//------------------------------// // Chapter 12 // Story: Mass Effect: Salvage // by N00813 //------------------------------// Chapter 12 -- They’re not different or special, they’re jerks or saints. Just like us. – Lieutenant Kaidan Alenko, 2183 CE -- “Right,” Riana said, assuming control of the small team. “We’ve scoped out a wreck from orbit that looks like it’s got intact relics.” She pulled up a holographic display of the area from her omni-tool, letting it float in the air. The ponies glanced at it in wonder. Luna stretched out a hoof, which unsurprisingly passed through the image. Every non-pony ignored her. “See this? It’s a griffon town,” Luna said, her hoof still in the midst of the hologram. “The architecture matches perfectly. Hard lines, aerial entrances and outside perches. It seems that some things stay the same, even after a thousand years.” Economical and sparse, Levin noted. Just like our buildings, back on Palaven. Celestia shifted and harrumphed, whilst keeping the congregation in a cone in front of her. “It’s only 50 years old. It’s a fairly new settlement. There was a case of madness that spread through the town about a decade ago, and the animals there are unusually wild and violent – that’s why no one has claimed it before. Any recent news, I cannot say. This was before relations went sour.” “What changed from 'before'?” Levin asked, filing away that information on insanity. The timeframe it had happened was close to the start of the Reaper War – too close to be just a coincidence. “Firearms,” Celestia replied simply. “Though not like yours – longer, and made of wood.” “Civilians are allowed weapons?” Levin asked, casually. “Yes.” Celestia frowned. “They also all undergo mandatory military training when they become adults. I think that’s foolish, but it’s not my country to run.” Levin simply made a sound of acknowledgement. If Celestia knew how close the turian culture was to the griffon culture… Well. She wouldn’t be happy, to say the least. “I’ve plotted a route,” Riana said, zooming out the image a bit to show both their destination and their current location far to the east. A red line shot ramrod straight across the sea, stopping at a mountainous area near the coast. Another blue line snaked towards a coastal Equestrian city, and then across the sea, before going to the town. “Red is for the shuttle, blue is for the carriage if you are to accompany us. I doubt your ponies have the stamina for a cross-ocean flight.” Celestia shook her head. “I can’t. I have my duties. Much as I’d love to,” she said. “I’ll go,” Luna said nonchalantly. “I would like to know more about the world as well.” “You trust them?” Luna nodded. “She trusted her life to the guards,” she said, pointing a hoof at Riana. “I hope I can do the same. And if not, I can protect myself.” “Don’t get in the way,” Sev muttered. Luna shot him a glare, which he ignored. “Who else is coming along?” Riana asked brightly, trying to cover the patch of awkwardness that had grown in the wake of Sev’s words. “Captain Armor, as well as a few of his colleagues,” Celestia replied, glaring at Sev. “Since my sister is coming with you, this has become a diplomatic mission, so the guards will be in full armor. Twilight Sparkle will also accompany you three. It is also highly likely that you will be escorted by Gryphonian guards.” “Spirits, I hate bureaucracy,” Levin mumbled. “They’d better not get their hooves or claws or whatever over the relics.” “Sister. I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself. I do not need guards,” Luna said, glancing over to Celestia. “Twilight is a powerful mage, and I am as well. Guards will only give the impression of an invasion or espionage.” Celestia stomped a hoof on the ground. “I don’t trust them.” “Then don’t.” Luna shrugged. “Leave me to choose my own path, and suffer my own consequences.” Celestia sighed. “I don’t want to lose you again.” Luna stayed silent for a moment, exhaling, before starting to speak. “You didn’t want to, the first time. But you still cast that spell. You still chose to use the Elements, even though you didn’t want to. I am choosing to go by myself, even though I know of the consequences.” Oddly, despite what she was saying, she sounded as if she didn't care too much. The end result was unsettling, to say the least. Celestia left without another word, shaking her head, and Luna turned back around to face the three. “You probably all have questions, don’t you?” “Some,” Levin said. Riana nodded. Sev stayed motionless. “Well, go on. Ask away.” “You don’t have duties?” Riana asked, head tilted slightly to the side. Perhaps they were just token figureheads for the government. Then again, their biotic power said not. Luna had a lopsided smirk on her face. “I do, but my sister has been taking care of them by herself for a long time. She’ll be fine.” “What happened ‘the first time’?” Levin said. Luna twisted her head from side to side, and then sighed explosively. “I had a disagreement with my sister. It was over how much control we should exert on the ecosystem. My sister wanted total control, so that the citizens would be totally safe. I said that disrupting the natural order was dangerous. We fought, and she put me in stasis for 1000 years.” “That’s a lifetime,” Riana breathed. Luna nodded. “I could still think, but my bodily functions had stopped. My sister spread a myth that said I had been banished to the moon; my symbol.” “Solitary confinement,” Levin murmured. “How did you keep yourself sane?” Luna’s face twitched in annoyance, but then she smiled sadly. “I’m not sure I did.” Levin sighed. "I'm sorry." Sev grunted. “Sanity is overrated.” “What?” Sev sighed explosively. “If you think too much about what you’re going to do, you’re never going to actually do it. So if you want something done, you’d better be crazy. Sometimes, that’s the best way to go.” Luna narrowed her eyes. “Thanks.” “My pleasure.” There was an awkward pause. “So, when can we leave?” Levin said, resting his elbows on the tabletop and his forehead in his hands. At least they weren’t trying to kill one another. That was a start. Riana’s ‘hearts and minds’ thing must have really worked. “Whenever Twilight arrives,” Luna replied. Then she looked up at the sky. It was noon. She estimated that the ‘shuttle’, if it matched the speed of the pegasi, could be there in five