A messenger burst into Nightmare Moon’s office, sweating in fear as he told her of a Fracture appearing in the courtyard, depositing one human, and winking out of existence just as quickly.

Nightmare Moon wasted no time; she forsook the door and stairs in favour of going out onto her balcony and taking off in a quick flight that landed her in the courtyard’s walls in just a few seconds.

She saw numerous ponies forming a ring around the lone human, her Praetorian Guard among them – pegasi hovered close by, spears and bows primed to attack.

The lone human regarded them with an expression that was almost incredible in its simplicity and utter lack of concern.

Nightmare Moon watched him carefully as she approached, her presence causing the Eclipse guards to shuffle and make a path for her. The human shifted their gaze to her, but betrayed no emotion.

‘Who… is this? They’re not armored like Caed and his knights…’

Though Nightmare Moon was still learning to identify human males from human females from appearance, she was confident that she was looking at a male, albeit one unlike any she had seen before.

He did not wear armor, but a suit of such offensively vibrant yellow and red that even she, somepony who didn’t care much for the field, had to fight back a cringe; if Rarity were here, there’d certainly be a headache-inducing amount of affronted noises. There was a white cape attached to the suit that hung loosely behind his scrawny frame, but it wasn’t as if that made it better somehow.

Clothing aside, the male looked very unthreatening; his skin was pink and soft, his face blank like there was no thought going on behind those glassy eyes, and good Faust, that hairless head could give a polished jewel a run for its money.

He did not look like a knight, but he was still a human, and Nightmare Moon had yet to meet a friendly human.

She puffed herself up confidently as she walked forwards and stopped just a few yards from the male, whose only movement came from a flaring nostril as he sniffed.

“You are either brave or foolish to come by yourself…” She observed, giving a toothy sneer. “Tell me – do you intend to make peace, or are you like that fool Caed, and you wish to issue a challenge?”

The male blinked. “… Huh. A talking horse.”

“Pony.”

“Pony?” He blinked again and looked at the guards before turning back to her. “Well, these guys look like ponies, but you’re awfully big for one.”

Nightmare Moon faltered. He sounded as if he didn’t know about her or the ponies – could that mean he truly wasn’t part of Caed’s order? There was a possibility that he was lying…

“If you didn’t know about us, then why did you come here?” She asked, narrowing her eyes as the human scratched his side and stared at nothing. “You used a Fracture to get here, didn’t you?”

“‘Fracture?’” The male repeated, one pencil-thin eyebrow rising. “I don’t know. I was walking to the store to buy some eggs when some portal-thing opened up next to me,” He shrugged. “I was kinda bored, so I figured I’d see what was up. Uh, but now it’s closed, and I’m kinda lost, so… do you know how to get back?”

He sounded so casual and blasé.

“Do you really expect me to believe that you would walk through a portal just because you were bored? Well, I-”

“Yeah.”

“-don’t…” Nightmare Moon blinked and scowled. “Well, I don’t.”

The male blinked at her. “Okay.”

She stared at him.

He stared at her.

The Eclipse guards stared at one another.

“… I am Empress Nightmare Moon of Equestria, and you are trespassing on castle property,” She stomped her hoof against the dirt – not as dramatic as stone, but what can you do? “If you do not bow to Caed, the Knight Enforcer of the human world, then tell me your name and real reason for being here.”

“Hey, I’m Saitama,” He lifted his hand in a lazy wave. “I’m a hero for… well, I guess I’m a hero for profit now. And I’m telling the truth – I really did just come through because I was bored. Kinda regretting it now, though; I’m not sure if this is a thing where time moves differently, but I want to get back home before the store shuts. My home,” He sniffed and rubbed the back of his neck. “Also, I have to check on Genos – he gets antsy when I’m not home on time.”

“A hero?”

“Yeah. Hey, what’s with that look? I’m fully registered with the Hero’s Association, you know. I don’t have the papers on me right now, but it’s true.”

Now that Nightmare Moon thought about it… he did remind her of a comic book hero – his attire was bright and colourful and he had the cape that had come to be associated with the stereotypical ‘hero’.

Her mind suddenly prickled as Ebony Called her. “Empress, what do we do?”

“Stand by for now; I want to question him more.”

Nightmare Moon had come here expecting a fight, but ‘Saitama’ was showing no signs of hostility nor any affiliation with the Rouge Knights. She had a hard time believing that the humans would come up with something like this as form of reconnaissance or infiltration, especially when there was no way anypony could miss someone as visible as him.

She let her horn dim, but remained in anticipation of an attack.

“A hero? As in, one who fights for ‘the greater good?’”

“That’s what heroes do, so yeah,” Saitama scratched beneath his arm. “Hey, did I interrupt something? Everyone’s got armor on – you guys fighting something?”

“Humans.”

Saitama blinked owlishly. “Really? You guys don’t look like monsters. Well, you do, especially with a name like ‘Nightmare Moon’. And to be honest, the word ‘empress’ doesn’t bode well either. Blame that on decades of cartoon villains.”

