Sins of Harmony

Volume 3: Crisis to Ashes

Chapter 55: Tul'rok's Warpath


March 29th, 1008 ANM

Early Evening, local time

Sowta Prancap, 150 west of Neighbon, Western Africka

Southern mountains

Staggering out of the tunnel mouth, utter desolation was their first sight of the outside mountains.

The naval bombardments had flattened the mountainside, but now the guns were silent, as were the unconscious drone creatures nearby. The Alien had set off the EMP to tremendous effect, unfortunately handicapping Twilight's and Discord's magic too.

Heaving Faral and Jorani off his back, Discord scratched and clawed at his two horn restraints, cursing under his breath while Twilight tried using her magic too.

"Come on, its not as retraining, ah, AHH!"

Her horn glowed brighter, as the restraints seemed to have been handicapped too. But she bit her lower lip in the pain as she charged, thinking of one way to get her horn out with the restraint crippled. But it still was designed to give pain from too much magic.

But with no restraints on her magic inside itself, she felt white flashes of pain as the restraint detonated, and pain gave way to relief and cold air as her horn was free at last.

"Get mine!" Discord swiftly called, as he saw how much that had hurt for Twilight to do. Running over, Twilight mumbled sardonically as she kept her eyes and ears alert:

"You're welcome."

"Don't sass now, we can get out of here!" Discord grimaced as her magic shattered his twin horn restraints, and he felt relief flood his body at the freedom he had. Looking at the other two, he muttered:

"Get one of them, we're heading east, closer land is easier to teleport to-"

A large explosion sounded, as a metallic sounding noise burst open a hillside, and a familiar armoured shape burst skywards, a screaming voices following it. The Alien creature seemed to fly on a flight pack of sorts, but as soon as it emerged, a shape shimmered in the air, as a decloaking spacecraft opened to allow it entry.

Out of the cave, swarming out, brainwashed reborn clan Chimpanzees, Gryphons, and a few ponies, all clad with weapons, all coated in the war paints, altered so there were 4 grey 'eye' marks, not the old white/blue, on their faces.

Gunshots rang out, but they either missed or had no effect, as the craft turned as it went invisible, flying off with a surprisingly quiet roar to the northeast.

The eyes of the war chanting reborn clan members found them then.

"East, with me!" Discord roughly seized Twilight and the unconscious Faral and Jorani, teleporting the Alicorn, Komodo and Python females with him in a white flash.


A few observers on the ships saw the escaping duo, but the naval vessels too close to the island were still disabled.

With some electronics coming online again, and some Unicorns recovering, a message was sent out of the incident that seemed to happen here.

But before they could get fully online, the Sowta Prancap creatures awoke to join the brainwashed cultists.

Out of the island's mountains, hidden weapons unfolded, and unleashed their own barrage. Red streaks and energy beams ripped apart the ships marooned by the EMP, despite the pulse not being one they set off.


5 minutes later

Sowta Prancap, 150 west of Neighbon, Western Africka

Southern mountains

The NEMA naval ships, stopped by the Alien's EMP, were now smoking, sinking ruins off the shore. Tul'rok, in a newly awakened Wyvern body, spoke to the Reborn cultist organics he now saw as usable if such weapons were used again.

"We saw them get away, they went east most likely, not even they can teleport across the Mustific in one go." A unicorn mare, clad in 'Tul'rok' warpaint, bowed her head in respectful fear as the Wyvern clad being strode past.

Wracking his vast mind, Tul'rok knew he had to get Discord to do the second part. He was already halfway done by removing the moon's enchantment, but the earth rotation remained. But he was confident Discord would do it of his own volition, he didn't want to create an inequality between the two royal sisters, even if he only had romantic interests with the elder.

But as for them escaping, that made Tul'rok genuinely angry, especially at the unknown Alien that came searching for someone even Tul'rok didn't know.

"What shall we do?" A Gryphon male asked, also warpaint clad, but he was more upfront about the issue.

