Race to the Readerie (MoonDancer, Oneshot)

>*Rumble*
>The fuck was that?
>Be Moondancer
>Just heading out of your home for the first time in a week
>You’d been getting better about it since you started getting sores from sitting too long
>Usually it was once every month or two
>A short walk to the library ought to help with that
>And maybe some food now that you come to think of it
>*Rumble*
>Seriously though, the fuck?
>*Thud thud thud thud*
>Your gaze drifts up towards the sky where Shining Armor’s protective bubble had sat for the past few days
>Really quite neat magic, it’s surprisingly weak right where the spell originates
>Your eyes focus pinpointing the spot that you had seen his magic spread and arc into the bubble it formed
>What are those black specs moving around up there?
>*Thud thud thud*
>They kind of look like ponies…
>*Crsssssh!*
>Enormous cracks spread out across the bubble racing like lightning
>Uhhhh?
>*Pssshhhh!*
>The bubble explodes above you and you see a mass of black beings swarm in through the gap
>That can’t be good…
>The pieces of the magic shielding vaporize in the air as they fall
>A low hum begins to fill the air as the black mass swarms down and branches off in all directions
>*bzzzzzZZZZZZZZ!!!!!*
>The large spec s get closer until you can make out their form
>It’s a…changeling?
>You’d read about them before
>They feast on emotions and can change into any race of pony they meet
>Wonder what’s going on…
>Oh shit!
>You duck as one [spoiler]buzzes[/spoiler] your head
”Hey! Watch it bug butt!”
>The flying bug swivels around in the air at you as you shake your hoof in his direction
>A smile spreads across its face
>Uh oh
>He beats his wings quickly and zooms towards you forcing you to duck under his outstretched hooves
>As you right yourself he comes for another pass forcing you to duck again
>In the distance you can hear screams rising up from around the city and large crashing noises erupt around you
>What in the Celestia damned fuck is going on?
>Shouldn’t have stopped to think
>Hoofs slam into your side and you’re sent flying through the air
>Whoa shit, hangtime baby
>Ground, meet muzzle
>You impact hard onto the ground as your saddlebags careen off farther away
>You groan as you push yourself upright
>You look around and see that asshole bug smirking down at you from on high
>Jackass
>Where’s your bag
>Your eyes quickly scan while keeping tabs on the now circling bug
>Then you spot it
>A few yards away you see your bags clumped at the side of the street
>Papers are strewn everywhere
>Then you see it
>A book, your book
>It had landed in the muddy water of the gutter
>No
>No no no
>Not your books
>You can handle getting hit
>But this…
>You feel a rage welling up inside of you as you stare down at the travesty of what has occurred
>Red fills your vision and your chest heaves as you whirl on the spot to face the perpetrator
“Hey!”
>The bug stops its movements and hovers staring at you with that smug ass grin of his
“You. Ruined. My. BOOK!”
>Energy erupts into your horn
>A line of ethereal mist shoots out and wraps itself around a free hind leg of the buzzing buffoon
>You wrench your head back and like a leash your magic pulls him off kilter
>Using all your might you rip your head down shortening the leash for added velocity
>The whip trails from your horn taught along with the bug and whips towards the ground
>*Crack!*
>You standing puffing air in fury
>After a second you regain your composure and release the magical hold walking over to the crumpled mass lying in the road
>It isn’t moving
>You nudge it
>Nothing…
>Oh god did you just…?
>*BZZZZ*
>Shit!
>You duck as a pair of two changelings come your way and dive bomb you
>Seeing their crumpled friend they turn on you and their buzzing intensifies
“Uhhhh gotta go!”
>You turn tail and dash away magicing up your saddlebags and ruined book as you pass by
>You can hear the buzzing getting closer and closer behind you as they gain
>Wait for it
>Wait for it…
>bzzzzzzzzz
>bzzzzzZZZ
>Now!
>You throw up a wall of pure energy right behind you and the welcomed sound of two splats can be heard quickly thereafter
>What’s going on?
>As you continue your mad dash you make your way past screaming ponies being attacked by the swarm of insects
>Your head whips from side to side searching for answers
>A lone pony cornered by three changelings weeping for help catches your attention
>You slow down
>She can’t escape on her own...
>But can you take them yourself?
>And why should you even help her anyway? No one has ever done anything for you
>You gallop onward returning to your previous pace
>You get a few strides away but a shriek stops you dead in your tracks
>You let out a grunt of disgust and head back the way you came
>Rounding the corner you see the three bugs preying on their catch
>One has its teeth around her neck
>Alright then…
>Another surge of energy enters your horn and you focus on that one
>*fzzzcrack!*
>He’s gone
>Where exactly
>*fzzzCRACK!*
>Right next to you of course
>Before it even appears you have your horn charged again
>A dazed and confuse changeling gets a blast of magic straight to the face and is sent flying a good twenty feet before crashing onto the ground
>Fucker
>Now you have the attention of the other two
>One has turned around fully and that one is your next target
>*Zap!*
>A blot of magic energy bursts forth smacking him straight on the forehead
>A soft pinkish-white bubble encapsulates its head
>You turn to face the third threat and send out yet another magic bolt
>This one catches him in the legs and magical ropes snake out from the impact hog tying him
>You then focus your magic on the mare and grab her with your telekinesis
>You bring her over to you drop her back on the ground
“Run you idiot!”
