Ciraxis

Well this was really vexing. First the stench, now the obnoxious loudness. Regardless, Ossia decided to tackle one issue at a time. This mare that decided to hurt her ears will have to wait for her own punishment.

The alicorn landed in the place she felt disturbance a few minutes ago. Normally she wouldn't bother to check up such spike in aether, in this dimension it seemed to occur thrice a day. But this time it felt...different...alien...not belonging. Which made sense. It takes one to recognize one.

"Can't open a door for a moment without some pests seeping in...." she mused in a tone that made her diastase with the situation clear. It appears that barrier between world still didn't recovered enough from her own arrival. This in itself was puzzling since Ossia knew....or rather assumed that this world had it's guardians - judging from her own prior attempts at breaching the barrier. Again, the question better left for another day. For now she had infestation to deal with.

"Yes, it was here." she said before reaching out with her magic. For normal ponies....and most of not-normal one's everything seemed to be in order. But being dimensional traveler herself, Ossia knew how to search for the 'scars'. Soon enough she got her answer.

"As I expected. And judging from how it's reeks it has to be one of those decaying, half-living possibilities. But which one?" alicorn pondered. That was so many of those that even this information was inconclusive. But if she had to guess, this intruder came here in search of something that no longer existed in it's devastated world. Well too bad for them for now this realm was Ossia's - at least as long as it take for her to find answers she sough.

".....Checking out the park would be the best lead for now. I found the trail..." she paused before making a wicked smirk "Let's see what else I will be able to find!" she mused before cladding herself in illusions and taking into the air once more.

Oh believe me, Ossia wouldn't be on Dust's side either. As a dimensional hopper she knows the world Lightning is from and....well, let's say that she's less then fond of it.

Are other villains allowed to join?

2 minutes ago, tacobob said:

 

And if Swift will be there...SO WILL THE FIRE WALKER!

 

 

It's like they joined by the hip or something

Heh, I won't allow myself to pass this. I will be participating with Squall of course.

"I think it's more because of..." Swift started to speak, trying to explain that his hiring issues were due to some friendly haunting, but before he got that far the Princess launch into explaining her mane's fabulousness. What she said wasn't really encouraging....

"Spa? I won't go there! I am a warrior not some..some...coxcomb!" Squall objected.

"Alright then. See you later this week then Blue!" he said along with a hoofwave as royal pony departed. Swordstallion paused for a moment before speaking to Applejack.

"You know He...She? Gosh, this is confusing...Errr.... Blue's  two halves are becoming so different that you start to think it's a pair of siblings sharing a body instead of one pony." unicorn noted. "I wonder what Celestia thinks about this? He had a nephew for so long and suddenly BLAM! Two-in-one family package."

"Your memory does well. I am Swift Squall Squallcoast, Count of the Fillydelphia. While I am a noble, I like to believe I am made from a very different piece of cloth then those from a 'lot. I am not afraid to make my hooves dirty for example." Squall introduced himself before giving a meaningful glance at the blade strapped to his side. "Although it's not up to me to judge that, is it?" noblepony reflected moments later.

"Yes. Yes she. You would be surprised at what other things she's also right about..." Swift smiled while rubbing the engagement bracelet on his leg affectionately.

"Well if Fire spoke about me to you as much as she told you about myself.....I assume you wouldn't buy it if I would say I am after your product or a peck on the cheek?" unicorn answered the orange mare's question with a chuckle. "Not to diminish value of either. I heard that both are top notch." Swift quickly reassured.

"Seeing that you favor honesty I will be blunt. I have work proposition for you. One that would require a mare of your talents, Miss Applejack. Nothing that would require your permanent dedication, like maintaining your farm, teaching in the School of Friendship or being in a Twilight Guard. Still it would take some of your time nonetheless.

If you don't mind I would save laying out further details for later. Would meeting in your home this evening for further explanations?" he asked.

It was another day of businesses travel for Swift Squall, and this time it brought him to Ponyville. Although - for a change - vising the town was his intention right now. Noblepony sough to met with a certain farm mare who became very famous indeed. It was funny how in recent times, his travels often brought noblepony to Ponyville. But perhaps he shouldn't be surprised. Judging by all those nation shaking events, it seemed that the small town in the very heart of the land was on it's way to become a next Roam. And as all knew, all roads led to it.

Regardless, Swift embarked to search for Miss Applejack right away after his arrival. And lo and behold, there she was! Swift head from his sweet Fire about a certain...marketing campaign...that the orange mare undertook to boost sales of her product. And his fiancee also informed him that it seemed to work very well indeed. So well that it lured another familiar face here as well...

"At least you have a cook Blue. Besides Oak Branch nopony want's to work in Squallcoast Manor for some reason." swordstallion said, as he approached the pair from the side. As always wearing a duster with his company logo over his muscular frame, a half transparent jade shades resting on his muzzle and with a trusty blade strapped to his side. "Eating out is nice, but it get's tiring when you live a mile out of the city...Sometimes you just want a cup of cocoa and a croissant in your bed."

