//------------------------------// // Chapter 5: Some Really Bad News // Story: Aliens: Pony Marines // by Renegade Thunder //------------------------------// Everypony including Bishop was crowed at the window, intently watching the AP station which was in a dim silhouette mist. “It’s very pretty, Bishop, but what are we looking for?” said Twilight as she looked straight at Bishop. Suddenly, a column of blue flame, jets upwards from the station at the base of the cone, Bishop pointed as he waited for it to show itself. “That’s it, the emergency venting.” “Ah, that’s’ beautiful, man, just beautiful....that just beats it all,” said Pinkie Pie as she turned away from the window. “How long until it blows?” asked Applejack, as she was calmly focused on the blue flame which coming out of the column. “Four hours...with a blast radius of thirty kilometres, equal to about forty megatons,” replied Bishop. Applejack then scratched the back of her head, “we got a problem.” “I don’t believe this, I don’t fucking believe this,” said Pinkie as her hair went back to the flat and straight style. “Rainbow Dash, close the shutters,” said Applejack as she walked away from the window. “Why can’t we shut it down from here?” asked Twilight to Bishop. He shook his head, “I’m sorry; the crash did too much damage. An overload was inevitable, at this point.” Pinkie continued to moan while pacing up and down in the room, “Oh, man, four more weeks and out, now I’m going to buy it on this rock. It ain’t half fair!” “Pinkie, give us a break!” snapped Rainbow Dash rolling her eyes towards her. She ignored her as she continued doing the same thing, “four more week, oh man.” “Well, we’re got to get the other drop-ship from the S.E.E.ZECORA, I mean, there must be some way of bringing it down on remote?” asked Twilight, as she was thinking of a strategy. Suddenly Pinkie stopped pacing up and down the room and looked straight at her with the craziest look, “How? The transmitter was in the APC, and it’s all wasted.” “I don’t CARE how! But, we’d better think of something,” replied Twilight in an annoyed tone. “Think of WHAT? We’re fucked!” shouted Pinkie, as she was thinking of no hope. “Shut up,” said Applejack to Pinkie. “We’re doomed!” continued Pinkie. “Shut up!” she then looked at the other, “what about the colony transmitters? The up-link tower down at the other end, why can’t we use that?” asked Applejack. Bishop shook his head, “No, I checked, the hardwiring between here and there is damaged, we can’t align the dish.” Twilight rolled her eyes and rubbed her head as her mind was spinning out of options and grim solutions. “Well somepony’s going to have to go out there, and take a portable terminal with them to patch in manually. “Oh yeah...with those things running around, you can count me out!” said pinkie as she didn’t want to face those aliens again. “Yeah, I guess we can just count you out of everything, huh?” said Applejack to Pinkie in an annoyed tone. “I’ll go,” said Bishop in a quiet tone. “That’s right, man, why don’t you go, man?” shouted Pinkie as pointed at him. “What?” Twilight asked, as she couldn’t hear him. “I’ll go, I mean, I’m the only one qualified to remote-pilot the ship anyway,” smirked Bishop. “Yeah, right, Bishop should go, good idea,” said Pinkie smiling. “Believe me, I’d prefer not to, I may be synthetic, but I’m not stupid,” said Bishop giving a faint smile. *** *** *** One of the acid holes from the colonists’ siege had yielded access to the sub-floor conduits. Rainbow Dash was cutting an opening into one of the main shafts; she cuts a stretched circle into the pipe. Bishop looked into the shaft with a flashlight after she finished cutting through the pipe. He looked to up and down and saw nothing, he then gave Rainbow Dash the flashlight and sat on the edge of the hole. “How long?” asked Twilight. “The duct runs almost to the up-link assembly, one hundred and eighty meters,” said Bishop calculating the times. Twilight passes him a portable terminal and a small satchel containing tolls, which he pushed into the constructed shaft. “Say, forty minutes to crawl down there.” “Right,” Twilight as she nodded. “An hour to patch in and align the antenna, thirty minutes to prep the ship, and about thirty minutes flight time.” Bishop the laid down into the shaft, on his back, he looks up at Rainbow Dash, while she gave back the flashlight. “So it’s going to be close then,” said Twilight. Rainbow Dash suddenly pulls out her service pistol and gave it to Bishop. He looks to Twilight and give it to her, “Good luck,” said Rainbow Dash. Cheerfully Bishop looked at Twilight and Rainbow Dash, “see you soon, watch your hooves.” Rainbow Dash and Twilight place the metal plate over the hole again. Inside the pipe Bishop turned over and squirmed into the shaft, pushing the equipment along ahead of him with a scraping rhythm. “I really hope he make it in time,” said Rainbow Dash, as she begins spot-wilding the plate in place behind him. As Bishop Moved down the pipe, behind him was the sparks of Rainbow Dash’s wilding tool. While ahead of him was the conduit dwindles straight to