds. It arched downward...
"Three!"
"WAIT!" came Twilight's scream, so loud it caused the air around her face to distort. There was a spark. She couldn't quite explain it. Like something either broke, or it was fixed. It sent a hot energy wafting through every inch of her body. A sudden up-draft came out of nowhere, lifting her straight mane directly upward and surrounding her body with golden light.
Twilight couldn't see anything, her eyes were clenched shut. And slowly but surely, something heavy rested gently on her head. Her crown. Her element.
The Element of Magic.
Represented by a golden tiara adorned with a purple gem depicting a six-pointed star like her cutie-mark, the Element of Magic was an element of friendship both powerful and elusive. Nopony truly understood it, not even Twilight nor Princess Celestia. It was without question the most commanding of the six elements.
Slowly opening her eyes, she was General Strife had his back to her. Pinkie Pie was crying, but fine. The knife was still clutched in Strife's hand as he moved gracefully across the throne room towards the throne of the moon. The moon laid into the backrest was glimmering pale light. A dark aura of shadow seemed to surround the majestic chair as Twilight's element unlocked the seat of doom.
She pulled at her captor, but didn't move. There was nothing to do but watch as the general went to take his seat and bathe Equestria in his evil...
When the floor exploded...
A perfectly square section of the floor near the centre of the throne room shot up into the air, trailing wisps of dust as it span around and arched down towards Twilight. Eyes wide, the unicorn quickly ducked, pulling at the pony holding her in place. The hatch scythed down through the air without signs of slowing, before cratering into the face of the conscript holding Twilight Sparkle in place.
The pony's head snapped back in time with the sickening squelch of pulping flesh and snapping bone, and the stallion's body went limp. Twilight wasted no time in slipping from his dead grip and dashing to Applejack's side. She immediately applied pressure to her wounded friend's wounds and pulled the blade in her gut loose. Immediately, as Applejack cried out Twilight applied her magic, doing her best to heal the cowgirl pony.
In response to their fallen brother, the other conscripts threw Twilight's friends to the ground where they stayed, stunned by fear with their glistening eyes watching the square hole in the ground. All the elements of harmony were silent as a figure rose from the darkness, stepping out into the throne room with strong, defiant strides.
The newcomer shouldered his weapon with the muzzle pointed downwards and swept the room, taking in everything around him within a heartbeat. And then his eyes lay upon Twilight and her friends, causing him to sigh.
"Confound these ponies." Reno muttered. "They drive me to murder!" he quickly snapped up his weapon and angled the sights of his rifle into his line of sight.
The conscripts and clockwork warriors closed in all around him, like gathering shadows pouncing upon the final spot of light from a dying sun. Reno's aim shifted to meet the nearest of them. The elements of harmony covered their ears with their hands and hugged the deck.
Gunfire exploded through the cavernous throne room. Hot lead scythed outward from Reno's position as he rotated on the spot, tracers cratering into conscripts and piercing the bodies of the stallions making their armour count for naught.
Bullets pinged against the clockwork warriors and sent ricochets cutting into the conscripts beside the towering hulks. It seemed the machines would crush Reno where he stood... before a silver flash shot into the air, slicing into them with one deft swing.
Captain Silver tumbled through the air and landed lightly on her hooves just outside the ring of Shadow Legion troops bearing down on Reno. With a dull thud one of the clockwork warriors' arms fell loose and hit the ground. Crying out with a rumbling, mechanical war-cry, both armoured monstrosities turned away from the human and ran at the earth-pony captain.
Reno's muzzle flashed from side to side as he laid sustained bursts from his last mag into conscript after conscript. He weaved and ducked between them, leaning away as several knives and swords scythed in his direction. Every sweep he felt swoop past his skin with only millimetres to spare, but he didn't think about what could happen if he slowed for a second. He just focused on killing as many of the conscripts as he could in the least amount of time. He focused on using that instinct that was flowing through his human body.