"Hello Blue. Nice looking mane today. What's your shampoo? I could...uhhh...use it." Swift greeted the Princess while brushing away strand of his hair out of his shades. It was obvious from where he was coming from - Squall's mane was very long, probably enough to use whole bottle in one go.

"And hello to you too, Miss Applejack..." Swift started as he turned towards earth pony mare "Fire and your cousin spoke a lot about you. A real fount of agricultural knowledge Brave and hopelessly stubborn.. And owner of a keen trade sense I see...."  Fillydelphian noblepony mused while glancing at the now half empty table of apple bushels. "Good. Equestria needs more small, family centered local businesses. And I am all in supporting those businesses getting a little bigger...." he added while fishing out from his pocket a sack that -from the it's looks and sounds it made - was filled with money.

Swift couldn't help but smirk upon seeing Applejack turn the table on the Bluebelle. Silly Princess, you thought you will outdo a married mare?

"Oh by the way Blue..." Swift asked when he remembered something. "Do you have a free time this week? I want to speak with you about this IMAGINE thing you have going..." he asked.

"So that how You feel hmmm?" Ossia mused as Blueblood put into words his gripes with heroes. While she could somewhat sense that it was not the whole stroy, nothing that Prince said was untrue - so she chose not to pry further for now. "Well said. Although I have feeling you wouldn't find my mane silver Your Highness..." she added while flipping strands of her hair teasingly.

"I...well I have a different issue. I told you that from where I am from....'heroes' doesn't matter much did I? Well the fact is, even that what they do....makes no difference. As you said they leave a mess but never have enough class to clean after themselves. And for example...." Ossia waved her hoof towards the image of Sunlight Sentinel that was hanging from the skyscraper in the distance. "How long she was around. decades? Centuries? And yet nothing she did resulted into any lasting changes, doesn't it? Could use all this time on something more productive I assume" disguised alicorn stated.

"Never a permanent solutions, only a band-aids, quick fixes. And for what? To maintain those moral high ground of theirs? To make themselves feel good, superior? Ha!" Ossia didn't bothered to even hide her mocking anymore. "Hypocrisy. They may fight monsters as you pointed out Prince, but at least those are honest in their desires. And as time goes on you begin to wonder....does the monster inspired the hero, or the hero inspired the monster...?" she mused before pausing, giving Blueblood something to mull over.

"Oh...sorry, your right. It seems that I did some wherriting myself didn't I? Shall we?" she asked before presenting her hoof to Blueblood, allwoing the stallion to lead the way.

"Oh my, how considerate for you! Although I hope it's not the only meal we end up sharing." she said, to noblepony's proposition.

They didn't gone far however before ground shook with such force that even she felt herself sway on her legs. Gripping Blueblood firmly, she prevented him from falling over.

Just before them was....

"Oh splendid..." Ossia said, her word dripping with sarcasm. "One of those messes you mentioned in the making....." she commented upon seeing few ponies and non-ponies in the costumes clashing against mountain of muscle of the dragon....

"Oh, there is no need to be worried Prince. I have no plans of leaving anytime soon." Ossia said with emphasis. "Not when there is such...perceptive company to be around." she added with a smile as noblepony planted his kiss on her hoof. The disguised alicorn couldn't help but feel a pleasant shudder passing through her back - this was surprisingly enjoyable. She couldn't help but imagine how good he will prove to be with all other kind of kisses she planned for him to go through.

Ossia studied the garden carefully and with great focus. The plans there...their changed and twisted appearance was a result of powers that even her great magical skills would have hard time to replicate. Which she didn't found all that surprising really. Her prior visits to this realm had already pitted her against being with wast and strange capabilities. That said it never hurt to do your homework - di Nerezza made a mental note to revisit the garden in more quite hours.

Alicorn's transfixion  was broken when Blueblood spoke again. And while her outside appearance still wore the same enigmatic smile as she did through this entire meeting, inside she felt herself grow with excitement. She already knew about those 'heroes' and the connotations this word brought in this dimension. Ossia remembered some members of Hopesguard referring about themselves using it. It was this 'Academy' that was still mystery for her. This could be an invaluable opportunity to learn about it! But she had to play her cards carefully, otherwise Prince would become suspicious. Perhaps she could use that tinge of disdain she heard in his voice to her advantage?

"Ah yes we have few of those back from where I came from too. They don't amount to much when it comes to big picture however." she said. It wasn't a lie either, now that she though about it.

"....It seems you aren't an big enthusiast on the concept either. Do you wish me to lend an ear Your Highness?." Ossia added, and to her own surprise, she felt a twinge of sympathy towards the white stallion.

Sooooo...I will be missing from evening of September 2 up to 9th, maybe 10th. Going on some much delayed vacation (Not by much, just five years.), so no network connection for me.

Ossia giggled when Blueblood mentioned Itaily. And - rare for her - it was a chuckle devoid of malice, driven instead from amusement that the two of them - despite such massive difference - could have similar tastes. Who could have guessed? Also, apparently the Prince had some spine after all! This will only make ensnaring him all more delicious ❤︎.