seeming infinity, ending in a tiny white dot. The robot gun guarding the entrance to operations opened up, their metallic clatter ringing along the corridors. Twilight picked up her flamethrower and headed for computer central. Rainbow Dash finished welding the floor plate that blocked Bishop’s rabbit hole into place with a flourish, put the torch aside, and followed Twilight to operations. Twilight and Rainbow Dash ran to the tactical console, where Applejack was mesmerized by the images from the surveillance cameras. The flashes of the sentry-guns flared out the sensitive video, but impressions of the figures were moving in the smoky corridor. The robot sentries hammered away, driving steamers of tracer fire into the swirling mist. “This is unbelievable, forty meters and closing,” Applejack looks and the other monitors again, “now fifteen.” “How many are out there?” asked Twilight nervously. “I can’t tell, Lots,” replied applejack looking the sentry monitors, “D-gun down fifty percent.” Suddenly the guns’ fire lashed out at the invaders. High-pitch screams of dying creatures echoed all around the corridor. “C-guns right behind it,” said Applejack. The monitors showed the war out in the corridors. There is an occasional visible glimpse of one of the creatures, but it is quickly dispatched by the spray of bullets, throwing its yellow acid blood all over the corridor. Pinkie was staring at the monitors and watching the count of the ammunition as it was quickly going down, “They ain’t stoppin’ ‘em, they ain’t stoppin’ ‘em.” “Hundred-fifty rounds on D,” said Applejack, to the others. “Come on, come on baby. Come on D!” said pinkie nervously tilting back and forth. Applejack kept her eye on the monitor display as it was showing ninety-one rounds in D-gun and dropping. The other monitor showed more scenes of the seemingly-endless battle going on. While the sentry’s were killing lots of creatures, while they explode upon contact with the bullets, and the acid thrown everywhere. The words ‘critical’ suddenly started flashing and beeping on the screen, indicating the gun is almost dry of ammo. “D-gun down to twenty...ten,” the gun then went empty, “Dammit!” Grunted Applejack, as she got up from her chair and grabbed her gun. D-gun clicks empty and continues tracking for the creatures, but C-gun stops firing un-expectantly. Both guns’ sat still, while smoking and swirling to locate any possible targets. “Wait!” shouted Twilight, getting Applejacks attention, “they’re retreating. The guns’ stooped them.” Twilight looked at the monitors very closely, as the video images was a swirling wall of smoke. There were dark and twisted shapes scattered at the edge of visibility, but nothing emerged from the walls of smoke. Applejack stared at the monitors in disbelief, she watch the cameras on the guns’ turn left then right, showing nothing, but smoke and darkness. “You’re right,” said Applejack in surprise. In that moment everypony exhaled slowly, and calmed down just for a second. “Next time, they walk right up and knock,” warned Applejack. The digital counters for the two sentries units read ‘0’ and ‘10’ respectively, less than a seconds worth of firing. “Yeah, but THEY don’t know that. They’re probably looking for other ways to get in, that’ll take them awhile,” said Twilight giving the others some hope. Pinkie looked at Twilight, giving her a weird smile, “Maybe we got ‘em demoralized.” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes toward the crazy pink pony, “Shut up.” “I want you two walking the perimeter... Move!” commanded Applejack to Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie. Twilight levitated a cup of cold coffee, draining it in one gulp. Her hooves were shacking, due to being terrified and trapped, plus being tired. The two ponies were about to move out of the room, until Applejack stopped them, “Hey, listen, we’re all in stung-out shape, but stay frosty and alert. We can’t afford to let one of those bastards in here.” Yeah, right,” nodded Rainbow Dash to Applejack. She then turned to Pinkie and hits her on her chest plate. The two troopers headed out of the room and down the corridor, Twilight drain down another cup of cold coffee. “How long has it been since you got any sleep?” asked Applejack, “Twenty-four hours?” Twilight looks at Applejack. She seemed soul-weary, drained by the nerve-wracking tension. When she answered, her voice seemed distant, and detached, “Applejack, I’m not going to end up like those others, you’ll take care of it...won’t you?” Applejack stood in silence for a second, but then broke the silence and replied in a calm, but sincere tone, “If it comes to THAT, I’ll do us both.” Twilight then took a deep breath and calmed down, “Listen; let’s make sure it doesn’t come to that, alright?” Twilight smiles slightly, she then looks away to drink her cold coffee. “Hey, I want to introduce you to a personal friend of mine,” She picks up her pulse-rifle, lifting it for Twilight to see. “This is an M-41A pulse-rifle...10mm, with over and under 30mm pump-action grenade launcher, feel the weight,” said Applejack, as she cocked the