"So Twilight is safe?" Shining Armor asked.

"For now," the Merchant replied. He reached into his cloak and pulled out a bottle of glowing blue liquid. "But that's not important."

Shining blinked as if the Merchant had slapped him. "HOW IS MY SISTER NOT IMPORTANT?!" he bellowed, nearly sending me flying with his voice alone.

"Because you've got three injuried princesses, an injured human, and I've only got one bottle of Recovery Potion," The Merchant said plainly, wiggling the bottle for emphasis.

Shining Armor paused, unsure how to reply to that. Pulling myself up, I spoke for him.

"Give it to Celestia," I declared.

Shining Armor whirled on me, his brain looking like it had to reboot for a second.

"A-Ash, are you serious?" he asked. "After everything she's said and done?"

"Holding a grudge is as pointless as a broken pencil," I replied, moving back to the bed. "Bitch or not, she needs help." I turned to the Merchant. "Give her the potion."

The Merchant chuckled, nodding in approval.

"Bravery," he commended. "Courage. Selflessness." He nodded. "Yes, you are indeed the right person for this job." With a flick of his wrist, the one potion became four. He tossed the bottle to me; even with one arm, I managed to catch them all.

The Merchant gave Shining a sympathetic look. "Apologies, pony," he said. "But they can only mend broken bones. Not horns."

Shining sighed, before turning to me. "So... who's getting them first?"

I handed the potions to the unicorn. "Celestia first," I repeated. "The ponies need a pillar of hope. And you already mentioned she's God to these guys, so they'll need her now more than ever." Keeping one of the potions for myself, I tipped it back and downed it's contents as Shining raced off to the alicorns.

The drink was odd; like blueberries mashed into vodka. But as I forced it down my throat, the bones in my arms and chest began to heal, along with any other external injuries that had come with them.

"Anything else?" I asked, stretching my healed muscles. "Cuz I can guess ya didn't come here just to play doctor."

The Merchant chuckled again, fading into the shadows. "I'm not spoiling the surprise," he said. "Though... you should probably check the back seat when the chase begins."

I narrowed my eyes. "You love your cryptic clues, don't you?" I muttered.

All he answered with was another laugh. I charged after him, ready to seize him by his robe. But he was gone. Vanished without a trace.

"I fucking hate that guy," I growled, turning to go back inside.

"Sir Williams?"

I paused, and turned. Princess Luna herself stood before me, a cast around her arm and a sling around her neck.

"Princess Luna," I greeted. "Glad to see you're doing well..." I glanced at her cast. "...enough."

"Thank you Sir Williams," she replied with a bow, her head turning with slight shame. "I must apologize for my sisters recent behavior."

"Nothing for you to apologize for, Princess," I replied, eliciting a grin from her. "Sides, I'd rather hear it from old Sun-Butt herself."

Luna gasped, but had to bite back a giggle. "I fear that will be as easy as telling Discord not to create chaos," Luna noted, before giving my body an intrigued look. "But I must say with your injuries I'm surprised you're able to even get out of bed."

I chuckled, stretching my arm. "Let's just say an old... 'friend' came by today," I replied. "Gave me a recovery potion."

"Must be quite the remarkable brew," she replied, gazing at my arm with awe.

"I would have to agree with you on that, Princess Luna."

We turned. Shining Armor was walking towards us, Cadence and Celestia at his sides.

"Sorry we took so long," Shining admitted, handing the last potion to Luna. "The merchant played us; told us he only had one. And without hesitation, Ash told me to give it to Celestia."

Celestia looked away with a guilty expression, while Cadence and Luna stared at me in shock. I merely shrugged and walked away.

"The ponies of Equestria need something to have faith in," I replied as I left. "Sides. People need to believe in something."

Celestia hesitated before speaking. "And what of you?" she asked. "Where will you go?"

"Well in case that concussion didn't make you forget," I growled, glaring at the princess out of the corner of my eye, "Twilight got taken by Tirek. And according to my 'friend,' she's in the Changeling Queen's clutches. The sooner I find her hive, the sooner I can do my job and protect my... Princess."

Celestia and Shining glanced at each other, while Cadence grinned coyly. Luna just gazed at her royal family in complete confusion. Before she could have it explained to her, I walked away, quickly finding the exit. Yet, as I walked back out into the sunlight, I heard the clop of hooves behind me.

