My Little Old Republic: The Ord Mantell Deception

by AidanMaxwell

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Ord Mantell, Republic Landing Pad

The transport touched slowly down onto the cracked stone landing platform and lowered the boarding ramp. Three ponies in uniform trotted off the ship and into the Ord Mantell sunlight, guns on their backs and adventure in their eyes. One in particular was wearing a full civilian vest with tan athletic pants, a common practice for off-duty Republic troopers. She strode with an assurance that turned the heads of the nearby privates, an air of superiority surrounding her as she made her way toward the walker.

Sergeant Rainbow Dash was on top of the world today. She was finally going to meet her new team, the galaxy-famous Wonderbolt squad. They were the finest fighting unit in the Republic army, a special forces team that knew no rival. Graduating at the top of the class, she had been accepted to join them as their newest member. The best part was that everypony knew about it, and she couldn't help but revel in their admiring glances as she cantered past them.

The sky was a striking crystalline blue, nearly cloudless, contrasted by the overshadowed mountains along the horizon. It was the rare times of the year on Ord Mantell when one of its two moons was visible all throughout the daytime. Ahead of her was the Lieutenant who had been given the honor of picking her up. He smiled at her and led her into a large metal walker; between the wonderful weather and the soldier's escort, Dash knew it was going to be a good day. Once the walker was on its way, however, the Sergeant suddenly became very aware of just how much metal surrounded her. The walls, the floor, the roof, and even the seats of the walker were flat, uninteresting duraplating.

“Ah, there's nothing in this galaxy like riding a one hundred ton walker right into the middle of a combat zone, huh, kid?” said the Lieutenant cheerfully, a hoof draped lazily over the metal armrest beside him. “This ain't no Coruscant, but ya' don't need flashy lights and endless cities to dazzle me. All it takes is some ferocious rebels and something to fix.”

"I'd prefer to be out there fighting, honestly,” Dash replied, twitching anxiously in her seat. It was hard and uncomfortable.

“I don't think the chair likes you much. Give it time, you'll adjust. Name's Lieutenant Soarin', but everypony in the Wonderbolts calls me Gearbox. Let me properly welcome you to the Wonderbolts, Rainbow. We're close, and I know you're gonna like 'em.” The lieutenant paused for a moment before continuing. “Listen, when I said this isn't Coruscant, I meant it. This place is crawling with Separatists, hellbent on taking over Ord Mantell. We're all that stands between them and the innocent ponies that live in the towns. To make matters worse, they went and hijacked one of our biggest bombs, and we have no idea where it is.”

Rainbow brushed him off with a gesture of her hoof. “No problem. I can find this thing in ten seconds flat, just watch!”

Gearbox looked over at the other troops. “It's not that easy, or else we would've found it by now. These Seps are clever, stealthy, and deadly. You need to keep your wits about you. But we're safe in here, so for now, let's just sit back and-”

He was cut off by an abrupt shuddering and a loud explosion from behind them. The walker shook its passengers out of their seats onto the metal floor, and fire erupted from the side wall thereafter. Frantic shouts and cries of “We've been hit by an AP missile!” were drowned out by the blaring alarm that sounded following the explosion. The walker came to a sudden halt when a second explosion emanated from outside, closer to the cockpit. Gearbox got up off the ground and pulled himself up to the door comm.

“Driver! Hey, driver!” When no response came, he turned to Rainbow. “...Well, shoot. We're grounded, and the Seps somehow have anti-armor missiles! How did they get those?”

Rainbow, who had been thrown to the metal floor in the explosion, stood up and dusted off her pants. “Who cares? We need to go after 'em, sir!”

“I'm no fighter, Dash. But, hey, you are! Think you can handle a few Seps on your own?”

“Oh yeah, totally!”

“Alright. I know you're not dressed for battle, but we're counting on you to destroy the missile caches that are undoubtedly in the village below. Go down there, reinforce the troops already fighting, and destroy any Sep missiles. Got it?”

“I got it!”