"Same. I rather....fond of the work and arts coming from the region. They can be very...inspiring..." she said with a glint in her eyes.

"Oh how kindly of you ♪." she chimed and took Blueblood's hoof without hesitation. Allowing the some small victories should make him overconfident...."Oh, how firm grasp you have Prince. I hope hooves aren't only things you grasp with such....enthusiasm."

"I not sure..." Ossia mused, pretending to ponder over Prince's question. "From what I sampled...it would be a crime to put one above the other. I want to see E~v~e~r~y~t~h~i~n~g." she said with feeling, while gifting the Blueblood with another smile and half-lid gaze.

"Surprise me, Fair Prince❤︎." he added while tilting her head to the side. Gosh, teasing him was soooo fun!

.

"Like bee to a honey." Ossia thought, barely stopping herself from licking her lips. As expected, the dorky Prince had no means to resist her charms.

Oh the things she will do to him❤︎.

"You will be begging yet cutie boy." she said in her mind in response to Blueblood first words. Of course she still knew better then say this aloud, and instead allowed Blueblood to speak. So proper, so reserved. Ossia wondered how cute will he be once his inhibitions were off the leash.

"Oh...oh my!" Ossia masterfully faked her ignorance. "I just got here in this fair city...and I already ran into a fair Prince!" she quickly added, and at least this part was not false.

"I am Ossia. Ossia di Nerezza. I wasn't born in Equestria, but you could say my roots are in this nation." she introduced herself before taking step forward and leaning a little. Now her gray eye were in the same level as Blueblood's, fluttering saucily for added effect. Prince could feel her warm breath on his neck, that's how close she was

"I very much like it here but everything is still sooo confusing! And I want to know more, all I possibly can about this country! History, customs, it's ponies! Would you mind being my guide for today, handsome? It wouldn't be too inconvenient for Prince of the nation, isn't is? I would be very, very grateful. Especially to a stallion that's so easy for the eyes❤︎." disguised alicorn said, with a seductive gaze, smile and pose that were clear what she meant by gratitude.

Oh dear, did he noticed her ? He did!

"Look how flustered he become, it's adorable♪" Ossia thought to herself. "It's so easy it's cute, I don't even need my magic for this. But I want him to become more then flustered...♪"

The important thing to rember was to pretend that she didn't noticed that he noticed. Also, subtle things. A little more wiggle in her walk. Her eyes, half closed as if saying 'Come hither!'.

One more flip of her mane, just for show. Already, some stallions that she walked by were panting like dogs. Unfortunately for them, only the puppy she had her sights on right now, was the one with royal linage before her.

Oh, did he paused in front of another shop? Perfect!

As if she guessed his earlier thoughts, di Nerezza paused and spread one of her wing wide open, apparently to preen some misplaced feathers. In reality of course to make Blueblood heart beat even faster. Despite being disguised, the spell maintained her proportions, so there was a loooot of wing to cover...and a lot of wing to show. Alicorn didn't hurry, instead giving Blueblood's imagination time to do the job for her.

Okay that should be enough. Ossia peaked above the edge of her wing - using it as a makeshift fan - while staring at Blueblood directly. She slowly folded her flying appendage, and titled her head to the side, openly judging his looks as if she just noticed him. While Prince's skull was mostly stiff with air, the rest of the package was looking delicious❤︎. If everything would go as she hoped for, she would see only the good parts of this stiffness by the end of the evening. Those thoughts made corners of Ossia's lips go up.

She proceeded to trot forward again, still wearing this inviting smile. Blueblood was undoubtedly frozen by all that teasing. And who could blame him? Nopony knew more about love the Ossia, and love opens all paths.

Even making it's way to the mind of stallion as self-absorbed as Prince♪.

As she passed the unicorn noble, Blueblood could feel the tip of her wing tracing along his flank and the side. But Ossia didn't stop for Prince just yet, oh no. Instead she turned towards the stairway that lead to one of Canterlot famous gardens. Only when she took the first few steps - which make her body stretch in all the right places - Ossia gazed over her shoulder towards the Prince, giving him a swish of her tail and another smile to encourage him to follow.

"Come on, handsome." she whispered. Too quietly and too far for Blue to really hear anything, but the massage that she gave was clear regradless.

Oh, she had that in the bag❤︎.

Ossia had to admit, Canterlot always was aesthetically pleasing to the eyes. Even when turned to ruins it retained that sense of haunting beauty that drew ponies towards it.

So it was going without saying, that in this dimension - when Canterlot was still standing tall and proud - visiting it was even more enjoyable experience.

Ossia touch down in the middle of Canterlot many squares, which immediately drew attention from the passerby's.

And who could blame them really? Ossia may have masked her real appearance, but it didn't helped much with avoiding attention. Her good looks were simply too splendid. As such she only managed in downgrading herself into simply gorgeous, attractive appearance she had now, instead of unremarkable form she was aiming for.

"Now, where should I go?" di Nerezza pondered why subconsciously raising her hoof to flip her mane.

