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Metal Gear: Sonata of Faith

by Azure Sandora

Chapter 7

Previous Chapter

Author's Notes:

Sorry with how slow this story is updating. This is still a project I want to see through, but I can imagine the impatience that comes with waiting. All I can say is that updates for this story will show up whenever inspiration hits me.


If you want to help me turn my writing into a living, and want to support me, you can click here to support my Patreon. Your contribution of as little as a dollar will help me in my campaign for world domination.

I wasted no time following Twilight's guidance. She knew the castle much better than I, for I had never once been inside the whole castle. The most I've ever seen is the ballroom, and that was due to the Gala of 1983. Twilight, from my limited understanding of her, had actually lived here in the castle for most of her life.

Guards were patrolling the courtyard, so I had to be careful. I looked closely to see if one of them was Twilight, but none of the guards had her signature saunter. Well, it wasn't so much of a saunter, but it kind of was. Wait, why was I thinking so hard about Twilight's flank?! First of all, I was on a mission. Second of all, I wasn't a lesbian. Okay, so I may have experimented a bit in high school, but didn't everyone?

At 39 going on 40, I was pretty sure of my sexual orientation. At this point of my life, asexual.

I used the bushes to hide, and I timed my movements so that the guards would walk right past me as I moved. Through my radar, I could see that the guards were red dots, meaning they were under the control of the changelings. I wasn't sure how the radar could tell what their field of vision was, but I wasn't complaining.

One of the many mysteries of magic.

After about a minute, I made it to the hallway. I was about to move toward the tower, but I had to stop as two guards walked right out. They almost saw me, and I think one had actually stopped to look around. He eventually walked off after his partner, so I was able to proceed.

Damn, I was losing my touch.

The tower had two staircases; one going up and the other going down. The way I needed to go was down. Even though I was curious as to what was up the stairs, I was pressed for time. I didn't know how much time until Metal Gear TALOS was active, so I couldn't afford to take too many detours.

Right before I reached the dungeon, my Codex went off. It was Fluttershy's frequency, probably wanting to see if I was okay. I felt bad for not calling her right away to tell her that I made it out safely, so I stopped to answer her.

Octavia...” she said softly looking down. Oh dear, was she upset?

“I'm sorry I didn't call right away,” I said, “I was so focused on my mission, and I have so much on my mind that I-”

Fluttershy shook her head, “I'm not upset. Truth is, I've been thinking about a lot of things too.

“Well I suppose I have a few minutes. What's on your mind?”

Oh no, I don't want to hold you up, Octavia,” Fluttershy said shaking her head, “This isn't really that important...

“Fluttershy, what's going on in Canterlot right now is scary, even for me. I can only imagine what's going on in your head right now. Maybe talking to someone will help.”

Yeah... maybe...” she looked really troubled.

“So what's bothering you?” I asked, giving her my most sincere smile to comfort her. I didn't know if it worked or not, as she turned away biting her lip before speaking again.

Octavia... how does it feel to kill somepony?

“Why... do you ask?”

Well, I overheard a few of your conversations with Dash about...

I sighed, “Braveheart... right?”

Fluttershy nodded, “I just wanted to know... what from your perspective... how does it feel to... take a life?

“Well, for me it's not something I enjoy doing,” I said, “Sadly though, killing is one of those things that gets easier the more you do it. I partially become numb to it. I don't take pride in it at all, and it saddens me every time I kill somepony, but as long as I'm fighting for my country, I'll do it.”

So... you do it because it saves lives?” she asked, still looking away with a somber expression.

“I'm no hero, if that's what your asking,” I said, “At least, I don't see myself as a hero. What I am, is a soldier. More like a living weapon to protect the real heroes. Ponies like me aren't going to save the world. What will save the world are ponies like you, ponies with a kind heart and a love for life.”

Oh Octavia...” she said, crying a bit.

“Fluttershy, are you okay? I didn't upset you, did I?”

N-no...” Fluttershy sobbed, “I just... feel so weak right now...

“Fluttershy, you're not weak. You're one of the strongest ponies I've ever seen. Damn, I wish you didn't have to be a part of this.”

It's fine... I'm fine... I just, need to...

“Need to what?” I asked, getting a little worried for some reason.

It's nothing,” Fluttershy said looking down. I could tell that there was something she wasn't telling me, which had me really concerned. She wasn't going to do something drastic, was she?

“Fluttershy-”

I need some time alone. I'm sorry, but... don't call this frequency for a bit...

Oh dear, I had upset her. I felt horrible, and I wanted to try and calm her down, but I could see that pressing the matter more would just upset her even more.

“Alright Fluttershy,” I said sadly, “I'll contact you after I've found Vinyl Scratch. And Fluttershy?”

Yes...?

