Author's Notes:

Hey, guys! Just thought I’d tried something different and have this chapter based around Twilight’s perspective and her thoughts on her relationship with Bryan, The Bloody-handed Berserker. Hope you like it.

And as always, thanks for reading.

FIGHT LIKE HELL, FIGHT LIKE DOOM MARINES!

Ch.26: Hanging out with Ancient Beings...

(Twilight Sparkle, Castle of Friendship...)

“... Okay, it’s fixed.” I said with a sigh of relief, as I’d just finished with fixing the wall Bryan destroyed, using my magic. I probably should have expected him to react so drastically whenever he gets...emotional about this sort of stuff. Especially when he doesn’t know how to deal with it.

Then again, we’re both in the same boat.

“Sorry.” Bryan said to me, again.

“Bryan, I told you, it’s fine. We’ve worked it out.” I told him, reassuring him. “Look, how about we go out into town tomorrow? Maybe head over to Sugarcube Corner where Pinkie works?” I suggested. The sun was already setting down, so there was no point in going out now.

“Can’t we just head over to Berry’s pub?” Oh, by the Celestial Light...

“No, Bryan. You’re not going to ‘crack open a cold one’.” I stated to him, folding my arms as I gave him a firm look.

“Oh, c’mon woman!” Here we go, again. More arguing.

“Bryan, getting drunk is not going to solve anything!”

“You haven’t even gotten shit-faced, so you wouldn’t even know how much of a good time you’d be having!”

“Being an alcoholic isn’t fun!”

“Bitch, I’m not an alcoholic! I haven’t even drunk in over ten thousand years!”

“You bastard!”

“Oh, you couldn’t even swear for shit!”

I think we may have been arguing for an hour or so, over this and that, never really staying on one topic. Gosh, is this what it’s like when couples argue? If so...this is both tiring and exhilarating. At the end of it all, we were both panting for breath, well I was the most, feeling my heart pounding in my chest. Bryan then started to laugh, putting a hand on his face as he looked up.

“Heh heh heh... Oh man. That was fucking hilarious!” He said before looking back at me. “You were actually cute throughout that whole thing.” I think my face was set on fire when he called me cute.

“U-Uh, t-t-thank you.” I stuttered, covering my face and turning away from him. Oh, I feel so embarrassed.

“Was that your first time ever arguing?” He asked me.

“Of course not! I’ve had many arguments in the past!” I blurted out, facing him again, even though my face was getting redder. “Just...not this long, or intense.” I muttered, looking away from him before looking up into his eyes. “You really think I was cute, when we were arguing? We were saying some pretty mean stuff to each other.”

Bryan sighed. “I know, but still, yes. You were really cute.” He confirmed.

“Oh...” I said as we stood there and stared at each other. But... I think my body was moving by itself, because I found myself leaning up to his face try to--

“Ahem!” The door was kicked open by Visilia, barging into my room and making me fall backwards out of shock.

“Ow...” I mewled, rubbing the back of head as I sat up.

Bryan blinked like some dense dolt, looking at Visilia, before looking down to me. “Were...you just about to...?”

“Yes. Yes, she was.” Visilia answered, giggling at his reaction.

“Hey, wait a minute! You barged in here on purpose!” I stated, getting up on my hooves and glared at her accusingly. “How long were you waiting outside my door!?”

“As soon as I heard you two arguing, like an old married couple.” She answered, waving me off with a sly smile. “I could’ve swore you two were about to get it on and go at it.”

“Uh... Context? Because it sounded like you thought we were gonna... Fuck each other silly until she starts popping out babies.”

“Bryan~!” I whined, covering myself up with my wings, crouching down as Visilia was busy laughing herself off. Oh. My. Gosh! Why would he say something so blatantly vulgar!? I knew he was blunt, but not this blunt! Even now, I’m envisioning us doing it on my bed, ravaging one another, the sounds of our lovemaking echoing from the castle for all to hear and then--! “ACK!” I yelled, snapping myself out of it before I delved too deep.

“Um... Twilight? You’re entire body is glowing red.” Bryan told me. “Seriously, you’re fucking lit like a Christmas tree.”

