//------------------------------// // Taking a Tumble // Story: An Angelic Soldier // by Korten //------------------------------// Taking a tumble Ember could feel the pain all over her body, and normally she would be scared but in this case she was just happy she could feel something because it means she isn’t dead. She tried to move a limb but nothing seems to respond and she continues to lie there with her eyes still closed with even those barely responding. Slowly the pain started to fade and she could feel the ground. Dirt? That can’t be right she told herself. It didn’t make much sense, as she had been in a sewer. A huge number of explanations began to flood into her mind but it was silenced as she finally opened her eyes. Flickering her eyes a couple of times to adjust and then look around. She wasn’t in the sewer anymore that was for sure. The sky hanging above is dark and cloudy with an almost sickly looking green tint. Turning her head she looked around the landscape. It was in ruins, dead plants, trees and grass, and small patches of sand across the rocks. In the far off she could see mountains, sharp and desolate looking as did the ground below it. Not much wind, and everything still, you could hear the sound of a pin dropping and hitting the floor. Ember began to lift herself up as she got full control back and eventually stood up. First thing she did was look at her, her armor seemed fine and all of her gear still on her. It was then that she noticed her helmet had receded back exposing herself. Quickly bringing up her UCD she pressed the side button and her helmet folded outwards and covered her face. Once more her HUD appeared and she began to check the stats of her gear to see if they were all in working order. She let out a sigh of relief as everything turned out green. Then she opened up the comms and see if now she could connect. NO CONNECTION, the screen told her in large red text. Before it was being jammed but now she couldn’t even find a connection. Looking around she began to summarize that she couldn’t have simply floated out of the sewers as she was near no bodies of water and there’s no signs of her being carried. And even if somehow she did get picked up and brought somewhere else on the planet, she would be able to get a connection to Command. Her first thought was to fly up and see the surrounding area, but then decided against it. If this was somehow enemy territory, flying up would make her an easy target. Taking off the Assault rifle on her back, she began to walk through the desolate area. Watching everything to see if something was going to come up and attack. Her helmet was reading nothing but who ever had brought her here could be using active camouflage which is harder to detect. “Damn it…” she spoke softly. “Just where am I?” It then hit her; something she had forgot to check. Pulling up her UCD again she opened to her GPS and tried to find her current location. LOCATION UNKNOWN – PLANET UNIDENFIED, she read. Ember just stood there staring at the text with wide eyes. This has got to be some sort joke? Right? How could I just end up on another world? Was I captured and dropped here, but then why all of the effort for just one soldier? She began to rationalize in her mind. Looking away from the screen Ember continued to stare into the distance formulating a plan of action. So far she hadn’t seen a single sign of civilization and no satellites in the sky that her UCD to detect. Sighing she continued to walk while keeping an eye out for anything. In the distance she could hear a noise and she looked up in the direction. In the sky small black birds began to fly over, “Crows?” she commented. Their annoying ‘cawing’ noise echoed through the silence. First life spotted and it was nothing special. Looking back to her path she continued on ignoring the crows. As she got further she began to hear another noise, the sound of running water. Going into a sprint she arrived at the creek only to see it murky and dirty. Hunger and thirst began to slip in as she looked at the water with dismay. Jumping from one rock to another she got to the other side and walked on. However she stopped as she began to feel as if being watched. Turning around she spotted noting but she knew something had to be there. “A stranger steps into our land and appears lost,” she heard a feminine but almost distorted voice speak. It seemed a bit far off until they spoke again. “What brings you here to our home?” Ember turned and stepped back as she saw who was speaking. It’s a horse? The alien is dark skinned with large green eyes, and blue hair but also a large horn and insect-like wings; it was then that she also noticed the holes in their legs. English? How does this creature know my language? Ember thought. “What are you strange creature? Some sort of zombie horse?” Ember questioned. The alien frowned. “How dare you! I will have you know I am a Changeling! Queen Chrysalis!” She announced quite dramatically. Ember just stared at the Queen. “Queen of what? The wastelands?” Ember replied not impressed. Chrysalis stomped her hoof, “You come here and insult me!” Suddenly she heard the sound of buzzing and looks around as dozens of little Changelings landed. He could tell they were ready to strike with their horns angled towards her. Worse since she has no idea what