"Good luck, Sergeant!" Gearbox lowered the hatch, and Rainbow leaped from the transport. Ahead of her, several fellow Republic troops from another battalion were hunkered down in a dugout, firing blindly into a smokey, overrun, desolate town. Enemy fire returned from somewhere beyond the smoke, but Rainbow wasn't about to let poor visibility stop her from killing Seps. She charged headlong into the thick, gun in hoof, using her wings to clear away the fog as she ran. When she had broken through the patch and could see again, she immediately regretted it.

Two Separatist gunpony and their much bigger officer turned their heads toward her and opened fire on her. One shot grazed her rainbow colored tail as she dove behind a cement barricade, trying desperately to get into cover. More troops ahead of her were starting to close in as well, firing onto the cover in an attempt to hit her behind it. For the first time since she had enlisted, she was frightened for her life. All the confidence she had previously held to for comfort was gone. It was just her and her gun.

She put a hoof up to her helmet and tried to radio Soarin', but heard nothing but static, so she yanked it off and tossed it away. The Seps were jamming Republic radio signals, and judging by the pitch of the static, the signal jammers were not far away. First, however, she needed to get away from these goons, and if she didn't act fast, she was toast. Her uniform vest was not blasterproof.

Rainbow slung her gun over the barricade and loosed two shots into the torso of one of the Sep gunmen. He fell instantly and drew the attention of the officer. She took aim again and fired a grenade round near his feet, sending the other lackey flying into a rock wall. The officer, stunned but uninjured, fired a volley at her position, forcing her to retreat behind cover again. By now, more enemies were lining up on the walls across the street from her position, and it would be mere moments before they could see her clearly.

Hope faded from her life for the briefest instant, when suddenly, from behind the smoke, two rounds fired off past her. Troops were coming to her aid! The soldiers across the street fell to the ground, leaving the officer the only standing enemy in the square. Rainbow, seizing the opportunity, rolled into the street and fired another grenade round. The shot rang true, impacting the large pony in the chest and exploding on contact. His body fell to the stone street with a resounding thud.

Rainbow Dash turned to thank her troops for their aid, only to find one mare striding up to her with a pair of pistols. She wore a large brown hat and a long dark coat to hide the various toys strapped to her vest. Her pink hair was the only sign of color on her. Where were the troops? Had she just been saved by this lone pony?

“Thanks for the help, ma'am,” Rainbow said, ashamed of herself.

“No problem!” replied the mare happily. “Always a pleasure to be of service!”

“May I ask your name, ma'am? And your station?”

“Oh, I'm not a trooper!” she replied. “I'm Pinkie Pie, the best smuggler around. I'm looking to get a job working as a spy for the Republic, but so far, I haven't had any luck. I even threw a birthday party for the Colonel last month, and he still refused! Some nonsense about a criminal record or something...”

“I see,” replied Rainbow cautiously. “And, uh, who do you work for, in that case?”

“Nobody, silly! I just need money.”

“For what?”

“A ship. Duh.” Pinkie seemed very open about talking to a trooper about her illegal activity. “My first one got shot down by some Republic A-A guns; apparently the ship I’d ‘re-purposed’ had a history with smuggling, too. So, I need to get off this rock and fly me some less-than-legal supplies to some less-than-trustworthy suppliers.”

“I should have you arrested!” Rainbow said instinctively, aiming her rifle at the smuggler.

“For what? What'd I do? All I did was save a trooper from certain death.”

Rainbow Dash didn't want to admit it, but this shady character had just saved her life, and while she may have admitted to a crime she had committed elsewhere, that was not grounds enough for an arrest. Her bravado shot, Dash lowered her rifle. “Alright, maybe I don't want to turn you in.”

“But you do wanna hire me, right?” Pinkie said with a wink and a smile.

“Why in blazes would I do that?”

“Because you're with the Wonderbolts! You make a fortune compared to other Republic jobs, and judging by the way you fight, I think you could stand to hire a backup gun, wouldn't you say?”

“No way!” Rainbow stormed away from the mare and deeper into the town. She had just insulted her on a personal level, and Pinkie Pie had expected her to hire her. “The nerve!” she thought aloud.

The caches of rockets were easy enough to locate, and as Gearbox had said, getting to them had not been a cakewalk. But the few guards in the square had been all that remained of the defenses; at every turn was a freshly killed patrol of troops lying nearby. Various radar jammers stationed around the town were likewise surrounded by recently eliminated guards, all of which Rainbow destroyed without a second thought. When she emerged from the village square, the cheers of her soldiers rang out through the air. It occurred to Rainbow that there was no sign of Pinkie Pie, but she didn’t dwell on it for long.