"Library seems like a good choice. It would never hurt to expand my knowledge about this realm. But wouldn't this require a proper documentation? Hmmm....?" Ossia train of thought was derailed as she noticed the familiar visage passing through the crowd.

"Is that...Blueblood?" di Nerezza quietly mumbled to herself. Why, it was indeed doltish Prince Blueblood on the other side of the square! One of the few remaining descendants of Platinas dynasty, as well as adoptive nephew to Princess Celestia...in few other dimensions that is. Was she his 'aunt' in this timeline as well? The lack of Royal Castle in the city suggested otherwise, but with her limited understanding of this reality it was hard to tell....

"Besides..." Ossia thought as a smirk crept on her face. "Even if he isn't her nephew, he's still a Prince. A noble from ancient and rich family. It wouldn't hurt to use that wealth to build a bridgehead  in this world." she thought. And for all of his lack of brain cells, he still wasn't bad looking. Oh, that things she could tease him with...!

With this in mind, still disguised di Nerezza followed Blueblood from the distance, waiting for a suitable moment to wrap him around her tail...

LQB, I have returned! Without further ado....

30) Which systems of military ranks various nations follow? While we have pretty clear idea of how it works in Equestria due to articles, various Roleplays and occasionally main show itself. Places like Neighpon have obvious counterparts, but locations like Whitescar, Acroneighos (which wouldn't have navy I assume) or Saddle Arabia (which is a gestalt of various Middle East/Egyptian inspirations) are not so clear in that regard.

31) So, population. Around how many ponies there are really?

32) The world's Equator. Which locations are north of it, and which are to the south?

33) Are there any in-land seas we haven't seen yet?

34) Despite astronomy in the setting being rather....unique, seeing that there were orreries present in various scenes/backgrounds it means that there have to be at least few other planets in star system. Do they have names?

35) ....And while we at it, what is the setting's planet name?

36) Lost/forgotten civilizations. (In the vein of Mu, Lemuria etc.). Allowed/Not Allowed?

37) How many time Aquelia and Equestria came to blows exactly?

38) Had any members of the Wonderbolts saw any real action prior to the show's start? As in, military unit, not the stunt-show obviously.

39) Since we have the Neighpon...does it mean there's N-Pop ?

.......The feeling of vibrant green grass under her stomach. The shining, clean, cerulean sky above...

And the air. So fresh. So....alive....

She was back. After so long she was back!

"Ufufufufufu...AHAHAHAHA!" Ossia laughed in triumph as she got back on her hooves. So much effort, so much frustration....but finally her endeavors were rewarded!

"As before, this is wonderful! I can feel new power surging within me just by being here! Now I just need to..." she mused before pausing.

"No....this attitude is what forced me to go through so much trouble in the first place. Just because I, Ossia, am supreme beauty doesn't mean I can underestimate those gnats like before." she reprimended herself "Speaking of gnats..." Ossia added before turning back.

As expected, the anomaly in space time - a gateway of sorts, one that she tore by herself was still there.

"Despite everything, I wouldn't be able to get through if not for the 'fabric' getting weaker from this side as well. A fortunate circumstances indeed...although I wonder how it happened that they aligned with my actions so well?" di Nerezza pondered as medalion around her neck started to glow. Slowly, with great effort she extended her will towards the rip in space and time before herself. Seconds extended into minutes, but finally the bridge between worlds was closed - Ossia learned well from her past defeats, no one will be showing her the door this time! She will be staying until she discovers the reason for gaining so much power in this world! However....

"<Pant> This was....<pant> more taxing then expected. To break is far easier then mend...." pink mare reflected. With the most pressing task taken care of, it was now time to explore her surroundings. Where was she now, exactly?

With the confident stride Ossia approached the cliff-side to gaze at the sparkle in the distance. It was....

"Canterlot. Of course." she said to herself. That said, it was somewhat different from the usual Canterlot's she visited. Oh sure the same could be said for many other versions, but those usually were distinguished  by various states of ruin and decay.,

This time the city was different. Absent was it's trademark castle, instead replaced by what appeared to be university of sorts. The city also appeared to also sprawl farther - not limited to plateau like its counterparts but also hugging to the cliff-side and ground below - this Canterlot had to be as big a Manehattan. This was something worthy of checking out. That and to - if she wanted to accomplish anything here - get information about state of things in this dimension. However she couldn't go as she was now.

"The though of concealing beauty such as mine is a revolting, but it can't be helped. If I would descend as I am now, everyone would be overwhelmed by my radiance - making any efforts at subtlety impossible." Ossia mused to herself as she approached a nearby pond. "There is also a chance that my entry was detected. Who knows how much time passed since my last visit? Perhaps denizens of this dimension became more alert in-between?" she further mused as she begun casing the concealing spells. When she finished and leaned to look over the water, it wasn't her pink visage that stared back - but instead a slender and tall gray pegasus mare with a white mane.

"Hmph...this will have to do. Well I found my way here...." Ossia said before adding with a sinister smirk...

"Let's see where it goes from here."

