Chapter 3: Mighty Good Cider
“Uh…howdy.”
The miniature orange equine was gazing at the Gears curiously, while her companion (a similar creature, except with a cyan coat and prismatic mane) gaped openly at Sergeant Fenix.
“Whoa…so cool…”
Marcus blinked. Nope, they were still there. Two petite, brightly colored horses, both of whom spoke perfectly clear English. Glancing sidelong at Dom, he whispered, “Are you seeing this too?”
Unsure of himself, Corporal Santiago replied, “That uh….that depends Marcus. Are you seeing a pair of tiny talking horses?”
“Yup.”
“Then I guess I am too…”
The tangerine cowpoke in the ten gallon hat stepped forward, “Um, ‘scuse me. But we’re actually pony folk. Y‘all mean to say you ain’t never seen a pony before?”
This was ludicrous. Marcus keyed his short range comm. “Baird, Cole, come in. Dom and I seem to have uh…gone insane. We’re seeing something that’s impossible.”
“What?”
“Just get over here.”
Moments later, rustling was heard on either side of the road as the rest of Delta converged on the strange scene.
“Alright Marcus, what’s this abou-….whoa…..” Baird removed the goggles from his eyes, as if they were to blame for his mind not comprehending what he was seeing. Cole gaped openly.
The ponies took a step back at the arrival of the newcomers, but still the orange one attempted to greet them. “Are uh, y’all new to these parts?”
The sky blue pony was staring directly at the old wound on Marcus’ face.
“Where’d you get that awesome scar? And that armor is radical!” She declared as she fluttered into the air, held aloft by a pair of wings sprouting from her sides. Yet one more thing that Marcus’ already overloaded senses strained to accept. “It makes you look so cool!”
“That can wait Rainbow, why don’t we settle for introductions first? My name is Applejack, proprietor of Sweet Apple Acres!”
“And I’m the one and only Rainbow Dash! Fastest pegasus in all of Equestria!
The sarcasm engrained in Baird’s DNA was likely the only thing that allowed/forced him to respond at this point.
“Equestria, huh? Isn’t that right between Gondor and Narnia?”
The blue pegasus cocked her head quizzically. “No. At least I don’t think so, geometry was never my strong point.”
“You mean geography?.”
“Yeah whichever. I’ve always been more of a honed athlete than an egg-head anyway.”
The engineer chuckled and rolled his eyes. “Yeah, that’s for sure.”
“What‘s your problem?” Rainbow Dash said, her tone beginning to turn harsh.
“Nothing, I was just wondering if you were the fastest in Pony Land because you’re trying to run away from that hair. Seriously, I can hear its cries of agony from here.”
The tiny flying pony’s mood flipped in an instant. She floated right up into Baird’s face and began to retaliate.
“Oh yeah? Well at least I’m not rump ugly like you! And it’s Equestria, not “Pony Land”. Who made you the head of the fashion patrol, anyways?”
“Actually it was the same committee who apparently made you the Queen of the Pride Parade.”
“Well I…what?” Rainbow Dash said, not quite understanding the jab at her mane. Her eyes darted around while she tried to recover. “Well, you’re the…mayor of…Lamesville!”
“Listen ‘Cupcake’, we-”
But Marcus would never find out what Baird had intended to say, because at that very moment a pink blur rushed by his peripheral vision, which turned out to be another (much more energetic) young mare. Baird and Rainbow’s argument was forgotten in a sudden typhoon of sugar fueled chatter.
“Diiiiiiiiiiiid somepony say cupcakes?” she asked with a strange twinkle in her eye, as she held aloft (without fingers, Marcus noted) an entire tray of the frosted confections. Then she spotted the Gears. A moment passed in complete silence before she spoke again. Well, she made noise at least. “GUUUAAAAAAAAH!!!!!”, she gasped, her eyes going (almost) as wide as Baird’s mouth.
“Woooow! Who are you? Are you new to town? Well obviously you’re new to town, because I’ve never seen you before! And I know everypony! But, I’ve never seen anypony like you before! My name is Pinkie Pie! Do you like cupcakes? I LOOOOOVE cupcakes! I love making them, baking them, selling them, eating them, and even saying them! Saying cupcakes I mean, not “them”, though “them” is a pretty neat word too! Them, them, them, them, them, them, them, them, them, them! See? The more you say it, the funnier it gets! Are you lumberjacks?”