hours – meaning that they would reach the town at nightfall. Not good, considering that she and Sparkle would essentially be sleeping in a country that didn’t really like ponies, in this age and day. “So only two passengers, plus two plus me in the seat – five,” Levin muttered, before turning to Riana. “Do you want to sit co-pilot? That’ll leave space for the cargo.” Riana nodded. So that was that. “Princess – to speed up the recovery of the wreck, we should travel on the shuttle. That can get us there in a few minutes.” Luna smiled. “Captain Armor told us of how you trusted us enough to ride on our vessel. Now, I hope I will be able to trust the three of you to ride on yours.” “Thanks.” “Don’t thank me yet. I still haven’t gotten in.” Luna laughed. It helped loosen up the atmosphere a bit, and both Levin and Riana were grateful for that. Sev, meanwhile, thought it was a stupid decision. Still, it was her stupid decision, not his. His left eye caught movement. Armor was heading out from the barracks, at a steady speed, on an approach directly towards them. What does he want now? “Armor approaching,” he muttered into the com link. “Twilight Sparkle due twelve o’clock, palace main corridor,” Levin murmured as well. Sev and Riana could only see multicolored blobs weaving around in that same area – that meant she had to be quite a distance away. Armor broke through the trees surrounding the field, and bowed as soon as he came within 3 meters of Luna. The Princess told him to rise. “Princess – I need to know,” he said. “Is Twilight coming along?” Luna’s jaw dropped and her eyes widened – word had gotten around surprisingly fast, considering that her sister had just told her of the arrangements. There must have only been five minutes that had passed… She shook herself out of that reverie. There was no point lying. He would know, sooner or later. And, besides, she felt a bit of sadistic joy at telling him there was nothing he could do about it. “Yes,” she said, and had to suppress a smirk at the Captain’s shocked expression. “Why?” “With them?” he asked, pointing over to the three aliens. His eyes were still on Luna, though. Sev repressed the sudden urge to head-butt the bastard. “You think she is powerless? Unable to take care of herself? My sister volunteered her onto this outing. If you have a problem, take it up to her.” “You’re the co-ruler, not a subordinate,” Levin said, more to himself than anyone else. Luna still heard him. “Why?” “My sister has been taking over my duties for 1000 years,” Luna replied, although her tone was icy. “Even now, I am still adjusting. As such, I don’t deserve to be Princess. I am not helping my nation in any way.” Levin held up his two talons. “Alright, alright.” Luna continued as if she hadn’t heard him. “Armor… Armor?” She harrumphed. “He is persistent.” The aforementioned pony had disappeared into the bowels of the castle. -&- Armor walked alongside Twilight. They were in the main throne room; a rectangular chamber where the Princess received guests and petitions, but currently was vacant. The two of them trotted out of the room in the direction of the alien ship. This was it, Armor realized. His last chance to convince his sister not to waste her life on such a stupid endeavor had come. When she got eyes on her target, she could teleport away… “Please, Twiley. Don’t go.” Twilight sighed. She wasn’t particularly looking forwards to travelling with a psychopath, but the Princess had ordered her to. Well, not really. She’d been recommended to go along with Luna, to keep an eye on them all. Celestia seemed really anxious about Luna for some reason… “I’m sorry, big brother. The Princess said I should, and I really don’t want to disappoint her,” Twilight sighed as she trotted. “Even at the cost of your own life?” Armor's words rooted Twilight in place, but the purple unicorn took in a deep breath as she shook off her misgivings. “First of all, you don’t know that. Although, there is a chance…” She tapered off, but as her brother smiled and opened his mouth, she continued. “But I trust the Princess. Secondly, she has ensured my safety by asking Princess Luna to come along with me. I am sure the two of us will be enough to deter any attacks on us.” Though she started with a confident air, the image of the dead manticore, legs stripped to the bone, fur charred and eye sockets empty, came back to the forefront of her mind, and she thought she could suddenly smell the scent of burning flesh. She retched, and alongside her, Armor rushed to hold his sister as she shook. “I’m fine,” Twilight said, but let her body be held. She felt safe, suddenly. The three aliens and their horrendous capacity to commit violence was straight in front of her, far in the distance – approximately 500 meters, Twilight guessed – but she now felt the strength to continue to walk forwards. “Can you… walk with me?” she asked, gazing at Armor. He smiled, and held up a hoof. “Ladies first.” Twilight huffed, and swung her tail to lash softly at her brother’s side. “I can see why Cadance fell for you, Casanova.” The two ponies shared a laugh as they trotted out slowly towards the field. For a short time, they felt as though they were in their childhoods again – just the two of them, before this whole business began… -&- Luna turned her head to see Twilight Sparkle and her brother, the Captain Shining Armor, emerge from the castle. About time, she thought. I’m not getting any younger. She laughed mentally. This routine had been borne out of the mind-numbing boredom she’d felt during her time in ‘exile’ – she’d been reduced to laughing at her own jokes, and making some of her own, just to fill the silence that was her senses. Both of them trotted up to the Princess and bowed. This was getting ridiculous, Riana thought – this kind of behavior must have been really ingrained in them. For how many years? Luna mentioned a 1000 year exile, so that must have meant… approximately 4000 years of civilization? Still in the medieval era, then. The ponies both rose and the one called Twilight spoke. “Princess Luna! I have been told by Princess Celestia that I am to accompany you on the expedition with our three visitors.” Luna nodded, face set in boredom. “I agree. But, only on the condition that my brother is allowed to accompany me.” Now that was interesting. Riana looked at Armor – he’d been weeping