It is now the next day, the start of a day that will go down as the largest battle ever fought, for both Equestria's and steve history. After days of assaults by Demon Steves, they've been pushed back, and none are remaining in Equestria. They have been confined to a cave, which according to Red Steve intelligence, is where the Demon Steves have been coming out of. It is being watched over by Light Steve and Shining Armour. They are accompanied by their elites.
Light Steve's main elites are Yellow Steve with the leather chestplate, Happy Orange Steve and Weaponsmith Red Steve. Despite what happened to Yellow and Orange with the Daleks, they're ready for battle. They are able to fight as far as they're concerned. Shining Armour has more elites than Light Steve, but his most trusted elite is Flash Sentry. Shining Armour currently has 5 elites with him.
Everybody has gathered outside in a snowy tundra, with mountains ahead, towering over them. All except the blue chromatic races of steves are present, with the exception of the Blue Leader. As well as the steves and ponies, the changelings and yaks have come to join for what will be a gigantic battle including their respective leaders, Thorax and Rutherford. The Demon Steves meanwhile are preparing for what will be their last stand.
Sabre and Colle are away from the main group. The 2 have been sharing their worries. Both have fought the demons before.
"Wait- You're the guy who defeated Void when he came back... aren't you?" Colle asked.
"Twice, actually- Well, the second time, gotta give credit to Time and Dark for their part too. The second time, Void came back as a demon, so Time had to reverse his state back to remove his immortality," Sabre explained.
"Yeah... I had to fight him. I knew him... when he was still just a Blue Steve-"
"Wait wait wait- You fought Void- Does this mean- You're the Second Hero!? I met... I met you, in the world beyond, but you didn't show yourself- What? I'm confused now," Sabre is left very confused. He didn't know that Colle was the Second Hero.
"Yeah... I got destroyed, and Origin revived me. As I couldn't move on... Professor made a clone of me- I assume you meet my clone. So he's no longer alive? I'm happy someone found my clone to be of some use," Colle replied.
"So the first steve I ever met was a clone!? HUH- Y'know, it doesn't matter- Let's move on," Sabre responded. His mind can't process this topic without losing his sanity.
"The main issue will be that big dragon. The Last Inferno, me and a few leaders went after it when we were fighting it... only I came out alive. We eventually took it down though- But it's gonna be a huge problem," Colle shared.
"Oh... that sounds... awful. I'm sorry you had to see that. I know what it's like when you feel powerless. We all feel powerless when we can't handle the situation at hand," Sabre replied.
"But me and my other friends had to deal with Madness. These are just a bunch of demons. I like to think of it like that... it makes me less worried, if you get what I mean," Sabre added.
"Yeah I understand where you're coming from- I heard the different things Madness has done, and... and he sounds horrifying! I don't know why some of us remember him and some don't, because me and my other friends only know about him because of what you guys told us about him," Colle wondered, scratching his head.
"Probably Calmness trying to keep the balance in the timeline- I don't know- Time physics is too confusing man," Sabre responded. Colle nodded in agreement.
"Hey Sabre- Who are you talking to-" Professor Red walks over to Sabre, then looks at Colle. Colle?
"COLLE!?"
"Goggles! So... shenanigans happened, basically what happe-" Professor Red's eyes fills with tears and tightly hugs Colle. The collector puts his arms around Professor Red.
"I thought I'd never see you again!"
"You two know each other?" Sabre questioned the 2 Red Steves.
"Me and him were friends, yeah," Colle replied.
"Am I seeing a reunion- Aww!" Pinkie Pie suddenly appears behind Sabre.
"Seems so- I say we let them have their moment," Sabre responded as he turns around to face the pink earth pony.
"I've been looking for you, because one of the changelings, Pharynx, he wants to talk," Pinkie Pie explained.
"Yeah sure, I'll go talk to him- Colle, Professor, you two will be okay-" Sabre looks over to the 2 Red Steves, who are still hugging.
"I think they'll be okay- Right, take me to Pharynx, Pinkie," Sabre requested, looking back over to Pinkie Pie. The pink earth pony nods as she starts walking, Sabre closely following.
"Pinkie has gone to get him. He'll be here shortly," Thorax reassured his brother.
"Sabre is a hard fella. I can't wait to fight alongside him," Pharynx responded.
"I know you can't," Thorax lightly chuckled.
"I've got him!" Pinkie Pie comes back with Sabre.
"Hey Thorax, and- Are you Pharynx?" Sabre held out his right hand, which Pharynx firmly grabs hold of with his left dark cyan forehoof. The 2 shake then before letting go.
"It's an honour to speak to you again Sabre," Said Pharynx.
"I just have to double check it's actually you- I know changelings can take other forms," Sabre nodded.
"My brother looks up to you, Sabre. He admires how brave you are in battle. He's heard of your story fighting against the worst of steves. He admires your bravery," Thorax stated. Sabre nodded.
"Yeah- Sorry I forget to come down to the hive- I mostly hang around in Ponyville that I almost forget about the other creatures- No offence by the way ah haha," Sabre replied.
"So Thorax, I'm guessing the changelings are doing good- Well, I see you are alright as we're all here. The steves, ponies, changelings and the yaks."
