//------------------------------// // Chapter 39: Looks Can Be Deceiving // Story: From Humans, to Cryptids, to... Ponies? // by TLP //------------------------------// "You want options, I'll give you options..." Marcus kept going over those words as he slept. He expected someone to come into his dream and tell him something about the Cryptids, as Samantha has been doing for quite a while. That moment never came, however. Instead, he was greeted with the sight of a pony with a dark blue coat and a lighter blue, wavy mane, similar to Celestia's. "Princess Luna?"... Marcus said quietly. He then saw the silhouette of a man wearing a black vest along with a full set of black BDU's, and a red beret on his head. "Archer..." The man slowly approached Luna as Marcus watched with growing concern. Princess Luna's P.O.V Princess Luna was now done raising her moon, and was now watching the night sky while standing calmly on the balcony, pondering about the odd creatures that had appeared in Equestria not even a week ago. "I wonder if thy creatures will cause any harm to thy citizens of Ponyville... it seems they are civilized to the point where they quickly earned the trust of four of the Element Bearers. Oh, I hope that Celestia makes the right decision when they come to court.. She did mention something about 'horrifying monsters' posing an immense threat to Equestria, and that 'these creatures are our only hope'. What are they?.. What do they want from us?..." Luna thought as she lowered her head and sighed. Never had she had to deal with this much stress since she was banished to the moon. She wondered what caused her sister to have such confidence in these new creatures. What would happen if they were given such trust? What options did they have? "I'll tell you what they want..." A deep male voice with an accent spoke coldly behind her. Luna gasped in surprise and turned around. Her eyes went wide as she was now facing what was one of the supposed creatures found by the four girls. It stood on two forelegs, and had the similarities of an ape. Except it was wearing a black uniform along with some sort of vest, kinda like a toolbelt, but much more sophisticated and useful for specific situations. The creature also had a dark tan helmet with a flag on it, and was wearing a pair of black tinted shades. It also had a tan and black tinted metallic stick slung on its back. "H-how did you... did you just read m-my thoughts?.." Luna asked nervously, giving the man a questioning look. The man just smiled coldly, which made Luna uneasy. "Please forgive me your majesty, but I couldn't help but see you pondering about what has happened. And as for how I read your mind..." He chuckled darkly. "Well... let's say that my species can do quite a few interesting things." Luna took a few steps back out of pure nervousness before asking another question. "How much do you know about thy m-monsters my sisters keeps mentioning?" "All I know is that I'm here to give you a couple of options on what to do here. For starters, the thing about the monsters. They want nothing more than to kill every living thing on this little planet of yours." The man said, leaning against the concrete railing, looking at his hands. "W-what?" Luna said in utter shock. "Why would they want to do that?" "To expand. They have an entire ecosystem underground. They're bred for battle, and cause nothing more than death and destruction." The mans said in a matter-of-fact tone to his voice. Luna's eyes widened even more as she looked at the ground below her hooves, raising one up in fear, disgarding the fact she and him are on the balcony. The man saw this and chuckled internally. "But... that was back where we came from. Here on this little planet of your, however, that's not the case." "W-what do you mean, creature?" Luna asked, somewhat relieved at the news, but not by much. "What I mean, is that when we came here, we didn't just bring our type here. I found out that when we were brought here, we also brought a couple of those things here. When the Diamond Dog was found dead, that was just because the poor mutt was unfortunate enough to find the thing." Luna nodded nervously in understanding. "I... I see. Are there any more, though?" She asked. The man shook his head. "Your sister, Princess Celestia, sent us on a mission to eliminate the little bugger. And since me and my squad have, you have nothing to worry about. But I will still however, give you two options..." The man then slowly walked forward towards Luna, who was backing away from him, looking side to side nervously until she hit the railing. She then turned to the man with a look of fear on her face. "P-please, do not come closer to thee!" She said with a shaky voice. The man just chuckled as he got right up into her face. The green in his eyes were replaced with nothing but blackness, as if she was staring at death herself. Luna's mouth quivered slightly as she no longer felt herself have full control of her mind, or herself in general, and was now obliged to do anything he said without hesitation. "On second thought, I will give you only one option..." The man said coldly while staring straight into her soul. "You will do whatever you can to stop those soldiers from finding our hives.." The man said, his voice taking a much deeper and corrupted tone. "Or