they’re capable of doing. Okay, that wasn’t a good idea. Time to salvage this situation. “Sorry- I didn’t mean that. Friendly joke- honest!” Ember pleaded to the Queen. Chrysalis stared angrily at the being in front of her and then eased up, “Answer me! What are you? And why are you here?” Ember breathed in and then out, “I am Lieutenant Ember, and I am an Angel. I don’t know how I got here; I just woke up on the ground.” “And why should I trust you? I have enemies and so how can I be sure you aren’t a spy?” “A spy? Never- I don’t even know where I am and I have never seen your species before. In fact I don’t even think I am on the same world…” Ember attempted to explain. Chrysalis waved her hoof and the Changelings relax but not before glancing each other as if questioning their orders. “Another world? You honestly expect me to believe that?” No doubt it sounds weird, she doesn’t seem advanced. Although looks aren’t everything- but if they were, she probably would have reacted that way. She thought. Ember nodded, “I know it may seem hard to believe but I am. I was on a war torn world trying to aid our allies, however everything went to hell and I was severally injured by an enemy… Then I woke up here…” The Queen looked at the Angel seemingly convinced or at least going along, “Well Lieutenant- as the Queen of this land I demand you tell me your plans from this point on.” “I can’t say. I will attempt to try and contact my chain of command,” she replied but then her stomach roared. “Also best I leave here and find somewhere I can get food…” The Queen smirked, “Oh leave will you..?” she spoke in a manically voice causing Ember to step back in caution. “I don’t think you will be leaving. No one leaves.” The changelings began to laugh and ready for an attack. “Get her!” Chrysalis commanded her underlings. One of the Changelings horn began to glow, and then a green glow rushed over them and they rushed at Ember. The Angel rolled out of the way and then began to turn to escape only to see as expected her path blocked. Pulling a smoke grenade from her belt she threw it and exploded at the feet of the creatures. Moving through the smoke she jumped over the Changelings and continued to run. She didn’t want to shoot them and cause a further incident, even if they were now going after her. They recovered quickly from the grenade and began to fly towards her spot, their wings allowing them to fly faster then she could. Suddenly she was sent flying as a Changeling rammed into her back causing her to slam into the rock ground. Damn it! She told herself. Do they want me to kill them? Getting back up, Ember dodged another changeling that came rushing at her. The Queen herself wasn’t coming at her, as she floated in the air flapping her wings watching them attacking her all the while laughing. Continuing on her escape she saw two Changelings ahead of her which suddenly glowed green and then she saw… Herself? She had to stop and really look at what she was seeing; the two Changelings had turned into a copy of her. It was then that she decided it wouldn’t be best to go easy. If they are carbon copies, might they have guns? Aiming with her rifle she began to fire at the clones and the bullets seem to just pierce right through them. So it wasn’t a fully clone, more like an illusion as if to fool someone. As they fell over from the shots they glowed green again and hit the ground as their normal form. Suddenly she noticed some of the Changelings began to back off and Embers slowed down, “You follow me and you get shot as well!” she yelled at them. However despite her original thought the Queen didn’t seem angry, in fact impressed. “Oh- anger! Such beauty! I am in Impressed at such a sight,” Chrysalis yelled out to Ember. Ember frowned under her helmet, “I injure two of your underlings and you’re… impressed?” The Queen laughed, “Us Changelings feed on positive energy and love- but the sight of anger and distraught pleases me. More so to those who dare defy us- those are the best.” “So what are you going to let me go?” Ember yelled back. “Let you go?” The Changeling laughed again. “Oh no. More so now than ever I can’t let you leave. My fellow Changelings, watch out for her weapon! Attack from afar!” From afar? She thought as she noticed the Changelings began to charge their horns and even the Queen. Suddenly from their horns blasts of green energy shot out and began to fly towards her. The energy from the Queen, the largest, Ember decided it was top priority to dodge. Running out of the way she watched as the rock the blast hit exploded. However another blast hit her and knocked her to the ground. Getting back up she continued to dodge rays of attacks in their endless assault. Running and dodging for that long even for an Angel is tiresome. That’s when she noticed a very narrow gorge coming up. Looking past it, there was just more open area past it with no cover. Standing at the ledge she looked at the waves of Changelings and decided it was time to stretch her wings. As a blast was about to hit her she walked forward and into the gorge. As she fell she waited for the right moment and summoned her wings. She continued to fall until she began to let them flap. Ember looked up and saw the Changelings flying down and continued to fire. “Wings? You have wings!? Oh this just gets more