June 29th, 2559
//Begin Personal Log
//
//June 29th, 2559
//
//19:37 Local Time
Well... we’re back in Canterlot. The gryphon assault left us with a few things to think on. Mostly, how vulnerable this castle really is. Investigators found out that the guards on the ramparts had all been overrun at the same time, preventing any kind of alarm from being raised. We were eventually able to push the attackers back, though we suffered just over one hundred fatalities, some of which were marines.
Anyway, the changelings finally made it to Reach, Director Burr says they are adapting well and are generally excited.
Good news. Doctor Optikanner called this morning to tell me that Celestia finally woke up. He said that the Princess was quite confused at first, but was very understanding once everything had been explained. However, due to her injuries, she will not be able to speak properly for some time. Turns out the gryphon that attacked her, also managed to damage her vocal cords.
Another complication that has arisen from this is that Celestia doesn’t speak english. While we used translation algorithms in our headsets to communicate, Celestia’s only means of communication is writing... and no human on Reach knows how to read equish... so they called in a changeling to translate.
//End Log
Dozens of camera flashes nearly blinded Luna as she stepped out into the courtyard of the castle. At the base of the steps, nearly a hundred reporters stood with various cameras and other recording devices. The Princess let out a nervous sigh as she approached a podium covered in microphones. Behind her, Daniel and Zerom stood in their formal uniforms, more for moral support and good looks than anything else.
“Good afternoon everypony.” Luna began to speak, “I will be brief. Four days ago, the castle was besieged and nearly overrun by a large force of gryphons. The death toll so far has reached one hundred and sixteen, including twelve humans.”
A number of hooves went into the air as they tried to get the Princesses attention. Luna pointed to a nearby unicorn.
“Do we know of any affiliations the gryphons might have had?” the reporter asked.
Luna nodded as she answered. “We have confirmed that they were elite shock troops from King Varen’s empire.”
The crowd exchanged gasps and whispered comments as her words sank in.
“Is Princess Celestia alright?” another reporter shouted out.
Silence. Luna’s breath caught in her throat as the crowd looked to her for an answer.
“My sister is doing well,” Luna replied. She desperately hoped the reporters would leave it at that.
“Was she in any danger during the attack?” a unicorn asked.
Luna fought back a sigh as she answered. “ Yes, my sister was caught in an ambush as guards tried to move her to safety. She was badly wounded, but has since gotten treatment and is responding well.”
The crowd erupted, as ponies began shouting their questions. “Where is she getting treatment!?”
“That is classified. Just know she is somewhere safe and away from the conflict,” the Princess replied.
“Does that mean you will be taking over her responsibilities?”
Luna nodded. “Until she has recovered, I will be acting in her stead. Day court will still be held at the normal time.”
Some of the reporters held nervous looks at the mention of her taking over the day court, even if it was only temporary.
“In addition,” Luna said as she tried to mask her irritation, “the guard will begin asking for volunteers to help defend Equestria.”
Numerous ponies began shouting their questions at the lunar Princess. However, one question was heard above all others.
“Does this mean we are at war with the gryphons?” Once again the crowd fell silent as they looked to Luna.
“It does.”
~~~
Varen stood at a podium in his throne room with a large crowd of journalists seated in front of him. They sat quietly as the king prepared to address them. A number of gryphons held television camera, while others settled for taking photographs. The king raised a hand, signaling he was ready to start.
“Thank you all for coming today. It is with great pleasure, that I can announce that Princess Celestia has been fatally wounded in a daring raid against Canterlot,” the King said with pride.
“Although,” the King’s tone quickly became somber, “we lost many brave warriors in the attack. However, for every one of our warriors, four of theirs fell! And that, is what I consider a success. Even now, the greatest military minds are plotting a devastating strike against Equestria and Ecotonia!”
The crowd applauded and let out a series of cheers. Varen basked in the crowds admiration for a moment before raising a hand, silencing everyone.
“Just know, we will not stop until both Equestria, and Ecotonia, are ours. No matter what challenges we face, we will be victorious!” With his short address done, Varen left the podium and returned to his private quarters.
King Varen sat in his lavish quarters as he watched Princess Luna address her nation on TV. He frowned at the part where she had said Celestia was alive and well. His own scouts had reported that the solar Princess had been fatally wounded. Either Princess Luna was lying, or something happened to save her sister. Perhaps the humans were involved in some way. If the humans were indeed responsible for saving Celestia, where would they take her for treatment?
The King’s concentration was taken from Luna’s address, as a knock resounded on his door.
“Enter,” the King commanded.
Two gryphons slowly entered the kings quarters. Varen’s military advisor, General Forden Galerun, and his assistant stopped and bowed to their king.
“Your highness, you asked to see me?” Forden asked.
Varen muted the TV and moved to his desk. “Indeed. Sit.”
