“My Celestia...Shepard, you flew in this thing!?” Twilight inched closer to the Normandy crash site, part of her mind making sure she avoided the hazards hidden in the wreck, such as serrated metal, bodies strewn throughout the place, and the Krogan tank cracked and leaking into the grass. Whilst avoiding the wreckage, she found herself entangled in miscellaneous cords which she mistook as snakes. The other part of her mind wondered how such a massive structure could stay airborne.
Shepard stood in the grass, wondering what could have gone wrong with the Omega relay. EDI’s scans showed that it would only cause a minor path stray, not a damned reality skip!
“Erm, Commander Shepard? You might want to take a look at this. There’s a big blob of brown...goop here.”
Shepard arose from a crouch as he was reading the dog tags of Kenneth Donelly. He ran up at a steady pace, until Twilight started screaming. The screams of terror pierced Shepard’s ears, but that was the least of his problems.
“Twilight, get out of here, now!!” Shepard shooed her away forcefully, a chunk of her tail’s hair being pulled off by many Collectors.
“Shepard, you’re unarmed. Come quietly and we will use minimal force.”
Shepard reached for his back pocket, finding the pistol safely secured in his recovered armor. He whipped it out and fired three rounds into the chest of a Collector, ducking behind a tree once they began to fire their particle beams. Unfortunately, the tree was burnt through instantly, and Shepard was forced to flee to the town.
“Foolish human. You can not escape evolution.”
The Collectors gave chase, shooting in the vicinity of Shepard. More or less.
In the frenzy of fire and adrenaline, Shepard forgot Twilight’s most important instruction, and now he was about to pay an enormous price.
The ponies of Ponyville stood frozen in the street, dead silent. Mares bringing their groceries home allowed their goods to spill to the streets. Colts pulling their carts nearly ran over themselves. At the sound of a newborn’s cries, the town broke into panic. “Alien!!”
“Run for your life!” “SAVE THE MUFFINS!!”
The ponies scattered into their homes, and some accidentally found their way into others’ abodes. Shepard stood in the middle of the town, alone. The Collectors appeared to have been left far behind, no longer an immediate threat to Shepard. Now, it was a matter of calming the town and explaining everything.
---Zaeed III
He had to admit, Rainbow Dash was strong, and incredibly fast. Zaeed nearly vomited, and he was still far behind her. Calling it a draw, Zaeed panted over to the nearest shady spot he could find.
“You-You’re goddamn cheating! N-Not possible for me...to lose!” Zaeed swatted at Rainbow, who was flying circles around his tired body. “Ah, good fucking lord, that hurts.”
“What?”
“My lungs. Forgot I haven’t run like that in ages.”
Zaeed and Rainbow sat under the shade, both bored out of their wits. Neither spoke to each other, but rather, stared into the sky for a time. There was something...off about it.
Rainbow saw her purple unicorn friend sprinting across a field far ahead of them, tripping over herself a few times. “Hey Twilight!” She called, yet her friend either didn’t hear her or paid no attention to her.
“Ah, don’t worry, mate. She’s probably a busy...what are you again?”
“Ponies?”
“Yeah, those.”
Rainbow sighed, annoyed this time, and fell flat on her back to watch the clouds again.
---Garrus III
In the middle of Garrus cleaning himself, and Fluttershy mopping the floor, there was a loud bang on the door. It persisted, getting harder with each knock. “Oh...my. It must be important!”
Fluttershy lightly walked to the door, not expecting it to slam open and break a window. Her fear subsided, as she saw her good friend Twilight in the doorway. Her relief, however, also evaporated when she examined the unicorn. Her mane was frazzled. Her eyes were the size of pinpricks. She was panting loudly, and her mouth was bleeding from the corner.
“W-w-T-T-T-T-Twilight?” Fluttershy staggered, nearing the unicorn with caution.
“Oh no...” the crazed pony had spotted Garrus, “not another one! Fluttershy, run! It’s in your house!!”
Twilight used her magic to grab the nearest blunt object she could find. This, sadly, was a pot. She shoved Fluttershy over and aimed it right at Garrus.
“Wait, Twilight! Another what!?”
“I said run, Fluttershy!” Twilight snapped, ears twitching.
Reacting quickly, Garrus jumped over to the unicorn and attempted to relinquish her grasp from the pot. Twilight disagreed with the notion and broke the pot on Garrus’ head. Nothing too serious, yet it did leave a nasty gash.
