//------------------------------// // Act III, Chapter 10: Memories // Story: Of Starships and Golden Armors // by Devona //------------------------------// Princess Celestia enjoyed sip after sip of her favourite black tea as wood gently cracked in the fireplace, sending a beautiful display of dancing sparks forth into the room. The monarch fidgeted a little, taking another nervous sip. Two hours ago, human vehicles have appeared over Equestrian skies. War vehicles, designed for nothing but killing, and in such.... amazing quantities. Kill. Death. Dead. The words sent shivers down Celestia's spine once again as she shook her head to make them go away. She couldn't bear the thoughts any longer. What was death? It was deletion. A permanent deletion of everything, of every single aspect of existence, of a whole consciousness of an individeual. Deleting forever everything they knew, experienced, felt, remembered, were... How... could one perform such an action willingly...? Celestia was no stranger to war; the Princess saw fighting in her own time, and even recently, EUP Guards would sometimes fall in brittles against Everfree monsters. But to perform the action on such a scale, so greatly, as she'd witnessed during the talk with a human commander... it was beyond her perception, and although she shed no sweat hiding it... such force terrified her. Not even the killing potential by itself... no, that was scary indeed, but it was to be predicted considering the scale and seriousness of human conflict. No, what terrified Celestia, it was something else... The total and utter destruction this force could bring upon Equis if it wished to. Once again... there would be no hope aside from the power of the Elements... If it came to pass, there would be no choice... she had to protect her little ponies. But... for now... Celestia clenched her teeth and kept her eyes shut, releasing a troubled sigh. She knew well the true danger of the aliens' arrival, and she knew it had nothing to do with their military power or prowess. No, the real danger, it came from Equestria herself, from the population as frightened as chaotic. From masses upon masses of frightened ponies, who would do so much just to know their lives are certain and assured... and that no unknowns lurk on the horizon. Of that, the Princess knew perhaps too well by now... The change. The change in the landscape may prove such a challenge... Another sip. Another figeting, and a look at the clock. Celestia sighed once again. She didn't want to do this, not at all, but considering how well her sister has been getting along with the human... she had to know more, if there was such short notice to act. To calm the citizenry, to introduce the new species... Even if it appeared rude, she had to try. There was simply no other way. She had to ask questions now. As the Princess took another sip, the door to her quarters released a low creak, and a shadowy, bipedal figure, barely heard, entered the room. Celestia turned her head to face the newcomer. "Hey, uh... welcome. You... you've been expecting me, Princess...?" the human Lieutenant said awkwardly, as if having to remind himself that this isn't Princess Luna that he's talking to on the spot. Celestia meanwhile simply smiled. "Yes, and thank you for coming. Would you mind joining me here?" she gestured over to the fireplace, where a dedicated cushion already laid prepared, just beside a separate mug. The human slowly walked forward. Celestia's keen eye easily caught the posture and stance he remained in, even when in casual times -- always prepared to, at a moment's shortest notice, spring into action. Before long, the Lieutenant made his way onto the cushion, and, at least apparently, managed to make himself comfortable. Celestia cast a friendly smile. "How have you been finding our kingdom so far, Stanley?" Celestia asked the soldier by name, hoping to probe his reactions. Stanley simply released a low, relaxed sigh. "It's a beautiful land, to be sure. It has potential," he pointed out, his voice raising slightly, giving way to a bright smile. The most basic and diplomatic an answer, noted the Princess. But it mattered not. What mattered were.... the subtler things. Twitches on Stanley's now-visible face, his most intimate of reactions, things one would perhaps think only lie detectors would see, which honted at Stanley's emotional reaction and the state of his mind. And just here, just now, Celestia released a relieved sigh - she knew that this time, she didn't have to worry too much. Whether she meant that goal, or not - her sister did a great job warming the human up. But now... now, came the hard part. "Lieutenant Colonel..." Celestia began, sighing deeply. "I do not wish to lie to you - you have been a wonderful guest, even sparing my dear sister massive injuries. However now, that others of your kind seem to have arrived... there is simply more that I must know for my subjects," the Princess stammered, biting her lip. This wasn't easy. It all... it all, despite her diplomatic prowess and experience, evoked a certain... feeling. A feeling that something, somewhat, wasn't right... she should simply ask, not more, and... but... she... Celestia opened her mouth again, almost ready to speak up, and yet her will proved stronger. With one swift motion, she closed her jaws shut, and afer anshort inhale, looked at the human. "May I?" she asked, more as an order than an actual request. A second. Two. Three. "Go on." Celestia inwardly sighed with relief. She had feared the soldier's disaproval now... later on, it would be easier to deal with. Taking in one last breath, the Princess continued. "Thank you, Lieutenant Colonel," she noded with a smile, still maintaining her relaxed, yet majestic posture. "We told you so much about the workings of our Equestria... would it not be fair if you exchanged some information about your... Republic?" The soldier didn't take long to respond. "Oh, well of course. The Republic of Sol is the prime representative body of my species, humanity, and also one of the pivotal members of the Universal Security Union, also known as the Coalition. To combat the Swarm-" "Yes, and this... Swarm?" the Princess gently cut him off. "What is it, pray tell? My sister told me you spoke of it with quite some spite." "For good reason," Stanley clenched his teeth, narrowing the eyes. "The Swarm... it's hard for me to describe, or answer your question truly. The Swarm... it just is. It has always been, and we've always had to fight it off. I... I don't know of any time when it was not." the soldier admitted, slightly sheepishly. Even through his neutral expression, Celestia could notice the slightest of tinges of shame. "They... you see, I realise you want to know what the Swarm is, but the truth is... you'll probably wish you didn't. The Swarm is an... extraordinarily powerful species. Roughly three hundred years ago, they invaded the known space from Galactic South, and began their campaign of conquest. We've been fighting this war ever since, and... well, truth is, Princess..." Whatever the soldier was about to say, the possibilities sent shivers down Celestia's spine, ones she prayed Stanley wouldn't notice. Even now though, she could clearly see that in the eyes of the veteran... something changed. He wasn't prepared this time. He didn't wait, or think. The only source of his words.... Was his heart. Not his mind, oh so tactically proficient, nor muscles, not even instinct, but purely from his one and only, so beautifully emotionally driven hea- "We need your help" Celestia shifted back slightly. "Could you repeat?" she said, blinking numerous times. The soldier sighed, already bending forward. "We... Princess, I know not if this is the correct choice, I know not if I'm supposed to do this, know not if I would be advised to. But right here, and right now... still wielding temporary diplomatic powers, I..." Stanley sighed once more. "I humbly ask for Equestria's help in the war for survival we wage and one only you can help us prevail. Princess..." he continued, almost on his knees. "What you call magic, what you wield... it's powerful, very powerful! We... we know this force. We call it psionics, and by the little contact we've had with it... it was so powerful, I... we simply... I..." Stanley stumbled upon his words once and again, and with every second, Celestia could see a slowly growing panic in his eyes. In an instant, she knew why -- for him, the situation was getting out of hand. Right here, right how. Celestia tried to resist, even successfully at first, but... No! Remember who you are! Remember... I... She couldn't. No. With one swift move, Celestia neared the human and extended her giant wings around him. As Stanley looked up in surprise, the Princess brought a hoof up to his chin, caressing it softly. No. Foremost and first, she was a pony. A mother to her subjects and all who are alive. Even when diplomacy of such high stakes had to take priority... it could not possibly overpower care and love in her mind, it could not make them give way. Not now, and not ever. Not ever... not ever? Ever.... never... never...... As Stanley blinked a few times, in this moment, just a second of simple, pony weakness, a brief question, for the first time in centuries, involuntarily escaped Celestias lips. "Pray tell, what hurt you, my little one?" Celestia clenched her jaws. Even though she was sure Stanley could not see it, she was deeply conflicted... What was she doing? Whould she be doing this...? On one hand, it may improve relations... and she simply had to. She couldn't not comfort a struggling creature... but on the other, what if it insults him...? And, well... Celestia's mind circled around different ideas regarding her true diplomatic capabilities... Meanwhile, Stanley's breath was getting more and more stable... and in an instant, Celestia saw a glimpse of hesitation - followed by a quick nod at nothing. Without a second more of delay, the soldier sighed, and looked up at the Princess. Soon, he indeed began speaking... 