recently, judging by the wetness of the fur around his eyes – but he’d made no effort to hide them. He wasn’t afraid of any stigma, probably owing to his status, and that probably meant he knew how large of a sacrifice his guards had made in the line of duty. Sev shifted slightly to the side, and took a lower stance that she instantly recognized as a standard firing position. He hefted the shotgun once, bringing the butt of it to his shoulder, but kept the barrel pointing towards the side. The threat was silent but unmistakable. Levin sat a bit higher, but otherwise didn’t show any sign that he’d heard the exchange at all. Luna grimaced. “Guards are not allowed on this expedition. Any show of military strength could be taken as a sign of aggression, even with my presence, since the destination is not a usual spot for diplomatic meetings.” “Can’t you… make an exception?” Twilight protested. Her purple eyes were big with worry. Luna shook her head. “I’m sorry. Only my sister has the political clout to do so. And this will involve a meeting with the ambassador, as well as the processing of a visa. Even the travel time is a day, there and back. The whole thing would probably take about two days, even with the strings my sister can pull.” "Why not?" Twilight asked. "They must know you're the co-ruler of Equestria!" "Even the Ponyvillian townsfolk did not, the last time I went to visit," Luna deadpanned. Levin whistled, drawing everyone's attention to him. “We do this today, or not at all. And by that, I mean we three will leave without you.” Twilight’s ears drooped and she looked at the ground, shoulders slumped. She sighed. “There has to be another way…” she whispered. Armor furrowed his brow and dropped into an attack posture, crouching low and shifting his weight to his rear. “You wouldn’t dare.” Sev growled. “Fucking try me.” Riana jumped in before the two males came to blows, or in this case, shots. “We have agreed to take Princess Luna along. Whether or not you two accompany her is up to you.” Luna seemed almost disappointed that nothing had happened, but then again, that could be attributed to her relative lack of facial expression. “Captain Armor.” The Captain took the chance to look away from Sev and towards Luna. “Your Majesty?” Luna rolled her eyes. This royalty thing was actually quite inefficient – a shame that her sister was a stickler for tradition, preferring the old ways even as she professed a desire to be treated as a normal pony. “Were you not so dedicated to the protection of Canterlot that you neglected to tell your sister of your wedding personally?” Armor narrowed his eyes and nodded. He started to get a chill running up from the base of his spine. “Even though your sister could have been attacked during her journey here? Did you stop maintaining the magic shield for a second, to go and escort your sister?” “No,” Armor whispered, and looked at the ground, hanging his head. Levin nodded slowly. He could respect this pony. Armor had sacrificed his own happiness for the welfare of his people and community. That was what he did, all those years ago. Or so he believed, at the time. “I simply forgot,” Armor continued, in that same low voice that suggested defeat. He laughed an empty laugh. “I forgot about the welfare of my own kin, even when I was responsible for the welfare of the entire city.” Sev chuckled. “Same for your sister, then,” he said, looking to Luna. The alicorn narrowed her eyes, and looked to the side for a moment. “True.” Twilight and Armor grimaced, and looked bashfully at Luna. “It’s a perfectly logical choice,” Sev continued, ignoring the awkwardness that grew with every passing second. “Just ruthless calculus. Kill one thousand here, so two thousand over there get to live.” He smiled grimly. “How can you be so callous about murder?” Twilight exploded, eyes blazing in fury. Righteous anger, Levin realized, just like those at Cerberus. He shivered. Those experiments they’d performed in the name of humanity’s progress… Secretly, he hoped the reports had been fabricated or exaggerated, although his more logical side told him that the reverse was probably true. Sev didn’t so much as bat a brow-ridge. “War. Work.” “Murder is work?” Sev shrugged, emitting a whirr as the servos in his armor worked. “For me it is.” “I used to work as a soldier once,” Levin muttered, tapping the ends of his long talons on his armored knee and foot. Armor perked up at this, whilst Twilight’s mouth hung open in shock. “Used to.” Levin nodded. Armor tilted his head slightly. “Why didn’t you continue?” “I became… disillusioned.” Twilight, meanwhile, recovered and shot a dirty glare at Sev. “I’d hate to be in a society like that.” Sev shrugged and rolled his head. The pony was naïve, but then so were all non-krogan. Other species tended to skirt around the idea of war and violence, believing in the sanctity of life, even as their holovids preserved it in digital form; turians were the only other species that understood its necessity. Some things never changed. Not even after the galaxy’s battle for survival. Riana, meanwhile, stood to the side, silent and observant. One more piece to the puzzle, she thought. Disillusionment. That suggested a former belief in the military had been defiled; somehow, he’d stopped believing in why he fought. Coupled with PTSD, that pointed to a shocking experience – either being subjected to or committing torture, or any other immoral orders. And most turians didn’t disobey orders. The last piece of the puzzle was his behavior towards the civilians, way back on first contact. He’d jerked away – the sight of the civilians was a trigger for a flashback, she was certain – and shouted “No!” suggesting guilt. So that meant his experience was during an operation in the civilian areas; counter-insurgencies and the like. When had she first asked? 