“Twilight! What are you talking about!?” Fluttershy broke her timid nature and screamed at the top of her lungs. Twilight stared back at her, mouthing ‘run you foal.’
Seizing his opportunity, Garrus jumped onto Twilight and firmly held her legs onto the ground. Blue dripped down onto Twilight’s forehead, and Garrus’ head throbbed. Still, despite the throbbing cranium, he held her with insurmountable strength. “Ngh! Purple horse thing, tell me who you’re talking about! I won’t harm you, just tell me!”
“W-wait? You’re not...one of them?”
“Who!?”
“The...aliens with the glowing yellow eyes!”
Garrus’ eyes grew wide and spied outside in a flash. ‘Horseshit. The Collectors.’’ Garrus thought, directing his attention towards Twilight once more.
“Twilight, these...aliens are called ‘Collectors’. If they stay here and aren’t stopped, they’ll awaken the Reapers and destroy the entire galaxy!”
Now it was Twilight’s turn to freak out. “THE ENTIRE GALAXY!?!?!?” The unicorn jumped under the couch and started shivering. Fluttershy did the same, squeaking from under the same couch.
Garrus walked himself over to the window, looking for any approaching Collectors. Why are they here, though? Unless...
“Shepard’s alive!”
---Legion
Shepard still stood in the middle of the town, in complete darkness, invisible from all enemies. The darkness acted as a shroud, keeping him hidden from the ponies, so that they now trotted along the town happily. It seemed almost like they had forgotten all about Shepard. Then, while Shepard was looking at the odd figure in the now rising moon, a shadow passed by him, far too tall to be a pony or human.
Legion slipped through the alleyways and onto the rooftops of Ponyville. Here there was a perfect vantage point, so that his hunt may continue. These ponies were alien to him, giving him reason to believe they were a threat. His sniper unlocked from his back, ready to fire at his next victim. Legion readied his rifle.
His crosshairs met the eyes of a golden pony, with orange curly hair. “Hostiles in our sights.” Legion whispered to himself in his robotic vocoder. The shot rang ‘round Ponyville, and the orange pony lay on the floor in a cold heap.
Shepard heard this shot, looking around for the source. There it was, the geth droid sitting atop a chimney of a docile home looking to be made of gingerbread. ‘No.’
Legion readied another shot, placing the glowing red round into the chamber, and pulling back the lock. “Hostile number two, in sights.”
“No!” Shepard yelled, calling the attention of Legion. “Not again!
“Shepard-Commander, we do not understand. Do you not wish for us to terminate the hostiles?” Legion’s facial panels moved in a pattern, showing that he was curious.
Shepard had to look way up, cracking his neck in the process. Finally, Shepard addressed the situation. “Legion, why are you shooting them?”
“Shepard-Commander, have you forgotten the incident at the medical building?”
“Legion, they weren’t going to hurt me, and neither are they!”
“But-”
“Drop the weapon, or I’ll be forced to take you out myself.”
Legion’s face shot with surprise, and he immediately threw his weapon onto the ground next to Shepard. “Shepard-Commander, are you positive that this is a wise decision?”
“What do you mean?” Legion pointed behind Shepard, to where three Collectors awaited their chance to attack. By now, the entire town had retreated into their homes, so it was just Shepard, Legion, and the Collectors.
“Shepard, this is your final warning. Come with us, or suffer the pain of the Harbinger.”
Legion let himself down to the dirt, picking up his rifle. “Shepard-Commander, shall we take care of them?”
Shepard grinned widely, and nodded his head. Legion threw up his rifle and accurately shot each Collector before it even had a fraction of a second to attack. “Hostiles terminated.”
---Garrus IV
“Twilight, come with me. I’ll need your magic if I’m going to find Shepard. If you can conjure fire, we can use that as a weapon. Fluttershy, you stay here, I don’t want you getting hurt. I’ll report back when I find Shepard. Let’s move out!” Garrus picked up Twilight by her stomach, to which she replied by shaking her legs wildly, and took her along with him, out the door and onto the path to Ponyville.
The only sounds coming from the path were those of the wind and rustling leaves. Garrus made light stomps while walking, but it was quiet enough to go unnoticed.
“NO!” Shepard’s voice echoed through the twilight.
Garrus and Twilight jumped, hearing a loud noise that cracked throughout the sky.
Garrus knew this sound all too well. “Come on! If there are shots fired, there’s Shepard.”
