Chapter 33: The Capital Part 1
Through the heart-pound of engines, and the rattle of the hulls, precede the arrival of two great bastions of civilizations. Those that travel are plagued with doubt, fear, and anxiety of what is to come. Those of their homeland seek protection from their leadership, justice of those slain, and answers of what transpired the night prior, and what consequences it will entail. Those who have trespassed seek a potential settlement to avert hostility, an answer to their dire problems, and a new home that can foster a new age of humanity. However, before both sides can face one another a second time, they must first face their own people. Both awaken to an uncertain future, plagued with uncertainty and unexpected details.......................................
Sun entered through the shabby windowpanes of the Sabbag residence, basking upon the sleeping form of Suha, rousing her from her sleep. As she rose, she proceeded to loosen the tension in her neck and spine in a backward stretch. As muscles eased back and her drowsiness subsided, she looked to her surroundings. Looking to the clock, she saw the time sat at around 7:30 AM.
"Dang it, I overslept. Again." Suha cursed mentally.
Perhaps overslept wasn't the right term so much as slept too late to cook herself breakfast before school started at 8:30, leaving only enough time for Suha to give her mother her medicine and get dressed for the day. Suha ran through the morning routine rather quickly as she only had an hour to get dressed, grab her back-pack and walk to school, which more or less took 30-45 minutes give or take. On top of that, Suha needed to give her mother her morning dosage. As she walked out her room and into her mother's, Suha looked to the top of the old jewelry armoire nearby, spotting the translucent blue pill bottle the cup & pitcher of water to go with it. She stepped towards the form of her sleeping mother. Suha approached, giving her mother a soft nudge on the shoulder to rouse her from her sleep.
"*groan* Wha-Azra? Azra, is that you?" She murmured in her native tongue.
"No mother, it's me, Suha. It's time to take your pills. Remember?"
Her mother gave a rather confused look in another direction, almost as if half of what Suha just said to her didn't even register.
"Well....I don't remember any pills. When....when did they get here?" she asked in a stupor.
"Yesterday. One of the nurses from the clinic probably dropped it off." Suha informed her.
"Oh, well wasn't that kind of them." She said with a weak smile. "You know, that reminds me of a story about Doctor Jhaveri at the clinic. He was always a kind man, always so generous to people when they were desperate. Did you know he was the one who oversaw me when I delivered you? That such a-"
"I don't mean to be rude mother, but I need to get to school before I'm late." Suha explained politely.
Her mother stared at her for a moment more before answering.
"Oh..........well I'm sorry to have kept you.....I always seem to rattle on lately." she said apologetically.
"It's no problem mother."
Suha helped her swallow the medicine before saying her goodbye before departing to school for the day. Moments like these always put a strain on Suha, as she watched her mother's mind deteriorate. Azra, the sister Suha never knew, but her brother did. Even to this day, neither her mother nor brother would talk of her. Suha did her best to put her troubles in the back of her mind as she walked out the front door and down the streets of her neighborhood. As she trekked down the streets of the Edge and into central city where the school was, Suha noticed a particular increase in activity around her. The first indicator was when she passed the distribution center nearest to her home, as a plethora of people stood in a congested crowd yet were dead silent, as a radio bellowed at full volume. It so quiet that Suha herself could hear the broadcast from 10 yards away, albeit faintly.
"*-xpected to return sometime this morning. Whether this is in light of the recent incident at the water supply facility remains unknown. At this time, the water supply facility has been temporarily shut down. Local Militia forces hav-*"
Suha's train of focus found itself suddenly interrupted by the loud roar of engines, as she looked forward to see a small Militia convoy of four armored vehicles make its way on the approaching downhill road, kicking up dust as it past. Suha found that odd, as while every district had the occasional neighborhood foot-patrol, anything larger than a humvee was seldom seen, and in such a large group even more so.
"What on Earth is going on?" she pondered.
"Suha!" a voice called out.
Turning around, Suha could see two of her classmates racing towards her. Bill Estus and Jacovi Harris, two guys around her age that she had come to call as friends in the very small social circle she had. Bill was a pudgy-faced ginger-haired boy with freckles across his face, who wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed and Jacovi was dark-skinned, slim, and easily excitable. Despite this, Suha enjoyed their banter and company. They had been close since they were all about 6 years old, with the friendship sparking from a fight between the two boys of all things. Suha was the one who managed to put a stop to all of it, but that involved, well, getting involved. One regretful slug to Bill's face later, Suha found herself in trouble as well. However, that was a lifetime ago, and the three had become rather close since.
"Did you just see that?!" Jacovi cried ecstatically.
"A bunch of tanks just came through here!" Bill yelled.
"What, the lineup of APCs?" Suha said. "I saw, that's a little weird don't you think?."
The two boys looked to one another in confusion, an expression that became regular for the two.
"AP-whatta?" Jacovi said with a confused look.
"APC. They weren't tanks, they were APCs. Short for Armored Personnel Carriers." Suha corrected.
"What?! No way, those were tanks!" Bill insisted. "They were big man! Fully armored and decked out with a bunch of guns! That makes them tanks."
"Sure, despite the lack of treads and a cannon." Suha quipped. "My brother's in the Militia, guys, I would know if it was a tank."
"Well still, they're all over the city! Something big is going down!" Jacovi claimed.
Suha couldn't deny that statement, as she herself could feel a growing tension in the air, a fear that she felt the day prior after the tunneler incident. Alas there was nothing she could do about, being one girl amongst thousands of people, not to mention that the more pressing matter of getting to school held priority.
"Okay, I got to admit, it's a little weird. But what are supposed to do about it?" Suha asked.
"Watch what happens!" Bill exclaimed.
"That sounds like a bad idea. C'mon guys, let's get going." Suha said.
"Get going? Don't tell me your thinking of going to school?" Bill questioned.
"It was the reason I left my house this morning. Probably the same reason you guys did the same."
"Man, fuck school!" Jacovi insisted. "What's one day of school compared to missing out on this!?"
"Oh I don’t know, maybe not coming home with a broken leg, or worse. Seriously, guys, do yourselves a favor and let's go. We have no idea what things are like around the rest of town. We could get hurt, get lost, or get mixed up in som-"
"You worry too much, Suha." Bill shrugged. "You can go to school and be bored as shit, me and Jacovi are gonna scope out some of the action."
