//------------------------------//
// Intermission II 
// Story: Sins Never Die 
// by CodenameOne 
//------------------------------//


Intermission





The UNSC Kabato had just made it to the Griffon shipyard when the engines died, the massive vessel plowing into the dirt and earth below, smoke rising from the holes in her hull. Immediately Griffon workers came out to investigate and help.

Captain Adam Kuyaki climbed out of an emergency airlock outside of the bridge, clutching his head. He’d taken a good whack on the console when the Kabato came down, but was otherwise fine. He looked up at the Griffon workers and yelled “get some airships over here to hoist us up! We’re going to need twenty, at least! Get me Chancellor Steelbeak, too!”

The Griffons buzzed off to get the tugblimps, fitted with hooks specially designed to snag on the Kabato’s hull. It’d take some careful lifting to get the destroyer up to the dock, but Kuyaki was confident they’d get it done.

Have to, or we’re done here.

Stepping back into the bridge Adam sat down in the command chair and rested his head, the day’s events weighing down on him. Excalibur appeared on the plinth next to the Captain, folding his arms behind his back. “What’s the plan, sir?”

“For now, the plan is to lick our wounds until we can get back into the action. I want to speak with Steelbeak over possible courses of action, and then we can figure out how to strike back at the Covenant” Kuyaki replied.

“Very well, sir.”

Kuyaki sighed before grabbing his datapad, selecting the direct line he had with his ONI agent. The Captain wanted to request assistance for his mission, as well as provide an update.

Potentials discovered. 

Potential One: Combat prowess is below set standards. Mental fortitude above set standards. Technology level: 6.  Adapted well to provided armament and serve without question. Eager to apply themselves.

Potential Two: Combat prowess is below set standards. Mental fortitude below set standards. Technology level: 7. Reacted poorly to sight of armaments and subjected us to mandated disarmament while in atmosphere. Displayed collective mental shut down when presented with armed conflict. Currently in the midst of a civil war. Aided UNSC personnel with well-cultivated and well bred foodstuffs. Improved morale.

Recommended usage of Potential One: combat supplementaries for ground campaigns. Front line.

Recommended usage of Potential Two: medical and logistical aid. Food supply. Rear line.

Covenant resistance encountered. Request immediate assistance. Requisition one (1) Halcyon-class cruiser and two (2) destroyers. Requisition one (1) orbital repair and rearmament platform.

-Captain Adam Kuyaki. UNSC Kabato. DES-454.

-The King’s gamble is in jeopardy.




Princess Celestia stood on the balcony outside her room, her sister by her side. The Covenant ship had long left, and Canterlot's subjects were free to repair the damage done to their city by the falling rocks.

Manehattan would never be repaired, though.

“It could have gone much worse, sister” Luna declared, looking up at her elder sibling. Celestia did not meet her gaze, instead continuing to stare out at the horizon.

“Forgive me if I do not remain optimistic” Celestia responded. It was night time now, but Canterlot stayed illuminated in the red glow of Manehattan. A feverish panic had settled in Canterlot’s populace when Manehattan was melted in a single fell swoop, and the rain of rocks from a missed shot only served to add further pandemonium.

“Have you seen Twilight?” Celestia asked, tearing her gaze from the dark horizon, and instead focusing on her dark sister.

“She did not look well when I last saw her; debris from the rockslide destroyed several of her bookshelves, ruining part of her collection, and injured her Dragon assistant” Luna explained. “He is expected to survive, but... Your student has a temper, dear sister.”

“I know. I love my dear Twilight, but she always vested a little too much reverence into our peaceful ways. Plus with her brother dead at human hands, and her assistant injured by a human misfire, I imagine she's quite resentful. Her dedication to peace is admirable, but now I’m thinking we may have been wrong in that approach” the sun Goddess explained.

“Can you blame us? We only wanted the best for all on this planet. This world is the only shot we had; we nearly lost it before. Discord, De’mah... Nightmare...” Luna said, looking away in guilt.

“That did not give us reason to control the other races, no matter our intentions, but... I don’t know, sister. All we ever wanted was good things for our subjects and the other races. We thought we knew more than we did, more than they did, and it DID serve us well, but when external forces arrived we wilted under their might, and are doing it again. For mother’s sake, I murdered De’mah, sister. Even one war drove us to the edge, and now we have another times a thousand” Celestia ranted.

“Wait... You murdered De’mah?” Luna questioned.

“As I told Twilight; in cold blood, and out of desperation. I kept that secret from the Dragons. It was a terrible thing that saved our planet... I've lived with that guilt since that very day. I never told you, I never told Aldurmaax. I never told anyone. It was a lie that only prolonged the inevitable; that we would one day again fall under the attention of an alien species. His or another, it didn't matter. I never imagined, however, that it'd be his and another."

Luna was unsure of what to think. "I thought you had killed him on your own to exclude me from our nation's affairs... I thought something in you had broken, that you were becoming desperate and power hungry... For mother's sake, Tia, I...lost myself over this matter. I became paranoid and corrupted, I became the Nightmare, all because you wished to hide the truth from me..." she trailed off before she scoffed. "Was it worth it?"

Celestia never gave her sister an answer.




High Lord Aldurmaax rested at the threshold of an entrance to a cave in a mountain located deep in the Dragon heartland, peacefully gazing at the holy blue sky. For once, he was able to enjoy a moment of respite and reflect on the war, as well as the Dragon religion around De’mah.

Dragon faith was based on the tenets of five ages, each reflecting the state of events surrounding their name; the Age of Peace, the Age of Aggression, the Age of Subservience, the Age of Prosperity, and the Age of Deceit. The Dragons were currently in the middle of the Age of Deceit, marking the end of the current cycle. The war would end, and peace would return to Equestria, marking a new cycle. These tenets came to be when Aldurmaax reflected on the periods of history relating to the Dragons in the time leading up to De’mah’s arrival, and were put into the faith when Aldurmaax came to power after De’mah’s death.

The question is; ‘what is the deceit that marks this age’? Aldurmaax wondered. Personally he believed it had to do with the humans, how they lured Equestria into war with lies and promises of prosperity.

Stretching his wings Aldurmaax took to the skies, always enjoying the freedom they brought. He wanted to speak to Celestia, to assure her that everything would be just fine. Aldurmaax knew that Dragon Code dictated that they serve those who best them in fair combat, but he refused to serve the cowardly humans, for they knew nothing of fair. Plus, the return of De’mah’s kind marked an exciting time. There was nothing in Dragon faith that spoke of the Sangheili returning, but Aldurmaax figured it meant good things for their future.

Yes, good things were in order for Dragonkind, as Covenant victory was now assured.




Shipmaster N’por ‘Tumai watched patiently as loyal Dragons set about mending the damages to the Zealous Faith’s hull. Internal repairs would be impossible to render, but it was important that the Faith maintain a structurally sound hull.

The Shipmaster was happy with the day’s victory, as it marked a turning point in the war; the humans would soon be crushed, Equestria would be glass, and the Dragons would serve the Covenant. They would be off this planet within a month, and back to High Charity. N’por’s mission would be finished, and he could finally command a fleet, like he was meant to. This sacred mission was to be his proving.

Soon, all of humanity would know and fear N’por ‘Tumai.