The pair sprinted into action, leaving a cloud of dust behind them that caught the eye of Rainbow Dash, sitting with Zaeed on a rooftop. He was shining his gun, allowing Rainbow to see her reflection in the metal.
“Hey, Zaeed, you see what I see?”
“Yeh, I do.”
“Wanna go race them?”
Zaeed put on a challenging look, nodding to her and winking with his good eye.
They soon caught up to Garrus and Twilight, laughing gleefully all the way. Zaeed recognized Garrus almost as soon as they made eye contact. “Wai’ a minute, Rainbow! I know this Turian!”
“Massani? How did you end up here?” Garrus asked.
Zaeed jerked his head towards the smoke billowing from the Everfree forest. Garrus mouthed an ‘O’, then quickly explained his situation to Zaeed and Rainbow. Agreements made, the four made their way to Ponyville, urgency fueling them.
---Shepard V
“Shepard-Commander, these organic lifeforms wish to speak with you.”
A small, brown spotted child pony walked up to Shepard with shining eyes. “Um, Mr. Shepard? Why did you save us if you’re an alien?”
The boy had an accent Shepard remembered from Earth. European, if he wasn’t mistaken. Shepard had to come up with something, for even he didn’t know why he was saving the ponies.
“Erm...back where I come from, aliens are my friends. You’re considered an alien to me, since I’ve never seen something like you. It’s...kinda hard to explain.”
Little Pip, now satisfied with the answer he was given, began to interrogate Shepard about many random things.
“What’s your job, mate?”
“Engineer, but I don’t see how--”
“Where’d you get these cool trousers? Did Lady Rarity make them for you?”
The questions continued, and Shepard’s mind pulsed with heat. Urges overcame him, and he stomped on the ground. Using his biotech powers, he threw Little Pip over into a barrel. Unharmed, yet scared beyond wits, Pip whimpered away to wherever he lived, still rolling in his barrel.
The others stood around Shepard, looking at him wide-eyed as they saw his face begin to glow brighter within the cracks of the scars. “Shepard-Commander, your aggressive behavior is causing your face to--”
“I know. Leave it alone, Legion.”
Four figures emerged from the hills behind Shepard, slowly walking towards the town. The faint yell of one of them pierced the silence, and drew the attention of the ponies, as well as Shepard.
“You sure that’s ‘im?”
“Positive.”
The four greeted Shepard when he turned around, explaining the situation. Somewhere along the path while following Twilight, an argument erupted over the mission.
“Shepard, there’s only three of us, you damned idiot! ‘Ow do you expect us to fight back!?”
“Zaeed’s right, Shepard. Two against a thousand are terrible odds.”
Twilight’s ears perked up, remembering something the princess once told her about. Voices began to rise, so she broke through the arguing men. “Boys, boys! I have a plan! Follow me to the library, so we can discuss this in a more...private location.”
Zaeed and Garrus shot angry glances at Shepard, who was still mumbling in his defense.
---The Plan
“Spiiike! I’m hooome!” Twilight called into her candle-lit library.
Shepard found it strange that she lived in a fully furnished tree, but that was not essential now. What mattered was talking to this ‘Spike’ character. To the group’s surprise, Spike was not a large, strong, and noble looking character, but a baby dragon. Though Zaeed and Shepard had only heard of dragons in fairy-tales in their younger years, there was one planted right in their face. Of course, Garrus had no clue what the big deal was. Spike looked a little like the baby Turians back on Palaven.
“Woah, you brought the aliens here?” Spike inquired innocently.
“Yes, Spike. I need you to take a--” Twilight stopped mid-sentence, rethinking something, “I mean, uhm, can you get us some drinks?”
“Purple pony thing, what are you doing?” Zaeed asked.
“My name is Twilight Sparkle, thank you very much, and I don’t want Spike to panic!” Zaeed quieted down, nodding in approval. Best to not scare the children.
Spike set the drinks on the mahogany table. Twilight thanked him and shooed him off, preparing her quill and parchment. “Princess Celestia is my teacher, so she’ll listen to me without a doubt. I just hope there’s still time...”
“Come on, Twilight, we can kick their hinds outta Ponyville if those aliens show their faces again!” Rainbow Dash hovered midair and jabbed at nothing to demonstrate her strength.
‘She’s more of an ego than the Krogans.’ Zaeed thought to himself.
“Um...Twilight, what can the princess do about the monsters? We don’t normally use weapons.”