"Guys, I really-"
Before she could even persuade them otherwise, they were already running down the direction where the convoy had passed. Suha was left there by herself faced with two choices; continue on her way leaving her friend's fates up to chance, or the more obvious choice of going after them to ensure they weren't getting mixed up into trouble.
"I swear at times I feel like their damn mother!" Suha mentally cursed.
"GUYS! WAIT UP!" Suha cried.
"Tower Command, this is Eagle-1, we are carrying high-value passengers, inbound to Site-Alpha, ETA 20 mikes out, requesting clearance to land, over?"
The Pilot ceased his transmission and awaited a response. Andrew stood behind both him and the co-pilot. It was standard protocol to radio in, and while it would have seemed redundant nowadays as any functioning aircraft more or less belonged to the Militia, it was still important to keep the practice regular, familiar.
"*Tower-2 to Eagle-1, your request for clearance has been granted.*" The tower comms officer replied. "*Proceed on course to Runway-D11, we'll have an escort convoy waiting on your arrival, over?*"
The revelation of which runway they would be landing on struck Andrew as a little odd. Nothing particularly interesting about D11 other than it was scarcely used. Apparently, he wasn't the only one, as the pilots looked at one another before the main pilot responded back.
"Say again, Tower-2, did you say Runway-D11, over?" The pilot asked.
"*Affirmative, Eagle-1, directive comes from the on-site commanding officer. We have a bit of a.....gathering at the main entrance. D-11 is closest to the secondary exit route. You have your orders, Eagle-1. Tower-2, over and out.*"
As the transmission cut-out, Andrew was left to make of what they meant by gathering.
"We'll be there momentarily, sir." The Co-pilot informed him. "You may want to take your seat until then."
Andrew acknowledged him with a slight nod, and proceeded back to the cargo bay of the C-130, where Viktor, Sarah, Bradford, and Achmed sat waiting, their things packed and stowed in nearby compartments. Nearly four hours had passed, four hours to contemplate the situation and assess what next steps needed to be taken. For Andrew, it was to go as follows. Take the convoy, travel to the Council Building and call an emergency session to discuss the matter. One of many that was undoubtedly to follow in the next few days.
Andrew's years of playing the part of the politician were about to be tested in full force, as a plan of action would need to be discussed and implemented. Viktor would undoubtedly have temporary jurisdiction over a good majority of New Damascus' forces during this time, as Andrew would be too preoccupied with the oncoming debates and decisions to keep an eye on the day-to-day on-goings the Militia usually oversaw. Bradford would more or less find himself in a similar situation to Andrew, and would make an effort to argue in favor of any solution that entailed the continued use of the portal device. Sarah would oversee Achmed during this time, and ensure he would be there to retell the details of his account before the Council. All five of them would play a pivotal role in the coming days. The group watched as Andrew approached, ready to hear what he had to share.
"We've been cleared to land." Andrew informed them. "Should arrive in about twenty minutes."
"If you want to escape this by jumping out of the plane, now's your chance." Viktor jested.
Andrew, Sarah, and Bradford responded with a slight smirk, but nothing more. Achmed didn't even seem to react, his cold, neutral expression failing to leave him.
"Yeah, don't tempt me." Andrew replied. "If you think the Council's bad, I don't even want to think about what's in store for me when I end up meeting with Jess."
"You'll be lucky if you last the night, my friend." Viktor jested once more.
"Yes, well, jokes aside, I was also able to discern where we'll be landing. Runway D-11."
Viktor's look turned to that of a puzzled squint.
"D-11? Towards the back of the base?" Viktor asked.
"Yep. We were redirected due to a gathering at the front gate." Andrew explained.
His words sent a clear message to everyone present. Word had got out of what happened.
"Fantastic. Everyone knows." Sarah said with sarcasm.
"All that remains is to see how the public responds." Viktor implied. "Will it be adoration or backlash I wonder?"
"Why not both?" Sarah insinuated. "I can already tell you everyone in Peace and Justice will pretty much condemn what we did."
"That may be, but that doesn't necessarily mean everyone has all the details." Bradford insisted. "Perhaps we can change the hearts and minds once more information is released. Even more so if we can somehow end this without conflict."
"That's unlikely." Achmed expressed.
"But not impossible." Viktor declared. "And believe me; we'll try our damnedest to avoid a conflict."
Andrew recalled the words of his friend, his express concern of what a conflict would cause to humanity. But this was something he knew well, and gave only a short time of thought to it.
"Guess we'll find out in time." Andrew assessed. "One way or another, good or bad, it'll be a surprise that meets us once we land."
"Yeah, forgive me if I lean towards bad on that surprise, sir." Sarah said in earnest. "One thing I know from my days stationed here, people don't shut the fuck up when it comes to rumors. Always gets to a point where it delves into a bunch of bullshit conspiracy theory crap."
Andrew simply smiled, taking his seat to await their landing.
"Can't say I blame em', Sergeant." Andrew replied. "Not much else happens around here, ain't much to talk about nowadays other than shortages and the last mutant attack."
While Sarah could forgive him for that, as it held a substantial amount of truth to it, her assertion stemmed more from personal experience. Overall, it did a good job of making her contemplate the very thing she had wished to avoid thinking about. The inevitable meet-up with her family was bound to elicit a storm of accusations, towards her, her lifestyle, the Militia, etc. But she too knew well there was no sense from hiding from it, word was out, and with it, knowledge of her unit's involvement.
Sarah along with all the others eventually took their seats as well, and in short time, they could feel their gradual descent as the plane made its way down the runway. With a slight bump, they were once again on solid Earth. As the plane's crawl degraded into a full stop, everyone began to assemble what things they had. A few minutes passed before the ramp of the C-130 dropped, the smell of dust and desert seeping inside as it did. When it had dropped unto the surface of the runway, Andrew and company were greeted with the sight of their convoy.
On a normal day, Andrew usually found himself either driving or riding inside either a Humvee, G-class, or an old UAZ-469. However, given the circumstances, Andrew was half expecting about two or three Humvees, four if they felt it necessary. What he saw instead immediately took him aback.
"What the fuck?" he said dumbfounded.
