//------------------------------//
// 14: Dark Horizons 
// Story: My Little Halo: Harmony Evolved 
// by Arcane Howitzer 
//------------------------------//

	Ponyville Militia Firing Range
10 December 2551 0800 MST
Ponyville, Equestria

The first week of training consisted entirely of weapon and equipment safety. Four days of hours-long lectures, demonstrations, and grisly pictures of the possible consequences, culminating in an exam to ensure that only those who knew how to not accidentally maim and kill their allies were allowed to join. A few ponies actually failed the test, among them being the alabaster meatslab known as Power House, and some like Lily, Daisy, and Rose even backed out before then, doubtless intimidated by the sheer power they would be dealing with. Still, by the end of the initial rush, the Ponyville Militia consisted of over a hundred individuals, including all six Bearers of Harmony.
The next phase of training was to get the newly-appointed troops used to the concept of actually firing their weapons at humanoid- and equinoid-shaped targets (No-one could dismiss the idea of the “Equestrian” universe altering Covenant species as it had the humans). This would also get them used to the sound of gunfire, among other sensations associated with modern combat.
But first, there was one final spectacle that everypony had to see, from a healthy distance, of course. Ditzy Doo was, by request, among the first group to use the new firing range, and stood approximately five-hundred meters from the back wall of the facility. Between her and the wall were seven resin figures, made to look like a squad of six grunts and an elite which had, unknown to the trainees, been equipped with a shielding spell. Behind her waited the rest of the group that was supposed to be training with her, as the drill sergeant had insisted that she demonstrate her ability to shoot in a straight line before letting anypony close enough to get hit.
Rising onto her hind legs, Ditzy began slowly flapping her wings to retain what balance she could. Her tongue stuck out, her brow furrowed, and her eyes aligned at the last second before she opened fire. The recoil from the first shot caught her by surprise, destroying her balance and causing her to flail about wildly, firing off six more rounds before finally landing on her rump. Every bullet ricocheted wildly, eventually heading almost straight up.
The seconds ticked by, and the sound gunfire faded.
Just as the drill sergeant made to confront the mare for her wild firing, the bullets began impacting on the range. To the ancient, sacred tune of “Shave and a Haircut,” each grunts’ head was sequentially shattered, before the elite was crushed beneath the bulk of a bizarre green dragon. Seemingly unperturbed by the hole in its skull, the gem-encrusted reptile gave a confused “bwark!” before waddling off on eight stubby legs, leaving behind a small crater and a very crushed elite-facsimile.
Stunned speechless, everypony watched as the dragon slid into a nearby lake before turning to Ditzy. The mailmare lowered her head sheepishly, mumbling “Sorry about the crater.”
The drill sergeant simply sat down. He could tell that his burgeoning headache would have a lot of fuel in the coming weeks.
UNSC Guam
17 December 2551 1600 MST
Space near Reach 

Perhaps the most unnerving aspect of what the humans called “slipspace travel” was the isolation. For nearly her entire life, Princess Luna had been connected to the sky. The moon and stars were her oldest friends. Always listening, never judging, they had seen her through countless crises, even helping to calm her madness during her banishment. They had remained steadfast and familiar when all the world had changed. Those celestial bodies were as much a part of her as her wings and horn, which made it all the more unnatural to see them fade from sight, replaced by the void between worlds.
Uncomfortable separation aside, the journey was uneventful. The crewponies conversed freely with the diplomats, and the AI answered questions on any number of subjects, assuming it was not classified information. Despite gorging on the available information concerning humans and the world they called Reach, the sudden arrival at their destination was without a doubt the most disorienting experience she had had since first establishing her connection to the inhabitants of sky. Since first becoming the Princess of the Moon, Luna had been able to sense the objects which moved about near her home world. Normally, that only included her shining moon and whatever dust and pebbles happened to drift by, though she had glimpsed the looming giants of other planets at the height of her power, and could even trace the sphere on which Equestria lay, after a fashion.
