The red light of the tunnels had not dimmed. The bulbs quietly buzzed. There was nopony around. The echoes of pained screams resonated from far away. It only fit with the mood. A dark and never ending system of tunnels. A perfect setting. It helped for a hunter such as the Predator. He quietly moved across the tram rails, looking across the walls. Down the new tunnels it passed by. He had heard the constant cacophony of screams in the far distance, already aware that more ponies were dying, but not by his brothers’ hands.

These creatures were already laying waste to the ponies. They had all foreseen this outcome. But there was no reason to disrupt it. Better to let ignorant creatures learn the hard way instead of coming to the rescue like some type of stereotypical hero. In their culture, heroes were not defined by kind acts. Anyone could be kind and still not receive a great welcome. But respect came from how many kills you had. How many trophies you could take during the hunt. That was how you gained honor.

These ponies had none to be found. Like those blind humans, they too were careless. The humans had taken these creatures in like some kind of worship-starved beings. Humans were too busy in their pursuit of knowledge. These creatures were only useful to prove one’s honor. If anyone could kill one of these legendary serpents, then honor would be theirs. For their kin. For their clan. It would be theirs even in the afterlife.

He stopped and glanced over his shoulder. He could hear something, but with the tunnels around him, the source was unclear in origin. He clicked his mandibles, slowly scanning every crevice. Not one corner could go unchecked. He had heard the stories of his ancestors, how nearly invisible this being was in the darkness. He would make sure that not one of these serpents snuck up on him. The Predator switched his normal infrared sight to a more green textured view.

The new view he had was another invention from its ancestors. If this serpent showed itself, the acid inside its own body would give it away. The hunter knew too that it could see him as well. Even with his cloaking device on, this creature could sense where he was at. But the situation did not depend on who got the first surprise. It would be who could outmatch the other. Even with all the armor he had over his body, it would not help much in the long run.

There was a quick scratch of metal. He jumped from his spot. There was a loud crash where he had once stood, and as he turned around, he could see the Xenomorph. His eyes widened behind the metallic mask at the sight of such a large serpent. It roared at him, a noise that ran through the Predator’s body. But he wasn’t nervous. He growled, excited at the prospect of doing battle with a serpent such as this.

The cloak around the Predator disappeared before he roared back at the Praetorian. The Xenomorph reciprocated with a louder tone. A blue light exploded out from the cannons on the Predator’s shoulders. The larger Xenomorph jumped out of the way and ran down another tunnel. The Predator jumped to the spot it was at and continued to fire. The light lit up the tunnel as the Praetorian jumped up to the ceiling. It roared and leapt towards the Predator.

He quickly took a step back, unsheathing his gauntlet. With a quick thrust, the Xenomorph roared in agony, the twin blades striking its chest. It threw him back with a swipe of its left claw. The hunter landed on his back, rolling backwards and standing upright again. He roared in surprise as it thrust its tail at him. The Predator caught the tail and pulled, slamming the larger Xenomorph against the tunnel wall.

It growled in annoyance before yanking the Predator forward. The Predator roared, a stinging sensation coursing through as it drove its right claw through the metal plating and into the left side of his stomach. Wind passed by as he was thrown down to the ground. The pain quickly subsided, which he directed towards the Xenomorph. It jumped back and hissed. He hastily stood up and aimed the pulse cannons again. The serpent glanced between the two objects and ran right at the Predator.

When the cannons flashed it ducked underneath the bright light blue orbs of energy. It reached for the cannons and smashed them in its clawed hands. The Predator growled in annoyance and kicked the Xenomorph back. It slid back a distance. He leaped forward with his gauntlet pointed straight at the serpent. Both it and the hunter roared in agony as they struck each other.

He slowly turned to see his gauntlet lodged deep inside the serpent’s lower neck area. But he wasn’t lucky either, with the Xenomorph’s tail coming out his back. He turned to the serpent, who roared and brought its tail upwards. Darkness quickly replaced the hunter’s sight as his body was sliced from his chest straight through his head. The Praetorian stepped back as the blade came out of its collar bone. Its breathing echoed around the tunnels, heavy and labored. The wound seemed responsible for this new noise.

It could feel a pain in its breathing, but it would not let that stop it. It picked up its stride and took off. One injury to its body would not stop it from serving its Queen. It wouldn’t stop. None of this would.

