11 -- Rescue
"The chains we place upon ourselves are never easy to remove, and those forged by guilt are the hardest by far."
--Starswirl the Bearded (attributed)
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19:27, 11/02/2015, CANTERLOT STAGING AREA
Victor Spiegel wasn't an overly religious man, having spent the majority of his church time growing up trying desperately not to fall asleep. His time with the Air Force hadn't changed this much, as he had seen enough of the horrors of the world (albeit at altitude) to realise that no kind and loving God would allow such things to continue. Over the past few months, Victor had become certain that God did exist, and that He was no more kind and loving than a child that brought a magnifying glass to an anthill just to torture the insects.
"Uhm... Mister Spiegel?" the yellow coated and pink maned Pegasus beside him asked. Her gaze went to the floor the moment the human looked at her, and her voice dropped to almost less than a whisper. "I was just wondering if you knew Twilight when she was on your world. You've got that patch just like Mister Harris, Mister Zhang, and Miss Jenkins, so I just..." Fluttershy, Victor remembered the name from the briefing materials, continued to talk despite the fact that her voice was simply too quiet to be heard in the bustle of the staging area.
"I didn't know her. I became a part of Captain Harris's group after she had been returned here," Victor said as he kept his voice studiously neutral while he glared down at the purple symbol emblazoned on the shoulder pauldron of the carapace armor he now wore. I'm not exactly lying either, he thought with just a bit of self-deprecating ill will. A long pause stretched on awkwardly between the two as Fluttershy tried desperately to think of some conversation topic to fill the void, and Victor focused all his willpower on the futile wish that the past six months were nothing more than a bad dream.
"Twilight's told us a little bit about what's happening on your world," the timid Pegasus said. "Is it really that bad there?"
"It's worse," Victor answered almost instantly, and he carefully averted his eyes from Fluttershy's reaction. Great job, Vic. You just drop kicked a puppy. Feel proud?
Any further attempts at conversation were put on hold as a third figure approached them. It was Equestrian in body type, but was hidden beneath a heavy brown cloak. Its weapon was also wrapped, but judging by the profile it was most certainly some form of polearm. The newcomer's features were hidden within the depths of the hood, but a hoof wrapped in black and gray stripes was wrapped around the spear as though it were no more difficult than Victor holding a pencil.
Zebras, Unicorns and Pegasi, Victor thought, and was only partially successful in suppressing a grimace. Doesn't make them any less dangerous or competent. We might scoff at a spear in this day and age, but that doesn't change the fact that the Zebra volunteer who showed up on Earth reduced Mutons to little more than a pile of dislocated limbs and impotent rage with little more than a glorified shower curtain rod.
The cloaked Zebra bowed to Fluttershy before speaking in a deep baritone, "I thank you for your assistance, Miss Fluttershy. My students have been gone too long, and I am afraid that the implications of their delay is quite clear. If we may find and retrieve them I would be most grateful, but the citizen that remains in the forest is the priority."
Fluttershy nodded immediately and said, "I'm glad that I can help out. Aside from Applejack and Twilight, I'm the best pony to take you to Zecora's home. I also know all the animals in the area, so they can help us look for your friends too!" Her burst of confidence proved to be brief as she began to falter. "Um, if it's not too much trouble, could I ask your name?"
The cloaked figure did not reply for several moments before speaking. "I have no name I wish to share, but you may call me Watcher." Watcher's hood turned to face Victor and he half expected a set of evil glowing eyes to become visible. "I have heard rumors of the mysterious friends that Princess Sparkle had made during her... absence. I thank you for volunteering to assist in this matter."
I'm not Twilight's friend, and I didn't volunteer, Victor thought bitterly before he was able to clamp down on the dark thoughts. Rather than dwell on that and potentially let slip something that was politically destructive, he changed the subject. "The briefing stated this would be a quick in-and-out operation to retrieve someone left behind in the forest, yes?" Both of the non-humans nodded in response to the question. "Are both of you familiar with human forms of combat?" Watcher nodded after just a moment but Fluttershy shook her head. "I need direct lines of sight to fight and my weapons will wound or kill anything between myself and my target. If I give the order to drop, you will drop until the threat is gone. Understood?"
The harshness in Victor's tone was enough to make Fluttershy cringe and look away, but she nodded to indicate her understanding of the instructions. "I really don't think there's any real danger while I'm there, Mister Spiegel. Most of the animals in the forest know me and I can make the mean ones go away," the Pegasus offered meekly.
"I prefer being prepared for the worst," Victor answered, and he briefly lamented the fact that the Carapace armor and laser rifle he had been issued didn't go nearly far enough in his opinion. "We should head to the flight line. The sooner we go, the sooner we'll get back." The trip from the staging point to the flight line took less than a minute, and Victor laid eyes upon their improbable mode of transportation.
Two Pegasi were standing idle near the chariot that was undoubtedly meant to take them to the area of operations, and Victor had a rare pang of sympathy and understanding for Sergeant Jenkins. No lift or control services, no safety harnesses or features besides the rail, and the propulsion system is a mythical creature, he thought to himself. It seems Sergeant Jenkins is a bit more reasonable than I expected if she was able to realise the impossibility of this silly thing. At least one of the Pegasi looks to be a veteran from Earth.