“... I’m going to take a cold shower.” I said, rushing into my bathroom and locking the door. Turing on the cold tap, I got out of my clothes and hopped right in, shivering as the cold water washed over me. Soon I got to washing myself off from the dirty thoughts of having sex with Bryan, even though they were going to stay with me. Once done I turned it off and dried off, putting some new clothes on and walked out, seeing Bryan and Visilia waiting for me.

“Alright, well, dinner’s ready!” Visilia told us, snickering under her breath, wrapping her arms around Bryan’s right.

Seeing this, I rushed over to his left arm and grabbed hold of it, puffing out my cheeks as I glared at her, but she poked her tongue at me cheekily. Sighing, Bryan yanked his arms free from us before picking us both up and sat us on his shoulders. I was surprised by this as he carried us through the door...or so I thought. Instead, he banged our heads into the doorframe.

“Ow!” I hissed, holding my head.

“Argh! Bryan, what the Hell!?” Visilia growled out.

“Oops, sorry. Let me figure this out.” Was...was that sarcasm coming from him? We didn’t have time to think on it as he moved through the door sideways, and yet he still manages to hit our heads on the doorframe! It offical; he’s doing it on purpose!

“BRYAN!” We both yelled at him.

“Hey, fuck you two. I’m not some fucking boy-toy, where it makes you feel like you have bragging rights.” He told us off coldly, throwing us down on the ground as he glared at us. “I’m not gonna deal with your shit.”

Before this could go on, three anvils dropped on all of our heads, harder then I would like it. Seriously, it felt like someone threw it at us. One thing I soon realised was how painful it felt, and how heavy these were. I’m surprised I haven’t even died from this! Luckily Bryan helped me with it, lifting it off me, though he looked angry about that happening...at random...out of nowhere. How did that happen?

“For Hell sakes, Khorne.” Bryan growled, picking me up and had me stand.

“Khorne?” I questioned, blinking in confusion.

“Yes, Khorne. The Blood God.” He told me with a snort.

“Okay, that was weird.” Visilia groaned, shaking her head as she got up.

“Hey, you little shits cut that out!” We heard a voice bellowed out, as we looked up to see a purple portal opened, where I saw something that seemed worse than Bryan being angry. Sitting upon a throne made entirely of skulls, oceans of blood and fire raging all around him at the base, while the cries of war echoed and battles waged throughout his realm... It’s no wonder why he’s known as The Blood God.

Speaking of which, “Fuck off, old man!” He just told a God off. A GOD! Bryan, are you crazy!?

Upon hearing that, Khorne growled before grabbing a pinch of anvils, which were a lot for us because of the size differences, threw them at Bryan and buried him under the whole bunch. In all honesty, I really thought he killed him. I mean, the force from it all created cracks across the floor! However, it seemed that Bryan had managed to survived, digging himself out.

“Good, you still show promise.” The Blood God huffed. “As much as I would like for you all to continue arguing, save your anger for the enemy. This sort of thing tends to annoy me.” He snarled, letting us know that we had annoyed him. He’s definitely far more different than Palutena.

“Whatever. I was just making a statement.” Bryan snorted, making Khorne sigh deeply.

“Boy, look, I’m not the best at relationships, but just don’t hurt them that much. You’ll end up regretting it.” Uh...wow. A God of Blood giving advice to Bryan, something not a part of his nature? That’s something.

“Damnations, fine.” Bryan groaned.

“Just hang in there, you’re doing fine, son.”

“What is with you guys and calling me ‘son’?” Bryan questioned.

“You still need some father figures in your life.” He answered, almost sounding as if he’s proud. “As strong as you are, you can still become stronger. You just need someone who can show you how.” He explained.

“Well... I can’t say no to that.” Bryan stated.

Nodding his head, The Blood God glared down at Visilia and I. “As for you two, show some damn respect to him! He saved your realms! You do that, he’ll show respect in return! Do not treat him like he’s a piece of meat on a pike, and he won’t treat you like pieces of shit.” He warned us, growling as flames risen from his mouth.

“Right.” Visilia conceded with a sigh.

“Y-Yes sir!” I answered, trembling in fear.

“Heh! Good.” He snorted, the portal closing as all the anvils he threw at us disappeared.