20 years ago? And he was only 23 years of age, back then. The mandatory military service lasted for 5 years, starting from the age of 15 – which meant he spent 3 years in the ‘real’ military. He wouldn’t be trusted with torture – that would be handed over to the more senior officers, whose skill and loyalty to the state were assured. The whole puzzle pointed to immoral orders. Those were rare, however; turians were notoriously strict and ‘by-the-book’, which meant that the orders had to have been accepted by the higher-ups, even though the standard soldier could have disagreed. So, these orders were linked to one of the few controversial issues in turian society – and the only military one – the hastatim corps. Levin had been a member of the hastatim. She understood now. That was the reason why he was so secretive of his past. The hastatim were known as ‘death squads’, and this was a distinctly turian thing; asari valued the sanctity of life, and salarians valued their short lifespans too much to consider something like this. Humans were even more abhorrent of the idea; ‘death squad’ had some nasty connotations that stemmed from some of their pre-spaceflight wars… Her friend suddenly looked a lot more dangerous. She saw the spurs jutting upwards out of his ankles, like knives; on his armor, an outdated turian military version, she saw every scrape and imperfection from a lifetime of wear and tear, a testament to the violence it had seen; she saw how casually he tapped his long talons on his kneecap, like he was tapping away at the trigger of a gun – Stop it, she admonished herself. I shouldn’t judge him based on his past. She looked at Luna, the Princess who’d flattened a city and extinguished thousands of lives in the distant past – she seemed so normal now, like any other member of the society. Not a psychopath, or a murderer. Still, one who joined the hastatim knew what they were getting into – the mindless killing of every uncooperative civilian they could find – and someone who went into the corps was somewhat amoral. Right? He’s changed, she told herself. He said he was disillusioned. He doesn’t believe in the killing anymore. Anymore? So he did once? That means he’s just another ‘former’ cold-blooded killer – Shut up! Riana groaned and held her head in her hands, sitting on the grass. She was probably going to get the armor dirty, but at that point she didn’t really care. Sev noticed, and ambled over to her. “Maybe you should sit this one out. You look sick.” He knew what was wrong – he’d seen her stare at Levin, moving back a few steps. She’d figured it out. By the looks of it, the secret wasn’t very pretty. To her, at least. Riana caught on at once. “Yeah. I…” she trailed off as Levin turned his head to look at her. “Need any help?” he asked, making to move out of his chair. Oh, shit. “No, no, no. I’m fine. I just need some time,” she said, standing up and starting to head to the corvette. By now, all the ponies present were staring at her, and she felt a bit like a celebrity on Illium who’d been busted on shoplifting. “Well?” Levin said, trying to shake off his thoughts on her odd behavior. It seemed like indigestion, but something didn’t add up. “Who’s going on the trip?” That got Armor talking. “I’m staying with Twilight,” he said. “Princess Celestia can uphold the security of Canterlot for a day.” “Or so you hope,” Luna interjected. “Would you forgive yourself if anything happened to Canterlot? Or your sister?” Armor groaned, and put his head on the table. “Princess, please. I don’t know what to do.” Luna shrugged nonchalantly. “Do whatever your heart tells you.” It doesn’t really matter in the long run. She felt fairly certain saying that. Luna had been in stasis for so long, everything she’d ever known had changed – friends had died, farmland became city, and even the language had mutated over the years. Luna might as well have been on an alien planet for all she knew. Even now, one year after her release from stasis, she still felt like an alien on her home planet. There was no point in getting attached to worldly goods, Luna thought. Canterlot, Twilight Sparkle – both would meet their end someday. True, one’s actions could influence the time of their ending – Armor was saying as much – but one could only live for so long… Luna hummed a bit, and shuffled her wings absentmindedly. Was she unaffected by old age? Was her sister? She knew that she was one of the few alicorns in the world. None, so far, had been reported dead. What was the point in taking care of something if it was just going to crumble away into dust, the next millennium? Her sister had gotten a psychiatrist for her – something about an emotional connection that her sister felt she lacked – and she’d always found those sessions a waste of time. Her sister had to understand that – she was in the same situation, after all – but she decided to spend all her time doting on the pony civilization, which would fall sooner or later. Not much of a point, Luna thought. Armor noticed the Princess’s vacant expression. He’d gotten used to it. On the night after she’d been cured, he’d gotten reports that the Princess hadn’t come out for breakfast at all after being led to her room – and when he’d gone into her room personally, what he’d seen shocked him. The Princess of the Night sat on the grand carpet of her chambers, on a small pool of her own blood. Her mouth moved, yet she made no sound. It was then that Armor knew she wouldn’t be healed just by the power of the Elements. Of course, he’d called the other Princess. Nopony knew what to do. Everypony present had been sworn to secrecy, lest the other nations take advantage of Luna’s unstable mental condition – but even when their lips were sealed, their minds were not. He didn’t trust Luna to take care of his sister. He didn’t trust her to take care of herself, even. But in her weakened state, Celestia would be unable to defend herself or her city from an invasion. The changeling attack had shown them that much. Choices, choices. Did one mare mean so much in the grand scheme of things? Would the country, as a whole, be better off if it was Twilight, rather than Canterlot, that fell? Yes. Still doesn’t make it easier to stomach. And, you weren’t much help in Canterlot as well. Armor’s ruminations were shattered as Levin’s voice sounded out, the sub-harmonics adding a purr to it. “Just keep Twilight here. Then you can stay and defend your city, as well as your sister, at the same time. Simple.” He waved his talons in the air. “No objections?” “But the Princess…” Twilight muttered, shifting her weight from foot to foot. No matter what choice they made, she’d end up disappointing someone. “Fuck the Princess,” Sev growled from the back. Levin ignored him. “We should go. We’ve wasted enough time.” Luna felt the familiar anger coil around her head and chest, but it