//------------------------------// // Chapter 5.3- The Meeting // Story: Peace and Isolation // by McKnight93 //------------------------------// Chapter 7 A week in Paradise (part three) The Meeting ------------------------------------------------------ "Up until the war, the most nerve-raking moment of our lives was that Meeting. Bringing Shepard's team, the UNSC and the Emperor's men into one room, hoping that our mediation and the Princesses' intervention would keep them from blowing themselves up. It scared me, because all the friendship and magic in all of Equestria couldn't control human nature."- Twilight Sparkle "You can't always get what you want. But if you try sometimes, you just might find, you get what you need." - Rolling Stones --------------------------------------------------------- The First Contact happened on a Monday, a day meant for starting a new cycle. The week had been dedicated to establishing a relationship with the aliens, gaining their trust and friendship. And in that respect, they had succeeded. Then came Friday. Friday was the day that put it all to the test. The Princesses had made it known that they would introduce everyone to each other. The operation was of the gravest importance, and would require the utmost care and attention to pull it off. If it went well, it would usher a new age of galactic trust and friendship, crafted out of Equestrian Ideals. If it went bad, it would light a war that would destroy their world, and send the new multiverse into a dark age of hatred, bloodshed and damnation. No pressure. No pressure at all. ------------------------------------------------------- Whitetail Forest 1023 hours The crew of the Normandy went about their business, but Garrus and Shepard were handling some rather important developments. "The Princesses want to meet us?" Shepard asked. He had expected that these "alicorns" would want to talk to them. What surprised them was that it had taken the better part of a week for them to get around to it. Garrus couldn't help smiling; even though it was agreed by everyone to not give away their secret, the Turian couldn't help the thought of meeting Celestia and Luna for the first time. "Yep." Rainbow Dash answered, escorted by Gilda. "They had been busy with some foreign affairs in Saddle Arabia, but are really excited to meet you guys." Gilda merely sat behind her, watching them in a rather brooding fashion. Garrus would notice her looking at him and Shepard, but while she might give an occasional glare, she remained silent. It occurred to the Commander that she was actually doing passable imitation of Jack. Speaking of which, Shepard was running out of ways to keep her and Grunt occupied. Without drugs, sex or killing, the biotic and the Krogan had been even more short-tempered than usual. Fortunately, the two walking embodiments of death spent most of their time either sparing each other, or taking their aggression out on trees. Problem was, now the forest was running out of trees. "We'd be honored to meet them." Shepard continued. "As long as I can bring some of my crew." "Of course," Dash agreed, "You can bring a few guys. Just make sure to be there around six tonight, alright?" "We'll be there." As the two fliers went out, Garrus waited until they were out of sight before he gave a rather uncharacteristic giggle. "Damn, Shepard," He practically gloated, "This just keeps getting better and better! We're going to see the Princesses!" "Uh, Garrus," Shepard put a hand on his shoulder. "Perhaps you can take it down a notch; you're starting to weird me out." "Sorry, but I can't help it! Its Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, the rulers of Equestria. They're as close to actual gods as we are ever going to get." "So I've been told. I also hear they're pretty fine, if you catch my drift." "Yeah, they've always been seen as beau-" He stopped midsentence, and looked at his friend. Shepard arched an eyebrow. Garrus did the same. "You've been checking out the 'Rule 34' stuff, haven't you?" "Garrus please." Shepard smiled. "But seriously, I just did some peripheral research, and some files had popped up. Not as good as Fornax, but it certainly had its moments." They shared a laugh at that. Spirits knew that once their galaxy found out about the ponies, it would only be a matter of time before they'd get "marketed", both the old animation and the real thing. Hopefully, the extranet would have the good sense to not bring up "Molestia", and create a horrid galactic incident. …Hopefully. "So, Shepard," Garrus asked, "You got a favorite pony yet? Just in general, of course." "You know, I think Twilight is a PYT. If it weren't for Trixie being so… clingy, I guess you could say, I'd consider working my magic, you know? But hell, nothing wrong with just looking. What about you?" The Turian pointed to his thunderbolt scar. "Who do you think?" "Ah. Was she the one flying over the