"Shining?" I asked, not wanting to look back and be met with Celestia's face, still trying so hard to be suspicious.

"You may be her bodyguard, but I'm still her brother," he replied, striding to my side. "If she's in trouble, I will be there to protect her. And you might want these back."

I turned and grinned. The Captain of the Guard had my boomstick and its harness. Taking the weapons from the unicorn with a nod of thanks, I fastened them to my body and sheathed the gun.

"Thanks, Shining," I praised. "So..." I extended my hand. "Partners in saving Twilight?"

He gripped my hand and shook with a smile. "Partners in saving Twilight," he agreed.

Together, we made our way through the streets and into the castle.
Making my way through the castle, I found Twilight's room, and more importantly, my original clothes.

My tux had been shredded and mostly replaced with a hospital robe, so before Shining could take the bathroom, I dove inside and changed back into the blue shirt and khaki pants. Striding back outside, I seized my chainsaw.

"Come on, Armor" I said... only to find Shining gone. "Armor?" No one replied. I sighed. "Well... so much for partners."

With chainsaw in hand, I left the room.

Reaching the Delta outside the palace, I opened the backseat and placed my chainsaw in the back. However, I stopped, remembering the merchant's words, and took a closer look at the back seat. Some sort of crate sat on the floor just under the seat. As I peered at the box, the rest of the merchant's words came to me.

"You should probably check the back seat when the chase begins."

My eyes narrowed, and I went to open the crate. My fingers had just rested on the wooden surface when Shining's voice called out.

"Ash!"

I spun, unsure whether to think he was friend or foe. My thoughts quickly calmed as I found him approaching, having changed back into his armor, and holding a bundle of something metallic.

"That shirt you wear is torn," he claimed. "It lacks any protection."

He handed the bundle to me. On closer inspection, I saw it was a long sleeved blue shirt with a white chest plate.

"I figured if we're going back into battle," he said, "You could at least go in protected."

"Thanks, man," I praised, donning the armor before noticing the two swords at his side. I pointed them out.

"Put those in the back," I said. "I don't want you poking holes in the leather seats."

Shining glanced at his swords.

"Does it really..." he started to say, before noticing my death glare. "Right. Almost forgot. Dream car. Damage is punishable by death."

Despite him grinning jokingly, his sarcastic tone didn't make my glare fade. He wisely stripped off his weapons and stowed them in the back seat, alongside my chainsaw.

"Dear Faust," he mumbled as he did so. "That glare is worse than the three princesses combined."

I chuckled. "Rule one about Earth," I said, opening the door for him. "Never mess with a man's ride. Now get in."

Shining hopped into the passenger side, and I started up the engine. He flinched, but gave a slow exhale. He noticed my confused gaze.

"Still getting used to the sound this thing makes," he admitted, jumping as the motor revved.

"Trust me," I replied. "You'll get used to it." With a blare on the horn, we drove through Canterlot.

At least this time the ponies cleared a path for us.

"So," I asked as we left the capital. "Any idea where to start looking for the hive?"

Shining grimaced. "That's the problem with changelings," he admitted. "They never stay in any one hive. They're always moving; making new hives." He tapped his chin. "However, most hives are always near a place with a lot of ponies. So I'd suggest moving between the larger cities and towns."

"Such as?" I asked, shifting onto the major roads.

"Manehatten," he recited. "Fillydelphia. We'll start there, and move down to the smaller ones like Ponyville and Appleloosa."

---

An day later, I was glaring at Manehatten in the rearview mirror.

"Well," I declared. "Unless the changelings hid their hive in one of those abandoned buildings, I can safely say that we should've tried Fillydelphia first."

"Be that as it may," Shining replied. "I still suggest we search the upcoming city."

Before I could respond, something caught my eye. Cautiously, I hit the brakes. The car slid to a stop.

"What is it?" Shining asked.

I didn't respond yet. I opened the door and glanced around. Faintly, I could feel the ground trembling under my feet. It combined with an odd feeling in my gut.

The same gut feeling I had got at the Gala. The same place where I had heard a trembling like this.

Glaring around, I moved to the back seat.

"Driver's side," I growled to Shining. "Now."

Shining blinked at my tone before unhooking his seat belt and jumping into the Driver's seat. He stared at the wheel and pedals like they were wires on a bomb.