“Well, I guess I can now tick the ‘Meet the Blood God before I die’ off my metaphorical Bucket List.” Bryan commented with a smile.

“Over my fucking dead body, boy! You’re not kicking that damn bucket!” We heard Khorne retorted, his demonic voice echoing around us.

“Um... Bryan, why was he glaring down at me with hatred? What did I even do?” I asked him, still shaken up from the experience.

“He hates magic users.” Bryan simply answered. “His followers and warriors a part of his patron are practically immune to ‘Foul Sorcery’. He’s all about physical, martial prowess.” He explained.

“Oh... I see.” Now I’m even more terrified! How does Bryan even do it!? How can he just tell a God-like being off so casually!?

“Let’s just go and get some dinner.” Visilia said, something we all agreed on and headed towards the Dining room.

Some of their Night Sentinels were in there, having something to eat, while the others continued their duties until they’re relieved. It was very surprising that the Dragons and Gryphons were supplying more meat, though, it was for the Doom Marines and their armies. Speaking of which, while I was sitting with Spike and Barbs, eating our meals, I listened to the conversations Bryan, Visilia, Kevin and their soldiers were having with one another. Although, the mentions of The Hell Wars had popped up more so, but that tends to be a hush-hush discussion. I’d tried asking them about it, but they wouldn’t answer me.

Although, seeing Bryan being happy and talking with his... Kin, it kind of made me happy. But he seemed, underneath the surface of it all, sad. I wonder what happened in that war? Did he lose more than just his comrades, the thousand upon thousand of soldiers under his command?

Wait...what happened to the Princesses’ parents? The King and Queen? Celestia told me that they died, but not how.

“Hey, Twi? You’re overthinking again.” Spike said, snapping me out of my musing.

“Huh? Oh, sorry. I got carried away.” I chuckled a little, focusing on my food. Those questions can wait. Who knows, maybe I could ask Bryan on how his first days of being sent to our world was like, tomorrow?

Anyway, after dinner, I went about the rest of my night with some light reading. The only down side is that Bryan might not be sleeping with me in my room. Dammit, I wanted to know what it’s like to sleep with someone you love! Okay, calm down Twilight, maybe he’ll change his mind. Just be patient with him. It was almost midnight when he finally came into my room with Visilia.

“I don’t know how I should be feeling about this.” Bryan said to Visilia.

“It’ll be fine. Now, shower.” She ordered him, pushing him into my bathroom and closing the door. She stood guard as I heard the shower going, waiting for Bryan to finish.

Which didn’t take long, only about a few minutes or so he came out. He didn’t had his armour on, wearing a bathroom robe, drying off his hair before throwing the towel back into the bathroom. I found myself blushing again, as I looked upon him, and I think my nose was bleeding a little bit.

“... By the Celestial Light, take me now...” I whispered, hoping he didn’t hear me. Unfortunately, he did.

“Keep it in your panties, and get your head out of the gutter. I ain’t sleeping with you if that’s what you’re gonna end up dreaming.” He told me off, making me squeak in embarrassment as he jumped into bed.

Visilia took her turn in the Shower next, taking a robe and towel inside as she closed the door, leaving me alone with Bryan for the time being. Looking at him, I saw that his face was covered in many scars, more so than that Spartan from awhile back, Eliteslayer. Then again, given his preferred combat method and style, he’s a full frontal Assault Trooper. Just charging into the chaos headlong first to rank up all the kills.

“Is something wrong?” I heard Bryan ask me, as he looked up to me.

“Bryan, those scars on your face, are they...?”

“No, they’re not the only scars. I told you before; I’m practically scarred by War and Death, from head to toe.” He answered, sitting up and pulling his arms out of his sleeves, letting me see his upper torso...riddled in scars, bite marks, stab wounds, and the rare few burn marks on him. That was besides his muscular physique. “... You’re drooling.” Dammit!

“I can’t help it!” I shouted, wiping away the drool and pouted. “I can’t help that I’m attracted to your physical appearance!”

“Well, I’ll take that as a compliment.” He told me and I blushed.

He actually likes my compliment...that’s a good thing.

“... Did it hurt?” I asked him.