ship the other day, making a sonic blast?" "Sonic Rainboom, and yes, she did a little show for me and a few of the crew. Had Gilda, Spitfire and the rest of the Wonderbolts doing their thing, and I managed to videotape the whole deal. In exchange, I showed off my marksmanship for them. You should've heard the cheers they gave when I put a hole in a rock at 800 meters." Shepard nodded. He was quiet for a moment, then asked, "Do you think we should tell them about the show?" Garrus thought about that. In fact, he had been thinking about it ever since he knew this was Equestria. On one hand, the knowledge the show and fandom had provided was merely background information; stuff that was common knowledge, and wouldn't be a big deal to the ponies of Ponyville. On another hand, the evidence, if not the very idea of them being on a TV show from hundreds of years ago, may be of such a mental shock that it could break down their very sanity. But, then again, Pinkie Pie probably already knew she was on a show, the way she broke the 4th Wall all the time. If she could handle that knowledge, Garrus knew everypony else could. So he told Shepard, "I think we can tell them. Just not yet. Let us meet with the royalty, see what needs to be talked about. After that, perhaps we can let them and the Mane Six in the know. Letting someone know their world was made for another world's entertainment can be very… existential, I think…" ------------------------------------------------------------------------ In the Whitetail Forest, Dash pulled Gilda off the road to have a little chat. "Gilda," She started, "Care to tell me what's your problem with Garrus?" Gilda's first reaction was to say, "I don't have a problem." But the griffon knew better. Rainbow had got better at reading her emotionally, and knew when something was up. Gilda wouldn't pretend that everything was fine, and have a repeat of Pinkie's party. So instead, the griffon asked, "Why do you trust him?" That caught the Pegasus off-guard. "What?" "You heard me." She pointed a claw at her old flame. "Why do you trust him so much? It's only been a week and you've already given him a private show. Heck, you've been talking with Pinkie Pie about having him go pranking with us, and he hasn't even had one of her cupcakes yet. Who says no to a Pinkie cupcake?" "Hey, we both know why he can't have our food. His body can't digest it, and he could suffer an allergic reaction. Besides, Faber said he didn't want her cupcakes either. Does that mean he's extra dangerous, too?" "That's not the point, Dash, and you know it!" She shouted. "Then what is it, Gilda?!" The Pegasus demanded. "Because we can't afford to be suspicious of all the aliens. There has to be one group of nice people. Otherwise, who can we trust?!" "I just don't want to see you get hurt, you dweeb!" The griffon declared. "Seriously, have you even looked at this guy? He has a scar in the shape of your cutie mark on his arm! Doesn't that bother you even a little bit?!" Rainbow Dash was quiet. She wanted to peg Gilda's concern to simple jealousy- and in all fairness, it was probably a large component of her complaint- but at the same time, she knew her friend's concern was justified. She had known Garrus for a better part of a week, yet somehow the Turian had demonstrated knowledge of her, her friends and her world that spoke of in-depth experience. How did he know so much about Equestria? She didn't know how, but she needed to address it. So, Rainbow Dash simply asked, "Gilda, do you trust me?" Gilda didn't quite follow. "Dash, I-" "No, stop right there. Don't worry about Garrus. Don't think about the other aliens, don't think about the Princesses, and don't think about our friends. This just between you and me." The Pegasus put a hoof on the griffon's shoulder, standing very close to one of her oldest friends. "Gilda, do you trust me?" Gilda ran a clawed hand through her rainbow, and leaned close. "Dash," She whispered, "You know I trust with my life." "Then trust me on this." Rainbow moved her hoof up to the griffon's cheek. "I'm a good judge of character. I know it all seems a bit suspicious, but I've looked into his eyes. I know for a fact that he would never do anything to hurt us. The Imperials may have come for the Emperor, and N'tho's troops may be here for the Chief, but Garrus only wants to help us." The griffon merely grunted, but still looked into her eyes. "As I remember," Dash continued, "There once was a time in flight school when I saw a bunch of kids bullying a new student. She wasn't a Pegasus, was all on her own, didn't have a single friend. Everypony I knew said that she was a lost cause, that pegasai couldn't be friends with griffons. But when I looked into your eyes, I knew that there was so much more to you than a big scary bird. You were strong, loyal, smart and beautiful, Gilda; and you still are." They were awfully close at this point, practically