The Wyvern 'shell' turned back, saying bluntly: "You'll stay here, I will call on assets worldwide. We shall besiege the world, and his compassion for others, even if recent for him, will mean Discord will cooperate."

"What about the Princess, and the two they also took?"

"Twilight was leverage, initially for Discord to cooperate, but for me, a way to spite Celestia. Another student I ruin of hers, after Charge Bolt. No, I think I'll take a more straightforward approach, and besides, I can draw them in to kill as I also besiege the world."

Turning a clawed wing skywards, Tul'rok gestured for them to see:

"Get ready. The craft are in position, and once the moon's repair is finished, they shall begin on the Earth. We can have some fun then."

The Wyvern's eyes seemed to fade, as the body became more simple minded, at the level of the drones. Tul'rok turned his main attention elsewhere.

He wanted to draw in Twilight. And he knew very well which target was softer to hit.

Even if they had some organic heavyweights there, he wasn't intimidated.

Yet in his mind, as he sensed across the world, he felt an odd presence. One mind stronger, different than others, but keeping low and out of sight.


Geosynchronous orbit

36000 kilometres above Sowta Prancap

A few bit of communications satellite debris stained a miniscule part of the massive craft, as it had all but slammed one out of the way as it took up its position. The resonant drives, propellentless and powerful, powered by onboard nuclear fusion and magic aided superconduction, had completed the manoeuvres.

It had been planned this way, high above the Earth, far from even any missiles in range. Now, the 3 ships, 60 kilometres long, and 20 kilometres wide and tall, were positioned almost exactly overhead each of the 3 sites. The Maldives original site, the active Sowta Prancap, and the now 30 metres underwater Mustific island site.

All of them precisely on the Equator.

The twin receiver dishes on each of the 3 craft aligned to form a relay, so that when power was beamed to and through the second station craft by the moon distance gateway, it was able to hit each of the craft, and be relayed to the one out of direct beaming view.

The ships were in position, the orbit repair process so far going smoothly, but things were not going smoothly at ground level for matters Tul'rok personally wanted done.


Early Afternoon

Neighbon, 15 miles outside of Saddilbre city.

Blearily, Faral opened her eyes, feeling some warmth at long last.

"You okay?" A purple Alicorn female asked, which got her mind back on track.

"What happened?" The female Komodo wondered, as a female Python, Jorani, uncurled in a stretching manner, also woozy from the heat at long last for her body.

"Long story, but we have to get to Equestria. We escaped when something attacked the island, we don't know much else." Twilight explained, as she used her magic to help Jorani heat up faster.

Stumbling to her feet, Faral looked to the sky, and pointed out with some awe and fear:

"Its stopped up there."

Looking up, barely visible even in the twilight sky, a definitive shape far in the sky. It was small, but it had a tubelike body, with 2 large dishes extending out.

Discord stared up too, as he didn't know how Luna would take him helping put her out of a job. But one other matter came up.

"He'll want the Earth done next. He won't just leave those idle there if he doesn't get the fix enchantment removed."


Early Evening, local time

Shetland Kingdom

Southpawton, Ferry docks

The screams and gunfire rose up, as the local army had responded very quickly as soon as they attacked.

Brainwashed cultists, embedded in the populace of Shetland Ponies and foxes, had charged a ferry dock, and at the same moment, a few drone creatures surged from the bay, onto the docks. No goals, no aims, other than to spread chaos.

A barricade of trucks served as cover, as the fox and pony troopers opened fire on the drone creatures, while the reborn cultists proceeded to hunt down civilians still in the ferry docks with wild abandon.

Like many other attacks, this would end in their defeat, but victory for them was causing chaos. Especially for the cultists, who were now seen as disposable to their new master, brainwashed by his drones at a deep level in their minds.


Early Afternoon, local time

Cabryzil, Suna Pulau city

The largest city in the south-western continent was engulfed in fire, the favelas and shanty constructions on the outskirts the soft targets picked. Firebombs, homemade by a handful of reborn clan cultists hidden among the Capybara population, engulfed the outskirts of the town. No drones, but they made sure they were known.