"Ah, Corporal Spiegel!" the black-armored Pegasus greeted with a hoof wave, and Victor couldn't help but notice a pair of retractable claws that were now built into the fetlock armor in place of the modified plasma pistols that the Equestrians had used while on Earth. "I'll be running overwatch for your group, though I don't know how effective I'll be given how dense the trees are in Everfree."
The gray coat and easy smile of the talking Pegasus pulled at Victor's memory as he struggled to recall his name. "I'd rather have someone on overwatch than not, Headwind. Who's driving the bus?" he asked while looking to the larger Pegasus attached to the chariot.
"Crosswind," the Equestrian in question introduced gruffly before shaking his head at the smaller guard. "No relation to the runt. I'll be taking you to the edge of the forest and dropping you off, but I'm not staying down any longer than I have to. As much I hate lugging this dead weight around, I'd rather be in the air than waiting on the ground for some ground pounder to come eat me."
Despite the gruff manner, Victor couldn't help but smile. "I was just about to suggest that. It's reassuring to know that our ticket home has someone smart in the front seat," he said as he slipped his helmet on before turning to Watcher and Fluttershy. Victor produced a pair of radios designed specifically for Equestrians before explaining. "These will let you keep in contact with me as well as the air support, and they will mark your current location for Headwind and I. Are there any questions?"
No questions were immediately apparent, and after a quick radio check the trio boarded the chariot and ascended into the evening sky.
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When Victor spotted the burned-out ruins of a small town while on the way to the forest, he nearly smacked his forehead. "Headwind, Spiegel. Has there been any enemy activity in this area since we got here?" Stupid mistakes get you killed. Here you were worried about getting eaten by a bear in the forest when you neglected to ask about the real threat in the area.
"Locals reported a possible alien airship making a low pass over the forest, but that's unconfirmed. The only thing of strategic value in Everfree is the Tree of Harmony, but the Rangers nearby confirmed that the Tree's chamber has sealed itself. Nopony except the Princesses could hope to gain access to it now," Headwind reported, and it took Victor more than a few moments to pick the Pegasus out of the evening sky even with the low light amplification in his helmet.
The Tree of Harmony, the source of the Elements of Harmony and the lynchpin of their defense against everything that has threatened the Equestrians recently, Victor remembered idly. I wonder how morale is affected when your trump card officially doesn't want any part of the war? Still, if there are Ranger stations in the forest, why are we needed? "I'm assuming the Rangers are familiar with the forest? Have they been contacted to assist with the search for the VIP?"
Headwind's response came after just a moment of hesitation. "Most of the Ranger stations in the forest were abandoned when the Princesses issued the general call to arms. The few remaining stations still staffed in the forest were supposed to report for duty at the nearest towns, but they've failed to do so. A ranger guide also went out with a few Zebra yesterday evening, but they haven't been in contact since."
Damn it. "Is there anything in the forest that might present a substantial threat to those that enter? I doubt everyone entering the forest just got lost."
Headwind's response was a sharp laugh. "The list might be shorter if you ask what isn't a threat in Everfree. Chimera, Hydras, Cockatrices..." The list of mythical creatures continued for nearly a minute before the Pegasus wound to a close. "Be careful of where you step since the plants are mean all on their own. If you see little blue flowers, avoid them like the plague."
"Damn right," Crosswind agreed with a grumble. "I touched just one of the blue blighters and I couldn't fly at all for a week."
"I'll keep that under advisement. How likely are we to be attacked by the wildlife?" Victor asked as he fought down visions of horrifying monsters waiting within the dark forest that was just entering his view.
"Not likely unless we do something to provoke them," Fluttershy spoke this time, and the amount of confidence in her tone was surprising to Victor. "They won't recognize a human as part of their diet and will try to avoid you unless you go out of your way to be threatening to them or invade their territory. I know where their dens are so we should be able to avoid most of the creatures living in the forest. And if we're unlucky, I'll take care of them."
Somehow I don't think asking nicely will get you far with the teeth and claws crowd, Fluttershy, Victor thought, and he very nearly said as much before stopping himself. Not happy with the just one puppy drop kick in the last hour, Victor? he asked himself darkly before changing the subject. "Crosswind, what's our ETA?"
"We'll be touching down in about thirty seconds," The larger Pegasus reported. "Don't dawdle once we're down. That forest gives me the creeps and I want to be in the air five seconds after my hooves hit the dirt. Send a signal once you're at the edge of the forest and ready for retrieval; I'll swoop down to get you."
"Copy that," Victor said before doing one last check of his gear out of habit as they descended. Three sickle magazine-shaped batteries for his laser rifle were tucked into the pouches around his waist, while the fourth was already attached to his weapon. A laser pistol with a pair of smaller power cells sat in the holster on his right thigh. A pair of grenades, smoke and frag, rounded out his combat inventory. Major Fujikawa thought I was joking when I asked for all this kit for a walk in the woods. I thought she was joking when she asked me to go into these woods by myself with anything less.
Victor's focus was brought back to the present when the chariot jostled and Watcher leapt out the back. The human followed immediately after and brought his rifle up to scan the tree line. Fluttershy hopped out of the chariot and not a second later it rose into the sky. With no immediate threats becoming apparent, Victor straightened and slowly began to scan their surroundings.
"Um... Mister Spiegel? We should probably get going," Fluttershy asked after a minute of Victor's scanning had passed.