Marcus‘ mind could only handle so much at once. On some primal level, he knew she expected a response, yet all he could muster was, “Lumberjacks?”
The pink pony eyed the jagged teeth of their bayonets. “Yeah, lumberjacks! Those are some pretty fancy saws you have. I had an uncle that was a lumberjack! Or was it that he just loved flapjacks?” Her eyes drifted to the corner of their sockets, and her stare became glazed over and unfocused, as though she had literally become lost in that last thought. Marcus took the opportunity to signal Delta to store their weapons.
“Enough!” Apple Jack interjected. “Everypony simmer down. Now, what’d you say your names were?”
The Coalition of Ordered Governments had very strict regulations concerning first contact with a new species. Strict, but simple. “Assume Hostilities.” Now, Marcus wasn’t exactly an expert, but he was pretty sure that these soft, vibrant ponies meant no harm. At any rate, he seriously doubted that the miniscule horses could do any damage to the battle hardened war veterans even if they wanted to, so he saw no reason to not be polite. Besides, Marcus had never exactly been one for regulation.
“The name’s Sergeant Marcus Fenix, and this is Delta Squad. Corporal Dominic Santiago, Private Augustus Cole, and Corporal Damon Baird.” Marcus said, motioning to each of them in turn.
“Well, it’s a pleasure to meet y’all.” Apple Jack said through her teeth, pulling Rainbow Dash out of Baird’s airspace by her tail. “What are y’all doin’ in this neck of the woods?”
“We’re a bit lost. We’re not really sure what happened, but we need to get back to our command at Anvil Gate.”
“Well, Ah’m not rightly sure were that is.”
Marcus had figured it would be too much to hope for.
“But if anypony’d know,” The orange mare continued, “Ah know just the pony it’d be. Listen, Ah have a farm not too far from here, how would y‘all like to come by for a barrel of cider while we get this sorted out?”
At this, Rainbow Dash’s jaw dropped almost to the ground.
“B-but…tha-…OH COME ON!!! That’s the cider you made for me for my birthday!”
“Ah know Rainbow, but Ah think these are some extenuatin’ circumstances. It won’t hurt ya’ none to share. Besides if it means that much to you, Ah’ll make you another barrel next week.”
“Besides,” Pinkie Pie offered, “Good cider tastes even better when you share!”
The cyan pegasus glared coldly at her bubblegum-colored companion.
Marcus considered Apple Jack’s offer. Unlikely though it seemed that there could be a pony who might be able to point them home, it was still more of a plan than they had a minute ago.
“Alright Gears, fall in.”
Baird cocked an eyebrow. “Really Marcus?” He said, not quite loud enough to carry to the ears of the colorful equines. “Are we really gonna go waste time having a tea party with the pony pals?”
“Listen, we need to get back home as soon as possible. If the Locust really are working on some sort of warp technology, then COG Command has to be warned. If these ponies think they might be able to help us get back, then I’m not gonna pass that up.”
“Alright, but we’re going to need to iron out Cole’s sundress before tea time.”
The muscled ex-sports star scoffed, “Baird’s just jealous ‘cause he knows the Cole Train makes it look good, baby.”
The COG soldiers followed the ponies to a new stretch of forest, or to be more precise, it was an orchard. There were apple trees for as far as the eye could see, each one bearing many plump, vibrant fruit. Further still the group walked, and soon they saw in the distance an idyllic little farm, complete with red barn.
Apple Jack paused for a moment, turning to Rainbow Dash. “How’s about you fly off and round up Twilight, then meet us back here in the barn?”
“On it! Be back in a flash!” Rainbow Dash. As she disappeared over the tree tops, they heard her call back, “Save some cider for me!”
Apple Jack and Pinkie Pie led the Gears to the barn. “Sorry about the accommodations, Ah wish we could offer y’all a seat inside the house, but I’m afraid y’all are a little tall for our ceilings.”