On 2.07.2018 at 2:59 AM, Pretzelparty said:

@Ciraxis approved!

Cool! Thanks Pretzy!

If anyone is in need of an actual villain in their thread, I would be happy to provide with the Ossia above!

Gaze upon my supreme beauty! I am Love given Flesh!

Supervillain Name: Ossia di Nerezza

Appearance: For some reason, Ossia looks basically identical to a certain pink alicorn superheroine. However there are minor differences between the two - with Ossia sporting gray eyes, more athletic build and different manestyle. They also dress nothing alike.- with villainous alicorn wearing a black catsuit with a green sash, as well as pair of emerald earrings, jeweled leg bracelets, black tiara made of unknown metal, and golden amulet depicting sickle around her neck. It is currently unknown if has the same Cutie Marks as her match seeing that catsuit covers it.

Power(s): Ossia display usual alicorn powers similar to Sunlight Sentinel, Moonlight Knight and her own heroic counterpart, with skyscrapper-toppling strength, insane durability, supreme speed and reflexes and raw magic power that would make most graduates of 'School for Gifted Unicorns' jealous. While somewhat weaker then two alicorn sisters, this still  makes her incredibly strong and an S-Level threat.

According to Ossia herself, her power source is 'Love'....and seeing that she displays EXTREME narcissism it appears that she is more then capable of fueling herself.

Uniquely to her, she is able to 'strengthen' and 'renew' the love in others by using her magic to grant herself even further boost....usually by cranking it to such degrees that unlucky recipient becomes downright psychotic or displaying similar unhinged behavior.

The villainous alicorn also was shown to charm males for a time, making them obsessed with her, and ready to serve her every whim. There however appears to be limits to this ability, with Ossia not being able to enchant more then three stallions at a time, as well as being unable to overwrite their personality traits.

The malicious di Nerezza also appears to quite familiar with various types of sorcery, displaying supreme knowledge of mystical arts during her clashes with Avalon Five, and later Hopesguard. She was shown to be proficient in using counter-spells, forcefields, teleportation, extremely powerful telekinesis and usage of different kinds of magical beams. It safe to assume that she has much more up in her sleeve when it comes to arcane. Most disturbingly and unfortunately, di Nerezza can also torture someone for insanely long times without killing them as Hopesguard First-Response team found out much to their horror.

Saturn Amulet: Ossia possesses a relict of unknown origin that allows her to travel through dimensions and alternate realities, and granting limited protection to time manipulation. Strangely enough it appears that Ossia needs to progressively 'acclimate' to each newly visited dimension through increasingly prolonged visits. Her first appearance when she fought Avalon Five 55 years ago lasted no longer then fifteen minutes and greatly drained her. In contrast, her next visit lasted six hours back when Hopesguard was freshly formed, with her latest - just before the same team dismantling - ending only after two days of chase and struggle, with Ossia being forcibly shoved through trans-dimensional rift. Tegan of Hopesguard theorized that her next emergence may very well result in a permanent stay.

On top of that she doesn't appeared to age at all between her appearances. Currently it's unknown if it's something appurtenant to her or yet another benefit coming with possession of Amulet.

Weakness:

While not possessing obvious weaknesses like Sunlight or Moonlight, calling Ossia invincible would be a glaring suspension of disbelief.

Her first most glaring flaw is her narcissism. While she is way too arrogant to be bothered by petty insults or rude comments Ossia can be...a little too self-absorbed at times. While usually no-nonsense this usual leaves her open to any tricks or surprise attacks that she should notice otherwise.

Going with that, she also appears to be infatuated with Mi Amore Cadenza. Mentioning the alicorn heroine by name is one of the ways to pick Ossia's attention and di Nerezza seems to hold her counterpart in almost as high regard as she does herself. This usually leaves her talking about Cadenza. A lot.

Second of Ossia's shortcomings are sadistic tendencies. While savvy enough to cripple strong opponents quickly, di Nerezza have tendency to toy with them longer then she should, extending their pain and suffering for longer then necessary apparently for nothing more then her own amusement. This was exploited by Hopesguard during their first encounter with her - After utterly demolishing first response team, Ossia was completely blindsided by three backup units while she was still tormenting her now defenseless foes.

Strangely enough Ossia appears to have no interest in harming powerless beings, saving her interest for other supers instead, in her own words ' "To temper herself".'

Third and perhaps the most surprising is her protective attitude to any real display of romantic love. Assaulting an enamored couple in di Nerezza presence is a quick and sure way to bring a savage assault upon yourself, usually with a lethal results. Coincidentally Ossia appears to be rather fond of any love imagery, and she will try to avoid any property damage to any places that have or display it.

Last but not least Ossia appears to tend grudges like others tend flowers. While outwardly calm and collected it's pretty clear when she loathes someone. Particularly her cold resentment towards Moonlight Knight, Rainboom Centurian and [REDACTED] appearing almost unending and thus easily exploitable. Strangely enough she consistently refers to Moonlight as Nightmare Moon....

Backstory:

Being a individual hailing from another dimension Ossia di Nerezza so far is almost complete enigma - the few strings of information about her being only this that she shared herself.

