//------------------------------// // New Assignments // Story: A Guardsman in Equestria // by Guardsman_Sparky //------------------------------// The reconstruction of Ponyville was proceeding quicker than had been expected. When Ponyville had been eaten by Parasprites last year, it had taken weeks for the damages to be fully repaired. This time around, the repairs were under the supervision of Iron Cog. Thanks to the mechanicus engineering know-how of the techpony, the repairs would be completed in a matter of days. In addition, Alexander and Syrette had spent several hours each day looting the armories aboard the derelict frigate hidden in the Everfree. Upon laying optics upon the wreck, Cog had...well, Alexander had never seen any member of the cult mechanicus emote so much as minor glee, but Cog...wow. There was no way to describe the paroxysms of pure and utter joy the techpony had expressed. He had immediately begun to design defenses for the town of Ponyville. Alexander was taking a well deserved break from building structures and defenses. He was lying on the ground at a makeshift firing range behind his home, staring down the sights of his longlas. His armor lay in a heap by the wall, his shirt bunched up on top, leaving Alexander in his sleeveless undershirt. He squeezed off a shot downrange, cursing silently as the coherent light barely scorched the side of the can sitting on the post. He twisted a small knob on the sniper scope. As Alexander grumbled a small voice asked "Are you Alexander?" Alexander dropped the dead clip, fishing a fresh one from his webbing. "Mmhm." He slotted the new clip into the weapon. He racked the slide, charging the longlas. "Who's askin'." He turned to find three fillies wearing burgundy capes. The orange pegasus piped up. "I'm Scootaloo." "I'm Sweetie Bell," bounced the white unicorn. "An' Ahm Applebloom," declared the yellow pony. "And we are the Cutie Mark Crusaders!" Alexander fired another blazing spear down-range. Miss. calibrate. "Alright, so what did you want?" The yellow pony, Applebloom, spoke up. "We wanted ta thank you fer savin' us from the Manticore." "We also wanted to ask you how you got your cutie mark," added Sweetie Bell. Scootaloo nodded. "And why's it on yer shoulder?" "An what's it mean?" "My cu-?" Alexander burst out laughing, clutching his sides as he howled with mirth. The CMC frowned at each other. Scootaloo poked Alexander in the leg. "What's so funny?" Alexander wiped a tear from his eye. "This," he gestured at the double headed eagle clutching two lightning bolts on his shoulder. "Is a tattoo." "Whats a Tat-too?" Alexander held in his chuckles. "It's a, um...artificial cutie mark." *Snrk!* The three fillies frowned. "Humans don't get cutie marks, so sometimes people get tattoos that mean something important to them." Applebloom wrinkled her muzzle. "Well, what's yers mean?" Alexander stared off, his expression distant. "It serves to remind me of those who have been lost." Scootaloo snorted. "What does that even mean?" Alexander smiled sadly. "You'll understand someday." He ruffled the tomboyish pegasus' short mane. Sweetie Bell opened her mouth to speak. "No, you can't get one." "Awww." "Now, go on. Go play somewhere." A sly smile crossed Alexander's face. "Why don't you go ask Iron Cog if he'll teach you how to make things." Alexander watched with a grin as the three scampered off with a cry of "Cutie Mark Crusaders techponies, away!" Such exuberance. Such innocence. He hoped it would never end for them, but knew deep inside that there was no such thing as innocence, only degrees of guilt. He sighed. He glared at the longlas in his hands, and took a shot down-range. Another miss reminded him of why exactly he had never been assigned a sniper rifle. Sure, he was a good shot with a regular lasgun, but the ability to properly calibrate the complex telescopic sights on a longlas had always eluded him. Once the sights were off, he never could hit anything. With a sigh, Alexander stood up and dusted himself off. He drifted over to the pile of armor, clearing the longlas of its charge as he went. Leaning the gun against his home, Alexander began to put on his shirt and armor. "Alexander the human?" Alexander pulled his chest piece down over his head to find a beefy white pegasus in golden armor. "Yeah?" "Their royal Highnesses Princess Celestia and Princess Luna would have a word with you." Alexander entered the throne room of the royal palace, snapping a crisp salute to the alicorns sitting on their thrones. He shifted to parade rest, his feet shoulder width apart and hands clasped at