The Shadow of a King
Pieces of the Puzzle (Part 2)
Author: Draconis187

“Summin’ about this place is creepin’ me out, Trix,” Applejack said in a low voice as the pair of them continued to walk deeper into the Rogue Monastery.

The area continued to smell worse as they passed corpse upon corpse of humans and beasts of varying description that would make anyone wish to turn and run. The blood on the walls were old, dulling the brick to a dull brown and making one’s stomach turn from just looking at them.

“I know what you mean, Applejack. Let’s conclude our business here as quickly as possible,” Trixie said nervously.

They walked down a passageway with steel bars on either side, making them feel as if they were in a deranged prison. Skeletons were hanging on the walls, chained by large steel manacles around their wrist and ankles. Some were kept in stockades, some had their heads or arms missing but they kept the same, knelt down pose.

A cold wind blew in from the east, right into the mares’ faces. Trixie and Applejack gripped tightly onto the brims of their respective hats as Trixie’s cape rustled loudly.

A small chittering sound came from the north, sending a shill up the mares’ spines. It wasn’t long until the source came after them... it turned out to be several sources.

“…Those are some big spiders,” Trixie commented.

“Meh, Clunker’s bigger. Squash ‘em!” Applejack shouted as she brought her hammer down on a Giant Spider.

The impact thundered loudly as the hammer flattened the spider’s thorax into a disgusting light green paste, making a sickening splat sound on the floor. A few of its thin, lithe legs twitched slightly as Applejack brought her hammer in a wide, underhand arc.

Volendrung collided with another Giant Spider’s face and sent it flying into the bars, splitting apart into gooey fragments and raining inside the cell.

Trixie took out Cerberus and used Ice Age as three Giant Spiders leapt at her. Their attacks failed to connect as their fangs found several inches of ice at a temperature below absolute zero. They stayed there for a few milliseconds before the ice shield shattered into thousands of fragments, showering the surrounding area with sharp shards.

“Watch it, Trixie!” Applejack spat as she dove around the corner in time to watch a shower of ice fly past her, “Ya, almost got ma hat!”

“Sorry,” Trixie said as she placed Cerberus on her back and observed her attack.

“Well, ah’m fine so ah guess no harm no foul,” Applejack replied as she came back from around the corner.

“Let’s keep moving. I doubt these five were the only ones responsible of thi-” Trixie said but Applejack tackled her to the ground as a fireball flew past them, missing the spot where the showmare’s head once was.

A Fallen Shaman and several other regular Fallen came running towards, brandishing their weapons. Trixie and Applejack nodded at each other as they charged at the Fallen Shaman.

The Fallen ran up to the mares, weapons high and ready for battle. Applejack brought her hammer down on the nearest Fallen and crushed him into the ground. The sound of his bones shattering echoed slightly through the hallway.

Trixie jumped and pushed down hard as her hooves connected with a Fallen’s head. She leapt over the rest of the group, Cerberus in hoof as she somersaulted and landed on the ground. As she landed, Cerberus connected and broke the ground in a Crystal attack.

As the trail of ice tore through their numbers she picked Cerberus up and slammed it into the ground, using the Million Carats attack as a massive ice pillar erupted from the ground in front of her, obliterating the Fallen in a shower of blood and body parts.

With the path clear to the Shaman, Applejack threw Volendrung as if it were a javelin as the Shaman tried to resurrect the defeated Fallen. The hammer impacted with the Shaman’s chest like a freight train going full speed into a brick wall. Its chest caved in instantly, killing it as the Daedric hammer tore through the Shaman’s body, flying out the other side, covered in blood before colliding and going through the wall behind it.

“It appears we may be in for quite a fight,” Trixie commented as she and Applejack navigated the bloody aftermath of their scuffle.

“Ah hear ya,” Applejack responded flatly.

**** **** **** ****

Fluttershy stood on all fours atop the right shoulder of MEGAS, looking out at New Jersey with disdain. Calling it a cesspool would be a compliment. The air was so thick with smog she could have cleaved it in half with Agni and set the entire city ablaze as a result.

The city was a living junk pile as the streets were covered in garbage as people casually just dropped their trash wherever they pleased and cared little to what it did to the surrounding environment.

Coop laid under the red car as it stood in the garage of his mother’s house. Various sounds came from under there, some were curses others were general grunts and shouts of triumph as he tinkered with the undercarriage for reasons only he understood.

Jamie was inside the basement watching his favourite show, showcasing some of the hottest models in the fashion industry. The thin man had enough drool on the floor to fill an Olympic pool as his eyes were fixated on the models’ bodies and paid no attention to the wet floor.