"Um..." he started to look to me, but I was way ahead.

"Just put your hands on the wheel, and step on the right pedal!" I said, pulling out the crate. I paused. "And If you put so much as a dent in my car, I will put a dent in your head!"

Shining sighed as he cautiously pressed the gas. "High stakes for my first time driving," he quipped.

His caution was appreciated, but we were only going five miles an hour. Meanwhile, I could feel the trembling getting worse.

"Step on the gas!" I barked, pulling my boomstick.

Shining flinched, his teeth gritted, but the Delta lunged forward. The momentum helped me crack open the crate. And inside... I couldn't help but smile.

Inside the crate was the Gatling gun from Evil Dead: Fistful of Boomstick!

'I take it back, you stupid merchant, I thought. I fucking love you'

I removed the hand prosthetic and attached it to my harness before attaching my stump to the gun.

"Ash!" Shining yelled, looking into the rearview mirror. "I see something behind us!"

I glanced into the car's back window. Right behind us, a massive cloud of dust was billowing up behind a red and black dot.

"The fuck?" I muttered, peering at the dot as it grew bigger and bigger. Eventually, I recognized what was following us. My eyes widened. "Oh, Fuck..."

"What?!" Shining Armor asked, before seeing him. "Oh..."

"ARMOR PEDEL TO THE METAL!!" I bellowed.

"Pedal to the what?!"

"GO FASTER!"

We picked up speed, hurtling back towards Manehatten. Meanwhile, Tirek was getting closer. From where we were, he only looked an inch tall, but I knew we'd see his full size before long.

"We need to get out of here as fast as possible," I said.

"I know," Shining growled, his foot pinning the pedal to the floor. "I'm trying to get us as far away from the ponies as I can!"

As he hurtled by the city, we soared into a patch of fields, perfect to fight this colossal asshole in.

"WILLIAMS!!!" Tirek boomed. He was only a yard away.

"Great," I commented. "Now he's after me." I sighed, rolling down the window. "Alright try and keep her steady while I start raining some bullets on this fucker!"

"I like my head undented," Shining replied. "I'd rather have that unchanged."

Grinning, I poked my upper half out of the car and pointed the Gatling at the centaur.

"Eat lead, fucker!" I bellowed, the gun spinning to life.

The centaur bellowed as the bullets struck him. Unfortunately, he covered his face with his meaty arms. The bullets peppered his biceps, but looked like they were doing about as much damage as snowballs.

I pulled myself back into the car, giving Shining a look of dread. If Tirek got ahold of Shining, he'd lose his magic and strength. I'd be down an ally, and Tirek would be even stronger.

Then a plan formed in my mind.

"Shining," I said, unhooking the Gatling and attaching my chainsaw. "I want you to follow Tirek!"

"Um, problem!" the unicorn noted. "He's following us!"

"Yeah, and I know how to fix that," I replied, pulling myself onto the Delta's roof. "I'm gonna let him catch me."

"What?!" Shining demanded, but I glared at him from outside.

"You want your sister back?" I demanded right back. I glanced ahead. "Or do you want a dent in your head?"

He grimaced before turning back to the wheel. With a smirk, I climbed onto the roof, struggling to keep my balance.

"Ash!" Shining shouted over the rev of my chainsaw. "Don't do this! Get back inside!"

"No can do, Shining," I replied. "We need to find Twilight. And this is the best way to do that."

Before he could protest, I jumped at the centaur with a roar, striking his massive arm. I got to take a little pride in carving a deep cut down his beefy bicep before his other hand came up and closed around my body.

He grinned down at me, picking up speed and racing past the Delta. But Shining did his best to keep up with us.

But it wasn't quite enough. As the Delta started to fall behind, I risked slicing Tirek's wrist.

The centaur snarled and squeezed me, nearly busting my ribs again. But it did the trick; the Delta did not fall out of sight.

Hours passed. We left the field for a desert-like area. Nowhere that I remembered from the show. At least until I saw a group of what looked like humanoid bison.

It clicked. Appleloosa.

Right as I realized it, the bison men spotted the centaur. Letting loose with battle cries, they fired a barrage of arrows at Tirek.

Growling, Tirek skidded to a stop, his absorbing magic flaring up as a dark ball between his horns. Acting fast, I drew my boom stick and fired. The orb of magic exploded, snapping his horns in two.