Both gryphons took seats opposite Varen.
“I can’t help but wonder at your troop’s failure to kill Celestia. You assured me the attack would be enough to destabilize the Equestrian leadership. Now though,” Varen said as he pointed to the TV, “they seem more rallied than ever.”
“They were not expecting such resistance from the outsiders. There was no way our troops could have known.”
Varen scowled as he pulled out a small tape. “Do you know how these humans fight? Because I do.” The king got up from his desk and put the tape into his TV. “This footage was shot by one of your own scouts. Watch as this one human manages to rip off the jaw off one of your troops.”
The General watched in silent horror as Dior tore off a gryphon’s jaw, before smashing his head under her boot. “I do not want a prolonged war with the humans. What I do want is a plan that can easily, and quickly, remove the human presence, as well as the Equestrians. Think you can do that?” Varen asked.
“Of course, sire. It shall be done,” the General replied.
“Good. The time for intimidation is over. We must move on to more direct methods.”
“Right away. Is there anything else, my King?” General Forden asked.
Varen rubbed his beak as he eyed the General’s assistant. “What is your name?”
The assistant was deep in his own thoughts, though he suddenly looked at Varen. “Hawthorn Irongust, your majesty.”
“Hawthorn... tell me, you seem to have something on your mind,” the King prodded.
“It’s... nothing, sire,” Hawthorne said nervously.
Varen waved a dismissive claw at the nervous assistant. “I will be the judge of that. Now tell me.”
Hawthorn took a deep breath before he spoke. “Well... if we managed to destroy their starships, what’s to stop them from seeking vengeance?”
The gryphon King chuckled at the question. “That is a good question. Once we have weapons capable of destroying their ships, they will learn to keep their distance. Even dumb animals know to not stick their noses where it hurts.”
~~~
Celestia was met with dim light as she cracked her eyes open. The first thing she noticed was that she was on her side, and that she was not in Canterlot. The room she was in was well furnished, a couch sat against the wall opposite the door to her left. A decent sized window gave the Princess a view to a world she did not recognize. Her attention was brought off her surroundings and to her neck as she slowly brought a hoof to rub an itch, only to be met with bandages.
To her surprise, the door to her room opened slowly as a human in a lab coat walked in with a pad of paper and a pen. He was a slightly elderly man with a clean shaven face. The doctor stood at five eleven and wore a welcoming smile. He also had an earpiece identical to the one that Daniel and his crew wore to communicate.
“Princess Celestia,” the man began in a thick German accent, “my name is Doctor Michael Optikanner.”
Celestia opened her mouth to speak, only to have the Doctor hold up his hand. “Please try not to speak. Your vocal cords have yet to fully heal. If you need to speak, I would request that you write it out.”
The Princess nodded as she tried to levitate the paper and pen, only to find it nearly impossible in her weakened state. Optikanner took note of this and brought it to her, holding the pad while she could focus on lifting the pen with her magic. It took considerable effort, but Celestia finally wrote out her message. With a nod, the Princess indicated that her message was complete.
Michael brought the pad up and sighed with a scowl. Sure, he could understand the spoken equish language, but he could not read it. Celestia noticed his confusion and rolled her eyes, chastising herself for thinking he could read her writing. Suddenly, the doctor perked up.
“That was my mistake. I forgot that we wouldn’t be able to understand your written language. Though I think I know a workaround.” The Doctor pulled out a small electronic device and tapped rapidly on the screen before dropping the device back in his lab coat pocket. “Okay, so we’ll stick with simple questions first. Do you know where you are?”
Celestia shook her head.
“You are on Reach. Specifically, New Alexandria Hospital. Captain Ryan dropped you off four days ago. You were in pretty rough shape when you arrived,” Optikanner said.
Celestia looked out the window at the unfamiliar cityscape and then back to the doctor. She then pointed at her wound with a hoof and looked at Michael.
“Your wounds?” Celestia nodded. “Severe laceration to the throat and trachea. You lost about thirty five percent of your blood in a matter of seconds. Your voice should be back in a week or two, with full use returning in a few months.”
The Princess nodded in understanding as she gently rubbed the bandages.
“I would avoid touching the bandages. You don’t want to disrupt the stitches and reopen the wound. We still don’t have that much blood on reserve for you,” the Doctor said.
This caught Celestia by surprise as she looked to the red drip bag connected to a tube, flowing into her neck.
Michael looked at the blood bag proudly. “Ah yes, the blood. Well, normally we would access the blood bank and get you a transfusion. Surprise, we don’t have any blood on stock for your species... so we took a small bone marrow sample and grew the blood in a lab.”
The Princess looked at the Doctor wide eyed, clearly impressed. A knock on the door brought the pair out of their conversation.
“That must be the translator,” Michael stated as he walked to the door and opened it.