fun…” The Queen murmured. The soldier continued to dodge as she flew down the gorge. Flying backwards she began to hip fire to make some back off and then turning back to keep at her max speed. However if there was one thing Angel’s had to admit- they aren’t the best fliers. It’s more so for getting to grounds usually unobtainable. She made a sharp turn at the gorge’s turn and quickly hid behind a large rock before the Changelings arrived. They flew overhead not seeing her in the shadows however one got curious and began to look around and spotted the Angel. She flew out of cover and then flew past the shots and fired in the direction of the Changelings and it hit one in the leg and they fell down into the water, the rest scurry out of the way and let her pass. However as soon as she got through they turned and continued their pursuit. Ember continued but then began to become wobbly, her breathing getting faster and heavier. She was flying for way to long and then it happened. One shot and then another hit her wings and she screamed out in pain. She flew upwards in an attempt to get out of the gorge but then of all of the shots, it was the Queen’s that slammed into her back and made her wings vanish. She began to fall through the air and the Changelings just hovered there and watched as she slammed into the water. Ember tried to move but her body wasn’t giving way to her mind. It felt just like when the Mage attacked. The water rapids began pushing her down the gorge. The Queen flew next to her subjects and as they began to fly closer she stopped them. “No,” she said flatly and once again her underlings glanced at each other. “The Angel won’t survive the rapids…” “Isn’t that unwise, what if she-,” her underling was cut off as she slapped them with her hoof. “You dare- do you truly dare to second guess your Queen?” The Queen yelled. The Changeling flew away in fear and the Queen sighed, “No one second guesses me… Let us head back. Our plans are not to be delayed. Equestria will be ours…” She spoke as they began to fly back away from the gorge and into the wastelands again. *************************** Ember continued to flow down the river, only living because of her armor. Her body floated far down the river, until her body stopped and landed on the rivers bank. For a while she remained there, her body completely still. The sun already began to set and it was getting dark. Nothing came close to her, the animals too afraid to get close to the unknown being. Until one animal, a bunny hopped over to her body and poked it, and then as they saw it stir the bunny ran for the forest ahead. Slowly Ember was coming to, this had been the second time she had been nearly killed and lived. The pain was almost starting to become numb by how common it was. She couldn’t go an hour without being shot at- by bullets or magic. As her body began to come under her command she lifted herself up and noticed her HUD on her helmet was on the fritz until in red letters it stated: REBOOTING SYSTEMS – HELMET OPENING. The helmet opened and then folded away and as soon as she was free of it she puked on the rocks. Her stomach felt like it was going to burst all the while turning. She noticed her Assault rifle was in her hand or on her back and looked around. It had also landed on the bank near him, and slowly crawled over to it and picked it up and began to inspect it. Everything seemed in order, they were built extremely well. She looked at her UCD and that was still working as well, however the armor still was rebooting. No doubt not happy about water getting on it, it wasn’t the same as being in the sewer water as she got out of it quickly, however noticed that she must have been in it for a while as the sun was low now. Although it wasn’t just the water, from the Mages attacks to the Changelings onslaught, both of them did quite a number on it. More so than just water. It was then however that she noticed her new location, the sky was clearer and the land seemed to be flourishing with life with trees as far as she could see. Looking in the direction of the gorge she noticed she could barely even see the mountains in the Changeling land’s meaning she had flowed down the river far. In fact even the gorge was small as the exit of it was a mile or so away. Ember stood up and then almost fell over out of hunger. “I need something to eat…” she told herself as she began to move away from the bank and into the forest. It was then that she noticed an apple on the tree and as fast as she could she ran over to it and jumped and pulled it off. With then sent pain downs her legs but she didn’t care- she had food. She devoured the apple and then grabbed another- and another. Then she went back over to the river which was a lot cleaner than before. Using her hand she began to drink until she was full. Her stomach began to feel a lot better and she lay on her back with her legs and arms stretched out and she stared at the sky. As the night took over the stars became more visible she began to miss the days when she used to star gaze with her Human father, Andrew. Thoughts of her entire family began to come back, and then a sadness with it. Would she see them again? She couldn’t say, if the UCD didn’t know what planet she is on, and the technological level of civilization seemingly… low based on the