Simmons quickly ran through the gate of Sweet Apple Acres, making his way to the door as hastily as he could. Once he came up to it, he gave it three firm knocks, standing timidly as he waited for the door to open. Within a few seconds, the door pulled open to reveal the gray-haired stallion that he came there to talk to.
"There you are, Simmons. What took you so long?" Sarge asked firmly.
"I came as fast as I could, sir," Simmons huffed, out of breath from his run. "What's wrong with the fragments? Are they on the run? Are they threatening to blow the town up?"
"Not yet, Simmons. That is why I got you here," Sarge murmured roughly, then nodded inside. "Come on in. I don't want any of them to hear us."
"Right," Simmons said, trotting inside, not flinching when Sarge slammed the door shut. Sarge quickly led Simmons to the kitchen, then prompted him to take a seat.
"As you know, the fragments are back," Sarge started, looking out the kitchen window, squinting at the barn next to them. "And because of that, it's up to the Apples and I to watch them. Normally I'd be more than happy to threaten them, but they simply don't react to it as well as I wish."
"That's a shame, sir."
"Don't I know it," he grumbled. Shaking his head, he turned back to the unicorn. "Because of this, I want to find a new way to keep them out of trouble. From what I've gathered, some of them seem to be trying to make friends here. While Theta and Sigma have tried to show the young ones that they're their friends, I'm not entirely convinced."
"I don't know, Sarge. I'm sure they would have noticed if Theta was pretending to be their friend," Simmons said, but Sarge simply made a soft grunt in reply. "And what about Delta, sir? He's helped keep them out of trouble before."
"Delta might be an exception," Sarge admitted reluctantly. "But I would still prefer the planning to be done by flesh and blood humans turned horse."
"That might be a good move," Simmons said, nodding once again. "I sort of trust Delta, but Sigma knows how to convince others to do his bidding."
"Exactly!" Sarge smirked. "You know, Simmons, I have always admired your ability to agree with me."
"Really, sir?" Simmons asked hopefully.
"Slightly, yes."
"Oh..."
"So any ideas on how to do this?" Sarge asked, taking a seat at the table.
"I don't know. Since they don't react to fear or threats, it will be pretty hard to keep them tamed," Simmons said thoughtfully, rubbing his chin. "Maybe we can..."
"What is it?" Sarge inquired, leaning in closer.
"Well, I have an idea, but I'm not sure if you will like it, sir..."
"Out with it. I'm having trouble coming up with my own plans for once. I would have blown them up or something, but I don't want to damage the property."
"Right. Well, the way I see it is that as long as they think we're going to do things to them, they'll think of things to do to us," Simmons said quietly. "What if we don't do anything at all?"
"Hold on there, Simmons. That's getting awfully close to sounding like a Grif idea," Sarge growled.
"Hear me out," Simmons protested. "I'm not really saying we don't do anything. On the contrary, we will do something. It just won't involve threatening them or anything like that. If we want them to behave, we have to treat them like we want them to treat others. I think we should try to be their friends."
"Be... friends with the fragments?" Sarge asked, adopting a look of horror on his face. "You're hanging around the girls too much. That's almost as bad as suggesting we befriend the Blues."
"Sarge, aren't we already friends with the Blues? Let's be honest, we haven't really talked about attacking them in the past while, and I'm pretty sure they've rarely talked about attacking us."
"Don't be silly. If anything, this is a ceasefire. They're biding their time just like we are," Sarge snorted. "I'm sure they'll fight us eventually. It's just a matter of waiting for them to show their true nature. I can't work on taking them out when Applejack thinks we're all friends."
"Well, why don't you treat the fragments the same as the others, then? Don't work on taking them down. Just stay on your guard and watch them. Give them a little breathing room. If you're not actively seeking to ruin them, they might learn to trust you."
"And then I might be able to use their trust to my advantage..."
"Precisely."
"Hmph. I guess that will have to do for now," Sarge grunted. Smiling roughly, he gave Simmons a quick salute. "Thanks for coming by on such short notice, Simmons. It's good to know I can still put trust in to someone other than the Apples."
"Likewise, sir," Simmons said, returning the salute.
Simmons then got out of the chair and made his way towards the front door. As he reached out to open it, it pushed inward, making him take a few steps back to let the door opener through. What he saw instead was Sigma looking up at him with a thin smile. Simmons took a few more steps back.
"Hello," Sigma said calmly.
"Hi," Simmons squealed nervously, tensing up as the fragment began walking towards him.
"Nice weather we're having."
"Yeah, it's great," Simmons agreed instantly. Stealing a quick glance at the door, he began to slowly move towards it, eyes glued on the small colt as he walked around him. "It's such a nice day that I think I'm going to go for a walk. Yes, a walk. Walks aren't suspicious, so you have no reason to be suspicious of me. Because I'm going on a walk."
"Walks are nice, aren't they?" the orange colt inquired innocently as Simmons made his way past him. "It is always nice to clear one's mind once and a while. Offers you a chance to think back on what you've done."
"And that is exactly what I'm going to do," Simmons said as he backed out the door with a crooked smile. "Walk!"
Sigma raised his brow when Simmons slammed the door. He quickly shook his head and made his way over to the kitchen where he found Sarge sitting at the table, eyes closed, deep in thought. Sigma then cleared his throat, making Sarge glance upwards.
"May I have a quick word with you?" Sigma asked quietly. "I promise it won't take long."
"I suppose," Sarge murmured, sitting up straight.
"Thank you. You see, I recently had a revelation of sorts. Due to my past, you must see me as a monster, and I began to question myself as well. After much thought, I have decided to change my ways. As hard as it is for you to believe, I no longer wish to be the Alpha," Sigma said quietly, watching Sarge for any sign of doubt. When he couldn't see any, he nodded. "I know that just because my path has changed, I cannot expect others to forget what I have done in an instant. But though I do not expect forgiveness, I hope for understanding during this transitional period."
"Er, of course," Sarge said with forced enthusiasm, remembering his new plan of action. He was now more wary of Sigma than ever, but he couldn't let him see that. "I knew you would come to our side eventually."
"You... did?" Sigma asked, not expecting the calm response from the stallion in front of him.
"Yes, I did," the red stallion replied instantly, holding out his hoof. "Don't worry, as long as you try to be nicer, I'll treat you like an equal."
"I am very relieved to hear that," Sigma sighed, shaking his hoof.