else..." The man then played a mental image in Luna's head. She saw something that would haunt her for the rest of her eternal life. It showed what looked like Canterlot, and the castle, destroyed, and covered in red and being taken over by the monsters her sister was mentioning about. The skies above her were light blood red, along with the surrounding areas covered in red plant-like things he called 'Hives'. She then slowly looked down below her, and saw that she was standing upon several hundreds of thousands of empty pony skulls, and other skulls varying from Griffon's to Dragons. She wanted to scream, to run, to help, to escape it all, but she was still not in complete control of herself, so she could do nothing but watch in utter horror. "And that's just the start, your Majesty. You will help us..." Luna, in her mesmerized state and brainwashed state, nodded slowly as her mind slowly formed into something she never felt before. She had the sudden urge to... wake them up. To raise them from their slumber and unleash them to the world.. The man chuckled. "If you do as we expect, then you, unlike the other pathetic, worthless creatures, will be spared." Luna nodded as the man backed away slowly, his entire body going static as he did so, still giving Luna a dark smug look. "You will play a big part in this.. do not disappoint us. We have a lot to do and to talk about.. soon. Oh, so soon..." The man backed away into the frame that lead to the hallway, which was dark. The man then disappeared in a midst of blue smoke. Luna now had slight control of her mind, as she blinked several times and tried to take in what just happened. She still didn't feel her complete self, however. That part that wanted to unleash those horrid creatures into her world still remained. And it just wouldn't go away. She hit the floor as the real side of her was overwhelmed by everything. She then started weeping silently to herself as the other side started to slowly take over her mind, her personality, and herself in general. Marcus' P.O.V "What.. the fuck.." Marcus whispered as he watched Archer disappear in a midst of blue smoke, leaving a confused, scared, and utterly shocked Luna to cry and weep for herself. Marcus cursed to himself as he thought over about what happened. "Jesus.. where's Samantha when you actually need her?" Marcus said outloud to nobody in general. He then felt a slight tap on his shoulder as the see-through portal closed, leaving him in the dark once more. Marcus swiftly turned around, only to be facing Samantha herself. "Speak of the devil..." He thought, but his relief was short lived when he saw her eyes take on a dark shade, just like what Archer did. Marcus' eyes widened, but before he could do anything, Samantha cocked back her fist, and sent it forward, connecting to Marcus' face. He then stumbled back, only to find himself going into a spiral, as everything around him stretched out. Marcus was then turned around as he fell, noticing that he was now falling down from the sky, with an ocean being below him. He was about to position himself to go into a straight dive, until he saw the water break below him, showing the Kraken Cryptid that was now below him, with its mouth open, waiting anxiously for Marcus to fall. He put his arms in front of his face as he fell. As he fell, he heard five words echo through his mind endlessly. "All part of the plan...." ... "AAAHH!" Marcus screamed as he rose himself from his bed, wide-eyed as his training kicked in. He was breathing heavily, noticing that he was drenched in sweat, and was somehow holding his knife in his hand. He then looked around frantically, noticing that his fellow Marines and soldiers were already waking up. Light from the sun beamed through the curtains in thick, straight lines. He noticed that Jackson was looking at him with a confused and worried look on his face. "Yo man, you okay there?" He asked. Marcus eased his breathing and nodded, putting his knife back in his sheath. "What the hell were you dreaming about?" "Nothing, just..." He hesitated for a moment, deciding that this wasn't the best time to tell them about what happened. "Just an odd dream." "Odd? How?" "Let's just say it's a good thing it was just a dream." Marcus replied. "I hope..." Jackson gave Marcus a skeptical look before nodding and collecting his stuff. Marcus then did the same, while the others slowly woke up from their slumber. "Ugh.. what the hell? Who yelled?" Randy asked as he got up. "Sorry, just.. my PTSD is getting the better of me more often than not right now.." Marcus lied, not taking his eyes off his backpack as he stored his equipment. "Ah.. alright then. No worries, man. Just warn us next time." Randy said with a smug look. Marcus just smirked and shook his head as he finished packing his stuff. "So.. today's court day, huh?" Kayla said in a disappointing tone while she slung her ghillie suit over her shoulder. Marcus and the others responded with a nod and a 'Eeyup'. "Let's just hope it goes smooth as we think it should.." Marcus said as they prepared to walk out of the room, but before they could, they heard a knock on the door. "Look's like our escort's here." Thompson said as he walked over to the door. He grabbed the handle and opened the door, showing the four girls that were sleeping next door, along