Chapter 5: Setting Up Shop
On the outskirts of Ponyville, two Royal Guard pegasi were running at top speed with their wings tied and weighed down with sacks of bricks. Their grey coats were drenched with sweat, they having been almost sprinting nonstop for the half an hour, the bricks adding to the burden of their already heavy metal armor.
A sudden uproar from within the town drew their attention. Even from where they were they could hear thunderous cheering and chants of “peace through power” coming from the direction of the town square. They began to slow down a little, distracted by the noise. “What in Celestia’s Sun is going on over there?” Flash muttered.
“Man, sounds like the town’s going nuts! And what’s ‘peace through power,’ anyway? Pretty catchy!” Thunder remarked.
A small explosion detonated behind them, causing the two to jump and quicken their pace. Looking behind themselves, they saw their sergeant in flight after them, wielding a crossbow loaded with explosive bolts. “Pick up the pace, you two! No slacking! You still have two laps left!” Low Flight barked as he took aim and fired another shot.
“Oh, c’mon, Sarge! Haven’t we suffered enough!?”
“This is hard enough without you shooting at us, sir!”
“Should’ve thought about that before you opened your big mouths! You two are damn lucky these humans decided to help us instead of taking advantage of our situation! NOW RUN YOU MAGGOTS!” Low Flight bellowed.
He grinned as the two shot off into the distance, kicking up clouds of dust as they went. The cheers and chants of the town’s residents and refugees resounded once more, catching his ear.
‘Peace through power? I can get behind that…’ he thought before taking off after the subjects of his disciplinary action.
----
"Ohmygosh! Ohmygosh! Humans are real! I KNEW it! And they’re going to help us! This is just so unbelievable!” an aquamarine unicorn squeaked with unrestrained glee and excitement.
A beige earth pony with a curled pigment blue mane with pink highlights stood by her, taking in the incredible sight of the confessor whipping the crowd into a wild frenzy. She could just feel the killing energy around her. “Yeah, Lyra… unbelievable is right.” she muttered.
“Oh c’mon, Bon Bon! Aren’t you excited? HUMANS! And they’re going to help us kick those demons’ flanks all the way back to Tartarus!” Lyra prodded, trying to get her friend to lighten up.
“I suppose. I will say that this guy certainly knows how to work up a crowd. I’ve never seen everypony this lively!” Bon Bon admitted.
“Yup! PEACE THROUGH POWER!” Lyra began chanting, letting herself get caught up in the moment.
Bon Bon cast her friend an amused look before joining her, “Oh, what the hay. It IS pretty catchy. PEACE THROUGH POWER! PEACE THROUGH POWER!”
----
Alexander raised his hands, calming the crowd before stepping away from the podium. Mayor Mare looked over at Lightning Strike and motioned her head towards the podium, signaling him to go next. He nodded and went up to it, raising a hoof to quiet the energetic crowd.
“Citizens of Ponyville! Know that your Royal Guards are doing their utmost to ensure your and your families’ safety. With the help of our newfound human allies, the Brotherhood of Nod, we shall hold back the tide of the demons’ attacks and drive them back into the filthy pits from which they came!” he spoke, earning a rousing cheer from the crowd.
Satisfied with the response he got, he stepped down from the podium and surrendered it to the mayor. Mayor Mare cleared her throat and waved a hoof, gaining the crowd’s attention, “All right, everypony. Return to your tasks and rest assured that the defense of our town is in good hooves. And hands.”
The crowd started to disperse, all of them feeling markedly better about their shared circumstances. A few lingered, hoping to see what the humans would do to aid them.
Lightning Strike let out a sigh before looking at Alexander, “You’re a hard act to follow, you know that, confessor?”
Alexander chuckled at his complaint, “I’ve been told.”
Laughing at their banter, Mayor Mare interrupted them. “Well, now that that’s out of the way, let’s talk defense plans, shall we, gentlestallions? What will we be doing to protect Ponyville?” she asked, eager to get on the subject.
