//------------------------------//
// Three 
// Story: Fighting Back the Beast 
// by Mr Anomalous 
//------------------------------//


THREE


The crickets creaked in the night as the sun finally hid behind the horizon, and as Luna began her night by raising the moon and painting the night sky. Princess Celestia stood outside in the garden, and pondered recent happenings. Commander Stromm's story is a sad one. His people have suffered so much, both under themselves and under their enemies. Their coming here disturbed her somewhat. She had worn a mask of acceptance when she had spoken with them, but, now, she scowled. She was not cross with them for doing this, she was glad to help them find peace and a home, but she could not trust them. For all she knew, Stromm was a liar and they were here to invade her ponies. To count him worthy of staying here, Celestia and Luna had a little plan tonight: his dreams.

Just as Princess Celestia finished her though, her younger sister, Princess Luna landed next to her.

"Greetings, dear sister," she greeted, "Is he asleep yet?"

"I know not. We may have to wait for a while longer: the night is still young."

Luna nodded and said, "I am glad that you have opted to make this decision, Celestia, I have a place in my heart for our visitors, but I do not entirely trust them."

Celestia nodded back and answered, "My feelings are identical, sister."

They sat in silence for a while, both pondering similar things. What would they do if he did plan on an invasion? Neither of them had seen their weapons in action, would they be able to withstand them? What if their enemy, this 'ISA' finds them here? Then what?

"Sister, I believe that it is time: check."

Luna, Princess of the Night, closer her eyes and showed a face of concentration. Shortly thereafter, she opened them again.

"Yes, Celestia, he sleeps. Come with me, and we will see what he dreams of."





Everything was hazy. Clear sight was something that could not be reached. There was a slow dredge of black as he blinked. And then blinked again. There were dots of red above him. Ah, a comrade.

He hacked and coughed and then spoke, "Oh thanks the stars, I am wounded, you must help me."

The dots that were close drew further away as the Helghast Elite stood up straight.

"I know, Corporal Stromm, I am here to do just that."

"Thank you...thank you."

Stromm saw the arm of his fellow Helghast move as the barrel of a pistol was pointed directly between his eyes.

"What? No...no, I am fine! Just stunned, what is going on?"

"Stromm, I am sorry to inform you, but you are not just fine."

The Helghast motioned southwards and Stromm looked down. His stomach was coated with ice and his heart very nearly stopped. His lower body was not there. Where his legs should have been, there were bloody stumps.

"No...no...I cannot perish now..."

"You must."

"But you can save me!"

"I can. But I will not. You are weak. Die."

Stromm screamed in anguish and he heard a gunshot and clenched his eyes shut. But he was alive. He opened his eyes once more and saw the Helghast, his would-be executioner, tumble to the ground. Two Helghast troopers who had been standing nearby exchanged glances and ran off.

"No! Do not leave me! Bastards! Cowards! TRAITORS!"

Stromm fell back and began to cry in anger and in anguish. Just then, he heard movement aside him. It was a medic. An ISA medic.

"What are you doing?" Stromm spat.

"Compassion doesn't take sides buddy, I'm gonna get you all patched up."

Stromm had found someone to take his anger out.

"Hold still whi-"

Stromm reached over, grasped the medic's neck, who cried out in surprise, and wrenched it as hard as he could. There was a crunch and the medic tumbled to the ground.

"Bastards...cowards...traitors...I will get them...I will get them..."

Stromm grabbed the Medic's assault rifle and slung it onto his back. He began to crawl, dragging his bloodied stumps behind him, crawling off in the direction of the two troopers. He left a trail of blood and shredded flesh in the dirt as he made slow progress, mumbling obscenities and curses all along the way.

A battle raged in the distance around him. Smoke drifted into the air, and visible bullets streaked upwards, making contact with troop transports, bringing them down in smoke and flames. 

When he made it to a burned out building, Stromm stopped. He heard voices, voices with Helghan accents. 

"There they are..." the wounded man growled to himself.