Firefighting services were quickly dispatched with police to quell the violence and fires, as the casualties climbed into the hundreds.


Same day

March 29th, 1008 ANM

Across the world, in Shetland, Cabryzil, and also in Pandina, Haygypt, Leonya, Old Changelia, Indo-Burmese confederation, Germaneigh, New Gryphon and Mutthico, such random attacks of violence by reborn cultists, or drones in some instances where they were present to help, came out of nowhere.

All the while, attention turned to the orbits of the 3 closest craft, now in position directly over the 3 different island sites.

Naval patrols were pulled away from the islands of they were there, after they saw the destruction of the ones too close to Sowta Prancap. Notes from Canterlot showed that the energy being unleashed, if done of Earth, could be extremely dangerous, and the islands were not the safest place to be if their roles seemed to be what they were now thought to be.

But before anything else, Tul'rok had one personal matter, to cooerce Discord out, and to spite Celestia while leaving Discord alive for now.


Early Afternoon, local time

Equestria, Ponyville

Town hall

With less than half the town remaining, the centre around the square was quieter than normal.

The rumble in the distance, as the Earth itself began to slightly shake, and the smoke rising from the Everfree forest, was more quickly noticed as a result.

Perched atop a roof near the town hall, Razak yelled down, as he saw Spike and Rarity, having been talking with Pinkie Pie, in the square:

"Eruption!"

Sure enough, the rising smoke cloud in the distance came from the Harmony Caldera to the East of Ponyville.

Running into the town square, being one of those left behind, Ohmen Magnes saw the eruption in the distance, as he then asked: "Where are the guards from the local palace!?"

"At the station still, helping some late leavers!" Pinkie Pie said quickly, meandering about as the earth shook beneath her slightly. It wasn't too strong and Earthquake, but it still rattled windows.

Overhead, a pair of shadows passed as a large blue dragon, and a more lithe red fire drake female, watched in their full size forms, the unfolding eruption.

Taking another pass, Cal'vel saw it first emerging from the Eruption column, smoke billowing around the form as it exited.

A large aircraft, comparable to his 200 foot body in size, and it was clearly an attack aircraft of sorts, being the shape of a metallic, flying beetle, and sporting intimidating bulges along its frame.

A few other shapes emerged too, flanking it as the squadron flew towards Ponyville, as the eruption column set fire to the Everfree forest around it.

A siren started wailing, something a guard must have triggered inside the main palace , to warn the town of danger. It was installed after the migration incident 3 years ago.

If this didn't draw out his two escapees, regardless of the two reptiles with them, nothing would in Tul'rok's mind.

Besides, it felt good to bring terror down upon the town when at least 2 of 3 of Twilight's friends 'saved' from Death by means that traumatised them were present.

His squadron surged on the town, now occupied by only a hundred civilians, half of whom were waiting in the train station, 2 of the Element Wielders of Generosity and Laughter, 2 dragon clone early adults, 1 Unicorn-Changeling mutate with a past aneurysm, a Fire Drake of considerable size, and an unnaturally strong dragon male.

It was for Cal'vel and Smoulder alone that the larger craft was brought. As for Rarity, Pinkie, Spike, Razak and Ohmen, he wasn't sure how long they'd last. Even with the guards at the station and palace aiding them, he gave them a few minutes at most.

Unlike the migration incident to distract from Aeternum's emergence, this was to be precise, a more well planned strike.

Tul'rok's warpath came to Equestria now.


Tul'rok has lost his temper, and making personal strikes now that his prisoners are free.

The 3 spacecraft are ready and waiting around Earth, above the 3 island sites.

And Ponyville comes under siege again, almost as if the town is a magnet for trouble by having Twilight and friends there, even before I started writing.


As usual, please review/critique as one would.

If you have any story suggestions at this point, feel free to say it.