the small of his back. "Princess Celestia, Princess Luna." Alexander nodded to each. "I understand you wished to speak with me." Princess Celestia nodded. "Yes Alexander. We wish to know what happened on the tenth." "YES. WE WOULD VERY MUCH LIKE TO HEAR WHAT THOU HAST TO SAY!" "Luna, we've talked about this." "Sorry Tia, we forgot." Alexander nodded. "Certainly." "At 08:00 hours, I met with Twilight Sparkle at a cafe close to Sugarcube Corner. You've heard of how I arrived here, yes? Well, somehow two of my comrades survived and arrived in Equestria as ponies. Yeah, I don't know what that's all about either. Anyways, my comrades had heard of a human soldier in Equestria, and went looking for him. They found Ms. Sparkle, who led them to me. We were all having breakfast when the meteors fell from the sky. The impacts from their landings threw up a thick smoke that blocked out your sun. That was when we saw the first one emerge. "I have never seen anything like it before, and I've seen some crazy shit in my time. It was shaped like, well, actually it didn't really have a shape. It was, oh what's that word? Amorphous, that's it. They were very resistant to attacks, and any magic I saw thrown at them was only absorbed. I'm surprised your guard's shield spells held at all. The creatures seemed to create shadow from their bodies, a fact later confirmed by Iron Cog, one of my compatriots. They are very sensitive to light, enough so that just bright light will hurt them. We discovered this when I was eaten by one, and set off a flashbang (a device that creates a bright light and loud sounds to disorient) inside it. It was completely destroyed. "We managed to collect many of the citizens in the town hall, and what royal guards that had been able to make it into town held the things back. We only managed to defeat them when Rainbow Dash blew away the smokescreen with a sonic rainboom, allowing the sun to vaporize the creatures. "Damage to Ponyville was oddly centralized. It was as if the creatures were trying to hunt the ponies down, leading them to go after the numbers taking refuge in the town hall. It spared many of the outlying buildings and farms. Ms. Fluttershy's cottage and the school house were completely ignored by the beasts until the guard arrived, so many small animals and foals were in little danger during the ordeal. However, the creatures seemed to be obsessed with invading Sweet Apple Acres. The Apple family only managed to keep the things at bay until the rainboom by setting the fences and outlying trees on fire. I am told that they had to burn something like five percent of their orchards to feed the flames. "As for casualties, there were no fatalities during or after the siege. The worst physical injury that occurred were a few broken ribs and a broken leg. However, a few dozen ponies were drained of their magic by the creatures, and several were drained to the point of near death and had to be hospitalized for magical transfusions. It's lucky that no one was killed. "I just wish I knew what it was I had been fighting." As Alexander finished up his report, he saw a look flash between the two alicorns. Scowling, Alexander glared at the two princesses. "Alright, you know something. Spill it." A unicorn guard stepped up to Alexander, horn lit up threateningly. "You will show respect when you speak to the princesses!" "It is alright, Falchion." Falchion grumbled, but returned to his position by the twin thrones. Princess Celestia nodded to Alexander. "It is true. We do indeed know something." Alexander raised an eyebrow. "Collectively, they are known as...The Smooze." "The Smooze...seriously?" Celestia rolled her eyes. "Yes. Thousands of years ago, before even my sister's and my time, the Smooze was unleashed upon Equiis by a dark force. The Smooze was relentless. Nothing could stop it, and it covered Equestria in darkness. Not even the Rainbow Lights, the predecessor to the Elements of Harmony, could stop it. It wasn't until the sea ponies and flutter ponies lent their aid that the Smooze was destroyed." Alexander snorted. "Sea ponies? Flutter ponies? Really?" He started to snicker, then frowned as a thought occured to him. "I've seen earth ponies, pegasi, unicorns, and even a dragon, but I have yet to see either a sea pony or a flutter pony. Why?" Celestia sighed sadly, her mane drooping and seeming to lose color. Luna answered for her sister. "After the defeat of the Smooze, the dark forces that created the abominations declared war on all of Equus. The sea ponies and the flutter ponies were the first to fall." The two guards on either side