What is known however is the fact that her being an alicorn is not an illusion - something confirmed by Hopesguard when they brought their strongest dispelling magic to the table.

Her fist appearance goes as far as 55 years from present day, when members of superhero team Avalon Five were researching means of dimensional travel in hopes of locating heroes missing during 'Tear Shock' even over century prior. They experiments instead paved the way for Ossia di Nerezza. However the evil alicorn appeared to be very weakened from her first excursion into a world of superheroes and she was quickly overpowered by the Avalon Five an pushed back to whatever alien space she came from.

Avalon Five however kept the encounter a secret, perhaps out of respect of Sunlight Sentinel and fear what the news about the new, malicious alicorn could do to her reputation.

Thus Hopesguard were completely obvious to Ossia's existence when she resurfaced years later, just after Hopesguard subdued a notorious super-villain Shatterway.

His reckless usage of his superpower which opened portals through space allowed di Nerezza to break through weakened dimensional barriers - and this time she wasn't as nearly exhausted by the transition as before. Tired from their prior fight, First-Response team were no match for evil alicorn and were utterly trounced, However Ossia revealed in her victory for far too long - long enough for backup to arrive. Ossia managed to hold her against two more additional teams, with only third proving to be enough to stop her and forcing di Nerezza to retreat from dimensional rift. Once again, due to the remote location of the battlefield and concern about Sentinel reputation - existence of Ossia was suppressed. Hopesguard however was more mindful then Avalon Five and they kept the data about malicious alicorn just in case, eventually uploading information about her to their AI - Marionette.

The android dragon proved to be crucial to Ossia's defeat, when she once again returned after a few years. This time she emerged in Hopesguard secret laboratory in Allacor Mountains, where research over Sixth Energy were being made. A particular experiment was performed at exactly wrong place and at wrong time. And while it was successful, the side effect weakened the dimensional walls - something that di Nerezza exploited once again to break into reality of superheroes. Despite being far more experienced and having far more members Hopesguard had the unpleasantness of finding out that Ossia had even better grip on her powers now as well. Evil alicorn steadily bulldozed through the members of the team, and only Marionette supreme coordinating skills back from HQ prevented any casualties this time around. The fight eventually spilled into outskirts of Beakbreak City, with Ossia being stopped when Marionette finally found a way to victory. Using portable Sixth Energy generator build by Tegan, data gathered by Provenance and powers of Stable Loop they were able to open a dimensional rift into lifeless universe with rest of the team pushing di Nerezza into it - finishing the battle after two days of almost constant struggle.

The  events of the incident were once again were kept under the wraps - despite a greater difficulty of doing so - partially for the same reasons as before, but mostly because Ossia now had an active, and undoubtedly heroic counterpart active within 'supers' community. It was quite certain that news about crazy and malicious counterpart would greatly damage to emerging superheroine creditability.

Time will tell if Ossia manged to bounce from her last defeat. But one is certain - she will have quite a grudge to act on if she does....

Allies: None! As somepony who had been present in AoH dimension two days tops Ossia simply hadn't had time to make any.

Enemies: As if in contrast with her current lack of allies, Ossia brought with her quite a number of grudges, and even managed to cultivate a new ones.

Moonlight Knight - Hated by Ossia with intensity of thousand suns, slaying the blue alicorn seems to be one of the goals she has in AoH dimension. Strangely enough di Nerezza refers to her exclusively as Nightmare Moon....

Sunlight Sentinel - Not so much hated as feeling a great scorn towards her, Ossia has nothing but disdain for world most famous heroine. In her own words "Despite all of her power she's a joke of an alicorn. An utter failure no matter the timeline or dimension." di Nerezza appears to know Sentinel true name, and uses it when referring or speaking about her.

Rainboom Centurian - The pink alicorn seems to hate the blue mare almost as much as she does the Moonlight. Mysteriously enough Ossia spoke about Rainboom and Nightmare Night as if they were associates in some great sin committed against de Nerezza - despite the fact that Centurian actually fought Nightmare at one point!

[PLACEHOLDER: Candance Superhero Couterpart] - Unlike other superheoes, Ossia appears to have more complex relationship  with Mi Amore then with other heroes. di Nerezza appears to be obsessed with her counterpart and even tries to emulate her in some ways. She openly adores and reveres Cadance abilities, looks and status as alicorn of love - to the point of being extremely creepy about it. At the same time however she criticizes her for repeating mistakes of Sentinel and Knight instead of "Becoming so much more then those failures." and not living up to her utmost potential. Cadance is also the only pony Ossia sees as an only truly worthy opponent - a honor she doesn't extend to Moonlight and Sunlight despite their greater power and her scorn for them.

Avalon Five - di Nerezza holds a grudge against the group for a simple reason of foiling her once before. However since their meeting happened so many years ago three of the team's members passed away due to old age, while the remaining two now live in secluded retirement. Still, if a group of heroes would decide to carry on the team legacy, it's quite possible that they would inherit Ossia resentment towards the name as well.