dissipated almost immediately. The alien was right. Every pony couldn’t be kept satisfied – sooner or later, somepony was going to get slighted. She was living proof of that. Armor closed his eyes, and for a moment, he looked as if he was sleeping, if not for his standing posture. When he opened them, he looked more ragged than heroic – a pony driven who’d sacrificed everything else to protect the one thing he truly loved. Levin knew that look. Everyone on Earth, in London during that fateful day, had been prepared to die – literally sacrifice everything they had – for the survival of their species. He knew he had, although his reasons were murkier. “I’m with you, Twilight,” he whispered, seemingly disbelieving of what he was saying. Every pony present knew, however, that he was deadly serious. “Wherever you are, I’ll protect you.” “What about Cadance,” Twilight replied, in a tone mirroring her brother’s. The two turned to one another. “You can’t just abandon her…” “No, I can’t,” he sighed, body slumping. It appeared that he’d aged 20 years in a second – the weight of responsibility, Levin realized. Tavus had that kind of posture too, when he thought no one was looking at him. And that responsibility was breaking both Armor and Tavus down, grinding them into the dirt. The last Levin had heard of Tavus was that the old bird had been promoted into a desk job, much to the surprise of his colleagues, who'd all thought he'd prefer the action of the battlefield. “It’s the ruthless calculus,” Levin said, shaking his head. “Sev was right. It’s all sacrifices in the end. You have to pick the one that gives you the best outcome, based on the present information, and accept it.” This lesson was taught to all turians during their military service. The past couldn’t be changed, only learned from. Humans tried to save everyone, and got disappointed when they couldn’t; but turians understood that, sometimes, that outcome was not possible, and they would accept it. What was that idiom? If only one turian is alive at the end of a war, that is a victory. “What is the best outcome, then?” Armor snapped. His face was quivering with the stress, and it looked like he'd break down any second now. Levin shrugged. “If it was me, save the city. Then again, your sister could be some sort of general or academic that’s worth more than the city’s entire population. I don’t have that information, you do. So choose.” Twilight and Armor both turned to face one another. “Twilight, please,” her brother begged. “Don’t go. I couldn’t live with myself if anything happened to you.” The purple unicorn also had tears in her eyes, and she made no effort to conceal them. “I know, Armor. But there comes a time when the baby bird has to leave the nest, you know? And this – despite all of my misgivings – is an unheard-of event. I fear, if I don’t grasp this chance, then ponykind will have missed a valuable opportunity.” She nuzzled him. “Sorry. I’m going.” Armor smiled a smile that creased his face with lines of worry and anxiety. “Then I’m coming with you. Canterlot will be safe in the meantime. It’s only a day.” “The Batarian Hegemony fell in only three days,” Sev muttered. Armor’s eyes flicked over to him, and narrowed. “To be honest, they were done in from the inside,” Levin said, pushing his long fingers together into a steeple. “Indoctrinated officials. Reapers destroyed their ability to fight even before firing the first shot.” “That’s similar to what happened the last couple weeks ago,” Twilight exclaimed. “The changelings infiltrated the city.” Changelings. Another faction. Griffon, pony, changeling. What else? Levin filed the information away in his head. Sev did the same. Luna shook her head, and the sudden action brought everyone’s attention to her. “Armor. You are only one pony. Your strength lies in those loyal to you. That is not innate to you. You made a mistake during the invasion – arrogance. Overconfidence in your own abilities. You thought you could sustain the shield by your lonesome, and that the shield was enough. You paid a heavy price for that mistake.” That was deep. It must have been the thousand years, Levin thought. Truth be told, he was thinking about pretty much the same thing. Shepard. The human was an exceptional soldier, but without his allies, he wouldn’t have been able to cure the genophage. Or broker peace between the geth and the quarians. Or rally the galaxy behind one banner, to bring to bear upon the Reapers. “This is an order, Captain,” Luna continued, face expressionless. “You will accompany us. As per diplomatic protocol, you shall wear no armor and bear no weapon.” She got off of her chair, and trotted over to the waiting shuttle. Armor shook his head. “Can’t disobey a direct order, can I?” he said, nuzzling with Twilight. He felt happy – being with his sister, making sure she was safe – and he hated himself for such selfish thoughts. Being in the Guard was about protecting those who couldn’t protect themselves – and arguably, the citizens of Canterlot needed him more than his sister did. She had saved Equestria… thrice? Why did he still feel that need to protect her? Because life is cheap. Even the changelings stopped before they took any lives. Discord certainly didn’t. But these, these aliens – to them, life is nothing. Something to be crushed underhoof and forgotten. -&- The time for departure had come. Riana had come out of the corvette, and stood next to the shuttle as she waited for the group to arrive. The couple of minutes she’d spent, alone, had helped. Levin may have done some horrible things in the past – but it was the past. What he did now would be a better judge of his character, she hoped, than a nasty history. Wasn’t that what Shepard thought about the krogan race? That they deserved salvation, thanks to the fairly successful efforts of Urdnot Wrex to reform his species? He had to have known about how brutal the Rebellions had been. And, yet, he still cured them. Pragmatism, a small part of her chided. Krogan support was needed for the war. She shook her head as they came within 10 meters of the shuttle. She had things to do. Levin and Sev led the congregation – Levin was in front, alongside Luna, and Sev was walking in a way reminiscent of a crab – obviously to keep an eye on the whole group. “Go on in,” she said, gesturing to the shuttle’s cargo bay area, currently