Everyone looks at Pharynx as he starts speaking.
"I did feel humiliated in the first few days. I'm in charge of the hive's defences, but these Demon Steves had completely overran them. We relied on our allies to help us beat them back. Never in our history were we outnumbered," Pharynx said while sulking and looking to the ground below.
"I understand man, a few others felt they could've done more too- Plus, there's no shame in needing help, we all need it at some point in life, y'know. The Demon Steves coming out of the world below I think had caught everybody off guard. Nobody was prepared for that. But it doesn't matter now, because we're all here. We're all here to finish the demons, here and now," Sabre said as he pats Pharynx on the back. The changeling nodded.
"Thanks Sabre, it makes me feel a little bit better," Pharynx replied.
"So, where are the other changelings right now, Thorax?" Sabre asked.
"They're currently with everybody else. They're preparing with the steves, ponies and the yaks," Thorax replied.
"Anyway Sabre, I'm looking forward to be fighting alongside you in battle. You're a true warrior, and I hope you are that same warrior in battle," Pharynx said with a light smile.
"Well, it ain't easy being all tough, but I appreciate your admiration of me, Pharynx," Sabre nodded.
"Hey Sabre," Said a voice. Sabre turns around and sees Dream Steve.
"Oh- Dream, I thought you couldn't join us in this because of domains and whatnot," Said Sabre.
"About that... Discord used some of his chaos abilities, and because he did, I can ignore the domain rules," Dream Steve explained.
"Thorax, Pharynx, good talking to you. I'm going to check with the others. It's good catching up," Said Sabre. The 2 changelings nodded. Sabre and Pinkie Pie then walks off.
Sabre and Pinkie Pie regroup with the rest of the mane 6. Starlight is also present.
"Hey everybody, it's gonna be a... looooong day."
"Hello Sabre," Said everypony.
"So... we know what we've got to do right? We gotta push the demons back, destroy this netherite ball, and the Doctors can close off the world below," Sabre goes over the plan he's been told. Everypony nodded.
"Oh um, Starlight?" Sabre looks over to the unicorn.
"How are you doing? I know that yesterday was... rough. You faced your worst fear and... I just wanted to know if you're doing okay."
"I'm fine, thank you. I don't fear him anymore. So these... demons... they're nothing to me..." Starlight mumbled slightly as she replied.
"That's good to here," Sabre nodded.
"Not gonna lie, I'm still a bit worried at how this will play out. If we lose this, the Demon Steves will reclaim everything and take back control, and it'll be game over," Sabre added.
"I'm also worried too," Fluttershy shared.
"Everything will be fine darling. We have each other, our friends," Rarity reassured.
"Fluttershy, if you're worried about being hurt, you can stay back and help the Green Steves heal injured fighters," Sabre suggested.
"I'm not worried about myself... I'm worried for my friends, and everybody else..." Fluttershy weakly spoke, anxiousness in her voice.
"I understand, I'm worried too. I don't know how this is going to turn out. But we haven't got a choice. We've gotta stick to the plan, but we have each other. We'll get through this," Sabre reassured.
"Also Sabre, has Professor Red got my redstone armour ready?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"He's worked on some pony armour? I didn't know that-"
"Yes it is!" Professor Red leaps from seemingly nowhere and drops a supercharged redstone suit of armour designed for ponies. Rainbow Dash went to put the armour on, but with difficulty.
"Rainbow, do you need help putting it on?" Twilight asked. Rainbow Dash nodded.
"Professor, where has Colle gone?" Sabre asked.
"He's preparing for the fight. Dark is also preparing too. This pony, Tempest, she's sorta going hard on preparation," Professor Red explained.
"Sounds like Tempest alright," Rainbow Dash said as she got the last bit of supercharged redstone armour on. Only her face, her wings, the knees on her legs and her tail are visible. The armour also has a saddle built in on the back.
"Wow- This feels a lot lighter than I expected it to be," Rainbow Dash said in astonishment.
"The suit also let's you summon high voltage of lightning with your forehooves," Professor Red stated.
"Oh sweet- Let me try it!" Rainbow Dash hovers up and extends out her left forehoof, pointing at the mountains ahead. She clenches the leg and summons a series of lightning strikes on the mountain.
"Oh ho ho ho- Awesome!"
"I'm glad you're enjoying my wonderful invention," Professor Red smugly spoke with pride.
"Professor, will Assistant be here too-"
"No," Professor Red interrupts Pinkie Pie.
"His knowledge and design is too expensive to lose... and he's like my little boy," Professor Red explained.
"Yeah, Assistant does hold a lot of knowledge. If we were to lose him, we lose a lot," Sabre agrees on the idea of not bringing Assistant Steve along.
"He'd just be calling all the Demon Steves morons," Pinkie Pie giggled lightly.
"Speaking of little- Who's looking over the CMC?" Sabre asked the mane 6.
"They are with Big Mac in Sweet Apple Acres. Sugar Belle is also there," Twilight answered.
"Sugar Belle- I have heard of her, but haven't met her... at least I don't think," Sabre doesn't remember Sugar Belle.