He snorted at the question. “Of course it did. Every last one of these hurt me. Hell, look.” He said, showing me his hands that were covered in scars and bite marks. “Imps tried to bite my hands off. Too bad they didn’t have their teeth for long.” He explained.

“Ouch.” I winced, tracing each scar. “Do you always prefer to deal with Demons up close and personal? It sounds like you could’ve lost your arms before your life.”

“Yes, I do prefer that. It feels far more satisfying to crush something that was suppose to be the true monster.” He chuckled darkly. “Didn’t exactly helped that they were hunted down by us.” He said before sighing.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“... Does God even care anymore?” He questioned, which left me confused because that came out of nowhere.

“I’m sorry? Bryan, you lost me here. What do you mean by that?”

“Sorry, Twi. I tend to ask myself about him...even though I’ve given up on praying to him.” He told me, his facials hardening as he clutched his fists tightly. “If Hell exist, then surely, Heaven exist as well. And yet, no Angels came to save anyone. No God to confront the Devil. Nothing.”

“Bryan?” I was getting worried at this point, seeing him in this state of mind wasn’t for the best.

Taking in deep breaths, he calmed himself down as I held onto one of his arms. “There are many religions back home. One of them is known as Christianity, or Catholic, both saying that their is only one God, that created all of Life itself.” He scoffed, a hint of disdain in his words. “They preach about it, but they sometimes bastardise it. Hell, back in the medieval times, they had many armies under their influence and beliefs, one of them was very fanatical and zealous; The Templars.”

“Were these Knights?” I asked.

“Yes, you could say that. They’ve committed many things in their Crusades; some good, some bad. They say it’s the Will of God, and they fight in his Name.” He frowned. “Who knows the truth anymore? A lot of religions with different beliefs grind against one another, Holy Wars break out, and many die, be they soldiers or civilians. All because of their Faiths.”

“... Is that why you got a little hostile against Palutena?” I asked him. “Because she’s a Goddess?”

“Yes.” He sneered. “It may not be what she expected to happen to her, but it’s what she got. In all honesty, I don’t trust Gods. Save for Khorne, seeing as how he’s not trying to screw me over.”

“Oh.” I muttered, looking down. “But, if so, why did you summon Palutena?”

“I thought she could help me in this whole damn relationship. Technically, she did, but, I guess you could say, it probably wasn’t what I was looking for. Either way, I’m just glad that I actually understand some things about your choices in wanting to be with me.” He huffed. “The only thing I didn’t like about her, is this whole ‘Godhood’ fucking with her thinking. I’m giving her the benefit of the doubt, but, really, I wanted to kick her teeth in, rip an organ or two out, have her choke on them, before blowing the rest of her guts out and that empty head off with my Super Shotgun.”

“Is that how you solve things; through violence?”

“I’m no Saint, Twilight. You should know that by now.” He sighed.

“I know, I know, but... I just wish you didn’t had to resort to your guns and fists, straight off the bat.” I told him.

“That’s all I’ve ever known to solving a problem; shoot it, until it dies. And if it’s still alive, get a little more personal and finish the job.” He retorted.

“Alright, that’s enough.” We heard Visilia said, standing in the doorway. “It’s time to sleep.”

Sighing, Bryan covered his upper body as we all lied down in bed and slept. Bryan even had his arms wrapped around each of us, pulling us closer to him. We snuggled up to him and hugged him, smiling as we let ourselves dream away.

(The next morning...)

“Wow-zers! Look at him go!” Pinkie exclaimed with that silly smile of hers. Looking over to Bryan, who had his helmet off, he was munching through his cookies and choc-chip muffins, drinking some of his cookies and cream milkshake.

If you’re wondering why, it’s because he didn’t had any breakfast, stating that his sweet tooth was tinkling for some ‘Yummies’. Don’t ask how Pinkie guessed the milkshake he wanted, or how she knew of this new flavour. Well, new to us, but not to Humans, seeing as how he missed it. He also seems to call cookies biscuits, and candy lollies.

I asked him why he uses those sorts of terminology, only for him to answer with, and I quote; ‘I’m not American’. No idea why he said that, but I won’t question him about that.