nose to beak. "I'm not wrong about Garrus, 'cause I wasn't wrong about you. You've always trusted me, even when the going got tough; I'm only asking for a little more. Can you do that for me?" "Always, Dash." Gilda leaned in, hoping to (finally) get back to first base. She was sorely disappointed, when she ended up only getting neck. Dash chuckled with her mischievous grin. "Easy there, lovebird. You didn't think I'd end up being that easy to get back, did you?" She jumped into the air, rapidly flying away. "If you want some," She called back, "You're gonna have to catch me before we get back to the Library!" "Oh, it's on!" Gilda shouted, and immediately flew off for her "prey"… ----------------------------------------------------- 1135 hours Apple Base "The Princesses wanna do what now?" Vasquez demanded. This was an interesting turn of events. "They want to meet with you up in Ponyville." Trixie told him. "I believe they wanted to speak to you about when the Chief can be given, and possibly trade concessions. You know, minor stuff." Alan was with his alien friends, and Trixie had brought along Spike, Applejack and Rarity. They all tried to maintain a veil of calm determination and control, but the ponies noticed with increasing alarm that the amount of troops and vehicles that were rolling around. The commanders insisted that this was just the normal level for a garrison- somewhere in the hundreds- and it still wasn't the same amount as the Imperials were bringing in- in the thousands. But it was still rather unnerving that, if things went sour, there would be two armies ready to go and duke it out around them. "We'll have to bring this up with the Captain and the Shipmaster- they'll want to talk to the Princesses personally." N'tho told them, "But I think we'll be able to make it." "Excellent. We shall see you then. Come on, girls." Trixie, Spike and Fluttershy started making their way back down the road, and Cassius and N'tho went back to speak to their troops. But Applejack stayed with Vasquez for a moment, wanting to talk about… something. AJ and Alan had become rather good friends over the past week, having a similar background in farming and country living. While the commanders could do their deals with Trixie and the ambassadors, Alan and his amigos could always count on the farm pony to give them the honest truth about how things were. In return, Vasquez was always calm and understanding with whatever she had to tell him. It occurred to the earth pony that this human had been a better listener than most of her friends- certainly better than Rainbow Dash, and almost better than Twilight. They had even spent several evenings together, talking and exchanging stories about their worlds. Needless to say, the rumors of them being a "thing"- along with Cassius and Fluttershy- just kept on growing. With all that in mind, Alan asked her, "So, is there anything else we should know about?" Applejack hesitated. She was unwilling to let the secret go just yet, but also unwilling to lie to her friend. So she asked in turn, "Do you like surprises?" "What?" "Surprises. Do you like 'em?" The human shifted uncomfortably. "Can't say ah do. Ah prefer to be in the know about things. What's this all about, AJ?" "Ah… ah'm not supposed to tell you. All ah can say that it's going to be important, and all ah can ask you is to stay calm, no matter what. Can you promise me that?" "Yes, ma'am." He answered without hesitation. A rather odd action, in hindsight. Applejack considered making him pinkie swear, but didn't want to press the issue further than it had to be. "Ah'll see you later, then." She told him, and trotted off with her friends. Vasquez considered why he was so willing to go along with what the orange alien wanted. Could it really be because… no, of course not. That would be silly. Sure, humanity still had those old ideas and fantasies involving aliens and whatnot, but those had died down quite a bit when they encountered the real thing. Nobody had ever tried anything with an Elite or a Brute, for the simple reason that such a pairing couldn't work in any possible way. There were rumors of a joint colony between humans and Jackals out there, but that was often put in the same group as the most vile of fetishes. But then again, when it came to this world and its inhabitants, the old "Captain Kirk impulse", as it had been now called, didn't seem all that strange. Here were a collection of races where you didn't have to worry about having your face eaten off or breathing the same air. Here was a people that had never killed a human before, and would be honest about things without having an ulterior motive. Course, it did help that Applejack was the cutest damn thing he'd ever seen. Putting that train of thought aside, Vasquez followed his comrades back to base, looking to get a few volunteers to come along as escorts… --------------------------------------------- 1200 hours Forward Base Aquila Thought of the day: Life is the Emperor's currency. Spend it well. "So," The Inquisitor mused, "Celestia finally wishes to have an audience with us?" "Yes, she does," Twilight answered, "Along with Princess Luna. They had been talking with your Emperor for some time now, and wish to speak with you about some of the things they covered." Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie nodded in agreement, the party pony being uncharecteristically quiet. Kriel and Longinus merely watched them, backing Creighton up even though it was completely unnecessary. In the five days that the base had been on Fluttershy's property, it had expanded exponentially. As of now, a tenth of the entire army brought along had been deployed, and the first of the armored units were landing as well. How they planned to bring in a Leman Russ tank, let alone the possibility of a Titan, was anyone's guess. "Would you happen to know what, pray tell, they wish to talk about?" "I do. But she was implicit that she wanted to speak with you and your associates in person." Creighton raised an eyebrow. Well played, He thought, Looks like she's finally learning. He had wondered how long it would take the little unicorn to wise up when it came to negotiating. A lesser Inquisitor would've been a little peeved at losing such an advantage, but Mendel was looking forward to having a little competition to work with. "Fine." He said. "But I am sure your Princess wouldn't mind if I brought a few associates with me?" "Absolutely." Fluttershy butted in. "So long as Longinus is one of them." The Space Marine was amused. "And why is that, Fluttershy?" "Because you hold yourself accountable." She smiled. "And the Princesses have great things about you, and wanted to meet you in person." Of course, there was more to it than that. Out of everyone from the Wrath, Longinus and Faber were the ones who connected with the ponies the most (although Faber did so unwillingly). Longinus was by far the most reasonable of all the Imperials, and thus would be the one most needed to keep the rest of his people in check. The Ultramarine turned to the Inquisitor. "Is this acceptable for you, my lord?" Creighton scowled. He really didn't want the Sergeant to come along. He had somehow become a source of undermining, questioning his methods without doing anything blatantly heretical. He had gone to Captain Numitor about it, but simply told him that he had a mind of his own. "In any case," He had said, "His performance here may be worthy of moving him up to a higher Company." That grated him. On a mission as important as this, the Inquisitor might be able to get a moderate promotion, while that xeno-sympathizing upstart would get more glory, and maybe even get his own Company. And now everyone was looking at him to acquiesce this demand. If he did, it would make him look like he was taking orders from aliens. If he didn't, he would be seen displaying a personal prejudice against an up-and-coming Astartes, causing a wedge between him and the troops. This certainly put him between a rock and a hard place. If it weren't for that yellow xeno, he'd- Then it hit him. It was right in front of him the whole time, but it wasn't until that moment that it came to him. Twilight isn't the manipulating ringleader here, He thought with a sudden clarity, it's Fluttershy. Ever since they had arrived, that meek little creature had wormed her way into the hearts and minds of honest Imperial troops, pulling at their feeble heartstrings while Twilight made a show of half-assed negotiations. These naive xenos had pulled the old "Eldar switch" without him getting even a slight hint. Clever girl. The others were still waiting for him. Maintaining an outer calm, he said, "Of course he can. The commanders of both the Astartes and Guardsmen are coming along, so having one more shouldn't be too inconveniencing." "Great," Twilight said, "We'll see you then." The ponies trotted back down the road. Longinus and Creighton exchanged a glance that spoke volumes, before heading back to the camp. Longinus hoped that there wouldn't be any surprises. Mendel hoped- and almost prayed- that something would happen, and he would have a reason to slay these uppity xenos in righteous fury. -------------------------------------------------- 1500 hours Ponyville Town Hall It struck some ponies as rather ironic that the very place where Nightmare Moon made her grand appearance was the same place where four worlds would come together. The Summer Sun Celebration had been the beginning of Equestria's existence in the minds of humanity hundreds of years ago. Now, this would be the beginning of Equestria's golden age among the stars. Ten minutes ago, all three groups had separately arrived, entering different sides into individual prepared rooms. Creighton had brought six Astartes (three Imperial Fists and three Ultramarines, including