He shuffled forward into the ruined building and stopped. They were around the corner. Stromm grabbed his rifle and pulled it out. He checked to see where it was loaded and flicked the safety off.

"Did you hear that?"

"Yes, I beleive I did."

Stromm's nostrils flared underneath his mask and he used the strength in his abdomen to jump forward, and he fired.

"N-!"

He emptied the entire magazine into the cowards whom he once called his comrades, and fell back, breathing heavily. He reached forward and pulled his mask off, and took another deep breath. 

"Good."

The sudden voice startled him. Stromm looked around and found a Helghast officer, all alone, in the darkness. 

"I saw what they did to you, abandoning you, and was about to do the same myself. Do not worry, I am not here to put you out of your misery, nor to punish you. I am doing what they should have done. You will receive help."

Stromm let out a sigh of relief.

"I will send word to promote you and get you first aid. We will get you your legs back and you will fight once more."

Stromm did his best to salute the officer from the ground, and the standing soldier chuckled.

"Ever the patriot, I see. You were also wise to not accept help from the ISA medic, had you done so you would have been tried with treason and shot."

"I know. I know."

"As of now, rest. You will fight again. You will fight again..."





Princess Celestia stood, wide-eyed. Her younger sister was visibly less disturbed.

"Luna..." Celestia said, a warning tone in her voice.

"Quite yourself, sister, another one is beginning."

Princess Celestia wasn't sure that she wanted to watch another one, but she turned her attention to the dream vision floating in the air in front of them anyway.





The inside of the transport was quite, crowded, and dark. Each bench on either side of the inside stretched from front to end, save the cockpit. Each of these benches was crowded with seated Helghast troopers. They looked from one to another, both positive and negative anticipation in their guts. Stromm was excited, for he wanted to try out his new legs.

The still un-named Helghast officer had managed to rescue him and get him to the medics, where he was patched up. Afterwards, his legs were not reattached, no, but replaced. Where flesh should have been, was now metal. His legs had been replaced with robotics. They let him exert more energy while tiring less, and they were very strong, good for kicking down doors and stomping in ISA skulls.

"ETA Thirty-seconds!" called the pilot up front. The time passed slowly, as each Helghast checked his gear and ammo and made sure that everything was secure for battle. 

Stromm felt the shuttle touch down with a shudder and there was a call of, "Now! Go, go, go!"

Stromm exchanged glances with the soldier next to him and they both nodded. Stromm let loose a war cry and rushed out of the air vehicle and down the ramp.

As soon as they left, they began to get cut down by machine gun fire. Stromm seized a recently-fallen soldier from the ground and held the corpse in front of him as he returned fire from his waist. By the time that he reached decent cover, the body in front of him was all but gone, and Stromm discarded the scraps, leaving the entire front of his body stained with blood.

He looked around and saw that he was the only surviving trooper who had made it to cover. Now he could fight without any distractions. 

Stromm heaved his weapon and jogged down the alleyway. He managed to make it far enough away that the sounds of battle were distant, and he rounded a corner just in time to meet a group of three ISA soldiers. The trio stood only two feet away. Their illusions of kindness and mercy had obviously made them weak, and therefore slow, and Stromm drew his blade and drove it upwards into the jaw of the closest soldier. The other two raised their weapons, and Stromm threw the now-dead ISA soldier into the other one. The other soldier still-standing, however, managed to squeeze off a couple rounds, both of which his Stromm directly in the chest.

His body armor there for a reason, Stromm simply strode forward and kicked the man in the groin as hard as he could, destroying his soft parts in a splash of steaming red and white that spatted down his legs. The weakling screaming in pure agony and fell down, clutching his destroyed groin and Stromm turned to the other soldier who was pinned under the first man killed. He looked him in the eye for a second, and then promptly crushed his skull with his boot, sending blood and brains into the gutter.

Stromm turned to the other man, manhood destroyed, and watching him whimper. Stromm gave him a bored look and left him to suffer in pain, moving down the alleyway.