Celestia was surprised to see a small changeling enter the room. Though, she caught a glimpse of a single SPARTAN standing outside the door.
“Princess,” Michael announced as the changeling stood next to him, “this is Neume. She will be acting as our translator for the time being. She has been hired by the Office of Naval Intelligence as a translator. As such, she is required to keep everything confidential and within the confines of this room. She will be the main communication link between you and our medical staff.”
The Princess eyed the changeling with a hint of suspicion, but quickly banished her judgment. If the humans thought Neume could be of help, who was she to disagree. Especially when they were the ones keeping her alive.
“Now,” Optikanner began as he pointed to the remote attached to her bed, “if you need anything at all, just press the yellow button. This button here will turn on the TV on the wall, and these will change the channel.”
Celestia nodded and smiled as both Michael and Neume left her room. Now alone, the Princess began to wonder what was happening in her nation. She instinctively reached for the remote, and searched for a news station. Though it then dawned upon her, there would be almost no word from home. But one headline nearly made her jaw drop.
“ONI Director, Kyle Burr, Speaks on State of Equestria”
The Princess watched as the Director stood at a podium covered in microphones. The rapid clicking of cameras and hushed conversation could be heard as the Director prepared to speak.
“Thank you all for coming. No doubt you most of you have heard about and seen the picture from four days ago,” the Director began as a series of photos went up on a projector next to him.
The first picture was taken from an apartment window overlooking the hospital. Even though it was taken late at night, the Tuscany could clearly be seen hovering over the landing pad. The next picture was of the Director walking across the landing pad to a waiting Pelican. To his left was the silhouetted form of Princess Luna. She blended in well with the dark background, but still stood in contrast to the humans around her.
“Four days ago, the UNSC Tuscany, made an emergency landing at New Alexandria Hospital. Onboard, she had a badly wounded VIP, who needed immediate medical treatment. After speaking with UNSC leadership, I can now confirm that this individual was, in fact, Princess Celestia.”
The crowd let out a bout of hushed murmurs as the Director continued.
“According to Captain Daniel Ryan, the liaison officer in Equestria, there was a sudden, and coordinated attack on the capital of Canterlot. At this time, we don not have exact numbers in regards to casualties, though we are looking at our options.”
A number of hands went up, as reporters clamored to have their question answered. The Director looked around the room before pointing to a man near the front.
“Director, are any UNSC forces currently in the country? Or is it just the Tuscany?”
“At this time, only the Tuscany is on site. However, we are considering the idea of sending other warships. Though, that will all depend on a number of factors.” Most of what the Director said was true, save for the part on the number of ships on site.
“Sir, just how dire is the situation in Equestria?” Another reporter asked.
Director Burr paused as he thought for a moment. “We have seen a sharp increase in violence coming from the gryphon empire. As you know, a passenger train was also bombed in the capital only a few weeks ago. After a lengthy interrogation, agents were able to determine that the bombers were acting on orders from the gryphon king.”
“If we are on such good terms with the ponies, why haven’t we sent troops to aid them?” A woman asked as she stood up to ask her question.
The room looked to the woman and then to the Director. He was caught off guard by the blunt question. “There are certain procedures that need to be observed. One of the biggest being public approval. I am not willing to send men and women into combat without having the support of those back home.”
“I’d say most of us here are supportive of helping the Equestrians,” the reporter countered. Before the Director could respond, the crowd slowly began to clap, eventually erupting into full on applause. This caught the Director off guard.
“Alright, I’m going to ask everyone watching this to share your opinion. I want to know how many people would support sending troops to fight for Equestria. You can answer this poll by going to our website.”
Celestia sat in her bed in stunned silence. It seemed humanity was more than just willing to send troops to help her ponies. If anything, they seemed shocked as to why they hadn’t already. This gave the Princess renewed hope. She wasn’t blind to her military. It was painfully obvious that even with the UNSC training, they wouldn’t stand a chance against the gryphons. However, if the UNSC sent troops directly, then there would be a chance.
She continued to watch the press conference as various UNSC officers spoke to the crowd. Though nothing could compare to the speech given by the Director.
~~~
Daniel, Luna, and Spotlight stood in the armory of the Tuscany with multiple weapons laid out on a table. They ranged from handguns all the way up to rocket launchers. Two cleaning kits and multiple magazines sat on the table.
“Alright, today we’re going to be doing basic weapons training. All crew members on this ship are required to be experts with the basic M6G Magnum. It fires a 12.7mm armor piercing, high explosive round. Both of you will need to master this weapon. That includes being able to maintain it. Every crew member on this ship is capable to stripping this weapon and reassembling it in ninety seconds... blindfolded. You will be able too.”
Daniel picked up one of the weapons and slammed in a clip, before racking the slide back.