"Right, let's move," Victor agreed as he turned to follow the two Equestrians into the forest. Memorizing the retreat location should give us a quick escape option if necessary, but only if I had a PSI amp. I wonder if the powers that be are aware that I can't exactly use my abilities consistently without the booster?
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The first ten minutes into the forest had been far too quiet for Victor's nerves. He had expected some of the normal sounds of a forest at night. Nocturnal birds or owls, or the occasional grunt or sounds of a larger animal moving through the underbrush should have been par for the course. Instead there was near total silence. The only sound that could be heard was the footfalls of Victor's group and the faint howling of the late fall winds in the distance.
I'm the first to admit that I'm no woodsman or whatever, but I can tell that something's wrong here, Victor thought to himself as he assumed the tail position in the group. Occasionally Fluttershy or Watcher would call the group to a halt to point out some detail in their surroundings. The few times that they had asked for the human's feedback, he had simply nodded to indicate he was listening. It was only when they pointed out disturbed vegetation, tufts of fur, and dark patches that might have been blood in the soil that the picture became a bit clearer that something had been fighting close by.
Ten more minutes passed in total silence as the trio continued down the path, only for Watcher to call a halt to inspect the ground beneath his hooves. "Hoof marks are here and here," the Zebra pointed to two seemingly indistinguishable patches of dirt. I recognize the style of shoes; these would belong to my apprentices. The last set no doubt belongs to the Ranger that was guiding them. The spacing of their gait seems to indicate they were in a rush. They may have been chased by whatever left these tracks."
How the hell is he even seeing this? Victor couldn't help but ask himself. I've got low light vision in my helmet and it looks like featureless dirt to me. When Fluttershy stepped forward to examine the tracks, Victor spotted the last set that Watcher had mentioned.
"This doesn't look like any sort of creature that I've ever met in the forest," Fluttershy offered doubtfully. "Most walk on paws or claws that would show clear indentations of the number of digits on each limb as well as give a good indication of size and weight. These tracks look more like what you see on the sides of trees when Chimera like to sharpen their claws." True enough, the 'tracks' they were currently analyzing looked like little more than slash marks along the ground rather than the weighted depressions Fluttershy had described.
"We should pick up the pace. Whatever left those tracks might still be out there, and I don't want to meet it," Victor said as he straightened. "Headwind, do you copy?"
"Solid copy, Spiegel. What's up?"
"Are you seeing any disturbances in the forest from your current location? Anything that might indicate there's a predator about?" Victor asked.
"Negative on predators, Spiegel, but I am seeing buzzards to the south of you. It shouldn't be too far off your path if you want to check it out," Headwind replied, and he hesitated for just a moment before speaking again. "They've actually been circling for as long as I've been watching them, which is all kinds of odd. If I didn't know better, I'd say they saw something they wanted, but didn't want to go down and get it."
"Copy that, Headwind. Keep your eyes open," Victor signed off before turning to the others.
"The buzzards might be circling that long because somepony's really hurt! We should go there now!" Fluttershy said quickly, all her hesitation gone when faced with the possibility of a friend being hurt. She turned and trotted in the direction indicated without any further prompting. Watcher's reaction was far more pragmatic as he removed the sleeve that covered the head of his spear before turning to follow. Once again, Victor fell into the tail position, but not before switching his laser rifle from semi to full auto.
Several more minutes passed as they took a much rougher path. More obvious signs of struggle became apparent the longer they went, with broken branches, crushed plants and more than a little blood on the ground. Fluttershy's strangled cry was the first sign that they had found something more than just circumstantial evidence. A severed Pegasus wing with several broken feathers lay on the side of the path, and Fluttershy did her best not to look at it. Watcher observed it with a clinical detachment that spoke volumes of his experience with bloodshed.
Victor's senses were less on the severed limb on the ground and more on the forest around them as he expected something... anything to come out at them. The forest wasn't kind enough to play to his expectations. For a long moment the only thing Victor could hear was his own breathing and his heart hammering in his chest. Fluttershy was the one to finally break the silence, much to Victor's surprise.
"Okay, okay," the Pegasus muttered as she forced herself to look at the wing on the ground with visible effort. "Losing a wing isn't fatal and there isn't enough blood or drag marks on the ground that would show where the pony died. The blood that's here is completely dried, so he's probably in a lot of trouble. We have to find him, or his... body, to be sure."
"Did you get all that, Headwind?" Victor asked, unwilling to take his eyes off of the forest around him to check on Fluttershy's condition.
"Affirmative," Headwind replied with a troubled tone. "There's only a bit further before you reach whatever the buzzards are circling. I've seen neither hide nor hair of any monsters in your area, but with the trees I can't make any guarantees. I'll keep watch as best I can."
The trio silently followed the path of disturbed vegetation for several minutes before finally locating the missing Pathfinders and their Ranger escorts. The bodies had been torn to pieces so thoroughly that Victor couldn't be certain just how many had died in the small clearing. He gave silent thanks that his helmet was filtering the air as he saw Watcher and Fluttershy recoil from the scene before them.
"What would do this?" Victor wondered aloud while trying to keep his tone neutral.