One conscript got too close for Reno to aim at and shoot. He quickly turned his rifle over and swung the stock of the weapon around. The Raider's butt slammed into the pony's face, causing him to half-turn away dazed. Reno carried the sweeping blow through, holding the rifle upside-down along his waist with the barrel aimed at a conscript behind him. The trigger pulled back and the remaining six rounds in the magazine cycled through the Raider and punched through the conscript's gut, nearly tearing him in half.
As the pony doubled over and fell to the ground, as did Reno's rifle as he let it drop. His hands blurred across his mid-section and pulled loose the P226R pistol holstered on his right hip. The weapon came up in two hands and kicked as he jerked the trigger back. The top slide slammed back with a flash of the muzzle, sending the barrel into a slight rise and an empty shell spinning out to Reno's side. The bullet itself slammed into the back of the head of the stunned conscript he'd gun-butted, killing him in an instant.
As the pony fell out of sight with a shower of free-floating crimson globules, it gave way to a window among the conscripts swarming all around Reno. Through that gap of writhing bodies and flashing swords he saw Captain Silver spin through the air, her long lemon tail billowing in her wake as her sword took the head clean off the first clockwork warrior.
Before he could really enjoy the sight of the feather-light mare land with the grace of a dancer, Reno ducked and two swords crossed each other with a 'clang' above his head. Pistol held against his abdomen he twisted sharply counter-clockwise and fired, hitting the conscript to his left in the shin. He then twisted the other way and fired again, punching a sizeable hole in the gut of the conscript to his right. As the swords above him fell away, Reno turned counter-clockwise as he straightened up, holding his P226R out at arm's length.
The action cycled with a jerk of his index finger and the back of the Shadow Legion conscript's head burst apart like a ripe watermelon. He continued to rotate counter-clockwise with his gun held out at arm's length as a pony charged him with what looked like a ceremonial dagger held like an ice-pick. As the gun-barrel passed the conscript, Reno's finger jerked again.
It happened so fast he hardly even registered the shot, merely seeing the conscript twist mid-run and hit the deck head-over-heels. He followed through and Reno smashed the side of his pistol into the face of the pony he'd shot in the gut. His sword fell to the ground and the human snatched a handful of his collar, pulling the conscript into the path of a sword aimed for Reno's neck. The conscript's blade slammed into the neck of his fellow instead as Reno leaned around the dying pony and shot the perpetrator in the face.
Turning again, Reno slammed his pistol down into the holster again and saw a conscript come at him with a rifle. The conscript unicorn was having trouble drawing a bead on the human with his buddies in the way, but now holding the rifle high with the muzzle pointed in Reno's direction as if he was firing over cover, the pony had a clear run at him... if Reno didn't react much faster.
Grabbing the rifle in both hands, Reno re-directed the barrel into a safe direction and pulled the conscript in closer. As he did, Reno's right foot shot upwards and slammed into the unicorn's crotch with a sickening 'crunch!' the conscript screamed as Reno pulled the rifle from his grip and looped the sling across his body, letting it hang by his side.
The human grabbed the conscript's alicorn in one hand and gave another tug, this time driving a knee into the pony's gut. As he doubled over, Reno stepped back and gave the horn a sharp twist. With surprising ease, Reno tore the alicorn from the conscript's head and glanced down at the engraved horn in his hand. As it came free with a splash of blood from the screaming conscript, the alicorn began to vibrate and glow vibrantly with some sort of magical energy. Almost sensing what came next, the young man flipped the horn into a revers grip and slammed the point deep into the ex-unicorn's shoulder. As it dug fast into the flesh of the conscript, Reno rose a knee to his chest and kicked the Shadow Legion trooper heavily in the chest, launching him backwards into a trio of his fellows.
As he fell back, Reno snatched up the rifle hanging by his side and whirled around. The alicorn exploded, tearing the owner into fleshy chunks and consuming his three fellows in searing light that peeled the flesh from their bones.
A double tap rang out in the aftermath of the explosion as Reno finished off the last conscript with two shots to the chest. Unlike his fallen brethren, the last stallion died a little less dramatically, merely freezing in his hoof-steps and looking down at the blood stains on his armour before simply slumping to the ground.
Reno lowered the weapon or a moment to check his surroundings. All the conscripts seemed to be dead. That just left one...