Longinus, Numitor and Gideon), six Guardsmen (including Faber and Lt. Osburran) and the Magos. Captain Brogan and Ship Master 'Valuum brought four humans, four Sanghelli, four Jiralhanae and four Unggoy (each led by Vasquez, N'tho, Cassius and Digdug). Shepard, having the smallest group, brought Garrus, Miranda and Tali. After awhile, each group was met by Twilight, Applejack or Rainbow respectively. Each of them gave the visitors the same prepared speech; they were indeed going to meet the Princesses, but first they would have to be introduced to someone else. Before they would be let out, each of them had to give a Pinkie Promise to not freak-out. Not knowing the severity of what that promise entailed, but familiar with the custom, each of them went through the actions of the oath. So now, the time had come for the doors to be opened, and everyone to be let into the Mane Hall. In it, the rest of the Mane Six, Trixie and Gilda were already ready and waiting for them. Now, while nopony was expecting everyone to automatically be friends right off the bat, they were somewhat hopeful that the various aliens would be only surprised, and perhaps willing to talk things out like civilized peoples. But then again, think of it from the humans' perspective. Here they were, expecting to meet the rulers and deities of this world. Instead, they find themselves looking at supersized humans in armor, a veritable Tau-esque assortment of humans and aliens or a small band of mercenary-looking characters. So, naturally, everyone there raised their weapons at each other, under the various shouts of "Xenos!", "Hostiles!" or "Holy Shit!" Weapons were locked and loaded, sights were set, and the place was on the edge of becoming a full-on shooting range. "WAAAIT! DON'T SHOOT!" Everyone turned to one corner to aim at the crier. It was Fluttershy, hovering between the guns of Longinus and Cassius. Rather ironic, if you think about it, that she would be in the prefect place to stop her two alien friends from blowing themselves up. She was facing the Marine, as it was plain to see that while the Brute couldn't hurt him, he could demolish the xeno. "Longinus, put down your gun." She spoke soothingly. "These guys aren't here to fight you." "Fluttershy," The Marine demanded, "Get out of the way." "You don't have to kill him. He hasn't hurt anyone. He's friendly." "Doesn't matter. I swore an oath to not harm you or your friends. The oath doesn't go for the filthy xeno behind you. Now I say again, move." "But he's my friend, Longinus! Can't you leave him alone?!" "Who are you calling a 'filthy xeno'?" Cassius retorted, ignoring the mare between them. "Run for it, Fluttershy. This guy reeks of religious nutjob. Odds are that guy in the pointy hat made promises of multiple virgins when they all die." "What did you say to me, you foul alien?!" While the trio was arguing, Vasquez shouted angrily, "Dammit, AJ, what kinda surprise is this?!" "Now you know why we kept this secret," she told him, "You were goin' ta freak out when you found out." "No shit we were goin' ta freak! What the hell, girl. Ah trusted you, and you stabbed me in the back!" "No, that's not it at all! Ah'd never betray anyone like that!" While AJ tried to explain, everyone in Shepard's team was glaring at Garrus. He looked back at them, and with complete innocence stated, "I don't know who these guys are." "How can you not know?" Tali demanded. "You know everything about this place." "Guys, Fluttershy was never friends with a giant ape or a supersoldier! Equestria never had humans in it outside of fanfics, and it was only ever invaded by changelings." "So, how do we explain these guys, then?" Miranda pressed. "Clearly, we aren't the only aliens who came here. This is a bigger deal than I originally thought." "But how is that possible?" Tali asked. "Shouldn't we have picked them from the sensors?" "I bet the magical radiation was interfering with them. Even thermal readings were hard to pick up." Back on the other side of the room, the Inquisitor was feeling rather pleased about being right with these foul xenos. Finally, the Imperials could do what they do best: Purge. "Clearly," he declared, "These little monsters have betrayed us. As I expected. Seargant, I order you to shoot that monkey, and the pony bitch with him." Longinus glanced at him, and returned is gaze to the xenos. As much as the order struck him as stupid, he couldn't disobey the Inquisitor. Even if he did, Creighton would just order his Captain to do it, and he would slay him for dereliction of duty. It bothered him that he'd have to kill the ponies too- not because it saddened him, but because in truth he didn't think they broke their part of the deal, that his honor was still on the line with all this. If anything, it was probably that hairy bastard behind her that told her to lie, manipulating Fluttershy and her friends to do this. A shame, really. He was