9 years earlier, in a system far, far away... Stanley's sigh echoed loudly through the small vents the soldier was slowly, and yet surely crawling through. Inch after inch, meter after meter the Lieutenant made his way through, waddling forward with just a single arm, the other preoccupied dearly holding on to his bloodied face -- the courtesy of a completely shattered helmet. Outside, bangs and clashes echoed loudly, as if just near him. In every moment, the building could fall, destroyed by a bomb, tank, or even a simple explosive... but now, it mattered now. It was the only way forward. Besides multiple cracks, creaks and booms, sounds of flames and ammunition alike, explosions brought about in such number that they shook the earth by their might and drowned out all thoughts, another sound would sometimes appear -- a siren, wailing its warnings gravely. Warnings from... something. It was no standard military code... but then again, whomsoever was left to operate the signs... who knows if they were military at all anymore. So many fell, so hard it was to regroup or resupply, with intense naval battle constantly raging in the orbit, showering the entire surface of the world in a rain of metallic meteors cascading from the heavens. Only a few points remained assuredly safe, and even they not always. Throughout all the free galaxy, all the planets, systems, all the thousands of governments, the bustling metropolises and expansive fields of countless worlds, throughout skies red, blue and yellow, gases and liquids and metal and stone, throughout billions upon billions of stars each of which housed a dozen planets, there was no battle like that for the planet of Hezel. There was no defense as strong and as dedicated as that mounted on this rocky world of the Republic, no brittle as united in blood as this, on the small, symbolic planet so far beyond the front, and yet - ungiven. Never abandoned, never retreated from, but defended so that everyone throughout the known galaxy knows that Hezel -- Hezel, the legendary Hezel, the source of the ratification of the first Treaties of today's Coalition, was given up on the galaxy's terms, and not the Swarm's. Not ever, not in a thousand years the Swarm's. Stanley's knees spiked with pain as the soldier let out an annoyed grunt. It wasn't far; just a few dozen more meters, and he could clearly see a source of light in the vent. That would be his destination, and from there, once he had firmly escaped danger, he will be able to figure out his current location. Not more than a few hours ago, the Lieutenant Colonel was meant to be deployed into the Meat Grinder of Rosilis - the biggest chokepoint on Hezel's entire northern hemisphere, and a site defended fiercely by Allied forces for weeks so as to prevent a Swarm flooding... and yet, even after uncounted attempts, clashes and counterstrikes, the situation at Rosilis was just now getting critical. The Lieutenant Colonel's entire aerial convoy had been shaken by intense canonade, broken to pieces and brought straight to the now-scorched ground... it would be no stretch to call Stanley's survival a miracle. Not long ago he had to inject himself with a few doses of adrenaline just to ensure survival. And yet, he could not give up, not now... even without his helmet. With no nav data, no data at all, on his own, hearing only muffled sounds and explosions... Reaching the bright spot, the soldier removed his hand from the face, grunting heavily as he did so, and trying to clench his teeth to ignore the pain, pushed a grating forward. Soon, the piece of metal released an undesirably loud pound as it hit the ground, releasing a small could of dirt. After waiting a few minutes to scout the danger, Stanley leaped out of the narrow ventilation shaft, his All-Purpose rifle at the ready. The soldier stood inside an empty room, with broken windows leading directly to the collapsed street. No frame had any glass inside it anymore, only sharp smashed pieces and stray fallen bricks. Cautiously, Stanley moved forward, his face red from the blood. He didn't expect it to be like this... not in the slightest. After so many years... Stranded, without supplies