open to the world. The ponies did with varying degrees of reluctance. Luna simply trotted inwards, whilst Twilight glanced around the edge of the door and the insides of the cargo-hold. Armor, meanwhile, seemed to be steeling himself for the arduous task of setting foot inside an alien vessel. Sev kept an eye on them, and Riana suddenly had a mind’s eye view of him as a babysitter. She shivered. Levin made to walk into the shuttle as well, but Riana stopped him with a hand to his shoulder. Even under his helmet, she could tell what expression he wore. Bewilderment. Slight fear. Anxiety. It was all hidden under the carapace plates of his face, but she’d known him for the better part of 2 decades, and she fancied the thought that she knew him well enough for the guesses to be accurate. “Is everything okay?” he asked, shifting his weight to his other foot. Riana had to smirk at the irony. She felt fine. He, however… She didn’t like to presume that she knew exactly what her friend was thinking. But PTSD could cut deceptively deep, and she didn’t like to see her friend in pain either. “I’ll always be here. For you to talk to. If you want to, that is…” she said. Goddess, this was awkward. It sounded better in her head. Levin nodded slowly. “Erm, okay? Thanks. I appreciate you taking the time… to look after, well, me. Not like that, but… yeah.” Both of them shared a chuckle, helping to dispel the serious atmosphere that had built up. Twilight was right, Riana thought. Laughing really can help. -&- As the shuttle lifted into the air, the two aliens in the cargo hold looked out of the open door. The corvette looked like a slim arrowhead, hard edges contrasting with the flowing lines of trees around the field. In the corner, the memorial stood, and by the colored blobs nearby, it appeared that some grieving families had stayed throughout noon. Some of the guards had as well, judging by the spots of gold they could see. Brothers ‘til the end. Luna seemed to like the view from up here. She lay on a row of seats, taking up three of them, whilst Armor and Twilight chose the floor instead. Riana sincerely hoped that Levin had taken the time to wash the pony blood off. Levin made to close the cargo door. As the metal panels slid together, Luna bolted upright. “No! Please!” Riana punched the door button, and once again, the door slid open with a hiss. Luna shot her a grateful smile. Was she thinking about her time in stasis? Was it like a sensory deprivation tank? Torture by means of pain had been outlawed, both thanks to its immorality and its uselessness. Chemicals, specially designed for interrogation, had replaced them as methods of extracting information from uncooperative subjects. Still, the Terminus Systems pirates and mercenary gangs didn’t have access to those chems, so they made do with the next best thing. She’d heard of the stories. Everyone had. Levin’s voice crackled over the intercom. “I’ll have to go slower if you want the door open. ETA thirty minutes.” “Thank you,” Luna replied, her voice weary. She lay her head down and stared out. Riana felt the kick of inertia in her stomach as the shuttle accelerated, blurring the grounds below. Green, verdant forest began to rush past, and in the corner of her eye she could see Twilight and Armor trying to extricate themselves from one another. The inertia had caused them to crash into the life packs under each seat. She stifled a giggle. Opposite her, Sev sat, strapped to his seat, seemingly ignoring the whole commotion. His assault rifle pointed out of the shuttle. As the shuttle reached cruising velocity, Twilight slowly pushed herself up, face red as a tomato. “I’ve flown before, but never this fast.” Riana could testify to that. The launch of the pegasus carriage was light, and she’d barely felt a thing as they took off. “Sorry, but it’s the only way to get there quick. There’s a bad feeling that we’re getting from this.” Sev put two and two together. “The madness. You don’t think…” “Indoctrination? The timing’s too perfect. I really hope not, but if it is…” Levin chipped in, trailing off as he realized the implications of what he said. Riana glanced over at Twilight. The unicorn appeared to be an expert on local events, although she didn’t know why Twilight was so knowledgeable. She had mentioned the Princess in awe-filled tones – was it possible that she was the Princess’s daughter? Admirer? Friend? “What do you know about this, Twilight?” Twilight shrugged. “Not much. There are some old documents and newspapers that talk about it, I’m sure, but I’ve never really looked into Gryphonian news.” “I have,” Luna said, drawing everyone’s attention towards her. “During my 'recovery'. They said it was either an infection, or a local cult. The entire townspeople became… insane. The wildlife became a lot more aggressive, as well. Before, the firearms that the townspeople carried could keep them at bay. As the madness became known, they attacked. Simply threw themselves at the town.” “Indoctrination isn’t really that well studied,” Riana muttered. “It’s possible that this could be a side effect. Simple madness. No desire to serve, but just to die.” “Serve who?” Armor asked, feeling a chill run down his back. If it were the changelings, or even the diamond dogs… “Reapers. I thought everything of theirs had been destroyed. The specifics aren’t known, but…” Levin sighed, inducing a static-filled noise in the cargo bay. The ponies groaned. “And I thought I killed enough husks to last a lifetime,” Sev murmured, resigned. Riana didn’t like it, but Reaper influence seemed like the most probable cause. The manuscripts of the civilization she’d studied painted a world on fire – fighting, and losing, against an invincible foe. The ‘god-gun’ as it had been nicknamed had destroyed some of the attackers, yet the same weapon had eventually gone silent. She swore. “I thought all Reaper artifacts had been destroyed?” Riana asked, although her tone wasn’t one of hope, just resignation. “I hope this one is. The remaining husks, though… what to do with them?” “Really?” Sev growled. “What else? Talk them to death?” Twilight perked up. “We could try to reason"- “Ha! That’s rich! See how long you last. Takers for over 3 seconds?” Sev clapped his hands together, creating a booming noise that reverberated in the hold of the shuttle. “No one?” Twilight had