starting to like this place. "So be it." Longinus murmured, his finger tightening around the trigger, and- "STOP THIS MADNESS RIGHT NOW!" A shout, not so much heard through the ears as through the mind, rang throughout the room, stopping the chaos momentarily as the ponies and soldiers tried to locate it. In the center of the room, an orb of pulsing blue and purple and red manifested itself. Everyone pointed their guns at it as it gave a final pulse of golden light. In its place, two mighty alicorns stood in its place. The taller one, with her white coat and near-rainbow mane, wore armor of plated bronze and copper. The smaller one, with her dark blue coat and midnight mane, bore armor of silver and steel and chrome. Both sets covered almost all of their body, but neither one wore helmets, and both had their manes and tails tied into tight ponytails. And both held stern looks at the humans and aliens before them. "Sons of the Emperor," Celestia demanded, "Soldiers of the Mantle, Guardians of the Relay. All of you who are our guests, lower your weapons and listen to reason!" Everyone was silent, dumbfounded at these new entities. One solider- a Srgt. Connor of the ODSTs- had to be Captain Obvious, and ask, "Are you the Princesses?" "Yes," Luna answered, "We are." The ponies in the room kneeled before their monarchs, suitably awed by the aura of power glowing off them. The Haloites and Shepard's team, whether because of the spectacular vision or the pre-conceived reputation of these pseudo-deities, lowered their guns. Even Longinus lowered his. The rest of the Imperial team, however, did not. "Princess Celestia," The Inquisitor said, "Princess Luna, you have our thanks for saving our Lord. However, it appears as though your subjects betrayed what little grace they happen to deserve, keeping these heretics and xenos a secret from us." "Don't be so eager to kill, warmonger." Celestia snapped, using a tone she reserved for a certain Changeling Queen. "I made my subjects stay silent about these others for precisely what you demonstrate now. Your Emperor has told us much about you. You have been trained for thousands of years to 'kill first, ask questions never'. These ponies and these people have no quarrel with you, and seek a fight with no one. You are all our guests, and under the authority given to us by your Emperor, we demand that you lower your weapons." "Sorry, my little 'princess'," Creighton sneered, "But neither I- nor any of us- take orders from you." Luna sighed, giving herself a facehoof. "This is just stupid. Clearly, if you won't believe us, maybe you'll believe Him." Suddenly, her eyes glowed white, and in Royal Canterlot Voice cried out, "ADAM! WE NEED YOU NOW! COME TO US, AND SAVE YOUR KIN BEFORE I SMITE THEM FOR THEIR STUBBORNESS!" Adam? The others wondered. Who the heck is that guy? As she did so, one of the more psychically-toned Guardsmen was levitated up into the air, ethereal strains of energy swirling into him. Shepard and his team had seen something similar to this before, and as such were frightened into action. "Shit!" Shepard called out, "Its Harbinger!" Quick as a flash, the team drew their weapons and fired upon the man. The bullets would've torn through him if Luna hadn't raised a magic shield in front of the man, absorbing them. "What did we just say about shooting?!" She shouted, no longer in the RCV. "I thought you lot were the smart ones here." The team lowered their guns in sight embarrassment, and Luna brought down the shield -as Twilight and Trixie did the same with their own, fearing the richochets may've struck one of the equines. The process finished, and the soldier came back to the ground. He appeared to be taller, larger, and his eyes glowed as white orbs. To those who didn't know him, this man bore a resemblance to certain individuals from history and myth, from Conan and King Arthur, to St. George and- "Holy Shit!" Alan exclaimed, pointing at this new being, "Its Jesus!" "No, I'm not your Jesus." The Emperor told him. "But I was him at one place and time." He turned to the Princesses, and acknowledged them with a nod. "Celestia, Luna, don't worry about these fellows. I've got this." "My Lord," Mendel cried out, "Now that you're here, let us smite these disgusting aliens and heretics, before they bring ruin to us all!" "Silence yourself, you spineless worm!" Adam snapped at the Inquisitor, His host's eyes going from white to a dark gold. "Who do you take me for, some backstabbing Changer of Ways?" "W-what?" Creighton stammered, taking a few steps back in surprise. "When I said not to bring harm to the ponies, I meant it. You may have added the part where you could defend yourself, but I knew you wouldn't need such an out. Instead, you would seek a way to squirm your way into a fight, as you are now. I said I owed these xenos my life, and I stand by that debt. Lower your weapons." "But what of the xenos and heretics?" The