"I just hope she's fast at dying as she is in breaking her body so easily..." Don Topaz took a bite of the stew made of carrots and cabbage. "Waiter, bring me the water."

The servant obeyed, leaving the room and coming back with a jug of water, which he poured in the empty glass of his boss. Topaz thanked and took a sip, taking a deep breath after relieving his thirst. He looked at the earth race white bodyguard, Beryl, standing still as always with his hands in the back scanning the room constantly, and he looked back when he noticed his boss staring at him.

"I must plan how I'm gonna rebuilt my empire after everything I had get ruined by those bastards. Maybe I could start my new place here in the mountains. It's hidden, quiet... plenty of space underground for a complex of machines pounding steel and iron for weapons of fucking war!" Topaz seemed ecstatic with the idea, with his Beryl just shrugging without moving his hands from his behind. "I see. I'm the boss, I make the decisions... maybe you will get your own room again, this time bigger than the last one. I like how you behaved fighting Mane for what I heard. He was made of crystal and you still managed to beat him."

The godfather took the silver fork to a veggie and got interrupted when a muffled explosion was heard outside the safe house, and the water in his cup trembled with a weak shock wave.
Beryl slowly went in pose for anything that would come out of the door, while they kept silence for a while. Another explosion was heard one minute later, and a thug barged in the room, making Beryl almost run towards him ready to grab him by the neck.

"Are you practicing with the cannon without my orders?!" Topaz stood up abruptly making the chair fall, without giving a chance of the thug to speak first.

"It's not that, boss!" He seemed startled. "They are here!"

"They who? Mane and his friends, or the army?"

"Mane! Er... alone..."

"Alone?!" Topaz couldn't believe for a moment, and he smiled. "Order all of them to get ready! Beryl, prepare yourself... this time he won't live and that is an order!"

The huge bodyguard nodded and left the room in a hurry along with the thug. Topaz ran downstairs to the basement, where Pinkamena was tied down with chains in a cage, with her back carrying the marks of the whip. His presence made her fear the worse when he showed up with a loaded flintlock pistol and the keys to her cage.

"You're coming with me!" Topaz opened the cage and dragged her outside, forcing her up and to walk in front of him with the pistol against her head.

"Where are we going?" She asked terrified.

"None of your concern!" He bashed her in the back with the butt of the weapon. "Just fucking move!"

Outside, the side of the mountain turned into a war zone of many against one enraged guy.
He ran towards the walls against the cannon fire, trying to predict where the next hit would be, barely escaping sometimes. He knew there was no way he would survive with his 'Crystal Sense'. A cannonball would shatter his crystal body in thousands of pieces with a direct hit.
The thugs started getting into position by the walls wit their muskets ready.

Mane noticed them in the distance and took shelter behind a rock, escaping the first rain of bullets. But he was quickly uncovered when he saw a cannonball in the air, travelling in an arch towards his spot. He gasped in fear and surprise, making a run for It.
He left the protection of the boulder, when a group from one of the sides shot in the distance, and a bullet razed Mane in the cheek before he turned into crystal, deflecting the other bullets that actually hit him.

"I cannot fucking live like this!"

He turned back to normal and took protection behind another rock. The walls were around one hundred meters away and their strategy got even better with that new big weapon. Every shot of It was to make him get out so they would get the chance of shooting him.
Mane thought for a bit before the next cannonball would travel in his direction.

He had forgotten for a moment and It came back to him. He turned his 'Shadow Body' on and sprinted in the air through the field avoiding the at high speed the two rounds of bullets from the two groups in the walls. He got to the gate with thugs panicking with his arrival, turning his body back to normal, then into crystal, he kicked with all his might the steel gate open making a huge dent on It.
He walked in while some loaded muskets tried to put him down without success.

Mane's rampage started by grabbing a nearby thug and smash his head with a crystal fist towards him, and used his pistol to shoot another one nearby. Taking cover behind a small wall in the garden, he turned to normal then into smoke, proceeding to fly in low height in time when a cannonball destroyed the wall where he was. Stopping by a thug, he quickly turned to normal again and punched the enemy in the stomach and took his musket away from him, then grabbing him by the shoulders, turned him around and locked the thug against him with a crystal arm, as a shield

"DON'T SHOOT!" Screamed the goon while looking at a group with their guns pointed towards those two.

With all the confusion going on, they didn't listen and delivered the bullets in hopes of getting Mane, but all were took by the meat shield and some deflected by Mane's crystal arm surrounding his neck.

"HURRY UP! He's winning!" Yelled a thug.

"The barrel won't open!" Answered another one fiddling to open the gunpowder container.

"Just smash It open!"

The thug raised the small barrel and threw It on the ground, spilling gunpowder and making them pour It in the cannon with their bare hands. A third thug rushed the ammo inside the artillery and they aligned a new shot to Mane. A new fuse was added during the process and they lit up a lighter.

"Now!"

They lit up and the cannonball missed Mane when he turned his body into smoke again, with the attack passing through his non-existent torso made of a dark cloud. They hurried the reload while Mane kept killing their comrades in various ways.
From spells, to his crystal body smashing their bodies and using some of them as meat shields like before.