It seemed Militia forces pulled out all the stops and then some for his arrival. Before him and his company sat a Cougar 6x6 MRAP, accompanied by a M1117 Guardian to its front and a BTR-90 in the back, which in turn was accompanied by no less than 4 infantry support vehicles, Two heavily outfitted Humvees, one Foxhound LPPV, and one LGS Fennek. Scattered around the convoy were at least a platoon of Militiamen, fully decked out and armed serving as security. To call it overkill was an understatement, even if news had got out about the incident in Berlin, Andrew couldn't see how the reaction would warrant this sort of protection.
"What in God's name is going on?" Bradford cried. "A tad bit much don't you think?"
"Fucking ludicrous is what it is." Sarah said dumbstruck. "What? Did a civil war break out while we were gone?"
"This is strange." Viktor admitted. "I fear this may spell something very bad."
Achmed said nothing, but dwelled heavy on the matter, as he too was just as curious as the others. At that very moment, one of the heavily armed militiaman made his way to greet Andrew and his company.
"Commander Sawyer. Colonel Antonov." He addressed with a salute. "I'm Captain Harper; I'm to escort you to your transport to the Council Building."
"Son, who's your CO?" Andrew asked.
"Colonel Malik, sir." He replied.
Colonel Malik, head CO of Alpha base and a man who Andrew had been in regular contact with over the last few years. The fact that Andrew hadn't received any details on this abnormal level of security from his Captain and not himself more than rubbed Andrew the wrong way.
"Okay, answer me this. You mind explaining to me what the hell made him think pulling out all this for my arrival was necessary? Furthermore, why were we not informed before landing?"
The Captain's expression felt hesitant, no doubt from deducing that the Commander in Chief was just a little pissed.
"A lot has happened since your absence, sir." The Captain informed him. "I'm sure the Colonel himself can fill you in on the details on the ride over."
"Where is he?" Andrew asked bluntly.
"He's in the back of the MRAP, sir. That's what you and the rest of the group will be taking. The other vehicles will be serving as your escort."
All of this puzzled Andrew and the others, but I guess would come once they boarded the armored transport. Taking their things, they began approaching the MRAP, Captain Harper and two other men following beside. As they entered through the back of the steel behemoth, they could see a man up towards the front, garbed in faded OD BDU's, a tac vest and old M98 Forest Cap, yelling at someone through the radio in Arabic.
"La yahimni ma tastakhdumuh! 'iikhdae alhashd wamasahu almasar!"
He hung up the radio, turning around to face the group that entered. He was about in his late 30's, though he looked much older with a shabby brown beard, wrinkled amber skin, and a set of weathered hazel eyes.
"Commander Sawyer." He greeted in a thick Makrani accent. "It is good to see you have returned safely."
"Colonel Malik." Andrew greeted back. "You mind explaining to me why you brought a war chariot to what's supposed to be a Sunday stroll?"
Colonel Malik sighed, the look of a tired man struck across every inch of his expression.
"With all due respect, sir, there's not going to be any Sunday Stroll. Not anymore. A lot has happened since you've been gone, most of it bad."
"How bad?" Viktor asked.
"I believe the word, clusterfuck would best describe the situation we're facing. We have folks racing towards the reservoir, dissenters demanding answers in the streets. The Council Building is practically walled off by half of New Damascus. I have our forces stretched across the city doing the best they can to keep things civilized. In fact, the only reason it hasn't turned violent yet would be due to the rumors concerning your business in Berlin."
Even as their speculations were verified, it did little to concern Andrew at that moment. His focus was trying to divulge what the mood of the people was.
"What exactly has been the word around town?" Andrew asked.
"Depends on who you ask." Malik explained. "Some, like that fucking radio host, Bloodhound, say you found a portal to another world. Others say you found and endless supply of food and water; found aliens that promised to take you to their world, and some of the more religious among us say you found the Garden of Eden."
All among them felt a wave of anxiety as the rumor was essentially dead on the money, while the others correlated to the same core theme surrounding all of them, that they found a solution to the shortages.
"What exactly did you find, if I may ask?" Malik inquired. "Did you find something?"
Viktor and the others were half expecting the Commander to follow it up with some level of discretion, if just refusing to answer at all, but surprisingly, Andrew relented without hesitation.
"Yes. We found something that'll mean an end to the shortages. But we can't go public with it. Not yet."
Malik's stunned expression painted a very clear picture of how he reacted to this revelation. The Colonel would not have time to dwell on it for long though as Andrew followed it up with an inquiry of his own.
"Answer this, Colonel. If the rumors of what we found is keeping the peace, what caused unrest in the first place?" Andrew asked.
Malik was brought back into the now, and the dire circumstances carried with it.
"In short, our water supply just got dropped by three months." Malik revealed.
The words he spoke resulted in the sinking of Andrew's heart, sudden and merciless in its effect. As the engines of the MRAP revved and the vehicle began moving. Andrew was silent, for what he heard left him at a loss of words. This gradually transitioned into a slight sense of anger, and a few seconds passed before Andrew peered directly into Malik's eyes. There was a pause, as a build up of exasperation was made evident in his posture
"Are you fucking kidding me?" Andrew breathed.
The wheels of the train began to slow, its rhythmic vibrations getting more sluggish as the sharp hiss of the break began to emit from under the tracks. Those present began to gather their things before departing. Sounds of a large crowd echoed through the walls of the cabin, a clear indicator that the public had knowledge of their arrival, and in turn, last night's events. Both Luna and Celestia were dreading this moment, hoping to have a chance to make their way to the castle without enduring the inquiries and concerns of the public. They loved their subjects, but with such an event that transpired, their subjects would no doubt have a tidal wave of questions and worries, and unlike previous situations, there was no immediate solution in sight.
"I suppose it was wishful thinking that we'd avoid the news ahead of time." Luna said, adjusting her foreleg in the crutch.
"I suppose it was." Celestia noted. "But these are our people, and while they may be restless and concerned now, they'll come to understand our silence when the time to inform them comes."
"We could just teleport to the palace?" Luna suggested, "Save us time to get underway?"
Celestia gave the idea some thought, and while it seemed rational, there was some rationality to making their way there by hoof.
"I think it would help ease the tension if our subjects saw us alive and well." Celestia suggested.
"As well as we can be." Luna said, gesturing to her injuries.
The mere gesture sent a vivid image in Celestia's mind, clear as day. The night prior as two rounds from Achmed's weapon shattered her sister's shield and tore through bone and limb. The flash of imagery was made complete with sight of her young sister plummeting to the ground, left to writhe on the ground in a pool of her own blood. Celestia snapped back, able to ease her nerves to continue the conversation.