The last clockwork warrior gave a rumbling cry, swinging its remaining arm around at Reno's head. Cursing, the human held up his rifle and felt it shudder and twist out of shape as the armoured fist slammed into the weapon. His arms were unable to hold his makeshift shield in place as the rifle's body smashed into the side of his head, causing his vision to blur and his feet to leave the ground.
Reno fell backwards and hit the ground flat on his back. Shaking off the pain racing through his head, he looked at the rifle that had fallen to his side, twisted and completely bent out of shape. The magazine had shattered and the stock had turned into jagged chips of plastic.
A little helplessly, Reno sat up and looked at the clockwork warrior standing over him. It only had one arm, but the eyes glowed with undying fierceness as the fist rose up high to strike the finishing blow that would crush Reno alive...
Until a flash of steel slashed through the creature's head. The eyes glowed more vibrant for a second, then faded into darkness as the steel skull rolled away and hit the ground with a loud 'clang!'
The dying creature stumbled this way and that for a second with Captain Silver balancing perfectly upon its shoulders with a wide smile plastered on her face. She'd jumped on its back and put her sword through the exposed neck, and now as if to taunt the creature further remained standing victoriously upon it like it was her throne. Reno smiled back as he tried to come up with a witty circus act related one-liner...
Silver's eyes suddenly widened as she gagged. Her sword fell from her hand and her grip was transferred to something sticking out of her throat. Reno didn't realise what was going on until he saw the blood flow from the captain's mouth and she fell back, dropping out of sight completely.
She was gone. A knife to the throat, just like that? No warning? No premise? No glory? Just dead?
Anger built up in Reno's chest. It burned him up, destroying what little respect he had left for life. Rationality went out the window. He boiled over and cried out at the top of his lungs. As he rolled to his feet, he drew loose his pistol and held it out, ready to kill the one who had thrown the knife.
He didn't even get the chance to put his sights on the killer when another knife scythed through the air. Pain slashed through Reno's arm and his pistol was sent sliding across the throne room floor. Reno found himself looking at a knife in his hand. The point had entered the back of his hand and burst from the palm, neatly tucked between bones and sending blood drooling across his skin.
Crying out, Reno had to fight for stability so he wouldn't drop to his knees and break out into tears. It was the worst pain he'd ever experienced. It was indescribably. Just agony that he screamed and wished would go away.
Looking away from the wound immobilising his right hand, Reno looked up to see him. General Strife was standing by the throne of the moon, something held against his hip. It was a book, easily recognisable by the engraved letters on the spine. The Aeons of Equestria. The thing all this had revolved around. The book held clues to getting Reno back home. Without it, the Shadow Legion never would have found Strife, or figured out where the throne of the moon actually was.
"Last chance, Reno!" Strife yelled throwing the book down. The Aeons of Equestria struck the ground with a bang! "Join me? Or join the dead!"
"No means no, dick-wad!" Reno groaned, gripping the hilt of the knife in his hand. The slightest jolt caused him to flinch with pain. His first instinct was to let go of the blade, but he had to get it out, so he held on tight.
"Fine!" Strife sighed. "I suppose I'll have to kill you myself then."
Slowly but surely, Reno started pulling. He felt the blade drag over the bones in his hand and pull at his flesh and nerves. Burning pain seared through his whole arm as he saw the blade's tip sink back into his palm, the rest of the bloody steel emerging from the back of his hand.
"Ack! I thought you said you would never hurt me?" Reno whined as the knife came free after a few intense moments, blood streaming down across his skin.
"Unfortunately now you have gotten on my last nerve." Strife growled, pulling another pair of butterfly knives from his belt and flicking them open.
"I have that effect on people." Reno panted, flipping his own blade into a reverse grip.
He kept his wounded hand half clenched against his stomach as he readied himself for an attack, knife held by his side. It hardly seemed fair. Strife's two blades against Reno's one. But Strife was the bad-guy here, as cheesy as it may have sounded. The cliché spoke for itself. Reno was supposed to feel helpless at this stage.
"Reno!" Twilight Sparkle called from where she was tending without prevail to Applejack's gut-wound. "Be careful!"