“I'm your friend, no matter what, alright? Whatever it is you want to tell me, I'll be there for you.”

Fluttershy nodded and quickly hung up, I imagine so I wouldn't see her break down right there. Before proceeding onward, I decided to call Twilight, as she was good friends with Fluttershy.

“I... think I may have screwed up,” I said once Twilight picked up her Codex.

What happened? Are you in trouble?” Twilight asked nervously.

“No, no. Nothing like that,” I sighed, “I just got finished talking to Fluttershy. She asked me a few questions about being a soldier, and I think I may have upset her.”

I see. Yeah, I can imagine Fluttershy asking questions like that. Since you're someone she really looks up to, I guess you should know...

“Know what?” I asked. Was I about to learn a bit more about Fluttershy?

You see, Fluttershy's... an orphan.

My heart sank when Twilight said that. I wondered why she seemed so clingy to me and the others, and why she was so sensitive. She struck me as someone who suffered a serious trauma, and this shed light on it.

“When did it happen? Do you know?” I asked Twilight, who looked down in sadness.

She told me that it was when she was a child. Her mom and dad were killed right in front of her, only a little after she got her Cutie Mark. According to Fluttershy, they were killed by changelings.

“Which explains how shaken up she is right now. It's taking her right back to that moment,” I stated, Twilight nodding in confirmation.

I think she wants revenge. She of course wouldn't ever admit it, but...

“These creatures killed her family,” I said seriously, “I'd be surprised if the idea of revenge didn't cross her mind at least a little.”

What do you want to do?” Twilight asked me.

“Personally, this just gives me a reason to want to take out the changelings. I'll help her carry out her revenge.”

Octavia... I...

“I imagine you don't agree with that. I'm not asking you to be a part of it, but-”

No Octavia, I do want to be a part of it,” Twilight said, surprising the hell out of me.”

“Twilight... do you know what you're saying?”

I do. Fluttershy is one of my dearest friends. Before last year, I didn't have any friends, but now I have five of the greatest friends in the world, Fluttershy being one of them. If these monsters are the reason she's suffering, and she wants revenge, then I want to help her get there too.

“You're a good friend, Twilight,” I said, “Some might even say you're too good of a friend, endorsing your friends need for vengeance instead of pulling her away from it.”

My brother is a soldier, so I've been around this sort of thing a lot. I understand that some things don't go away with time, and that violence is the only way to solve problems if they go too far.

“It's always sad when things get that bad,” I said somberly, Twilight nodding in agreement. We both hung up around that time, and I took some time to think about the news I just learned. As sweet as Fluttershy was, deep down there must have been a deep hatred within her. She may have even asked that question because she had visions of killing the Changeling Queen herself, and that thought scared her.

Damn changelings. They truly were monsters.

I proceeded to the dungeon, which were dark and humid, like what you'd expect from a castle dungeon. While the rest of Canterlot Castle was bright colored and beautiful, this part of the castle was the complete contrast. There weren't any guards as far as I could see, but I still wanted to be careful.

As I moved through the dungeon, I heard moaning up ahead, along with chains rattling. Someone was in this dungeon locked up, and I was betting it was Cadance. My heart started racing, as I wondered what state the Princess of Love was in.

I followed her moaning, which was starting to sound like muffled screaming for help. I thought I was ready for what I would see, but there was no way I could be ready for this.

When I found her, the word overkill came to mind. She was locked up in a cell, her forelegs and hind legs all chained to the floor, a large black shackle around her torso also chained to the floor causing her to lie down. Both of her wings were chained closed, and she had an inhibitor ring on her horn, preventing her from using magic. She also had a black band around her mouth gagging her and a blind fold over her eyes. It looked like she had been beaten, as her body had cuts and bruises, and I could tell through the blind fold that she was crying.

“What the hell?” I asked stepping back. My Codex went off again, but this time it was Sprinkles. I took a deep breath and answered him.

Sadistic, isn't it?” Sprinkles asked.

“This does seem like much,” I said, “I mean, wouldn't just locking her up be enough?”

This wasn't about holding her,” Sprinkles said, “The Changeling Queen wanted to torture Cadance. An alicorn's magic comes from positive feelings, so to ensure she not try to escape, Chrysalis needed to weed out any hope within her. I assure you that any alicorn in Chrysalis' custody would be in a similar set up.

That made me curious as to how Celestia escaped. She said that she had tricked the guards, so maybe she was just lucky. I looked closely at the chains and saw that they were magically created. Even if I could get into that cell, the only way I could release her would be to kill Chrysalis.

That's what Twilight meant.

Don't worry about her for now,” Sprinkles said, “Chrysalis wants Cadance here alive, so she won't kill her. Vinyl Scratch is in the labs up ahead. Look for the one with the symbol of Gemini on the door.