Hopesguard - Ossia despises the team for the very same reason as she does the Avalon Five - foiling her plans. However their interruption is far more recent, and they managed to do so not once but twice. The vindictive alicorn made sure to engrave into her memory name and the face of every single member she faced, so she can 'repay' them in case their paths cross again.

Notability: She is only known by the past Hopesguard members and those with the access to their former database. However because  of her uncanny resemblance to certain alicorn superheroine, Ossa can be easily mistaken for her.

Love conquers all.

It is, although it suffers from lack of supervillians.

Behold! The secret never revealed before! The one and only, origin story of CIRAXIS!

Okay, okay let's put ham and drama aside.

Long ago when he as but a kid yours only played a both Baldur's Gate games and came to greatly enjoy them. Then, few years after that came another from the franchise on PS2 known as Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance. It of course shared the setting withe the previously mentioned games, but in play-style it was anything like them. Luckily by that time I came to like hack-and-slash games by that time as well (thanks to Diablo and Diablo 2 among other things). One of the bosses was an white dragon Ciraxis. While not exactly the hardest boss in the world, I always was a sucker for ice levels and it helped that the dragon had an awesome theme as well (Created by Jeremy Soule so 'Duh!'). A few years back when internet was really starting taking off in my country I started coming out with different usernames for many websites and forums. One day when I was registrating on yet another one I recalled this awesome battle from BG:DA. So I took dragon's name for my own. And...well It grew on me. I was Ciraxis ever since, and the fact it's not an usual one helps too. I have yet to run into anyone sharing it with me, but I heard about at least three copycats from my net acquaintances.

Geeez...sometimes I have an impression I am an the last mecha anime fan here.

Not that there is anything wrong with the series presented. They awesome. It's just ....

By all mean what in Tartarus....?

"What." Squall said flatly after Fire reveled that their guest was as far removed from being 'a humble traveler' as it could get.

"WHAT?" he repeated when Discord took his true form. This wasn't Ponyville, wasn't it? Besides some nutjobs in the sewers Fillydelphia was as normal and serene of a place as it could be. So in Celestia Solar Flank, why was he here?!

"Probably to rearrange this 'normal and serene' a little." A snarky response came from a corner in his mind.

"...And walking nightmare of orthodontists everywhere." Squall added in a deadpan voice, right after Discords introduction. "Are we supposed to go 'Ohh' and 'Ahh' at your presence Discord? I am sorry but  despite what that book published by Miss Sparkle and friends says..." he paused "...I am not exactly thrilled by you being here, 'O God of Chaos'. Especially after your cross-country tournée you did with that centaur, me not being present in county back then notwithstanding." Swift said, going extra mile for his words to sting.

"Not only that, you used my goodwill to get inside and sow chaos, hiding who you really are, all for your own amusement. Not exactly a way to mend bad first impressions...." noblepony added, clearly barely holding his temper in check. "I should show you the door, right now!" swordpony raised his voice for a moment.

Swift took a long deep breath. And another. And again. Good.

"But it doesn't change that I welcomed you in. And Squallcoast never backtracks on his or her hospitality. Very well then. You can 'rest' within the walls of my manor. But after a sunrise next day, I want you out!" he growled, wrapping himself more tightly in his bathrobe, and storming off to the kitchen. He really needed some coffee right now....

I gave Captain High Tide (mentioned earlier in the thread) a slight re-design. I hope she is more likable in this version.

"<Well of course you would. But we Equestrians often say that the darkest place is under the candlestick.>" he mused as he took the papers and started skimming through them.

"<Only a bit?>" Squall inquired, for a moment taking his eyes from the letters. With each passing page noblepony smirk turned more and more into genuine grin, and his eyes sparked brighter and brighter.

"<Yes. That is exactly was what I was looking for and more.>" Swift said in a pleased tone. However second later he made a heavy sigh and set documents aside. "<Shame that we can't put all of those to use immediately. And not only because Tempest Corporation is yet to expand into industries those would be useful.>" unicorn said while making a 'bridge' with is front hooves.

"<We have to go through through the motions to make it appear that we attained it on our own. Make some improvements in meantime. For example, from what can I read here, Neighponese make their golems only from natural materials. Waste of potential if you ask me. And what do you think Miss Henka ?>" Squall asked.

"<Still, whenever we put products using those patterns on the market doesn't really matter. What was earned was time. Thanks to these, my researchers can spent their time on inventing truly new designs, instead of cracking those on their own. And time is an only thing you can't buy.>" swordpony mused.

"<You fulfilled your part of the deal Miss Henka.>" his focus shifted to a mare before him. "<Now it's time to fulfill mine.>" Squall stood from behind a desk and walked to the bookshelf. Clearly a hidden safe of some kind. Moments later he returned and put down....

"<A deed from the mountain valley I described in or previous meeting, as was promised. All it needs is your signature Miss Yūrei.>" Squall explained as he pointed down the documents. Swift even had enough foresight to have copies in both Equestrian and Neighponese.

