Shining Armor's P.O.V
Shining Armor was fast asleep with his wife; Princess Cadance by his side. Leading an empire with his wife, much less being the Captain of the Royal Guards was and still is a no easy feat to perform; surely a week of vacation with Cadance, his sister, and her friends could lessen the stress significantly. All seemed to be peaceful, until knocks were heard on their door; waking them up.
"Who could that be?" Cadance asked with a sleepy tone; rubbing her eyes.
"I don't know dear" the ivory-coated stallion replied "But it must be important" with that, he pecked her lips and answered the door.
When he opened the door, the cold night air rushed to his body; waking him up from his drowsy state. But what truly woke him up was the figure standing before him, no other than the Princess of the Night herself.
"Ah, Princess Luna; what a pleasant surprise. Is there anything I could help you with?" he asked politely. As she heard her beloved auntie's name being spoken; Cadance jumped out of the bed and rushed to her husband's side.
"Hello auntie, can we help you?" she asked with a cheery tone.
Luna smiled,"Forgive me for waking you two from your sleep, but we have a serious issue on our hoofs"
Cadance's eyes widened and Shining Armor's muscles tensed up as adrenaline rushed through his veins; knowing very well what he was about to get himself into. Having been trained as a Royal Guard, much less becoming its very captain has honed his reflexes and awareness more than an average stallion .
"What do you need me to do princess?" he asked with a serious tone and expression.
"I need you to form a platoon of guards and meet me at the throne room" she replied before teleporting away.
Within minutes, a platoon of guards consisting of unicorns were formed with Shining Armor leading them. Princess Cadance, accompanied by Princess Twilight and her friends; who were also awoken when they heard the chatters outside, were also with him. Wasting no time, they teleported to the throne room.
Back in the throne room, Princesses Luna and Celestia were observing the four unknown entities; sitting idly on the lush Canterlot Gardens. The creatures' bodies gleamed under the light of Luna's moon and stars; giving them an ethereal glow underneath the night sky. Despite the multitude of questions and wonders lingering on the princesses' minds, the fear of the unknown quickly swept those thoughts aside.
"Sister, what are we going to do if they are dangerous?" Princess Luna asked; still not taking her eyes away from them.
"Then we shall take action immediately" her sister replied with her usual poker-face, yet her voice was astoundingly stern.
Before any of them could talk, a bright flash appeared behind them; signaling the appearance of Shining Armor, his platoon, and his companions.
Shining Armor and his platoon snapped the celestial sisters a firm salute; ready to heed their call.
"Everypony" Celestia began "Just now, four unknown entities flew over Canterlot. Me and Princess Luna brought them down into the garden as a precaution; but again, we don't know what they are, or if they are dangerous or not." she said towards the group.
"We need to know about these creatures, and if they are hostile, you are only permitted to take them down; not out. With some luck, maybe we can communicate with them." Princess Luna added.
"Guards, form a defensive line in front of the princesses and the civilians; protect them with your lives!" Shining Armor barked. With that, the guards formed two layers of defensive position with a combination of spears and magic as their firepower; the princesses and the rest of the civilians stayed behind the barrier of guards, but ready to use their respective skills if necessary.
As the group proceeded to the gardens, they could see strange bipedal creatures holding elongated metal sticks on their claws; exiting the beings mentioned earlier. Then, they proceeded to knelt on one knee (at least from their point of view) and formed some sort of perimeter with their sticks pointed at them.
With a twirl from Shining's hoof, the guards moved in and surrounded the creatures on all sides with spears levitated in their magic grip; the same tactic they used to drive away or in some cases incapacitate Ursa Minors or worse, Ursa Majors. However, he noticed some things about these odd creatures; they seemed to be highly organized as he judged from how they formed the perimeter, clothed, and they tilted their heads towards one another as if they were communicating with each other, though no voice was heard .These three facts alone marked their high amount of intelligent and dexterity; noticing this, Shining Armor's horn glowed with magic and he spoke in a manner similar to Princess Luna's Royal Canterlot voice.
"If you come with peace, you will not be harmed!" he boomed.
Sentinels P.O.V
"If you come with peace, you will not be harmed!" The ivory-coated stallion's voice boomed across the gardens.