Changelings. She might be stuck here unless she could somehow get into contact with command. Would they hold a funeral? Or would they continue to look for her for years to come? No doubt Command was already going to call her squad KIA. She sighed and began to close her eyes, but she slapped herself to keep herself awake. It’s best if I find someplace to sleep for the night she thought as she stood back up and cracked her back and turned back towards the forest. Walking into the forest she decided it would be best to find a secluded spot and make a fire. It was hard to see as she began to stumble around and her armor still wasn’t done rebooting. The moon was out now and the night’s rays made the night easier on her eyes. One would assume her glowing eyes would help but they didn’t as her vision was the same as everyone else. She sighed and leapt over a fallen tree and then landed on the other side. Ahead she noticed a tree line and she decided to go to it. Stepping past the tree she came to the edge of a cliff and walked to the edge. Now she could see far into the distance, the moon’s light illuminating the landscape. Far ahead, she saw a desert to the North West, barren lands to the North, and swamps to the North East. Sitting down she began to plan which direction she needed to go, but then held off from making a commitment until she got to the fork in the road and had to make a final decision. Realizing she would need to go down the cliff into the forest below to get there she attempted to bring out her wings but a pain rippled through her back. The shots from the Changelings were still fresh and it would take time for her wings to recover. For now she would need to find another way down. Looking left and right she noticed to the east the cliff began to lower until it evened out. Staying at the tree line she moved to the east. It took a bit but eventually she began to head downwards and the tree’s below got closer. Eventually she reached ground level and began to move through the lower forest. Instead of going deeper into the forest she stayed at the foot of the cliff to see if she could find a cave and to her luck she found a large cave entrance. She pressed the button on her armor and her helmet came back out and covers her. The HUD only showed a bar but then reached 100 and the HUD unlocked and she could look over the reboot to make sure nothing was damaged. Some systems were green, but others were still offline. However she didn’t need all of them, as her lights on her helmet came up. Pulling her Assault rifle out she stepped into the cave, ready to kill anything that is in the cave. Ember walked in and continuously aimed down her sights in case anything popped out. It wasn’t the largest cave but it would work. She reached the end of the cave and there appeared to be no nest, sentient creature or animal. Now it was time to build a fire, but before that she pulled out her Cube and looked at its contents. Guns, some clothing, and survival gear! Click on that category she looked in the contents. Only a few medical supplies, in fact she noted before going to bed she should look at her body for anything, that would explain the numbing, and she would need to get more. If she planned on getting hit again and again it would be used up very quickly. Anyway she continued down the small list and found a lighter and pulled it out. Leaving the cave she went over to trees and began to cut down twigs and sticks and then gathered some rocks. Heading back into the cave she made a small camp fire and used the lighter to make a lasting fire. Perfect timing too as she looked outside and saw rain pouring down. Then she decided to pull off her armor. First the helmet folded back and then began to pull off piece after piece until she was only in her underwear. That’s when she noticed the various wounds on her body. Dried up blood was down her leg, and numerous large cuts and red marks all over her body, some even close to purple. Opening up the cube again she began to take out various medical supplies and applied them to her body. It hurt as she put them on and she had her teeth clenching as she endured the pain. After she finished she looked at herself and just was almost in amaze as she realized just how many bandages she was covered in. She hadn’t been this wounded since her first mission where she made a lot of mistakes but her squad got her out. Looking at her medical supply list it had dropped down, having had used more then she had expected. Deciding it would be best not to get into her armor she opened up her clothing tab and found the single clothing she had. Making it appear she put on a white shirt with red on the shoulders and in the middle of her large turtle neck, also a brown belt, and lastly white pants. Slipping them on she lay down on the stone ground and tried to get into a good spot but nothing was working. However the fire’s heat warmed her and the sound of the rain calmed her nerves and slowly she closed her eyes. Although her mind continued to pace- theories and questions, how did she get here? Who brought her? What world is she on? What are the Changelings? She was on a hostile world with no back up and limited supplies, the situation was FUBAR. Despite how much she wanted to get answers her body didn’t care and slowly her mind shut down and she fell asleep.