Anyway, he seemed to like Sugarcube Corner. When we arrived here, he asked if this building was edible, even though he knew it was the theme of the place. Along with him, Visilia and I, Barbs and Spike were here as well. They asked him if he knew anything about the Dragons, which he did, or at least some of it. I think he would rather take them to the Dragon Lands, even though the first time they went there, without our knowing, didn’t go so well.

“What’s the difference between an Imperial Dragon and those other Dragons we ran into?” Barbs asked him.

Swallowing whatever he had in his mouth, he cleared his throat and answered her. “The difference is simple, the ones you two ran into are miners, in a sense, since they live in a harsh environment, where they find gems and crystals. That just means they’re a lot more stronger, enduring more punishment than any other, but that doesn’t label them as stupid.” He explained.

“I don’t know, the ones we hanged out with are--“ Spike started, but Bryan cut him off.

“Dumbass teenagers that don’t know shit and think they’re all that? Tsk, yeah right. They couldn’t take care of themselves, so they couldn’t take care of their own wet dreams.” Really, Bryan? Really? “Trust me, the Dragon Lord in charge of that Region would’ve punished them himself. If there’s one thing you need to know, is that you can’t lie to Dragon Lords.” He stated.

“How many Dragon Lords are there?” Barbs asked.

“Three.” He said with a sigh.

“Three? So, back in the Crystal Empire, with those Imperial Dragons...are you...?”

“Yes, Twilight, I am.” He answered, leaving the twins stunned. “Here’s the proof. You two, do the barrel roll.” He ordered the twins, as I watch them actually do the barrel roll. “Wow, that actually worked? Cool.” Wait, what? You didn’t know if that was going to work!?

“What the--!?” Spike yelled as they both got back up. “How did you do that!?”

“I’ll tell you later. Just be grateful your kind’s still live.” He told them.

That actually gave rise to some questions when he said that. From what Bryan had demonstrated, what he had told us thus far, how are they still alive? With such power to control and command an entire Horde of Dragons under their sway, you would think that they start waging wars against one another. The temptation of wielding something like that would be impossible to resist.

“Wait a minute!” Pinkie shot up. “If that’s all true, then who’s keeping an eye on them? Why would there be an Imperial Empire, when not all of Dragon Kind live in it?” She questioned.

“The Empress, or Emperor, whichever is ruling, oversees each of their trials. The Imperial City is where politics, trades, diplomacy and the like are held. Records of their history, covering all three Clans, are stored, archived and preserved there.” He answered, taking a sip of him milkshake.

“Really!?” I said in excitement.

“Yes, Twilight.” He sighed. “Your excitement for their Knowledge is showing, you know.”

“Oh, c’mon! I can’t help it!” I whined, making him snort at me.

After hanging around a little while longer, I paid for the food and we bid Pinkie goodbye, leaving the store and went walking around town. The ponies looking our way either waved or kept a wide berth, the later making the experience feel weird for me, even though I knew the reason why. I’m not blaming him, but he still does give off that feeling of ‘Don’t mess with me, or else’.

It didn’t seem to bother him though, as he ignored them. I showed him and Visilia around, pointing out to this and that, giving some explanation to the subject. Not sure if Bryan was paying attention, as he kept looking over his shoulder, almost as if he thought someone was going to attack him. Maybe he was being paranoid, or maybe I wasn’t paying attention at the time, because as soon as we got moving, I could’ve sworn that there were a couple of ponies tailing us.

I didn’t want to look behind me, it’ll give away that we’re onto them. I wasn’t sure if these were ponies, or Cocoon’s Changelings, even though there had been no reports on them. Either way, this was turning into something I really didn’t want right now.

We walked around for hours, stopping here and there, buying some things, and yet, the feeling of being watched and followed was still there. I took us to the park next, where there wasn’t much going on, it should give Bryan and Visilia some more room to work with if things go south. Not to mention, there won’t be anybody else getting in the way by accident.

From there, I started up a random conversation, something we can all easily talk about, without giving away about our knowing of them. A few moments later, those who have been following us sprung into action, attacking both Bryan and Visilia, specifically. Didn’t exactly do much when you have two insanely strong warriors, who were trained to kill, turn things around.

