The Storm King's decision to occupy an Equestrian castle instead of building his own came with a powerful disadvantage - it meant that ponies knew more about the land underneath it than his own troops.
Golden Wind and his brave "warriors" didn't have to scale the castle walls, or overcome siege weapons and waiting soldiers. They arrived already inside, with alarms blaring and troops rushing out of the castle to reinforce against a pony advance on the city armory.
They were hardly a stealth force, though. Every one of them was huge and muscular, a function of how they'd looked as humans. If that wasn't big enough, the polished golden armor of ancient Equestria certainly was.
"Gallery is where the old throne room used to be," Starlight explained, pointing. "That way. Where the Storm King keeps his prized possessions. We can expect..."
They rounded the corner and reached a huge set of double doors. Four ogres stood outside, armor polished and spears high beside them. For a moment, the ogres were utterly speechless, staring at them in shock.
That was long enough for his team to gallop directly into them, smashing them bodily against the wall, with a series of impacts so heavy, their armor dented and the stone behind them crumbled. One ogre shouted something, before Golden smacked his helmet against the wall a second time.
The attack was over in seconds, along with any possible attempt at stealth. Shouts of inquiry echoed throughout the palace, soon followed by orders. Armored feet clattered against the stone floor, getting louder.
"Got the door!" Starlight said, lifting a heavy keyring from beside an unconscious soldier. She selected the correct key instantly, then brought it directly into the lock. It turned, and the metal door swung open a crack.
"Inside!" Golden Wind urged. "Everyone, now!"
They hurried through the door, pushing it open just wide enough to let them all through.
The space within resembled the interior of an ancient cathedral - massive, with a vaulted ceiling several stories overhead. The windows were all fine stained glass, though their images were obscured by the pale light beyond. Somehow, he doubted Equestria had so many images of a white-furred ogre, who was posing in each one with an impressive scepter clutched in both hands.
The floors were painted in his colors now, alternating blue and white, with an elegant throne against the far wall. Arranged in a straight line down either side, were artifacts; prizes, each one resting on a stand the right size for it. A few were even covered by heavy glass, protecting them from accidental damage or thieving hands.
Near the far wall were four ponies, or at least crystal sculptures of ponies, all made from the same dark material, and standing taller than he was. Alicorns - the deposed rulers of Equestria.
"Blockade the door!" Golden ordered. "Anything you can find! Hold it closed! We have to keep them out long enough to free the VIPs! After that..."
After that, their own role in the war would be over. Standing together, the Alicorns would overpower the Storm King, take back their land, and the world would be safe again.
Harvey knocked over a heavy table of jewelry, easing it into place in front of the door. The others all rushed to grab whatever they could, adding the Storm King's priceless heirlooms and display cases to the physical barrier. That ogre would not be happy with them if they didn't win here.
Starlight galloped away towards the petrified ponies, levitating out the pages of her spell as she went. Golden followed close behind, keeping pace with her. He could do nothing to help with a spell - but that didn't mean Starlight was safe. There could be other soldiers hiding, or maybe magical traps concealed in the construction. If anyone was about to take a bullet, it would be the armored Pegasus stallion, not a delicate unicorn.
He saw no sign of other doors hidden in the room, except for a pair of small ones beside the throne. "What about those?"
"Not sure," Starlight said. "One used to go to Celestia's wing, one to Luna's. But I don't know what the Storm King did with them."
Golden took off, flying past Starlight, past the frozen, empty-eyed Alicorns, then to the throne. It didn't matter where the doors went - sooner or later, someone would figure out a way to go around the barricade. He locked one, then galloped over to the other to do the same. But how long would they hold?
Across the room, something hard smacked into the doors. Instead of letting them swing open, his teammates held firm, albeit with brief grunts and straining. Many voices shouted from beyond, demanding the door be opened at once. Of course, they ignored them all. "It takes about five minutes to cast," Starlight called, spreading the empty pages on the floor in front of her. "Keep them off of me that long!"
Five minutes might not sound like a very long time, but in their current circumstances, it might as well be an eternity. The voices outside grew louder, as more ogres rushed to join the ones struggling to force their way inside. Golden probably wouldn't have long until they found one of the two side doors.
He darted past Starlight, careful not to tread on her spell work. He did what the others had, gathering the heaviest furniture and largest displays he could, then dragged them over to a door. He brought them all to the far side, the one across from where Starlight was working. The one just beside Starlight he left alone - at least until someone started pounding on it.
Golden moved directly over to it, then braced his own body against the heavy wood. The weight of the Storm King's greed would have to be enough for the other side. On this one, he was completely alone.
For a time, he held. Impacts rattled against his door, each one stronger than the last. But Golden was a horse now, and that came with some advantages. Few creatures were as strong, or as enduring. The door would probably get ripped right off of its hinges before he ran out of strength.
