On the 3rd day, Marcus woke up feeling refreshed. It was a crisp morning, and the sun was beginning to rise over the mountains to the east. A light fog covered the land, and Marcus breathed in the fresh air. He had slept well, and was ready for another day of work on AJ’s farm. He got up from his position on Fluttershy’s room, and walked down stairs, hearing the sizzle of…was that bacon? No way she made that. He walked into the kitchen to find Fluttershy making breakfast. Eggs, what looked to be bacon, milk, and muffins.
“Did you really make bacon? Fluttershy, you didn’t have to do that just because I’m a-“He was cut short. It looked like bacon, but different. It was lighter, and had a bit of a different smell to it.
“It’s vegetarian bacon. I don’t really know what’s in it, but I decided to try it. I hope you like it” She brought over a plate of food for him. He grabs a slice of the vegie bacon, and brought it to his mouth. He sniffed it. Well, it smells like bacon, I wonder… He took a small bite out of the crunchy morsel, only to be rewarded with the taste of bacon. This stuff was delicious!
“Fluttershy, this is amazing! It tastes almost exactly like the real thing!” He took another bite; scarfing it down. She looked happy, and took a bite of her own. She swallowed and looked up at him.
“That IS good!” Fluttershy squealed.
“You’ve never had this or real bacon, have you?” She shook her head. Marcus looked over at her, smiling. She really had gone out of her way for him this time.
“Well, thank you. It’s great.” Marcus finished breakfast, and said goodbye to Fluttershy when he had finished cleaning up after himself. She waved him goodbye, and he walked off to AJ’s farm. He arrived a few minutes later, and went straight for the barn. He found her, standing next to a stack of barrels, although there was noticeably less than yesterdays.
“Hey AJ. So what’s the plan for the day? You don’t have as many barrels as yesterday.” He pointed at the stack.
“Eeeeyup.” She imitated her brother almost perfectly. “I figure since we beet our quota yesterday ah’d give ya a break today and let ya have some fun in town after lunch. Fluttershy ‘ll be there.” At that AJ smiled and winked at him. He just shook his head, smiling. He grabbed some of the barrels and followed her out to the new orchard of apple trees.
“You know nothing’s going on with me and her, right?” AJ just laughed and moved on, walking in front of him. They reached the orchard and began their work. Marcus used the same technique as yesterday; punching each tree hard enough for the apples to fall, but not hard enough to break it. They moved from tree to tree, gathering up the apples that fell loose from the trees into the barrels. They finished when Celestia’s sun was high in the sky, and walked back to the barn. They sat at the picnic table from the other day and ate in silence.
“Alright, you’ve done enough for the day; ya can go on into town and hang out. I’ll finish up here and met ya down there.” Marcus was about to protest, but Applejack just shot him a look. He kept quiet did as he was told. He got up and walked down the main road into town. He walked quietly, his helmet was off, and he breathed in the fresh air. Today was a good day. Marcus was reaching the town edge, when he heard a creak behind him. He jumped around, bringing his pistol to bear. There was nothing but trees and bushes. A fox ran out from the cover of one of them and ran across the road when it saw him. Marcus put his pistol back in his holster, and started his walk to town again. His nerves were now on edge, and for good reason. The birds had stopped chirping, and three large figures followed the Spartan into town, cloaked. They had been relived when he hadn’t noticed the shimmer in light from the cloaking device. The Elite Zealot team moved forward, following the Spartan into town.
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Marcus had found Fluttershy at the newly rebuilt Sugar Cube Corner talking to Pinkie Pie. These ponies really knew how to build quickly. She had a troubled look on her face. Marcus walked up to the two, smiling. He had calmed his nerves a little, and relaxed at the sight, but felt concerned. Something was troubling them.
“Hello Pinkie, how are things? Is something wrong?” Pinkie looked at Fluttershy, and then back to Marcus. Her eye was twitching, and her tail was in a large fuss; buzzing around at what looked to be sonic speed.
"Marcus something’s here, in Ponyville. I don’t know where, but I’ve never gotten twitches like these before.” Marcus looked a Pinkie like she was crazy. Sure he was paranoid. When was a Spartan NOT paranoid? But this was a bit different. He would have noticed if the Covenant were here. They weren't exactly stealthy. Only are rare occations did they ever try to hide themselves.
“Pinkie, how would you know? Just because the sugar in those cupcakes is giving you a bit of a rush doesn’t mean it symbols anything.” Pinkie Pie just shook her head.
“No, you don’t understand. I have these…twitches that happen every now and then when something goes wrong. My tail twitches when something falls from the sky for example.” She began to explain all her other twitches, which Marcus tried not to zone out of. This could mean anything.