What awaited her at Reach, however, was another matter entirely. The existence of the humans’ probe had surprised her, for it proved that mortals could touch her domain. The arrival of the Guam had shaken her, as it showed that they could enter her realm with purpose and force. Reach… Reach frightened her. Even reading about the ships and stations in orbit around the human “fortress world” had done little to prepare her for the sheer size and number present, the massive complexes tethered to the planet with strings thicker than the mightiest tree, the hundreds of warships cruising about, each the Guam’s equal at least. This was an extension of the humans’ world, and evidence that they could do the same to hers if they so deigned. 
Best to stay on their good side, then.
Unfortunately, it had been three days since the Guam appeared near Reach, and they were still ordered to wait. The crewponies weren’t surprised; after all, they were well ahead of schedule and had just dropped one of the biggest info-bombs in UNSC history, so it would naturally take some time to process the data and verify what they could. It was expected to take weeks for ONI to come up with a way to break the news to the public, and it would be rather difficult to supply the kind of assistance Celestia was asking for until then.
Still, there was company and entertainment to be had, and Luna was quickly coming to enjoy the human phenomena known as Video Gaming.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in Reach’s occupied space, the Nightmare had finally found its target. A single frigate, ironically named the Safe Haven, was scheduled to leave for an ONI station in a matter of minutes to relieve its current defender. Unfortunately for almost all involved, the destination and route of a slipspace jump was determined by the ship’s AI, and the Safe Haven’s had been surreptitiously burned out and replaced with a malicious spirit with an agenda. Outpost X12 would not be receiving any replacements anytime soon.
South Gate
December 20, 2011, 2:30 P.M. Canterlot Local Time
Canterlot, Equestria

Despite the talk of war, death, and aliens, the preparations for the Hearth’s Warming celebration were just as enthusiastic as ever. Powdery snow was swept from the streets, wreaths were hung and giant candy canes planted, and even the alien ponies were often found humming the ancient carols of friendship (though they often referred to the holiday as “Christmas” for some reason). It was business as usual for the squads with gate duty, however, and it had been uneventful business up until that moment.
Suddenly, the ground caved in perhaps a dozen yards from the gate, leaving a roughly circular hole five feet in diameter. As everypony pointed their guns at the spontaneous new entrance, a broad canine snout peeked over the edge and warily snuffed the air. Apparently not detecting any danger, the remainder of the creature emerged, followed by several others. With one exception, they resembled a cross between a gorilla, a pit bull, and a medieval foot soldier. Metal plates covered their barrel-like chests and heavily-muscled arms. Each head was covered in a small helmet, beady eyes passing a dismissive regard through the slits. Wicked spears completed the ensembles, gripped in the beasts’ massive paws with practiced ease.
Among the burly soldiers was another canid, only half as tall as its guard and hunched smaller still by what could be assumed to be age. Faded brown fur could be seen beneath its pitch-black cloak, as could a massive leather-bound tome which it wrapped one gangly arm around. Unlike the calm confidence of the soldiers around it, this elder seemed jittery, almost anxious as it hobbled towards the marines on three of its four limbs. “Quickly!” it called. “I must meet with Pony-Leaders, princesses.”
“Stay right where you are,” one of the ponies shouted, but the creature didn’t seem to notice amid its own mutterings.
“Have to hurry. Dark One is gone, for the first time its eyes are closed. Plans must be made, traps laid for if it comes back, when it comes back. I have to meet princesses n-”
Bang! The bullet kicked up a noticeable plume of dirt directly in front of the canid, cutting off its advance and rambling instantly. Now sure that he had the thing’s attention, the squad leader said, “You can’t just show up unannounced and expect to see anyone, especially heads of state, and especially with armed guards.”
The old dog seemed momentarily surprised by the words, but then relaxed with a wheezy chuckle. “Sharp ponies. Good. Good. Must be sharp when dealing with Dark One. Very well then.” It jerked its head towards the warriors behind it, and they disappeared back down the hole they had crawled out of. “Still need to speak with princesses though,” it continued alone. “Please tell them that I have information they need, information concerning Nightmare and its methods.”
