//------------------------------// // WW3 grand tour // Story: Side Step // by Vocbox //------------------------------// War, war never changes. It brings conflict, murder, suffering, and sorrow…Strife. It’s something that I ADORE, personally. It is said that only a few things are certain, death and taxes being among them. But the truth is that some things are always true because humans can’t let them go. Which brings us once again to war…I believe that’s the third time I’ve said it, too. Hmmhmmhmmm, World War Three is in fact the reason I’m here. Finally, something beautiful has come about from mere human selfishness! But unfortunately humans have run themselves into the gutters, the rat-holes in the remains of their once-great planet Earth. ‘Tis a sad fate that they’ve brought upon themselves… which will ultimately end in my demise. So I guess it’s my cosmic duty to pick up Earth’s broken children and force them back to the war they seem to have abandoned. Well, maybe not quite the same way, war would be boring if it were fought the same way each time. So with a heavy sigh I resign myself to scouring the planet’s discordant surface in search of human life worth… reclaiming. In the great states a man sits at a desk with his name upon it—Captain Bartholomew Samuel Barracuda. He was once a great captain who piloted and commanded a fleet of newly-invented hovercraft to wage war against the various foes. Ha! With the aerial advantage, he slaughtered many humans, and ordered the death of so many more. It was the highlight of his miserable life. He’s quite the man for the job, so long as death is what you are after. How he sits there, purposeless, without drive… it makes me sick. I may have to change that soon, for better or worse. Another resident of the ruined states of America is Adam Forrest: a scavenger who avoided the whole war. Oh he’s QUITE the little Samaritan, that one. Always does what he can for the other survivors, always looking to avoid conflict. It’s about time he participated instead of sitting in the sidelines. As coach of this post-apocalyptic shindig I think it’s only fitting I pick the players; and he’s definitely a team player… I know he’ll do fine for what I have in store. A while southwards leads me to a charming young lad with a penchant for his silver tongue, Richard Dixon. He was a conman before the war, and a force to be reckoned with afterwards. I like him, for sure. He’ll be included in this scenario of mine. What better way to stack the odds than with a man who has been stacking odds all his life? He may not be a serpent with all of the children he looks after, but he’s no patron saint either. I can scarcely imagine why such a man could feel for these urchins… he’s off to a good start, but I’ll just have to make sure he heads out on the path I want him to take. Within South America in a wasteland what was a breathtaking forest only years prior, a “hero” stands upon a cliff, looking…well…he might find it heroic. It’s definitely a pose. Maybe he’s brooding? Ah, no, just surveying--as is the duty of Blake Erickson Stillwater, a bodyguard. He defends the caves nearby quite well from any would-be bandits, never needing to take more than a few shots to dissuade an attacking force, or to simply annihilate them. A strong sense of justice, do I feel. No dull moments around this stalwart hero. I’ll make good use of this one to be sure… Next up on this grand world tour is a little place not far from Cairo, where a businessman regrets quite a few things that he has lost. His life he once knew so well had slipped from his fingers the moment his plane landed on the opposite side of the world, when the first attack was sprung and the US was bombarded. A picture of his friends lay at his feet with the toys they had given him as a joke to hold on to while he was away on business. What good were these brightly colored equines supposed to do him, if the life they reminded him of every day was no more than a distant memory? And what could I possibly have in store for Mr. Jason King? Time will tell, I suppose. Only so much can be done, his will is only carried on by holding those small toys, the last remaining link he has, close by at all times. At last we find the female lead! I had been wondering where all the girls had disappeared off to… I guess they don’t call it the brink of extinction for nothing! Xena Darrow, the poor girl, a loner from before the war, and I can see living in isolation has done her no favors. Perhaps involving this one will give a different flavor to the mix, a bit of salt maybe, just a pinch. A shame to let her continue on as is, though, to be sure. I can’t have lone wolf entities on my team, but I simply MUST get her to realize the potential she has kept under a surface of uncaring attitudes! Hmm, she still clings to her only friend, a doll. Tsk, tsk, tsk. Such bad habits will be broken soon enough… Well I think that’s good enough for now… A simple group of six should suffice for what I’m about to unleash, or at least should kick it off to a great start. What better way to rejuvenate an entire race than by reintegrating them together somewhere completely different? A change of scenery never hurt anyone. Besides, I can’t just let these pawns of mine get by just because they can rely on their known world! Humankind has been wallowing in the aftermath of its own mistakes for far too long, and this is my plan to change all that. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Meanwhile, in another land, the benevolent and semi-omnipotent ruler sensed an invasion as some other god-entity peeked in on Equestria. It was going to be a very interesting time ahead, this much she could sense. Princess Celestia sighed to herself, remembering how not long ago Discord had gotten freed and run rampant. “At least this time we have some warning before it occurs. That much shall have to do.” Celestia said with resignation. And with that, she picked up a quill and parchment, preparing the request she would send her faithful student, Twilight Sparkle, to once again be prepared for an extradimensional being’s antics. My faithful student, Twilight Sparkle, I am writing to you in order to prepare you for your next task. It seems that once again you might have to take up the Elements of Harmony to halt the progress of a powerful creature. I am sorry to ask this much of you and your friends, but I know that you can handle any task together. You have faced dragons and Discord, deadlines and doldrums, and I believe in you. So far, we know that this being is spying on Equestria, hesitant to make his move. I am sending this to you now only because I wish for you to be prepared, not that you will need to rise to the occasion immediately. Nonetheless, please come to Canterlot with your friends to collect the elements, we must be prepared. -Princess Celestia “…we must be prepared. Signed, Princess Celestia…” Spike read aloud while Twilight Sparkle sat stunned next to him. “This is bad news, Twilight! We gotta get everypony right away!” Twilight stared on for a moment before regaining her senses. “There’s no time to lose, Spike! We’re on another important mission from Princess Celestia again, you get Rarity and Fluttershy, and I’ll find Applejack, Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash. We meet back here as soon as possible.” Twilight began to trot to the door of the library/tree of knowledge. Spike hurried to catch up; being short made it hard to keep up with ponies. They exited the Library and ran off in different directions. It was going to be a more exciting day than planned.