"It will be difficult for them, but it's better to see their Princesses battered and bruised than cold and lifeless." Celestia stated. "I don't know what I'd do if I lost you Luna."
The two engaged in yet another hug, one last gesture of affection before facing the masses. Over on the other side of the cabin, Twilight, Spike, and her friends were divulging in their own conversation that they had continuously kept up on the way over.
"Well here we are yet again. Canterlot." Rarity announced. "And never has it ever felt so daunting before."
"I know what ya mean." Applejack concurred. "Usually we come here for one celebration or another. But now..."
"Now it's the place where we'll determine how to handle a crisis, and if worse is yet to come, an invasion." Twilight finished.
Twilight herself had been dreading their inevitable arrival, as she knew the crisis would most likely bring out the worst sort of reactions in everypony, as they often do. However, this was on an entirely new level. Over 200 dead in one single attack, which literally came out of thin air. That level of threat was bound to stir up an unprecedented level of hysteria, both among the masses as well as the inner workings of the royal government.
Twilight cleared her thoughts, as they had an unwanted effect of filling her head with doubt. For now, she challenged herself to simply focus on the task of exiting the train car.
"One thing at a time, Twilight" she reaffirmed herself.
"So, has anypony actually thought of what we're going to do?" Rainbow asked.
The group gave it plenty of thought on the way over, in fact, it had pretty much been the sole focus on everypony's mind, yet for all the time it was given contemplation, the group were not able to come to any conclusive resolution.
"Well, clearly we'll have to act, somehow." Fluttershy answered
She had said that with an ever so slight hint of uncertainty, enough for her friends to pick up on.
"How in Equestria are we supposed to act?" Applejack asked. "We all saw em' and what they can do."
"Well we'll have to do something." Rarity proclaimed. "Sitting idly by and waiting for them to make the first move is clearly off the table."
"They'll have to make the first move." Pinkie noted. "Last I checked, they can pop in out of our world as many times as they want while we can do zilch!"
"One thing at a time, girls." Twilight declared. "We have to actually get to the palace and call upon the royal court before we can do anything."
With a second of thought, they all came to the same conclusion as Twilight. As much as they wanted to dive into their predicament head first, there were procedures that had to be carried out first, as this sort of decision had a usual process tied to it. When they were all ready and packed, a squad of royal guards entered their car. After a quick conversation, the guards began overseeing their luggage for them. As Twilight levitated her luggage over for the guards to handle, Spike came up next to her, an almost timid posture taking over him.
"Canterlot at last." Spike said nervously. "Never thought I'd see it any different than I did before."
"What do you mean, Spike?" Twilight asked.
"I dunno, I always thought of it as home, a welcome sight. But now, with all that commotion outside, I feel a bit intimidated by it. Do you.....do you think everypony's mad that we didn't do more?"
Twilight had been through a lot, and in turn so did Spike. Almost losing one another was a thought that had rushed through her mind when Achmed took her captive, a moment that she prayed would never happen again.
"No, I don't think anypony's mad, Spike." Twilight explained. "I think they're just scared."
"So, like us?" He asked.
"Like us. But we'll get through this. We always do, don't we?"
Twilight would hope that would quell some of his worries, but in the back of her mind she knew Spike was too smart to fall for something like that. He was always very perceptive of the situations, sometimes too much for his own good. Despite that, it was the best Twilight could do to ease his nerves.
As the group reconvened by the exit door of the train car, one of the guards that entered, a Sergeant by the looks of his armor, stepped over to Commander Spark to discuss a few words. Commander Spark and the guard conversed for but a minute or two before saluting one another and departing. Neither Twilight nor anypony else in the company could hear what was said, but Commander Spark then soon approached the group, indicting he was about to share the details.
"Your Majesties, elements" He addressed. "It's time."
The company looked to one another, knowing what the implications of his words entailed. Everypony did their best to prep themselves.
"The local garrison commander stationed in my absence took the liberty of having the guards prepped and ready for crowd control." Spark informed them. "Apparently they've managed to clear a path to the grand balcony plaza."
That would get them halfway through the city and within a short distance to the palace. While that would alleviate some of the potential hurdles, they would still have to endure the crowd amassed outside. The guards who had accompanied Commander Spark took positions around them, ready to escort them safely to the palace.
The Door swung open with the aid of Celestia's magic, and upon opening, everything from the streets to the surrounding area of Canterlot Station were packed with an unending crowd of ponies. The scene was loud before, but the minute they stepped hoof outside, the scene became instantly more archaic, as the volume raised in intensity with a wave undecipherable voices. Celestia looked around, and saw that there was only one path available to them, a modest street stood bare before them, a numerous procession of guards, single-file, aligned on both sides.
"Best we make our through this as quick as possible, your majesty!" Commander Spark said in a raised voice, just so it could be heard.
As much as Celestia wanted to put a stop to the chaos around her with one quick use of the Canterlot voice, it would be better to read the reaction first.
"Lead on Commander." Celestia instructed.
With an affirmative nod, Commander Spark did as instructed, as he and the other guards surrounded each side of the group as they moved forward and down the path. The reaction from such was almost immediate. The first notable one would have undoubtedly have been the shock of seeing what had happened to Princess Luna, as a wave of startled gasps emanated in an uproar, standing out amongst the chorus of voices.
Luna herself resisted the urge to lower her head, as she knew that the wounds sustained were in part of her own actions. Even if in the rational right of the situation, she had let paranoia get the best of her, and in turn set off the series of events that had led to the catastrophe that had occurred, and in turn, this made her feel guilty.
The next notable behavior of the crowd would have been the news-ponies that were doing their best to squeeze in closer, despite the royal guard pushing them back.
"Princesses! Reporter Book Marker, I'm with the Canterlot Courant! Do you have any comments on the situation in Ponyville!"
"Your majesties! Morning Mailer, Manehatten Times! We would like to know what transpired in Ponyville last night!"
"Your highness, Reporter Ocean Eyes with the Fillydelphia Press! What exactly happened in Ponyville!"
The same question worded a million different ways. Celestia opted to ignore them as she had done on numerous times before. Luna couldn't help but roll her eyes at this shtick and dance for the umpteenth time, and turned her head around to the rest of the group with words of warning.
"Whatever you do, don't answer them." she instructed. "They'll take what you say and warp it int-"
Luna's words eased and the instructive look she possessed soon turned into a puzzled glare, much to the confusion of the rest of the group.