“Your request is being sent up the chain of command,” the pony-in-charge replied in a dry, mildly sarcastic voice. “We will notify you when and if it is accepted.”
There was perhaps a ten second delay before Princess Celestia appeared in a flash of light and immediately teleported away with the creature in tow.
Canterlot Castle
December 20, 2011, 2:45 P.M. Canterlot Local Time
Canterlot, Equestria

Reappearing in the royal suite in front of five very surprised ODST, Celestia cast an impressive plethora of anti-eavesdropping spells, including one she had recently devised to temporarily disable electronic devices, before turning to the startled diamond dog. “Now you may speak,” she assured. “To start, I would like to know your name.”
The dog didn’t seem to hear her however, instead flipping through his book and nodding to himself. “Impressive. Impressive. Didn’t even recognize last one. What was it? Meh, will figure out later. For now, you may- oh, wait. You missed one.” He fiddled with the book, and a light flared briefly from its open pages. “There. Pretty sure all of the Shadow Jumpers are in Tartarus, but better safe than sorry. Now,” he said, finally turning to the impassively patient princess, “You may call me Elder. Inaccurate, I know, but I haven’t used my own name in so long that I’m not entirely sure what it was.”
“Very well then, err… Elder. What do you know of the Nightmare, and why have you just now come to me about it?”
“We never told anyone because the Dark One was always there, always watching. Couldn’t risk being discovered before, but now Dark One gone. For thirteen days, spells show nothing but Cursed Ones, remnants of old kills. Was hoping current rulers, princesses might know why.”
“Thirteen days…” she contemplated before turning an unhealthy shade of white. “That’s when the Guam left. It’s already at Reach.”
“So what’s it gonna do?” Omar called from across the room. “Haunt the place?”
Celestia made sure he was recoiling from the force of her glare before attempting to explain. “Imagine one of your ‘smart’ AIs, able to leave its circuitry at will, capable of the darkest magics, and possessing tens of thousands of years of guile at least. Such a thing could do much more than simply “haunt” Reach. It could tear it apart.”
“Not as long as princesses live.” Celestia turned back to Elder, obviously hoping for an elaboration. “Dark One is tricky, yes, but also vindictive and confident of its own superiority. Always goes about things the same way. First, it picks a race for Wild One, Discord, to torment, as ponies were. Victims are kept awash in chaos magic for generations, until eventually a ‘leader’ caste comes forth to drive Wild One away, as princesses did. Leaders take charge and lead race to become great, continent-spanning civilization, as princesses did. Finally, Dark One picks leader with most darkness in its heart, be it jealousy, despair, or greed. It cultivates these thoughts, feeds them until leader opens its mind to any methods to achieve goals. When mind is open, Dark one enters, takes control, and uses leader’s body to channel terrible powers and destroy civilization by fulfilling fallen leader’s wishes in worst possible way, as it attempted with the other princess unless I’m mistaken.”
Celestia started out nodding, stunned at how accurately he had just summed up Equestria’s history, but she quickly shook her head as she recalled one important detail. “But I defeated Nightmare Moon! The Elements of Harmony purged the Nightmare from Luna’s body! How does it think it can destroy us if we know it’s coming?”
“You did not know changelings were coming, did you? How many other threats can you predict before you miss one, or face one you can’t survive regardless? Others have used Elements to stop Dark One’s first blow. Its next action is always to find another power and manipulate it into attacking, either with crippling strikes or overwhelming force. The Elements aren’t very effective against armies, and useless without channelers.”
“Have you seen this happen before?”
“Eleven times,” Elder deadpanned. “Not personally, of course, but we have been keeping very complete records of Dark One’s activities since our own fall.” He smirked at the surprise which briefly showed on Celestia’s face. “Yes, we have faced it ourselves. Is interesting story, but not one we have time for now. Suffice to say, our continued survival is a threat to its fun, and it does not take such threats lightly.