Much to Victor's surprise, Fluttershy provided the answer. "The condition of th-the bodies looks like a monster attack, but there's no sign of f-feeding. They were just killed and l-left here. If no scavengers have come to... well, if they aren't here then it’s possible the monster that did this is close and it's scaring them." The Pegasus tore her wide eyes away from the grizzly scene before her and gave a pleading look to Watcher and Victor. "We have to find Zecora, now!"
She's stronger than I gave her credit for, Victor admitted grudgingly as he saw just how much it took out of Fluttershy to give her summary of the scene. That positive opinion quickly soured as she turned and bolted into the underbrush with Watcher quick to catch up to her. "Wait, wait! Don't go rushing into things! You said it yourself that the monster is still somewhere out there!" Victor shouted as he tried to keep up.
The IFF tags of Watcher and Fluttershy were the only sign Victor had to follow as he plowed through the forest with all the grace of a gutshot elephant. He had no idea how much time passed but to his adrenaline-fueled senses it felt like hours before he finally caught up. If there is some monster in the forest, it knows we're here now. This 'Zecora' had better be here or we might have to scrub the mission.
The two Equestrians had stopped in another small clearing near a gnarled, old tree with a doorway and a pair of small windows alongside it. As Victor approached he could see several slashes and gouges around the doorway, and the door itself was reduced to shreds and scattered inside the home itself. Fluttershy and Watcher were inspecting the interior, with the former looking increasingly distraught while the latter appeared to be eyeing the window on the far side of the home. That window was completely shattered… and while Victor couldn't be certain, he thought he saw tufts of black and white hair along with blood along the window frame.
Yoda's hut, Victor couldn't help but think as he surveyed the room. Sure, there's little details that are different, but this sure looks like Yoda's hut. This Zecora apparently lives the life of a mysterious hermit, she only has to look like a muppet and talk funny to fulfill the Yoda trifecta.
Snap
The twig breaking was faint and distant, but to Victor's ears it might as well have been a grenade going off as he whirled around. The laser rifle went up in the direction of the noise, but even with his low light amplification all Victor could see were the trees. Despite the lack of movement, he maintained his stance and the rifle at the ready even as he slowly panned his head to the left--
Crunch
A small copse of younger trees rustled as something big stumbled through them, and Victor was quick to bring it into his sights. "Contact, my position," Victor whispered as he maintained his position but held his fire as the source of the noise wandered into the clearing.
It might have been a bear, once. If it have stood on its back paws it would have easily dwarfed Victor, but the size was a minor detail that he made note of. Its entire coat was matted with blood and gore. Judging by the gaping wounds that Victor could see, at least half of the blood belonged to the bear. Dead, glassy eyes locked on to the human and it began to shuffle towards Victor with a low growl.
Victor's finger slipped from the trigger guard to the trigger and had just lined up a headshot when Fluttershy bolted from the house and right into his line of fire.
"GET DOWN, NOW!" Victor roared even as he tried to maintain his aim. The bear was a large target and the Pegasus was relatively small, so under normal circumstances he would have been confident enough to take a kill shot. Even a glancing shot to distract the bear would have been enough. Victor was well aware of this and was confident enough in his aim that he could follow through with that intent, but his trigger finger refused to move while Fluttershy was there.
Like an echo of that terrible moment all those months ago, Fluttershy turned to face Victor. Instead of painful expression that simply asked 'Why?', her features were twisted into an angry scowl. "Stop that right now! Can't you see he's hurt? He's probably had a fight with whatever is in the forest! I can ask if--" Anything else the Pegasus might have said was lost when one of the bear's club-like limbs smashed into her and sent her flying. Her involuntary flight ended when she collided with one of the trees that lined the clearing around Zecora's house.
"Engaging!" Victor shouted and let loose a three-beam burst against the bear. Matted fur sizzled and the bear stumbled towards the human, forcing him to open up in full auto. A flurry of killing light cut into the bear, and a lucky shot connected with its face and dropped it to the ground. Any relief Victor might have felt at the bear's death quickly died as something inside the bear began to move.
Sickeningly wet sounds of flesh tearing and bones breaking could be heard before the fur above the bear's shoulders pushed outward. A pair of chitinous claws tore at the skin and fur, and a massive insect-like monster emerged from the bear's corpse. Two glowing eyes locked onto Victor, and it launched itself forward on four blade-like legs. It reached forward with its gore-stained claws even as it howled for more blood.
The howl was cut short when Victor opened up with his rifle. A handful of beams missed the scuttling target and disappeared into the woods but the rest connected to lethal effect. Three beams blew craters in the chitin around the creature's chest, two more connected with the right shoulder and severed the limb, and the last two vaporized the monster's head.
"Headwind! Get command on the line right now! Confirmed Chryssalid presence in the forest!" Victor yelled into the radio as he ejected the spent battery and reached into his pouches for a full one. Headwind's response was lost on Victor as the bear's corpse shifted again and two more of the monsters emerged and charged. A thousand curses rattled around Victor's head as he rushed to reload his weapon only for the battery to slip from his hand and fall to the ground. Even as he scrambled to grab the battery, a brown blur sped past Victor as Watcher entered the fight.