All the while, Starlight muttered, whispering the words to her spell so fast, he couldn't understand a single one. But so long as the magic worked, the exact mechanism didn't matter to him. She knew what she was doing better than anypony in Equestria.
We're doing it, he thought, watching his teammates hold the main entrance. They were no defensive line, but they still fought like one, holding firm. We just have to last a little longer, until Starlight can -
One of the fine crystal windows exploded inward in a shower of blue and white glass, sending razor shards across the floor. Golden turned, bracing for an advance of overwhelming numbers, and saw only one pony - a reddish mare, clad in dark blue armor with a white crest. A mare he recognized - the prison warden. Tempest Shadow.
"Enough of this! The Storm King rules eternal - your resistance is vanity!"
Behind her, the sky was full dark now, a maelstrom of whipping wind, rain, and lightning. She ignored Golden's teammates at the door, focusing all her attention on Starlight. "You will not free them," she said, her voice low and dangerous. "Their prison is forever. Perhaps you would rather join them?" Her horn crackled and burned, turning dark.
Golden knew an evil spell when he saw one, and he wouldn't wait to let her finish. He abandoned his door, taking to the air just as Rainbow taught him. He flew straight for her, and smacked into Tempest's flank with all the force he had.
Her horn flashed, sending a spray of black wildly into the air. It struck the ceiling, growing tendrils of dark crystal along it in an uneven splatter.
The two tumbled together, before coming to rest against the wall in a tangled mess of limbs. "I spared your life in Stormgate, but now I see the weight of my mistake!" Energy crackled from her horn, arcing through the air all around them.
Only this time, it didn't send painful spasms through his body and turn him instantly limp. Golden felt the burn against his wings and the harsh touch of ozone in the air.
"Yeah?" Golden had no powerful spells to throw back at her. He had only one weapon that mattered, the same one he'd used through his entire career - strength. He rose, then brought his forelegs sharply into the mare, so hard, that the metal breastplate groaned in protest.
Tempest roared back, shoving him away with all her might. She was strong, stronger than any unicorn mare he'd yet seen. She pushed back, with her body sideways and leverage completely lost to her. He barely even budged. Lightning arced through the air around him, making his wings tingle and go numb. But the Equestrian armor did its work, and his Pegasus resistance to electricity took care of the rest.
Golden Wind slammed her against the wall. When his hooves started to lift off the ground with some unicorn levitation, he struck her again, this time right against the helmet. "Hurry, Starlight! Finish that spell!"
The door he'd been holding burst open, shattering wood and paint in all directions.
A second later, Tempest's horn turned black again. He shoved hard against her shoulder, pointing her away from him.
The spell filled the air with black, arcing energy, but it was no longer aimed at him. It struck up against the approaching ogres, splashing over them both like a strange, thick fluid. It spread out from around them, bridging the nearby walls, before finally settling as a solid chunk of crystal.
"Stop!" He dropped down onto the mare, pressing her head up against the wall with all his strength. "That's enough!" Through the broken window, thunder rolled, and a thin patter of rain dribbled onto the floor. Far away, a huge shape blocked the stars, an aircraft that barely moved.
"There is no victory for you here," Tempest whispered. She stopped kicking and stopped struggling. Her words came pained, gasped through the force of his hold. "Their magic is... in the staff. Even if you let them out..."
Brilliant purple blasted the room, beginning at the space just behind them. Starlight's horn radiated like a stadium spotlight, and steam rose from the tip in a steady trickle. The spell had no effect on him, but it wasn't aimed at him.
The ogres beside him unfroze, shaking away chunks of hard crystal as though they'd been dipped in ice. Golden looked up, turning to where the Alicorns of Equestria had been trapped.
There were four of them: one pink, one dark, one light, and one purple. "You're free!" Golden pointed into the air, through the open window. "This is our chance! We have to stop the Storm King!"
He'd imagined this moment through the battle, the point where their labor was finally rewarded and they could step aside. It was over!
Except, despite their wings, despite their size and long horns, the Alicorns didn't do anything. The tallest of their number looked across the room, before her attention fell on Starlight.
"The palace? Where is..."
The purple one spoke next, the one Golden knew from Rainbow was called Twilight Sparkle. "We have to get away. Find somewhere to... recover our magic. Before..."
"Before what?" someone asked, stepping in through the broken window. He stood on two legs like an ogre, with their body armored, and white fur emerging in puffy frills. "Before I get here? I'm afraid that won't be possible."
The creature was shorter than most ogres, though his build was lean and maneuverable, and not a block of solid muscle. He gestured towards the entrance, and lightning arced through the air, directly at Golden's teammates.
"No!" Golden moved, but much too slow. Bright white blinded him, seconds before impact. Ponies scattered, flung by the blast.
"I did wonder how long it would take - for Equestria to mount a serious resistance, I mean. I've been waiting for it - for the last vestiges of rebellion to identify themselves. Well done!"
tf-sential