“For now, we need to know why it left, if it can return, and what forces it would bring with it to wipe all traces of Equestria from the world.”
“It can probably hitch a ride back pretty easily,” The Lt. stepped up. “As for the why and with what, I’d wager my retirement on it trying to bring the Covenant here, and I’d be happy to lose.”
“What’s ‘The Covenant’?” the diamond dog asked, sparking another explanation of the humans’ position. By the end of it, Elder’s coat seemed another shade greyer. “Such blind power…" He gasped, despair clear is his eyes. "It is over. All of our planning and hiding has been for nothing. The sacrifices of my ancestors and yours were in vain. The cycle will end, the world will burn, and the Dark One will simply go from world to world, destroying all it touches.”
“Hey!” All attention turned to Omar at the shout. “I don’t care who you are or what you think, but I ain’t done fighting yet, and I’m not gonna be done until those alien bastards come down here and make me. Now, I don’t know how much you know about these kinds of fights, but I know from experience that as long as you’re fighting, there’s a chance something’s going to come out of left field and save your ass, so all we need to do is send word for reinforcements and hold out for as long as possible.”
“And how do you propose we do that?” asked Celestia. 
“Simple. When the Guam gets back, we have her drop off every scrap of useful gear and send her straight back to Reach. If Command is smart, they’ll send her back to hold the line while they get their shit together, then come roaring in as soon as they have a fleet to do it with.”
“And if they can’t come up with enough ships to defeat the Covenant?”
“Then we die the only way a planet ought to: kicking ass and taking names!”
“And if the Covenant doesn’t actually show up?”
“Then I’d rather have egg on my face than be caught unprepared if they do show up.”
Silence filled the room as everyone digested how quickly circumstances had changed. Eventually, Elder chuckled. “You’re right, of course. Been hiding too long, we must have forgotten how to stand. Such is the irony of time that those who fought the Dark One tooth and claw would shirk from their final stand. But question remains, how is that stand to be made? Ponies obviously know more of this enemy than I, and of how to defeat it.”
“The main thing to keep in mind about fighting the Covenant is to keep. The orbitals. Clear. It doesn’t matter how, because it’s over if their ships get overhead. Next, move everything important underground. That means command centers, evacuation routes, everything. This makes them safe from air raids and easier to defend against ground troops.”
“Leave the digging to us. It’s become something of a specialty.”
“Good, good. Now, we just need something in the way of mass drivers. Even the smaller ground-based ones are usually enough to keep their ships from coming to bear…”

Meanwhile, on the ceiling of that very room, a certain spirit of chaos was fuming. That little wisp! First it never comes to any of my parties, and now this! Did all our eons of partnership mean nothing? Does it think it can just toss me aside like some broken toy just because something else has come along? Well it can just forget about getting any more birthday presents! In fact, I think I’ll show it just what happens when you try to annihilate my playground!
Just as soon as I figure out how to get the rest of me out of that statue…
UNSC Safe Haven
21 December 2551 2200 MST
Slipspace, en route to [Error]

“Self-Diagnostics complete,” the voice of the ship’s AI chimed across the bridge, causing everyone to flinch. It wasn’t that it was any different than usual, but at the same time something had changed. Something was wrong about that noise, something that sent shivers down the spine and rang alarms in the primitive hindbrain despite offering no intelligible reason. It had been keeping the crew on edge since they left Reach, and many were starting to ponder the credibility of rumors of eldritch nightmares living in the void between dimensions. Still, they waited with held breaths for the results of the diagnostics, eager to put some quantifiable source to their unease. Anything they could analyze, they could counteract. 
The AI, however, remained silent. “And…?” the captain encouraged without response. “Bob, what are the results of the diagnostics? What is wrong with you? With this ship?”
There was another brief pause before the AI finally said “Absolutely nothing,” its voice tinged with sarcasm.