pump-action and hoofed it to Twilight. She hefts the weapon with her hooves. It was heavy and awkward, “Okay, what do I do?” *** *** *** Mean while in the conduit, Bishop was in claustrophobic limbo between two echoing infinites. He approached an irregular hole which admits a tiny shaft of light. He puts his eyes up to the acid-etched opening. As he looked through the hole he saw something, as its drooling jaws flashed towards him, slamming against the steel with a vicious scraping snap. He suddenly flatten himself away from the opening and inches along, looking pale and strained, as he glances at his watch, and then started to crawl down the long tunnel. Back at the operations, Twilight had the stock of the M-41A snuggled up to her cheek. It was awkwardly strange, as Applejack was instructing her. “Okay, pull it in tight here,” said Applejack, as she was securing the gun in a levelled position. “Right,” said Twilight. “Lean into it,” said Applejack, as she was teaching her to hold the gun more accurately. “Uh huh,” replied Twilight. “Alright, it WILL kick some.” Applejack then stepped back. “Alright, when the counter reads zero here, you...” Before she could tell Twilight what to do next, she pulled up the gun, “I press this up?” “That’s right,” said Applejack. Twilight snapped out the bolt and dropped out the magazine. “Then, get another one in quick and slap it in hard.” “Right,” nodded Twilight, as she levitated the same clip that fell out from the gun, and slapped it back into the gun. “Now you’re ready to rock n’ roll,” smirked Applejack, as she was impressed of Twilight learning quickly, she then looked down and unslings something that looked like hoof watch, and gave it to Twilight. “Here. I wanted to give this to my sister, but I’d never got the time give it to her.” “What is it?” asked Twilight moving her attention away from the pulse rifle. “It a tracking device, it helps me find anypony that goes missing. All of us have ‘em.” replied Applejack. “Don’t Worry, I’ll give it to her.” said Twilight, she then looked back at the pulse-rifle in her hooves and examined it closely. She now knows how to shot the weapon and hold on to it without using magic, but she looks at the pump-action underneath the weapon. “What’s this?” asked Twilight, as she indicated a stout tube underneath the slender pulse-rifles’ barrel. “Uh, that’s the grenade launcher...I don’t think you want to mess with that,” said Applejack, nervously. “You started this, show me everything, I can handle myself,” replied Twilight, pulling the rifle back into her shoulder. Applejack stood and looked at her friend while she had a slight smile to her face, “yeah, I’ve noticed.” Minutes later, the door to operations opened and Twilight strides out. While she walked down the corridor, she was now was carrying her newfound friend, the M-41A. Rarity suddenly stepped out from the door to the Med-Lab, while looking weak, but sound, and Filthy Rich was right behind her. He barely glanced at her. That was fine with Twilight. Every time he opened his mouth, she had the urge to strangle him, but they needed him. They needed every hoof they could get, including those stained with blood. Filthy was still one of them, a pony. “How do you feel?” asked Twilight, while she stopping to speak to her friend. Rarity rubbed the back of her neck, “Alright, I guess, but I’ve got one hell of a hangover...look, Twilight...I just wanna...” Twilight interrupts the white unicorn, “Forget it...excuse me.” She then shoulders past Rarity and Filthy into the Med-Lab, he watched her as she went into the room where Applebloom was napping. Rarity turned to see Rainbow Dash starring at her with cold, slitted eyes. “You still want to kill me,” she said quietly. Her reply mixed contempt with acceptance. “It won’t be necessary.” She continued past her, striding towards the next checkpoint. Twilight crosses the deserted lab, passing through the annex to the small O.R. where she left Applebloom. She entered the darkened chamber her eyes widen as Applebloom was not on the bed, to where she left her the last time. Looking around and trying to find Applebloom, Twilight looked, but on a hunch, she kneels down and peered under the bed. Applebloom was curled up into a ball, while jammed as far back as she could. Twilight stared at Applebloom’s tiny face, so angelic despite the demons that have chased her through her dreams and the reality between dreams. She laid the rifle on top of the bed and crawls carefully underneath, without waking the little filly. Twilight slides up behind her and slips her arms around the filly, Applebloom cries out, a vague inarticulate plea. “Its okay, its okay,” said Twilight quietly calming the filly down, as rested her head on her arm and began drifting off to sleep. Twilight hadn’t intended to go to sleep. All she’d wanted was to share a little space, some warmth, and a few moments of quiet with the filly. But her body knew what she needed better than she did. When she relinquished control and allowed it the chance to minister to its own requirements, it took over immediately, making her drift into a sleep.