"Shut up, I'm busy!" Reno snapped, hopping from foot to foot as the general ran at him.
Strife darted closer, his off-hand lashing out. The left dagger snaked through the air, directly at Reno. The human quickly ducked away to one side, hearing the blade slice past his ear with a hiss. Leaping forward, Reno bore down on Strife, hoping for the upper hand, but as he stabbed down, the general avoided with catlike reflexes. Reno landed and ducked sideways as the general swiped for him. The blade missed him my an inch, and Reno made sure to keep a moderate distance unless he was going to make a stabbing motion.
They danced around each other like that for a while. Reno would strike, Strife would avoid. Strife would strike, Reno would block, causing the knives to bounce off each other.
Reno ducked as the general aimed a sweeping cut for the throat, allowing the young human to step past his enemy. Straightening up, Reno quickly whipped around, following up with a high round-house kick. The toe of his boot slammed into Strife's hand and sent his knife sliding across the throne room floor, far out of reach. The human then planted his foot close to the general's boots, with his back practically against Strife and twisted his torso around. Knife in an ice-pick grip he aimed the point at the general's throat.
But Strife held up a forearm and blocked against Reno's wrist. Grabbing the boy's arm, he pushed down, taking charge of Reno's limb and sharply twisting his wrist. Crying out as he felt the joint pop, his fingers went limp for a moment and Strife snatched up the blade, slashing upward. Reno only had a millisecond to react...
He wasn't quick enough.
Though Strife didn't hit what he was aiming for, the sharp edge touched Reno's cheek and cut through his skin, drawing a white hot line of pain diagonally across the side of his face. Reno cried out as he twisted away, stumbling for balance as he felt blood trickle down his face.
Then he realised his back was to an armed opponent...
Pain slashed across Reno's back as the knife cut through his t-shirt back and his skin. Crying out again, Reno fell forward and landed on hands and knees. His right hand smarted and he quickly pulled it in out of instinct. Losing balance, Reno fell on his side, groaning with agony.
Pounding footsteps made Reno look up to see Strife grip his blade in both hands and leap on top of the young man. Crying out with a mixture of pain and a war-cry, Reno rolled onto his back and curled up. His hands caught the general's arms and he planted the soles of his boots on Strife's chest. He kicked out, launching Strife over his head and causing him to crash into the ground a little further up. But as he was launched off Reno, the sharp edge of the blade met the back of his left hand and cut open the skin, causing Reno to curse and swear with pain.
They rolled to their feet at the same time, mirroring each other's movements. Reno was breathing hard, his heart hammering against his ribs and adrenaline the only thing keeping him focused. It had been days since he'd eaten or drank anything properly. Or had a proper rest for that matter. He was operating on bare minimum, to the stage his head wouldn't stop throbbing and his limbs were shaking not out of nervousness, but out of fatigue. He felt light headed. Weak even. But he didn't have time to give into those sensations...
Strife darted forward with an overhead stab for the neck, but Reno reached up, ignoring the pain in his wounded hand and caught hold of the general's forearm, attempting to manipulate it and repossess the knife. The blade was the key factor in this fight. Whoever controlled the blade had the higher likelihood of winning.
But the general saw the blocking move coming and drove a knee into Reno's kidneys. Gasping with pain, Reno nearly lost grip and doubled backwards. Strife then wrapped his free arm around the young man's throat and squeezed, struggling to bring the knife down into Reno's flesh. Reno kept his hands planted against the knife arm and pushed with all his might to keep the blade's point away from him.
Strife squeezed harder, closing Reno's wind-pipe, causing him to gag. "Harghl! Fuck!" he managed to force out, looking down in an attempt to put his chin between the arm and his throat.
Strife suddenly pulled his knife back, slipping from Reno's efforts and aimed to stab him in the side. Reno quickly adjusted, planting his feet properly and pushed Strife's arm out. The point halted just half an inch from cutting out Reno's intestines and shakily swayed from side to side as Strife fought to push the blade into the soft abdomen. Reno cried out and forced the blade further away from his gut.