“I’m not a shining example of good intentions, I’ll admit, but we’re fighting humans because they are attempting to kidnap our kind. For what reason, I do not know, but it cannot be good,” Nightmare Moon cocked her head curiously. “If you’re not aware of our war, then you cannot be part of the Rouge Knight order. And yet, you’ve arrived through a Fracture, a portal, so that must mean you’re from another world inhabited by humans.

“There is a pony named Sunset Shimmer who came from a world of humans, but from her descriptions, they are of various skin colours ranging from purple to green and the world is more or less parallel to ours. Your skin colour and name does not match the world she described, but neither do you fit in with the world of Caed and his Rouge Knights.

“Therefore, it seems as if-”

She was interrupted by a loud yawn.

Nightmare Moon paused in surprise before gritting her teeth and growling in anger. “Am I boring you?!”

Saitama wiped at his eyes blearily. “Sorry. I’m just so used to hearing people and monsters talk a lot that I sort of nod off when it happens. Look, I’m not sure what’s going on, but I need to get back home. Can you open up another… Fracture, did you say?”

Nightmare Moon bristled in irritation, but decided to let it slide – he sounded genuinely apologetic. “No, we cannot; only the humans possess that ability.”

“Oh,” Saitama blinked. “Well, maybe I can talk to them.”

“They exist in a different universe altogether; the only way you could communicate was if-”

She paused as a distant roar ripped through the air.

Faint wingbeats of something large.

Nightmare Moon knew what it was even before Lightning Dust went higher and shouted in alarm.

‘Dragon.’

The dragon migration wasn’t for another few months, so she had no idea why one would be here in Equestria, especially if it was as large as it sounded, but the time for questions would have to come later – right now, they needed to prepare.

“Everypony to your stations!” She shouted, flapping her wings to hover above the ranks of her Eclipse guard. “Fade, Lightning Dust – assemble the pegasi! Veil – sound the alarm! Ebony, Miasma – go and prepare the surface-to-air catapults! Haze – go wake Shadow Strike!”

Everypony scrambled to carry out her orders, several terrified faces glancing to the sky as the wingbeats and roars grew closer.

Saitama just stood in the same spot and watched.

Damn it! What was she to do with him? He could slip away while they were fighting!

“Saitama!” She cried. “Stay where you are, or I will hunt you down!”

“Okay.”

“… I mean it!”

“I believe you.”

…

Whether he was being sarcastic or not became irrelevant as a great shadow fell across the courtyard, and Nightmare Moon lit her horn up in a blue glow as the dragon flew over and landed on the castle, its talons – each longer and thicker than a pony – digging into the walls to keep it anchored as it folded its massive wings against its back.

Nightmare Moon’s knowledge on dragon biology was slim, but she could tell from the physique and length of horns that it had recently reached maturity – perhaps thirteen years ago – and was male. The burgundy tint of his scaly hide shimmered in the sun as glowing green eyes peered down at the ponies running in his shadow hungrily. He had to be thirty feet tall and almost eighty feet from snout to tail.

When he spoke, it was like thunder.

“WELL, WELL, WHAT HAVE WE HERE? WHERE IS YOUR SUN GODDESS CELESTIA, HM?” The dragon crawled down the castle, his great head looming closer as chunks of debris rained down into the courtyard. “I HEARD THE RUMORS OF A COUP AND CAME TO SEE IT FOR MYSELF. WELL, THAT AND THE DAZZLING BRILLIANCE OF THE GREAT CANTERLOT OF EQUESTRIA.”

Nightmare Moon stared him down without fear. “The rumours are true. Canterlot, and by extension Equestria, is now under my rule. And I must say that I do not appreciate uninvited guests destroying royal property.”

“I AM RAVAGE, THE GUARDIAN OF THE MOUNTAIN IN SMOKE. LONG AGO, CELESTIA BANISHED ME FROM THE CITY WHEN I WAS STILL A FLEDGLING. NOW, I HAVE COME BACK, STRONG AND OLD, TO CLAIM THIS CITY FOR MY OWN,” Ravage leered at her, grey smoke billowing from his parted jaws. “YOU CAN EITHER SWEAR FEALTY TO ME, OR BE BURNED TO ASH. FEAR NOT – I WILL BE A MERCIFUL KING AMONGST YOU.”

Nightmare Moon had to roll her eyes and sigh. “Dragon, we’re rather busy fighting an actual threat, so I’m going to give you a chance to slink back to your mountain because unlike Celestia, I am not soft-hearted.”

Ravage roared with laughter, shaking the windows of the castle. “SO BE IT! PREPARE YOURSELF FOR FIERY OBLIVI-”

KRA-KOOM

Ravage’s serpentine head cartwheeled into the sky that had been rendered cloudless by the sheer force of an ungodly powerful blow.

Saitama dropped back down into the courtyard, face still blank as Ravage’s body fell of the side of the castle and crumpled into a bloody heap behind him.

He turned to her. “Sorry, but he was really loud. Now, what were you saying about getting in touch with the Red Knights or whatever?”

“Hello?”

“Hm… Maybe if I punch the air hard enough, then I can open another portal…”

Author's Notes:

Note 1: The true next chapter of Ambition will be up later this week! Until then, have a little something for April Fool's involving everyone's favourite superhero parody!