"We are getting outnumbered! Speed up!" Yelled the same one, in charge of the shooting.

"Getting there!" Said the second one putting the gunpowder in the cannon with his hands again. "Ammo!"

The ammo guy putted the cannonball and they aligned again. Another shot and this time was way worse than failing. Mane jumped away from the projectile's path, this time taking with It three thugs that were surrounding Mane with their knifes out in a desperate move to not loose time reloading.

"FUCKING HELL!!!" Screamed the first thug. "Wait..." He looked carefully to the garden, littered with bodies, unloaded guns and destruction provoked by the cannon. "We are the only ones left!"

The group of three looked at Mane, who was standing right in the cannon's path with a fierce expression and his body in his normal flesh and bones. They looked for their weapons, but the protocol of the cannon was no muskets, pistols or blunderbusses near the cannon to avoid risks near the gunpowder barrels, and the cannon wasn't even completely reloaded.

"Come at us! We dare you!" Yelled one of them while he pulled out his knife, followed by the others doing the same with some concern if It was a good idea.

"Spare me the stupidity..." Said Mane while pointing a finger at them with his horn starting to glow.

In a blink, he hurled a fireball towards the last barrel next to the cannon, and It exploded in a show of fire and smoke, obliterating the three thugs in pieces, with their limbs flying in random directions leaving an arch of blood behind them.
The support of the cannon obviously got destroyed too and the huge iron piece fell on the rocky floor with a loud metallic noise.

Mane looked around... death and destruction were the main feature around the house.
He ran to the door kicked It open, just to see the halls full of luxurious furniture empty. Something wasn't right, expecting another force of mafiosos with guns ready, or hear Pinkamena's cries in the distance somewhere in the safe house.

"TOPAZ!" He screamed in anger. "Come out and face me!"
...

Loud steps were heard coming from a door, making Mane get ready for anything that would come.
The door was kicked down, and Beryl showed up, in a juggernaut heavy steel armor, covered from his head to the hooves. Holding a tower shield in the shape of a rectangle and a spiked mace.

"We meet again, steroid brains..." Mane commented. "Too easy!"

The grey unicorn lit his horn and launched an electric bolt towards the shield, but the spell was fully absorbed by the It.
Mane stopped and his expression drowned in disappointment from not being able of electrocuting his opponent.

"Fucking anti-magic coating..."

Beryl charged at him like a bull with the shield in the front, not giving Mane a chance of dodging and taking him outside with the mighty charge. Mane took the shock and was back outside with Beryl, holding the shield with a tight grip. Beryl stopped the charge and shook the shield but his grey opponent refused to let It go, so he lifted It and took It to the floor sandwiching Mane between It and the ground.

The crushing made Mane grunt in pain and he let the shield go. Beryl raised the mace, and Mane rolled in time avoiding the deadly attack. That mace with all those spikes were made to crush bones and dent his crystal body in case he would use It, showing how Mane got studied in all aspects, making Beryl a magic proof 'bulldozer' and with all means to defeat him.
Mane got back up with his back in pain, looking at the crater the mace left on the ground. He walked backwards thinking what to do, when he tripped in the corpse of a thug with his throat crushed open.

Beryl advanced to Mane and attempted to smash his head with a shield bash to the floor. Mane rolled to the side but the attack got him in the left forearm. Struck by panic, Mane got up with the help of his good arm and ran away to behind the house while Beryl chased him more slowly. The wounded stallion hid behind the wood shed where the cannon was before and checked his arm.

The shield was heavy just like the mace and seemed Beryl had some practice with both. His left forearm had a nasty bruise forming some blood in his grey fur, closer inspection showed live flesh.
He took a peek, Beryl was looking for him and he was close by. His armor besides being magic proof, would had little weakness with a punch or kick of a crystal limb, making him slower and the spikes of the mace would make their task in mining his crystal body.

"Think... use your surroundings... what would be good against such armor?"

Mane looked around desperate for a way to defeat his mighty opponent, and he looked to the cannonballs scattered around the place. He got out of his hideout and lifted with his magic one of them and he could feel the weight in them. Beryl noticed Mane and charged again with the shield towards him. Mane launched the cannonball and the strong hit in the shield staggered him, making the charge stop.

The unicorn lifted another one and threw It, this time It hit Beryl in the chest, making him lose balance and almost falling on his back. The sturdiness of the armor set helped him to stay on his hooves, and he posed the shield in front of him, ready for another attack.
A third projectile flew towards him, but the shield and the defensive pose made the impact be fully absorbed.

Mane grew frustrated with Beryl figuring out a new defense with to every attack.
He started to grow even more angry.
At times, he was a sore loser, and he lost once against him.
His closest friend ever was one step away with her life by a string, Beryl was just an obstruction and he was letting him block his way.

Rage... his conscious was twitching in rage.
He started feeling a pressure coming from his spine, as if his back was gonna explode with It. The feeling traveled down to the rest of his body, making his injured arm hurt even more. His eyes started forming the purple aura from before, and slowly around his body.