His head suddenly snapped back, and Reno head-butted Strife in the face. He felt the general's nose crush and snap against the back of his head, and warm blood smear into his hair. As the general recoiled weakly, Reno pushed the knife arm straight up and swept his right heel backwards, kicking Strife's legs out from under him. As the general fell sideways, Reno twisted around, still holding on to the knife arm and forced the elbow down on his own knee.
Reno either didn't have enough energy to make the break, or he'd miscalculated the leverage, but Strife's body flopped to the ground and his elbow merely crashed into the young man's knee. The arm didn't break, but the pain was enough to make his fingers go slack for a moment.
Reno let go of the general and took a step back after he scraped the blade from the man's grip. Twisting the weapon into a reverse grip, Reno stepped back into the general and jabbed the knife downward, aiming for the chest.
Unfortunately the general was faster, and rolled out of the way. The blade struck the floor with a light 'clang' and Reno straightened up again. General Strife jumped to his feet and faced Reno as he moved in for another attack. Knife in his left hand, he swung the weapon around in a deft arc, aiming for the neck.
Strife held out his arm and blocked the blow. He caught Reno by the wrist, his other hand grabbing the boy's elbow. Forcefully bending his arm, Strife forced Reno down on one knee and scraped the weapon from his hand. The blade flourished into a reverse grip then jabbed down, right into the top of his shoulder and slipped in behind the collar-bone.
It happened so fast, Reno didn't even realise what had happened until the blade dug into his flesh and he felt the intense pain.
"Ahargh, God!" Reno screamed, hands tightening around Strife's grip on the knife sticking out in his collar. Every cut, every bruise and every jab burned with the force of a million suns. The pain was inside him, as well as across his skin like he had rats crawling through his insides and slowly eating him from the inside. He felt his blood stained clothes cling to his skin sticky and gross. Fighting through it, he dropped onto his back and curled up, half-dragging the general down with him.
His knees came up to his chest and Reno kicked out, one foot hitting Strife in the chest, the other hitting him his the face. Strife's head snapped back and he was pushed off the younger human doppelganger, but as he recoiled he dragged his knife with him. The blade pulled from Reno's flesh, grating over his collar bone as it did. Blood squirted over Reno's neck and seeped into his t-shirt, drawing a fresh cry of agony from Reno.
That was it. He clawed at his wounds with blood smeared hands, screaming and crying, the hurting numbing all his senses but his pain reflexes. The world was a blur as tears flowed from his eyes and he sobbed loudly, his whole body trembling.
He wasn't sure if it was the lack of blood-sugar, or the lack of blood altogether, but his entire body was twitching uncontrollably. He curled up, feeling cold chills run through his body. He was done. There was nothing left in the tank. The beast had swallowed him up, letting the young man slide down into an abyss from which there was no return.
Recovering from the kick to the face, Strife wiped his lip with the back of his hand, seeing blood trickle from his broken nose stain his skin. "This is it then." He sighed, walking closer to where his doppelganger lay in agony. "You could have saved yourself from all of this, you know. You could have joined me. Brought some civilisation to these weak and pathetic ponies. Showed them what a real man does with his life." Strife slowly crouched over Reno's twitching body, raising his knife high in an ice-pick grip. "I suppose this ending is fitting though. You'll die like a bitch... you'll die like that purple unicorn over there will die." His voice lowered into a whisper. "After I have my turn with her of course. I bet that bitch has a nice bit of pussy on her..."
The knife prepared to come down... there was a sharp click... Reno twisted around to meet his destiny...
Reno's hand was thrown upward, driven by the instinct of self-preservation and a blade flashed through the air...
The point of Reno's Leatherman blade slammed into General Strife's throat. He was surprised how easily the blade sank into his flesh, piercing skin, vein and the hard cartridge of his Adam's-Apple. Either he'd put more force into the jabbing motion than he'd intended, or it didn't matter how tough the general was, he was only human, and just as frail as Reno was.
The general immediately staggered back, rising to his feet with his eyes wide. He dropped his knife, and General Strife's hands half darted for the knife in his throat as his mind processed whether he should remove the blade or leave it in place.