Watcher's cloak flew off and wrapped around the leading Chryssalid just as the Zebra leapt into the air. Both of his rear hooves came down on the blinded monster and he leapt even higher into the air and came down spear first on the last Chryssalid. The weapon pierced its target cleanly and pinned the monster to the ground. The leading alien tore the cloak that had blinded it to shreds and whipped around to pursue the Zebra. Watcher hadn't spared so much as a glance at the other Chryssalid as he clung to the top of his spear and bent the shaft as his falling momentum carried him to the ground. The moment his hooves touched the dirt, he released the spear. It sprang back to its upright position and crunched into the face of the Chryssalid with enough force to send it flying backwards. It stumbled about for a moment longer before Victor killed it with a well-placed laser beam.
"Spiegel, Command," Fujikawa's voice entered Victor's helmet, sounding tense. "Confirm Chryssalid contact."
"Confirmed, Chryssalids and Zombies are in the forest. The previous team sent in is KIA and our civilian guide is wounded. There is no sign of the VIP. Requesting permission to extract," Victor rattled off as he kept the corpses covered while sparing a glance to Fluttershy. The timid Pegasus was sprawled out at the bottom of the tree and her wide eyes were locked on the corpse of the bear. Even as Watcher went to check on her, Fluttershy's eyes were locked on the dead animal.
The moment passed as Fujikawa quickly reported, "Affirmative, Spiegel. Luna is scrambling assets to quarantine and purge the forest. Your new objective is to escort the civilian guide to extraction ASAP. Good luck, Command out."
Victor side-stepped towards the two Equestrians before taking a moment to kneel. "We have to go," he said quickly to Watcher, who was still checking Fluttershy over for any obvious injuries. "Is she safe to travel?"
Watcher turned and looked up at Victor with seemingly ancient eyes. "I fear the deepest wounds she has are ones we cannot see. If she ever hopes to recover from them then we must leave this place now." Victor started to rise but Watcher continued, "You will have to carry her. She cannot move on her own."
A protest rose but was quickly crushed by the memory of a little purple unicorn looking at him with a pain-filled expression as she fell to the ground. Without a word, Victor slid the laser rifle onto his back and hefted the Pegasus onto his left shoulder while he drew his pistol with his right hand. The human rose with his burden on his shoulder and was just about to speak when he heard a howl that was too loud and hungry to be the wind.
"Spiegel, Headwind! I recommend you shift it double quick because I'm seeing a lot of movement heading your way from the south and east. Trees are preventing positive identification but I'd bet my bits you're going to be swimming in Chryssalids in a minute."
"Copy that, lets move!" Victor turned and ran back to the north to retrace his steps with Watcher pulling ahead. The Zebra didn't so much as slow down for a moment as he wrenched the spear from the ground and Chryssalid corpse in one flowing move before pulling ahead of Victor.
They had run for less than a minute before a Chryssalid dropped from an overhanging tree limb and onto the path in front of them. The impromptu ambush was batted aside with the butt of Watcher's spear and then they were long past it. Please let that be my imagination, Victor thought as he heard the clatter of potentially dozens of Chryssalids gaining on him. He poured every last ounce of his strength into his running and he nearly tripped as Watcher spun on one hoof and crouched low. Victor turned his sprint into a flying leap over the nearly prone Zebra, and his unspoken question of 'why' was answered just a moment later.
"Do not stop! Flee!" Watcher commanded, and Victor didn't dare look over his shoulder. A bare moment passed and the clatter of chitin was augmented with Chryssalid howls and the crack of the spear striking the alien insect's exoskeletons. The battle was far too short, and the Chryssalid pursuit resumed entirely too quickly for any escape on foot to be feasible.
So Victor attempted to escape through more arcane means. Even as he sprinted through the trees and planted each foot to avoid trip hazards, Victor tried to call up his memories of the landing area they had been dropped off at. Despite his best efforts, he couldn't hold the image of the area in his mind well enough to trigger his special talents. It's a goddamn grassy hill with a forest nearby. There's nothing distinguishable about the area that just stands out. It's a completely forgettable place, unlike Zecora's hut... Instantly, the brief view he had of their target's home came to mind, from the overturned cauldron in the center of the home, the broken window in the back and the tribal masks on the wall...
...And Victor nearly tripped and fell as he felt something akin to an ice pick bury itself in his skull as he teleported Fluttershy and himself to the abandoned home. A half a second later he did trip when his boot caught on a discarded piece of pottery which caused Victor to fall flat on his face. Fluttershy tumbled from his shoulder and came to rest at the hooves of the other occupant of the home.
The other occupant was a Zebra by the front door, the elusive Zecora if Victor had to guess, who had clearly seen better days. Scabbed over and hastily bandaged injuries covered her barrel and flanks, and she seemed to favor one of her rear legs over the other. Any further analysis was cut off when Victor shut his eyes to try and reduce the stabbing pain in his head. Mother of God that hurts. I must have given myself a stroke. There's no possible way anyone could speak in rhyme at a time like this. Victor's thoughts were interrupted when he tasted copper in his mouth, and he slipped the helmet off his head so he could bring one hand to his mouth and nose. I'm bleeding? When did that happen? No, not important. Must secure current position.
The human slowly stumbled to his feet even as he ignored the rhyming Zebra that he was still convinced was a hallucination. It didn't take too much effort to muscle the cast iron cauldron into the doorway and wedge it in place. The only other entrance that a Chryssalid might squeeze into was the rear window, and with a self-deprecating laugh, Victor jammed his helmet into it before righting an overturned bench and kneeling beside it. What good is there in blocking the entrances? This home is made out of freaking wood. The Chryssalids will need just a minute to tear the place apart.