shrunk back by now, trying to make herself as small as possible, and her face was in a mix between shock, fear and anger. Riana sighed, and knelt down to place a hand upon her shoulder. “I’m loath to say it, but putting them out of their misery would be for the best.” Luna nodded. “Mercy kill,” she murmured. “Princess, not you too!” Armor exclaimed, standing up. “This is actual murder!” “Do you have a better idea?” Sev snarled. Stupid ponies. Did they think they could negotiate with the Reapers? They’d never seen a Cannibal eat his former comrade. They’d never seen a man impaled on a spike, his eyes turning into blue lights, pipes erupting through his skin, turning to a husk, before their very eyes. They’d certainly never seen a brute cut an armored turian soldier in half with its steel claw. “Stand down!” Riana shouted, holding her hands up, palms facing Armor and Sev. Neither seemed pleased right now, but she didn’t care. “We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. If there are Reaper forces, we’ll need to stand together to beat them. Got it?” Armor nodded, albeit reluctantly. Sev, meanwhile, snorted, before tilting his head towards her. “Or we could just leave. No amount of money is worth indoctrination.” “I agree with him,” Levin said, over the intercom. “This is out of our hands. We’d be worse than dead if we got turned. Besides, the cache we have is enough.” Riana did a few quick calculations. He was right, she realized; they could just leave, and repay the loan they’d taken out. But what about afterwards? They would just go back here, lift more relics, sell them, and repeat the process. Of course, there were other places. Eingana, Ekram, amongst others. But neither had as many hulls as this. This was supposed to be a former homeworld after all… “No,” she said. “We continue. It’d take too long to survey other planets.” Levin caught the subtext. “True. Yet, we might not even have the chance to survey if we continue.” She thought for a moment. “Let’s just go and check. It’ll only take, what, twenty minutes? Thirty back, in case. Better now, than later.” Levin harrumphed, but most tellingly, he kept the craft on course. Sev grumbled. “You two are insane.” Luna smirked. “Sanity is overrated, didn’t you say?” “Damn right,” the krogan said, shaking his head. The two lapsed into silence, and both of them started to stare out of the window at the passing landscapes. Trees stood as far as the eye could see, and from the shuttle, it appeared that they were flying above a sea of rolling green waves. A moment later, and the green turned into the grey canyons of a city, before transforming into the blue-grey of the sea. Riana diverted her attention to Twilight. The pony seemed none too perturbed by the shuttle’s flight – perhaps she’d done something similar before? “Twilight, may I ask you a question?” Twilight glanced at her, and nodded her assent. “Why do you have those tattoos on your rear leg?” The pony glanced backwards at the aforementioned tattoos; a purple star, surrounded by five white ones. “It’s my cutie mark!" Twilight exclaimed, perking up. "It symbolizes what I’m best at doing. My talent is magic.” Magic. That one word again. “What is… magic?” Although she tried to keep her voice high and light, she couldn’t help but let a little sarcasm through. Magic didn't exist, although there was that one quote from this famed human artist: ‘Sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic’. Electricity would have looked like magic to a Bronze-Age civilization. Could it be possible that these ponies had organs that allowed them to perform ‘magic’? That they were genetically engineered by this ancient civilization? There certainly had been a lot of advanced tech on this planet, according to the manuscripts. Before the Reaper War, she’d have scoffed. Evolution didn’t work like that. Now… evolution didn’t seem to be the only way to advance a species. Twilight rattled off a list of examples, some of which sounded ridiculous, yet others that sounded like typical mass effect field applications. Teleportation was one. Moving the sun and the moon… that sounded ridiculous, yet the logs of the VI had shown that there was some sort of gravitational anomaly that coincided with the rising and setting of the sun. Changing one thing into another? Well, she wasn’t exactly a physicist, but she’d heard of reports from various corporations that had ended up doing that. Weren’t the Citadel’s food extruders the same? Turning waste into edible ‘food’? The idea of Reaper indoctrination had appeared preposterous, once upon a time. And the galaxy had paid the price for that mistake in blood. “So, your… cutie mark appears? Just like that? ‘Poof’?” Riana asked, waving her hands at that last word. Twilight shrugged, clearly uncomfortable. “Yes.” Armor went up to her, seemingly shielding her from any more questions. “She doesn’t feel comfortable answering your questions anymore.” I noticed. Riana nodded, and went back to her seat. Inside, her mind buzzed with theories. Genetic destiny. Wasn’t this the answer to that ‘nature or nurture’ question? Ponies here are born with the clear talent of doing this one task over another. We’ve all felt that way. Some of us are better at sports, others at academics. Just that we don’t get a mark on our asses to tell us which we are better at. She could accept that. The shuttle flew on. -&- Twenty minutes of bored, yet tense, silence passed as the shuttle crossed the maritime border of Equestria, and the first sight of the opposing shore could be seen. Looking out of the shuttle’s front viewport, Levin could see the mountains of Gryphonia fast approaching – they towered high above the shuttle, casting shadows on the land. Even now, in the age of space elevators, the sight astonished him. It was now that he realized there was going to be a problem. “I’m going to have to fly over the range. I guess it’s about 5 km up, and so ambient air temp will be lower than freezing. I’ll have to shut the door.” He passed that message through the intercom, and waited for a response. -&- Luna’s eyes widened, and her pupils shrank into pinpricks. “No, please! I don’t want to be in the dark again!” “It’s just the inside of a cargo hold. Don’t worry, I’ll protect you,” Sev groaned, and rolled his eyes. “Levin. Turn up the lights in here.” Being a military shuttle, the Kodiak