"Boss" Joker said with a dumbfounded tone through his private com-link "That unicorn just spoke in English! and they can do fuckin' telekinesis!" he said as his nerd-gasm started to kick in.
"No shit" Gideon replied with an equally dumbfounded tone.
"What's the play sir?" The former deep-cover NSA operative, Ramirez spoke through his comms "Warm-friendly entities, or shadowy-mysterious enigmas? Advise we go the warm-friendly entities, we don't want to freak them out just yet or worse; bloodshed." During his time with the NSA, Ramirez had been trained intensively in every physical and psychological aspects to peak condition. And when it comes to playing and manipulating people's emotions and minds, he is very good at it. Much like a counterpart of Ilona, but way warmer and friendlier.
Silence took over the Sentinels as Gideon weighed his options; being mysterious faceless entities was more than intimidating, and quite frankly, he likes it. But nevertheless, Ramirez got a point; it is in their basic protocol to form friendly relations with civilians if possible, especially during covert-ops in case they run into them.
"Fuck it" Gideon mused to himself before speaking through the comms again "All teams, lower your weapons but keep your fingers on your bloody triggers" he paused "We don't know what we might have gotten ourselves into"
"Mitchell, Ramirez, Joker...on me" he said while holstering his IMR "we are going to speak to these horses"
"Ponies, sir" Ramirez replied "too small to be horses"
"Don't worry, we got your backs" Captain Rick Summers, Captain of Hunter team spoke up. This received acknowledgements from Captain Mcknight and Captain John Menendez; Captain of Phantom team, receiving thumbs up from the four. With that; they walked towards the inhabitants of the new world.
Seeing four of those creatures approaching, Princesses Celestia and Luna beckoned for a few guards to move aside as they proceeded towards the creatures. They were ready to unleash their magics if necessary but also tried to avoid conflict if possible, whether these things were friendly or hostile; violence was not their way of solving problems, especially since they don't know what they were capable of. But they shared Shining Armor's point of view and based on how they acted so far; they are not stupid and are to be reckoned with.
As four of the creatures closed in on them; the ponies could see their features more clearly. Each of them were covered in strange black fabric-like matter on their bodies but are way more advanced than a typical fabric, which leads to their assumption that it was clothing of some sort and on their right shoulders was a black patch with a golden writing that reads "Sentinel Task Force" on top of a golden helmet; similar to those used by the guards albeit seemed to be built for the creatures' heads decorated with golden wings on each side topped with golden lightning bolts near each wings.
Another thing that caught their attention was these creatures have metallic-mechanical bars attached to their bodies and appendages (which Twilight assumed was some kind of exoskeleton) . Also, their sticks looked a lot more advanced than a regular stick and seemed to be made of metal as well; but what really shocked the ponies were their faces. These creatures had no facial features; due to the fact that their heads are covered with a black-metal helmet with numerous eye-holes on it, or at least that's what the ponies assumed.
For the guards, being intimidated was an understatement. But nevertheless kept pointing their spears at the newcomers who kept walking towards two of their leaders.
The creatures themselves also noticed the two approaching ponies; which they identified as alicorns. They were strikingly taller than other ponies in the area, even taller than two alicorns behind the barrier of guards. About the same height as the creatures. One alicorn had a white coat, and the other one had a dark blue coat and shorter in height than the alabaster one. Their ethereal manes swayed majestically in the air, aside from no wind or any gush of air in the gardens; the white one possessed a multicolored mane, similar to that of a rainbow's while the other one possessed a mane that resembled the night-sky itself. And finally, they noticed that both alicorns got a mark on their flanks; each depicting the crescent moon and the sun respectively.
When they got five meters from each other, the leading one held up a fist and the newcomers stopped. So did the two alicorns.
They stared at each other for a moment; eyeing each other curiously. After a moment, the alabaster alicorn cleared her throat.
"Hello? can you understand me?" the white alicorn asked with a motherly but firm tone while inching closer to the leader of the group; keeping a neutral face.
With that said, the creatures' glanced at one another and their face-plates retracted into their helmets; showing their great advances in technology and startling the ponies a bit. But instead of seeing a grotesque alien faces, they saw faces possessing two eyes, two ears, a nose, and a mouth; but most importantly, made of flesh and blood just like that of a pony's. Three of the creatures had a fair skin, while the other one had a tan skin.