“Well, my Guards already have their postings. So confessor, how do your forces fit into things around here?” Lightning Strike asked, curious about what the humans could actually do to help.
Alexander paused for thought, “Well firstly, I need to establish local command and control here in town. The vehicle I was riding in?”
“Yes? What about it?” Lightning Strike asked, unsure of where he was going with this.
“I need to bring it into town and offload the equipment it carries. Might I be able to set it up here in town? Preferably right next to your own command center, lieutenant, so we can more easily coordinate with each other.”
Lightning Strike, not having much idea about what the confessor was planning, hesitantly agreed. “Uh, alright. Go ahead. And the Town Hall building here serves as my headquarters. In fact, I’ll send some of my Guards to fetch your vehicle and escort it here, the streets being awfully crowded as of late.” he offered.
“Ah, excellent. Thank you, lieutenant. Once that’s set up we can go about arranging our defenses.” Extracting his PDA from inside his coat, Alexander radioed the humvee, “Command humvee, how copy?”
“Ten-two. Over.” the driver responded, much to the ponies‘ amazement.
“Some Guard ponies are coming over to bring you to the Town Hall building. We’ll be setting up shop there. Follow them when they arrive. And mind the road! They’re pretty crowded. Over.”
“Roger, si- did you say Guard ‘ponies,’ sir?” the driver asked, unbelieving at the word and its less-than masculine connotation.
Alexander suppressed a sigh. “Do you acknowledge your orders?” he asked, annoyance laced in his tone.
“Ah- yes! Affirmative. Over.”
“Good. Expecting you shortly. Out.” With that, Alexander terminated the connection. Looking up from his PDA, he saw the mayor and lieutenant staring at him with undisguised curiosity. “Wondering about this?” he asked with a chuckle, holding up the PDA.
“Er- yes, actually. What is it? And what was that voice you were talking to?” Mayor Mare asked, leaning forward in interest.
“Indeed.” Lightning Striking concurred.
“This device is a personal digital assistant, or PDA. A multi-purpose tool to help with tasks, be they official or personal. It acts as a clock, calendar, a communications device, that was one of my men you heard, the one driving the vehicle we’re bringing over. It also writes and retains memos and is a personal terminal to my EVA unit as well… It possesses a great deal of functions, really.” Alexander rattled off, purposely trying to confuse the two.
He succeeded in his goal as the two ponies continued to stare confusedly at him, having no understanding at anything he just said. Before he could take a picture of their dumbstruck faces with the untold camera feature of his PDA, the rumble of an engine drew their attention. Seeing that the humvee had arrived, he pocketed the PDA inside his coat and made for the vehicle, “Ah, it’s here. Shall we?”
‘Damn. I’ll try again later…’
----
The humvee was flanked by Guards on both sides as it pulled up to Ponyville Town Hall. The driver parked besides the building before switching off the engine and stepping out of the humvee. He saluted as Alexander approached with his bodyguards. Putting the driver at ease with a nod, he stepped to the side and faced all his present men. “We’re setting up here. Get the command tent up and send out the fieldview UAV. Quickly, brothers.” he ordered in a practiced manner.
They saluted before springing into action, one jumping into the humvee’s rear canopy and beginning to hand equipment to his fellows as they erected a sizable tent and arranged the equipment inside it. Ponies all around watched in wonder as the human soldiers worked under the steely gaze of their leader, moving efficiently as they continued to put together the makeshift structure.
Soon the impromptu command center was finally built, the mobile generator powering it coming to life and bringing all of its equipment online. The tent was quite an eyesore as it sat besides the more aesthetically pleasing Town Hall building, the desert camouflage tarp that shielded the sensitive equipment within looking like a splotched mess of various shades of tan and brown in contrast to the pristine, solid-color wooden paneling of the towering building next to it. The mayor and lieutenant looked over the tent, curious as to its possible purpose and function required by their human allies.