didn’t really have the best in comforts and amenities. Instead of power-draining white bulbs, red ones dominated the ceiling. As such, the lights painted the inside of the hold in red, and every pony present had the uncomfortable image of being drenched in the blood of their country-ponies. “This also lets me speed up. We’ll be over in a minute, give or take,” Levin said suddenly. The crackle of the intercom lanced a bolt of fear through Luna, and she leapt up with a yelp, hitting her head on the ceiling of the cargo hold. Through the pain, she grinned. Pain was good. It meant that she was free, alive and free. Not in stasis. Not anymore. “You said you’d protect me?” she hissed, clamping her hooves on the top of her head. She could feel them on her skin. Good, good. Sev shrugged, and tapped out a rhythm on his gun. “Not from yourself. Besides, I’m paid to protect them two” – he pointed to the cockpit door and Riana – “not you ponies.” “Can’t ever do anything from the goodness of your heart?” Luna groaned. The pain had turned into a dull throbbing, and as the adrenaline of the event wore off, it seemed to intensify in amplitude. “Faust!” Sev chuckled darkly. “Not sure there is any. And it’s hearts. I got two.” Luna shook her head, through her hooves. “Fair enough.” “Princess! You’re… you’re justifying that?” Twilight’s voice was clear, and in the confined hold, seemed to echo. The echo reminded her of her own thoughts, racing around her own head as she stood in stasis, building and building and changing – She smacked a hoof down onto the metal construction of the shuttle seat. A short, sharp pain thudded up, and she smiled. She wasn’t in stasis. Not anymore. “No, Twilight. I simply stated that I understood why he does that.” “Why, then?” Twilight exclaimed. She was clearly unconvinced. Celestia’s conditioning had worked, then. Of course, her sister would say that that was a lie. Did Celestia even know? Perhaps. In either case, it didn’t matter. The student was like this now, and different versions of the past couldn’t change that fact. “Why are you so close to your friends,” Luna countered, slowly. “Please, answer me.” Twilight shivered. It was like she was speaking to a new Luna. Or maybe this was the one that had been her all along, and the socially awkward, hopeful mare on Nightmare Night was just a ‘phase’. “I like them. They are kind, and generous, and”– Luna cut her off with a wave of her hoof. “Yes. But does that mean that you are only friends with them because of that? Because you want somepony to go to, and comfort you; you want somepony to give you things when you can’t get them; you want to feel happy and fulfilled. And you get friends to serve your own desires.” “That’s… that’s not… I…” Twilight broke off, and she looked down at her hooves. Luna had a point. Her friends provided her with company – they were willing to listen to her, and she to them. They helped her, and she them. Even though some of them could be a little… annoying at times, she wouldn’t trade them for the world. Why wouldn’t she? She only wanted them because it made her feel good. She made them feel good as well, which made her feel good inside. It was a symbiotic relationship… but it was still in her best interests to continue that relationship. Luna was right. “Hmm, Twilight?” Luna said, after a short pause. There was a smile tugging at the edges of her lips. “You’re right, Princess,” Twilight mumbled, looking downwards. “My friends do make me feel good." She glared up at the Princess. " But I return the favor. I help them when they need it, and in return I make them feel good. Is that so bad?” Luna smirked. “I never said that it was bad. I only said that this desire for friendship was selfish. Is selfishness, by itself, bad? Perhaps it is, as my sister says so. Then again, if it is, why isn’t the desire for friendship bad, as it is so selfish?” “We’re over the range,” Levin’s voice crackled. “Eyes on target.” As if on cue, the shuttle’s side doors flicked open, and freezing air rushed in. The two aliens were insulated by their suits of armor; but the ponies started to shiver, even as the ground got closer and closer. Luna seemed to wilt, sighing contentedly as she melted into the seating, staring out of the window. The shuttle’s open door started to reveal a landscape of tundra, punctuated here and there with swathes of green-white forest. The sky was still blue, but here, it wasn’t the tinted, manufactured light blue that was in Equestria – this was the deep, proud blue reminiscent of sapphire. Twilight gasped, and alongside her, Armor had his mouth hanging open as well. Riana guessed that neither pony had ever been here before. Or abroad, for that matter. Luna was the only one that seemed wistful rather than amazed, as she looked onto the landscape. Unfortunately for the passengers, their time of quiet observation was brought to a close by the sudden thump on the bottom of the shuttle. A white, feathered eagle’s head, with two blue feathers on the crown, poked up from under the shuttle, facing the passengers. It seemed to be keeping pace with the shuttle, somehow… “Levin? We moving?” Riana asked, to which Levin replied with a curt “No.” The head sprung up, revealing a gray cat’s body attached to it. A griffon, Riana’s VI helpfully identified. Said griffon was also holding what she guessed to be a rudimentary firearm – a long, metal and wooden construct that had a primitive, solid wooden stock at the end – in its talons. A metal barrel, supported by some kind of metal bracing, jutted out from a box-like firing chamber. A trigger protruded, rather prominently, from beneath the stock. This one appeared to be armored; its chest was covered in plate metal, but its limbs were bare. It squawked something in its native language, resembling a short burst of sound. Riana’s translator couldn’t decipher the word. Luna perked up for a moment, her ears swiveling towards the griffon. She was obviously in deep thought. Armor hovered protectively over his sister. No words were exchanged, but none were needed – everyone present could see what he meant in his stance. Twilight herself braced herself against the floor of the shuttle, readying her horn. The griffon ignored them, and focused on Luna, looking at her whilst pointing its free talon towards the mountain range they’d just flown over. “Back! Back! Danger!”