They quickly subdued the would-be assassins, disarming them and pinning them down to the ground, arms pinned behind their backs. Well, Bryan broke both arms of his captured, making him scream in pain and agony.

“You know, I don’t appreciate being a target for making quick money. So tell us, who hired you?” Bryan demanded.

“To Tartarus with you!” The Stallion, an Earth Pony in question, shouted back at him in defiance. That only made the Doom Marine break one of his legs. “AH, MY LEG!”

“Wrong answer, asshole!” Bryan growled. “Again, who hired you!?”

“We won’t tell you Monsters anything!” The one Visilia was holding down, a Mare, also an Earth Pony, told them off.

“Let’s hand them in. Our Night Sentinels will make them talk.” Visilia said to him.

“I would rather kill them off, but that would be a waste of effort, and they’re not worth shit.” He snarled. “Alright, let’s go.”

Nodding my head, I teleported us over to Ponyville’s Prison, which, in all honesty, wasn’t really much to look at. Of course, it was just a facade, the outside and inside was all for looks. It was what was underneath it all. A group of Night Sentinels came out and taken to two inside, closing the door as I sighed.

“I can’t believe that happened.” I said out loud.

“I knew some dumbass was gonna try something like this.” Bryan grumbled. “And today started out so well, I was enjoying it, for all its worth.”

“That was terrifying.” Barbs shuddered. “But, I’m actually glad you guys were around.”

“Why attack you two, though?” Spike asked.

“Because someone doesn’t like us. It’s as simple as that.” Bryan answered bitterly.

“But that’s stupid! What would be the point of that?”

“You’ve already answered that, yourself.” Wait, did Bryan just used sarcasm?

Spike opened his mouth to say something, but closed it and thought it over. “Okay, yeah, whoever did this is stupid. But, bro, there are so many stupid reasons out there, I can’t even fathom which one is it.” He sighed.

“Don’t bother. Like you said, so many stupid reasons. Why bother trying to figure out which one? They all share the same thing. They’re all plain stupid, enough said.” Bryan explained.

“But...” I started, but he raised a hand to stop me.

“Stupid’s stupid, Twilight. Nothing more, nothing less. Don’t overthink it, or make it complicating.” He told me.

I sighed. “You’re right.”

“So... How long would it take them to get some answers out of those two?” Barbs asked.

“Not long.” Visilia answered, which she was right.

Not long after, one of their soldiers returned, giving a short bow to us. “My Lord and Princesses, we’ve found the one responsible. A Mare named Spoiled Rich, married to Filthy Rich, had hired those two to assassinate you, my Lord.” He told us. “Princess Visilia was just made an extra bonus.”

“Jeez, really? How much were they getting paid for this?” Visilia asked, sounding a little miffed.

“Two billion bits for each of them, if they succeeded in killing him.” The Night Sentinel answered. “You were an extra five hundred million, milady.”

“What a fucking leech.” Bryan sneered. “I bet that’s the bitch’s husband’s money.”

“It is, sir. With such wealth, she has committed some sins, most along the lines of greed, bigotry, racism, hypocrisy and supremacy.” Okay... Wow. I knew that they were Demons with Human bodies, but they can still sense the sins you have committed? That’s amazing. Or do they actually have a list on them?

“Anything else I should know about?” Bryan asked.

“They have a daughter, named Diamond Tiara, who has ended up picking up her mother’s bad habits.” He answered. “The reason why is because she views you and the other Lords, as a threat. If you were to die, she thought that would be enough persuasion to have the rest of us leave.”

“Even though we won’t, because we would’ve ended up torching half the town in finding whoever did it and execute them on the spot.” Visilia retorted with a huff.

“Not only that, but she tends to go off on a ranting tantrum about something so trivial, it makes you wonder if she’s even sane. I still don’t understand why Mr. Rich is even with her.” The Night Sentinel commented. “Anyway, we’ve notify the Mayor about this incident, while Lord Hunter and Sergeant Krimzon look into Spoiled Rich. With enough evidence, we should have this issue wrapped up in not time.”

“Thanks for all your work.” I told him.

“Any time, Princess.” He replied.