with Ironhoof. "Are you all ready?" Ironhoof asked. "As ready as we'll ever be, I suppose." Thompson said. Ironhoof then stepped aside as the humans walked out of the room and onto the hallway. They then walked down the hallway and turned to the right, with Ironhoof leading the way towards court martial. He then turned around, looking over his shoulder. "So how did you all sleep?" Asking the group behind him. "I think I speak for everyone here that it was better than sleeping on the ground, that's for sure." Dempsey said, getting nods of approval from the other humans. "Better than the ones from boot camp." Kevin said as he cracked his back loudly, making the girls wince a bit at the sound. "What about you four?" Ironhoof asked the girls. "They were a bit rough, at first. Like sleeping on a huge slab of bricks. I'm guessing they haven't been used in a while?" Twilight asked. Ironhoof nodded. "Ah still think it's better than sleeping in hay, right Jackson?" Applejack asked Jackson. He chuckled and nodded in agreement. "I slept pretty good in them, even if they were a bit rough here and there, if you don't mind me saying..." Fluttershy said in a quiet voice. Ironhoof chuckled and shook his head, telling her not to worry. "It was nowhere near as comfortable as sleeping on a cloud, but it was... 'meh'..." Rainbow said, shrugging her shoulders. A smirk then appeared on her face as she remembered something. "Oh, and a couple spots on Twilight's mattress were a bit whiter than the rest..." Twilight was now blushing deeply as everyone and everypony was now looking at her. Rainbow saw this and started laughing like a maniac at her expense. Twilight gathered herself somewhat as she tried to retaliate. "It-it wasn't what you think it was! Maybe it w-was just paint when they remodeled the room!" She said hopefully. "Hate to break it to you, but that room hasn't been remade in any way for about four years." Ironhoof said, making Rainbow's laughter increase in sheer volume, while the humans chuckled and the other two girls giggled. Twilight grunted in anger as they continued walking. "Aw cheer up, sugarcube." Applejack said, patting Twilight's back reassuringly. "We were just messin' with ya!" "Yeah, ease up a bit, egghead." Rainbow chimed, nudging the Unicorn. "Who wouldn't laugh at the fact you probably slept in a bed where two other ponies were 'getting it on'?" Rainbow asked teasingly. Twilight just rolled her eyes as they continued walking. As they turned the corner, Mike noticed two ponies wearing black and white suits with shades and a mouth piece watching him and the others like a pair of hawks. "Suspects are being escorted to the courtroom now.." One of them spoke quietly into the mouth piece. They then quietly followed the group behind them. Mike then leaned down to Twilight. "Who are those guys following us?" He asked. "One of them is asking a question to Twilight Sparkle.." Mike heard a faint whisper behind them. "They're the Royal Secret Service." Twilight quietly responded as she walked along nervously. "Their main job is to look or spy on anything or anypony that might harm the Princess' and its inhabitants." "You guys have a Secret Service here too?" He asked surprised. "Buck! We've been made!" The pony whispered vigerously into his mouth peice. "Abort! Abort!" The other pony said. Mike then quickly turned around, clearly annoyed by their antics. Once he did, he saw that the two 'agents' were trying to conceal themselves behind two Royal Guard statues. Mike turned back around, mentally facepalming as he walked. "That's their take on the Secret Service? Oh God... I wonder how their 'special forces' are like... if they even have one..." They then stopped walking as they now were facing a huge pair of doors. "Welp, here's the courtroom..." Ironhoof said. The girls nervously took in a breath of air, while the humans were now already bored to death while thinking 'What the hell are you four worried about?' After standing in utter silence for a good three minutes, Kevin stepped forward. "I'm bored. Let's go." Kevin then pushed the doors open, revealing a medium-sized courtroom. To their surprise, the room was, for the most part, empty. The only ones inside besides the group were two guards, a single judge, and the two Princess'. They calmly walked down the tiled floor and down to the podium where the judge was. The four girls and Ironhoof bowed, while the humans saluted to show somewhat a bit of respect. The Princess' nodded as the ponies rose and awaited for the judge to speak. The judge cleared her throat and looked at the humans. "We've been discussing the issue which involved Sergeant Dempsey Tank, and Private Romulus, in which he was accidentaly killed while in a patrol in the Everfree Forest yesterday. Is that correct?" "Yes, your Honor." Dempsey replied. "And you are blaming your actions on a certain disorder you have developed?" "Yes, your Honor." "What is this disorder you say you have called?" "Post Tramautic Stress Disorder." The judge nodded slowly and rose her glasses higher up. "Well, I'll be honest with you, Sergeant. I haven't heard that type of excuse in a while.." Dempsey was a bit hurt by her statement. "With all due respect, your Honor, it's not an excuse, it's a fact." The girls' eyes widened in shock, but the judge wasn't moved. "Then