Beryl stood still in the defensive pose, gazing at Mane without any fear. The grey unicorn's body started twitching for a bit while It kept absorbing the aura inside him. It stopped, and Mane's horn sparkled red thunder and he let out a scream worth of an army.
Focusing his eyes under the helmet, he saw Mane's eyes glowing with the purple aura around them.

The berserk stallion showed an evil grin and ran at all speed towards his opponent, and with his injured arm, he charged against the shield without caring for the injury. The impact felt like a cannonball but way stronger. Beryl struggled against It and attacked with the mace, but Mane turned into smoke in a flash and avoided It completely. Going back to normal at the same speed, he turned his fists into crystal and started punching the breastplate non-stop.

Under the helmet, Beryl kept grunting with every hit, feeling the impacts of every punch in the armor. Mane's maniac laugh started to freak him out, as if he lost all fear of him and didn't care for his injuries.
The armored bodyguard regained his sense and bashed Mane with the shield, making him stop the rain of hits but making things worse somewhat.
Mane was no longer laughing and looked at him in the eyes through the helmet with the expression of a psychopath.

In a stream of panic and unpredictability, Beryl shoved the tall shield in front of him. Mane grabbed the shield by the sides and started pulling It with all his strength while Beryl struggled to keep possession of It. The two brutes kept fighting over the shield, and a metallic noise started to form among their grunts.
The bolts holding the holders started to become loose, with Beryl pulling them and Mane pulling the rest of the shield.

With a huge impact, the shield broke Mane falling on his back holding the big piece of steel, while Beryl almost lost his balance with the iron pieces on his arm and hand. The tower shield was now completely useless, leaving the mace alone.
Mane threw to his side the broken thing and stood up, and now Beryl was holding the weapon with both hands. The unicorn charged and he swings the mace with all his might, but Mane stopped and the mace almost razzed his stomach. Shaker held the mace by the center and they started to fight over the weapon.

Each one pulling to his side, and Beryl took the chance of Mane's persistence and let It go making him pull the mace's spiky end towards his own stomach, with the spikes piercing his skin and deliver a huge wound.
Mane fell down on his back with the mace on his stomach, and he started losing his strength with every breath he took. The pain started to come back to his left arm bruised by the previous shield bash, now with the addition of his belly in blood and agony, but he managed to get the mace out of him.
Beryl was also tired from the whole battle but still on his hooves. He slowly advanced to Mane, while he tried to crawl away from there. He grabbed the mace from the ground and looked at the wounded opponent on the floor fighting through the pain.

He started raising the mace with both hands, and Mane with what was left of his inner strength, he turned his right leg into crystal and flailed Beryl's armored legs with all his might, making him fall on his side and loosing possession of the weapon. Mane stood up and there was still some force power left inside him, he turned his body into crystal and knelled over Beryl and took out the helmet while he squirmed to get Mane out of his top, but the armor plus his crystal body were like being held down by an entire building.

The grey unicorn closed his crystal fists and started punching his opponent rhythmically in the face, starting to make teeth fly along with blood coming out of his nostrils and mouth. Beryl started to loose all his strength and his arms began to go down in exhaustion.
Mane turned his body back to normal... but he wasn't finished yet...

He took his thumbs to Beryl's eyes and started to force them down, with Beryl realizing It and grab Mane's wrists and try to get his hands out of his face, but Mane forced even more and with a roar of pain, his eyes had been pierced by Mane's fingers. Now his eye sockets were filled with blood starting to run down his head by the sides.

"Say hi to Terik for me!" Mane yelled, with his horn glowing red.

With a huge flow of magic running down his arms and hurting more the wounded one, an electric current turned Beryl into a flashing body still screaming in agony of having his eyes popped out and now a lethal electric spell running through them and all over his body.
Mane kept the grip for half a minute while the electric magic kept frying his opponent. He stopped breathing heavily and with pain all over his body from the extensive use of magic through himself.
Beryl's white color was now red from his own blood coming out of his eye sockets and burned from the electricity, with his blonde hair being all burned too.

Mane got up with difficulty and stumbled from behind the house to the front door, breathing rhythmically to keep what was left from his stamina active. He entered the house where he didn't go beyond the entrance hall. He stumbled to the kitchen and saw the cook hiding behind the counter with his hands covering his face in fear.

"P-Please don't kill me!" He begged while looking at Mane with holding his stomach with holes from the spiked mace.

"Get out..." Mane muttered in a tired voice, which the cook obeyed by running away from the house with no clear destiny after what he witnessed during that time.

The battle scarred unicorn stumbled to the counter and grabbed the jug of water and took It to his mouth, relieving his thirst from all the action he went through, and spilled some in a piece of cloth and took It to his stomach, starting to fear if the made had perforated any internal organ.

He slowly walked around the house looking for Pinkamena and Don Topaz, but no signals of any of them, neither a single noise besides his own steps in the wooden floor.

"DIANE?!" He called.

But nopony came...