With the only entrances secured as well as he could hope, Victor made his way to the center of the room. He didn’t spare a glance towards the still catatonic Fluttershy or Zecora as the Zebra gathered several items from the shelves before tending to the Pegasus. All he did was turn over a pair of stools that had been knocked over. Headwind’s confused questions were in his ear, which quickly dissolved into unintelligible gibberish when Victor removed his translator and set it on one of the stools while he sat in the other.
“Command, this is Corporal Victor Spiegel,” he started as he began to unload the rifle batteries and set them into a neat row on the bench before setting his laser pistol and its batteries down in a similar fashion. “Watcher is KIA. I have located the VIP but both she and the civilian guide are wounded. We’ve fortified the VIP’s residence, but we have no way of making it to extraction.” Victor took a long, ragged breath before continuing. “I am reporting Code Black on this operation. Spiegel out.” With nothing else to say, he pulled the headset off of his head and set it in its proper place on the table.
The low howls of the Chryssalids rattled the window panes near the front door, and Victor pulled his rifle from his back and brought it to his shoulder… but not before sparing a glance towards the pistol on the stool in front of him, then to the two other occupants in the room. Zecora had fashioned some form of splint or bandage and wrapped it around Fluttershy’s barrel, and was now stroking the Pegasus’s mane while humming a gentle tune or lullaby.
They don’t deserve what’s going to happen to them, Victor thought as his eyes once again settled on his laser pistol. I could make it quick and painless, and they’d never have to know what those things will do to their bodies. Just three shots and we’d all be free. The moment the thought struck him, the inner voice that had haunted him since May spoke up.
So eager to shoot more innocent creatures? Who’s the monster here?
One of the windows shattered as the first Chryssalid reached Zecora’s home. Claws powerful enough to tear flesh and bone grabbed the wood window frame and began to tear at the opening, only to stop when Victor fired a burst through the new opening. A second one replaced it almost instantly, only to die in a similar fashion. The third died attempting to breach the window and Victor took grim satisfaction when its body got snagged in the impromptu entrance.
The drained battery dropped to the floor and a fresh battery was slammed home just in time to take a snapshot at a pair of claws that had managed to wedge their way in between the door frame and the cauldron blocking the main entrance. Two more snap shots were fired at the other window as a target made itself known. The dead Chryssalid in the first window was torn to pieces as the monster behind it began to tear away at the wall itself. An unlucky shot severed one of the swiping claws and Victor stumbled backwards to avoid the unintentional projectile. One of his feet caught the stool mid fall and threw his carefully organized equipment to the ground.
It was only because of that misfortune that Victor had any warning for what followed next.
His headset tumbled to the floor beside him, and he had just caught the words, “Extraction is inbound,” when she appeared. A flash of purple light temporarily blinded Victor and he could only watch with growing horror as the light vanished to reveal Princess Twilight Sparkle. A second flash of light originated from the Alicorn and Zecora’s hut vanished only to be replaced by the flight line back at Canterlot. The bloodthirsty howls and Chryssalids crawling through the windows were gone, and in their place were flights of Pegasi taking off and heading south.
Twilight Sparkle’s back was turned to Victor as she held both Fluttershy and Zecora close even as several Equestrians in medical garb rushed forward to check on them. I have to get away, I can’t let her recognize me! Victor thought as he rose unsteadily and turned to leave while resisting the impulse to run. The Equestrian voices were all meaningless babble to him, but one voice rose over the rest, and in clearly understandable English.
“Thank you so much. I don’t want to think about what might have happened if you hadn’t been there to save my friends,” Twilight Sparkle said, and the sincerity in her voice just twisted the knife. A moment of hesitation passed before she asked, “I’m sorry, mister, but I didn’t catch your name.”
“No, ma’am. You didn’t,” Victor answered as he walked away as fast as he dared.
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Morning folks!
I got this done last night but I also noticed the warning about maintenance so I thought I'd delay it until today.
ALSO, now that my Destiny addiction is starting to wear down, I'll be spending time to reply to comments, which I've been woefully lax on with the previous two chapters.
And now to the real comment:
To those who made it this far, you guessed it. This chapter is Site Recon. It's also my first attempt at a tension-based action chapter, rather than a guns blazing chapter like I normally do. I hope you all like it, and I was really worried folks would guess ahead of time what was going to happen. I dropped some hints in Chapter 9. >_> Also, to those who prefer world building and character interaction over action, fear not! I have a lot of that planned for the coming few chapters.
One last thing, and I feel really bad for not sharing this sooner. I had Lana's conversation with Rainbow Dash planned for a long time, but this comic really helped me put the general theme of the conversation into words that made sense. Thought I should share!
For some reason this didn't show up in my "unread chapters" page, luckily I saw it on the front page's latest updates.
Just yes!
Ah, Victor, Victor, Victor... This really isn't your day.
5114159
Of course not. The Site is Made of Borked right now.
Also, knife-twisting is fun.
Stop that, he got you out safely, didn't he?
What else was he supposed to do?
*Holds out arms awkwardly, gives Fluttershy a hug.*
5114159 Gosh, the feed is all messed up, same for me !
Ha, the Tree of Harmony is like 'fuck this shit, I'm out'.
