A new life in a new world. Of course, a new world means a new species. With a new species, there's a new culture. A new culture means new ideals and standards.
Why was I here? The same reason as every other call, they need someone to do their dirty work. Politicians, a bunch of silver-spoon-up-the-ass idiots.
Do you know what I really hate about my current situation? That I'm hungry.
I set my rifle aside and took off my backpack, placing it on the bench beside me and started searching through it. Soon, I found what I was looking for, a packaged set of cardboard MRE. Well, it was actually macaroni and cheese but it may as well have been cardboard. It's not that I hate MREs as I actually do enjoy eating one. What I'm just saying is that I like a steak better.
As I ate, I heard rustling behind me. I drew my HK45c and aimed it at the only bush that was behind me. Swallowing what was in my mouth, I said "I know you're there and any ill intent will result in injury. Step out slowly and we will have no quarrel. You will say nothing and try nothing."
The bush started rustling again and slowly, a small red hair, yellow filly stepped out of the bush. Her most notable feature was the bow in her hair. What does she need?
Well, at least I don't have to hold a gun on someone so I holstered my pistol. "Any reason why you're here?" I asked her.
"Mah sister told me bout your problem" said the pony kid/girl/female child/whatever the hell pre-adolescent female ponies are called. Other than my confusion for what she was, I found it weird how she showed no nervousness to being around me to speaking to me. Strange. Also, sister? Well, from her accent, I'm guessing her sister was that country pony's. Applejack was it?
Finding the other seven, being away from my friends and family, having no purpose to live, having to learn a culture, living in a country that's at war, or one of the other many problems that I have to deal with because of a horribly thought out solution of an idiotic ruler to a different problem that I was supposed to deal with? "Which one?" I asked.
"What Celestia did ta yah" replied the girl pony(guess I'll have to stick with that). "How you don't have your family and friends anymore." Oh, that one. "I feel sorry for yah, even if yah hurt those ponies."
I let out a light sigh. "Look, I was a little mad" I said.
"Over being away from your home?" asked the girl pony.
"Yes" I deadpanned. Nope, not going to show any tact. Doesn't really matter anymore. I'm in a god damn land of magical ponies and rainbows. "So why are you here?"
She reached into the bush and pulled out a basket of apples. "I was hoping to cheer you up" said the pony.
With apples? It's thoughtful and all but who cheers someone up with apples? "With apples?" I asked.
"Yeah!" said the pony with excitement. "I bucked them myself!"
Wait, she did what?! "You what to the apples?"
"Buck. You know, kicking a tree with your hindlegs" she replied.
Oh, thank god. She meant the thing when animals kick out with their hindlegs. "Okay then." She walked, well trotted, over to the bench with the basket in her mouth. Once here, she held the basket up to me. Picking one of them up, I bit into it. "Well thanks for the-" Oh my god, this apple is fucking amazing.
"Are yah cheered up now?" she asked.
"Look, I like the apples and whatnot but that doesn't make me forget what Celestia did. I'm homeless with no money and everyone I know is now permanently gone." I took another bite of the apple.
Another bite. "Aw... At least you like the apples?" said the pony. Another bite.
"It was a kind gesture." I was about to take another bite of the apple when I noticed it was now only a core. I tossed it away behind myself. "Is your sister Applejack?"
"Yeah! My name is Apple Bloom!" Of course it's also of relation to an apple. Well, at least I actually have something to refer to her by.
"Imagine if you no longer had your friends, your home, and your sister. Imagine how you'd feel. Do you think some apples would cheer you up?" I asked her.
"No" she replied. "Can ah ask yah something?" I nodded.
She looked away from me. "Why do yah wear all that stuff?"
"It is-" Well not anymore. "Was for my profession."
"Like your job?" asked Apple Bloom. "Weren't you part of your home's royal guards?"
To put it in simple terms. "Yes."
"Then why do yah need all that?" asked Apple Bloom. "Our guards wear armor and they only carry a sword or a spear."
Because knights are nowhere even close to being as dangerous as any trained soldier with a gun. "Because where I'm from, I have to deal with things a lot worse than what your guards deal with."
"But you're here now, why don't you take it off?" she asked. She does have a point but...
She's pretty smart. "Old habits die hard I guess."
"Can you at least take off the helmet?" she asked.
"Yeah, why not?" I said. I unbuckled my helmet and slid it off my helmet, revealing my short black hair.
"It's short" she said.
"Yeah. I'm supposed to keep it short. It's a requirement for our guards" I said.
She tilted her head and looked at me questioningly. The weirdly large size of her head made this even more effective. "Why? Our guards have long manes." They're god damn horses, that's why they have long hair, er mane as I should call it.
"So the hair doesn't get in the way" I said. "Sometimes, does your hair fall in front of your face, blocking everything? Our guards are supposed to be prepared for any scenario, even if it's as simple as that."
Her eyes darted to my chest. "Why does your armor look weird?"
"What do you mean?" I asked her.
"You're armor. It's all... Not metallish or knightish" said Apple Bloom.
Knight armor. Antique pieces of decoration if you're from the US but if your from here, it's the latest "gear" with the most "advances" and will guarantee some protection. To be fair, their swords would cut right through my vest. Minus the ceramic plates of course. Those might shatter under the force of a mace or something. "You mean my vest?" I patted it a few times. "It's to protect me from bullets."
"Bull its?" she asked.
"Bullets. B-U-L-L-E-T-S. One word" I enunciated. I grabbed my M4a1 and slowly pull back on the charging handle back once, ejecting a round onto my lap. Lying the rifle on my lap, I picked up the bullet and held it up for her to see. "That is a bullet."
"How is that any dangerous?" she asked.
This kid and her questions. "Right now, it's not dangerous. However, when it's in the thing that I just took it out of, it's incredibly dangerous and ready to be used" I said. "Do you know what a crossbow and a slingshot is?" She nodded. "Well, my weapon is like a mix between the two. The only difference is that it sends the bullet fast enough to punch through any type of guard armor. Yes, this includes the same type of armor that your guards wear."
"Then why doesn't everypony use those?" she asked while pointing at my M4a1 with a free hoof.
"Because they're only from my home land" I said. "And I won't let anyone borrow my weapons because of what your princess did." I pocketed the free 5.56 round and flipped my rifle to safe. Then I sat it aside and continued eating my MRE. "Any other questions?"
"Yes! What are yah eatin?" she asked with a horrified look on her face.
I looked down at the mac n cheese MRE. "Military food" I replied.
"Is it supposed tah-"
Looks like a bag of melted wax? "Yes." Doesn't stop me from eating it. "And no, it does not taste good at all."
"Then why are yah eating it?!" she asked.
"Cause I like the taste." I finished it up and tossed the remains behind me.
"Can ah ask yah one last thing?" Apple Bloom asked.
"What?"
"Can ah just sit here with yah?"
I picked up my helmet and placed it back on my head, buckling it back in. "Sure."
She hopped up onto the bench and rested her head against my leg. "Yah seem like yah need the company. My granny always says that no one should ever be lonely."
"Loneliness is a but a simple yet deadly curse" I said. "But it is easily cured."