“Not only will you be able to maintain the weapon, but you will also be an expert at using it. Okay?” The Captain asked. Both Luna and Spotlight nodded in acknowledgement. “Great, now let’s talk about gun safety.”
For the next half hour, Daniel instructed both individuals on proper weapon safety, ending with a detailed demonstration of how to operate and disassemble their handguns. With his supervision, they both made their first attempts at disassembling the weapons. Ten minutes later, both weapons sat in pieces.
“Well, that was a good start. Now, reassemble the weapons and then do it again. Rinse and repeat until you can do it in two minutes. Tommy can help you keep time,” Daniel said with a grin.
“And what about you?” Luna asked.
“Imma go get a snack. Call me when you get it down to two minutes,” with that, the Captain turned and walked out of the armory, leaving the Princess, Spotlight, and the armory chief.
“Well then... we should probably put these back together... I doubt he’s gonna let us move on until we both can do it.” Spotlight said with a nervous chuckle. While he and Luna got along well enough, he was still nervous about being left alone with her.
While the two of them practiced with their weapons, Daniel walked back to his quarters. He needed to check in with the Director before it got too late in New Alexandria. As he sat down and opened up his computer, he noticed a message waiting for him. Curiously, it was from the Director.
“Call me ASAP,” was all the message read.
After calling the front desk, and getting transferred to a holding line, the Director’s face came up on the screen.
“Hello, Captain,” the Director began.
“Evening, you said to call?”
Director Burr nodded. “Indeed. Two things, though. First, we held a press conference about the state of Equestria today. People were shocked to hear of the developing conflict.”
“I bet they were,” Daniel chuckled.
“That’s not even the surprising part. The surprise came when I was asked repeatedly, why we haven’t sent troops to support our allies in the region.”
Daniel blinked dumbly at this. “I’m sorry, are you telling me that people want the UNSC to intervene?”
“Yes I am. We even ran a poll on our web page, asking people if they think we should involve ourselves in the conflict. The results have been staggering. In the first day, eighty six percent in favor of direct intervention, nine percent against, and five percent unsure,” the Director replied proudly.
“Okay, but one web poll does not equal support for armed conflict,” the Captain countered.
“I know. Planetary leaders will be asked to vote on a war proposal at the end of this week. As long as more than sixty five percent vote in favor, then you will be seeing us soon,” Director Burr said with a smile.
Daniel let out a sigh of relief and a chuckle. “Glad to hear it. Intelligence here has indicated that the gryphons are going to move against Ecotonia soon. I’ve sent the Grafton to back them up.”
“Good. Do what you have to,” replied the Director.
“So... what’s the second thing you wanted to talk about?”
Director Burr leaned back in his chair and smiled. “Ah yes, I have new about Princess Celestia.”
“Oh?” Daniel asked with a raised eyebrow.
“She woke up this morning. A bit confused, but that was to be expected. Though, there was a bit of oversight on our part.”
“What kind of oversight?” Captain Ryan asked suspiciously.
The Director chuckled as he spoke. “Well, thanks to the language algorithm, you provided, we have been able to speak with the races of Equestria. Though, this proves to be an obstacle when speech is not an option. Since Celestia is currently unable to speak, the only means of communication is through writing. See the problem yet?”
Daniel rubbed the bridge of his nose as he sighed. “No one can read their writing.”
“Right, and we can’t spend the time to run every message through an AI for translating. So, we hired a changeling to act as a translator,” the Director said proudly.
“Ah ha! I told you they would be useful,” Daniel cheered as he threw his hands into the air.
“I didn’t doubt your judgment. I’m simply reaffirming that you were right about them. We have them temporarily settled here at the Olympic Tower. So far they seem to be quite happy with their new surroundings. Anyway,” Director Burr said as he got back on topic, “we can address that issue later. You can let Princess Luna know that her sister has woken up and is doing well.”
The Captain nodded. “Will do. And since we are on the topic of language, I have an idea.”
Director Burr looked at Daniel with an inquisitive glance. “Do tell.”
“I know a certain pony who, from what I have been told, would jump at the opportunity to teach new ideas to others. I’m sure I could talk to her and see if she would be willing to teach the equish language to a few ONI agents,” Daniel mused as he wrote down a few notes.
“That would be fantastic. See what you can do,” the Director replied.
“So... anything else?”
The Director shook his head. “That about takes care of it.”
“Great,” Daniel replied, “then I’m going to go check on my students. Spotlight and Luna are running through weapon drills.”
“Then I’ll let you get back to work. I’ll forward you the medical file for Princess Celestia in a few minutes,” Director Burr said.
“Sounds good. I’ll talk to you later.” With that, the Captain ended the call. His datapad beeped as Celestia’s file was downloaded. With a few taps, Daniel began to review her file.