Ye of little faith.
Oh. The Everfree would be just a massive food source for Chryssalids, wouldn't it?
5114125
Hey Arad, ya might want to make a blog post tagged to this story.... seems it is not appearing in the "unread chapters" (only found out about it from it appearing in the Featured box on the front page).Edit: Had a lot of fun editing this chapter. The pacing was excellent, the tension of just waiting for something to happen kept me riveted.... and that 'no hope last stand' scene right there close to the very end: sent CHILLS down my spine.
All in all, couldn't ask for a better chapter.
5114240
On it now.
And here I thought the Everfree was bad enough on its own.
5114159
My guess is that this is because of the new update of the site. This is already the second chapter update I (almost) missed. In a few days when the biggest bugs are squashed the site probably will work like it did before.
5114250 Things ALWAYS get worse when Chyrssalids are involved.
Don't believe me... imagine if The Walking Dead's walkers.... EVERY ONE of them.... were just hosts for an incubating Chryssalid. Eeyup, things can ALWAYS go from horrible to hellish when those nightmare fuels on razor sharp legs are involved *shudders*.
5114194
Victor could probably say that for the past six months.
5114196
I like to think Fluttershy is the unintentional master of knife twisting.
5114221
You say Everfree, they hear 'Buffet'.
5114257
Yep!
Huh, comments are displaying as six days old even though I know you some of them were just posted in the last minute or two.
Shame for Victor that he didn't tell Twilight his name. She'd probably make him feel better about the whole "shooting her" thing he's so down about.
I don't know which is scarier.... Chryssalids or Xenomorphs.... Heaven help us (and the ponies) should these two extraterrestrial killing machines ever meet (and if one or the other impregnates the other).
And yes, I have been playing Alien: Isolation lol.
5114321 Ah, but that's the rub, isn't it? How do you tell someone you haven't seen in months, someone whom you shot out of fear because you THOUGHT they were the enemy? Especially after intense 'interrogations' for your actions and then subsequently being drafted by the organization who had been trying to keep that someone alive to prevent a second front opening up in an already intense war? After having months and months to let it simmer and stew, even if she told him she forgave him the guilt would still be eating him alive.
Really good work this time, Arad. The 'last stand' situation in the hut was really well done and this has improved my opinion of you dramatically. I look forward to the next chapter.
Ahh, that was awesome. Simpy awesome!
In other news, it's time to look for planets to colonize, because Equestria is screwed. Chryssalid forest? Haha, nothing short of dive bombing it with the sun is clearing that infestation.
It was a great chapter, but shouldn't the Everfree be in a perpetual state of war? I mean, in one of our forests, it would be a uncontroled plague, but a great deal of the dangerous stuff in the Everfree doesn't count as food either because it's too small to infest or because it's a plant or plantlike enough... all of those encounters would mean loses without the replenishing factor you associate with the bugs...
This is what happens when you don't finish the 'bomb the whale' mission.
Bomb the whale already, Bradley! It's or the best!
5114294
Fluttershy: I'm sorry if I hurt your feelings. I just wanted to thank you for saving me. *Applies awkward hugs*
Victor: *Screaming internally.*
Fluttershy: Isn't that all better? I forgive you for shooting that poor bear. No creature deserves to have that happen to them. I don't like your methods, but you're such a wonderful person besides that.
Victor: *Suffers diabetus attack. Does not survive.*
Ooh, an excellent update. I think you nailed your try at Tension here Arad. Though you also used the "Skilled native/specialist melee fighter dies holding the line" Trope. Boo!
Chryssalids would probably be rather annoyed by Greater Equestrian Mimic's.
ufopaedia.org/images/3/31/Site_Recon_%28EU2012%29.png
This f***ing place <.<
Just wondering, but how many of the extra things you add to this are based off the Long War mod? Because there have been a few similarities (which could be coincidental).
If you haven't played Long War I recommend it to anyone who can beat XCOM: Enemy Within on classic ironman (in Long War there is no easy difficulty and the normal is probably harder than vanilla classic in my opinion - or it is at the start anyway).
Also, Long War might give you some ideas about little things to add to this fic.
Lastly, will shit ever stop hitting the fan?
5114573 That mission wasn't so bad once you learned to not rush in. Hardest part was making it out without sacrificing your rear guard >.>
Well, that could've gone better. Still, it could've gone worse too. Looking forward to more.
Keep up the good work. Deus tecum.
Site recon with the entire Everfree forest as a chrissalid buffet...
Aaand there goes my peaceful nights.
Oh god, it's Chryssalids, isn't it?
YEP IT'S CHRYSSALIDS
HAH, I know the reason for why they don't have elerium powered weapons adjusted to ambient magic, it's Shen's prices!
They say before Dr. Shen joined xcom he owned a coffee shop famous for its prices, Customer: I like a Latte please. Shen: Ok, that will be 750 dollars and 30 alloys please. We will also require a team of 16 baristas, we will deliver your coffee in 20 days.
.
5114616 You ask when shit will stop hitting the fan.
War is nothing but that, even when plans miraculously work out.
I just had a thought. The Everfree is full of things like hydras and manticores. These are larger than humans. In Enemy Within, we saw what happens when chryssalids get something larger than humans to nest in.