Giving our farewell, we left the station and went to sit down at the fountain. The twins and I sighed, just laying back from all of the excitement. Seriously, how can Bryan and Visilia not be tired from all of this?

“Okay, question; could you tell us about the other two Doom Marines?” Spike asked.

“Why?” Bryan countered.

“Because you don’t talk much about them, and I want to know what their powers are.” He gave his reason.

Bryan sighed as he thought this over. “Okay. They’re known as The Mountains Pillar and Collateral Damage.”

“Are those their titles?” Barbs asked.

“Yes.” Bryan nodded. “Pillar has a Power-up called Invulnerability, which is pretty self-explanatory. Collateral’s called Quad Damage, meaning the weapon he has on hand, can now do four times the damage.” He explained.

“So, does that mean Pillar is the Defensive one, while Collateral is the Weapons Specialist?” Barbs inquired. “I mean, your positions and roles on the battlefield. With you, you’re always on the Offensive, while Hunter’s your Sniper, and Runner’s...well, you know what I mean, right?” She explained to him.

“You could say that, yes.” He nodded. “I’m the one that leads the Assaults. Hunter provides Overwatch for all of us. Runner is...well, Runner, he does whatever he needs to do.” He shrugged before continuing. “Pillar is the Defender. And Collateral is Fire Support.” Bryan finished his statement about himself and his brothers.

“Huh, sounds pretty straight forward.” Spike commented.

“Hey! Don’t jinx it.” Bryan snapped at him. “You never say stuff like that.”

“But--“

“Ah!” He cut Spike off.

“Wow, I didn’t know you were this superstitious.” I blinked at him.

“Really, Twi? You wanna tempt fate?” He asked me flatly.

I opened my mouth to offer a retort, but closed it shut as memories of trying to figure Pinkie Pie’s senses came back to me. Yeah, I don’t want a repeat of that happening again.

“Didn’t think so.” He snorted at me.

I winced. “Yeah, you’re right. Don’t want anything crazy happening again. I got hurt so many times, just by trying to figure out Pinkie Pie’s senses.” I said to him.

“Hey, speaking about senses, why didn’t any of your guy’s Night Sentinels came in to stop those two?” Barbs asked them. “I mean, they must’ve known those two were up to no good.”

“They did, but, the only reason why was because Hunter’s Ghosts told them not to engage them. Seriously, even in broad daylight, you guys wouldn’t know they were there.” Bryan explained. “Besides, we already knew about their presences when Twi brought us out to the park. And, Ghosts aren’t supposed to be seen.”

“Oh, yeah. Those guys.” Barbs chuckled nervously.

“Hey, can we see you and Visilia have a mock fight against each other?” Spike asked him.

“Spike!” I gasped.

“What? I said mock fight, it’s not like they’re gonna go at it for real.” He said, waving me off. “Heck, with this war going on, unsuspecting surprise attacks by third parties, I feel the need to actually get into training.”

“Be careful what you wish for.” Visilia warned him. “The training we do is not for the faint of heart.” She told him, standing up. “C’mon, Berserker, let’s show them.”

Bryan shrugged and got up, both of them drawing out their swords and getting into a battle stance. As we watched them, they stared at each other for a few moments, before Bryan made the first. Visilia was quick to block it off, deflecting his blade away and thrust hers towards him.

He parried it and countered her, both of them trying their hardest to land the first hit. Their swordsmanship showing as they went at it, grunting while trying to outdo one another.

Visilia then tripped Bryan up, lowering herself down to dodge his attack and kicking his legs out from under him. Falling on his back, Visilia stood back up and was about to swing her sword down on him, but he kicked her in the face, making her stagger backwards so he could get back up.

Then they were back at it, again. In all honesty, since they were using real swords, instead of training swords, I was worried that they’ll end up injury one another if they landed a blow. Both Spike and Barbs were more focused on their fight, as some of Ponyville started to come and see what was going on.

“Why are they fighting?” One of them asked.

“Maybe they had a disagreement?” Another said.

“So, what? They fight to the death?” Oh my gosh, it’s not like that.

“Or, maybe they’re just training?” Well, at least one got it right. In a sense.