~~~
About an two hours later, Daniel returned to the armory with a sandwich and a drink. He sat down next to Chief Carlson and tore off a bit of the sandwich, offering it to the Chief. Carlson silently nodded his thanks as he took the piece. Both men watched in silence as a blindfolded Luna and Spotlight continued to go through weapon drills.
“How have they been doing?” Daniel quietly asked the armory Chief.
Carlson took a bite of the sandwich bit before whispering. “They’ve been at it nonstop for two hours. Though it shows, they’ve got it down to about a minute and a half.”
“Huh... fast learners,” Daniel quietly chuckled.
“I’ll say.”
After another ten minutes, the pair slammed their weapons on the table as they finished. A buzzer sounded, and Tommy appears on a nearby display pad.
“Time: fifty nine point seven seconds!” The AI shouted as he threw two handfuls of holographic confetti into the air around him.
Luna raised the blindfold just in time to see Tommy throw the confetti. She chuckled as she helped Spotlight with his own blindfold.
“So... we done good?” Spotlight asked with a goofy smile.
“Yeah, ya done good,” Daniel replied as he stood up.
Luna rubbed her stomach as a loud grumble emanated from it. “He heh, c’mon Spotlight, let’s go get some lunch.”
“Before you go,” Daniel said as he got up and pulled a datapad from inside his jacket, “take this. You’ll want to read the update on your sister, as well as the Director’s press conference.”
~~~
Zerom was enjoying a nice walk through the castle. It was a quiet day around the castle. Carpenters and stonemasons were busily working on the remaining damaged areas after the attack. The Commander stopped in the throne room and quietly looked around. There were more guards in the room than before, a heightened security measure.
Though the silence was broken as a beige unicorn stallion walked in, followed closely by a guard escort. The unicorn looked panicked as he glanced at the empty throne.
“Is the Princess available?” the unicorn asked his escort.
“Not at this time, but perhaps I can help you,” the Commander replied as he walked over to the unicorn.
“Oh thank harmony.” The unicorn said as he reached into his saddle bags and pulled out a plain envelope. “This morning, the mailmare left this in my mailbox by accident. I didn’t know it wasn’t for me until I read the letter.”
Zerom reached forward and took the letter from the unicorn, and began to read it. His eyes went wide as he continued to read, eventually folding it up and tucking it into his jacket.
“And you received it this morning?”
The unicorn nodded. “Yes, though I brought it here as soon as I realized what it said.”
“You did the right thing,” Commander Zerom said. “I’ll make sure the Princess and Captain Ryan see this.”
The unicorn nodded and left the throne room with his guard escort. The commander watched the unicorn leave before turning around and heading off to find the Captain. The guards he passed looked at him with a hint of concern, but mostly maintained their composure.
it didn’t take long for the Commander to find Daniel. He was in his quarters, looking over intelligence reports from Ecotonia. A large force of gryphons had been reported near the deer’s border, posing a serious threat. Because of this, Daniel had sent the Grafton as a show of force. if he could delay the start of open warfare, then he might just be able to buy time for the UNSC to send troops and materials.
“Captain, we might have a developing situation.” Zerom called out as he knocked on the closed door.
There was a slight pause before the door slid open. “What is it, Commander?”
“This showed up today in some unicorn’s mailbox. He brought it to us as soon as it arrived,” Zerom said as he handed over the letter.
The Captain took a few moments to quickly read it over. He slowly shook his head as he tossed the letter onto his desk. “We need to confirm this threat before we act. This could be a diversion to draw our attention away from a different target. Have a surveillance drone in the airspace over Manehattan, I want to see any attack coming from miles away.”
“Aye, sir,” Zerom replied as he took off down the passageway.
Daniel looked back to the letter and frowned. If what the letter said was true, then he could be witnessing the first major military offensive from the gryphon army. With a sigh, he stood up and grabbed the letter before heading toward the galley where Luna and Spotlight were having lunch.
The Captain passed numerous crew members on his way to the galley. Sure enough, Luna and Spotlight were still inside, enjoying lunch.
“Luna,” the Captain began as he took a seat at their table, “we might have a serious situation.”
The Princess looked at Daniel as he set the letter on the table and slid it toward her. She picked it up and quickly began to read it. Though her expression quickly dropped as she continued to read, eventually setting it back down on the table, staring at it blankly.
“Do you think this threat is credible?” She asked quietly.
“We’re not sure yet. We are sending a recon drone out to the Manehattan region. It will give us an early warning if the gryphons do decide to attack. However, I do think it will be an opportune target, seeing as it is the largest city near the border. The seaport there will also make it a high value target. That being said, it would also make for a great distraction,” Daniel commented.
“So, we should be ready for either possibility,” Spotlight replied.
“Right. Though we really need to know when, and where they will strike. That’s why we are sending out the drone.”