The leader cleared its throat before speaking; "Yes, I can understand you perfectly; ma'am" it spoke in a masculine voice; with a thick accent similar to ponies from Trottingham, indicating 'it' is a 'he'. The ponies, even the guards, gasped in pure astonishment; hearing the creature just spoke in their own language.
"I am not trying to be rude; but would you mind telling us what you are? we have never seen anything like you before" she continued; still keeping her poker-face.
"I am a human male; same goes for my team, although we have one human female with us too" he said while glancing at his companions behind him "and if I remember my childhood tales correctly, you are an alicorn, and these other ponies...are unicorns"
The white alicorn nodded in acknowledgement "That's correct" she paused "Let me introduce myself, I am Princess Celestia co-ruler of Equestria" then, Celestia glanced at the deep blue alicorn on her side "This is my sister, Princess Luna; also co-ruler of Equestria" Luna gave him a nod of acknowledgement; which he returned.
"Do the four of you have names? it is better for me to call you that way" Celestia asked.
"Yes we do Your Majesties,let us introduce ourselves. My name is Major Gideon, of the Sentinel Task Force" he replied "before you ask; yes, I am a soldier but I assure you; me and my team meant no harm to you or your subjects" Gideon paused, letting his words to sink into their minds.Both princesses stared deeply at him before looking at each other; then nodded. Perhaps they were trying to tell whether he was lying or not. Then, the other three introduced themselves as well.
"Captain Jack Mitchell" One of the fair skinned man said.
"Sergeant Ramirez" The tan-skinned one stated.
"Lieutenant Joker" The other fair one stated as well, as he said his name Joker could hear snickers from the crowd. 'Damn it I know my name sounds weird!' but before any of them could respond, Shining Armor intervened.
"So you are military?!" Shining Armor asked with a hint of shock in his voice; but before he could do something stupid, Princess Luna raised her hoof ; silencing him.
"I appreciate your concern Captain, but please let them continue" The Moon Princess spoke sternly;causing him to flinch a bit.
"Guards, stand down" she ordered, as soon as she said this; the guards pointed their spears to the sky; still eyeing the humans warily.
"Forgive me for the hostility Major, but the Sentinel Task Force?"Princess Luna asked.
"Of course Princess, we are a tier-one multinational special forces unit formed and led by a country called the United States of America, our purpose is basically to fight our world's evil and tyranny" Gideon told them the truth but in a more poetic way. He can't tell them the entire story; not yet. Once again, the princesses stared deeply into his eyes. Their sharp gaze piercing his soul.
"So you are peacekeepers?" She asked again; this time with curiosity in her voice.
"Indeed, princess" Gideon responded politely.
"What business brings you here, Major?" Princess Celestia asked.
"Before I start, I apologize for the inconvenience Your Majesties, it was something that happened beyond our expectations..." Gideon began "Me and my team were travelling on a mission, and we were forced to go straight into a bunch of storm-clouds because if we so much stray from our route we will be torn apart by our enemy's aerial defense systems." He paused "But instead of passing through them, we somehow got transported here"
The Princeses glanced at one another; contemplating the story"I see, do you have any means to return to your world?"
Gideon sighed, before responding "I...we...don't know Princess, we don't even know what exactly caused us to end up here. Even if we use our VTOLs and try to find another bunch of storm-clouds there are no guarantees we will return to our world." He paused while glancing at the VTOLs."until we can piece the puzzles together,I guess we are stuck here".
"Very well" Celestia responded "until further notice, I shall grant all of you temporary residence in the gardens while we discuss this matter; our guards will fetch you some basic amenities. However, you will be under supervision." she stated.
"We understand Princess, but no offense Your Majesties; since we weren't travelling to a civilized area of our world, we came prepared with our own supplies so you don't have to be so troubled for us" Gideon added. "However, on the behalf of my team we greatly appreciate it" he smiled.
"It is of the Equestrian way to be kind and tolerant, Major. Please see to it that you behave favorably during your stay" She replied while returning the smile with her own.
"You have our words, Your Majesties" he said while snapping her a firm salute, the rest followed swiftly.
"Do you have any questions?" Celestia asked.
Joker raised his hand.
"Yes Lieutenant?" Celestia asked.