Sprinkles hung up, and I looked at Cadance. I felt weird leaving her like that, but there wasn't anything I could do at the moment. Still, I had to leave her with something.

“Princess, can you hear me?” I whispered. Cadance tensed up immediately, letting me know that she did hear me, “Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you. I'm a soldier attempting to free Canterlot, and that includes you. I can't free you unfortunately, but I wanted you to know that someone is fighting for you. Don't give up, Princess.”

She relaxed, and she nodded. She said something through her gag that sounded a bit like “thank you”.

“You're welcome. Stay strong, Princess. I'll come back for you, I promise.”

And I meant that too. I was the kind that always kept their promises, so this meant I had to save Canterlot. Just more pressure on top of the pressure I already had.

I found a door leading to the labs. This hallway had silver halls that looked to be made of marble, and golden doors all with the symbols of Zodiac symbols. The one I was looking for was the Gemini Lab. It was easy to find, as the symbol was pretty big on the door. What I didn't expect though were the number of knocked out guards and changelings all around.

I walked over to the door and saw that my radar was picking up two signals inside, one being a green dot, but the other one being white. I pressed my ear to the door to listen after I heard a scream inside.

“W-what do you want from me?!” a frantic female voice cried.

“She's coming for you. I'm just here waiting for her to arrive,” the voice was deep and mechanical, but I recognized that soft machine like tone anywhere. Braveheart was in there, and she found Vinyl Scratch first.

“Who's she?!” the pony I assumed was Vinyl asked, “What the hell is going on here?!”

I opened the door carefully and walked in, careful to not let anyone see me just yet. I saw Baveheart sitting in a chair with her hind legs crossed and forelegs folded, and a bit to her side was a white unicorn with a neon blue mane and tail, and black glasses. Her Cutie Mark was a musical note. Something about her looked really familiar to me, but I couldn't put my hoof on it.

I saw Braveheart reach into her wing and pull a blade out, “Finally,” she said, throwing the small dagger right at me. It hit the wall right next to my head, stopping me in my tracks. Realizing that she already saw me, I stood up and walked over to her.

“Braveheart...” I said venomously. She got out of her chair and walked toward me.

“I'm glad you made it Octavia,” Braveheart said, “This meeting has been a longtime coming.”

Vinyl turned to me wide eyed, “What the hell? You were waiting for a classical musician?”

“That's not all I am,” I said glaring to her, “I'll deal with you later though,” I turned back to Braveheart, “You didn't hurt her, did you?”

“You were the one I wanted,” Braveheart explained, “She has nothing to do with us. I merely used her as bait.”

“How did you know that I needed her?” I asked.

“Is that really what you want to know?” Braveheart asked, “I would have thought you would want to know about why I murdered your squad in the War of 1972.”

“Shut up...” Vinyl said in shock looking back at me, “You fought in that war?”

I ignored Vinyl, glaring at Braveheart, “You remember then?”

“I never forget,” Braveheart said, “Everyone I've ever killed is etched in my memory.”

I acted on impulse, pulling out my mini crossbow and pointing it at Braveheart. Vinyl stepped back in shock, but Braveheart didn't even flinch.

“Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit,” Vinyl began saying over and over again, clearly beginning to panic as she knew what was probably about to happen.

“Do you... hate me Octavia?” Braveheart asked mechanically.

“What do you think?” I spat, feeling a rage unlike anything I've ever felt.

“Why don't you show me,” Braveheart said, standing on her hind legs elegantly and holding her hooves out. Small blades came out of both hooves, and a dagger sized blade came out of her mouth guard as well.

“You want to fight here?” I asked her.

“Don't you?” Braveheart asked me, “I want to experience your hatred, and you want revenge. There's only one way for monsters like us to get what we want.”

“I'm no monster!” I shouted.

“All of us who take the lives of another into our hooves is a monster, regardless of the reason. The only difference between us is that very thing. Reason, purpose. Yours is that of a soldier, a protector, while mine is that of a weapon, a killer.”

“Shut up! SHUT UP!!!” I screamed, completely losing myself to my rage, “I'm nothing like you!”

I began firing my mini crossbow at Braveheart, who spun around, flipped, and blocked all of the arrows. One almost hit Vinyl, who screamed and ran into a nearby closet to hide.

“There's only one way to freedom,” Braveheart said, “Either I'll kill you, or you'll kill me. Either way, one of us will be set free from our eternal bondage.”

“I'll be free,” I seethed, “once I kill you!”

I knew that this was a bit of a detour in my mission, but then again, I needed Vinyl Scratch, and there was no way I was going to get to her until I took Braveheart down. This was going to be one of my toughest fights ever, but there was no getting around it.

I had to kill Braveheart now.

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