“I want to know immediately if it finds anything. Manehattan has a population of eight hundred thousand, if we needed to evacuate the city, it would take time. Time which, if the city was under siege, we might not have,” Luna stated grimly.
Daniel nodded as he stood up. “I agree. I’ll see what I can do about drafting an evacuation plan by tomorrow morning.”
Daniel sighed as he plodded back to his quarters. This was it, the war was getting under way. It seemed as though his plan to stall the war from getting started had failed. The gryphons were moving fast and aggressively. If they took Manehattan, then they would have access to a sea port, allowing them easy access to land additional troops. No matter what, the city could not be allowed to fall.
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Okay, I'm still curious as to how the griffons think they can beat an interstellar civilisation who are capable of destroying entire planets. Apart from that though, I'm really loving this story.
Well.... the gryphons are screwed.
Oh dear. Now I think the Gryphons are going to end up finding Forerunner relics. I hope that's not the case.
3139680
It's not.
No Forerunners or Covies.
Let the orbital bombardment began!
As we know, there is no better kill then overkill
I just wonder how you're planning to make the griphons a credible threat. Sure, they have explosives, but every UNSC ship has shields, and so does every Spartan and ODST (yes, regular footsoldiers don't, fair enough). I seriously doubt the warmongering avian have any kind of guided missiles either, so Pelicans and other airbourne units are safe too. Don't even get me started on tanks and armored ground units, let alone Spartans.
I just wonder how this is not going to be a one-sided curbstomp without the griphons receiving help from the Covenant or finding some kind of Forerunner relic, seeing as they don't have magic either. And even then, magic is limited by its useful range: the spellcaster must SEE his target to be able to hit it while our current military technology allows us to fight without a direct line of sight, and in consequence so does the tech of the 26th century. Well, so it would.
Sure, the griphons can fly. Now what? The UNSC has MACs, shields, motion sensors, guns, more guns, even more guns, ships, choppers, tanks...
3139820
I've got a trick or two up my sleeve.
3139827
Infiltrators then. Maybe allies among the Ponies. I'm not too sure how that would end up though.
Now, everyone seems to be either questioning the validity of a Griffon threat, or demanding orbital bombardment.
1. The griffons are a warring race. As such, they have military technology far superior to that of Equestria or Ectonia. Is it far less advanced than that of the UNSC? Obviously, but then again, the Covenant far outstripped humanity in the technological department but they found humans a formidable foe when engaged in actual battles between ground forces.
2. Do you have any idea how incredibly stupid an orbital attack using tungsten MAC rounds is? Just from a financial standpoint in ONI's eyes? The cost FAR out weighs any possible benefit from their perspective as the assault on Canterlot showed ODST and Spartans more than capable of fully matching any griffon in close quarters combat. Not to mention the possible nightmare of the knowledge that such damage is not only possible, but justifiable for the UNSC becoming public and ruining all the PR Captain Ryan has worked so hard on.
All in all I vote we all just sit back and enjoy what our quite talented author has planned. But, I am finding it rather far-fetched that not a single word of Equis has reached the Sangheli given our 'truce' with them. I'm not saying that the Covenant races need appear and provoke a greater conflict, but wouldn't they want to at least send an ambassador or similar official to Equis? Just my thoughts.
3139680
Even if the griffons found forerunner tech they wouldn't be able to use it.
3139972
While humanity does have a truce with the Sangheli, both races more or less agreed to leave the other alone after the siege on the Ark. The Elites have enough issues with their civil war that they really don't care to get involved with anything related to humanity.
Why no 1 post haiku yet???
3139621
If anyone has read "Ghosts of Onyx" then they will be aware of what a Nova bomb is, although since that would smash the whole planet I doubt it would be showing up. Again, MAC strike seems like a good option.
Note; for Halo Wars the MAC rush (everyone on your team plays Cutter, someone drives over to an enemy base then you all MAC it at once) doesn't work, not enough to justify it. For one thing, you'll have almost no money left to crush the enemy warthog/tank rush they will throw at you.
3139827
from what im hearing you make it sound like the griffons have some super weapon that can destroy worlds!
the only way i think that the griffons could even touch the UNSC is if they somehow got help from the dragons, minotars, and pretty much every other species on the planet, and thats just to touch them!
the UNSC can just stay in orbit and do bombardments with mack cannons, drop ODST's and SPARTANS, drive around in worthogs (which would probably decimate any army in equuis) and then we have shiva nukes to boot!
by simply implying that they have a chance means you have thought of the impossible and that makes me too exited!
i might EXPLODE!
3140068
Warthog rushes were so much more cost effective in that game.
3140078
Yeah but they rarely work for me, I find is easier to play Covenant because leaders (I prefer Arby, Prophet, or Anders when I do play UNSC).
Also ran into a glitch where Warthogs run up walls. Kinda lol but always makes me worried that someone's gonna report me for glitching/cheating. :/
3140161
Yeah, I got a bunch stuck on top of a mountain one game. It was quite funny. I had to call in Pelicans to pick them up.