“But I’ve never gotten these twitches before! I don’t know what they mean, and I’m afraid they might mean that our, ah, problem might be here. Now.” At that Marcus paled. He was about to respond, saying that her accusation was ridiculous, but then something happened that was unexpected. A large figure materialized behind Marcus, taller than him by a foot. It wore deep purple armor and something with two ends in each hand. It kicked Marcus straight into the store, making him plow through walls and furniture. He was finally stopped by a large oven, although the wall behind it groaned under the sudden assault. Shaking his head, Marcus looked up at his attacker. It was a zealot Elite, backed by two more. One had an energy sword, while the other was armed with a plasma repeater. The lead one, the one that had kicked Marcus, held two plasma rifles. N-no…not here. Not around them. Bellowing it’s furry, the Elite charged him head on, bringing forth his two plasma rifles. Rolling to the right, Marcus got up and ran for the back door, fumbling for his rifle on his back.
Bursting through the flimsy wooden frame, Marcus turned and headed for the town center, ignoring the enraged elite behind him. His priority right now was to get everyone out of town. He heard the Elite behind him curse his existence as he followed the Spartan.
“Why do you run human? Your life will end like all others before you! Die now by my hand!” A sword was slashed downward in front of him. The Elite had swung too early by a second. Ramming his body sideways, his shoulder connected with something hard. Looking to his right, he saw that it was an Elite, stunned and bent over. Taking the opportunity, Marcus turned towards him and rammed his fist into the gut of the Elite, hold onto his shoulder for extra effect. The air in the Elites lungs quickly left him, and he doubled over trying to breathe once more. Before he could finish the Elite off though, the zealot that had been chasing him finally caught up, tackling him to the ground. The two wrestled around on the ground, neither of them having the upper hand. Marcus scored a few good hits the ribs and face, but took just as many if not more to his groin and stomach. These Elites were good.
Finally gaining something of an upper hand, Marcus kicked the Elite off of him. He turned onto his stomach and sprinted away, trying to find his friends. He could hear explosions and screams in the distance. No, no, no! Not again! I can’t let it happen again! He had left his rifle behind at the bakery, so he opted for his magnum. Drawing back the slide, a round clicked into place. Turning a corner, Marcus caught sight of hell once more. Ponies ran for their lives a tall figure stalked amongst them. It held blue flame in its hands, and spewed it forth into the crowd of ponies. Buildings burned while more and more civilians were cut down by the enemy fire. Marcus stood for a moment, taking in the scene. Finally snapping out of his trance, he ran forward towards the Elite, screaming bloody murder as he charged.
Turning towards the new threat, the Elite brought its plasma repeater to bear on Marcus and fired. Jumping into the air, Marcus flipped end over end until he landed once more onto his hands and feet. Dodging incoming fire from the elite, Marcus ran on. He stopped behind a hald burned house, catching his breath. He looked past the wall and caught sight of his friends ushering people away from the scene. Good, they’re safe….Wait, where’s Fluttershy?! A scream brought him back to reality. Turning back behind him towards where he came, he saw the two elites that had pinned him before. In the hand of one was a bright yellow Pegasus with a pink mane. An energy sword was held to her throat.
“NO!!” Marcus yelled. He ran straight towards them, banishing any and all other thoughts. He did not care for the others; he didn’t care for any of the other pony’s that now fled from their burning homes. He cared about her. She will not have the same fate as everyone else I've known! Pulling up his magnum, Marcus fired three shots towards the Elite. They struck it’s shields, making them flare, but they did not go out. Turning towards Marcus, the elite threw Fluttershy away, his attention now focused on him. Backed up by the leader of the group, the Elite charged Marcus, swinging his sword in a high arch towards his head. Ducking down under the attack, Marcus rammed his shoulder once more into the Elites gut. But this time the end was different. Fueled by fury and anger, Marcus wrapped his arms around the elite’s waist and fell backwards, dazing the elite further. Getting up from the ground, Marcus kicked the other Elite away, before turning back towards the other. Wrapping his right arm around its neck, Marcus tugged hard on it, squeezing the air out of it throat. Squeezing even further, Marcus made a quick jerk of his whole head, snapping his spine completely. Turning around, Marcus received a quick jab to the skull before stumbling backwards. He tripped on the body of the now dead elite, and fell onto his back.
“You have failed human. Like all other demons who try so hard to keep others alive you have failed. And now I will be the one to claim your head!” Drawing an energy knife from his wrist, the Elite stabbed downward towards Marcus’s throat. Reaching out towards its wrists, Marcus resisted the move, but try as he might; the blade continued its path towards his death. Please…don’t let it end like this! Not when so many other need me! Then something unexpected happened. A pair of yellow legs struck the Elite straight onto the side of its head, forcing him off of Marcus. Getting up quickly, Marcus pinned the elite to the ground with his knees. He then proceeded to beat the living shit out of it; each hit breaking bone. He yelled out his furry towards the elite, not just for trying to harm him, but for trying to harm his friends, Fluttershy, and every human he knew. He took out his built up rage and anger on the Elite. Drawing back his arm one last time, he looked on the wreckage before him.
The Elite’s face was bloodied beyond repair. Its mandibles were bent and broken in odd shapes and angles. It’s cheek bones seemed to have fractured, as well as most of the skull. Its eyes were wide and black. Marcus looked deep into them, looking right back. He saw everything the elite was, and what it felt at that very moment. He saw rage, and undeniable strength. And he was going to stop him here and now.