"How can you do telekinesis actually?" he asked with a deep curiosity in his voice.
"That is simple, magic" The alabaster alicorn replied with a smile "Why? is your kind incapable of doing so?"
Joker shook his head "No Princess, nobody outside of children in our kind believed in magic. Most magic we saw in our world were card tricks and such things. Or merely a work of fiction." he replied.
"Well, that's strange considering you know what telekinesis is" The Solar Monarch replied.
"That, I knew from an old movie called Star Wars; but Thank you Princess" he replied politely.
The next one was Ramirez
"Yes Sergeant?" Princess Luna responded.
"Where are we exactly Your Majesties? I know you said 'Equestria' before, but you have not mentioned about our current location yet"
"We are at Canterlot, the capital city of Equestria" she replied.
With that, they made a few moments of discussions about their stay in the gardens and settling things up for the moment. After that had been done, the Princesses left the area along with the civilians, while the guards were stationed in the vicinity of the gardens in case the humans need anything and for security; a recomendation by Captain Shining Armor (whom Joker was a bit pissed of with). In addition, their presence were kept secret from the public for the time being, or at least until the Princesses were sure and learned more from them.
"That went smoother than expected" Joker said as he and his comrades were setting up their tents.
" 'Smooth' would be an understatement" Ilona commented "These ponies seemed to be very accepting; even after knowing we are military, but why?" she spoke quietly so that the guards can't hear them properly.
"I don't know" Gideon replied "But maybe they can see our intentions or some bollocks like that; when the Princesses stared at me, it was as if they could see through my fuckin' soul" he said while checking every part of their tents; to make sure it was properly deployed.
"Goddamn Gideon, just an eye contact and you fell for her already?" Joker smirked, only to receive a hard jab on his shoulder.
"And you seemed to be 'obsessed' with your new boyfriend" Gideon replied with a hint of annoyance in his voice.
Joker glared at Gideon for a moment before responding "The dude fuckin' pissed me off; what's his name again? Shining Armor?" He said the last part with the slowest volume of his voice; to avoid any conflicts from happening, especially with the ivory-coated stallion watching them.
Mitchell who had been silent for the most part of the conversation, finally chuckled before speaking up "I know, but can we really blame him?" He paused "We are strangers in a strange land; but the Princesses treat us with great hospitality, even after knowing we are military."
"Captain MitchelI's got a point" Sergeant Ramirez said while walking towards the four "I mean if alien soldiers suddenly appeared at the White House, and are armed to the damn teeth, I doubt POTUS would let them stay in his backyard" receiving responses of acknowledgement from the rest of the team.
"Easy Ramirez" Mitchell chuckled "you can call us by our names outside of missions"
"Sure thing Capt- er, Mitchell" he smiled sheepishly.
"I suggest we get ourselves some shut-eye" Gideon spoke through his comms "God knows what we will be dealing with soon"
With that, the Sentinels walked into their respective tents and called the day off. As far as things went now, the Sentinels are guests of the Equestrian court under their hospitality, and like it or not they have to be as diplomatic as possible. Surely, they don't want to start a new war here.
Canterlot, Equestria
0600 hours
It was a peaceful morning for the Sentinels, an atmosphere they rarely get back from home. After a five-hour sleep, the Sentinels were up and were maintaining their weapons, supply, and equipment with the guards watching at the distance. Deep down in their minds, the Sentinels were wondering why the Princesses and the guards let them to retain their weapons and equipment. Maybe because they don't know what they really are, or as Gideon said earlier can sense their intentions; but nevertheless, they were glad they still have their weapons with them.
"So, Gideon" Captain Menendez said, getting Gideon's attention "about what you said last night; do you think we can go back to Earth?"
Gideon shrugged while assembling his IMR after cleaning the inner parts of the munitions producing assault rifle. "Hell if I know mate, that was pure speculation" he paused "Have you ever seen anything like that before? that was not like any regular storm-clouds I've seen back home"
The Captain also shrugged in response, and went on with cleaning his own IMR. As the soldiers proceeded with their own business, the pilots made system checks on the VTOLs; after seeing their fuel was still abundant and their systems are good. the pilots gave thumbs up to each other before making their way to their comrades. As they sat down, suddenly their HUD feeds sparked to life.