Humming in satisfaction, Alexander went over to the humvee and retrieved his pack from the passenger side. Returning, he pointed at the driver, “You, get the UAV up. The rest of you, command staff. In the tent.”
His soldiers filed into the tent and began manning the various stations and terminals as the driver brought out a metal container from the humvee. He opened it, revealing a number of drone pieces and components. As he began to assemble the UAV, Alexander returned his attention to the mayor and lieutenant. “Care for a look?” he asked as he pulled back the entrance flap to the tent.
The two ponies caught themselves still staring at the camouflage tarp, being nearly hypnotized by its speckled color scheme. “Uh, sure.” they said in unison, walking over to him.
Inside they were greeted with tables and stacks of equipment, beeping and whirring as radio chatter from the convoy filtered through a communications terminal. Overhead lamps provided illumination and a fan and air conditioning unit mounted on the tent’s metal framework provided ventilation. They were mesmerized by the multitude of LCD displays, showing myriads of information that the soldiers were somehow able to keep pace with and meaningfully process.
“What is all this?” Mayor Mare asked.
“Command and control for my troops. From here I can direct them all over Ponyville in real time.” Alexander answered.
“You can command them from just here? And what’s real time?” Lightning Strike asked, curious about the confessor’s method of battlefield command.
“Instantaneous.”
Lightning Strike became disbelieving. “Instantaneous.” he parroted in a deadpan tone.
“Yes.”
“As in ‘instantly,’ without the use of runners?”
“Yes.”
“That’s… How?” the lieutenant asked, no longer able to hide his astonishment at the supposed feat.
“Years of technological advancement and development of which the particulars are beyond me.” Alexander replied as he extracted his laptop from his pack and connected it to the command terminal sitting atop the table in the center of the tent.
“UAV’s up, sir!” the driver suddenly called out, the faint buzz of the drone’s propeller validating his claim.
“Good! Check its signal and verify ground connection!” Alexander called back. A tone and blinking icon on the screen of his laptop alerted him to a successful connection between the UAV flying overhead to his own command terminal. Pulling up the battlefield command interface program, he was soon met with an overhead view of Ponyville, the video feed shaking a little from the movement of the drone.
Mayor Mare’s and Lightning Strike’s mouths hung open as they looked over his shoulder, seeing their own town from high above.
“Is that… Ponyville?” she asked.
“Yes. Nice view, isn’t it?”
“You can say that again…” Lightning Strike muttered, beholding the aerial view of the town with the appreciation of a pegasus.
Alexander began maneuvering the convoy towards Ponyville and set a patrol path for the Hinds that encircled the town. Soon after, the signature heavy thwacking of the helicopter’s propellers sounded overhead, the gunships circling the town like mechanized vultures bearing obscene amounts of firepower. Ponies outside gasped at the rapid appearance of the Hinds.
Mayor Mare, remembering her own duties, decided to steal herself away and leave the two commanders to their work, “Well, I’ll leave you two to it. Do whatever you need to do. Good luck!” With that, she trotted out of the tent.
“Of course, mayor.”
“Will do, Madame Mayor.”
Alexander continued issuing orders and positioning his troops in defensible hard points surrounding Ponyville as Lightning Strike watched, his eyes following the various movements on the laptop’s screen.
‘If I could order around my Guards while sitting on my flank…’
----
The six mares watched from afar as the humans entered the tent. One, however, had disappeared behind the vehicle he came in on, coming back out lugging a big metal container. He opened it and began assembling something from the bits and pieces inside. He soon finished, the product of his efforts being a white construct that vaguely resembled a bird with its wings spread. Stepping into a wide clearing in the town square, he fiddled with something on the main body before rearing back and throwing the construct into the air. A sudden buzzing emitted from it as it took to the air on its own power, climbing higher and higher before leveling out and circling high above the town.