Again, Stromm was alone, and was glad about his new legs. 

The Helghast was moving forward when he walked inside of a factory. Stromm was not sure what it manufactured, but it was still running, and much of the machinery exposed, their cogs and pistons churning. The Helghast moved silently, for one so large, and he heard voices. 

"We're surrounded, man, no place we can go."

"I know, let's just hunker down here and wait for reinforcements." 

More lambs to slaughter. Stromm discarded his rifle on the ground, wishing to use his blade and legs in its stead, making no effort to mask the sound.

The voices paused for a moment and one of them asked the other, "What was that?"

"Do I look like I know? Probably a rat or somethin', but let's check it out anyway."

Stromm hid in the shadows and watched as the two men went moved forward, each going down a different pathway in the machinery. Idiots.

As one of them approached his position, an oriental man with a handkerchief on his head, Stromm looked at the heavy, churning gears and got an idea.

Once the oriental was close enough, Stromm rushed from his hiding place in the darkness and grabbed the man's head, holding his throat so that he could not scream. He took his rifle, pistol, and knife, and threw them onto a pile of nearby sacks so that they wouldn't make a noise. 

The Helghast directed the other man's face toward the gears and turned him around to face him again. The oriental's eyes were wide, and he shook his head as fast as he could, whilst in Stromm's grasp.

Stromm leaned forward, slowly, and hissed into the man's ear.

"You cannot win, ISA scum," and thrust his skull into the gears.

It didn't matter how tight that his throat was being constricted, the sheer amount of terror and pained loosed a scream from the man that could be heard all around the building. That would attract the other ISA man, not to mention the scent of smoke and the struggling grinding of the cogs that was being produced. 

Stromm hid in his spot again and waited like a spider to catch a fly. The Helghast trooper had managed to keep a majority of the excessive blood shed off of him, and the ichor from his previous encounters of the day had dried by then, so there was no blood trail leading back to his little spot in the shadows.

As expected, soon, the other soldier appeared, calling, "Kevin! Yo, Kevin! You alright man? Kevin!"

There was a gasp and a, "Hold mother of f*cking god. Kevin!"

There was a ruffling as the soldier approached his fallen comrade. "Oh my god, what the hell?"

The other soldier twirled around and began to shout, saying, "Come out you coward! I will kill you myself!"

Stromm chuckled. Is that so?, and bolted from his spot. This time, the soldier surprised Stromm, and dodged him in time.

"There ya are you asshole!" he shouted and leveled his weapon. Stromm ducked as three rounds whizzed overhead, and he moved forward, seizing the barrel and yanking it from the ISA man's grasp.

Stromm grabbed the weakling's throat, fully intending to repeat his actions, and again moved his opponents skull towards a new set of cogs. He unbuckled the man's helmet and thrust him forward, but this man was a fighter. He caught himself on the side of the open cage that was supposed to protect people from being caught in the machinery, and fought back. This struggle went on for a few minutes, Stromm pushing forward, and the ISA man using the back of his knees and his arms to brace himself.

Suddenly, the ISA soldier stopped for a bit, and gave Stromm a sly smile. At first, the Helghast was confused, but he realized what the other man planned to do and tried to pull away. He did not do so in time.

The man grabbed onto Stromm's gloved hand and let himself fall back into the gears, being turned into a bloody pulp of flesh and bones, and Stromm was almost pulled in himself. He was, actually, just not all of the way.

It was his hand, up to the wrist, which fell into the metal and was torn away. Stromm was not a weakling, and did not scream, but the pain was there, nonetheless. The tough Helghast withdrew his stump and examined the protruding bone with wonder. It was jagged and sharp.

Stromm turned and saw yet another man, and ISA medic, who gaped at the scene in front of him, and then began to rush forward.

Stromm smirked. This was becoming quite a repetitive occurance. The ISA men were truly weak foes.

"You're gonna bleed to death if you-"

Stromm rushed forward and buried the exposed bone into the medic's throat. The man's blood mixed with the Helghasts and he fell from the bone, leaving the white covered with red.