3140034
Your explanation makes sense on a basic level, but in the novels (yes, I read them and hold them as canon for the Hayloverse over the videogames) the Arbiter has shown to be very savvy as to how the universe is run. Now, even if he's been deposed, executed, or simply forgotten in your work, one faction or the other of the Sangheili would notice how humanity (the largest threat to them other than themselves or the return of the San'Shuum) had suddenly gained a new ally that could possibly turn against them? Just that thought, once revealed to their general population has the power to temporarily unite them for the sole purpose of ensuring that humanity doesn't gain even more power over them through this new race.
Oh jeeze, they took down one of our ships! What should we do guys? I mean I'm panicking here maybe we should just leave them alone....
Who the fuck am I kidding
SEND EVERYTHING AND SLAUGTER ANY WHO GETS IN OUR WAY!
Fcuk it, not even that.
MAC UP YOUR ASSES WITH OUT LUBE!
3140176
lol.
What really sucks is when someone kills your 3-star Brute Chieftain by raising the walls on Fort Deen. Now THAT's failure.
3139621
Oh that's easy. The Griffons are stupid.
3140486
oh god... the walls. I loved cutting armies in half and then using a cryobomb and hawks.
3139688
Phew. It's just gonna be a delicious curbstomp.
3140642
Considering they are a pre atomic civilization trying to take on a nuclear space-faring power, it's unlikely they'll succeed. Perhaps they just don't realize the extent of human technology. If they don't, they will soon enough.
3140651
I never really got the hang of it. Plus I prefer combined tank and wolverine armies over infantry. Considering I don't play Cutter much (trying to go full ODST is just a bad idea in general, as tanks will kill them easily, and the MAC doesn't make up for that) I don't have much idea of how to use infantry all that effectively, although playing as Covenant I may occasionally use Suicide grunts/Brute squads to man towers.
3140825
Dr. Anders super aircraft were so damn strong. Vultures and Hawks... it's not even funny how fast a group of them could chew up a scarab.
3140837
Scarab isn't all that scary when you have a raging arbiter (Scarab's main cannon can't fire at arbiter if he's right up in it's face), a fully teched-up MAC or cryo bomb, and a full army of tanks, banshees, and/or hawks. Vultures not so much, seeing as vampires can stasis them (full army of vultures vs Covenant player = vultures dead, seeing as it takes only one vampire to stasis one). Brute Chieftain can take a bit of a pounding. The leaders who have trouble combating scarabs are the Prophet, who relies on his shield for most of his health and doesn't have the armor of the other two Covenant (plus all it takes is a single D-bomb + vampire stasis to kill him) and Forge (carpet bomb isn't very useful vs. scarab, and Grizzlies have terrible canister).
*reads the section with Varen* Ohh.....
They don't have a DAMN clue! lol Do they really think the humans of HALO are so few or so weak willed that they would stay away and abandon their new friends (who the whole human public now has excited eyes on) of ponies and deer? That "destroying" a single ship (an act I find extremely hard for them to do in a way that they would be able to pull off even once, much less multiple times; they'd have to sneak aboard, a virtually impossible task for a species without proper tech to assist them, since the shields of the ship should be able to handle just about anything the grypons can throw at it after being able to at least handle a few rounds from a covenant ship) would convince them to stay away? Apparently they have not learned the phrase "Play with fire and you'll get burned." What I'm waiting to see is how the humans will react to this. Does varen even know about those MAC strikes on his airships a bit back? Does he know humans (while to a much lesser degree than the covenant could) can initiate a devastating strike from orbit where the gryphons would not be able to reach them (even if they got their own ship in the air, human ships would detect it before it even left the atmosphere)? Obviously the humans can't play god and just start shelling everything, but I'm happily waiting (and hoping) for that obviously powerful "shock and awe" element that is just waiting to be used. I mean, even the scorpion tank hasn't made an appearance yet. Either way, I'm just waiting for the glass to tip a little more. 
I'd be right there alongside them, using my own skills in HALO to fight off the gryphons in the name of Luna.
I do wonder though. Surely there must be at least a few gryphons that don't agree with varen and the whole of trying to conquer equestria.
*reads the section with Celestia in the hospital* *claps*
3139688 Oh thank you.
3139972 I agree with this (despite me talking about said MAC rounds..... got a little excited
). Anyway, about the Sangheli, I believe that has to do with the time of this story (which is around HALO 4 somewhere if I remember right from past conversation). It would put up that most of the covenant is now once again on unfriendly terms with humans, but there are a few who stayed with the humans (like refugees I guess) so I also wonder what happened to them and whether or not they've gotten wind of Equis. Don't remember where I got that information from.... though admittingly it could be from another fic I read, and if so I apologize for being wrong here. Anyway, I'm glad the covenant (not the races, just the group) aren't going to be involved in this (though I've always liked Hunters).