...When's the Everfree getting glassed? I'll bring a bag of marshmallows to the minimum safe distance line.
It doesn't matter what version of XCOM you play, Chryssalids will f-
your sh-
up! 
into zombies that spawn more Chryssalids to f-
your sh-
up again!
up all your friends' sh-
, your family's sh-
and your dog's sh-
!
ing worse, more f-
ing Chryssalids start bursting out of your friends', family's and dog's sh-
and start f-
ing up everyone else's sh-
!
ing eyeballs in sh-
f-
ing Chryssalids!
Then they'll turn your sh-
After that, they'll f-
And just when your day couldn't get any f-
Before you know it, you're up to your f-
Hallelujah! Holy sh-
!
For the uninitiated to XCOM, I hope this has been an adequate warning on Chryssalids.
i1368.photobucket.com/albums/ag163/AlphaChurch0/LetsrideabicyclemadeofChyrssalidsintoyourass_zps2831f6d4.png
Excellent chapter, by the way. You really nailed the tension and isolation of wading into a demonic bug hive. I even let out an audible gasp when Victor was about to mercy kill all 3 of them. Good to see Twilight's starting to get back in the game. Her friends (and Equestria) are going to need her strength more than ever now.
And if Luna's still working on a solution for Everfree's infestation, I have a simple request that might work.
i1368.photobucket.com/albums/ag163/AlphaChurch0/Nukeitfromorbit_zps3a96c224.jpg
5114793 Ja, except when RNJesus loves you. Like when I went 8 days without a mission in long war
5114571
Did he die? DID HE??
OK ive missed something. I'm sure it was mentioned before but why dose Victor not want to let Twilight recognize him? I don't remember anything happening between them previously.
Edit: ok guys I get it. hes the guy who shot her.
5114857
Watcher probably bit it.
5114811 *shudder* oh gawd, I hate Chryssalids with a passion! I had to reload too many times on that one f
ing mission with the Chryssalid spawning whale because they took out my PAIR OF HIGHLY UPGRADED MEC TROOPERS, both of whom were in my squad since the start of the game
5114936
Come on dudes watchers got to be the freaky Zebra representative. No way he bit it. I mean come on the scene was so vague it had to be a mislead. Watcher goes out of his way to not identify himself, he was the Master of the Zebra Pathfinders no way you can kill off a guy like that.
5114920 Victor was the soldier who shot Twilight during her rampage on Earth in Stardust, mistaking her for an enemy.
In other news, Zecora must be a pretty major VIP to warrant so many soldiers sent to meat grinder to retrieve her.
5114159 Yeah, I've been having problems with getting updates from this fic for some reason, too.
Oh FUCK, Site Recon.
One of the other writers at the UFOPaedia qoted me:
"Ok, gene mod do-- mission, ok, reload to get my soldier. OK, mission done, now to gene mo-- damnit, 'nother mission... ok, done, finally. Allright---- oh come the fuck on, Council, I'm busy here! Now what do you waaaAAAHHFUCKCHRYSSALIDS!!"
Site's stuff is borked. Apparently I have several unread stories that don't exist. A tad slower on the loadup as well, but whatever.
Do you know how much I hate that mission? Almost lost my sniper to those buggers. She was covering the rest of my team and almost was gutted at the end. On tropes, we're just waiting for the dark secret to come out in the open now. Also, there are no whales in the Everfree, but there is a... Oh dear. Something major is going to go down soon, isn't it?
5114967 OH SHIT
how did I miss that!?
Ah, yes. The whale mission.
*traumatic flashback montage*
The Everfree overrun by Chryssalids?
I don't buy it.
Granted, the Chryssalids could take down and incubate in bears or manticores, but that's hardly the sum of the Everfree's natural defenses. Each Chryssalid stepping in Poison Joke is liable to be rendered harmless. The vines that captured Twilight in Princess Twilight Sparkle could incapacitate and probably kill them, without possibly being incubated. Cockatrices aren't large enough to become zombified, and they're more than capable of petrifying dozens of Chryssalids each. (And the Chryssalids are unlikely to even register the Cockatrice as a threat, as the cockatrices are too small to incubate the the Chryssalids have a poor grasp of cause, effect, and tactics.) There are probably dozens of flying, incredibly lethal species in the Everfree that could engage the Chryssalids without getting killed. Not to mention the possible sentience of the forest and any magical defenses, like natural golems, that could fight against the Chryssalids.
Granted, the Chryssalids could probably carve out a role in the ecosystem, but the ecosystem of the Everfree is so brutal that, even overrun, there will be enough checks on the Chryssalid population that the infestation will naturally be under control within a week. I foresee this becoming a 'wait, what?' moment for the aliens when they realize that their Chryssalids are less lethal than the local ecosystem.
5114920
Because he's the one who shot her after she finished going 'Wrath of God' at the end of the invasion of X-Com's base.
Truly nailbiting! Well done!
Sad about Watcher though...
5114920 Victor was the guy who shot Twilight, if I recall.
5115007
One Ursa MAJOR nuff said
Welp, seems like the easy win by rainbow power blasting the ethereal collective is out of question.
*pictures Ethereals frolicking through sunny meadows and picking flowers*
A shame, really. An entire race of mentally linked, millenia-old, psychic aliens all brainwashed to be as nice as cute cuddly ponies would've been just so hilarious.