of the thrones scrunched up their faces as they tried to figure out what Luna meant. But for Alexander, who had watched the death of planets, the meaning was all too clear. "Exterminatus. No survivors." The two guards swallowed as Luna and Celestia nodded. Celestia raised her head. "While initially the dark forces were victorious, the combined might of Equus' peoples eventually drove the dark forces to the edge of defeat. It was in casting down the darkness that my sister and I achieved our ascension to godhood. However, as the leader of the darkness was cast down to Tartarus, he unleashed a spell that destroyed the natural balance of the planet. Taking responsibility for our failure to prevent the destruction of the natural energy of Equus, we began our duties of raising the moon and the sun." Alexander glanced askew at the two alicorns. "So, why did you call me here? You obviously already knew what had happened, didn't need me to tell you." Celestia closed her eyes. "For the past several months, there have been many strange disappearances around Equestria. Most of those who have vanished were foals." Alexander frowned, recalling similar circumstances on a world whose skies had rained blood. "Two days ago, we sent a detachment of royal guards to investigate a suspicious facility high in the Foal Mountains. We have not heard from them since." Alexander began to pace, pinching the bridge of his nose as he thought. "So you want me to find them? Or complete their mission? What makes you think I can succeed where an entire detachment of your guards failed? I'm no space marine." He faced the princesses, arms crossed over his chest. Luna held herself up. "THOU-ahem-thou hast destroyed Smooze singlehoofedly. Such a feat hast never been done before. Thou art more powerful than thou dost realize." Celestia nodded. "You also have more experience in battle than most, if not all of the royal guard combined. Our last war was hundreds of years ago, and aside from a few minor border disputes, Equestria has been at peace for longer than most can imagine." Celestia regarded Alexander carefully. "There is a position in the Royal Guard, one that has not been used for some time. The one who holds this position is known as a Sentinel. A Sentinel holds unparalleled powers in Equestria. They can command any royal guard, and can requisition any thing they require. As such, there have been only a few Sentinels in Equestrian history, as the position and power that comes with it is easily abused." Celestia spread her wings dramatically. "ALEXANDER THE HUMAN, WILL YOU ACCEPT THE HONOR OF BECOMING A SENTINEL?" Alexander stepped back. "Me?" Even the stoic, emotionless guards seemed surprised. "Why me?" Celestia folded her wings. "We have seen into your soul, Alexander. You have a good heart, one that is troubled by the events of your past. Luna and I know you would not abuse the privileges of being a Sentinel." Luna nodded in agreement. Alexander bit a lip. It was tempting. "What would my duties as a Sentinel be?" Luna cleared her throat. "Thou wouldst go on missions given to thou from myself and Celestia, and defend Equestria and its ponies from dangers from within and without." Alexander stared at his hands, thoughts flashing through his mind, weighing his options. A thought rose to the surface. Innocence needs protection. He would not let the skies bleed again, not if he could help it. The horrors of those three warp-tainted days haunted him still. He looked up. "In the name of the Emperor, and all I hold dear, I accept." Alexander drew his sword, holding it vertically before him. Why he did so, he did not know, but it felt...right. "I pledge my sword to protect the innocence and life of Equestria." The Aquila's on Alexander's breast plate and helmet flashed. Where once had been a silver two-headed eagle was now an emblem of two alicorns back to back with wings unfurled, one as black as the starry night sky, the other as white as the purest sunlight. Celestia and Luna looked to each other, Celestia shrugging while Luna shook her head. They looked at Alexander. Luna was the first to speak, and it was decidedly out of character for her. "Well, that's a new one." Alexander held his helmet in his hands, staring at his reflection in the new Aquila. That flash, he had never experienced it before, but it was somehow familiar. Like the hand of an approving father on His son's shoulder. Alexander realized he had felt that presence before, standing before an alter dedicated to the Emperor. Smiling, he put on his helmet, sealing it with the respirator. "Let get started then, shall we?"