"Where is Miss Pie?" she asked.
The group looked around; taking little time to spot her conversing with a reporter, a microphone desperately stretched passed the two guards holding him back. Applejack and Rainbow rushed to sweep her away.
"Well I think it all started when some hum-"
Applejack's hoof soon covered Pinkie's mouth, muffling any words Pinkie had to say.
"C'mon sugarcube that's enough outta ya." AJ said.
As Applejack dragged Pinkie away, Rainbow swooped in to finish Pinkie's statement for her.
"We're not taking any further questions at this time." Rainbow said to the reporter. "So, see ya."
"But-"
Before the reporter could inquire further, Rainbow regrouped with the others as a guard closed the gap. Back amongst the group, AJ and Rainbow were quick to lay the line with her.
"What in Equestria were you thinking, Pinkie!" Rainbow yelled. "You want everypony in Equestria to enter full meltdown mode!"
"Well shouldn't everyone at least be aware?" Pinkie asked.
"They will, sugarcube, but not now." Applejack explained. "Not while the wounds are still fresh and definitely not to one of them reporters!"
"It's like Princess Luna said" Rainbow informed. "Anything you say will be warped and misconstrued. Newsponies have a knack for doing that kind of thing."
Pinkie looked a little hurt by the mere notion of that happening, but nonetheless it was true. Her actions could be forgiven from inexperience with such situations, as a baker/party-planner would know little of the social ramifications of an ill-timed explanation to last night’s events could bring. In fact, most of the elements were in that same boat, but were better familiarized with the basic concept to know better. Thankfully, Applejack and Rainbow rushed in when they did, and thus a crisis on top of another crisis had been averted.
"This isn't going to be like the other times Equestria's faced a threat Pinkie." Twilight explained. "This one is going to be long and drawn out, lots of speculation and uncertainty. Rash action or some magic spell isn't going to save us this time."
That statement alone sent a clear message not just to Pinkie Pie, but the rest of the group as well. The concept alone was so odd, as direct confrontation had ultimately led to success in previous circumstances, but that advantage now lay in the hands of mankind, who could seemingly have the power to launch an attack at any time. This led to Twilight ponder how the rest of humanity would react to what had happened. Twilight couldn't imagine that their take from it was nearly as stressful for them as it was for her kind, she bet it would simply narrow down to one factor. When to attack.
Up to the front, Luna and Celestia were being led up the street as droves of ponies gazed upon the battered state of their leaders, the former doing her best to appear stoic and headstrong as was possible. But internally, Luna felt as if thousands of prying eyes delved into her soul, picking away to find the guilt she held within herself. The feeling of failure could not escape the back of Luna's mind, failure to keep Equestria at Peace and a failure to all the ponies surrounding her. Luna could hear few words amongst the deafening uproar of the crowds, but what she did hear only added to these feelings.
"Who would do that!? Who would do that to her majesty!?"
"What did those monsters do to her?!"
"Poor Princess Luna. Nopony deserves that. How could this have happened?"
Luna felt slightly undeserving of the sympathy. Nevertheless, she opted to steady her thoughts, and focused her efforts on doing right by her people and ensuring their safety in the task ahead.
"We'll need to call upon the royal court, sister." Luna told Celestia. "Every delegate of the Princess' committee, every representative to form a congress of the Equestrian Senate. Equestria's inner workings need to know the challenge we face."
"Indeed. I'll see to it that the scribes write the summons at once." Celestia concurred. "To think there hasn't been a royal congress in at least a thousand years."
The statement really spoke volumes on just how jarring recent events came across in the context of the relative peace Equestria had experienced for so many years. The last royal congress of the Equestrian Senate took place around the first rise of King Sombra, when he took over the crystal empire. That was thousands of years ago, since then the title more or less assumed a role of status rather than anything else. A secondary title that most ponies would never imagine would actually be invoked.
"The time calls for it sister." Luna insisted. "Though I can imagine the senators took the position for the benefits and title, I wouldn't think they'd hesitate to perform the duty that was expected of them."
"I share that same sentiment. I wonder how the public will react?" Celestia wondered.
"I would imagine the same way they're reacting right now." Luna assumed. "The situation is dire, and there's no reason to treat it any other way. In fact, the pressing nature of our dilemma may force us to hold these councils without full attendance."
"No. Everypony needs to be in attendance, for the sake of unity and the nation." Celestia clarified.
"Sister, time is of the essence, it might take a week or more for all the respected ponies to arrive." Luna argued.
"I understand your sense of urgency Luna, but we need the whole nation working together if we want to form a solution. We stand together in this time of crisis and everypony will be effected by it, thus, everypony will be involved."
"And what will happen if the humans strike us while we're waiting for a sea of delegates to arrive to Canterlot?"
It was clear by Luna's expression that she wasn't willing to drop it that easily, but alas, there was no sense in having the debate here. Celestia sighed, facing her young sister once more.
"We'll speak of this in detail once we reach the palace, Luna." Celestia said. "Right now, let's just show our people we're alive and breathing."
Luna would normally see that sort of gesture as avoiding the argument, but given the current circumstances, Luna was inclined to agree. Thus, the two princesses continued onward, towards what would prove to be a mentally tasking walk to their home, a home currently thrown into crisis.
Suha was led through a gathering crowd, desperately following Bill and Jacovi as they recklessly charged into what was building up into unrest. All the while, she listened in on a barrage of conversations around her, ranging from what the Council was going to do now that their water supply was in shorter supply than it already was, to what this would spell for the future of New Damascus and the Survivors, to talks of outright collapse.
These conversations unnerved Suha, as the thought of complete societal breakdown sent a plethora scenarios racing through her head, feeding into her fear. All the while, Bill and Jacovi couldn't stop talking about how much cred they'd get at school for being out here, witnessing the unrest unfold. Suddenly another convoy arrived, this one easily the largest and most heavily armed amongst the many they had already seen. Suddenly, the convoy came to a complete stop.
"What's happening?" Suha asked.
"Holy Crap! I think some dudes just jumped in front of it!" Bill said.
As soon as he had finished his sentence, multiple vehicle hatches swung open and a multitude of heavily armed Militiamen came pouring out. In a matter of seconds, they began to form a barrier pushing people back.
"Get back! Move it along!" One of the men shouted.
Some verbal exchange was heard, but ultimately drowned out by the gradual volume of the crowd.