or communication... and yet, somehow... still alive. Shaking ground drowned out the siren's continued wails, as pieces of concrete were flung in Stanley's way, collapsing a section of the building just behind him. The soldier leaped forward, landing steadily on his feet, ready for whatever might come through the breach... but nothing did. Only a loud, howling echo of omnipresent cracks and gunfire... Deciding it safer, Stanley slowly turned around, once again facing the interior of the building. Quickly, the soldier made a few steps just to disappear from potential sight, stopping in front of huge, locked metal door. He had to stay hidden, at least until he can regroup. Maybe then he could-- Flash. Bang. Silence. Ringing, ear-piercing ringing. Light subsided. A majestically growing hum. Stanley turned his head towards the source of the multiple stimuli, the direction of the iron door, but no sooner had he done that than a booming creak shot the heavy entrance right at his body, pinning the soldier to a wall in a single second. With it, a giant, sonic-fast wave of burned plasma followed. Pain, pain unbearable. Flashes, booms, silenced and drowned out! The world collapsing in the brightest of flares there have ever been. The metal door clenched itself around Stanley's body, breaking every bone it encountered to but cramps, mangling skin and tearing its pieces off the body, disintegrating armour where it was. Stanley's ear-piercing shriek of pain was too drowned out even for himself to hear anymore. The soldier's vision sunk into darkness. As he the apocalyptic wind turned his head sideways, another wave came, now of solid fire and plasma, like magma burning everything in its path, encasing the soldier's head, not protected by the crushing metal door, like a big, fiery cocoon. And the flames kept coming. And Stanley shouted, shrieked, cried out, for noone to hear. And the metal frame clenched its grasp on the soldier more and more firmly, crushing every bone in his body, tearing skin apart, and yet like a miracle, shielding his organs from nuclear hellfire. All his body but the head. Unbearable pain penetrated the soldier's entire body, and het the intake of andreline he had taken did not allow him to lose consciousness. And so, he endured, for minutes and minutes, what felt like a lifetime of infernal suffering. Soon, Stanley ceased to feel his head's left side, as it melted and melted more and more, exposing even the skull to the fires. Five minutes passed. No, thirty... fifteen? Maybe twenty, or not, twenty five. Finally, after an unbearable eternity, Stanley lost any true perception left for him. Light... dim, but growing in strength, like a freshly lit candle picking up on its fuel... Light, not blinding, but everpresent, as if flooding Stanley's vision with its might. Muffled voices. A touch of stone on his face's side... muffled voices, once again. A nearing swirling of a propeller. Multiple propellers. "...omeone!" "We got... one!" "There is a survivor here! Give me a hand, Greenwood!" Brightness flooding in even more. A crack of a rock, as it gives way to sunlight... a silhouette, gently moving, more and more clearly.... "Oh my dear universe almighty..." Celestia blinked a couple times, unable to believe what she was hearing. Frozen like an icicle, she kept blindly caressing Stanley's face with her hoof as he finished speaking, without letting go. A small, single tear swirled around the Princess' eye, finally falling down her cheek and splashing onto her crystal white coat. Among all the things she had heard... all that she'd seen, thought and experienced over the last couple of days... nothing could measure. Only now did she start putting all the pieces together as her mind finally formed a clear, horrifying picture of the human war -- a carnage. Nothing but death, death and death, for anyone, no matter how skilled or noble. She had technically known that already, but... only now did she truly see it, experience, in a mental picture she was able to paint herself. Celestia opened her mouth briefly, but couldn't speak. Thoughts swirled in her head like a rushing tornado. Soon, nothing was left standing on the mental plane but for a few conclusions... that the humans were suffering. Suffering beyond reason. But there was also... a thought. A feeling, an emotion - an emotion of fear. How dangerous could the new plane be, how cruel... should her ponies ever have to face it...? Maybe, after all, the threat was larger than the opportunities... but how could they leave the humans be? Alone, so cruelly... although could ponykind do anything at all? Maybe- Celestia shook her head. This was no time for such contemplations -- that, that will yet come. The purpose of this talk has already