"<And of course, the monetary reward. I don't have it here for obvious reasons. Besides I can't really see you walking with all of these through the streets, would you? That and, and I wasn't sure what form you would prefer. Coins, jewels or cheque? All can be arranged but waiting period for each would be different.>"

Business-stallion felt silent for a moment before speaking again.

"<Miss Henka, as you can see, I am employer who's word you can trust. And now I can say the same about you as well. When we first met, I expressed interest in making this partnership permanent. My offer still stands.>" he explained before opening his drawer and laying yet another document on the table.

"<The skill and abilities of your Clan would be a great boons.....both for my corporation and myself. But it isn't just monetary arrangement. I will support Clan Henka in every way I can Miss Yūrei. Resources, healthcare, equipment, retirement plans, insurance, legal aid, all kind of necessary things...and of course appropriate cover that would justify expenses coming with these.>" Squall said.

"<Under my payroll your Clan would receive two kind of contracts. One-shots, and permanent ones. One shots would've been like the one we just resolved. A various missions with different parameters, with reward for each discussed individually. The others would be continuous, with regular payments each month just like any other job. For example you service just now was about....industrial espionage.>" Squall muttered, making a grimace at 'espionage' part. "<I am not a fool, I have full awareness that the similar thing can happen to Tempest Corporation, and I wouldn't realize until it was too late. I have to take countermeasures against it. And who would be better at counter-espionage, then shinobi who know it like back of their hooves? After all, it takes one to know one.>" Squall spread his forelegs with a smile. "<Our agreement about honesty would still stand, but now officially. In addition I vow to not involve your Clan in the situations that could turn political, without Your prior agreement that is.>" noblepony promised

"<And last but not least, this agreement wouldn't prevent you from taking jobs from other private and not private employers. As long as they not harm my corporation, myself or ponies and non-ponies from my closest environment you will be free to undertake and pursue them, just as you did before.>" he explained.

The office fell silent. Clearly what Squall just offered would take a time to digest. More and more seconds passed before business pony stood up and walked towards the window. 

"<I know it may be a little much, but please consider it Miss Yūrei. Someone of you kind is both pragmatic, and has enough foresight to see where true prosperity lays. And I will admit it first - Equestria may be one of world's biggest countries, but for a long, way too long  it was a moldered, sleeping giant. But now...now after a millennium of static, giant woke up, and changes are coming - and mark my words - they will only come only faster and faster. This means changes, many of them. And as we both know changes.....changes provide opportunities. Opportunities for work and prosperity. Your homeland is a wonderful country, but as I remember it steadily becomes harder and harder to find job requiring your skills there. Shogunate prefers to rely on their own agents instead, now that they don't have to worry about Long Guo anymore...>" Swift pointed out. "<As I said during our last meeting, You are smart enough not to put all your eggs in one basket. But there is more than that. If we join forces we can determinate both the shape, and size of this new basket.>"

"<So....what do you say Miss Henka? Read this contract if you still have doubts. See? There are no tricks, no small letters, no additional pages - everything is just as I said. Believe me, I really care for this to be fair and equal relationship. If you want to add more points we can discuss this as well. If you want to discuss this with your Clan I can wait as well. I offer you partnership, loyalty and friendship now and in the future. And besides, if you look closely at my signature I already put on it...>" noblepony mused as he started to roll up sleeve of his trench coat "<...I offer precaution more secure then just my word Yūrei. Written or not.>" unicorn turned around, presenting Henka his bandaged wrist.

Well, well, well....that was unexpected...kind of. It's not like he wasn't foreseeing Henka's return, because he did. Just not so soon.

"<That was rather quick.>" he mused while looking at the calendar standing on his desk. Two weeks wasn't a long time at all. Was her Clan working double shifts or something?

Squall then focused on the way Yūrei appeared in his office. The familiar smirk crept on unicorn's face as he leaned back in his comfortable chair. If he had any doubts about his suspicions from their first meeting, now they were dispelled. Not that he had to vocalize this. He can prod about it in a friendly manner when the good opportunity in the conversation arises.

"<You would need stamps for that I am afraid. And envelope. Large one at that.>" Squall sassed. The hour was very late at this point, and besides he doubted that Yūrei would mind. After all the only limit he placed was on flirting "<And we don't wear pants.>" he added in snarky tone. Metaphor, schmetaphor.

"<Well in any case, I assume it's important? But before you start let me ask, important or very important? As in - 'Can't wait till morning' important? I mean, do you know what hour it is?>" Squall asked. It was clear that he wasn't really serious. Apparently he just needed to vent after a really long day. "<I mean sure we can talk now, but I am curious. Are you always on nigh-shift or do you just hate waiting rooms and queues that much?>" unicorn inquired as he waved his hoof.

"<Well okay. Fine, let's go. Let's go and have it behind us.>" Swift quickly gave up as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. When his gaze met hers again his expression was serious. Time for goofiness was over.

"<I assume you have copies or transcripts of what I asked you for? It would be very problematic if they would notice that they secrets were leaked. And speaking of problems, was there any issues you ran across during the mission?>"