There were so many worries. An innumerable amount to keep track of, Celestia thought. After her trip through the underground of this facility, she could truly see what this madpony, Bishop Neighland, was behind. Yet he had involved all these other ponies into the fray, a choice that was now costing the lives of ponies. She could not estimate the possible death toll. It would not be as bad as the wars of old, but each life lost would still weigh heavy on her psyche.

However, she should’ve felt accustomed with the reality of their situation. It was just beyond the norms she was used to. She blinked once. There was no sting from a colored light. The moon was out in full. Its gentle luminescence did wonders to her sight, no longer irritating like the red lights in the tunnels below her hooves. She saw a door to the outside world a small distance from her cracked open slightly, Blazing Ash holding it open as Sparkdust took a peek every now and then.

She gazed at the room she rested in, the entryway without a door to hide her. It was the only one that was considerably safe in the larger lobby room. “Princess?” Celestia smiled when her gaze met Aqua’s. “How’s Crystal Rune doing?”

It was hard to hide her beaming expression. “She’s still asleep.” Celestia slowly rested her eyes on Crystal’s body, hiding behind her wings as she laid against her chest. She pulled her wings away for a moment, relaxing them back at her side. Celestia quietly giggled when she saw the relief on Aqua’s muzzle. It seems Crystal had chosen a very good friend, for Aqua had repeatedly come back to check up on the unconscious mare; a count that had now gone up to five visits. “Don’t worry, Aquafrost. She’ll be fine.”

Aqua only nodded. She was gently pushed to the side as Daring Do came to a stop next to her. “How much longer until the spell is done?”

“It’s only going to stay for a few minutes. The spell is nearly done.” Although Crystal would have been asleep for fifteen minutes, she had laced the spell with one that would give Crystal all her energy, as though she had been sleeping for more than eight hours. She couldn’t hold back the smile. “It’s nice to see that she truly has made friends.” Daring Do went to fixing her pith helmet, a smirk on her muzzle while Aqua blushed a little. Celestia returned to Daring and asked, “Has Twilight heard anything else from her device?”

Daring quickly brought her hoof back down and said, “She’s only gotten a couple snippets. They seem to be gathering over at the Research & Development building. And from what Spitfire told us, it’s filled with all of their weapons.” Celestia had been told by Bishop that they were not making any type of weapons with the human’s technology. She had not believed him at first; her intuition had led her to the truth.

“I can only assume that he’s going to use them on the Xenomorphs. But then again, I am worried that he might decide to turn them on us.” Celestia closed her eyes. She had seen what the humans’ “weapon” could do. Twilight had explained to her that it was called a “pulse rifle”. The damage it caused to ponies, from the two guards that were killed by the man Dr. Markovich, showed her how devastating a weapon like that was.

“There’s probably more than that,” Daring added. “I don’t know much about that ‘rifle’ thing that Twilight mentioned after the transmission, but looking at Blazing’s inventory, they’ve got more than their fair share of long-range combat weapons.” She turned to Aqua, and then to the spear at her right side. “Not to mention close-range weapons.”

Celestia looked at the spear that Daring mentioned. “Aqua.” When the mare’s gaze met her own, she continued, “what other weapons does Bishop Neighland have?”

Aqua’s smile faded. “Everything that Neighland-Yupony makes is similar to all our normal modern-day weapons. However, he’s added the tourmaline gem to them, which gives them an elemental ability, and he’s made them more functional than they previously were. He’s got a whole arsenal of weapons far more advanced than what the Equestrian Army has.”

It was what Celestia was afraid of. This stallion had already lied to her. But these weapons he was creating were not meant for this world yet. “Thank you for the information, Aquafrost.” Celestia nodded. Her ears perked up when she heard a quiet moan below her. She smiled when she saw Crystal finally waking up.

Crystal stood up and saw Aqua and Daring Do first. The two hugged her, a sight that only brightened Celestia’s grin. “It’s good to see you finally standing up,” Daring Do teased, getting a playful hoof to the shoulder.

“How do you feel?” Aqua’s smile softened, an expression that Celestia quietly chuckled at. Her former student seemed to have made some great friends.

Crystal turned around and her gaze rested on Celestia’s. “Could you two please leave me to speak with Celestia?” The smile Celestia had didn’t budge, but she could sense the change in mood. The bright expressions that Aqua and Daring had disappeared. They looked between their friend and the princess before slowly yet hesitantly backing away. There was no frown from what Celestia could tell. Although she could not assume that it would stay like that forever.