Fluttershy looked on as the city was being rebuilt for possibly the umpteenth time. The city was industrious as most buildings were making great progress in terms of being rebuilt. It was as if this was a regular occurrence and the local authorities left Coop alone of reasons Fluttershy couldn’t fathom.

As she looked on into the distance, Kiva walked up next to her. While the lady from the far future had reservations about Fluttershy, she could respect another’s fighting skills. She stood a short distance away and just looked at Fluttershy as she barely even registered the fact that she was there.

The wind blew past the two, making Fluttershy’s coat rustle and her mane flow in the wind. The calm stillness was almost perfect if it weren’t for Coop’s work below them and the sound of construction going on in the distance.

“You never told us your name,” Kiva deadpanned.

Fluttershy didn’t respond, aggravating Kiva somewhat. She sighed, “We all told you ours so the least you can do is tell us yours.”

“Fluttershy,” She replied curtly.

“Why did you help us and then turn against us?” Kiva asked, trying to gauge her intentions.

Once again Fluttershy didn’t respond as she continued to stare out into the distance, lost in her own thoughts. For the third time she had been thrown into another world but this time she had no knowledge on how she got there or on how to return. She was separated from her friends again and Celestia only knew if they were safe.

The memory of Ponyville’s state on her return after her year away in Skyrim and in Dante’s universe saw her friends in cocoons suspended from the ceiling in Canterlot and Ponyville had been overrun by Changelings, sucking the love out of every single pony. Then came the death she dealt afterwards. All the death on her hooves only to discover they were tricked and that this was all Mundus’ doing.

“I refuse to let that happen again,” She muttered softly as a tear fell from her face.

“Pardon?” Kiva asked as she walked up to Fluttershy.

Fluttershy turned to Kiva with a stone cold expression, “It’s my business. Nothing for you to concern yourself with.”

Kiva sighed and got off the robot to check on Coop. After she left, Agni looked around before speaking up, “Mistress Fluttershy. Why did you shun the woman?”

“Shun? What is ‘shun?’” Rudra asked, slightly confused.

“Well, to shun is to reject or push away but not with a push or a weapon. It is usually done using words,” Agni explained.

“Oh.”

“I don’t want to burden them with my problems. Besides that Coop seems to be a bigger danger to himself and this city than anything that could threaten it. I may have to stick around to stop him from causing too much damage,” She replied.

“That and if they found out I am not actually this mean, they would take advantage of me,” Fluttershy continued, “It’s probably for the best that they think I’m heartless…”

Fluttershy let a small tear fall from her face as she finished. She hated making others believe she was some mare of darkness that only cared about fighting.

**** **** **** ****

“Applejack behind you!” Trixie shouted as she flung Cerberus around her body, the ice cold weapon colliding with reanimated skeletons who brandished an assortment of weapons.

Applejack turned around and swung Volendrung in an underarm swing, her hammer collided with a skeleton’s skull and tore it right off its shoulders. The skull smashed against the ceiling and shattered into fragments. Applejack then used her momentum to bring the hammer around again in a sideways swing and fractured her attacker’s ribcage as well as tear off the arm that was carrying a round, metal buckler shield.

As the pair of them journeyed lower into the Catacombs beneath the Monastery they were met with fiercer resistance from the monsters and undead that made it their home. The area had several drawings of pentagrams and other arcane symbols on the ground, the walls as well as the ceiling, all done in blood.

“How many more do ya reckon we need ta kill?” Applejack asked as she swung Volendrung around herself, knocking back any that were too close and giving her some breathing space.

“As many as it takes!” Trixie replied as she used Ice Age once again to protect herself from a pair of Skeleton Archers. The arrows snapped as they made contact with the frozen shield.

“Well, we don’t seem ta be doing much ta stop ‘em!” Applejack responded as she threw Volendrung at Trixie’s attackers, crushing them as it collided with both of them from the side.

“I suspect that these cretins are not the ones entirely responsible for this predicament,” Trixie said as she examined one of the skeletons, “They do not seem to possess higher brain functionality and appear to possess only predatory instincts, attacking anything they come into contact with.”

Applejack groaned and placed a hoof on her head, “Trix, please don’t use ‘em fancy words. They’re confusing.”

“Sorry,” Trixie apologised, “What I mean is that these things are too stupid to have made symbols like these or to have come on their own. Whatever brought them here is most likely deeper in this place.”

“Deeper?” Applejack sighed, “Alright. Let’s just be quick, please?”

“Depends on whether they give up or fight us tooth and hoof, Applejack,” Trixie replied, “Although I believe we will find that the latter will be the most likely response.”