"You don't come down at the barn often, but the times you have been Sabre, she happened to not be there. But usually, she's down there," Said Rainbow Dash.
"Huh, alright," Sabre nodded.
"Also, what about Spike?"
"Spikey is with Light and Shining, Sabre. He felt he hasn't done much to help," Rarity explained.
"He's done really good- Light thought Spike has done good so far. I've also heard from Dark that he helped him against Nightmare Steve. Spike has been a great help to everybody from what I've been hearing," Sabre stated.
"Starlight- There you are!" A blue unicorn mare leaps over to Starlight and hugs her tightly. This blue unicorn is wearing a purple hat and cape with light blue and yellow stars.
"Trixie- Hello Trixie," Sabre double-checked. The blue unicorn mare let's go of Starlight and looks at Sabre.
"Yes, it is I, the grrrrreat and powerful... Trixxxxxieeeeee!"
"Glad to have you here Trixie. We definitely need some great and powerful stuff to push the demons back- I take it you and Starlight are close friends," Sabre responded.
"Best friends!" Trixie declared.
"Ah, that's cool," Sabre nodded.
"I... I've also been talking to her about my fears... and it- It's so good I no longer fear Madness..." Starlight weakly smiled.
"That's good- I'm glad you were able to conquer that fear. I'm happy that it's no longer bothering you," Said Sabre. Starlight nodded.
"You want to see my great and powerful tanks?" Professor Red asked ecstatically. Trixie nods and follows him.
"Tanks? Oh wow, steves having tanks- never thought I'd see steves using tanks," Sabre thought to himself. He looks at the mane 6 and Starlight.
"I'll go and see these tanks- Dash, come with me. The battle could start at any moment, and we gotta be ready," Sabre suggested.
Sabre, Professor Red, Rainbow Dash and Trixie are in an area where there are 5 red-dyed iron tanks. The cannon attached to the dome turret is the length of 8 fully grown stallions. It has thick red-dyed rubber tracks and 8 big stainless-steel wheels.
"Those are definitely tanks alright," Said Sabre.
"Oh wow, they do look grrrrreat and powerful!" Trixie declared, left in awe by Professor Red's great and powerful inventions.
"How do you make all this stuff so quickly?" Rainbow Dash asked Professor Red.
"Science," Professor Red instantaneously and proudly replied.
"You see, I don't need magic. I have my salmon and redstone," Professor Red added.
"Yaks and Professor's tanks are on front line." Everybody turns around sees Rutherford, the leader of the yaks.
"Hey there Rutherford- Where are the other yaks?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Yaks are training for battle. Yaks are getting ready," Rutherford replied.
"That's good to hear. We need all the help we can get," Sabre responded, nodding.
"Hello Sabre, it's been quite some time since we last met," Said a female voice. Everyone turns around and sees a pink alicorn, who everybody immediately recognizes.
"Cadence! Yeah, it's been a while, yeah. Long time no see," Said Sabre.
"It's good to see everybody is doing well," Cadence softly spoke.
"What's wrong? You sound... worried," Sabre pointed out.
"I'm worried if... if Shining won't survive..." Cadence shared.
"I understand- We don't know who we're gonna lose. But we're all ready to fight. We've come too far, we can't step back now," Sabre responded.
"I'm just worried for him..."
"I understand," Sabre nodded.
"Sabre, do you know where Time and Elemental is- And Genesis, too? We kinda need them too," Rainbow Dash asked.
"They're patrolling the cave with Light and Shining I believe-"
"Everybody! Be on alert! Be on alert!" Everyone sees Spike flying about whilst screaming the air out of his lungs.
"Oh no... Spike, is everything alright-"
"The Demon Steves are moving up to the surface! Everybody get ready!" Spike flies off, continuing his screaming so he's heard. Professor Red's 5 tanks start to drive off to the cave entrance, the frontline.
"Sabre, I've got a set of that supercharged redstone armour- Here," Professor Red said as he drops a set of armour, which Sabre picks up.
(At the cave entrance)
Sabre, the steves and their leaders with the Blue Leader being the sole Blue Steve, are present. With them is a large force of Colourless and Royal Guards. With them are the changelings and the yaks. All 7 leaders as well as Twilight, Cadence, Thorax and Rutherford stood infront of those that they're leading, the 7 chromatic steves, Equestria, the Crystal Empire, the Changelings and Yakyakistan.
The forces that are on the very frontline are the 6 tanks. On top of the 5 already-seen tanks, there's a 6th tank, which is Professor Red's personal tank, the one with 'SCIENCE!' written on the side of it. The tank is being manned by the salmon-loving Red Steve himself. The yaks are going to accompany Professor Red's tanks.
Sabre has also joined the leaders at the front, wearing supercharged redstone armour. He is with Rainbow Dash, who he's mounting onto the built-in saddle of the pegasus' armour.
"Alright Dash, I got the staff, you've got that armour's special ability- You ready?"
"Ready!" Rainbow Dash firmly replied.
"Oh... here they come..." Sabre sees that coming out the cave is a tsunami of Demon Steves. All of them are wearing gold armour.
"It's time."
The battle had just begun.