The return trip to the walker was met with adoring shouts and hoofshakes from the other troops as she walked past them. Some had been fortified near the town, while others had been setting up camp outside the walker. Others still were couriers from nearby Fort Garnik, coming to check on the delayed transport. Gearbox was the only one who didn't meet Rainbow with a hero's welcome.

"Bugger! This whole wreck is totally scrapped..." He yanked a cord out of the inner mechanisms of the walker, cursing loudly in front of the Sergeant. "Dash, we ain't gettin' to the fort in this thing."

Rainbow grunted. “So, what're we supposed to do now, Lieutenant?”

“I'll call up to the fort and let them know you're comin'. You need to get walking, because there's not a speeder or a transport going by for another while. I'll stay here and salvage what I can from this monster. Just remember what I said about this not being Coruscant -- these Seps are wily, and they hide really well."

“Don't worry, Lieutenant, I'll be fine.”

“Regardless, stay sharp out there.” He yanked another cord out of the flaming hull and buried himself in work, turning his attention away from the sergeant. Rainbow, sure that the conversation was over, turned to head up the hill behind her. The path leading up to the fort was much wider than the one leading down to the town; much more suited for a walker than a lone trooper. Rocky outcrops and scattered bushes made for many potential ambush spots. Once again, however, the rookie Wonderbolt charged forward, uncaring of the consequences.

This time, she anticipated an attack. Two enemy Seps ducked out from behind a rock face, and instantly Rainbow rolled into cover before they could open fire. She quickly let out a few volleys from behind cover, hitting one pony square in the chest with a couple shots. When he dropped, his friend took notice and turned tail to retreat, thinking himself outmatched against the Sergeant. Dash, however, rolled back into the road and flapped her wings, sending her careening into the gunpony. Then, using the butt of her rifle, she stunned the Separatist with a quick blow and followed it up with a brutally close shot to the temple.

Thinking she had been very skilled, the sergeant stood up and started to advance forward, when suddenly a large security droid and its escort of guards jumped into her path. They opened fire on Dash's position and she instantly ducked back behind her cover, once again cornered. She took the lone thermal detonator on her belt and armed in, praying in her one hope. As quickly as she could, Rainbow stood up and hurled the grenade at her foes. It stuck to the droid's outer plating and detonated with a resounding explosion that made her smile. The blast knocked down the nearby guards and opened a large, gaping hole in the smoldering droid. This time, before coming out from behind cover, Dash made sure to check for enemy reinforcements. When none showed up, she galloped up the hill toward the fort, which was now visible at the top.

Halfway up from the bottom, where the downed walker lay, was a rather large patrol of Seps coming toward the village. Instantly, Rainbow reloaded her gun and prepared for an attack. Two rifle jockeys and their commander took notice of her and opened fire. Unknown to Dash, however, there was a fourth enemy, a sniper, lying in wait nearby. This particular foe was hiding in the bushes to the immediate right of the patrol, waiting for a clear shot. The trooper and his three visible foes tussled for a few minutes, dodging fire and taking cover, while the sniper contentedly waited for his opportunity.

“Hi there!” said a giddy voice from far too close. The sniper looked over to see a pink mare holding a pistol to his head. He instantly reacted by bolting out of the bush in the opposite direction, only to get shot by one of Rainbow's stray rounds. All four of the active fighters stopped and looked at what was going on nearby just long enough for Pinkie Pie to emerge from the bush and put two quick rounds into the gunmen. The commander, suddenly very aware of the new danger, immediately opened fire on the smuggler, who rolled out of combat and behind a nearby sheet of thick metal.

Dash charged up the hill and rammed her rifle butt into the flank of the Sep. His hind legs collapsed and he fell to the ground in pain. Just before she could finish him, however, the commander brought his rear leg around and kicked Dash behind the knees, causing her to fall backwards and her gun to discharge harmlessly into the distance. Then the pony leaped up and pinned her to the ground, bringing his hoof up for a punch. He landed one solid blow across Dash's face before a shot rang out and a smoldering hole appeared in the back of his head. Pinkie Pie emerged from cover, holding a shiny credit chip in her hoof, which she flicked into the air and shot with her pistol.

