//------------------------------//
// 4. Questions About Humanity 
// Story: Guardians of the Elements of Harmony 
// by mcb893 
//------------------------------//

Night fall...

Twilight uncomfortably tried to fall asleep, but was unable to. The sounds of the forest kept causing her to open her eyes. She sighed and looked to her right. Applejack was having no better luck. In her eyes, she saw the same desire she had. Home, with her friends and family. Twilight still hadn't seen or heard from her parents since the attack began. She was concerned, and was hoping they were okay. To the left, the Staff Sergeant stood guard, with the device in his hands. Twilight looked upon him with fascination. She could only imagine how advanced his civilization must be.

"Excuse me... Staff Sergeant?" She called. He turned his head to the side, indicating that he was listening. "Yeah?" He asked. His voice was very deep, she had never heard a pony speak that low. Except maybe Big Macintosh, but that was debatable. "Can I ask you a few questions?" She asked kindly. He turned fully around so that he was looking at her. He was no longer wearing his sunglasses, and his eyes were a light, sensitive blue color. "Such as?" Twilight looked at the ground and played with a leaf. "I'm just, curious about your world. Your species. I've never seen anything so advanced in my life." The man sighed and walked over.

He sat down underneath a tree and took off his helmet. Twilight pondered this creature. His brown mane was very short, only covering the top of his head, and coming down slightly above his forehead. "What do you want to know?" He asked. Twilight eyed his mane, and began there. "Why are human manes like that?" She asked. The man raised his eyebrow asked what she meant. Maybe they weren't called manes in the human world. Applejack cleared up the question for her.

"The fur on top of yer' head. Why's it like that?" The Staff Sergeant looked up to his head, and chuckled. "Well, this is called hair first of all. Second, it's cut this way because I'm a soldier. Soldiers have their hair cut really short so it doesn't get in their eyes, that way they can shoot better." He said. He reached into a pouch and took out a bottle of a liquid. It didn't take Twilight long to realize it was water. "Here. You must be thirsty." He said as he twisted a cap off of the bottle and passed it to them.

AJ took a sip as Twilight asked another question. "What is that thing that you're carrying around? And the other things?" AJ passed the bottle as the Staff Sergeant observed the thing in his hand. He frowned and sighed. "This is a gun. This particular one is called an M4A1. It's and assault rifle, meaning that it is used for attacks on the front lines, whether it's offensive of defensive. It fires 5.56mm rounds at a full auto rate." He said. Twilight passed the water back to him, and he put the cap back on.

He pulled out a small device from his side. It looked like a small version of the other one. "This is a handgun, used for gunning by hand. It fires 9mm rounds, and unlike the M4, only fires one shot when you pull the trigger. you have to pull multiple times to fire multiple shots. It's used for close quarters combat." He put the gun back and took out a spherical object that Twilight had seen him holding an hour earlier. "This is a grenade. It explodes. Pull the pin, and in a few seconds, it blasts fire and shrapnel."

He then pulled out the his knife, which he didn't need to explain, and his claymore, which he explained in good detail. Twilight nodded and asked him why he used this stuff. John, as he was called, hung his head and spoke slowly. "They are weapons of war. They're used to kill other human beings. Ones that are against you. They are specifically created to bring pain and death." Twilight's mouth was agape, why would humans kill their own species? She hadn't realized she asked the question aloud.

"It kind of depends really. Different men have different reasons. But my faction, the Rangers, use them to fight for the innocent. To defend those who can't do it themselves. We fight for justice, and freedom. It's hard sometimes, but in my opinion, liberty is worth fighting for. I would give my life for it." The three just sat there in silence for a while, taking each other in. Finally, Applejack broke the silence by asking him about his home, what it was like.


He spoke of large, beautiful meadows, breathtaking landscapes, and towering cities. As well as extraordinary technological breakthroughs. But he also spoke of poverty, and destruction. Twilight listened with fascination. The soldier began to talk about his home country, called the United States of America, with a bunch of different shortened versions. He told them about famous generals like someone named George Washington, elected leaders called "Presidents", and of the democratic society.

"The laws and foundation of the US support the ideals of Democracy, and equality. No man is better than another, all are entitled to the same freedoms, the same privileges..." Twilight was amazed, the story and history of this world was unbelievable, there were so many things to learn, to discover. The Staff Sergeant got up and put his helmet back on.

"Get some rest you two. You'll need your strength for the morning. I promise I'll answer any other questions you have once I can get you home safely." Twilight yawned and nodded. She was kind of tired now. "One more question." Applejack asked as she laid down on a soft patch of grass. The soldier sighed and asked what it was. "Just outta curiosity, how old are you?" AJ asked as she rested he head on her hooves.

The soldier turned to face the ponies. Twilight wondered what he must have been feeling. with a calm, serious tone, he answered. "29. Now go to sleep." The man walked back over to where he had previously been standing before the ponies had asked him all of the questions. Twilight laid her head on her hooves and smiled. This man fought for freedom, and liberty. Happiness. His methods were questionable, but his heart was in the right place. She slowly drifted off to sleep, feeling safe to know such a soldier was defending her. Maybe things would be okay.