Crystal looked away for a moment. She took a step forward before finally sitting down. When she returned her attention, there on Crystal’s muzzle sat a faint frown. “Why?” Celestia honestly thought it’d be in her best interest to respond right away. She could see where this was going but decided to let Crystal speak again. “What was so special about me that you had me replace Sunset?”

Celestia sighed. “You must understand that my choices were ones that I understood would have consequences. Nothing I decided was ever going to be easy.”

“But what was the whole point of it? Why didn’t you just let me know what you were really looking for? After what happened between me and Sunset, I really thought you’d help me understand why Sunset was so… self-absorbed.” Crystal rested her right hoof against her left foreleg. “I couldn’t even figure out why you decided to replace me with her…”

“Crystal. I knew that the decision would hurt you. But there were so many future worries to face. I knew that, even as strong as I am, I could not face them alone.” Celestia sat upright, towering over Crystal, but her stature remained still and calm. “Twilight Sparkle had a magic strong enough to wield the Elements. It’s why she was the final choice.”

“But you made it feel like I was part of some assembly line.” The frown on Crystal’s muzzle deepened. “The choice for you to replace me with Sunset led me to suppose that this was what she felt like. That you made her feel less important than the goal at hoof. I felt that way when you quickly replaced me with her. Was I really that expendable? Just so you could find somepony to not only wield the Elements, but turn into a princess at the end of it all?”

Celestia’s blank gaze did not last forever. She sighed. “It was only the Elements I wished somepony to wield after I lost the ability to do so. Twilight turned into a princess only after I discussed it with my sister. Twilight Sparkle had shown all the necessary traits. It was just a matter of time until we felt it was right to follow up on that action.” Looking down upon Crystal, a small ache came to her heart. To see her in such a crestfallen state hurt.

“Crystal.” Celestia spoke again. Crystal looked up. “You must understand that my actions were not easy to make. A princess is not the only pony to go through such choices. There will be a time when everypony has to make a decision, one that they believe fits best with their future.” A moment was all it took for the frown to change, a smile swiftly forming. “You too have gone through such a stage. Daring Do has told me of the team you used to lead.” Crystal flinched at the mention of her now-deceased friends.

“She told me about the transformation you went through. That you understood and even survived the guilt you went through.” Celestia extended a wing towards Crystal and pulled her close. “I may have failed you as a teacher… but hearing that you accomplished so much helps me see that I did do something right, even if it that positive is still surrounded by many negatives.” Celestia closed her eyes when she felt Crystal wrap her forelegs around her barrel. The embrace brought back little memories, ones of the former teacher-and-student relationship. Her smile brightened.

“Princess?” Celestia looked up and saw Twilight standing in the doorway, a curious expression on her muzzle.

She pulled her wing away and rested it back in its place, Crystal letting go and glancing over her shoulder. Celestia looked down at Crystal and murmured, “Go and talk to her.”

Crystal stood up and turned to Twilight. “Twilight?”

“Uhh… yeah?” Twilight tilted her head a little.

“You… good job. You’re lucky.” Crystal met Twilight’s eyes and continued, “I’m sorry for what happened. What happened to your brother.” Twilight tensed up, looking away from Crystal. “I… I understand how much pain you must be in. I wish I could say more but… just hang in there, okay?”

Crystal walked around Twilight and left the room. Celestia sat there before clearing her throat. “Twilight? What is it that you wish to talk about?”

“Oh. I was going to tell you that everypony is ready to head out,” Twilight said.

There was something she could see in Twilight’s expression. An uncertainty. “Twilight?” The mare looked up at her gaze. “Is everything alright?”

Twilight blinked once before nodding quickly. “Y-yeah. Everything’s fine. No need to worry. I’ll just go see how the group’s doing.” Before Celestia could get a word in edgewise, Twilight left. There was something her former student was hiding. She thought through the possible reasons and could only see one thing that stood out.

“So she still holds herself at fault for what happened. About what happened to him…” Celestia knew all too well how much it hurt to keep a pain like that inside. She only had to look back at what happened when Luna turned to Nightmare Moon. That was enough to feel the ache that was in her heart. “She must forgive herself for what she did. It’ll only hurt the longer she holds it inside.” But the moment was too soon. She would speak with her later. Celestia stood up and walked out of the room. Their trek would begin again; whatever they would face, they would need to do so as a group. The day was not over yet. It wouldn’t be over until the source of this problem was finished. They had to find him. They had to find Bishop. But most importantly, they had to get rid of the Queen.