Fluttershy, who snuck her way to Twilight’s despite her orders to check on Spike, timidly cocked her head to the side as she asked the question.
“Oh, Fluttershy. The princess has had a little something up her sleeve for the past few weeks.”
‘Dear Princess Celestia,
During my investigation of the hospital, the day where the alien was reported fugitive, I found that the alien was friendly, and did not intend harm. Now, while he and I were investigating his vessel, we came across another species of alien. Shepard calls them ‘Collectors’, and, I don’t mean to scare you, but these aliens are capable of destroying the entire galaxy, including the sun and moon. The survivors from the crash of the vessel that brought them here (the explosion from the Everfree forest) have little to no chance against this threat, due to their lack of weaponry. If I may ask, when the time is right, would we be authorized to use the O.F.C?
Your Faithful Student,
Twilight Sparkle.
Twilight signed the parchment and stamped it into the envelope. Using Owlowiscious as a homing owl, she delivered the letter.
“Now, we must wait for her reply.” Twilight stated.
“Shepard-Commander, if this is successful, we may be able to eradicate all Collector life, and possibly bring an end to the Reapers.” Legion chimed in.
“If this works. We can’t be sure.” Shepard directed his attention to the window facing the moon. Noticing the flash of red light next to the moon, he added in, “If we have enough time.”
---Time is Short
In a puff of smoke, a letter enclosed in a red-stamped letter appeared on the table. Twilight’s eyes opened slowly, surveying the dark room around her, then made her way to the table. Twilight read it aloud, hoping to wake the others. Legion stood in the corner of the library, his blue eye illuminating the shelf in front of him.
My Faithful Student,
I have taken this into account, but I am afraid that you will have to prove these ‘Collectors’ exist before my council will allow the O.F.C to be used. Report to Canterlot immediately, and allow Shepard to explain. Perhaps the council will believe the one who saw them firsthand.
Your Mentor,
Princess Celestia
“Shepard? Shepard, wake up!”
“Duh--Huh?”
“We need to go meet the council. Shepard, get up. We don’t have any time to lose.”
Shepard stood, shaking his head. Finally regaining his balance, he nodded to Twilight. The others soon awoke, and they made their way to Canterlot, following the purple unicorn. Each looked at another nervously as they walked along the path. For the first few hours of the walk, it felt like torture. By sunset, each non-pony wanted to end their suffering. They were all brought to a crawl by the time they reached the Royal Gardens, Garrus forced to drop the Collector body on the ground and rest.
“Here we are, men. The Royal Palace of Canterlot.”
The castle was built into the side of a mountain, and by the looks of it, had a thinning layer of paint on its walls. Judging by how crappy it looked, something must have happened.
“Oh my Celestia...”
Canterlot was empty. No, it was more than empty, it was deserted without a trace of anypony ever even being there. Exactly like the colonies Shepard visited. Shepard and Co. followed the frightened unicorn through the streets, to the castle.
Still no sight of anypony. Not even in the Princess’ throne room or chambers. “Shepard! What happened!?”
Shepard stared around, remembering his past battles. “The Collectors. We have less time than we thought.”
“Oh no, the O.F.C controls!! They’re decimated!” The box containing many buttons and levers was showering sparks onto the ground, fire spewed from every inch of its surface.
“What’s this ‘O.F.C’ anyway?” Shepard asked.
“The Orbital Friendship Cannon. It harnesses the Elements of Harmony’s power into one large ray. It can only fire once every month, since it’s still a prototype, but it was our only chance of destroying--”
“The Collector ship?”
“Yes.”
Shepard shook his head in disappointment, but soon formulated a plan. “Twilight, what are these ‘Elements of Harmony’?”
“The six elements are Magic, Kindness, Generosity, Laughter, Loyalty, and Honesty, represented by me and my friends.”
Shepard smiled, realizing what they could do. “If we find your friends, could we use them against the Collectors?”
Twilight nodded.
“Okay, that establishes that...but there’s one more thing.”
“Yes?” Twilight inquired, trying to further the conversation.
“We’d have to infiltrate the Cruiser to save the world. Not all of us will survive, though.”
Twilight gulped, “I-I’ll have to ask the others. Is there any other way, Shepard?”
“No. This is the only way, Twilight. I’m sorry.”
Shepard embraced Twilight, her eyes filled to the brim with tears. Shepard had never felt something so soft.
*Added note: Special thanks to redstone for helping me edit and add things to this. He’s a real fine chap.*