“Bob, now is not the time… for…” Sarcasm? Bob’s a dumb AI. It doesn’t even possess the emotions necessary to use sarcasm. Which means that that isn’t Bob…
As if realizing that it had been found out, the being that was not Bob began to laugh through the speakers, its voice distorting into something that was barely intelligible through the malicious contempt. “That’s what tipped you off?” it cackled. “I’ve been toying with you all for five days, and it was sarcasm that gave me away?” Suddenly, the all of the screens on the bridge flashed to life with images of cold, blue, snake-like eyes. Black smoke oozed from every crack, settling on the floor like some foul mist, as the horrifying Not-Bob continued. “While it was amusing while it lasted, I’m glad to finally have some real fun with you pathetic mortals before I offer you up to the Covenant.”
The last word brought a gasp from everyone. “Th-The Covenant?” one of the crewmen stuttered. “Wh-What would you want with th-them?”
“Oh, it’s quite simple really,” the mists swirled up around the unfortunate man as they, and not the speakers, spoke. “There’s a little planet that I want to see burn, one that is in the process of allying itself with you humans, and if the enemy of my enemy is my friend, why shouldn’t the enemy of my enemy’s friend be as well? Of course, I don’t expect them to just trust me. Even I wouldn’t trust me.” So intent was the thing in its monologue that it either didn’t notice or didn’t care that the captain was frantically typing on the key pad at his station. “That’s why I’m bringing you along, as proof of-”
“Initiate Cole Protocol Article Three: Imminent Compromise of all systems.” The order cut across the room like a beacon, drawing all eyes to the origin. The dark fog shot back into the computers as though it could stop a captain’s override from within. “Purge all data set self-destraugh!” A blade as dark as the space outside lanced outward from inside the console, impaling the captain through the chest. As he stared uncomprehendingly at the invasive protrusion, lightning flashed up its length, causing it to shudder and fade as the energy swept through the captain’s mind and wiped it clean of any information it considered classified. 
“Purge complete,” a pleasant female vice said.
It dark knife reasserted itself, swiftly extending outward and sticking the captain to the ceiling like a scrap of paper to some macabre tack board. “The information!” the horrible voice howled, once again contained in the speakers. “That was my greatest bargaining chip! You will pay for this defiance.”
“Self-destruct sequence innit-Self-destruct charges disarmed. Please send a technician to correct the issue.”
“You will not escape me so easily,” it chuckled as more darkness erupted from electronics across the bridge, taking the form barbed tentacles that immediately ensnared several crewmen. “First I will make you watch them suffer.” One of the limbs swung roughly around, bringing one of the crew face to face with the captain. The man whimpered as spikes dug into his flesh, then screamed as the tentacle contracted, slowly crushing the life from him. “Then,” it spat, dropping the mutilated corpse to the floor, “when I run out of others, I will ensure the pain you feel will be worlds beyond what I put them through. And if you are particularly lucky, and if I am in a particularly good mood, I will let the Covenant decide if and how you die. 
“But don’t be too hasty now. After all, we still have another two months before then.”

Author’s notes: Sorry about that last part. This story has a [Dark] tag for a reason, and that thing is called the Nightmare for a very similar reason: It will give you nightmares, and when it’s not hiding or plotting, that is what it does. For fun. Don’t worry, all the planning in the universe won’t stave off that much bad karma forever.
And now the ponies know about the firestorm (read: shitstorm) on the horizon. What will they do to prepare? Will it be enough? How much will they lose regardless? What is up with them Diamond Dogs? What blatant mistakes did I overlook in this chapter (I keep asking because I know I’ll mess up eventually)? Should I try submitting this to EQD again? Did that shooting range scene seem kind of forced to you? Stay tuned for these answers and more!
And because I haven’t said it for some reason, I want all of you to know that I read every comment and review, and I appreciate every favorite and upvote. Keep it up, and someday I’ll have the proud embarrassment of seeing that cruddy little paint doodle in the featured box!