Rainbow was the first to voice her astonishment. “Whoa… What is that thing, Twilight?” she asked, half-expecting her egghead of a friend to actually know the answer.
“I have no idea, Rainbow. I’m guessing it’s some kind of flying machine, but for what purpose, I haven’t a clue.” Twilight replied as she leaned back to keep sight of the construct.
“Oh boy! I wonder what other crazy gadgets and gizmos these humans got!” Pinkie said as she hopped down from the roof she was on.
“That makes two of us, Pinkie. I’d love to get a closer look at all their technology and see how it works.” Twilight concurred, watching with slight envy as the confessor let the mayor and lieutenant inside the tent, presumably for a peek at the offloaded equipment.
“Ugh, what is that garish thing they’re using for their tent? It looks like spilt cookie dough batter! And what are those other humans wearing!? All that black and red, they look like demons! Why can’t they dress more like their leader?” Rarity complained, having gotten a closer look at them.
“They do look pretty scary…” Fluttershy muttered, hiding behind her mane.
“I think they look pretty cool. And who better to fight demons than demons, huh?” Rainbow argued.
“Somepony say cookie dough!? Where!?” Pinkie exclaimed, getting distracted by the mention of cookie dough.
A sudden thwacking noise cut into their conversation. The Hinds zoomed by overhead, causing a breeze as they passed. Fluttershy let out a frightened yelp before diving under a nearby cart. The others merely stood frozen in place, gawking at the sudden appearance of the Hinds, who were now circling around the edge of Ponyville.
Applejack snatched her hat just as it was blown off by the passing helicopters, “What’n tarnation are THOSE things!?”
“They remind me of Gummy for some reason. Except bigger. And angrier. And meaner. And nastier.” Pinkie remarked.
“Those must be their helicopter gunships.” a voice interrupted. They all turned to see Mayor Mare walking towards them, looking up in awe at the Hinds.
“Mayor Mare? You know what those things are?” Twilight asked, ready to bombard the mayor with an endless stream of questions.
“Sort of. The confessor mentioned them as their flying war machines. Quite impressive, really. How something so big that isn’t a dragon that can fly like that is simply beyond me.” she replied.
“So you saw inside their tent? What was inside?” Twilight asked eagerly, sorely wishing for her quill and some parchment.
Mayor Mare smiled at her, “Technology like you wouldn’t believe. From that tent they can command all their forces in ‘real time,’ I think that’s what he called it. Instant communication! And somehow a view of Ponyville from the sky! And also his PDA! It’s incredible!”
“It would seem so. “Rarity answered for Twilight, pushing up her friend’s hanging jaw.
“How can they see Ponyville from the sky when they’re down on the ground? And what the hay is a PDA?” Rainbow asked, rather nonplussed at the idea and unfamiliar acronym.
“You know, I’m not sure. I didn’t ask.” Mayor Mare admitted, putting a hoof to her chin.
“Maybe some kind of viewing spell? Oh, I just have to find out!” Twilight exclaimed excitedly.
“And we should probably send a letter to the Princess lettin’ her know about these ‘Nod’ fellas’.” Applejack added.
“Oh yeah! Thanks for reminding me.” Twilight said.
“Well, I’ve got to see to some things. You six take care!” With that, Mayor Mare trotted off.
As they watched the mayor head back inside the Town Hall building, they noticed movement from the tent. The confessor and lieutenant exited it and began making for the southern edge of town. “Hey, there they are now! Let’s follow them!” Rainbow suggested.
“Yeah, I’ve got so many questions and I just NEED to see what they have inside that tent!” Twilight agreed.
“Well then, c’mon gals!” Applejack said, motioning a hoof forward.
As they started after the human and Royal Guard pony, Rarity turned back, seeing Fluttershy still under the cart, “Are you coming, dear?”