been derailed regardless... but a talk important it still was, indeed. Sighing quietly, Celestia opened her mouth once again, to ask the one question still bothering her mind. "What... what was it that happened, pray tell...?" she said quietly yet calmly, expecting the worst of answers. "That... was a hydrogen bomb," Stanley replied gravely. "It's one of the more powerful destructive devices employed by mankind." "By mankind?" Celestia asked with a small grimace. "Then... how did you get caught in the damage, if I might ask?" "They weren't hitting me, they were hitting a Swarm activity zone," the soldier explained with a few heavy breaths. "And I... I was lost. Stranded, without anyone to contact..." he sighed, covering his face in his hands. "I was caught right on the edge of the blast. Hah, I was so lucky to have survived... I can still aid the fight. But..." Stanley brought one of his hands up to his cheek, touching the scorched left side of his head. "But it left a mark. It forever will." Celestia couldn't believe her ears... and yet, she knew well that it was real, that everything the human had just said was nothing short of the purest truth. Somehow, at the very bottom of her heart, she knew, she felt it, however much she could. Stenley was shattered, emotional... he cared now. It was his heart talking, for sure... his heart. Celestia's centuries of experience were more than enough to tell that... Suddenly, Stanley's voice echoed through the room. "May I... ask you something?" he said calmly, with tinges of genuine curiosity in his voice. It was clear he approached Celestia as a companion now, not negotations partner. Somehing Celestia had not sensed as clearly before... The Princess shook her head briefly, casting away the avalanche of thoughts. Now was not the time... despite everything, in her book, the meeting was still an important one. "Yes?" she asked. "You may, to be sure. Whether we respond is a different matter," Celestia uttered with a playful smile, which Stanley returned. "Thank you... I mean, I meant to... I wanted to ask..." the soldier stuttered briefly. "The person - the pony - one I defended your Sister from... what happened? Do we, I mean, do you know why the attack happened? I was curious what, you know... what I managed to prevent." Celestia's face grew dark, as her frozen lips struggled to utter a word. She held the knowledge dearly, but not for its secrecy, oh, no. She held it dear for its meaning and importance for both her and her sibling... that, and Luna's own state she had observed clearly by now... She tried to utter a word, but her muscles stopped her from doing so. Should she? Should she really...? Shaking her head once again, Celestia cast the thoughts away, and before they could return to plague her mind, spoke up as if from beneath a curtain of ash and smoke. "The Darknight Cult," she uttered, with tinges of venom in his voice. Stanley's eyes grew slightly wider with confusion, as Celestia prepared to speak up once more... In the darkest corners of the wicked forest permeating with chaotic magic, in the deepest abyss of bushes, tress and grass alike all aligned so precisely and yet randomly, as if a mass of parasprites had just attacked a perfectly set up bale of hay, in those purest corners of chaos itself, a hooded figure's hoofsteps echoed. Little was there to distinguish her from her surroundings, the pitch-black cloak merging easily with the midnight depths of tall woods. Not once and not twice have her hooves hit a branch or a particularly dried out leaf, sending crows above flying away in fear, as if sensing the figure as a dark omen. And yet, she cared not whether she'd be heard. She knew what she could do, and most of all... she knew where she was. Soon, the trees began thinning, and thinning, and thinning again, until at last, a clearing opened itself before the hooded figure. Not slowing her trot even for a second, she looked around and entered the empty space. Just a few meters of trotting were enough to cause a reaction. Like shadows in the darkest of nights, others emerged nearly unseen from around the meadow, their silhouettes appearing from the pitch black forest as if spawned right then and there. And yet, none spoke a word. They all trotted in unison, all hooded, all mysterious. All aiming for the clearing's middle, following the one mare who entered it first. Soon, the pony took place in the middle of the meadow, and the others surrounded her loyally. Slowly but surely, she took a long look at the surrounding silhouettes, staring into each soul tenfold before moving on to the next. Having finished her task, she looked to the skies, chanting quietly for a minute or two, before finally putting her hood down. Silence. The