3140034 Guess that answers that...
3140076 I agree.
"Equish" should be capitalized as it's a proper noun (the name of a language).
Also, I believe you confused clip and magazine in the passage about field stripping and maintaining pistols.
...And my suspicious are correct, the Atomic Age Deer (Ecotonians) will indeed be entering this war.
1950s-1970s Atomic Age tech + 2200s "Space Opera" tech vs. 1200. Medieval Ages tech. This will be interesting...
3139972The humans had hundreds of planets, tons of ships and man power and were at least a space fariing civilization. Warrior race or not, the gryphons are screwed. They don't neet a MAC, normal missiles would suffice. After all they already shot one.
I am seeing now, The Griffin Capital, Burning, with two or three frigate size UNSC ships flying over the ruined city. most of the griffin army destroyed or simply outmatched, most of the gryphon population pleading loyalty to the ponies, deers... and humanity. While the other nations seeing in fear the power of the UNSC.
the gryphons are doomed.. they power may be great against the deers and the ponies but against an alien race that can simply wipe them out... just let them see our power, they will fear us. in other words, we are their covenant.
3141332 The UNSC has lost many worlds to the covernant, only a handful survived or just refuges, the military of the UNSC is still weak and rebuilding, so the UNSC might send only few ships, probarbly for troops and supplies. they cannot risk losing MAC rounds just to prove their power and superiority, their presence alone is enough. if not... then a simple bombarment with only missiles that is more cheaper than MAC rounds is enough to shake the griffin kingdom.
Arrogance and ignorance will be King Varen's downfall, but I'm wondering what he has got planned. After all, one can't be too careful. My only guess is that he's gonna try and kill two birds with one stone, in the Deer nation and Manehattan.
But it could be more than that, I'm surprise that footage shot didn't even scare him. Soon though, he will get his soon enough.
I'm just thinking of how funny it would be, if the Master Chief pop'd up out of a slip-space teleporter, with Mendacit Bias, and they start killing the Gryphons.
Anyhow, don't you think it's time to uphold 'The Mantle' by now? I mean, shouldn't they, because I'm pretty sure the UNSC may have enough Forerunner tech to support in manufacturing and speeding up time for every resource, more or less.
Also, who does Daniel have in mind? I can only think of two ponies right about now and can think of how that would affect more to one than the other.
I really hope this doesn't turn into the Griphons somehow miraculously fighting the humans on even terms, because even if they somehow destroy a ship or something the Humans will be pissed and have backup at the ready to rail their asses into oblivion... What I am saying is the Griphons can think they have a plan an all, but in the end it will fail.
3141617 A few ships is more than enough. Destroy supply lines and show force.
3141617 UNSC Grafton has already fired of two MAC rounds and they are hardly scarce. They are standard armament fore UNSC frigates. But you are probably thinking of a orbital defense MAC and they are ass expensive to fire at they are OP. But they are defensive structures without a FTL drive and the griffin empire is hardly within range, making them useless ass demonstrations of power.
3141617
Unlikely, after the war with the covenant, the UNSC recovered fast, very fast, not slowly. They have a entire fleet of cruisers up and ready by 2559. Even if they can't use MAC's (they did in this story) Archer missiles would easily tear them apart.
3141936 The Grafton used MAC rounds and fire them by request of Daniel (and the Princesses) to the Griffon Airships, these airships were wiped out in second, however, the ship is a frigate, it don't have many MAC rounds and it shouldn't be used lighly.
Meanwhile in Avalon's Sun
There is no such thing as "OVERKILL"
I leave home for a few days, and now look at this mess
King varen will see who the dumb animals really are when that monster of a spaceship known as the UNSC Infinity appears above there capitol city and starts bombarding it into nothing
not to mention the UNSC probaly has more soldiers than the entire griffon population
3142046
Make's sense, but even if there was a short supply of MAC rounds, Archer missiles and 50mm point-defence gun's can easily rip through Griffon Airships defences.
Can't wait for Varen to get a MAC round to the face
Clearly not all dumb animals know this.
3142280
...there is only "open fire" and "I need to reload".
3145097 When they finally researched these weapons for that... the UNSC will be in Forerunner level in technology
I had only one small problem with this chapter...
After all the explanation of no-one being able to read Equish, you the had the Captain reading the letter that had been delivered warning of the coming attack. Did he learn to read the language at some point that I missed?
Otherwise, having fun reading this one even If I know nothing of Halo (I know, Blasphemy!)
3150002
He's been learning it on the sidelines. Though he could also have run it through Tommy for translation.
3140050
Tuscany kicks ass
Gryphons now burnt as burnt toast
Not enough dakka