“Huh? Oh, right. Coming…”
----
“I’ve been meaning to ask you, confessor… How exactly do you humans fight? Your weapons and war machines are like none I’ve ever seen before.” Lightning Strike asked, trying to hide his eager anticipation.
Alexander looked up, seemingly in thought before answering him. “Typically with combined arms formations utilizing mechanized infantry, armored fighting vehicles, and air support.” he replied.
The look on Lightning Strike’s face indicated a failure to comprehend his words. He tried again, “We primarily employ ranged weaponry. Small arms for individual infantrymen up to heavier weapon systems mounted on our fighting vehicles, be they land-bound or airborne.”
“I… see.” Lightning Strike said slowly, electing to just feign understanding. “So just ranged weapons? You don’t use hoof weapons of any kind?” he asked, both intrigued and disturbed.
“For the most part, no. While we’re on the subject, I take it you and your Guards do? Do you engage in frontline combat? Clashing with the enemy head on in the battlefield and all that?”
“Yes… What other way is there?” Lightning Strike asked.
“Firepower. Hit the enemy at a distance with firepower. Preferably excessive and overwhelming firepower. Destroy them before they even seen the second muzzle flash. On that note, it’d probably be a bad idea for your Guards to be running around on the battlefield if we’re going to be fielding our own weapons.” Alexander said, expecting an objection from the lieutenant at this.
He received it. “What!? Then how are we to fight the demons if we just stay put? You expect us to just hide behind your war machines!?”
“Not exactly. But you charging out into the field would greatly increase the chances of friendly fire incidents.” Alexander explained.
“Friendly fire?” Lightning Strike parroted, unfamiliar with the term.
“Our weapons accidentally hitting you. And you really don’t want that to happen.”
Lightning Strike became disbelieving once more, “What could your weapons possibly do to prevent us from meeting the enemy head on in the field of battle?”
Alexander took that as a challenge, “Well then, lieutenant, would you care to see for yourself?”
----
The confessor and lieutenant made their way over to the southern road into town where a few tanks and IFVs had taken up defensive positions as infantry dug foxholes forward of them. Ponies had gathered to gawk at the armored fighting vehicles and watch the human soldiers as they fortified their town.
“What’re they digging? Their graves?” Lightning Strike asked with a chuckle.
“Funny! No, no. They’re digging foxholes.” Alexander replied, not really appreciating the pony’s jab.
“Foxholes?”
“From which they can fight the enemy.”
Lightning Strike raised an eyebrow, “You’ll have to explain to me how you can fight from a hole in the ground, confessor.”
“Cover from which they can fire their weapons at the enemy without exposing themselves. A useful technique when you’re trying to entrench yourself and hold a position, like a town.”
The lieutenant nodded, accepting his explanation for now. As the two walked to the southern edge of town, Lightning Strike caught sight of three familiar Guard pegasi, two of them looking absolutely exhausted. “Sergeant Low Flight!” he called out to them.
“Sir! What brings you here?” the sergeant asked as he gave a salute, Thunder and Flash mimicking him despite looking ready to collapse and pass out. Their grey coats were sticky with sweat, their wings were throbbing, and their flanks were singed slightly.
“Confessor Andric here is going to demonstrate the capabilities of his war machines.” Lightning Strike answered. He looked behind Low Flight and chuckled at the two Guards. “Maintain Speed?” he asked knowingly.
“Uh huh.” they replied.
Laughing, he turned to Alexander, “Confessor, this is Sergeant Low Flight, my second-in-command.”
The confessor held out a hand, which the sergeant accepted. “A pleasure to meet you, sergeant.” he said, shaking his hoof.
“Likewise, confessor.”
“So, about that demo?” Lightning Strike asked.
“Right. Let’s see… I think the Abrams MBT would make for a good show.” Alexander said, walking over to one of the larger armored fighting vehicles.
“Abrams MBT?” Low Flight asked, unsure of the designation.