Reno's last wind sprang up, energy racing through his body. He managed to use it to rise to his feet and raise his fists. It wouldn't last long, he would have to make the sudden burst count.
Make it count, Reno! His own voice in the back of his head screamed. C'mon, you fucking pussy! Almost there! Just a little longer! Fight, God-damn it! FIGHT!!!
Stepping closer he started throwing punches into the general, happily striking any target that presented itself.
"Fuck you! And fuck your throne of the moon!" Reno screamed with every punch. He fought through the weakness. He fought through the pain, and he fought through the tears. Everything was the bane of his existence. Everything had caused him pain. He hated every physical thing in this universe, and he channelled all of that hate into every punch he laid into the general."Fuck The Aeons of Equestria! Fuck the Shadow Legion!" a fist struck the general in the face, followed quickly by a blow to the chin. "Fuck your goddess and fuck Princess Celestia! Fuck Ponyville! Fuck Canterlot! Fuck Equestria!" a knee in the stomach made Strife double over to meet a sweeping uppercut, throwing his whole mass backwards again. "Fuck the Diamond Dogs! Fuck your magic, your dragons, and your clockwork warriors! Fuck your conscripts! Fuck your commanders! Fuck the Elements of Harmony! And fuck you again!"
As the general stumbled backwards under another blow, Reno glanced down to see he was standing over where Strive had thrown down The Aeons of Equestria. The human stooped and lifted the book in both hands, ignoring the bitter pain that was everywhere on his body, before whirling around and bringing the heavy manuscript around. He swung it in a wide blow and slammed the heavy cover against the side of Strife's face.
The general span around and fell into the throne of the moon. He slumped back, his head striking heavily against the backrest. He just lay there, dazed and unable to move, blood drooling down over his fatigues. As he sat, shadows seemed to creep in from all corners of the room. He was taking control, drawing power from the throne's magic...
Reno wouldn't let it last wrong. Book cradled in his wounded hand, his good hand reached out and grabbed the Leatherman still lodged in the general's throat. He gave it a sharp twist, earning a gag of pain from the man and causing a spurt of crimson to splash across Reno's cheek.
The air around them distorted as an invisible tsunami rippled outward from the throne.
The consequent shockwave tore up everything around them. Marble buckled and dust shot into the air at places, like miniature geysers. Glass windows that weren't broken yet shattered outward. The clockwork warriors were stripped of their armoured shell, their inner workings completely mangled. And then the rippling shockwave grew.
It completely shattered the visible light-spectrum, taking on colours of the moisture that hung in the air. It was like a halo-shaped rainbow, glistening and glinting in the grim light as it tore outward, tearing away walls and knocking ponies over. Pillars broke and splintered like toothpicks, rumbling the ground as they collapsed.
Out across Canterlot everypony knew what had happened. Conscript ponies threw down their arms and raised white flags before they were tackled by Celestia's royal guard. Shadow Legion commanders abandoned posts and retreated as quickly as possible. All over the city clockwork warriors were shutting down and dropping like broken toys to the ground.
A knife plunged down in a muscle-bound neck and the shadow troll let out its final, gargling breath. Every limb going limp, the troll's blood spilled down across the creature's leathery hide and splashed his fatigues as she pulled back. The knife came loose with surprising ease before he sheathed it back to the side of his boot.
Standing in the shadow of a mighty beast that lay dead by his hands, Karskin looked directly up at the blast and gave a very deep sigh. Lowering his gaze, the ex-commander turned and hobbled quietly away into the shadows...
The rain-blast lit up the royal gardens, forming a loop around the palace tower that lit up the gloomy, smoke filled night sky. All across Equestria the multi-coloured shockwave was seen. Miles away from Canterlot in an old inn on a lonely, beaten road, a wooden door opened up and a figure stumbled outside.
Lay Brother Cutter caught himself at the threshold, the contents of his bottle sloshing audibly. The rain-blast glinted in his eyes as he smiled broadly. "There's a name to be remembered." He slurred to himself, then held up his bottle in a lonely toast before knocking the strong liquid back.