“This is fine.” Marcus said, looking around. The space was fairly clean, for being a farm building. Hay bales were neatly piled along one wall, wooden barrels stacked along another. A row of stalls stood empty near a workbench. The air smelled of dirt and grain. It was a good, honest smell. He turned back to their pony hostess. “Thanks.”
“Ah’ll be right back, feel free to make yourselves at home.” She turned and headed for the farmhouse. Pinkie Pie bounced around the stables, humming happily to herself, while the Gears sat down to rest on some overturned barrels, having a moment (mostly) to themselves to converse.
“The Cole Train ain’t never seen nothin’ like this. The hell is up with this place?” Cole turned to Baird, his eyes looking for answers.
“Hey, don’t look at me! I’m just as lost. Just because I actually use my head for things other than thrash ball stats and train-based humor, doesn’t mean I know what’s going on.”
“Settle down. We’re going to figure this out, and get back home.” Marcus said. He noticed that Dom had been staring up into the rafters, and followed his friends gaze. “What’s up Dom?”
“Thought I saw something in the loft…”
At that moment, a tiny “Eeep!” escaped from somewhere above them, and a rustle of movement could be heard from the haystack in the loft.
“Maybe it’s a hay thief!” Pinkie Pie chirped. “OH! Or maybe it’s a barn ghost!” She suddenly donned a clerical collar and a pair of spectacles. Speaking in a much more serious tone, she bade, “The power of Celestia compels you! The power of Celestia compels you! Out with you, dark spirit!”
Marcus could only watch with an odd mixture of confusion and amusument at the spectacle. Pinkie then climbed the ladder into the loft, and proceeded to fish around in the haystack, pulling from it an even tinier pony, this one the color of sunshine, with a scarlet mane tied up in a pink ribbon. Marcus had thought that the ponies he had met so far were small, but this one was easily half the size of the pink mare holding her up. From the way she spoke, the young filly was obviously related to Apple Jack.
“Let go a’ me!” the diminutive pony squeaked.
Pinkie Pie looked aghast. “Apple Bloom! I didn’t know you were a ghost!”
“I ain’t a ghost!” she said, shaking out of Pinkie’s grip. “Ah’m sorry, I didn‘t mean to scare ya. Ah was playin’ ‘round in the barn when y’all came in!”
Marcus looked at his old friend. Dom was clearly taken aback, seeing a child, pony though she may be. He had lost both of his own children 15 years ago on E-day, the day the Locust emerged from below to wage war on an already battle weary human race. Back home it was rare to see children, even in Stranded camps. Parents tended to guard the younger generation most protectively, many children hardly ever leaving their homes until they were old enough for the COG to conscript into service.
Apple Jack had chosen that moment to return, carrying a sealed cask on her back. “Apple Bloom!” she said with a stern look. “What have Ah told you about playin’ up there? You could fall ‘n get hurt.”
“Ah’m sorry, sis.” the smaller pony said, riding down the ladder clutching to Pinkie Pie’s back.
“Just promise to be more careful.” Apple Jack said, as she let the laden barrel slide off her back, and onto the workbench. Turning to Marcus, she remarked, “Mah little sister. I hope she wasn’t bothern’ ya none.”
Dom spoke up, his eyes still locked onto the teeny filly. “No, not at all.” Apple Bloom shot him a grateful grin.
The orange cowpoke continued, “It’s a shame that Granny Smith and Big Macintosh are off visiting family in Appleloosa. I woulda loved for you to meet them.”
Using her teeth, Apple Jack pulled the cork from the barrel, and replaced it with a spigot. She then pulled out a number of dusty glass jars from under the counter, and wiped them down before filling them with clear amber liquid from the cask. “Drink up, everypony!”
The ponies sat with the Gears, quietly enjoying the spiced apple beverage, the whole while Apple Bloom kept eyeing Dom over her make-shift mug. “Seems you got a fan, Dom.” Marcus said with a grin, taking a swig of his own drink. The cider carved a cool path down Marcus’ gullet.
“Mighty good cider, ain’t it?” Apple Jack said with a smirk. Marcus had to admit, it’d been awhile since he’d enjoyed a simple drink so much that wasn‘t alcoholic.