While the gathered crowd was talking, the match ended in a draw. Bryan had his blade up against Visilia’s neck, while hers was in between his legs. I winced at that, and I wasn’t the only one.

“Did she really aimed for his crotch?”

“She’s crazy.”

“That’s messed up.”

“If you’re all done talking smack shit, like a bunch of dumbasses...” Bryan began, gaining everyone’s attention as they flinched away from him. “We were just sparring, and I needed to let off some steam for what happened moments ago. As peaceful and relaxing a normal life is, it’s not for me.” He told him as the two withdrew their swords and placed them away.

The ponies gave nervous chuckles. “R-Right! S-So sorry, sir. W-W-We’ll be out of your way, have a great day!” After that, they all quickly left, power walking away.

We all sighed.

“Goddammit.” Bryan grumbled.

“Being brutally honest does has its drawbacks.” Visilia commented.

Then Spike asked a question to change things. “Say, Berserker, does your sword have a name?”

“What?” The Doom Marine replied in confusion.

“Does your sword have a name?” Spike repeated. “If it does, what it is called? If not, what would you call it?” He specified.

Bryan stared at him for a moment, before bringing his sword back out again and looked at it. “It doesn’t have a name. I didn’t had the time to bother giving it a name.”

Barbs cringed away. “Dude, lighten up a bit, will ya? It’s kinda disturbing when you talk like that.”

Bryan shot her a glare, seeing as she ducked and covered her head, as if she thought he was going to attack her.

“Sorry, sorry! I didn’t mean it like that! Please, don’t kill me, please!” She begged, shivering like a leave in the wind, out of fear of his retaliation.

“... Hell’s Bane.” He said, which left us all confused. Well, besides Visilia, because she seems to get what he meant by that.

“Uh, say what now?” Spike asked, earning a sigh of annoyance from Bryan.

“I’m naming my sword Hell’s Bane. There, happy?” He growled.

“I think it’s time for us to return home and take a breather.” Visilia suggested.

“Yes! Most definitely!” I quickly agreed as I teleported us back to my Castle of Friendship. “Bryan, dear, how about to go and take a nap? We’ll fix ourselves snacks and have some saved for you later.”

“Yeah, alright.” He sighed, walking off towards my room as we went to the kitchen.

“He seriously needs help with his social skills.” Barbs commented.

“It isn’t easy for him to adjust himself.” Visilia stated.

“And killing Demons are?” Spike countered.

“Yes. Because they tried to kill us in the past, and still would be trying to kill us, if they managed to find their way back here for round two.” She answered him.

“Oh...sorry.” Spike said, his head lowering a bit.

“I know that, but don’t set yourself up like that. You now understand why he and his brothers had to do what they did, right?” She asked him as we reached the kitchen.

“Survival.” He answered.

“Exactly.” She nodded. “And seeing how there’s no way for them to go back home, it’s probably for the best.” She told us.

“Why?” I asked her. “That doesn’t make much sense.”

“With how they are now, if they were able to return home, what do you think the rest of Humanity would do to them?” She questioned. “They won’t welcome them back with open arms. They’ll lock them up and take whatever they had on them, and use it for their own benefits. While the Doom Marines rot in a cell.” She answered.

“That’s horrible!” I gasped.

“Of course it is. Even worse, they might experiment on their bodies, see if they can create super soldiers.” She added.

“That’s not right! They’re heroes, they can’t just do that!” Spike argued.

“To us? Yes. To Humanity? No. There’s a difference between us.” Visilia stated. “We know them for who and what they’ve become and done for us. Humanity sees them as an opportunity, an object to use however they see fit and cast them aside once they’re done with them.” She explained.

“... No wonder why he was a little harsh on his own.” I muttered, feeling both angry and sad.

“It’s just how they see it happening.” She said with a sigh. “Come on, let’s make something, clear our minds of that predicament.”

Nodding our heads, we rid our minds of that thought and got to baking and cooking. But... I can’t help my mind wondering back on what was said; should Bryan and that found a way back home, only to be treated like expendable, freaks of nature. If Humanity truly is capable of such things, then... No, Twilight, stop thinking about it! Just focus on making Bryan happy and loved. That’s the best thing you can give to him, and right now, he needs it.