Furious, Tirek whirled on me. But before he could crush me into pulp, I fired again. He dropped me, wailing as he clutched at his left eye. As he wailed and staggered back, small orbs flew out of his wounds. Each had a different color surrounding a different image. I recognized a rainbow lightning bolt shrouded in a cyan aura. Along with a trio of yellow and blue balloons shrouded in a pink aura.

the auras of what had to be the Mane Five (along with a dark orb that looked like Discord's magic) flew away from the centaur. He barely noticed them, his remaining eye centered on me in pure rage.

"Vile Creature!!" he snarled. I moved to dodge, but he managed to catch me with his arm, swatting me into the ground like a fly.

My vision blurred. My ears rang. I vaguely felt blood drip over my face. I tried to move, but I didn't have the strength. I felt myself get lifted from the ground, my boomstick slipping from my limp fingers. I tried with all my might to hold on, but it slipped from my grip none the less.

"Shiiii..." I slurred, as my eyes fluttered shut, and I fell into darkness.

---

I awoke to the sound of chains. I forced myself up. I was in a dark room made from some kind of hardened slime or sludge.

"Ash?" a familiar voice rang out, followed by the rattling of chains.

I traced the source. All too soon, I saw her.

A bruised Twilight; chained to the walls of the room. I didn't hesitate. I fired up my chainsaw - which was thankfully still attached - and sliced off the restraints holding the princess. I wrapped my good arm around her.

"Thank God," I mumbled. "You alright, Twilight?"

"Fine," she said, looking up at me in gratitude. "Now that you're here."

But as I gazed into her eyes, I noticed some things.

She had called me Ash. She wasn't wearing the cross! And my head was aching.

Her head tilted as I stepped back. "Ash?" she asked, reaching towards me.

But I plunged the chainsaw into her gut. Green blood sprayed across the wall.

"You're not Twilight," I snarled.

Briefly, Twilight stared up at me in betrayal, tinged with surprise. Then with a burst of emerald flames, the changeling that took Twilight's appearance gurgled her last, her blue compound eyes dimming to nothing.

Using my foot, I pushed the Changeling off my chainsaw. I glowered down at the corpse.

"I fucking hate changeling," I growled.

A slow clapping drew my attention. I turned to find the Changeling Queen herself standing behind a barred door.

"̳̑I̟'̄m ͪim̉p̍r̂ͅessêd,"̱ she noted, her smug grin refusing to fade as I marched towards her. "͈̿N̪ot̿ ͩmͬa͙ͭn̖y͓ ̇c̝͆a̍ͅn͖ ̟̏see͔ ͕t̋ͅh̝ͤr̩̈o͍ụͮg̭͆h͖͐ ̹́m̂y ̮̃c̳h͖i̲l̑d̦rėn̲͑'̙s ̘͑d̩̆is̬g͕̾u̮̿i̔s͉̈esͤ.͉"̖

I swung my chainsaw at the bars, but they clanged off with a burst of sparks. Chrysalis didn't even flinch.

"Where's the real Twilight?" I growled.

"͈Ĭ̭ ̭̅c̲an͒ ̐s͓h͒ow ͇yo͔u,̀" she offered. Her horn glowed and her eyes shined green.

I felt my headache start to increase. Before she could complete whatever spell she was trying to pull on me, I rammed my chainsaw through the bars, aiming for her thorax. She jumped away in the nick of time, but it knocked the smug look off her face.

But, it quickly returned, along with an almost sultry look to her half-lidded eyes.

"̣̽Y͚̎our ̆w̖̍i̲ll̄ ͣis v̤ͬẹ̇r̤͌y̔ ̩͂s̫trͦͅo͉̚ngͦ,̙"̀ she commented quietly. She licked her lips with a laugh. "I̟'m g̾oi̙ng ̥to̅ ̞̏ë́n̝j̥̈́ọy bre̻aͮk̻ḭͥng͌ y̘̿o͓u͎͐.̬"̊

I seethed, sending another shower of sparks into the air. "WHERE IS SHE?!" I bellowed.

But Chrysalis smugly turned her back on me, and walked away into the shadows.

Next Chapter: Mind Games Estimated time remaining: 4 Hours, 7 Minutes