There was a knock at the doorway. Rainbow Dash had returned, and she had brought with her a lavender pony. The newcomer had a horn poking out from under her blue-ish purple mane, and a bursting star pattern adorned her flanks. The rainbow haired pony rushed passed them to a waiting glass of cider, heaving it back and gulping it down greedily. The other pony walked in slowly, taking her time to size up each of the armored warriors.
“Wow, Rainbow wasn’t kidding, you really are strange looking.” she said to the soldiers. “My name is Twilight Sparkle.”
Baird attempted (unsuccessfully) to stifle a snicker, as Marcus introduced Delta squad to the unicorn.
“Wooow.” said a small, starry eyed reptile, stepping out from behind Twilight and eyeing the Gears with reverence.
“And this is my number one assistant, Spike!” The purple mare continued cheerfully. “Rainbow tells me you’re lost.” She proceeded to pull a number of books and scrolls from her saddlebags. “So!” she said, spreading a large map over the floor. “Where are you from?”
Marcus looked at the map, and his heart sank. Not only were the names unfamiliar, but the very shape of the continents were wholly strange to him. Alien. Baird’s words from earlier rang clearly in his ears.
“I wonder if the Locust haven’t been toying around with some sort of warp technology. If I’m right, we just got broken down and beamed somewhere like we were television waves.”
Marcus wondered how accurate that guess had actually been, as he looked at the words on the heading of the map. It read “World Map of Equis”.
“Not from here,” Marcus said, responding to Twilight’s query.
“I’m sorry?” Twilight choked out, “Not from here? You mean like…”
“We’re not from this planet.” Marcus finished bluntly. “We came from a place called Sera.”
The full weight of what Marcus had just proclaimed fell full upon everyone in the barn.
Cole was the first to break the silence. “Marcus man, you mean we ain’t even on our own planet?”
“Is it so hard to believe Gus? Look around. You’re having cider in a barn with talking ponies. I think Baird was right earlier. I think we got beamed to some alien planet.”
“Well technically,” Twilight Sparkle said slowly, “You’re the aliens, since we‘ve been here all along.”
Baird started up at this, “Listen up Twinkle Star, I really appreciate the input, but that’s a little less than helpful.”
“Hey, leave her alone you goggle wearing freak.” Rainbow spat, quick to defend her friend. She had not yet forgiven herself for “losing” to Baird earlier.
“Sure thing, you flying eyesore. Why don‘t you flutter off and let the big boys talk?”
“What’s that Captain shiny pants? You say you’re just angry because your face looks like it was hit with a shovel from both sides? Maybe we could hire somepony to buck the front to match.”
“Oh sure, right after we find someone to bleach out that train wreck of a mane.”
“Why you-”
“That’s enough from both you.” Marcus said, raising his voice above the bickering. “We’ve got bigger problems here.”
Twilight Sparkle agreed. “Yes, arguing right now isn’t going to help anypony.”
Rainbow Dash, obviously frustrated that she failed to get the last word in, stuck her tongue out at Baird, blowing him a raspberry when she thought no one was looking.
“Well, I guess we should start from the beginning, then.” The purple unicorn continued. “Tell me about yourselves, and how you got here. Maybe we can find some clue to how to get you home.”
“Alright, well sit back” Sergeant Fenix said, readjusting his seat. “This is going to take awhile…”
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“…and when we woke up, we found ourselves in the forest nearby.” Marcus finished. He had spent the last hour recounting their mission to the Imulsion rig, as well as providing a lot of background on the Locust War, the COG, and humanity in general. They even talked about the world they came from. The endless graveyards, the ruined cities. He decided it best however, to omit the fact that a couple dozen Locust soldiers had also made the trip to Equestria, and that Delta Squad had dispatched them in cold blood.
“Whoa.” Rainbow Dash managed to utter. Her face was full of awe, and she and Spike both eyed the Gears with a new respect.
“That’s….wow…that’s a lot to hear.” Twilight stammered, “I can’t believe you come from a planet where war has been raged on a global basis for almost a century! That‘s a little hard to accept.”
“Believe it sister. And it’s a little harder when you’re living it rather than hearing it.” Baird said, an icy chill running through his voice.