with all due respect, Sergeant.." The judge then slung of her glasses and leaned in. "I think that what you said is a load of bullshit." The girls gasped loudly, even the guards looked a bit stunned. "Your Honor!" Celestia said sternly at the judge. "Do not speak in such a tone!" Dempsey, however, was chuckling. "Whatever happened to 'innocent until proven guilty'?" "I apologize, but such a disorder has not been spoken of in over one thousand years! And then, out of nowhere, comes an ape-like creature that claims they have it?" Asks the judge skeptically, raising an eyebrow. That's when Twilight spoke up. "Your Honor, I don't think that you should be so skeptical about them. They have seen combat at an unimaginable level to which ponykind has not seen at all." "My student here is right, your Honor. They have all been and gone through the horrors of war. I can't even begin to describe the ways they went and gone through suffering for the greater good of their country, and possibly their world." Celestia added. The judge pondered for a while. A long while. Then, Marcus bumped in. "Look, we are American soldiers, and Marines. All of us here are basically idealists. We believe that we can make a difference in the world, and if it is to come at the cost of our lives, then so be it. Sergeant Dempsey here had no intentions to harm the Royal Guard, or create any tensions between us and Equestria in general. " The judge only nodded at these words as she still pondered. After about three minutes, she sighed and looked at the humans, more specifically Dempsey. "I've officially come to a conclusion. You will not be jailed for your actions, Sergeant Dempsey, but I do not want to see you anywhere near any member of the Royal Guard unless the Captain of the Royal Guard, Shining Armor here, allows it. You and your squad will also be escorted by two elite guards when inside the Canterlot Castle, and when outside of where you are currently staying. You will not engage in any action unless given the permission to do so." "Great, we're gonna be babysat and watched. Eh, could've been worse.. a whole lot worse." Marcus thought as he heard the girls sigh in relief, and the guards nodded in agreement. The gunners whooped in happiness, as they felt a weight being lifted from their shoulders. "Thank you, your Honor." Dempsey said with a hint of gratitude. "Don't ever let me see you creatures in this court room again. Also, I have yet to see your so called 'acts of valor'." The judge said. "Unless you want to have the horrid images of war embedded into your innocent little mind of yours for the rest of your life, I suggest you save yourself and not ask to see them ever again." Marcus and Dempsey warned. "Still, I want to see what you did to get such a disorder. I want the truth." The judge said, not backing down until she got what she was asking for. Dempsey has now had enough of her. He swiftly turned around and faced the judge. "You can't HANDLE the truth!" He bellowed, making everyone in the room cover their ears. The judge was taken aback by this, and watched in silence as the ponies and humans walked out of the room, with Celestia and Luna by the humans' side, and the girls behind them, with the guards on the sides. "Well, that went smoother than I expected.." Kevin said, giving a slight sigh of relief, but now without a hint of sarcasm to go along with it. "I'm just glad it didn't turn into a shit-show." "It almost did. But holy crap, she was nowhere near as scary and as stressful as court martial back on Earth, dude..." Dempsey commented. Celestia and Twilight were a bit curious by his statement. "You have court martial back in your former world too?" Celestia asked. The humans nodded. "Oh yeah. I guess our justice system here is somewhat similar to the ones here, but I have a big enough headache already... can we drop it for now?" Dempsey pleaded, holding his head with his left hand. The girls just giggled at his action and nodded. "Okay. You all might want to head back into your rooms. We have much more to discuss. Ironhoof here will lead you all to the dining room so we can discuss some 'issues' and 'solutions' while we eat." Celestia said. The others agreed, albeit a bit nervous on what they were going to discuss. Ironhoof and another guard were about to escort the humans and the girls back to their rooms, until Marcus remembered something. Marcus turned to Luna, who was calmly walking by Celestia's side. "Hey, um, Princess Luna?" "Yes?" Luna asked. "Sorry for the random question I'm about to ask, but did you happen to have an odd dream last night?..." Marcus asked, still very skeptical about what happened when he slept, and was wondering if it was more than just a dream. "I have not had any odd dreams whatsoever. For has Celestia not told you that I raise the moon at night?" She responded. Marcus chuckled. "No, she's told us. I guess I was just a bit worried about something I dreamed about. Sorry for asking." Marcus apologized. "It is quite fine. I have questions of my own, if you don't mind me asking thee." She asked. "What's up with her voice?".. "Don't hesitate to ask them. But let's wait until breakfast." Marcus suggested. Luna nodded as they continued walking down the hallway, not noticing Luna's eyes switch to a pure black shade for a split second, and her smirk.