purple-green mane of the pony waved gently in the wind, which sent the leaves and grass on the clearing flying as if they were but a wind-blown candle. "Are we here gathered in unison?" "Yes, we are," a united chant replied, from all those around. "Are we here, united, in agreement?" "Yes, we are," the same voice echoed once again. "Do we all consider the unrightful acquisition of Her Body by that which calls itself Luna unacceptable?" "Yes, we do." "Do we vow to do what is necessary to rid the Body of it at all costs?" The final question echoed in the wind, like a small flame gutters under a blow. Silence. "Yes, we do" "No... we do not," a lone voice replied, striking calmly yet precisely, like a carefully crafted needle. Silence. All eyes on the loner. "We... the Las Pegasus faction rejects the proposition," the pony stated, one last time, causing a visible grimace to appear on another, even under her hood. After a few more seconds, the second pony stepped forward. "Yes... we reject it." "Then why do you cower before me?" uttered the leading mare with a tinge of venom in her voice, eyes glistening briefly. "Why do you not stand for yourself, like he does? Why do you betray your ideals?" "I..." "There is no place for those like you among the Darkest of Nights. We-" the mare didn't finish, instead immediately striking the pony with a laser beam. She fall flat on the ground, heartbeat ceasing even before a resounding thump filled the area. The leading pony put her hood back on. "Anypony else object to our statute? Warning is not one which either of us provides carelessly," she uttered, her eyes now fixed on the objecting stallion. He quickly returned back to the row of cultists, readjusting his dusty hood. "No, mistress. We do not. We... the Las Pegasus faction supports the statute," he stuttered, his hind legs nearly like wool felling. The mare inside grinned. "Perfect. Ideal," she said. "Do we have all the ingredients, pray tell...? Then, if it is so, then let us begin..." "The Darknight Cult overestimated the loyalty of its members and the persuasions of its leader," Celestia uttered quietly. "The Las Pegasus cell contacted Canterlot... and from there, our conflict truly began," she finished, giving way to omnipresent silence. For a moment, but faint creaks could be heard from various surrounding parts of the Castle. "Why are you telling me this so openly?" Stanley finally asked, looking up at the Princess. "Because I can sense your approach... Stanley. You came to us by our request... and it is only fair we give back equally while you speak from nowhere else, but here," the Princess lifted one of her hooves and pointed it at Stanley's chest. The soldier glanced down at it, before rising his gaze once again, being met with Celestia's own sight. Her irises glistened with colour, but also patterns and lines that somehow, in some mysterioud way... spoke of great, grand wisdom. The depth in her eyes this seemed to creat gazed back at the soldier with the knowledge of a thousand generations... and then, finally then, something clicked in Stanley's mind. Something... strange, but also familiar, just not in this circumstance. He knew how to word things. Now, he could explain properly. He finally could... no matter how much Selina could object if she was not muted out. "Princess..." Stanley began. "You see... our war with the Swarm is no ordinary one. Since they attacked, three centuries ago... we've had to mobilise every resource and every potential one there was just for our people - for a part of our people - to be able to stay alive, but even then working their lives to contribute to the effort. We... are losing, Princess... of our enemy, we know almost nothing. They appeared from uncharted space... and swarmed the galaxy, hence their name... and we know what they do to us on the territory they capture. It's a fight for survival..." Stanley took a small breath. "But... but there is hope. You see... a millennium ago, a force briefly manifested itself in our world. A force so powerful we feared it to death... we called this force psionics. You call this force... magic." Stanley paused to take a look at the Princess, staring down at him. Her expression betrayed little, but even he could glean a tinge from it... a tinge of worry, but mostly curiosity. A tinge of expectations broken. Seeing little point, Stanley took another breath, readying himself to continue, knowimg full well the extent of painful reeducation that awaited him for all that he had done. And yet... his mission was still important as ever. Falling onto his knees and with his gaze turned to the ground, the soldier drew one last breath... "Princess. My orders..." he began. "Your help is the last chance our people have at survival."