Leaning down to the side of its face, Marcus slowly pulled out his Gurkha knife. He drew it close to its throat, barely whispering, “You have murdered billions of my people, slaughtered my men, and now you terrorize those who have not witnessed war in centuries. You will pay.” Marcus jabbed the knife straight into the Elites throat, twisting it around. The Elite gurgled, blue blood flowing freely. Wrenching the knife away, Marcus stood up from the corpse. He put his knife away and looked down, knowing who had watched. He was ashamed, and yet he had enjoyed it. Oh how he enjoyed that kill! It felt right; just even. The elite deserved to die! Moving his hand towards his face plat, he saw it shaking. Tremors moved down from the tips of his fingers to his wrist, and the whole hand was covered in blue blood. Snapping from his thoughts, Marcus clenched his hand and looked down again. He walked away towards Fluttershy, who stared on in horror. Marcus tried to speak.
“I….It’s just……Fluttershy I…I’m sorry you had to see that…I just couldn’t…” Marcus kneeled down in front of her and held out his hands towards her; he drew them back and looked down at them, his one hand still shaking. “Please….forgive me…” He held back tears now; real tears. He had never wanted her to see it; any of it. He never wanted to have her see him like this, and now she was afraid of him. He couldn’t bare it; he would never be able to. She was his salvation, and he would lose her because of his weakness; his own corruption. He looked up to her to see tears on her own face, but he did not see fear. He saw pity.
“M-Marcus, I may n-never forget w-what just h-happened, and I do apologies for that…But right n-now our friends need y-your help. I-I need your help. S-so get up! Because right now we need you!” She walked forward towards him and nudged his head up with her snout. Once up, Fluttershy wrapped her hooves around his neck. He smiled at her kindness. He rose from where he knelt, and grabbed his magnum from the ground. He checked the mag by sliding it out. Satisfied he rammed it back into the gun. He knelt down once more and took the energy sword from the one of the dead elites.
“Thank you Fluttershy…..you don’t know how much that means to me….” He nodded to her and sniffed. Damn I’m getting soft… He laughed a bit at that. Spartans aren't supposed to get soft, but here I am with a shaking hand and a pony for a friend. Nodding his head forward, Marcus marched forward, magnum in hand. Fluttershy flew off, probably to escape with the others. Good, she’ll be safe. Walking into town center was a sight to behold. Buildings had plasma burns all over them. Thatch roofs had caught fire from the heat of the discharged plasma.The library seemed to be mostly intact. Looking around, Marcus spotted his assault rifle near one of the market stands. Looking around quickly, Marcus dashed over to the stand, sliding down on the ground to it as plasma fire laced through the sky. The other Elite had finally caught on.
“You’re too late hinge head! You friends ugly ass one and ugly ass two are dead! You’re all that’s left, and man are you one ugly fuck!” The elite, instead of responding, howled with rage. Taking his opportunity, Marcus stood with his assault rifle ready. He fired at the elite crouched won, tracer rounds tearing into its shields. It took a few quick bursts before rolling away; it’s shielding had been depleted. It threw a plasma grenade over its cover. It sailed through the air quickly, a blue tail of flame following it. It stuck down on the ground next to Marcus. Thinking quickly, Marcus jumped away from the market stand, but not before the grenade went off. The shock wave hurled him forward, sending him into another wall of a house. Groaning loudly, Marcus stood up from the rubble. He was about to rush out when he was tackled from behind once more. He landed on his stomach, and rolled over as the Elite pounced on where he had been laying a few seconds ago. Grabbing a nearby two by four from the rubble, Marcus cracked it over the Elites back before standing up. He sent a punch towards the Elites gut, but it was blocked. The Elite jabbed with his fist, getting Marcus in the chest, but not before receiving a knee to the groin. The elite doubled over in pain, groaning from the immense physical trauma he was now in. Marcus took his chance. Breathing heavily, Marcus closed his fists into a ball and slammed them down onto the elites back. It feel forward to the ground. He looked down at it in all its glory. It was beaten and bruised, and it bled in a few places. It began to speak to him.
“It matters *cough* matters not what you do to us human. You may kill myself and *cough* * cough* and my team, but you cannot win. You have no one else but yourself to fight this battle. You *cough*will lose.” Marcus thought for a moment, and then began to nod his head. He knelt down onto the elite, placing his knee in between the shoulder blades of the beast. He grabbed it by the jaw line, and brought its head up, making it wince. It tried to fight back, clawing at his hands to release him. Marcus took no notice of it. Using his other hand, he removed his helmet and looked down at the elite into its eyes.
“You may be right hinge head. You may kill me, and burn this world in the name of your false gods. You may claim victory over my decayed body as you reap sorrow onto this world.” He re-gripped the elites head again and looked into its eyes.
“But if you think for just one moment that I will go quietly into the night without a fight. You are sadly mistaken my friend. I will continue to fight for these…ponies until my dying breath. And you will suffer.” Drawing out his knife once more, Marcus brought it to the Elite’s neck. He put it close, and drew it across slowly, letting the elite feel every inch of the fatal gash that he was creating. He drew it away with a quick flick, and listened to the sounds of gurgling as the elite finally bleed to death.