Wolf walked into the town square. Before he walked in, there was so much noise you could barely hear yourself speaking. Now, you could hear a pin drop as everyone in the square stared at him. He stopped dead in his tracks, waiting for something to happen, preparing himself for an attack, as his soldiers instincts instructed him. After what seemed to be an eternity, the crowd erupted in a loud cheer as they rushed towards Wolf and lifted him off his feet as they paraded him throughout the town. A smile appeared on his face as he was being carried away.
- - - - -
Whoa! I didn't expect this! Reminds me of the old parades.....
* * * * *
Planet Tranquility, March 19th, 2660, 13: 18 hrs....
Wolf squinted a bit as the sun hit his eyes. His ears rang as a loud cheer erupted from the crowd gathered to watch the parade.
“We love you Wolf!”
“Give the bugs hell!”
“They don't stand a chance against you!”
“You're our hero!”
He jumped a bit as something tapped his shoulder. He turned to face it.
A middle aged man sat there at his side, smiling and waving at the crowd.
“Sir?”
“Smile Wolf, your a hero.”
“With all due respect sir, what is there to smile about? We're losing....”
“Doesn't mean we're gonna lose hope. The people look up to you Wolf, they believe in you.”
Wolf didn't answer.
“Folks need heroes, Captain.” He continued on.
“General...”
“If you smile, they smile. If you show them that things are alright, they'll believe you.”
“But General, sir...”
“Smile and wave Major, and that's an order.”
“I..... yes sir.”
Wolf stood up out of the car and smiled at the crowd, waving as they passed by.
The car passed between the buildings, and Wolf was hit by a hail of falling roses and confetti.
He couldn't help but give a genuine smile as he saw the look of joy on the peoples faces. He sat back down and began to talk to the General.
“Sir, after this, can I expect to be taken home?”
“You've got a few more appearances after this, then you can go home.”
“Yes sir....”
A loud roar from the sky as a skyscraper burst into flames.
“What the hell?”
The look of joy on the crowds face turned into a look of terror as more buildings just exploded out of the blue. The loud cheering turned into screaming. A large black spot began to emerge from the clouds.
The screaming intensified as a Spinar Cruiser emerged from the clouds and hovered above the city, it's hull ablaze as it's weapons opened fire.
Wolf's smile disappeared as a look of disbelief replaced it.
“No....” Was all he could mutter at the sight of the massive warship.....
* * * * *
No, the war is over, your safe now, the Spinar aren't here....
- - - - -
The crowd stopped as the put him back down in front of the town hall. In front of the door was the mayor with a huge smile on her face.
“There he is, the new hero of Ponyville!”
“Hero? Me?”
“Of course you! You protected us from an army of Diamond Dogs and now you saved four ponies from a Hydra! Two of them being a pair of colts and the others Element Bearers. Speaking of the colts....”
As soon as she finished her sentence, Snips and Snails came from out of the shadows. Complete silence after that. The two began smiling nervously. They approached the Mayor and Wolf.
“Boys, don't you have something to say?”
They looked at each other, gulped and looked up to Wolf.
“Um....we're ehhh... sorry about the....Hydra?”
Wolf didn't answer right away, he was silent for a few moments, until he finally answered them.
“Apology accepted. But would you be careful what you bring home next time?”
Normally he would have been much harsh, but it was just a pair of kids screwing around...
The cheering recommenced. The mayor asked the crowd to be silent, but to no avail.
“A little help here? Please?”
Wolf chuckled a bit as he raised his hand. The cheering stopped immediately.
“Now that we have everypony's attention....”
A beige coated Earth-pony came up to the Mayor, a large golden medal in her teeth. She gave it to the Mayor.
“Thank you.”
The Mayor took the medal and tried to put it around Wolf's neck. A futile attempt.
“Would you mind kneeling? It's hard to put this on you when your way up there.”
Wolf laughed as he knelt in front of the Mayor. She took the opportunity and placed the medal around his neck. The cheering recommenced as Wolf got back up and shed a tear of joy.
Amidst the cheering, a pink Earth-pony appeared in front of the crowd, and yelled.
“You know what this calls for? A PARTY!”
5 hours later......
Wolf opened the door and walked into the library, a smile on his face, a party hat on his head and his whole body covered in streamers and confetti. All of a sudden, the light turned on and he was greeted by Twilight. His smile disappeared.
“Wolf.....”
“Twi.”
“Are you alright?”
“Yeah, I'm fine. I didn't see you at the party.”
“I wasn't in the mood for a party.”
“Well, you missed all the fun.”
Silence filled the room for a few minutes.
“I'm gonna hit the sack. The party really wore me down.”
“Wolf, back on the Red Dawn....”
“Who was the man in the picture?”
She nodded.
“Someone who hurt me, very, very much.”
“Do...Do you want to talk about it?”
“Not right now. Maybe tomorrow.”
“Okay...”
“Goodnight Twilight.”
“Goodnight Wolf.”
Twilight went up the stairs and Wolf laid down and closed his eyes.
Deep within the Everfree Forest.....
A black Pegasus approached the unicorn that was standing atop a hill.
“Lord Night.....”
“What is it Darkmane?”
“There is, a problem.”
“What?”
“The creature that arrived here a month ago.....”
“What about it?”
“I fear it may be a threat to our plans.”
“How so?”
“It defeated an army of Diamond Dogs on it's own, and yesterday it managed to badly injure a Hydra.”
“Hmmm, perhaps you are right. Maybe it is a threat.”
“What would you have me do my lord?”
“Nothing. I will deal with this myself.”
“This is a great opportunity...” The unicorn said, a sinister smile appearing on his face.
“I will destroy the Element Bearers, and this creature, in one fell swoop.....”
“How will you do this my lord?”
“I have my ways...”
The unicorns horn glowed as he said a final sentence.
“Fly my servants, and consume all those who would resist the glory of our Queen!”
A few moments later, and the silent forest came alive with the sound of buzzing wings....
End Chapter 11.