“This here.” Alexander said, motioning towards the massive tan painted tank that sat on the road like an obstinate cow. He pulled out his PDA and radioed the tank’s commander, “Armor 4, how copy?”
“Solid copy. What can we do for you, sir?”
“A demonstration. Load high explosive and await my command. Over.”
“Wilco. Loading and waiting. Over.”
“Now, what would make a fine target…” Alexander muttered, scanning the horizon for something they all could do without. He found it in the form of a sizable boulder a good distance away from anything. “Would that boulder be particularly missed?” he asked Lightning Strike.
“Uh… no? Likely not.”
“Excellent.” Alexander radioed the tank once more, “Range and sight down that boulder two hundred fifty meters out. Over.”
“Ranging.”
The tank’s turret whirred to life, swiveling to align its cannon with the unfortunate boulder. The ponies present watched as the tank took aim, leaning forward with anticipation.
“Ranged. Ready to fire. Over.”
‘They probably shouldn’t do that…’ A mischievous smirk worked its way onto Alexander’s face as he used his free hand to grab his cap, “Fire.”
BOOM!
The crack of the Abrams’ main gun resounded loudly through the air. Alexander looked at his pony allies and barely kept from breaking out into laughter. All had their jaws making an acquaintance with the ground. Thunder and Flash, for being so tired before, were standing the straightest they ever have, their wings deploying a moment later in the same manner as a car’s airbags to great comical effect. Lightning Strike and Low Flight, however, were doing rather well in hiding their shock, only their slightly hanging mouths betraying them.
*click*
A faint click signified a successful snapshot by the PDA’s camera.
‘And I just got my new desktop wallpaper.’
After a moment, they all turned their gaze from the smoking barrel of the tank’s cannon to the boulder designated as the target. There was no boulder. Where it once sat was now a smoking crater, debris and bits of rock that was once the boulder strewn about around it.
“You see what I mean when I said it’s probably not a good idea for your guys to be running and flying around out there in a fight?” Alexander asked, hoping his point from before had gotten through to the lieutenant.
“Yeah… Probably not too good to get caught in that.” Lightning Strike reluctantly admitted.
“Indeed. A lot of ordinance like that is going to be thrown around once the fighting begins in earnest, and I think we should save every last bit of it for the enemy.” Alexander said, pocketing his PDA. “Well, gentlemen, how about we get back and discuss the enemy and coordination between our forces?”
“Sounds good. Low Flight, with me. You two…” Lightning Strike snickered slightly before continuing, “Get some rest.”
“Yes sir.” Thunder and Flash saluted before trudging off to their quarters, grateful for the reprieve.
“Shall we?” Alexander asked. The lieutenant and sergeant nodded, taking after him as he started for the command tent.
----
The six mares nearly jumped out of their skins at the crack of the Abram’s main gun. They never heard anything so loud. Even from where they stood a good distance away they could feel the concussive force from the tank’s cannon, their hearts still shaking. Fluttershy froze, her eyes wide and her pupils the size of pinpricks, her muscles stiff and unmoving, before tipping over and clattering on the ground.
“Whoa…” Rainbow uttered, awestruck at the thunderous fireball belched from the tip of the giant gun.
“What the HAY was that!?” Applejack exclaimed.
“That huge rock is… gone.” Fluttershy muttered as she got back up, both amazed and terrified at the display of firepower that just occurred.
“Oh, wow! It’s like a super-size party cannon!” Pinkie yelled, not sharing her friends’ trepidation about the war machine.
“Pinkie, I don’t believe it was a party that thing just fired.” Rarity said, trying to talk some sense into the pink pony.
“You’re right! It’s more like a great explodey fireball of DOOM!” Pinkie replied, disturbingly cheerful about the subject matter.
“That’s a way to put it.” Twilight said. She looked to see the confessor on the move again, accompanied by the lieutenant and sergeant, “Hey! They’re leaving! C’mon!”
The six started after them, a number of questions on their minds.
‘That thing would be great at a party…’