"Guys, I really think we should scoot, things are looking like they're about to get ugly." Suha urged.
Alas, they must not have heard her, as the crowd became an entanglement of many voices, shouts, and curses.
"Dude, no one's gonna believe this shit when we tell em' about it!" Bill said excitedly.
"Dude some shit's about to go down!" Jacovi exclaimed.
Suddenly Suha felt someone race past her and through the crowd, much to her dismay. She caught a quick glimpse of the perpetrator, and though she didn't get a glimpse of his face, she noted the brick he had in his hands. Suha watched with wide eyes as he raised his arms.
"YOU THIEVING BASTARDS!!!" He roared as he launched the brick at the largest of the vehicles, hitting it smack on one of the bullet-proof windows.
The brick split in half upon impact. Almost immediately the man in question took a fist to the face by one of the militiamen, before another grabbed him by the back of the neck and shoulder and slammed him face first into the ground. The crowd erupted into a deafening uproar, as many rushed to the man's aid. Suha was pushed and jostled by dozens of people; losing sight of the man, and Bill and Jacovi for that matter. Suha feared that she may fall over and unintentionally be trampled by a horde of angry people. However, just as sudden as the chaos had arrived, it stopped in a similar fashion. After an initial uproar, the crowd transitioned into a murmur as Suha could only hear one voice triumph among the many.
"HEY!!! That's enough!!! THAT'S ENOUGH!!! Let him go!!!"
Suha managed to work her way back through the crowd, trying to find where Bill and Jacovi had gone. It didn't take very long, as the two didn't seem to get separated.
"Guys." Suha said.
"Suha, you alright?" Jacovi asked.
"You're not hurt are ya?" Bill asked.
"I don't think so." Suha said. "What happened to that guy, the one who through the brick?"
"Those militia guys gave him an ass-kicking." Bill said, before pointing towards the general direction where the commotion had taken place. "But look who came to stop em'."
Suha followed the direction Bill was pointing, and found herself stunned by who was there helping the man to his feet. For one of the few times in her life, Suha would do the one thing she'd usually find rather uncouth.
"Holy shit...." Suha swore.
For both Bill and Jacovi, the words rang like a gunshot in the distance, as the two looked at her in utter shock as she actually swore. Suha disregarded their reaction entirely, too fixated on the man who was in front of her. Councilor, Commander-in-chief, Andrew Sawyer. The man who led the Militia. Recent events suddenly came racing into Suha's mind. The debriefing with Lieutenant Schultz, and his mention that perhaps things weren't going to get worse, and then the broadcast she had tuned into. This was the man who discovered a portal to another world, the man who discovered a hidden paradise, and at that moment, Suha set fears and reservations aside, and found some sense of courage. She was going to learn the truth of what he found.
.....A few minutes earlier.....
"And you shut down the reservoir in the middle of the night and deployed armored vehicles to guard it?!" Andrew angrily inquired.
"The Council gave the order. I deployed the vehicles as a deterrent." Malik explained.
"Did it occur to you that maybe that wasn't the best idea?" Viktor asked.
"The troops were nearly stretched as it was!" Malik barked. "Between the tunnelers and the amassing crowd of people, we were lucky that it didn't turn into complete chaos! Besides, my intuitive thinking paid off. Nearly 2,000 people approached the reservoir this morning, no doubt with the intent to swindle what they could before we ran out. Imagine what would have happened if it was lightly guarded?"
It was hard to argue with that, and despite Andrew's frustrations, they stemmed more from the situation than Malik's choices. Andrew could very well imagine that Malik hadn't had it easy when it came to making decisions in Andrew's absence.
"Three months’ worth of water. Down the drain." Andrew seethed. "Always one fucking disaster after the other!"
"Calm down, Andrew, it's not over. Remember what we know and have access to." Viktor reminded.
Andrew was ready to fire back with a rebuttal on how that water was essentially the life line keeping the city in one piece, and how long it would take to set up a sufficient water operation in the new world to replace what was lost in the old one. Not to mention how it could only seemingly be accomplished once an accord, or at worst, war, was struck with the native people.
However, as soon as Andrew opened his mouth, the slow but gradual wave of a thousand voices broke through the rough monotony of the road. Soon Andrew as well as the others felt their mass shift as the vehicle slowed to a crawl. All the while, the voices only increased in intensity. Soon enough the MRAP had stopped entirely.
"Driver, sitrep?" Andrew inquired.
"Gotta large crowd outside, they must be blocking the road." The driver replied.
"Dammit, they must have known we would come this way." Viktor assumed.
"Radio Harper and his men to get out there and clear a path!" Malik ordered.
"Crowd control only!" Andrew added. "Tell them not to do anything drastic that might incite a riot."
The driver nodded and proceeded to relay the order through the radio. Meanwhile, the occupants took the time to look out the small viewing ports to see what was going on. From what they could tell, a group of at least a hundred was amassed outside. Their general behavior was thankfully not too antagonistic, but still restless. Andrew could see Harper and his men disembarking from the BTR-90 and Humvees behind them, quickly making their way up to the front of the convoy.
A small thought in Andrew's mind began to form, as his worries of the situation unfolding poorly began to muster. In fact, Andrew began dwelling on the situation as a whole, and how long the public could be kept in the dark before things started to go south, before things reached a point of becoming violent. How long would it be before riots did start to break out? The longer they sat there the closer the inevitable end of the Survivor Coalition would come. As seconds passed, the situation outside was becoming more tense. Andrew could see Harper's men form a perimeter around the crowd closest to the road as they began to push them back. Some amongst the crowd complied, no doubt wishing to avoid any physical incident. Others however were not so easy to subdue, as they began to shout in obscenities about the current water shortages.
Despite this, the convoy began moving again as they felt the MRAP shift forward. As they passed the riot line of soldiers, Andrew could see their faces, expressions of concern, doubt, and uncertainty abound in the crowd they contained. Ten seconds passed, and they were reaching the end of the crowd. Just before they passed however, there was a loud crack that could be felt from the side of the MRAP Andrew was sitting on.
"The hell!" He cursed.
Turning around he managed to catch glimpse of where someone had thrown a brick at the window, failing puncture the bulletproof glass. The commotion outside escalated and looking through the view port, Andrew could see that the person responsible was being apprehended by the nearby soldiers. The crowd grew louder as the commotion became a chaotic mess, as two militiaman responded by slamming the man to the ground to detain him.