“You and I make a good team, Sergeant,” she said smugly. Dash pushed the body aside and sat up, rubbing her throbbing eye with her hoof.

“I'm not paying you to babysit me!” Dash exclaimed with a gruff bark. “So quit following me!”

“So this is the thanks I get for saving your life, huh? Typical soldier; always wanting the glory, can't stand to have your pride hurt, even if it costs you your life. Maybe that's why the Republic has no troops...”

“First of all, have you seen what I'm wearing?” Dash shouted. “I'm not exactly combat ready in this. And second, who do you think you are, accusing the Republic of being weak? We have plenty of troops!”

“Oh, so am I wrong?” Pinkie whispered, suddenly very serious. Up until now, her voice had been shrill and excited, but it suddenly morphed into something very deep and almost menacing. “Isn't the Republic short on personnel, or was that just another rumor?”

“The Republic has the best military in the galaxy! We're strong and loyal, no matter how many of us there are!”

“And you're the best, aren't you? So capable, so brilliant and so qualified to do your job."

Rainbow eyeballed the mare suspiciously, but grinned regardless. “Well, yeah, I am the newest Wonderbolt, after all. Top of my class, if you didn't know.”

“Oh, I do know, Sergeant Dash.” Pinkie took two steps forward, where she was almost eye level with Dash despite the uphill slope. “I know all about it, big time. I know about how you aced every combat simulation they ran you through, and how you passed every written and oral exam. About how you are at the peak of your physical and mental health. And yet...you still need my help.”

“...” Dash was stunned silent. She wanted to argue, but how could she? Was the smuggler right? She couldn't be; it was inconceivable to Rainbow that a Republic trooper, especially one as talented and decorated as she was, could need the help of some two-credit pistol jockey.

“How many times have I saved your life today, trooper? Twice, now?”

“I was fine the second time,” argued Dash.

Pinkie merely pointed a hoof to the dead sniper in response.

“...Okay, you don't know I wasn't aware of him. In fact, I had him right-”

“You didn't know.”

“So what? What's with you, dude?” Dash spluttered. “Why are you stalking me?”

“You need someone to watch your back, and I need money. I'm merely stating that you and I should come to a mutually beneficial agreement.” Pinkie holstered her pistol and raised her trademark smile, every hint of seriousness completely wiped from her expression. “Now, I'll be at the fort if you need me. Have a super fantabulous extra-special wonderific day!”

The smuggler bounced up the hill, and Dash stared in contempt after her. This is going to be an interesting assignment if every lousy gunslinger on this rock is just like her, she muttered to herself.

Rainbow pouted the rest of the way up. Pinkie had long since disappeared into the crowd of civilians starting to form around the camp. The fort was much bigger than Dash had anticipated, which surprised her considering the sheer number of Seps running around just down the hill. Perhaps the Republic was understaffed. This prospect held true when the thin line of defenders Rainbow passed on her way into the fort were either asleep, sickly or on edge.

Even still, the scene within the fort itself was much more lively. Modestly dressed refugees and off-duty guards bustled to and fro on the busy streets between the spaceport and the markets. The nearby speeder dock was seeing a lot of business; fast transportation was always in demand. Just behind that was a plethora of merchants and vendors, all offering quality merchandise for reasonable prices, or so they claimed. Even the neon signs and multicolored advertisements were not enough to convince Dash the business here was any more honest than it was back home on Coruscant.

One pony in full armor was teaching some recruits how to toggle the fully automatic function of their standard rifles. “Cherries,” she said to herself. Her mind went back to the day at the barracks when she had been given her promotion to Sergeant, and how all the lowly privates in the platoon had been in attendance for the ceremony. All of her old classmates, too. They were green with jealousy, and they didn't hide it very well. It put Rainbow on cloud nine to see herself the envy of her class. It had seemed so long ago, when in reality these new recruits in Fort Garnik reminded Rainbow that she not had been a sergeant up until last month.

She didn't care, though. She was a Wonderbolt.