“I’m…I’m sorry. I’m sure that it’s been a harsh life.”
“You don’t know the half of it,” Marcus interjected before Baird could insult anyone further. “But it’s all finally starting to wind down. Humanity is running out of resources. Weapons, vehicles, fuel, supplies, places to hide. The stockpiles from the end of the Pendulum Wars are largely what have kept us going the last fifteen years, but they’re starting to run dry. Pretty soon we’ll lose our Air Force, unless we can find a new stockpile of refined fuel, or someway to manufacture it with our broken down refineries. And a lot of Gears have been reduced to using older weapons, the ammunition for our modern gear is getting pretty scarce. It’s not all bad though, the Locust are on their last legs as well. We sunk an entire city into the Hollow, their biggest nest, we flooded most of their tunnels, and ran their Queen out of town. We may be running low on supplies, but they’re beginning to run low on troops. In fact, before today, it had been a month since anyone had even seen a Grub. One day very soon, maybe in a month, maybe a year, maybe five years, but soon, this war will come to an end, if only because one side will no longer be able to fight back.”
Apple Jack cleared away everyone’s empty mugs. “Well that’s mighty depressin’.”
Apple Bloom had curled up next to Dom’s boot and fallen asleep some time ago, missing out on most of the history lesson. Corporal Santiago sat very still, so as not to disturb her. “Yeah, you’re telling us.”
Twilight Sparkle sat up again and began rummaging through some additional books she had Spike run and get while Marcus told his story. “Well, this gives me some idea of how you got here. From that, maybe I can rework the procedure in reverse. Of particular interest is this machine the Locust were building.”
Baird had been flipping through a book called Equestrian Astronomy: A Scholar‘s Guide, “You know,” he said, “I recognize some of these constellations, just under different names. Maybe I can cross reference a few with Jack’s database, and try to triangulate where we are, and where Sera is.”
“And how exactly does that help us get home B-man?” Cole said, doubtfully.
Twilight smiled once again. “Well, If I can devise a spell to send you back, I’ll need to know the exact position of your home world. I don’t want to literally send you to the middle of nowhere!”
“Spell” Marcus thought. Apparently unicorns could perform acts of magic. Yet another thing about this place that he chose to shake off, rather than struggle to see the logic. This really was one strange world. One thought had been nagging on him though, ever since Apple Jack had invited them into her home. Turning to the ponies, he asked, “Why are you doing this? We don‘t have anyway to pay you back, and you had no reason to help us in the first place.”
Apple Jack cocked her head, “Ah reckon Ah just felt it was the right thing to do. Ah pride myself on bein’ able to tell when folks is bein’ truthful, and there’s an honest look in your eye. Ah don‘t reckon it woulda sat right with me to leave you out in the woods, even if it did look like y‘all could take care of yourselves.” She added with a grin, “Besides, Baird took Rainbow‘s ego down a few notches, and that’s always healthy for her. Not to mention hilarious to me.”
“Hey!” Dash protested, her face breaking away from attempting to suck the last drops of cider from the keg.
“That’s right.” Twilight agreed with a curt nod, then adding an addendum, “About the helping you part, not about Rainbow Dash. Apple Jack is always helping other ponies, and as her friends, we help her in turn.”
Marcus could definitely identify with their camaraderie, and was grateful to have met such kind people. Or, ponies. Whichever. “Thank you. All of you.”
“Not a problem.” Twilight beamed, cracking open a copy of The Codex of Cosmic Magic.
After a few hours of intense reading however, she closed her book. “I don’t think I can do this.”
Marcus looked up in surprise. He had been admiring the fiery colors of the Equestrian sunset, a sight more vivid and beautiful than those on Sera. Applejack had just returned from carrying Apple Bloom off to bed. Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash had bidden them goodnight, assuring them they would return first thing in the morning. Cole and Dom were catching some much needed shuteye a pair of empty stalls lined with hay, and Baird was in a corner on his own, flipping though a few tomes about astronomy and star gazing. Marcus turned to look at Twilight.
“What do you mean?“ He asked the unicorn.