Whether it was some primal urge or by incessant need, Andrew needed to intervene immediately, lest things take a violent turn. Andrew jumped out from his seat and swung open the back hatch of the MRAP, much to the dismay of the others.
"Commander Sawyer, where are you going!?" Bradford exclaimed.
"Chert voz'mi vy delaya!?" Viktor yelled as he chased after him.
Andrew didn't give any sort of immediate reply, instead jumping down and racing towards the chaos. Viktor followed behind, as did Malik and Sarah. Achmed leaned out the back door, looking down at the scene. However, he was not compelled to follow. Bradford attempted to walk out as well, but was held back by Achmed.
"Stay put, sir." Achmed said. "This might get ugly."
"It's already ugly." Bradford claimed as he made his way out into the crowd as well, compelling Achmed to chase after.
People en masse gathered compactly, either trying to work their way out or in. A myriad of voices cried out, spat, cursed, or urged in an undecipherable mess. Andrew faced the brunt of it as he managed to work his way in, squeezing his way through as best he could towards the scuffle. Andrew suffered a few unintentional jabs to the arms and torso and an elbow to his face getting there, but was unfazed nonetheless. By the time he reached the epicenter of the commotion, he saw that two of his men were holding him down while three more attempted to fight the crowd. The man's face had been pressed into the dirt, bruises dotted his face, and a trail of blood trickling down his left nostril where he had undoubtedly been punched.
"HEY!!! That's enough!!! THAT'S ENOUGH!!! Let him go!!!" Andrew cried.
Andrew pulled one of the soldiers back, and moved down to help the man up. Slowly but surely, the crowd began to calm upon realizing who it was who was breaking it up, as whispers and gasps correlated with the arrival of a Councilor. The man who had been detained was brought to his feet, and upon looking up to face the man who came to his aid, was struck by an expression of confusion and surprise.
"C-councilor Sawyer?" he said in shock.
"The one and only." Andrew deadpanned.
At that moment Viktor, Malik, and Sarah had arrived, dispersing the crowd a little as Bradford and Achmed came up behind. The crowd slipped into a murmur and man's expression, despite taking a severe beating, turned to that of fear, a fear stemming from when one made a terrible mistake.
"And Bradford too? Sir, I...I didn't know it was you in there! Honest to God I didn't kn-"
"Relax. I doubt throwing a brick at an armored truck would suffice as an assassination attempt." Andrew said in a slightly sarcastic but comforting tone. "What's your name?"
"T-Trey, sir, Trey Ulmer." he answered.
"Mr.Ulmer, what's going on? Why are you and the rest of these people trying to stop the convoy?"
"I-I didn't want to hurt anyone," Trey explained in an exasperated tone. "I-I just......I thought that convoy was carrying the rest of the water."
"We all did, sir." another man confirmed. "The reservoir's been shut down since the incident. No one's allowed in or out."
"So you decide to start civil unrest?" Bradford questioned. "You'll all still have access to water through the pumps, that we can assure you!"
"Well nothing's been said!" said a woman nearby. "At least not a whole lot. All we heard is that the Tunnelers attacked the reservoir and we lost some water. Then we wake up to find the reservoir's been closed down and under guard. We figured the Council ordered all the remaining water to be taken to their building!"
"We would never do that." Andrew clarified.
"The reservoir's under guard to prevent illegal access!" Malik clarified. "Last thing we need is an angry mob storming and hoarding what little water is left!"
"So we did lose a majority of our water supply!" Another man said accusingly.
The murmurs began to transition into raised voices. Before a shouting match could erupt however, Andrew managed to prevent it.
"YES!!!" He cried. "Alright, yes! We lost a majority of our water! But starting mobs in the street and stopping Militia convoys isn't going to fix it!"
"Then what will?!" A woman shouted. "Shortages were bad enough as is!"
"What the hell are we going to do?!" an older man demanded.
"You'll have an answer!" Andrew cried. "By tonight you'll have an answer! I swear!"
A hush fell over once again, all eyes fixated on Andrew and his company. Andrew turned to Viktor, his expression conveying a since of approval as if he could read his own mind. Andrew nodded.
"There is a solution." Andrew stated. "I can't divulge at this time. But I can say that shortages will most likely be a thing of the past."
"Is that what you found in Berlin?" a young voice called out.
Andrew and seemingly every other person there turned to where the voice came from, finding that it was a young girl in her early teens, wearing a loose green-print hijab. Standing to both sides of her were two younger lads around her age, both staring at her as if she had just pointed a gun at the Commander.
"You're a long way from classes, young lady." Andrew chided. "You two as well."
"Trust me, I tried." The young girl insisted. "But I have to ask, does this solution have to do with what you found in Berlin? We all heard you found something in Berlin over the radio."
Andrew stared her down, clearly irked by her incessant tone towards him despite his reprimand.
"I gave you an answer already, young lady." Andrew scolded. "You'll know in due time."
She opened her mouth to no doubt vocalize a rebuttal, but before she could, her eyes suddenly widened upon spotting someone nearby, someone recognizably familiar.
"Brother?" she said.
Andrew's brow furrowed in confusion at her statement, before realizing she was referring to the man to his right. She was referring to none other than Achmed, who shared a similar expression.
"Suha?" Achmed said in hushed voice.
No less than a second passed before, they were both able to verify whom they were respectively. A sudden rush of joy swelled upon seeing the beloved face of her older brother before her. However, Suha's joy was suddenly caught off-guard by the drastic change in Achmed's tone, which came off as rather authoritative.
"What the hell are you doing here!?" Achmed scolded. "You're supposed to be at school right now!"
"I-I didn't-" Suha babbled before being cut off.
"Didn't what!? If you didn't want to be here right now, you wouldn't." Achmed scolded before glaring at her two friends. "My guess is that these two dragged you into it? They're not your responsibility Suha, your studies and safety are. You know better!"
Suha found her posture flinch just a bit. She had never seen Achmed take this sort of attitude before, least of all towards her. She had always known him as the sort of timid but understanding type. However, this persona was nowhere to be seen, and the sudden change of attitude hit her at her core. Achmed could see it too, and as much as he felt embarrassed by the fact she had started an argument with the Commander, he didn't find it necessary for any further ridicule, at least not in public like this. He was genuinely disappointed, even angry, but more so frightened that she was here. If this scuffle had turned into a full-fledged riot and she had been caught in the middle of it. Thankfully, that didn’t come to pass, and more pressing matters awaited. Achmed sighed.