Applejack retrieved Volendrung before joining Trixie as they descended one more level into the demon and monster filled hell-hole.

**** **** **** ****

Fluttershy saw the sun starting to set in the distance as she laid next to the car on top of MEGAS. Coop finished fixing, removing or improving whatever he thought needed either before placing the car back on top of MEGAS’ shoulders. Fluttershy didn’t pay attention as to how he did it but didn’t feel it was important enough to note.

Jamie looked up at Fluttershy with his hands in his jeans’ pockets, “Are you out of your mind? We can’t have her around. She creeps me out…”

Kiva glared at Jamie, “As far as we know she is not from this planet. She may not even be from this reality. She will need some help and she defeated that monster, causing far less damage to the city than you, Coop.”

Coop shrugged his shoulders, “Hey whatever. You want to keep her, you look after her. I have my own problems with Jamie.”

Fluttershy’s ears perked up as she picked up a faint sound coming from a park in the distance. As she turned her head she saw a gaping hole in the air above the park. She spread her wings wide and shot off towards the park with as much speed as she could manage.

“This is PoPTV! Where we bring you the best music 24/7!” A man’s voice said in the middle of the park, blissfully unaware of the portal above his head.

As the man took a deep breath to rant on about celebrities remodelling their homes and how it was the greatest thing since the invention of the media itself, a house fell on his equipment behind him. He turned around slowly and the small crowd that had gathered saw the man’s clothes were completely torn off his back save for his polka dotted underwear and the front of his clothes were still there. The crowd cheered.

A young, tanned child with black spiked hair, a yellow shirt and a Mega-Slush in his hand just stared at the scene through his glasses as the man fainted, “Coooool.”

Fluttershy arrived just as the portal closed from the second the house collided with the ground. She looked at the devastation and a tear fell down her cheek once more. The house that caused so much damage was her cottage. It had completely survived the fall and looked as if it was there upon the rubble of the PoPTV set all this time. Fluttershy couldn’t have been happier.

**** **** **** ****

“Hey, Verg? Can I ask you something?” Dante asked as he and Vergil arrived just outside Ponyville.

“If you must,” Vergil curtly replied.

“Was the place filled with fire breathing monsters when you left?” Dante inquired as he looked up at the sky.

“If it was I would have seen to mention it,” Vergil deadpanned.

The skies above Ponyville were swarming with dragons of various shapes and sizes as they fought with the Royal Guard. Ponyville’s airspace was a battlefield of flame of various hues as the dragons tried to incinerate the guards.

“How should we handle this?” Dante asked as he pulled out Ebony and Ivory.

“Bring them down to our level and eliminate. Couldn’t be more obvious,” Vergil replied as several phantom blades materialised around to him.

Gunshots rang out through the air, pelting a few dragons’ scaly hides. Most took little notice until a translucent blade impaled itself into a dragon’s chest, killing it instantly. The entire force turned around to see the devil brothers attacking them from the ground.

“You really know how to draw a crowd, Vergil,” Dante chuckled as a group came towards them.

Vergil sighed and placed a hand over Yamato’s handle, “Shut up and kill them already.”

**** **** **** ****

Discord was unable to move as he laid in the snow, near the peak of a mountain which was Celestia knows where. His vision was blurred and his magic failed him as he was unceremoniously dumped into the snow from the portal Soarin created just hours ago.

As the cold was getting to him, he could hear the sound of footsteps getting closer. He tried his best to look up at the figure before him and was unsure of whether to be afraid or happy.

A slightly tanned man with slicked back, black hair stood in front of Discord, a short distance away. He wore a red arm bandanna which was tied around his right arm, near his shoulder and over the rolled up shirt. He had an open collared buttoned leather vest over the black shirt with both sleeves rolled up. He had a crucifix hanging from around his neck.

The man knelt down and stared at Discord intensely for a few seconds before getting back up. Discord could see he had an odd device with two blades on his left arm and he carried a pistol as well as some other firearm Discord was unfamiliar with.

“Looks like Frankenstein broke the mould when he made you didn’t he?” The man said before getting up. As he turned his back to Discord, he saw a red scorpion imprinted on the man’s back.

“Kane? I’m at the co-ordinates,” The man said into a device he took out of his hand, “You had better come see this. Looks like Panay has been delving into things other than the military.”

**** **** **** ****

Luna was in the middle of a scorching desert. The sun was murder on her dark coat, making her sweat as she lay on the floor as the flower’s effects still had her in its grip. She could still move her eyes and look around, even if it only helped to deepen her sorrow of being tricked by Soarin.