Finally, from loss of blood and from exhaustion, Stromm collapsed. Was he going to lose some part of his body every single battle from now on?





"Celestia, I know what you're thinking, but please wait."

"My dear sister, what kind of monster are we allowing to mingle with our ponies?" Her voice was eerily calm.

"Think, Sister. This dreams are memories of the past, obviously he is a changed man."

Ironic, really. In the beginning, it was Celestia who wanted peace, but Luna who was mistrusting more than loving. It seems that the tables have turned.

"How do we know that he is simply wearing a mask of the personality?"

"I suppose that we do not, but also keep in mind, sister, that these are dreams. Dreams do not reflect the individual's intentions."

"I suppose that you are right. He still has a chance, but my trust in him is sinking lower and lower."

Luna was silent for a moment, but then her eyes lit up with and idea.

"'Tia! I have an idea?"

"And what is that, Luna?"

"There is yet a third dream coming on. This man has been through quite a lot to dream so much. We can sneak into New Helghan," she said, referring to the land that Celestia had given Stromm and his people, "and watch his dream there, and then see whether he likes these dreams. After every single one, he has woken up for a few seconds. We can see if it is in glee, or in terror."





Stromm examined his new hand, made from the exact type of metal that his legs were, and just as strong. Maybe he could use it to tear out the throat of his enemies...

"Hold the line!"

That's right. There were in battle.

"The ISA men have lost all hope, and are going to charge our position in a last-ditch hope. Ready your weapons!"

As soon as the Officer had finished his sentence, Stromm heard a cry and watched as one hundred and fifty ISA men leaped out of the ditch that they were hiding and and began to run at full speed. Many were banners emblazoned with the ISA logo.

"Fire at will!"

The muzzle flare was glorious, and the charging men began to fall. But it was not enough: there were many men.

"Orders have been changed! Break the line, but break it forward! We will meet them! For Helghan!"

"FOR HELGHAN!" the many soldiers in the trench offered back, and they themselves charged forward. The adrenaline in Stromm's viens was flowing without end, and he too charged forward with a battle cry on his lips. 

Stromm put his rifle onto his back and drew two blades: one hatchet and another, a large dagger, large enough to be considered a machete by some.

Stromm picked out his target, who had evidently picked him as well, and locked eyes with him as the two lines met in a crash of armor and bones. Gunshots began to ring out, faster and faster, and more intense. Soldiers were strangling one another, beating each other with large rocks. Stromm, on the other hand, was dropping ISA men like flies.

His axe swung, as did his dagger, and many throats were sliced that day. He got shot multiple times, but each time, his armor deflected it. It did not take long, but soon the ISA men were no more. That was to be expected, as they were weak. Stromm was covered in blood and-

His eyes opened.





Celestia and Luna stood outside of the Ship's window, concealed by magic, and braced themselves in anticipation. Stromm had awoken, but he was not in a cold sweat. Celestia gasped when she saw that, indeed, the dreams had been memories. Both of his legs were metal, as was the hand that machinery had taken away. He was in his undergarments, so he was not naked, but his abdomen was exposed. Celestia saw many ugly scars. Blade wounds, shrapnel, burns. Much of his right pectoral was missing, undoubtedly blasted away by some sort of awful human weapon.

Stromm only sat on the edge of his bed, his arms on his knees, and his face downward. Princess Celestia's heart, which had been becoming tighter and tighter, opened once more as she witnessed something that she never thought that she would before. She watched, as Commander Stromm, veteran of two wars and hundreds of battles, with a kill count of over five hundred, who had not accepted the help of medics, and who had ruthlessly killed his own men, began to cry.

The large, muscled man, at first, sniffled and a tear or two fell onto the ground. But things quickly escalated as he began to cry with deep breaths, sobs wracking his body.

"Come, my sister. Let us leave him alone."

They both agreed that, for know, Commander Stromm was harmless.