Inquisitor asked, incredulous yet fearful. "What of them?" Adam retorted. "They pose no threat to us, and harbor no ill will outside of what is justified. Of further note, we all have more important things that we all must worry about." He turned to the middle of the room, and energy manifested itself from his hands as a large orb of energy in the center of the room. There were many "oohs" and "ahhs" at the spectacle, the orb producing small arcs of electricity. "Behold!" Adam continued. "Our real enemies are fast approaching!" The orb cleared up, revealing the image of a giant metal squid floating through space. Shepard and his team silently gasped at the visage of Harbinger. "This monstrosity," The Emperor explained, "This Reaper, has sent his minions to weaken us, and to neutralize the good Commander and his followers before their army can come. While his kind are not powerful by the standards of the Imperium, they make up for it with numbers." The view expanded beyond Harbinger, to reveal three Reapers, then nine, continuing on until everyone could see an armada of hundreds, if not thousands of the metal behemoths. This, Shepard knew, was the massive Reaper Swarm that had taken down galactic civilization countless times before, and stood ready to do so again. "This," Adam said darkly, "Is not the only threat that shall befall us. Bearers of the Mantle, I think you are familiar with this one." The orb then changed to reveal a sight of absolute horror; the inside of a starship, its walls covered in putrid flesh, with tiny crawling zits with legs scurring about the floor. One such creature came across the dead body of a Sanghelli, and dug itself into its chest. Quicker than what is thought physically possible- and to the disgust and horror of the ponies- the corpse mutated and warped into a long-clawed, tentacled-mouthed zombie, screeching out a blood-curdling roar as it came to life. "This embodiment of undeath, this ever-so-aptly named Flood, has found interest in this world, the current resting place of a certain hero who has beaten it on multiple occasions. Be wary, my children: for while they look like an easy kill, they possess a level of infection and growth that even Nurglites would have trouble replicating. Nothing short of total extermination of this Parasite will save this world, should it reach us." "And of course," Adam continued, now with a disdainful scowl, "Where would we be without the Ancient Enemy to interfere in our affairs?" Once more the scene changed, and a vision of the most horrific kind of hell was seen. It was much like Luna's original vision, with its cities of flesh and eternal decadent orgies, of bizarre abominations and endless battlefields. But there was more to it now. Now, there were new creatures moving about: hordes of mutated and mutilated humans were taking up arms, screeching obscenities and blasphemies against the Emperor. Massive abominations, holding enchanted and possessed weapons, sung praises to their dark gods, and gave commands to the mindless rabble. Here and there, metal giants- not much different from the Astartes in the room- marched with an air of haughty arrogance, their armor covered in mounted skulls and horns. But most disturbingly of all- high above all of this, watching over it as if they were grand masters- were two distinctly equine creatures. No one could make out who exactly they were, only that they had the unholy mark of chaos glowing behind them, and radiated pure, unadulterated fear and hate to all who saw them. "Chaos is on the move," The Emperor told them, "Seeking both me and this world. Their numbers are countless, their powers beyond mortal measure, and they will not stop until everyone on this planet is either dead or corrupted." The orb of visions disapated, and the room was filled with the looks of fear and dread. Outside of the Imperials- who faced stuff like this on an almost daily basis- none of them had experienced or seen anything akin to the sights they saw, especially the ponies. The fact that those monsters, each of them terrifying and nigh-unbeatable on their own, were coming to their peaceful little world, was completely and utterly terrifying. "What are we going to do?" Twilight demanded, an edge of panic in her voice. "How are we going to stop them all?" "Well obviously," Osburran said confidently, "The Emperor will use His Divine Powers to smite them all, and leave what little remains for us to exterminate." "As much as I'd like to," Adam replied, "That will not be possible, at least right away. Although the Silver Tomb is almost finished, I will not be able to participate in any combat for at least another month." The Imperials were silent, disappointed even. "You were early." He continued. "The warp carried you to me faster than I had anticipated. Although something unexpected should have been anticipated." Luna's ears flicked. It seemed like an odd choice of words