The command center was just ahead of her, a dull stone building with sparse outer decoration; little more than a meek little Republic standard outside the door and a mailbox jutting into the street. Sergeant Dash wasted no time in getting to the front entrance, briskly walking straight up the tar black ramp and through the polished granite archway. Standing just inside it was Pinkie Pie, who was listening intently to the conversation going on inside. When Dash tried to walk past her, the smuggler made no attempt to stop her, and didn't even turn to look at her.

“You're a stalker,” Rainbow said in passing.

“No I'm not; I'm a smuggler!” responded the earth pony cheerfully.

Rainbow moved past her and made her way into the briefing room. There, in all their glory, was the rest of the Wonderbolt squad. The commander was having a meeting with three other soldiers in matching uniforms when Dash walked in.

“...So, if we focus our efforts on AmSector, I'm sure we can-” Then, noticing Rainbow Dash, she stopped mid-sentence and turned to her. “Oh, hey, Sergeant! Good to see you made it alright. Soarin' said you'd be arriving ahead of him -- nice work getting rid of those Sep missiles, by the way.”

Rainbow saluted her. “Thank you, sir. It's an honor to serve the people of Ord Mantell.”

“At ease, Rainbow. We're friends here, no need for formalities at the moment. I'm commander Spitfire, and the other members you see here are Wraith, Fuse, and Needles. And of course the missing Soarin', who is probably on his lunch break instead of working, as usual.” The commander turned to the other members. “Everypony, this is Rainbow Dash. She's our new forward assault specialist, the pony I was telling you all about?”

“Hey everypony.” Dash looked as though she was going to explode with anticipation. “So, I heard there's a missing bomb that we need to find."

Commander Spitfire looked to the large screen on the wall that displayed a wide variety of information. “You're right, the Seps made off with one of our biggest bombs. The explosion could destroy this whole island, and everypony on it. We've managed to keep it quiet, but the time for action is fast approaching, and we need your help, Dash."

“Good! Let's get going!” urged Rainbow. “I can find this thing, no problem!”

“It's not that easy. Finding this bomb is the hard part, so believe me when I say we haven't been just waiting around for you to show up. This has been the focus of our time here since the day it went missing.”

“The ZR-57, it's...” Fuse started to make a point, but stuttered on the words. “...Well, the Seps can't have it. Too much firepower. Like the Commander said, this whole island and everypony in the vicinity would just..." He made a large waving gesture with a hoof, imitating an explosion.

“As I was saying,” continued Spitfire, “we only have one or two good leads to follow, and the one I need you to hit right away is a Republic spy named Bellis who lives in Talloran Village. He said he made a huge discovery in his last report, but there's been radio silence over there since it got run over. We need you to go find out what he knows.”

“But, what if this guy's lead is a complete waste of time?” asked Rainbow, tapping a hoof impatiently.

“Then we have one less lead that requires our attention,” replied Needles, who waved a hoof sarcastically in the air.

“So while you're away, we have our very own Lieutenant Twilight Sparke of Ord Mantell Infantry Command to be your eye in the sky. Come down here and introduce yourself, Twilight.”

A purple unicorn emerged from behind a console just beyond the commander. She cantered up to Rainbow Dash and extended a hoof. “Pleasure's all mine, Sergeant.”

Commander Spitfire cut the greeting short. “Now, both of you need to prep for this op while me and the rest of the squad go after another lead. I'll see the Sergeant off, but let's not waste any time.”

“Alright then,” said Twilight while adjusting her headpiece, “I'll watch you from here using a camera on your gear. Basically, just go to Talloran village, locate Bellis, and find out what he knows without blowing anything up, alright?”

“Yeah, sure, whatever,” replied Dash lazily.

“Good luck in Talloran, sergeant,” saluted Spitfire in a farewell, starting for the door with the other three members of Wonderbolt squad. “Dismissed.”

“Thanks, guys." Dash started to move with them toward the door. "I'll be back with your bomb in no time-”

“Oh, wait, Sergeant!” Twilight put a hoof on her shoulder and yanked her back. “I forgot a couple things. Firstly, speak to the requisitions officer outside the fort. He'll have a combat suit for you. And one piece of advice: the road over to Talloran, and the surrounding area in general, is very hostile. I recommend you find another soldier or somepony you trust to travel with you, in case you get in too deep. Just until I'm sure you can handle yourself on the field.”

