---
Giant Legate cripples an Alicorn casually
---

Then we were flying, and not in a good way. The Legate had finally found a way to catch us: laying his hoof across the tracks. We’d hit it like a wall... a fleshy wall, which was probably the only saving grace of most of us. Sweetie Bot had managed to snag the control stand, but the rest of us went flying into the Legate’s limb. The Steel Ranger armor, and my own, banged loudly against the slightly yielding surface, and Whisper was able to fly clear. Psalm pulled Pythia into her hooves with her magic, turning and spreading her wings wide.

Then she slammed into the hoof, her bones crackling like brittle wood.

I watched her bounce off the surface, her wings having slowed her but not enough, as I crashed on my back back on the car. She managed to land on her hooves, but then she wobbled once, then collapsed. Under us, the wheels were spinning and sending out sparks. “Hey!” Pythia cried. “Come on! You’re an alicorn! You should be able to take that hit!” She pulled free of Psalm’s legs and scrambled for a bottle of healing potion from the locker, but it had smashed and dribbled over her hooves.

---
Blackjack takes a full on hit from Giant Legate
---

Let him... hit me? That was like advising I stand on train tracks when the locomotive was coming! Maybe I could just let him clip me? A near miss? The hoof flashed in on me, and I screwed up my face. Oh, this was going to hurt...

The blow sent me rocketing clear across the cavernous space, and I was content to fly clear through it with my wings and legs spread wide. I didn’t quite splatter myself across the wall, but I definitely left a sizeable dent in the crumbly facade of an apartment building. Found it quite relaxing, actually, resting in that divot. I could spend the rest of the fight here. Bring Tom. I was good. I could watch all three giant Legates laugh as he drew back for one last blow.

---
And again
---
It was the right thing to do. Except... “Go ahead,” I said as I flew aloft.

And was struck by a boat. Okay, it wasn’t a boat, but I’d been hit by boats before; this was just like that! Once again I was reduced to a quivering lump of augmented Princess. This time, though, I didn’t imbed myself in the wall so much as tumble down the slope, banging and flailing as I struggled to regain control. I finally got caught on an I-beam dangling over the abyss. The Legate drew back a foreleg for a finishing stomp.

---
Legate causes a small earthquake
---
“Such tenacious little gnats,” the Legate wheezed. “You are wasting my time. I will be restored again and again.” Then his hoof slammed down a hundred feet away, making the ground shake. “You cannot defeat me!” Another massive impact, closer. And closer. I slipped the silver bullet into the breech, and the weapon became live.

---
Legate gets a new body from the Eater
---
“Hold on,” I said as I looked at the monstrosity above us. “Enough! Die already!” And I struck the stone with all the force I could muster. The sword cleaved the last of his magical heart, and the last of it vaporized. The black soul mote exploded out and lingered in the air for a moment, then flew up above me to where the smoldering body had finally come apart in smoking slurry and collapsed down into the pool in a great splash of gore.

Everyone scrambled back down the slope to where Crumpets lay next to me like a broken toy. “Is she alive?” Dusk asked as she slumped against Whisper.

“Hey, Enclave. Don’t you know us Rangers don’t die so easy?” Crumpets replied.

“We have to get her out of that armor! A healing potion won’t work if she’d being crushed,” I said, lifting the silver sword.

Dusk shook her head. “No! Don’t! She’s probably got all kinds of internal bleeding. Right now, the armor is the only thing keeping her alive.” The pegasus scowled back at all our stares and snapped, “What? You try having a sibling in medical school and not picking up some trivia.”

“Well, at least he’s finally done,” Aries said as she looked up at the corpse. A dry chuckle sounded in my mind.

A hoof struck her helmet, pushed through her visor, and out the back in an explosion of bone, brain, and metal.

And that’s three, the voice rasped.

Perched casually on her head, foot lodged in her brain, was the Legate. Not the enormous monstrosity. He’d reverted to his old size, but now he reminded me of Dawn.