for Him to use, almost as if He were alluding to something... Captain Brogan then spoke up. "While I'm not sure of the potential danger this "Chaos" and these "Reapers" are capable of," He told them, "My men and I know the voracious and determined nature of the Flood. If they are coming here, this world cannot be saved. The only option we have is to evacuate this world and its inhabitants, glass the planet stop them from getting out." "You will do no such thing to Equestria!" Celestia shouted, indignant at such a statement. "It doesn't matter," Adam said. "Anyhwere you go won't be far enough to escape them." "What are you talking about?" "You may not have been able to notice, but we all come from completely different worlds. Mass Relays, Slipspace, the warp; they are all distinct modes of travel unique to our galaxies. And let's not even start with all the different nonhumans around here. The gist of the matter is that our three galaxies- our three universes- are now inseprably linked with this little world. And whoever controls it controls the fate of everything else." "You could do as you suggest, and take the natives back with you to your respective worlds. Maybe even keep both the portal and them a secret. Although you can't keep something that big a secret very long." He glanced over at Luna for half a second. Again, Luna was puzzled by the choice of words. Is He saying He knows a secret? She thought. What of it? Does He know about how I... Oh buck, He knows! "Just because you save a species and burn a world, doesn't mean that things won't follow you home. Creatures and monstrosities that have no way to prepare for. Forces at work that will not rest until everything you have worked for falls apart around you." "So, you can return back your respective homes, tell your superiors, buildup defenses for the inevitable invasions- which, by the way, isn't a bad idea- or you can stay here, call for reinforcements, and hold the line for the multiverse." "This is something I can only ask of you. Even of my people, the nature of this coming conflict is such that I can only ask of you to stay. Should anyone choose to leave, we will not hold it against you. But know that this fight, this Battle for Equestria, will be the most important fight any of you ever be a part of. So, what say you?" The Equestrians- both Princess and mortal- looked around the room, searching for the warriors who would stand with them. The room remained silent, as everything that had been said settled in. But unsurprisingly, it was Longinus who spoke up first. "My Lord," He said, "You have deemed these people, these xenos, to be sanctioned before you. If they are so worthy of your grace, then they are worthy of my bolter and my sword." Then Cassius stepped forward. "I will stay." He declared. "Its been awhile since I've been in a fight. Might as well stay for something worth fighting for." Fluttershy smiled, her two new friends now going to work together, if only somewhat. And when one of the Three Amigos- as they would later be known as- joined in, the others had to follow suit. Alan and N'tho joined as well. N'tho told them, "It would be a shame to have started training such a warrior as Spike, and not see it through." Alan merely said, "Its about time humanity met an alien race that didn't looked like ass. No offense, N'tho." "None taken." Garrus stepped forward, and would've done so regardless of Shepard's feelings about it. "Here is a world," He explained, "That's as close to a paradise as can be found still alive. I won't let it fall to the likes of the Reapers, or any other space abomination." Shepard- and thus the rest of the Normandy's crew- got onboard with this, saying, "If your going to fight the Reapers, you might as well have the team that actually killed one. We're in." Captain Brogan and Master 'Valuum nodded, and pledged their support. "Betcha Lord Hood and the Arbiter are going to have a field day with this." Mark murmured to his collegue. "Indeed, but not as much as President Klatosus or Admiral Jun." The Sanghelli returned. All eyes turned back to the Imperials, as if they actually expected any answer besides "Yes." Numitor, Gideon, Osburran, Kriel and even Creighton all stepped forward and kneeled before Him. "We would follow you into the Eye of Terror if that's what you asked of us." Gideon answered for his comrades. "Fighting for you here makes no difference to us." "Then prepare yourselves," Adam decreed, "For we have but little time before our enemies fall upon us. Call upon your allies, summon your mightiest warriors, and steel your souls. Let this Imperial Alliance stand as a mountain against winds and tides; beaten upon, but unbroken and unbowed." "Celestia, Luna... I'll see you back in Canterlot." And with that, Adam released His host, leaving the room in silence. After a moment, Trixie got back up and said, "Well, we better get it, then. We have work to do..."