"We'll talk about this later." Achmed stated. "All of you get to school. Now."
All Suha could do was nod, too shaken to reply. Andrew turned to a nearby Militiaman and beckoned him.
"See to it that they get there." Andrew ordered.
"Right away, sir." the man replied.
The militiaman approached and proceeded to escort them on their way.
"C'mon you three, let's go." the man ordered.
The trio were sent off. Suha looked back towards her brother, that disapproving glare not once faltering. Suha turned back around, head sunk with shame. Disappointment was something Suha rarely committed and thus it hit home. Her two friends were able to notice this sudden change of posture and attitude in her friend.
"Suha, were sorry about what happened back there." Bill said. "We should've listened to you."
"Yeah, that was our fault." Jacovi insisted. "We shouldn't have run off and tried to get you to follow."
"It's okay guys." Suha said. "Let's just get to class."
The two boys were silent for a second or two, before engaging back into the banter as if nothing drastic had taken place at all.
"Still, did you see that dude get body-slammed?" Jacovi asked.
"I did." Bill said. "That was fucking insa-OW!"
Bill suddenly received a slap to the back of the head by their escort.
"Watch the language, boy." The soldier warned him.
"Haha!" Jacovi teased. "Eat shit!-OW!"
"Context clues, young man! You should learn to pick up on them."
Therefore, the three were escorted away. Meanwhile, Achmed, Andrew, and seemingly everyone in the crowd watched them before turning their attention back to the Commander, who acknowledged that the focus had once more returned to him.
"I've said my peace, spread the word, ease the tension down as best as you can, return to your duties." Andrew stated before turning back to board the MRAP once again.
The crowd was left in a murmur, and thankfully it stayed that way as Andrew and the party accompanying him returned to the vehicle. Once situated, it took very little time at all for the gathering to disperse and calm, letting the convoy resume its course.
"That could have gone badly." Viktor said to Andrew.
"Would have been worse had we not intervened." Andrew claimed.
"I've never seen folks get that desperate." Sarah noted. "They looked ready to storm the line."
"Things were tense to be sure." Bradford admitted. "But perhaps that last bit about a solution was tad imprudent?"
"I hope word spreads. Anything to calm the people down can only help our situation." said Malik.
"Jumping the gun with that solution speech might come to bite us in the ass, but it did the job. The crowd settled and nobody died. I'll take that hit."
"Maybe no one died, but someone definitely got put in their place." Sarah said with a smirk.
All the eyes turned to Achmed, who noticed who and what was being referred to.
"I wasn't expecting my sister to be there, sir." Achmed explained. "I apologize for her attitude towards you. She should know better."
"That quite alright, son. I've dealt with worse than curious upstarts." Andrew stated. "You handled that well back there by the way."
"It doesn't feel like it. That's the first time I think I've genuinely yelled at my sister."
"Eh, don't beat yourself about it. You did the right thing. I know it might seem harsh, but the main thing is you got the message across while not taking it too far. Though I doubt she's off the hook just yet."
"Not in the slightest." Achmed clarified.
Andrew chuckled a bit, as memories of putting the foot down on some of the more recent fits by Jake came to mind. Granted it was a lot easier with his son given how he was only four years of age, a completely different ball game from parenting a teenager. But he could relate nonetheless.
"Well, parenting aside, it seems we have quite the situation on our hands." Andrew admitted. "Haven't the slightest in how were going to put worries to rest."
"Let's focus on one thing at a time, Andrew." Viktor suggested. "The Council needs to know first and foremost before we do anything."
Andrew nodded in acknowledgement, deducing that to be the most practical course to take. And so they sat, awaiting their arrival to the Council building, where an even greater set of obstacles no doubt laid in wait for them.
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Yes.
9431277
Indeed
..............................................................................................................UPDATE!!!!
OH MY GOD I'D ALWAYS HOPED FOR THIS DAY!
AND NOW ITS HERE!!!!
Glad to see you back bro!
9431341
Good to be back.
This chapter is honestly pretty cool. You accept OCs and suggestions?
9431886
Possibly. PM what ideas you have and we'll see.
AWESOME chapter bro!!!
Thou I'm sad to see this put temporarily on hiatus, do what you gotta do bro. Real life comes first. 👍
10K. Good Stuff.
This gave me such a Halo 2 vibe.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFKoLeOXEDc
YEAS!
9608026
t out of them but I can’t really chose a side
For me it was just kinda confusing and making everyone dumber then normal but others see it differently and it started off great. I was just hoping it was like one of those story’s that made you hate the ponies and wished for humans to kick the sh
Like both have there reasons to fight but said reasons are kinda stupid (yes I get humanity is dying but at first they tried to be peaceful then they suddenly decided war was best answer even though there’s only 50k humans left and there prob not all fighters)
Phew that was long
9608500
Well i was never a fan of stuff that black and white, as I find life's shades of gray as one of the greatest foundations for realistic drama, but to each his own. Though to be honest, the war hasn't even officially started. This chapter is more or less a mission gone south that leads to a major international (or whatever equivalent applied to interdimensional states) incident, and the people involved do what they can to escape the situation. Though I suppose I could work on painting that in a clearer light. Thanks for at least explaining your disfatisfaction. I think why that guy got so many dislikes on his comment is because he didn't explain it, and thus I can't really improve when I don't know what he found wrong.
9608556
Makes sense I think the main reason I didn’t like it was it just wasn’t my type of story. I’m still leaving my like because it’s a great story and others love it just not what I’m looking for
9608601
Well I appreciate that. Glad to have ya along for the ride.
please update its been so long
9450844
what? no.
the Nazis theory on atomic warfare was miles away from the actual theory
they believed in heavy water which did not make nuclear bombs
Changed image looks dope
pls
Hey dude.
What's the news on updates?
9662838
Been in a bit if a rut, still writing though.
9666454
Ah sorry to hear that dude, hope you feel better soon. 👍
9641130
Thanks. Sorry for the late reply.
9733607
No worries, we know we have life outside of fanfic writing
I really like Andrew Sawyer and was impressed with out he managed to clam the situation I also love how your able to inject small bits of comedy into serious scenes and keep the tone consistent
10404051
I totally agree. He’s a good leader.