//------------------------------//
// 41~Plague 
// Story: The Emperor Preserves 
// by Centurion Pike-Wall 
//------------------------------//

Anton grumbled to himself, heading stiffly along the path towards Ponyville. He tried to force himself to stand upright, only for his sore back and legs to whine at the shifting weight. Instead, all he could really succeed in doing to ease his burden was adjust the shotgun that rested on his back so as to prevent it from clattering as he marched into town. 

As he moved past the border of Sweet Apple Acres, he came to a stop. Over a gust of wind, he heard... humming? Looking up the hill next to the path, he saw Fluttershy standing on the hill, picking flowers and placing them into a basket perched on her back. As she placed a dull yellow flower in her basket, she looked down and spotted him. "Oh. Hello Aquila!", she called, before stopping. "Oh my. Are you alright?"

Anton looked down, studying his mud-smeared uniform. It was torn in a few places, and a section near his tail was a bit burnt. However, he wasn't bleeding, not suffered any other kinds of injuries. "I'm fine. Just... tired. Of course, I need to get food and supplies, so that takes priority."

"What happened?", Fluttershy asked, causing Anton to let out a sigh and reflect back on the chaotic morning.


+++++~+++++


Anton sighed, placing the thorn rod back underneath his bed. Fresh arcs of pain ran across his back, while blood soaked into his fur. He slowed his breathing, before grabbing a few bandages on a nearby table. 

After wrapping them up tightly, he tied them off beneath his chest and slid on his undershirt. He went about the rest of his morning routine without a second thought, hindered only slightly by the resonating throb coming from his back. Soon, he had a cup filled with a rough approximation of Recaf, and sat down on the firing step of one of his exterior trenches. 

Early mornings in the Everfree varied heavily, even within the same season. Most mornings were foggy and cold, with this one being no exception. However, in this case, it wasn't particularly thick, with him even being able to see all the way to the river, a good ways outside of the canyon his position was in. Even as he sat and drank, the fog was beginning to clear, with it being almost entirely clear save a few lingering spots by the time he was finished. 

He went back inside, grabbing an apple as he made his way to the wash basin near the far wall. He held it in his mouth as he washed the cup out, placing it back on his table to dry. 

As Anton went back outside to take care of a few upkeep tasks, he saw something land on the trench wall. It was tiny, no bigger than hand grenade, and colored a dark blue. The only thing that broke that shape was four spindly black legs, a pair of transparent wings, and massive, dark green eyes. It made a weird buzzing noise, and almost seemed to be smiling at him. 

"The frak are you?", he murmured, studying it. It continued to chirp and buzz, and still seemed to be smiling. 

The fact that it was this... friendly with him raised immediate alarm klaxons. Most things in the Everfree either avoided him out of instinct or because of his propensity to shoot anything that approached. If this thing had approached him completely unprompted, and seemingly without fear, then it was either something new to the forest or something else was up with it. 

The things gaze shifted to the apple hovering in his aura, taking flight and fluttering over to it. It gave a few tentative sniffs, smiling at him. Before Anton could react, its mouth opened impossibly wide, swallowing the apple whole in one clean motion. 

Anton jerked back, eyes widened in shock. It twittered and smiled up at him, as if nothing had happened. Anton took a step back, edging towards the door of the bunker. The creature continued to hover in the air, still smiling. As he felt his hind leg impact the rear wall of the trench, he whipped around and lept over the wall. He bounded into the bunker, heading for the nearest weapon. 

That just so happened to be his Model 34 shotgun, which he figured was for the best. He grabbed the sack he had filled with the various loose shells he had access to, opening up the action and sliding in several shells. When it was filled, he closed the action and pulled the charging handle. 

As he got out of his bunker, his eyes widened again. Now, there was a second creature, this one a dark, muddy purple as opposed to the dark blue one. The two of them made overlapping chirping noises, turning to him when he emerged. "Throne be praised", he muttered, before raising the shotgun. 

The blast sent a wall of pellets shooting toward the two of them. The two of them, however, avoided the pellets, flittering off with alarmed chirps. A second blast quickly followed, followed by a third and a fourth. Finally, one of the creatures was hit, exploding in a shower of pale pink blood and smearing the wood and dirt around the trench. 

Anton scowled, heading back into the bunker. He opened the sack back up, replacing the spent shells with fresh ones. He then slung the sack over his back, turning to head back outside. 

As he did, he froze as that twittering clicking was now within the bunker. Turning around, he saw the creature sit on the rim of the bunker firing slit, frowning at him. He jerked the shotgun around, firing another blast at it. Stone and wood splinters broke as the pellets hit around the creature, sending it ducking down into another box. Into his larder. 

Soon, the sounds of loud chewing came out of the wooden crate. The box shook and shuddered, before finally falling over, sending the cloth cover that was over it spilling off. As the sound of clicking and strange murmuring arose, Anton could only say one thing: 

"Oh frak."


+++++~+++++


"Let's just say that some of the creatures in the Everfree are far from pleasant", he said, giving Fluttershy a side-long look. He decided that he didn't need to mention the fact he had nearly burned down a part of the forest, having had to resort to his meltagun to get rid of the things. Considering what he knew of her, she probably wouldn't appreciate that. 

Fluttershy said, "What kind of creature?"

"Don't know, don't care", Anton said. "I just plan to get some food and wood, then head back home and pass out." With a final wave to the yellow mare, he continued his trudge into town.