As the wind blew, the sand was threatening to tear her coat off but that was not the worst of her day as a strange creature came from the skies.

Luna could tell it was human in stature but the two large, noisy orange wings on the human’s back were an oddity. The human appeared relatively young with spiked, slicked back black hair. He wore a pair of orange goggles around his eyes as he landed on the ground. He wore a pair of black pants with blue geometrical shapes on them.

Luna’s eyes bulged slightly as the human’s wings retracted into himself, disappearing completely. He dusted his red and orange jacket off before looking at Luna with curiosity.

He reached to his ear with one finger and pressed, “Six, Doc? I’m here at the site but the only thing here is some freaky horse thing.”

Luna couldn’t hear the other side of whatever conversation the young man was having but she saw him nod his head, “Alright then. I’ll try curing now.”

Luna wanted to bolt but her legs - as well as the rest of her body - refused to respond. The young man reached for Luna with an outstretched hand. She could see he wore blue gloves with orange cuffs as he touched her side, near the base of her wing.

The young man’s hand began to glow a faint blue and several lines appeared, serving as the source of the glow. He removed his hand for a few seconds and looked at Luna with a confused expression before placing both hands on her side.

The young man got up and pressed against his ear once more, “Doc… I can’t cure it… No, it’s not incurable. It… hasn’t got any nanites to deactivate.”

**** **** **** ****

Soarin watched from a balcony in Canterlot Castle as the area descended into a form of chaos Discord would not have approved of. Dragons littered the sky, battling with the Royal Guards. Even the Night Guard were amongst the fighters, aiding the Pegasi Division.

Soarin just chuckled, “Fools. You’re only wasting your time.”

He walked into the room and gazed into a mirror there. Soarin’s horn lit up and his aura enveloped the mirror’s surface. The mirror started to darken in colour until the surface was pitch black, save for three large red dots staring back at Soarin.

“I have done as instructed,” Soarin said.

“Excellent,” A deep voice replied, “But there is one small matter that needs to be tended to.”

“Name it and I shall carry it out,” Soarin replied almost instantly.

“You did not trap Spitfire like the others as I ordered,” The voice accused.

“S-sir, forgive me bu-”

“Save it, I do not wish to hear excuses. I actually expected this outcome and have prepared a small ‘present’ for the mare,” The voice interrupted.

“A ‘present?’” Soaring repeated with a small bit of uncertainty in his voice.

“Let’s see if your old acquaintance can handle a little ‘heat,’” The voice half laughed, “What of the other allies?”

“Some false reports were sent to the Griffon Empire,” Soarin said, his voice still somewhat shaking but he soon regained his calm. “Bloodwing will be on a wild goose chase until it is too late. The Diamond Dogs have offered their support in exchange for gemstones.”

“What do they want with them?” The voice inquired.

“Buck me if I know. We can do with as many allies as possible. I doubt the Changelings will take long to notice a hostile takeover of Equestria,” A small smile began to form on Soarin’s face, “They will most likely try to help and that is when they will get wiped out.”

“You shall have your revenge, my servant. And I shall rule this land as I intended,” The voice said as the mirror began to revert to its original state.

Soarin closed his eyes and looked out to the balcony. A tear fell from his face as he recalled the moment Spitfire vanished from Equestria. He looked down to the ground for a second before he summoned his magic once more, causing an unusual set of items to appear.

The items he brought to him were six in total. They were made of an odd metal and looked like a pair of boots and gloves with pulsating etchings of energy running along their length. The boots had a large, spiked wheel on the side like a spur. The next two items were entirely different in design, the only similarity being the etchings in the metal.

The first of the two seemed to cover the face, protecting it from a frontal assault. The last item had a skull design in the centre with a strange, wing-like design on the sides. This item was meant to be placed on one’s back.

“You might make it a little hot for her but… maybe this will help temper the flames,” He said as the items vanished from Equestria.

**** **** **** ****

Spitfire was cold. She awoke in an unknown forest that could have been anywhere. She stumbled as she struggled to get to her hooves. Her body ached as if she had laid on the dirt for ages. The mare looked at her surroundings and sighed.

“Worst… day… ever,” She deadpanned, hanging her head as she opened her wings. “Ah!”

Her wing joints were sore. She tried to open them again but got the same jolt of pain ringing through them. It wasn’t just her joints but the muscles were giving her grief as well, preventing her from soaring to the sky.

“Damn it. Looks like I’m walking,” She muttered as she chose a direction and walked.

The jungle seemed to have no normal life living in it. She saw a few bugs and rather peculiar flora but that was about it. She soon stumbled upon some old ruins not of Equestrian design or origin. Moss covered the area as did rubble and a few dead bodies.