Things were going quite well. It had already been about a year and a half since the Helghast refugees landed there, but they were already building things. Stromm opted to pollute less, but the buildings were the same: metal. The Helghast mappers had found a large pocket of metal, iron and copper, in the mountains and they had begun a mine. Lumber was being cut down, and the more dangerous animals of the Everfree were being either killed or capture for taming.

Stromm had not been able to sleep after last night, he was quite embarrassed, but glad that no one had seen him, and had gotten dressed and started his day early. Twilight's spell had been a success, and the civilians could now wander free within New Helghan. It was required, however that soldiers wear their masks, for it was part of their uniform. Stromm kept his on because, quite frankly, he thought that it was bad-ass. There was actually no reason for him to be wearing it other than that.

He was about to go out, to start his day, and then begin to read his new massive check-out, at which Princess Twilight had been happy about, but he was going to be slowed down by a very specific slate gray pegasus and her unicorn daughter while he was still inside his ship. How had she gotten inside?

"Hey!" The mare called.

Stromm looked around for the source of the voice. "Aha, there you are."

It was a gray pegasus, as said, with really bright, amber eyes that were a bit out of alignment. She had a blonde mane and tail, and, with her, was a small unicorn filly, whom of which was hiding behind the first. Her mother? Elder sister?

Stromm squatted down to say hello, but the little filly shrunk away even further. Stromm gave a mock pout under his mask and stood back up.

"Whatever is the matter?"

"Hello mister commander sir, my name is Ditzy Do, and this here is my daughter, Dinky."

Stromm chuckled. Adorable ponies, adorable ponies everywhere. 

"Oh? And just how may I help you?"

"My daughter here is really shy, and kind of scared of you guys."

Stromm looked behind him at a trio of Helghast men who gave him a nod and continued down the hallway. He looked back and answered, "Well, I can see why..."





Ditzy chuckled and said, "Yeah, exactly. So I took her here, to show her that there's nothing to be afraid of."

"Actually, there's plenty to be afraid of."

"Wha-?"

Not the answer that she was expecting.

"My men are all grizzled war veterans, all of whom have killed more people than they have eaten meals. They are all armed to the teeth with guns, blades, electricity and flames. We have thick armor that can stop almost anything, and many of us have parts that have been replaced by metal as the result of injuries."

Stromm pulled off his glove and showed them the metal replacement. Dinky looked positively terrified, and now even Ditzy looked unsure.

"My people and I have the ability to wipe out Equestria, and all of the other countries, and we will if it comes to it. I have killed many men in my time, in slow and painful ways. I have murdered comrades for betraying me, and for uniform violations."

"Okay mister, I think that's enough, I've gotta g-"

"But," Stromm held up his hand, "It's not whether there are things to be afraid of, it's whether you choose to be afraid of them. Princess Celestia, Luna, Cadence, and Twilight all welcomed me, though mayhaps with some mistrust, though I cannot blame them. The gave me land, a home for me and my people, and helped my along my dream for peace. I am bound with a strict code of honor, as are my people, and in that code, I am not allowed to attack allies. If I were to order and attack on your ponies, my soldiers would kill me and elect a new leader. You do not need to fear me, nor my people," Stromm finished.

He leaned down again towards Dinky and pulled out a sucker. The young unicorn hesitantly took it in her aura.

Stromm lifted up his comm and called for a heavy trooper. After he was finished, he looked back at Dinky, who returned his gaze with a smile around the sucker.

The heavy trooper arrived quickly, and Stromm gave him a command.

"Soldier, I want you to give these two a piggy back ride back to Ponyville, double-time!"

"Whee!"

The soldier saluted and gingerly picked up each pony. Dinky rode on the barrel of his weapon, and Ditzy on his back.

Stromm chuckled at the sight and began his day. Again. Now you may wonder why he had a sucker. Turns out, Stromm always carried candy with him, ever since he became elected leader of the Helghasts, but that was the first time he got to use it, and oh Dear God it gave him warm fuzzies.