>She nods furiously and sprints off behind a building
>Turning back to face the changelings you find a humorous sight
>One is attempting to fly with its legs tied together and is having a poor time of things while the other slowly suffocates inside his magical fish tank
>Idiots
>You release the bubble on the dying one’s head and hog tie him as well
>You then lasso the second one and merge their bonds so that they’re stuck to each other
>Smiling at your handy work you turn and gallop down the direction that you were headed
>On the way you see several guards fighting back throngs of changelings
>You see one put down a particularly cocky one before running up to him
“What’s going on!?”
>”Changeling invasion! They’re attacking the wedding. You have to get inside and now!”
“What wedding?”
>”What? The royal wedding! Have you been living under a rock!?”
>Oh right
>Was that today or something?
>Who gives a shit
“I have to get to the library!”
>You say more to yourself than to the guard
>”The library? What for?”
>You turn and start sprinting before shouting over your shoulder
“I have to protect the books!”
>Your hoofs thunder on the cobblestones as you dash through the streets
>Your lungs and legs are beginning to burn as you pass by more and more destruction
>You duck down an alley between some shops when your attention in wrenched upward
>*PTHHOOOM*
>Shards of mortar are sent flying overhead as the building next to you explodes
>As fast as you can you charge your horn
>*Vwoomp*
>A protective half bubble forms above you as debris clatters off its shell
>You push forward until you’re out of the blast zone and slow to a stop before dropping your magic
>You wheeze as your lungs pump air into you as fast as they can
>Staying inside all the time hasn’t helped your athleticism it would seem
>You take a moment to catch your breath
>You can hear fires crackling and see smoke pillars rising above the roof tops
>Screams and yells are heard in between the cracks and booms of exploding buildings
>And over it all a thick, rumbling, buzz can be heard
>You have to go
>You have to preserve the knowledge
>You force yourself back into a quick trot as you make your way through alleys and down smaller streets to avoid as much trouble as you can
>You bump into a few changelings on the way and each one you dispatch as promptly as you can
>You’re nearing the library
>You come out of a back alley and arrive on the opposite side of the open square where the library resides
>Ah for fuck’s sake…
>*Thud! Thud! Thud! Thudthudthud! Thud! Thudthud!*
>You see a group of 1 ,2 ,3… 7… 15… 21 changelings huddled outside the library
>Several of them are throwing themselves against the doors in an attempt to break them open
>What the fuck are they going in there for?
>You charge your horn and release a burst of energy into the air
>For a short period you can sense the heat signatures of the ponies around you
>Inside the building you sense a large thermal presence huddled in the center
>Great. They all holed up in the library…
>Alright Moondancer think, how can you get them away from there?
>Your brain races as you try to think of a way to distract the entire group
>*Crack!*
>The sound of splintering wood rips you out of your thoughts far too quickly
>Oh no
>The changelings have made a sizable hole in the door and start heading in single file
>No no NO!
>You charge out into the center of the square and blast the nearest bug you see
“Get away from MY BOOKS!”
>You send out beam after beam of energy at random trying to hit whatever you can
>At this point the bugs are all facing you and you back up sheepishly as they begin to bear down on you
>Oh Celestia, bad move
>They begin to swarm and circle around you as your head whips to and fro trying to get your bearings on the situation
>All you can see is a cloud of black as a deafening buzz fills your flittering ears
>The black changes to cream as the changelings all begin to adopt your form
>All around you a pack of buzzing Moondancer alicorns fly in tandem
>That’s… unnerving
>You press your ears down flat against your skull in an attempt to think
>Okay, okay what can you do?
>A blur of cream flashes by you taking a swipe
>The blow glances off and you regain your composure as quickly as you can but the attack is soon followed by another
>And another
>And another…
>You can’t hold out like this
>You have to do something and quick
>Alright, it’s now or never
>You begin to charge your horn with as much magical energy as it can handle
>Sparks begin to fly from your appendage as you scrunch your eyes in concentration
>You grunt and strain at the amount of sheer energy you have stored up before you can’t take it any longer
>You unleash a shockwave of energy from casting the spell alone sending the changelings off their course
>From your horn bursts a torrent of furious wind that rips and tears into a spiral up towards the sky
>The bugs stand little chance against the gale and are quickly sucked into the vortex
>You collapse onto the ground in exhaustion and the wind begins to throw you from side to side like a ragdoll being dragged upon the ground
>Your head whips past a street light nearly braining you on the metal base
>You are sent around again and this time the street light is all too close for you to avoid in your weakened state
>Looks like this is it…
>Your only regret is not studying more often
>Fuck tha police, study all day erry day
>You close your eyes right before impact
>You wait but it never comes
>Feeling the wind dissipating you open your eyes and find a soft magical aura surrounding you
>You’re dragged through the busted door of the library and are laid on the ground once inside
>Peering out the gash in the door you see Moondancer after Moondancer sent flying in all directions
>Some smash into buildings, others the ground, some fly out of sight even
>Then the gash in the door is sealed off as two earth ponies prop a study table up against it and pile as many heavy objects in front of it as they can
>A unicorn comes and helps you to your feet
>”Oh thank goodness you came. They were about to break in and I don’t know what we would have done if you didn’t get here.”
>You look around and see a group of about 10 ponies all huddled in the center of the library surrounded by a pile of books strewn over the floor
>You walk forward breathing a sigh of relief
“Oh thank Celestia you’re alright!”
>A pony begins to speak up in response but is cut off as you dive into the pile of books and hug the closest one you can tightly to your chest
>Two of the ponies raise their eyebrows at each other as you roll on the floor surrounded by your precious knowledge
>You sure do love your books
>End