She couldn’t understand what they were as she looked at their green, grotesque forms. Their clothing looked as if it was haphazardly sown together to form makeshift apparel. They had very large, pointed teeth and had a more bipedal stance if their two arms and two legs were anything to go by.

They had large lower jaws and two huge teeth protruding from the same lower jaw. The teeth looked as if they had never been brushed. They had muscular bodies and odd pieces of metal imbedded in their bodies, as if they were fashion accessories. What they all had in common was an odd skull resembling their faces as some form of insignia.

She turned to look at an odd item one of the creatures were carrying but before she could get a good look at it, a loud roar echoed through the area and made her mane stand on end.

She turned around and came face to face with one of its kin. It was very similar to the deceased around her but of larger stature and build. The creature had more muscles than Snowflake. It looked at her with pure rage on its face.

“Oi! Wot’z you’z doin’ ‘ere?!” The creature shouted, “You’z lootin’ me boyz? You da one dat took down ol’ Bluddflagg’s Krooza?!”

Spitfire was at a loss at what to do. This creature was seething with rage, looking at her as if she were its next meal.

“I’z talkin’ ta ya! Speak!” Bluddflagg shouted.

**** **** **** ****

A bipedal being was walking through a cold, treacherous wasteland of snow and ice, encased in highly peculiar armour of various hues. The creature was unmistakably female with rather pointed ears and suffered from heterochromia which made her left eye purple and her right eye blue. She had shoulder length blond-white hair and a moderate complexion.

Despite the frigid temperatures, the figure continued to walk on, unabated as she had accidentally used an overly powerful fire spell to keep her body warm. The effect had melted a vast portion of the snow around her and had left some of her hair scorched, making her scowl.

“‘Explore the ancient ruin’ I said. ‘What could go wrong?’ I said. Damned defence system caught me off-guard,” The being said irritably.

The snow only served to darken the creature’s mood even more as she searched for a point of reference. She climbed up a steep incline in order to gain more altitude in order to see further and get a better view to look around.

“This… it’s the Moesring Mountains…” She said as she gazed into the horizon, “Finally something I can use to find a way off here and back to Vvardenfell.”

As she descended down the mountain, a bright light came down from above, “Azura?”

The source of the light didn’t respond but kept flying towards her, gaining speed and showed no sign of slowing down, let alone stopping at all.

“Don’t tell me…” She said as she jumped out of the way in time to see the ball of light collide into the snow.

As the woman walked up to the snow crater before her, she saw a creature she had never seen before. Celestia laid on the ground, groaning in pain.

“Perhaps that ruin was not a total waste of my life,” She muttered as she pulled out a small, ornate hammer of black and gold.

**** **** **** ****

“Are we there yet?” A rather angry Griffon asked on the bridge of the airship, the Arbiter.

“Bloodwing, sir… we are only halfway to Zebrica. It will take some time till we get there,” The helmsgriffon replied.

“Argh!!” Bloodwing shouted, throwing his fist into the air, lacking anything appropriate to let his frustration out on. “Fine… any word from my rat-faced niece?!”

“No, sir. Not since she left for Ponyville,” Another Griffon replied.

Bloodwing faceclawed. Gilda was known for many things, but severing communications without probable cause and so abruptly was a cause for concern. He laid back in his chair and looked to the helmsgriffon with a glare that would freeze Tartarus.

“When we get back to Equestria… that pathetic waste of fur and feathers is not going to be able to walk or fly for a month,” He spat, “The quicker we get to Zebrica, the quicker we can get back and sort out whatever mess my niece has gotten herself into.”

The 54th Fleet of the Griffon Empire had been fully repaired since the battle at the Crystal Empire. Even the Arbiter suffered damage from the demons that attacked it. The ships had been given a total overhaul as old, rusted parts were replaced by new ones and the bridge’s systems were given a revamp.

Bloodwing was uncomfortable that his pride and joy was one of them as they replaced the aging turbines that propelled it with the more powerful turbojet versions. Then there was the fact that his bridge had been altered as well with the improved systems. The one thing he managed to retain was his old chair since he threatened to disembowel whosoever dared to touch it without his consent.

As the 54th Fleet carried on across the seas, Bloodwing began to think, ‘Gilda… be safe my niece. If you got yourself in trouble again so help me...’

Author's Notes:

Well, here we are. Part 2! Time to play Guess That Crossover for the LAST time. Seriously, this is the last of the crossovers heading in and if I come up with another, I'm going to beat myself over the head to stop myself. Comment, fav, like and if not, do tell me why. I don't like being in the dark when one dislikes.