Rainbow blinked at the lieutenant. “Seriously?!”

“That's just my recommendation. You don't need to act on it if you really-”

“No, I mean, you got me a suit?! That's awesome!”

Twilight smiled in disbelief. “You're very eager to get into battle, aren't you? Remember what I said about the unfriendly environment out here. A shiny new suit won't save you if you're dead.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Rainbow said absentmindedly, turning away to find her new battle armor. Twilight threw a disdainful look in her direction, but turned back to her console without another word. Dash exited the building and spotted Pinkie right where she had left her. This time, however, she was looking at the sergeant with a smug grin.

“Why are you still here?”

“I couldn't help overhearing that you need someone to travel with,” Pinkie replied, smiling smugly at the Seargent.

“For the last time, no!” Dash yelled in annoyance. “I'm going to go get a suit of armor, and when I have it, I won't need to worry about getting shot. So, in short, I don't need you anymore, not that I ever needed you to begin with.”

“Well, that's not very nice.” Pinkie's face remained cheerful despite the very saddened tone clearly audible in her voice. “You could at least try not to hurt my feelings.”

“You've been stalking me all day, and you're worried about your feelings?”

“I'm just looking to make some money, and you could stand to have somepony nearby when you're in a pinch. So far I've proven my point twice, and I have a feeling you'll come around.”

Dash trotted up to Pinkie and put a hoof on her nose. “I'll say this one more time: Stop. Following. Me. Get lost, go home, whatever. Just forget about me! I never needed you before, and I definitely don't need you now.” Then she stormed away, livid. Pinkie Pie shrugged and vanished into the crowd as Dash made her way to the merchant quarter. Still infuriated at the smuggler's blatant audacity, she didn't even notice that the requisitions officer had been a couple blocks back, and after a few embarrassing minutes of backpedaling she corrected that mistake.

There, on a full body rack, was a chest harness that resembled the Wonderbolt armor perfectly. Upon further inspection, however, it occurred to Rainbow that this was all there was. There was no helmet, no leggings, and no pants. It was just the torso plating.

“Officer,” Dash said evenly, trying to push her frustration aside, “where is the rest of this suit?”

“Are you Sergeant Rainbow Dash, from Wonderbolt squad? Sorry, I didn't get a requisition for a full suit. I only got the harness in.”

Rainbow's eye twitched in annoyance. “What? Seriously?! Who orders an incomplete suit of armor?”

“To be honest, ma'am, the suit was ordered in full. The other individual pieces were either requisitioned to other troops or sold off for a profit. Your commander didn't reserve the rest of the suit.”

Dash took that as a personal insult. How dare Spitfire not attend to the basic needs of a Wonderbolt? Not only would she be running around with a front-heavy harness that would end up slowing her down, but she wouldn't be protected from blaster fire anywhere but her chest and neck. On top of that, it would look simply ridiculous to run around with only half a suit on. The tan labor pants she was wearing were not going to look good against a blue and yellow breastplate.

Then something horrible occurred to Rainbow, something much worse than bad fashion and incomplete armor sets: she was going to need to find Pinkie Pie again. She couldn't go out onto the field alone with only half a suit, and the pink mare, as random and creepy as she was, remained the only pony on this rock that would follow Dash into battle without question. Her face fell as she sulked away from the armor rack and began her search for Pinkie.

Comments

[Michaelbrony]

LOVE IT!! can't wait for next chapter

next one please

[AidanMaxwell]

203999
Glad you like it! Chapter 2 goes up soon. Be sure to follow and rate so you know when I update~

[AidanMaxwell]

204004
Chapter maintenance in place. The story may evolve a bit, but the story is largely unaffected.

[Fulgor Ignis]

Wow. This looks promising. Tracking... Now.

[halo003qd]

well I seem to be a little late but I like your idea of why you only got the Chest piece. I am defiantly liking this and if you don't mind me asking what server do you play on?

[Kaiser change name]

Oh dash is going to be very sad at the end of this
Trooper class players already know

[ZanarNaryon]

Interesting, looking forward to reading the rest of it. So far it's been a very close adaptation of the game, but I expect that to change now that Pinkie and Rainbow teamed up