Even further across Equestria, in the badlands overlooking Ponyville, several boulders shifted. Gravel surfed down a steep hillside as an opening was created. From the shadows stumbled a short, almost pudgy figure. He emerged from the dark Diamond Dog caverns, cradling an arm across his chest in a hastily tied sling.
With a deep breath, the baby dragon lifted his gaze to the lightshow consuming Canterlot. Returned to normal, Spike sighed at the sight, a tear of regret rolling down his cheek...
The light faded as the shockwave did. Back in the royal palace at the heart of Canterlot, Twilight Sparkle managed to sit up from where she sat covering a wounded Applejack. Her hands were caked with blood where she applied pressure to the cowgirl-pony's gut, feeling her body rise and fall with each shallow breath. The force-field Strife had erected around them had dissipated, evaporating into thin air.
Her hero was still standing over General Strife's still body. Reno had taken an uneven step back, staring at the blood seeping into Strife's clothing. His dead eyes stared up at his similarly blood stained doppelganger who just stood there unevenly in silence for a moment.
Fissures and cracks formed across the ceiling and Reno looked directly upwards. A sizeable chunk suddenly fell free. Smaller boulders bounced to the ground all around the human, but he didn't flinch. He didn't move. The dozen tons of careening towards Reno seemed to freeze for a moment. He inhaled sharply and opened his mouth, like he was about to react, or say something.
This was it? This was how it would end? Surviving chases? Surviving firefights? After all this he'd be crushed under a pile of rubble? The whole ordeal was finally over, the whole adventure ending so suddenly as it had begun?
"Hit." Game over.
The Aeons of Equestria clutched against his chest, Reno had just about enough time to close his eyes...
The chunk of rock slammed down on both of them, General Strife and Reno disappearing completely from sight under the massive slab. Both thrones were simultaneously obliterated under the shower of debris covering them.
And after what felt like an eternity, there was silence. No more explosions. No more gunfire. No more screams of the dying. Bliss settled over Canterlot. It was done. General Strife was dead... and Reno Strife had died with him.
"No..." came Twilight's voice through the thick layers of dust that hung in the air. As Princess Luna leaned over Applejack to take over applying pressure to the pony's wounds, the lavender mare slowly rose to her hooves. "No." she called again. Every limb trembled. Every muscle felt weak. Her heart was fluttering against her ribcage as she felt a horrible feeling of despair sink into the pit of her stomach. At the sight of the mountain of rubble where Reno stood just a few moments ago, a single tear dropped from her eye and rolled down her cheek. Followed by another... and another...
"No!" Twilight's body suddenly forced itself into action. She ran against the hill, tears freely flowing from her eyes like waterfalls, her tiara falling forgotten to the ground. With trembling hands she started shifting smaller debris and digging through the piles of rubble, moving away larger boulders using her magic. All the time she was searching for any evidence Reno was still alive. "Reno!" she kept screaming all the time, single handedly only making a dent in the mound. "Can you hear me? Reno! Speak to me!"
Princess Luna had moved over to where Applejack lay and was applying her godly magic to the pony. As her wounds began to heal, the cowgirl-pony came to and lifted her head to look at Twilight dig through the rubble, screaming at the top of her lungs.
"Don't!" the unicorn sobbed. "Don't go... please... don't leave us... don't leave me..."
Crying, Pinkie Pie slowly moved closer to her friend, wanting to pull Twilight out of it. With streaks of mascara running down her cheeks, Rainbow Dash wrapped her arms around the pink pony's shoulders and stopped her. Turning, Pinkie buried her face in Dash's shoulder, shaking and sobbing.
Rarity was not far behind, holding a crying Fluttershy. Across the ruined throne room Princess Celestia and a contingent of Pegasus guards glode into the throne room and landed quietly, watching in silence.
Nopony said anything as Twilight suddenly stopped digging. She doubled over, crying against a boulder and pounding a fist against the rubble...
PseudoFiction
Written and directed by SniperSpartan-977
Drafting and creative design by Mark
My Little Pony Characters, Settings, Designs and Themes © to Hasbro and the Respective Owners
Soundtrack
My Little Pony Remix - DJAlexS
Waiting for the End - Linkin Park
Scratching Harmony - AspectOfTheStorm