“I don’t think I can wrap my mind around some of this. At least, not on my own. There is some rather advanced quantum spatial magical theory involved in this, and I think I need a second set of eyes.”
Apple Jack raised an eyebrow, and said with a chuckle. “Now that’s a surprise, Ah didn’t think there was anything too smart for Twilight Sparkle. You thinkin’ of writin’ the Princess, sugarcube?”
“It’s not that it’s ‘too smart’, I’m just unsure some things.”
The apple farmer smirked. “Uh-huh.”
“Anyway, yes, I think it’s time to report to Princess Celestia on this. Maybe she can point me in the right direction. She is kind of an expert on moving things through the heavens. She should at least have a chance to meet Marcus and the others in any case. Spike, take a letter.”
The tiny dragon sat up. He had been staring at Marcus for hours, enthralled by visions of battle and glory after hearing some of the soldier’s story earlier. Shaking his head clear, he pulled a quill and a piece of parchment from the bag he had brought with him.
“Who’s this Princess?” Marcus asked, leaning towards Apple Jack.
“Princess Celestia, one of the Alicorn Sisters who rule over all of Equestria. Celestia is also the one who raises the sun in the mornin’, and she’s been Twi’s teacher since she was a filly.”
“Raises the sun? You’re shittin’ me.”
“Nope. No foolin’.”
Meanwhile, Twilight was dictating to Spike.
“Dear Princess Celestia,
A rather remarkable thing has occurred today! Apple Jack of all ponies, has stumbled across alien life! They call themselves humans, and claim to be from a planet called ‘Sera’. They seemed dangerous at first, after all they are soldiers. But, while they can seem harsh, or abrasive, I believe this to be a result of living in an equally harsh existence, not due to any personal flaws. Their planet has been at war for nearly one hundred years! Yet, despite this, I believe there is a goodness in them that I can’t quite explain. We’ve decided to help them try and get home, which leads me to the purpose of this letter. I’ve been exploring possible spells and looking at some advanced celestial magic, but I’m coming up at a loss. If they were sent here, it stands to reason they can be sent back. If it wouldn’t be a trouble, could my friends and I bring them to meet you? Maybe you and I could discuss some of the more advanced magic theory I’ve been struggling with.
Your Faithful Student,
Twilight Sparkle”
When he had finished, Spike rolled up the letter, and to Marcus’ surprise, green fire spewed from the dragon's mouth and incinerated the note. The twinkling smoke hung in the air for a moment, then sped off through the night sky. Minutes later, the purple dragon burped, and a new scroll magically materialized from the belch, this one wrapped in a red silk ribbon and adorned with a golden seal. Spike ripped off the binding and read aloud.
“My Dearest Student Twilight,
I would certainly welcome a visit from you and your friends. Concerning these ‘humans‘, I would be most interested in talking with them. I would advise caution however, when dealing with these aliens. It can sometimes be difficult to discern somepony’s true intentions, especially when you have only just met, but I trust your judgment. If you say they can be trusted, then I have faith in you. I shall look forward to your arrival.
Your Teacher,
Princess Celestia.”
Twilight smiled. “Spike, pack our things. We should let everypony sleep. They have a date with royalty tomorrow.” Twilight, Apple Jack, and Spike walked out the barn door, closing it behind them. “Goodnight Marcus!” Apple Jack called. “If y‘all need anything, don‘t hesitate to ask!”
Marcus bid them goodnight and kicked his feet up in an empty stall. He had to chuckle to himself.
“A date with royalty, huh?”
The last time he had met a monarch in her throne room, he had been there to gun her down. Hopefully this visit would be slightly different.
(a/n: WOW, this turned out to be a surprisingly hard chapter to write. I ended up scrapping it and starting over twice! I'm still not quite not 100% happy with this chapter, but it gets the point across, and sets up the relationships between the Gears and the ponies rather nicely. I may come back and tweak it someday, but sometimes you have to know when to move on. SUPER big thanks to my sister/editor for putting up with this in the midst of her already busy life. Anyhoodlums, thanks so much to everyone who's taken the time to read my story so far! I have some pretty fun things planned for the future, so stick around. Your thumbs are appreciated :-P. The next chapter should be up in a few days!)